episode_0043

To my left, a senior in black, and to my right, a senior in white took their places.

Caught between two black and white go stones made of jade, I, a foreign presence, lean more towards black in terms of color.

As expected, since the black stone was placed first, there is one more stone in number.

…I walked along the path with useless thoughts rising from my subconscious.

Walking aimlessly without a clear destination, I decided to ask the two about their lunch preferences.

“Is there anything you’d like to eat?”

“Well… when I actually think about it, I can’t seem to decide on one thing for sure.”

Yuseol scratched her head, lost in thought.

“What about you, Team Leader?”

I turned my head to look at the Team Leader.

After a moment of contemplation, the Team Leader spoke up.

“I feel like having tteokbokki.”

I had the impression that the Team Leader would eat steak with fancy cutlery, so it was unexpected.

“Tteokbokki? Are you talking about the spicy kind?”

“Yes. I like spicy food.”

Hmm… I don’t mind picky eaters, but very spicy food can be tough.

I turned to Yuseol.

“Are you okay with spicy tteokbokki, Senior?”

“How spicy is it? I’ve never tried it before.”

“Oh my. Our Yuseol has been wasting half of her life!”

Suddenly excited, the Team Leader moved to the front and took the lead.

That person… besides otaku culture, there are other topics that excite him.

“Well then. If there are no objections, I will guide you to a place I know!”

Following the confident strides of the Team Leader, we headed towards the city.

***

Following the Team Leader, we entered a franchise restaurant famous for its spicy tteokbokki.

“Um… this feels a bit intimidating.”

As we entered the restaurant, Yuseol muttered nervously.

“Hehe. Don’t worry. Today, we’ll consider it as level 2 for beginners.”

Considering this as level 2? I heard that even level 1 here is spicier than buldak ramen.

Once inside the restaurant, I sat alone and seated the Team Leader and Senior opposite me.

I tried to stop the Team Leader from ordering.

“Um, Team Leader… I think ordering level 1 might be…”

“Oh! Is level 1 not edible?”

I didn’t know the Team Leader was so passionate about spicy food.

Well, we never had the occasion to eat together.

Surprisingly, Yuseol also found the Team Leader’s behavior intriguing.

“Senior, did you know that the Team Leader likes spicy food?”

“Huh? Oh, well, we never ate together so I didn’t know…”

After finishing the order, the Team Leader turned to us and replied.

“Hehe. It’s natural that Yuseol didn’t know. I only started enjoying spicy food since earlier this year.”

“Was there a reason for that?”

“Oh. I have an older sister who introduced me to spicy food as a joke, but I enjoyed it so much that she was surprised.”

That sister must be quite mischievous.

…If this person couldn’t handle spicy food, they would cry after just one bite.

I couldn’t help but look at Yuseol again, feeling worried.

“Are you okay with this, Senior?”

“Well… I’ll try it and let you know if it’s too much.”

“We also ordered kimbap, so it should be fine.”

The Team Leader reassured Yuseol. The two had a synergy just by being together, which was nice to see.

Just like the harmony of black and white, beauty can also be found in the Goguryeo watermelon fields.

“Oh, come to think of it, I forgot to ask the obvious question while focusing only on the cosplay costume. Did you do well on the midterms, Jin?”

In response to the chief’s question, I thought about the midterms.

Although I didn’t know the correct answers, I didn’t struggle much with the questions, so I thought I did well.

“Yes. I think I did okay. How about you, seniors?”

“Hehe. You might not have known, but I’m actually really good at studying,” Yuseol interjected.

“That’s a lie. Ara Unni is terrible at studying,” Seol interjected firmly.

“Seol, come on.”

With Seol’s firm statement, the chief’s poker face cracked, and his tone that maintained the concept became hesitant. I’ve never seen him like this before.

“I help her because she’s in danger of failing every time.”

How bad at studying must you be to ask for help from a younger student?

“Chief…”

“D-Don’t look at me like that. Juniors! Studying isn’t everything in life, you know?”

Well, that’s true, but…

Still, from what I’ve seen so far, the chief seems to be doing well, so I’m not worried.

“By the way, I’m in the top ranks. But still, well… I might not be as good as you, the top student.”

I had a small doubt after hearing Yuseol’s words.

