093 – Attending the Nymph and Haildo Reunion! #4
Seo Ye-rim said,
“Yoo Ji-hyun. You don’t have any materials about witches for me, do you? You might fool Haildo, but you can’t fool me.”
I was flustered in various ways. It was because Seo Ye-rim’s tone was overly aggressive and sharp. Her arms were crossed, and her expression was so furrowed that it seemed hostile.
Ssh-.
Clack-.
Yoo Ji-hyun closed the drawer and stood up.
“Ye-rim. Are you saying I’m lying? I don’t even know what nonsense that is! And you’re so rude! I’m your senior. I’m older than you. Can you show me a bit more respect?”
Yoo Ji-hyun was cheerful but bold. I couldn’t help but admire how she boldly spoke her mind, not backing down from Seo Ye-rim’s blatant hostility- but I still couldn’t make sense of the situation.
Seo Ye-rim soon spoke to me.
“Haildo. Yoo Ji-hyun was lying. The witch thing was just an excuse to call you to her room. She’s already dated more than five guys in the process of pulling you in. And you. You have a boyfriend right now.”
If what Seo Ye-rim said was true, I felt I would be shocked in many ways. Depending on how Yoo Ji-hyun reacted, the story would unfold.
“……”
However, Yoo Ji-hyun remained silent, as if pierced to the core.
Her fist was tightly clenched, and she shook slightly, looking quite anxious.
It seemed like she was about to jump at Seo Ye-rim and grab her by the hair.
I asked Yoo Ji-hyun,
“Do you have a boyfriend? Didn’t you say you were single?”
“I don’t have a boyfriend. Seo Ye-rim, she’s slandering me.”
“Seriously. Then what about this?”
Ssh-.
Seo Ye-rim held out her phone to me.
There, a woman who looked like Yoo Ji-hyun was seen hugging a masked man.
To anyone’s eyes, they looked like a loving couple!
“For reference, this was taken yesterday. Apparently, he’s the son of an executive from the Osa Group. If he’s not your boyfriend, then what is he? I’m genuinely curious.”
“…We’ll break up soon.”
Is this for real?
I felt dizzy in many ways.
The ring on her ring finger was indeed a ring that someone who had a real boyfriend would wear!
And it was quite exciting in various ways.
I felt like the character from the morning drama that Ahn Ahn sometimes watched on TV.
“You know, lately, since Haildo has been doing well, I know you were trying to charm him. Doctors. Lawyers. All the guys you’ve met have been successful. Haildo! You better pay attention to this!”
Ssh-.
Seo Ye-rim opened the drawer and took something out.
Yoo Ji-hyun shouted, “Hey! What are you rummaging through without permission!” but she couldn’t overcome the power of the S Rank Awakened, Seo Ye-rim.
Seo Ye-rim brought the unwrapped item to the faucet, turned on the water, and it swelled up like a balloon, soon spraying water everywhere.
“Look at this! There’s a hole in the rubber!”
“…Oh, maybe it’s because it’s old. I should throw it away. I’ve been busy with Awakened duties─.”
“Yoo Ji-hyun! I know you just wanted to ride Haildo’s coattails! You haven’t worked as an Awakened for five years! What’s busy?”
Yoo Ji-hyun hasn’t worked as an Awakened for five years?
Didn’t she rise to at least B Rank?
I hadn’t participated in any reunions or connected with my peers on social media, so I really had no idea.
What on earth was going on?
“Yoo Ji-hyun. You said your dream was to become Korea’s top Awakened.”
Yoo Ji-hyun was skilled and passionate.
It puzzled me that she hadn’t worked for five years when she was someone with great potential. She sighed and said,
“I’m tired of it now. People die. They get hurt. Honestly, I’m just sick of it. I want a normal life. Haildo. You can understand my feelings, right? I just want to get married normally, have kids normally, and live normally. We weren’t even Awakened by choice in the first place.”
“……”
It was a story that made one think a lot.
A considerable number of those among my peers yearned for a normal life.
Naturally, when you’re dragged into life-threatening situations from a young age, it makes sense to feel that way.
It’s honestly not easy.
I never imagined Yoo Ji-hyun would feel this way too.
“Ye-rim, can you step outside for a moment?”
“Hey, don’t you know this girl was trying to seduce you? Like a flower snake, she was trying to bite your nape! It’s honestly funny. When you were languishing as a permanent D rank, she was never interested in you. Right?”
At the mention of being a permanent D Rank, I felt a sting in my heart.
Because it was true.
“If Yoo Ji-hyun showed interest in you, it’s because she’s interested in your conditions, not you as a person. Yoo Ji-hyun, did she ever reach out to you when you were struggling as a D rank?”
