episode_0119

Backed into a corner, on the verge of becoming a chaotic battleground with no way out, I somehow managed to survive.

It was a situation where Hong Yeonhwa’s revelation and Cheon Soyul’s fury almost erupted simultaneously.

But they say if you keep your wits about you, a rope of salvation will eventually descend.

I really like this story (?).

And that rope of salvation that saved me, surprisingly, was the students of Red Tiger Academy, who began to flock around, starting with Hong Yeonhwa.

“Excuse me, wait, no. I just need to talk to my companions for a moment, ah!”

Just as the spark of suspicion was about to grow into a roaring flame, a miracle happened: the female students of Red Tiger Academy surrounded Cheon Soyul at the perfect moment.

And because I possessed the wisdom of never missing an opportunity, I quickly used Concealment to escape the area.

“Phew.”

Sister Jiwoo’s stealth technique was, of course, top-tier even among A-class abilities. Deceiving the attention of students, no matter how talented, wasn’t that difficult.

…Except for one person.

“…”

“…”

“…”

“It’s a bit burdensome when you just stare at me so quietly.”

I endured the red gaze shot from the side, clearing my throat.

Hong Yeonhwa, who had precisely pinpointed my escape, asked with a bewildered expression.

“Are you a womanizer?”

“…”

She’s cutting straight to the core. I couldn’t find any counter-arguments.

Because it was the truth…

“Womanizer, that doesn’t sound good.”

But simply agreeing to it was another matter entirely. Wasn’t this short trip meant to soothe Cheon Soyul in the first place?

To cause more problems here and return to Cheongsong would be the worst possible outcome, no matter how you looked at it.

“…Ahem.”

Therefore, what I had to do was simple.

I furrowed my brow, glancing at Hong Yeonhwa.

She naturally recognized my rather blatant gaze, and soon, seeming to understand its meaning, she gave me a contemptuous look.

“You’re not trying to ask me to pretend I don’t know about that, are you?”

“…”

“What a crazy womanizer.”

Her tone was incredibly sharp, unlike her polite demeanor from moments ago…

But my position, unable to express my dissatisfaction, made me quite sad.

“…Things are a bit, well. Complicated for me and for her over there. It’s complicated.”

I felt the need to explain things to some extent. I had no choice.

Originally, Cheon Soyul had permitted me to have relationships with other women.

Of course, cases like Sister Jiwoo’s, being immediately after her and second, might need to be treated as a bit of an exception, but—

Anyway, a promise was a promise.

Though it would be truly hard for common sense to comprehend, my relationship with Cheon Soyul was more complicatedly intertwined than just an engagement.

I resented this situation, having to explain such things to a complete stranger, and a girl one year younger at that. What a fate.

*****

“Well, really.”

Hong Yeonhwa was dumbfounded.

Of course, she was.

Lee Hyunjin’s story, his explanation, was somewhat long-winded and complicated, but it wasn’t too difficult to understand.

Sweeping her hand across her mouth, Hong Yeonhwa systematically began to summarize Lee Hyunjin’s story.

So… this man had been with another woman, not his current lover next to him, on that day, and she knew about it?

They had a big fight over it, but they had already resolved the situation between them.

Therefore, she hoped I wouldn’t bring up old stories and reignite the flames.

That seemed to be the core of it.

Hong Yeonhwa pressed her lips together for a moment, then a strange thought suddenly popped into her mind.

‘Does Cheongsong Academy have such a culture…?’

This was a story that was extremely difficult for her to understand.

How should she put it? As the only daughter from a rather esteemed family, it felt like an adult story too difficult for her to follow.

‘Could he be lying…?’

Naturally, suspicion also arose. Hong Yeonhwa secretly shot Lee Hyunjin a suspicious glance.

What if this man was just making up stories as he went along to escape the situation?

…But that wasn’t the expression of someone telling a lie.

This was probably the truth.

Which made it even more absurd.

Could such male-female relationships truly exist in this world?

Hong Yeonhwa felt a little flustered, yet somehow a tingling sensation in her chest.

It was like peeking into a new world.

‘…Hmm, snap out of it.’

Nonetheless, reason still outweighed curiosity in the current situation.

