episode_0327

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In the end, my attempt to check Yozora’s neck during first period ended in complete failure.

Of course, even if I had seen it, there’d be no way to tell whether Seo Woojin had left the mark or if, as she claimed, some other guy had. And I was fully prepared to track down Seo Woojin later and grill him for answers.

But before that, I just wanted to see it with my own eyes. That’s how I’d put it, I guess.

My gaze, tinged with an odd fixation, lingered even during break time, but I still came up empty-handed.

Yozora was always busy laughing and chatting with Han Soo-ah or someone else right next to her, while I, as usual, spent my time sitting in the very back row, listening to music.

There was no way I could just walk up to Yozora and say, “Hey, can I take a quick look at your neck?”

I briefly considered making up some excuse to walk past her, but unfortunately, I couldn’t think of anything plausible.

And the idea of cozying up to her like her other friends? No thanks. The thought alone made me sick to my stomach.

So that left me with only one option…

“…….”

Lunchtime.

Come back as late as possible, check Yozora’s neck while she’s already seated, then return to my spot.

Unable to come up with any other plan, I jotted down a small doodle in the corner of my notebook—where I’d roughly summarized the key points—and slumped over my desk.

Seo Woojin.

When I see him today, I’ll punch him first, then interrogate him.

No, I’ll go beat the crap out of him during lunch.

A very simple thought, really.

327

The matter with Baek Seo-yeon ended without any further developments.

Shortly after, I was kicked out of the student council room and made my way down the stairs, rolling my stiff neck.

Honestly, I was convinced her heat cycle was the problem.

The idea that her body would inevitably heat up when she touched me, and that the only way to resolve it was by pressing against me—it made sense.

Though I did have some lingering doubts. Like, how was she planning to deal with it after all the sex we’d had?

Plus, it’s common knowledge that gumiho are notorious for their promiscuity—so much so that it’s practically a racial trait.

I’d even started imagining that Baek Seo-yeon might start dropping by my place every day.

Maybe today, like we talked about last time, we’ll go at it on that couch again.

But alas, it seemed we weren’t quite at that stage yet.

If she’d been the type to be openly into lewd stuff from the start, maybe. But given how disgusted she’d been, it was only natural.

She was the kind of girl who’d say, “Masturbation just hurts,” completely unaware of her own sensitivity.

This was something that would just take time—slowly reshaping her preferences.

“Ugh…”

Even if she was a healing-type, fatigue was inevitable, huh?

Stretching my stiff limbs as I walked, I soon found myself in front of the first-floor infirmary.

Passing through the hallway lined with nameless potted plants, I grabbed the doorknob and turned it.

“Hello, Teacher!”

Inside, a student who looked like she’d never listen to adults sat on the infirmary bed, dressed in her gym clothes.

If Lee Ha-yoon had a lively image and Yozora had a punchable one, this girl fell somewhere in between.

From her hairstyle to her makeup, she gave off an outgoing vibe—the type who probably had tons of friends.

Come to think of it, I might’ve seen her among the groups of students who occasionally visited the infirmary in small clusters.

Either way, there wasn’t anything about her that particularly drew me in, so I slipped into my usual kind teacher act as I stepped inside.

“Hello. What brings you to the infirmary? You don’t seem hurt anywhere…”

“My wrist! I’m just acting fine right now, but I sprained it during sparring earlier.”

“Ah. You should’ve called for me sooner, then.”

“I was about to when you showed up. It’s fine!”

“Well, I’m glad.”

Chatter from someone I had my eye on was pleasant, but idle chatter from anyone else was just noise.

I gave a short reply and moved to the desk.

There, a now-cold cup of coffee sat, radiating its presence.

Since chugging it down in this state was out of the question, I set it aside near my laptop.

“Want to come over here and sit down?”

“Just a sec~…”

Behind the scent of coffee, faint traces of dust, sweat, and an even subtler hint of fabric softener.

Along with these smells—evidence of her recent exertion—I took her slightly swollen wrist into my hands.

Then, I noticed the silver ring on her left ring finger.

I wasn’t particularly interested, but it seemed like decent small talk, so I carefully brought it up.

“Is that a couple’s ring?”

“Yep! My boyfriend and I saved up from part-time jobs to buy it!”

“It’s pretty. Must’ve cost a fair bit.”

“Not really. It’s not a famous brand—we just picked it for the design. We couldn’t afford to splurge too much. Hehe…”

A fleeting conversation, just to keep the mood light.

As I continued treating her, my attention shifted to something else—her clothes.

Her gym uniform.

Come to think of it, both Lee Ha-yoon and Seol Da-bin had been wearing gym clothes earlier too.

“…”

A brief moment of hesitation.

Then, deliberately slowing my treatment, I asked—while keeping my eyes fixed on her wrist.

“Are you a second-year, by any chance?”

“Huh? Yeah, I am. Class 2-B. How’d you know?”

“I ran into another second-year earlier, and they were in gym clothes too.”

“Ah~ Right now, the Evolution and Mutation classes are using the sparring hall and training center. I’m in Evolution, by the way!”

“Evolution… Actually, I know a few people in second-year Evolution.”

“Wait, really? Who? How many?”

Her eyes sparkled as she grinned at me.

Even though I was still focused on her wrist, I could tell—she was the type who believed eye contact was essential for conversation.

