Episode 3. Moon Surin (2)

I entered the cafe where Moon Surin was.

Cafe Nakwol (Falling Moon).

“Welcome-!”

Inside, there were several tables and a staircase leading to the second floor.

The charming interior created an atmosphere that seemed like it would be quite popular with women.

On the menu, I saw many drinks I’d never seen before.

Green Shiraz Tea, Low-Fat Hell Strawberry Milk, Ralph Lauren Latte……

As I looked through the menu, one menu item caught my eye.

[Claire Rose Latte]

‘This sounds familiar, like I’ve heard it somewhere?’

I remembered.

It was Moon Surin’s favorite drink. A drink that was even more polarizing than mint chocolate in my original world.

“One Claire Rose Latte, please.”

“Sure thing-!”

After ordering the drink, I took a seat a little distance away from Moon Surin’s.

If I sat too close, she might get suspicious, so I chose a distance that wouldn’t seem strange.

Fortunately, judging by the way she was glaring at her laptop like she wanted to kill it, she didn’t seem like she was planning to leave the cafe anytime soon, so I could just wait for a natural opportunity to strike up a conversation.

[Open Heroine Status Window?]

“Gasp-!”

The system notification that suddenly appeared before my eyes made me almost spit out the latte I was drinking.

What the…? I’d never heard of a ‘Heroine Status Window’ before.

Since it seemed related to the heroine, Moon Surin, I decided to turn it on for now.

As I thought about opening the Heroine Status Window in my mind, the status window appeared before my eyes.

★ Heroine Status Window

[Moon Surin]

• [ Affection: 20 ]

• [ Lust: 15 ]

• [ Appetite: 30 ]

• [ Fatigue: 70 ]

Current State: Ah, I don’t want to work.

This must be the heroine conquest system. There was no such system in the original game.

After pretending to be on my phone for about 30 minutes, while keeping an eye on her, I picked up my half-finished drink and walked towards the counter.

To get to the counter from my seat, I had to pass right by Moon Surin’s table.

Acting as naturally as possible, I walked up to her table, intentionally tripped, and spilled my drink on Moon Surin!

As soon as I tripped, I let out a loud yell to announce my presence, not forgetting to do so.

“Whoa-!”

Fortunately, hearing the scream from the front, Moon Surin saw me trip and the Claire Rose Latte about to spill on her, and immediately created a magic barrier to block the coffee.

As expected of the Chairman’s granddaughter!

I had been prepared to even kneel if she hadn’t reacted and gotten coffee spilled on her, but a talented prodigy didn’t betray me!

“I’m so sorry! I’m really sorry! Are you hurt?”

“Haa, yes, I’m fine…”

She let out a sigh, clearly annoyed that her concentration was broken, and then she looked at my face properly for the first time. Moon Surin’s words got stuck in her throat.

Of course. I’m the protagonist, and you’re the heroine.

My face is so handsome that even I, a guy, was surprised.

Seeing her ears turn red, she seemed to realize she’d been momentarily speechless after seeing my face.

I had worried it might be different from the game, but thankfully, it seems I fit her taste just the same.

“Oh no, is your outfit okay? I’ll pay for the cleaning.”

“Ah, no. It’s fine, I blocked it.”

“Just a moment. I’ll go get a mop for the floor.”

“Stay put.”

Magic flowed from Moon Surin’s fingertips.

The spilled drink on the floor floated up, compressed into a small ball, and evaporated.

“Wow, thank you.”

“By the way… you must be a freshman at the Academy, right?”

“Huh? Yes, I am. How did you know?”

“I memorize the faces of all the students attending the same Academy. Unfamiliar faces belong to freshmen.”

Memorizing everyone’s face? She really must be the student council president.

“Ah, so you’re a senior. If we happen to meet at the Academy, please take care of me.”

“…Yes, that’s right. This is fate, after all. Let’s greet each other if we meet again. I’m Moon Surin.”

It seemed she had no intention of revealing she was the student council president and the Chairman’s granddaughter.

People in power tend to enjoy these little pleasures.

She must be curious about my reaction when I eventually find out she’s the Chairman’s granddaughter.

She’s probably expecting my surprised face, so I guess I’ll have to start practicing my surprised look from today.

“I’m Lee Hoyeon. Well, I should get going! See you later!”

With those words, I quickly left the table.

The sub-quest was cleared, and my main goal was simply to let her know I existed.

After all, Moon Surin was the ‘easiest’ heroine to conquer in the original game.

• It was so frustrating and annoying.

