episode_0064

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Han Sua.

As she quietly slipped out of her officetel, her father’s warnings surfaced one by one in her mind.

That most of the people she would meet at the academy would be ordinary civilians.

That she should act cautiously, mindful of others’ perceptions.

That flaunting her wealth would only invite unwelcome attention.

To be as easygoing as possible.

As kind as possible.

To blend in like an ordinary person—

and to make as many friends as she could.

That the whole “mysterious loner” act was outdated, and in this age of the internet, being sociable would help manage her image after graduation.

One by one.

All of them.

“…….”

…Hah. Pathetic.

The ruthlessness of a competitive society—

treating people like machine parts, like slaves to be used and discarded—

when did they ever care about her not having friends while drilling that into her head?

And now they want her to make as many friends as possible…?

How transparent.

They’re just using her image as an excuse to manage the company’s reputation.

“If necessary, you must step on even family and siblings to climb higher.”

That was what her father spat out whenever he saw Han Sua—a man she barely met a few times a year.

Frankly, she still couldn’t agree with that sentiment.

But she understood it.

Everything Han Sua enjoyed now was something her father had seized by stepping on his own siblings.

So she had lived obediently, following her parents’ words until now.

“You have to step on family too,” he said—isn’t that terrifying?

What if they step on me next if I let my guard down?

“…….”

…Well, in the end, the “Be a Good Daughter” project was a spectacular failure.

Tutoring, forced studying—it was obvious there was a limit when her brain just wasn’t cut out for it.

Sorry about that.

A daughter born to parents who graduated at the top of prestigious foreign universities turned out to be a complete idiot,

wasting enough money to buy a house in the suburbs by tearing it up and throwing it into the wind…

…So.

That’s why she was now forcibly stuffed into Miren Academy’s uniform—”Don’t embarrass the family, at least become a hero and be useful.”

She got that too.

So she obediently put on the academy uniform, but—

“Haa….”

She had zero interest in being a hero.

Han Sua loosened the scarf around her neck and let out a lonely sigh.

She didn’t care about popularity or making money.

Beating up vicious villains? What if she got seriously hurt?

Someone stronger could handle that, right?

“Make as many friends as possible”—yeah, right. She’d rather drop everything, hole up in her apartment, and laze around reading manga…

The one she was reading last time—rumor had it the next volume was insane…

The streets were crowded with the morning rush.

Blending into the sea of people, Han Sua cracked her stiff neck with a pop, her loosely tied brown hair swaying gently.

As she stood at the crosswalk, staring blankly at the white puff of breath escaping her lips—

“…Excuse me.”

Right beside her.

A voice came from slightly below.

“Are you… a new student too? Our uniforms are the same. Hehe. Or are you a senior?”

When she turned her head blankly, she saw the top of a black-haired head.

She was fairly tall herself, but if she could see the crown of someone’s head like this, they must be on the shorter side—around 155 to 160 cm.

Han Sua lowered her gaze slightly.

What greeted her was a beaming face.

And, peeking through the open long padding—

a chest of manga proportions.

Flushing for no reason (was this sexual harassment?), Han Sua quickly averted her eyes upward.

“I’m a bit of a… keurich… ahem. I’m bad with directions—is this the right way?”

…What’s with her?

Her pronunciation’s weird.

Is she Japanese?

“…Yeah. Cross here, then just go straight ahead.”

“Thank youuu. Hehe.”

…Cute.

That pronunciation.

64

“I like manhachik too.”

“Manga? Really?”

“Yeah. Know Book Off? Never seen it in Hangukkeu.”

“Hmm… First time hearing it.”

“It’s a used bookstore. There was one near my place in Japan…”

“Ah~”

She had endured enough.

The endless chatter from the front was giving her a headache. Lee Jiyun finally grabbed her bag and stood up.

Rather than bluntly saying, “Could you shut up?”, it was easier to just move seats herself.

“…….”

But unfortunately, Class 1-A was buzzing with voices everywhere.

After wandering around with a displeased expression, Lee Jiyun eventually returned to her original seat.

…Just endure a little longer.

It’s just the first-day excitement.

“Then can I call you Yozora-chan?”

“E-Eh, already?”

“Yeah, no?”

“If you really want to, fine… but isn’t it too soon…?”

This is hell.

From what she could overhear, the black-haired girl in front was named Yozora.

The one next to her with messy brown hair—Han Sua.

A chaebol heiress, if she remembered right.

Even if she didn’t remember others, Han Sua was one of the only two (including Lee Jiyun) to score full marks in the practical exam.

Judging by the situation, she must’ve taken a liking to that Japanese girl.

“Sigh…”

But back then, Han Sua hadn’t seemed this cheerful.

More… cold, maybe?

Or indifferent to things like exams?

