episode_0256

“I’ve been looking for you for a long time! What the hell are you doing here?”

Jin Ye-seo, who had come closer, pushed her disheveled bangs over her ears and snapped. Instead of the smell of sweat, a sweet body scent tickled the tip of my nose and vibrated in all directions.

“What are you doing? I was going to Hwayanggwan. The departure ceremony will be here soon.”

“That’s what it was? I’m also… ”

“What is it?”

“No, I couldn’t find it no matter how hard I looked for it during the briefing session, so I thought maybe he got scared and ran away.”

“What? Who would be scared… ”

Jin Ye-seo responded by sticking her tongue out in an annoyed manner to the angry response. It seems like she is becoming more and more playful as time goes by, unlike her first impression.

Perhaps because the school was under emergency control, we couldn’t find anyone else in the garden. Before we knew it, we were standing side by side and walking toward Hwayang Hall.

“From what I hear, I guess you volunteered for the operation too?”

“That’s what you’re talking about… Of course.”

Jin Ye-seo, who heard the question, looked at me as if asking why I was asking such an obvious question.

“I was the first one to volunteer among the first year students. I didn’t even need to listen to the whole explanation. This great opportunity came to me… ”

“There’s no need to volunteer for a life-threatening operation, right? This draft order was only issued on the Northern Demonic Front.”

“Instead, you can establish an overwhelming military achievement. In order to rise to the position of the head of the military, it is not enough to just have the achievement of being deployed on the regular front. At the very least, you should have a record of volunteering for an operation that could determine the survival of the Republic, like this one.”

“Head of the military?”

“Yeah. My dream is to become the Minister of War in the future.”

Jin Ye-seo nodded. Perhaps because of her desire to achieve great things, she clenched her fists and showed her enthusiasm.

“Come to think of it, Choi Woo-jin also said that his dream was to become the head of the military… ”

“What? He’s absolutely no match for me. He can’t even win a one-on-one duel, so what the… ”

“Um… Isn’t Choi Woojin more likely right now?”

“Huh? Hey. What are you talking about?”

Jin Ye-seo, who had been laughing as if it was ridiculous, suddenly stopped walking. She was about a head shorter than me, so her eyes were wide open, but she didn’t seem particularly threatening.

I felt annoyed at being teased, so I said something back… but it seems to have gotten through surprisingly well.

While I’m at it, I’ll tease you a little more.

“Professor Kwon Chan-yeol said that during the special lecture. Graduation grades are also a significant factor influencing promotion to a high-ranking position. Did he say that it is almost certain that the student who graduated with higher grades in the same class will be promoted? Choi Woo-jin is clearly in 2nd place and you are in 8th place… ”

“Hey!! I told you not to say that!!!”

“And there was also a probability calculation problem. Come to think of it, this is what you told me. If you reverse-calculate the graduation grade ranking, you said that there is an 85% chance that the grades from the first semester of the first year will be carried over. And the single-digit ranking goes even further and converges to almost 96%… ”

“Really!! Who is to blame for that!!!”

Jin Ye-seo, who couldn’t stand it any longer, screamed with a face that turned bright red. You kept teasing me because you liked seeing things like this. Now, I can understand your feelings to some extent.

“It’s because I keep losing to you! Do you know how much I’m struggling to recover my ranking points? And now…!”

“You said you’d break up if I didn’t treat you with sincerity… And you already forgot? You’re always the one who picks a fight with me first.”

“That, that’s… ”

“I don’t know. Even if I didn’t touch it, I might have abstained once out of courtesy… ”

“This profit… !”

Jin Ye-seo, who couldn’t refute the argument because she felt something inside, just kept running around. Looking at the tears in her eyes, it seemed like it was time to stop. I had a feeling that if I continued to do this, the sadism that I had been hiding would wake up…

“Okay. I was just joking. Let’s stop now and go to Hwayanggwan… ”

“… Imjeo.”

“What?”

“Take responsibility.”

I was about to sigh and start walking again when Jin Ye-seo, who still seemed unwilling to move, suddenly blurted out something unintelligible.

“What responsibility?”

“Becoming the Minister of War has been my dream since I was young. Our Baek Gwang family has been a prestigious military family that has produced several ministers for generations.”

“… But?”

“But because of you, that dream is now ruined. Because you beat me up like a dog in the ranking match! And the honor of the family is about to fall to the ground. What are you going to do about this? Shouldn’t you take responsibility for it?”

“What the… Hey! Why is that my responsibility…!”

“Ah, I don’t know! Take responsibility, take responsibility, take responsibility, take responsibility… !”

“… ”

I was speechless at the sight of him stubbornly covering his ears and throwing a tantrum. Watching him throw a tantrum, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

If they really wanted to hold them accountable, they wouldn’t have acted like that. If they were to hold them accountable for every win or loss in the ranking matches, Yoram would be embroiled in lawsuits all year long.

Rather, it is closer to a joke that comes out without hesitation. Now is the time to accept it appropriately and end the conversation.

“Okay, you just have to take responsibility.”

“What?! Really?”

I nodded my head as I watched Jin Ye-seo playfully clinging to me. Then, Jin Ye-seo stopped whining as if nothing had happened.

It was an incredibly quick change of stance.

“You just said it with your own mouth? You’ll take responsibility? ”

“I told you so. Stop it… ”

“Promise.”

“What?”

“Promise me. Hurry up!”

