Chapter 162

The feelings Erica harbored toward Inna were not clearly defined as love or guilt.

It was, in fact, confusion.

It had been no more than two months since Erica had first met Inna. In that time, one could grow fond of someone, one could develop guilt, but if Erica were asked whether she had built up enough love for Inna during that time to sacrifice her own life, she would unquestionably say no.

If Erica had genuinely lost her memories, then her decision to let go of Inna and whatever Inna had done could have been justified by her past self before she lost those memories. Given that neither what Inna had done nor what her past self had thought of Inna was clear, it was an incredibly difficult decision to make — one that would shape the rest of her life.

But could she ask for more time here? Could she simply choose to avoid associating with Kim Ha-neul? Could she ask Inna to stay by her side exactly as she was, knowing full well that once the game’s ending was reached, she would return to her original world?

No, she couldn’t do that.

Because of that, her course of action was already set.

All Erica needed to do was speak the words.

“Can’t you just wait for me a little longer?”

And so, the sudden, uncharacteristic whining that escaped her lips startled both herself and the listener.

The speaker knew, both for herself and for her counterpart, what would benefit the situation the most.

For the listener, however, regardless of whether or not Erica had recovered her memories, it was evident from her expression that rejection was inevitable.

“What… did you say?”

Even the woman, who had resolved to show only a cold demeanor to Erica, found herself momentarily speechless.

After a brief moment of consideration about how to handle the situation, the girl — now resolved to openly admit her feelings — brazenly declared:

“Of course, just wait for me. In return, I’ll give your feelings a positive consideration.”

“Do you know what you’re saying right now?”

“I know perfectly well. I’m asking you to keep investing time in me. And I’m telling Kim Ha-neul not to go her way but to stay with me.”

The audacity of her statement prompted Inna to question if Erica truly understood the implications, yet Erica was mostly aware of the weight of her words.

“And I’m also fully aware that the old me would have never uttered such words.”

“…Your memories have returned, haven’t they? If you have them back, shouldn’t you be glad? Didn’t you try to keep away from me? Now I’m willing to go quietly.”

Though Inna attempted to maintain her stance of rejection, it’s impossible to sustain such attitudes when faced with someone who knows her sins.

The woman appeared flustered, like a girl, and Erica, watching her closely, responded.

“Clearly, my memories haven’t returned. This is merely a matter of logical inference. Things the old me wouldn’t do versus what she might.”

Erica is not wise. She is not intelligent. Those qualities are embodied in someone else, not her.

But since that someone else was someone very close to Erica, it’s only natural that she’d been influenced.

“Yu Inna, what you’re doing now is nothing more than running away. You’re simply avoiding the problem,” Erica said, as if recounting her own internal monologue, reaching the conclusion of a prodigy.

Or maybe, that conclusion had already been within her reach.

Like preparing for a test by predicting the questions a teacher might ask while organizing one’s notes, Erica’s mind always retained the potential to reach other realms of understanding.

“But you haven’t regained your memories, so why are you lecturing me?”

Though she was smiling, it wasn’t genuine.

Inna’s gaze, icy and grave, would have made the old Erica slightly uneasy, but now she continued without pause.

“I said it already — it’s in the realm of reasoning. I understand who I am now, and thus, I can easily consider the decisions my past self might have made.”

Erica knows herself.

Because she had once tried to save someone only to lose both that person and the one standing beside her, she no longer wants to let anyone leave her side or send them away.

Even if someone unfamiliar had tried to harm her, she would have used all her might to shield them with protective power. But if someone she had grown fond of had done the same, she would have yelled and forgiven them, keeping them close.

So, what kind of transgression could have caused her affection to hit rock bottom? Erica already had a vague idea.

“So, it wasn’t about the side that introduced me or the side I was introduced to, right? It’s about other sides — precious friends in our class, friends you used to try to approach me.”

Inna’s use of friends as a strategy was something Erica had already been informed of through the system.

However, the people presumed to be Inna’s friends had only posed a threat to Erica, never managing to corner her.

Because, to Erica, they were merely potential adversaries. It’s normal not to feel severely affected by adversaries, whether they bother or don’t.

Therefore, why hadn’t the woman who clearly knew these friends were just irritating her to some extent stopped at that point?

Erica’s usually active mind quickly arrived at the answer.