…Same thing, probably.

Whatever.

Her head was pounding from those two.

Maybe she should visit the infirmary later…

…….

…Hm.

Just treatment.

Just get treated.

There’d be plenty of other students anyway.

In the end, Lee Jiyun plugged in her earphones and slumped onto the desk, forcing herself to sleep until the teacher arrived.

Ah…

I need a drink…

“So you’ve been in Korea for about three months?”

“Yeah. My parents came for work, so I followed.”

Han Sua loved cute things.

According to the client’s research, her mobile payment history included some otaku game,

and every time she spent millions on it, the game’s banner featured an adorable character illustration.

So Yozora tweaked her pronunciation.

Mimicking someone who had just started learning Korean.

When she tested it on Kwon Namho (who was chain-smoking at the time), his reaction was, “You eat something weird?”

But he later admitted it was kinda cute, so it’d probably work on Han Sua.

…Of course, the crushing shame made her crave alcohol, but that couldn’t be helped.

“By the way, you’re the first person I’ve met here who likes manhachik.”

“Really? …Ahaha. That’s kinda embarrassing.”

“Su… Sua-chan, what kind do you like?”

“What kind? Oh, genre? Hmm… Romance, slice-of-life. Stuff like that.”

“Romance? I really like that recent one where their eye color changes based on their true feelings…”

“……?”

And Han Sua loved manga.

Especially romance.

Yozora had spent days trying to figure out how to use this, but no brilliant ideas came to mind…

So she just memorized the plots and characters of dozens of popular romance manga.

If she said “I like that too” and then admitted “Actually, I don’t know much,” her favorability would plummet.

But if she fed Han Sua’s interests, it’d rise bit by bit.

And once she maxed out that favorability—

“…Hey, Yozora?”

“Yeah?”

“…What manga were you talking about just now?”

“Eh? It’s a trending one on Pixiv. You don’t know it?”

“Uh… First time hearing it.”

“Maybe because it’s a bit… lewd?”

“…….”

“Ah, you don’t like that stuff?”

“I-I don’t need to go out of my way to look at that!”

—she could make “a once-in-a-lifetime request” to Han Sua.

It’d work.

“…….”

What expression would Seo Woojin make?

How would he react?

How would Han Sua—who seemed more innocent than expected—break?

The thought was so tantalizing…

Yozora smirked.

Just a little… dirty.

Rumor had it that today, only the second and third years had classes, while the first years were free to go home.

After mingling with some male teachers (whose names she didn’t bother remembering), I crumpled my empty coffee cup and returned to the infirmary.

Since classes hadn’t started yet, there were no patients.

If there were, that call button thing would’ve rung.

So today, I’d only have to deal with second and third years.

Lee Hayun would probably drop by too, but if it got crowded, lewd activities would be tricky…

Maybe tease her a bit and meet outside the academy later?

Or just visit her place with Lee Hayun.

The thought of Lee Jiyun pretending not to notice,

pretending not to hear,

locking the door and acting like she was just gaming—

was kinda hot.

I’d decide based on the situation.

“…….”

…Speaking of which.

Han Sua.

Why did she seem so oddly… excited?

“Hmm…”

Lee Hayun, maybe, but Han Sua—who was too busy pretending to be easygoing—wouldn’t be grinning like an idiot from the entrance ceremony.

And she was standing right next to Yozora, who’d ruined her life or whatever.

…Is she planning to befriend her just to dump her later?

“Ruining her life” was an exaggeration, but since pre-regression Han Sua had zero friends, it wasn’t a bad strategy…

Sorry, hardworking Yozora, but if I picked up the discarded Han Sua and treated her warmly, taming her might be easier.

Surprisingly useful.

I should reward Yozora later with something she’d want.

Briefly recalling Han Sua’s 20-year-old face (which was very much my type), I indulged in some fantasies—

Gnaw gnaw.

As I absentmindedly chewed the rim of the paper cup, the door slid open without a knock.

First period hadn’t even started yet.

Probably one of the teachers I’d just networked with.

I put on a politely cold expression (naturally cold toward men, and I wasn’t interested in women over 30 anyway) and set the cup down.

“Who is it?”

“…Ah, you are here.”

But the voice from the doorway was oddly familiar.

And very recent.

“Student Council President. Do you have a moment to talk?”

As I wracked my brain, a glimpse of blue-white hair peeked through the door.

Ah, the Student Council President. Baek Seoyeon, was it?

Pretty, but since she wasn’t a hero I remembered, I’d already forgotten her.

I was just going to be politely indifferent, but—

I saw something strange between Baek Seoyeon’s fingers.

“…Sure.”

“Thank you for your time.”

“Yozora”

—a small slip of paper with three letters.

The smile I’d habitually kept on my face vanished instantly.