Jin Ye-seo urged him on, holding out her thumb and little finger. I have to keep the tempo appropriately. If I don’t, I might just end up lying on the floor.

“I’ll definitely take responsibility. No matter what happens. Is this enough?”

“… Yeah! Hehe… ”

I spread my fingers out and hooked them with hers. Jinyeseo nodded repeatedly with a bright smile. Is it really that good to be promised a future livelihood? Even if you’re joking, I can’t understand it.

“But how can I take responsibility? Are you asking me to give you a job at the Black Lotus Family?”

“What? What about getting a job? I’ll take care of that. You don’t have to worry about it anymore. Just keep your promise. Got it? ”

“Oh my… ”

“Ah, okay! Let’s stop talking about that. Let’s go quickly. If we keep doing this, we’ll be really late for the ceremony. If we’re late when everyone is watching, it’ll really be embarrassing… ”

“Just a minute.”

“Why? I said there really isn’t much time left.”

However, I stopped Jin Ye-seo. Then, Jin Ye-seo, who had been urging me, stopped moving and made a bewildered expression as if she didn’t know what was going on.

I agonized over it for a while, but eventually I made up my mind.

She also thought she was one of the people who had the right to know about my death. We had crossed the line of death together many times. Jin Ye-seo was a friend and a comrade at the same time. Just like the captain and his sisters.

But I already carry the sorrow of so many people. If something more is added here, it will inevitably feel burdensome.

After becoming close friends, Jin Ye-seo has a cheerful personality in her own way. Just look at the jokes they shared just now.

It feels a little different from the two seniors who have serious and heavy personalities and Yena who has a very soft heart.

So, in this atmosphere… wouldn’t it be possible to confess my situation a little more lightly?

“Hey, you know… ”

Thinking like that, I quickly began to explain. As calmly as possible, just mechanically explaining the situation.

A childhood spent as an apathetic person, powers and magic that manifested one day, witches who knew the true nature of the power, the leader and sisters who were defeated by them and taken hostage, a life with a limited time limit that was gradually eating away at me, etc.

Since this was already the third time it had happened, it wasn’t that difficult to sort out the circumstances.

“… So?”

After finishing the long or short explanation, Jin Ye-seo opened her mouth with a still dry voice.

As I continued speaking, I occasionally glanced at Jin Ye-seo’s expression. However, since she was looking at me with a blank expression the whole time, it was difficult to gauge her true feelings.

But it is certain that the reaction is more subdued than before. Maybe this time…

“So… I guess I won’t be able to graduate.”

“… ”

“I’m a little disappointed too. We were in an overwhelming first place, but it ended up like this. But what can I do? I have to accept it.”

“… ”

“Come to think of it, when I die, my ranking will go up one level. That wouldn’t be so bad for you either. You said you needed a high ranking score, right? Think of it as my last gift to you… ”

-Kwaaang!

And then a loud explosion rang in my ears. I stayed in the air for a long time, feeling a cold pain.

After destroying several trees, I finally crashed into the ground. I had a gut feeling that something was wrong.

The last words… I shouldn’t have said them.

Soon after, indiscriminate kicks and punches began to fly at me. I took them quietly without even thinking about evading, and fell into reflection.

Why are all the women around me so violent? Well, I’m not in a position to talk about others. Maybe it’s just that people who are similar are attracted to each other.

Before I knew it, the kicking and punching had stopped and I felt a light weight sitting on top of me as I fell. I opened my eyes slightly and saw the face of a blonde schoolgirl looking at me with a cold expression.

“… Hey.”

It was so close that it filled my field of vision.

“Just in case, just in case, I’m asking… ”

And Jin Ye-seo spoke in an even more subdued voice than before.

“What you just said. You weren’t joking, were you…?”

“… ”

“If that’s the case… I think even you would be a little disappointed. So… ”

“… Really.”

Jin Ye-seo stopped moving after hearing my answer. After a moment, she opened her mouth in an even more subdued voice than before.

“… And now I have less than two months left to live?”

“Yeah.”

“… ”

A heavier silence descended. I was beginning to sense that something was wrong.

I tried to twist my body with all my might, but Jinye almost perfectly restricted my movements.

And then he turned his head slightly and was about to speak to her again.

“I’m sorry for hiding it for so long. But still… ”

“… It’s enough now.”

“… Done? What the… Huh!”

It happened in a split second. Something wet and lukewarm touched my lips. Only after a moment had passed did I realize that it was Jin Ye-seo’s lips. She had her entire upper body pressed against mine, and she was coiling around me like a snake.

“Ugh… Ugh… !”

“Cold… Cold… ”

The conflicting sounds that came out of my throat and Jinyeseo’s each crawled on the floor. Soon, a smooth tongue slipped between my gums and invaded my mouth. It instinctively sought out my tongue and began to coil around each other like mating snails.

Just like our shapes are intertwined now.

“Cold… Ugh… Chubby… ”

Jinye Seo held me back for a long time. She pushed herself to the limit.

The tongues that had been entangling each other finally let me go when I was on the verge of suffocation. Immediately afterwards, a terrible cough came along with the forced air.

“Coolook, coolook… ! Coolook… !”

Jin Ye-seo, who was sitting on top of me, was just staring at me. As soon as my coughing stopped, I started questioning her.

“Coolook… Hey… !”

“… ”

“The last time I asked you… you said you didn’t like it… !”

“Oh, that?”

And Jin Ye-seo, who heard my protest, answered without even blinking an eyebrow.

“It’s obvious it’s a lie.”