“Oh, how did you know that I’m the top student?”

“Huh? You didn’t know? You’re quite famous at school.”

What?

“Me?”

“Yeah. 1st-year top student Seo Yujin. You’re surrounded by pretty girls, good at studying, and handsome, a fake.”

That’s not what I think- but I didn’t hear Yuseol’s following words.

I was famous for that kind of image.

“Did you forget? Everyone watched you take the oath from the window on the day of the entrance ceremony.”

The chief also chimed in from the side.

…Come to think of it, that did happen.

Anyway, this is quite shocking. I had such a rumor going around about me.

On one hand, looking at myself objectively, the contents of the rumor seem somewhat understandable to me.

I’m close with the four heroines and have such a rumor going around.

…But why me and not Yoon Jiwu?

As I pondered, the tteokbokki set I ordered arrived.

The chief must have ordered quite generously, as there was a lot of rice balls and tempura… the portions were quite large.

“Can you finish all of this?”

“Oh my. It’s a bit much.”

The chief seemed surprised at the amount of food that came out.

I nodded in agreement with the chief’s suggestion to try our best together.

Yeah. If we leave it, it’ll get cold and we can eat it for dinner.

* * *

“Ah, it’s… spicy.”

Yuseol dipped her tempura in the spicy tteokbokki broth, saying it was spicy, but she seemed to enjoy it.

Contrary to my worries, it seems to suit her taste.

Even though I sweat profusely from the spiciness when I eat, the chief elegantly ate the tteokbokki without a single bead of sweat.

“I’m glad Seol is enjoying the food. Let’s eat together like this more often in the future. Hehe.”

“Uh, it might be okay to do it occasionally if not often.”

Is this girl strong against capsaicin? Even in my past life, it seemed like girls enjoyed spicy tteokbokki.

At that moment, a group of female students entered the empty store, aside from us.

Judging by their school uniforms, they were students from our school.

Look at that. Girls enjoy it.

As I glanced around, I happened to meet the eyes of one of the girls, and for some reason, I felt a sense of surprise as she looked at me with widened eyes.

Then they started whispering among themselves.

I was a bit curious about why they were acting like that, but I decided to ignore it and focus on my meal. Maybe they know me or something.

Maybe we’re not in the same class.

Even if I’m not close to them, I still remember the faces of my classmates.

“Juniors, have you thought about what you’ll do after eating?”

“Huh?”

I grabbed a piece of tteokbokki and shivered at the attack of capsaicin, naturally feeling skeptical at the manager’s words.

Wasn’t the plan just to eat and go home?

Seeing my bewildered expression, Yuseol shot back, “What? You weren’t just planning to go home, were you?”

That’s right.

…If I were to say that, Yuseol’s gaze would sharpen, so I wisely kept my mouth shut.

“Hmm….”

Yuseol seemed suspicious, but turned to me and started conversing with the manager.

“Shall we take a walk around first?”

Judging by the atmosphere, it seems like it’ll be difficult to go home early today.

* * *

We left the tteokbokki restaurant and walked through the city.

By the way, we barely managed to finish the large amount of tteokbokki we ordered earlier. It was fortunate that the manager ate a lot.

Yuseol also seemed to enjoy the spicy food, not stopping with her chopsticks.

As we walked through the city, looking around at the various shops, people’s gazes naturally gathered on us.

Only now do I realize that the manager, who usually appears in the club, looks completely different from the elegant lady walking with us.

Her grace and elegance stood out even more.

As long as we don’t talk about otaku stuff, she looks like a rich young lady.

Yuseol seemed familiar with the manager’s appearance, but I still haven’t fully adjusted to the otaku mode of the manager.

However, it wasn’t just the manager who caught people’s attention.

Yuseol, with her shining silver hair reminiscent of silk, exuded a pure and beautiful charm.

Together, they looked like a painting. The harmony of their colors was truly beautiful.

…Both of them have otaku tendencies, but those people don’t know that.

As we walked down the street, the manager’s gaze landed on a corner of the street.

“How about we go there?”

The place the manager pointed to was a store selling various subculture-related goods.

“Oh! I wanted to go there too!”

Yuseol clapped her hands in agreement with the manager’s suggestion.

Well then, let’s go. Majority rules.