Because crossing that line might have been irreversible, at the moment of memory recovery, it might have been impossible to forgive actions that went so far as that.

“So, naturally, I asked you not to even speak my name, and here we are with both the student council president and Kim Ha-neul implicated. It’s not difficult to deduce if you think carefully, but why haven’t I been able to think this much until now?”

“…You’re just speculating.”

“Yes, that’s right. Without regaining my memories, I won’t think my thoughts are entirely correct. I might be 90% right, but there’s 10% chance I’m off. I’m not foolish enough to rely solely on 10% to make decisions about relationships.”

The reason for the 10% margin of error:

It’s not because Erica doesn’t trust her own mind.

It’s simply that the system message lied to her initially about her parents’ business trip, so she distrusts the system, hence the 10% discrepancy.

Simply put, if the system had not misled her in any way, Erica would have been confident at 100% that her deductions were correct.

In Erica’s eyes, Inna, who until recently appeared as a mature woman, had transformed back into that of a girl.

Because:

She had been running at full speed through the main storyline without a single breather,

living in anxiety about being pursued by someone,

and receiving no help from the blessing of wisdom she once relied on, unable to fully utilize the intelligence she prided herself on.

Had she been given even a little, a tiny bit of place or time to rest properly,

she would have been able to arrive at the deductions she was now sharing with Inna much earlier.

But since she hadn’t until now,

Erica’s home, where she was currently living, was from the start a room that suppressed supernaturals.

Erica subconsciously knew that her house was filled with visible and hidden CCTV cameras and recording devices,

so she couldn’t take the normal rest that anyone else could.

The incidents that occurred during the math trip among her so-called friends naturally interfered with her rest.

However, because recent dates, the one from the other day with a friend and yesterday with the student council president, had slightly eased her tension,

and because her body had been somewhat restored by spending a night at the friend’s house, which felt safer than her own,

Erica was able to deduce most events related to Inna today. Of course, Erica also suspected that there were more secrets in her and Inna’s past that she hadn’t uncovered.

If they were truly childhood friends,

then the past Erica would have also felt guilty towards this girl and there would inevitably be unknown aspects about her.

And given that Erica’s past was “not herself,” even the past Erica wouldn’t have been able to make perfect guesses.

However, this extent of deduction for today was enough.

To prevent Inna’s actions from moving too far away, Erica had to cater to her moods and be somewhat passive, almost forced to reveal her clumsy sincerity.

“So, what’s your point?”

“I already said this before. I’m asking you to wait a little longer.”

Due to Erica’s “deduction” strategy, she gained control of the situation, compelling Inna to listen to her choice.

Inna, who was trying to pursue Erica, belatedly realized the change in the girl standing before her.

The realization was that the gold-colored eyes, symbolizing wisdom and which Inna despised, were hovering over the left pupil of the girl she loved.

“If you feel even a sliver of guilt towards me, stop running away and stay close by.”

To whom was Erica’s final remark directed?

To Inna, who had erred but still used Erica’s excuse to flee?

Or was it to herself, who had always perceived the characters in this world as from visual novels rather than real people, and thus avoided engagement?

The drama revolving around Inna’s unauthorized absences concluded when the girl, intended as the protagonist, allowed her pursuer to stay by her side.

“Again, you are ready to forgive.”

The real mistress of the house, who had listened to their conversation, pressed both the temples with her thumb and index finger of her left hand.

“The side that so easily falls for sweet words and decides to stick around has a problem. And the side that allows them back also has issues.”

With her right hand, the woman tapped the table as a smile crept onto her lips.

“So, I, your older sister, will help ensure you don’t develop such bad habits again.”

The woman recalled an event that had occurred a few days ago.

An incident where she had caught her younger sister comforting herself.

Her sister’s friend perceived it as an event where the younger sister intentionally ignored her.

But, would the truth change anything if it reached the friend?

Would the friend think she should reciprocate the younger sister’s forgiveness by being kind to her?

Of course, harm done could cause resentment, and it was possible to let it out during a time the younger sister wouldn’t remember.

“There are some people who absolutely should not be forgiven.”

On a day when there was less than a week left until the vacation,

a woman who knew the information that Erica had unknowingly suffered and had unknowingly used that suffering to her advantage devised a plan.

Not a plan to win Erica’s heart,

but a plan to fully conquer her body.