Chapter 142

The delicious smell.

As Erica listened to her stomach rumbling, she sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. Her body felt groggy, but her hunger was overwhelming.

With a smell this appetizing, it must mean Yoo In-na has put her full skills into this—but what’s the occasion this early in the morning?

Though puzzled, Erica decided that her sleepiness could wait. She dragged her lethargic body out of bed and made her way downstairs.

When Erica finally made it to the kitchen, she stood there with a dazed expression as she saw the grand array of dishes In-na had prepared on the dining table.

“Whose birthday is it? Is it my birthday?”

If it was someone’s birthday, she could understand why there were so many dishes. Erica quickly surveyed the spread on the table.

There was vegetable salad that wasn’t there earlier, and a variety of dishes from dried pollack pan-fried with flour, grilled pork belly, and steamed seafood, all meticulously arranged.

“Nope. I just decided to give my cooking skills one last shot before I leave. Once I go, you can store all of this in the fridge and eat it before it gets too old.”

Erica had been confident that this wasn’t a birthday feast but rather a final farewell dinner that In-na had prepared before leaving. Listening to In-na, who was still wearing an apron while simmering kimchi stew, Erica reconsidered her thoughts.

“Oh, Kang Yu-ri has gone home, so I guess it’s about time you go back to your place, huh?”

Having come to the realization that this wasn’t a birthday celebration, but a farewell meal before In-na returned home, Erica was contemplative.

Did In-na realize how much trouble she’d face once she left? Or perhaps, now that she no longer needed to keep an eye on Kang Yu-ri, she was deciding to head back home.

Either way, Erica knew that they were bound to see each other again shortly after dinner, so she picked up her chopsticks.

“Is yesterday’s event not clear in your memory? You know why I’m going back.”

Erica paused to think about yesterday’s events. She had used a委托 system to meet the art club president for dinner. When Kang Yu-ri mentioned she would leave this house, Erica had said her goodbyes—and then…

“Ah.”

As the reason why In-na was going home became clearer to Erica, the events of last night fully came back to her. Sweating cold beads of sweat, she put her chopsticks down.

She had completely forgotten until In-na reminded her. Well, more like she wanted to forget.

Who wouldn’t want to go home after the character from upstairs woke her up last night in the middle of the night for something inappropriate?

So it seemed that In-na, who may have retaliated somewhat but still carried some dissatisfaction, decided it was time to return home.

“Hmm, I’ve reflected on my actions, so maybe it’s okay if I don’t go home…”

“Do you have anything to reflect on?”

“Maybe being too loud…?”

“You? Noisy? You’ve never been loud.”

The tone of In-na’s voice made Erica feel like any further explanation would do no good, so like a guilty person, she fidgeted with her fingers.

Well, she was an adult, this was her house, so why did she feel like a criminal? Nonetheless, In-na must have had some reason to be mad, so Erica thought it best to reconsider her actions.

“System, if there are any missed messages from last night, please show them.”

It was technically from this morning, but the System seemed to understand her meaning and immediately showed the messages, causing Erica to quickly read through them.

[Through the act performed last night, your favorability with In-na has reached 50/50. You have reached the second favorability cap.]

Could it be that feeling apologetic for waking her up during the night increased her favorability towards Erica? Erica felt like questioning how one could gain favorability through guilt, but she swallowed her doubts and moved on because she didn’t want to miss the golden opportunity to calm In-na’s anger.

[If such inappropriate acts continue, the cap will be broken even if conditions aren’t met. Therefore, please refrain from further similar acts.]

Favorability was usually divided into two parts: physical attraction, often referred to as ‘body chemistry,’ and rational affection where intellect and emotions were involved.

She hadn’t realized it before, given that there’d been no ‘H’ events, but could it be that in this world’s game, there were two routes the protagonist could follow?

An ‘H’ route, considered the villain’s road, where one could forcibly increase favorability regardless of consent through inappropriate actions, and a normal route where the protagonist methodically completes tasks and builds relationships in a traditional way?