My grandfather had dumped all the work on his granddaughter and gone off to play. He hadn’t even glanced at the Academy.

In the end, I had to handle almost everything myself.

Every time this happened, I resented having the ability to handle tasks.

I had learned to help my grandfather and father from a young age. At first, the adults thanked me and apologized for the burden, but once they realized I could handle everything alone, the pressure on me gradually increased.

Now, I wasn’t sure if I was human or a working machine.

Furthermore, my personality, which made me anxious if things weren’t done perfectly, prevented me from cutting corners.

But now, my stress had reached its limit.

I wanted to quit everything and run away, but I knew better than anyone that wasn’t an option.

However, if I continued like this, I might go crazy. I got up from my office desk and went outside.

And then, I headed to the cafe I always visited.

It was the place I came whenever I needed to relieve stress.

I hoped the large, open windows would relieve some of my stress, but there was also a drink only sold here.

“One Claire Rose Latte, please.”

Outside the cafe window, people were laughing and having fun. They all looked like they were my age, so why did I have to be stuck here?

“Haa…”

A familiar headache started throbbing. Ever since a few days ago, I’d get a headache just by sitting in front of my laptop.

Maybe my brain knew it meant work and was sending rejection signals?

Trying to ignore the headache, I frowned at the endless pile of work, when suddenly I heard a strange scream right in front of my table.

“Whoa-!”

A coffee cup and its contents were flying towards me.

Fortunately, I heard the scream in time to activate my magic barrier and prevent myself from getting soaked.

If I had gotten wet, I wouldn’t have let the person responsible off the hook, so it was a relief.

“I’m so sorry! I’m really sorry! Are you hurt?”

“Haa, yes, I’m fine…”

As I looked up to give the jerk who interrupted my work a piece of my mind, I was stunned.

His voice was as smooth as honey, but more than that… he was just incredibly handsome.

Had I ever been stunned just by someone’s face before?

I’d met plenty of good-looking people in my life, but… the man before me was on a completely different level.

‘Gasp.’

Staring so intently at someone was rude. What was I doing?

“Oh no, is your outfit okay? I’ll pay for the cleaning.”

Thankfully, he seemed flustered too and didn’t seem to mind.

“Ah, no. It’s fine. I blocked it.”

“Just a moment. I’ll go get a mop.”

“Stay put.”

She compressed the spilled drink on the floor and evaporated it with high heat.

“Wow, thank you.”

“By the way… you must be a freshman at the Academy, right?”

“Huh? Yes, I am. How did you know?”

“I memorize the faces of all the students attending the same Academy. Unfamiliar faces belong to freshmen.”

If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t have continued the conversation, but I wanted to talk a little longer with the man in front of me.

Since he was a freshman at the Academy, he should know who I am, so I was curious about his reaction.

“Ah, so you’re a senior. If we happen to meet at the Academy, please take care of me.”

“…Yes, that’s right. This is fate, after all. Let’s greet each other if we meet again. I’m Moon Surin.”

“I’m Lee Hoyeon. Well, I should get going! See you later, senior!”

He left with those words, hurrying off somewhere.

A freshman who doesn’t know me, the student council president? How is that possible?

“Does that even make sense…?”

I felt a strange sense of disappointment and hurt.

I thought I was quite well-known outside the Academy, doing magazine modeling and interviews. Should I increase my influencer activities?

‘Wait a second, what am I thinking?’

I have so much work piled up because I can’t handle it all. And I’m thinking about influencer activities?

I must have lost my mind from working too hard. Let’s get back to work.

The spilled drink on the floor. It was definitely Claire Rose Latte.

‘Does he like Claire Rose Latte too…?’

No. I can’t concentrate!

I can’t focus on my work. Why is the face of Lee Hoyeon, who just left, still lingering in my mind?

We just met today, and we haven’t interacted at all, so why is it that my cheeks get hot whenever I think of him?

Thump- thump-

I could feel my heart beating faster.

Maybe I’d gone crazy from stress due to overworking? I had no idea why I was acting like this.

“Huh?”

The headache I felt every time I sat in front of my laptop was gone.

Even famous doctors could only say that treating stress-induced headaches required ‘eliminating or resolving the stress itself.’ And yet, this headache had suddenly vanished.

‘He said his name was Lee Hoyeon.’

I took out my phone from my pocket and made a call.

“Yes, Secretary Kim. I need you to investigate one of this year’s freshmen. His name is Lee Hoyeon…”

Click

Why had I ordered a background check on a man I met today?

“Ah, I don’t know.”

Moon Surin, with slightly flushed cheeks, turned back to her laptop.