Her attitude practically screamed, “If they’re in Evolution, I definitely know them.”

No reason to lie about something like this, so she was probably right.

For me, this was convenient—it made it easier to ask around. But I had to be careful not to arouse suspicion.

So after another brief pause—and recalling something from the past—I casually continued.

“A student named Seol Da-bin. Though I wouldn’t say we’re exactly close.”

“Ah, Da-bin! How’d you meet her? At a part-time job or something?”

“We bumped into each other on a rainy day, and she paid for my dry cleaning. She was with her boyfriend at the time.”

“Hmm~ Now that you mention it, she did say she was broke a while back. When was that?”

“Must’ve been a while ago. Two weeks to a month, maybe?”

“Timing kinda lines up, I guess…”

It occurred to me belatedly that Seol Da-bin might not like me talking about this, but it was too late now.

Besides, even small bits of information were valuable when I was trying to piece things together.

Not the best topic, but I could always ask her to keep it a secret from Da-bin later.

A flimsy cover-up, but better than nothing.

“At first, I was kinda scared because of how tough she looked, but she was nicer than I expected.”

“Pfft, you were scared? Da-bin’s sweet. She buys me treats all the time too. Well, she always says I have to pay her back later, but still!”

“But she does look intimidating…”

“Yeah, yeah. I get it. Just her face gives off that delinquent vibe, right?”

“Not something I’d say to her face, though.”

“Da-bin hates that kind of talk. Says she’s been misunderstood since forever.”

In that way, she was kinda like Han Soo-ah.

But calling her just nice didn’t quite fit—she had a bit of an edge sometimes.

Nodding to myself, I mentally updated what little I knew about her.

Though from what I remembered, Han Soo-ah didn’t have any real complexes about her appearance.

She did seem uncomfortable with the lecherous stares aimed at her chest, though.

Has a bit of a temper, but generally nice around people she knows.

That’s how I decided to remember her before moving the conversation along.

“You know how I mentioned earlier that she paid for my dry cleaning?”

“Yep. Da-bin.”

“If her boyfriend had looked just as scary, I probably would’ve let it slide.”

“Ah~ Her boyfriend. Super sweet-looking, right? They’re childhood friends, apparently.”

Seol Da-bin’s boyfriend.

In the past, I hadn’t dug deep enough to know anything beyond his existence—not even what he looked like.

Now, at least, I knew his face.

But aside from the fact that they’d been dating for over ten years, I had no other info on him.

“He did give off that model student vibe.”

“He is one, pretty much. Except his grades are kinda low.”

“Grades?”

“Yeah. He’s moving up to third year, but he couldn’t do the internship over break, apparently? Sucks, but…”

Before the semester started—

Meaning, just a few days after I’d returned to the past.

I recalled him visiting the infirmary once.

If I remembered right, he’d said he came to check it out because the first-floor storage room had been repurposed. So he’d been at the academy, then.

A slow learner, huh.

I filed that away for now.

Not exactly useful, but who knew?

Finishing up the treatment I’d been dragging out, I murmured a response.

“Must’ve been hard on her, being both his girlfriend and childhood friend.”

“Maybe? She seemed more frustrated than anything, but deep down, she might’ve been upset too.”

Unlike me—trying to wrap up the conversation—she stared off into space, reminiscing as she answered.

Given what she’d said about the internship, I hadn’t expected much from a third party’s perspective.

But this was more interesting than I’d thought.

“Frustrated how…?”

“You know how it is. ‘Why can’t you just try a little harder?’ That kind of thing. She vented a bit in front of friends. Said her boyfriend was stuck at the academy again over break.”

“He must’ve been trying his best, though.”

“Da-bin’s seen it firsthand, so she’d know… Maybe she just couldn’t help feeling disappointed? They’ve known each other so long, they’re practically family at this point.”

“Family, huh.”

“You know how you act all prim and proper in front of a new boyfriend, but once it feels more like siblings, you let loose? I’ve been dating my guy for almost half a year, and I’m starting to get comfortable too. But Da-bin’s been with him for ten…”

In short, the longer you’re together, the less excitement there is compared to the early days.

It did suggest there might be an opening to slip into, but the info was still too vague to be useful.

…On the other hand,

it was valuable intel—

confirming that there was a gap

between Seol Da-bin and her boyfriend.

“Ah, you’re all done. You can go now.”

“…Huh? Wait, when did you finish?”

“Just now. And, uh… keep what we talked about between us, okay?”

“Secret?”

“Yeah. Kinda turned into gossip by the end. And it’s not like I’m close with her or anything.”

“Ah, got it. Say no more.”

There’s a way to get close to Seol Da-bin.

Even if I didn’t make the first move, just sticking around Lee Ha-yoon would ensure I’d see her constantly.

The chances of becoming friends with Seol Da-bin?

Unclear.

I’d try multiple approaches, but failure was still a possibility.

So then, the probability that she’d enjoy being with me—

That that enjoyment would outweigh what she felt with her boyfriend—

Even knowing I’m her friend’s boyfriend—

Even after thinking of me as trash—

The odds she’d turn a blind eye—

“…Would it even work?”

Back in the quiet of the infirmary,

I leaned back in my chair—now much more relaxed—and let the cold coffee slide down my throat.