If this assumption was correct, this world was most certainly a god-tier game. And since Erica was playing this god-tier game, it definitely wouldn’t have appeared in her normal world.

Feeling proud of her analysis skills, Erica suddenly felt discomfort when she noticed In-na sitting across from her, placing stew directly in front of her.

While trying to figure out why In-na was upset, Erica had been distracted by the messages from the System.

In-na had every reason to feel wary of Erica’s body, yet she had cared enough to pay attention to it. Though they were not lovers, Erica considered In-na as a close friend.

Additionally, Erica was beginning to believe that In-na’s decision to leave stemmed from the noise that disturbed her last night.

[In-na’s strategy to pursue you has been updated.]

Thankfully, the message did not disappoint Erica’s expectations as it displayed fresh data. Though her stomach was growling, Erica quickly decided to review this new information.

[After yesterday’s incident, In-na has decided to stop pursuing you. However, you now have a new barrier; when faced with embarrassing actions or words, excitement comes easier to her. Whether it’s good or bad that In-na has decided to give up on pursuing you is debatable. Perhaps it’s both.]

After setting aside the new barrier brought upon by last night, Erica felt unsettled to find no explanation why In-na had chosen to stop pursuing her.

The updated profile declared In-na’s abandonment of pursuit as certain, though it lacked any useful insights. Why did Erica’s favorability seem to increase while the message remained so cryptic?

Although Erica wanted to confront the message, she decided to push it aside for now, as she looked up at In-na.

Seeing the sheer amount of food that must have taken all night to prepare, Erica felt a prickling sense of guilt she thought was long gone.

“Hmm, In-na, you can call me by my name now.”

“Whatever. Since we aren’t going to see each other anymore, what’s the point of calling by name?”

The refusal to call her by name felt odd.

In-na almost seemed like someone else. Her self-proclaimed childhood friend appeared to be someone unfamiliar, causing Erica’s eyes to widen. However, another notification drew her focus back to new messages.

[The reason In-na is so persuasive is due to her strong self-esteem, which enables her to influence others. Her ability to influence will gradually weaken due to yesterday’s event and resulting guilt. Characters harboring resentment toward her may have higher chances of revenge, increasing the likelihood of protagonists succeeding in pursuing her. Additionally, In-na’s probability of being pursued as a sub-protagonist will skyrocket.]

It was then that Erica understood the fundamental cause of In-na’s decision to leave.

‘This is because of guilt.’

Despite the shame-filled memory that Erica wished to forget, she hadn’t anticipated that the disturbance created would have such a profound influence, even affecting her so-called superpowers.

Guilt doesn’t simply vanish when someone forgives you, even if they were the cause of that guilt.

Recalling her past when, after rescuing someone from bullying, she herself became an outcast and bore guilt for driving away the person she had tried to save—Erica knew this all too well. Because of this, she hesitated to offer In-na comfort too quickly.

‘Who do you think you are?’

‘Who do you think you are to interfere in my life and end up ruining yourself?’

‘Did you think I would be grateful?’

‘Did you think I would fall in love with you because of that?’

‘Dream on.’

‘In fact, you only ended up causing me more harm.’

‘Because of your meager pretensions of kindness, I ended up with the guilt of harming the person who tried to save me. Do you understand?’

Perhaps In-na would despise someone offering her comfort at the moment, much like another person once did in the past.

Erica picked up her chopsticks and started to eat again. In-na, who usually took care of Erica like a mother, paid no attention if Erica ate or not, finishing her own rice neatly and placing her dishes into the sink.

“I have something I want to say… no, never mind. I’ll go then. Sorry for being so possessive over you during my stay.”

She gracefully hung her apron on the chair she had removed it from.

Unlike how Erica often perceived her hair as blonde or crimson, In-na’s originally dark hair with hints of light green fluttered behind her.

In-na then bowed deeply and apologized to Erica before leaving.

After In-na’s departure, Erica stopped eating a few times, then put her chopsticks down.

“I’ve lost my appetite.”

[Your permission to be called by name has been declined. Favorability maintains at 50/50.]

Erica had lost her appetite.