Hong Yeonhwa shook her head briefly to clear away the distracting thoughts.

“Well, alright. I understand the story. You don’t seem to be lying, either.”

“…!”

And at her first words, Lee Hyunjin’s face immediately brightened.

He hadn’t expected her to accept this story so readily.

Even while recounting these tales, Lee Hyunjin was someone who understood common sense and social norms very well.

Lee Hyunjin bowed his head to Hong Yeonhwa, his expression filled with a surge of emotion.

“Thank you…”

It did feel rather ridiculous to express gratitude for something like this.

But he still had to do what he had to do.

Lee Hyunjin thus expressed his gratitude to Hong Yeonhwa. And slowly, just as he was wondering how to best soothe Cheon Soyul.

“Well.”

“?”

“I think it’s a bit too early to be grateful…”

Hong Yeonhwa spoke again, her tone somehow significant.

Cold sweat dripped down Lee Hyunjin’s cheek.

“What are you talking about…?”

“There should be give and take.”

Lee Hyunjin asked, and Hong Yeonhwa responded.

Lee Hyunjin’s eyes narrowed.

“…Are you trying to demand money or something?”

“…”

And a wisp of flame flickered along Hong Yeonhwa’s hair for a moment before disappearing.

It was like a certain Pikachu sparking when its emotions surged.

“What do you take me for…? I haven’t lived so poorly as to extort money from others in such a way.”

“Oh…”

Lee Hyunjin exclaimed in admiration, his expression showing his surprise.

Though he was also a pureblood mage, ice didn’t just well up or cold air flow out when his emotions stirred.

Not unless emotions were pushed to their absolute limit, that is.

In any case, there was another mage with a rare trait here.

‘Is it because they’re similar types?’

Lightning or fire. They felt pretty much the same to him, but that was certainly not something he could say in front of Cheon Soyul and Hong Yeonhwa.

For mages, such words were tantamount to a trigger for a tantrum.

Anyway.

“Then what, is there something else you want?”

Lee Hyunjin tilted his head slightly, asking Hong Yeonhwa’s intention once more.

Even if she didn’t want money, there must be something she desired from him.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have brought up conditions. She would have just blurted it out to Cheon Soyul instead.

Receiving Lee Hyunjin’s calm gaze, Hong Yeonhwa tilted her head slightly to the side.

“It’s simple.”

“Those who say that have never asked for anything truly simple so far.”

Lightly ignoring his interjection, Hong Yeonhwa pointed to one spot.

One side of the amusement park, a large stadium that looked like it had been carved out of a mountain…

Lee Hyunjin’s eyebrows twitched.

“No way?”

“Yes.”

Hong Yeonhwa curled the corner of her lips slightly, glancing at Lee Hyunjin.

“Would you have a match with me?”

“…Hoh.”

“I’d like to witness the skill of the ‘Ice Empress’s’ disciple, which they say is so extraordinary, firsthand.”

*****

“Yes, yes. What was your name? Ah, Seona. Here you go.”

Cheon Soyul wasn’t thinking. Because she was utterly blank.

She merely scribbled with the pen as she was swept along, going with the flow.

She didn’t know how things had ended up like this. But at least, she vaguely understood that ‘that’ Cheon Soyul’s popularity was immense even at Red Tiger Academy…

Seeing so many students her age asking for autographs confirmed it.

‘…No, there’s no end in sight.’

Cheon Soyul inwardly frowned. Taking advantage of a brief lull, she quickly scanned her surroundings, and it seemed the number of people had increased.

She knew she was a fairly well-known mage in the current awakened society.

But she didn’t know it was also true for the students of Red Tiger Academy, which had a rivalry with Cheongsong Academy.

Piecing together bits of conversations she overheard, it seemed to be the influence of the Cheongsong Festival Eight-Person Tournament.

‘I didn’t even win!’

She was only eliminated in the second round, wasn’t she!

Even though Lee Hyunjin, who stepped over her to advance, went straight to the finals.

Why were so many people flocking to her, and why was it so quiet on Lee Hyunjin’s side?

It was the moment Cheon Soyul was about to wonder, ‘Maybe my beauty is influencing…’

“…Oh.”

Only then did she realize.

No, wait.

‘Where did this bastard go…?!’