“I don’t know about that, but Ye-rim, please step outside for a moment. Take Kkungkkungi with you.”
—Kkungkkungi…!
The Squirrel Beast Kkungkkungi raced up from Seo Ye-rim’s legs to her shoulders.
Seo Ye-rim glanced back and forth between Yoo Ji-hyun and me before darting out of the room.
“Do as you wish, you idiot!”
Clack-.
Finally, the door closed, and Yoo Ji-hyun opened her tightly closed mouth.
“Il-do, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring you here to talk about this. I really just wanted to give you the witch materials. I’m not lying. I swear.”
“I know. I never thought of you as my type anyway.”
Yoo Ji-hyun’s type was tall and idol-like handsome men.
Up until she dated her third boyfriend, I had seen her social media and profiles occasionally.
Yoo Ji-hyun had very particular preferences for good looks.
Honestly, I thought I was reasonably good-looking myself, but if you asked me whether I was at the celebrity level, I would coldly say no.
“Anyway, I’m sorry in various ways. Seo Ye-rim, she’s a bit too straight to the point. I’ll definitely scold her. I shouldn’t have suggested taking the electric car. But the electric car was nice, wasn’t it?”
Seo Ye-rim was the type to hurt others carelessly with her bluntness.
I had experienced quite a few shocks because of her.
It would be better for her to fix that for her sake.
“……”
Now, Yoo Ji-hyun was blushing, unsure of what to do.
I also didn’t know what to say.
However, I decided to say this one line.
“I’ve lived a long time as a D rank, you know. It’s not fun. Now that I’ve finally regained my momentum, I’m going to reach the peak this time.”
When I was dumped by Yoo Ji-hyun a long time ago, I was honestly shocked.
At one point, I thought I would become so amazing that she would regret breaking up with me─ that was the kind of childish fantasy I had.
So, am I amazing now?
No.
I’m still insufficient!
Honestly, I need to become an S Rank Awakened!
“……”
Yoo Ji-hyun continued to remain silent.
If there was a stone statue, it would feel just like this?
“Anyway, take care!”
Whoosh-.
I also could no longer bear the embarrassment and, with nothing more to say, quickly left the small one-room apartment.
# # #
“You should thank me. If you married a woman like that, you would have been tormented the whole time you lived together and would have ended up divorced, losing everything in alimony and child support. Do you understand?”
Seo Ye-rim spoke while driving the electric car, delivering her speech.
But my expression was furrowed.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“What do you mean? They are women who marry for conditions, not love! When you were a D rank, they didn’t show any interest, but now that you’re doing a little better, they’re showing interest. I know a lot about such people!”
“Do you know about them too?”
“Do you know how much attention I got when I rose to B, A, and S rank? Haildo. You may not know, but Awakened ones like us must meet the right partners. Not for conditions, but for someone who can see our inner selves and potential.”
That was a surprisingly romantic statement for Seo Ye-rim to make.
Of course, since Seo Ye-rim came from a wealthy family, many men would approach her based on conditions.
It felt rather deflating in various ways.
I never expected to experience such things at the reunion.
“Haildo. If women start flirting with you in the future, contact me. I’ll check if they’re good women. Women can spot each other easily! Just like today! The same happened with Cash!”
“……”
“If it weren’t for me, your life would have been in big trouble! You should thank me!”
While I couldn’t quite believe it─ there was that chance.
I reluctantly decided to thank Seo Ye-rim.
“Thanks.”
“It doesn’t sound sincere. Anyway, if any girls approach you in the future, have them checked by me first. I think of you like a little brother.”
“Little brother? I’m older than you!”
“I’m a higher rank than you!”
That was true.
If you have more money and a higher rank, you become a senior among Awakened ones, and in that case, a big sister.
In reality, Seo Ye-rim, a second-year student, was doing much better than I, a first-year student.
With a huff, she looked smug.
“Find someone around you.”
Around.
That word suddenly reminded me of someone.
“What about Ari? She’s the same B rank as me, and our economic conditions are similar. And Ari gets my humor really well. Whenever I talk, she bursts out laughing.”
“What? Yoo Ara? Hey! She’s three times more scheming than Yoo Ji-hyun! Ugh, I won’t say more, but she’s absolutely off-limits!”
Seo Ye-rim was absolutely disgusted.
Perhaps she still had rivalry against Yoo Ara, who had been seen as a rival before.
In fact, I also thought of Ari as a sister-like friend.
Ari still looked like she did during high school.
She was so innocent and pure that if I looked at her like that, I felt like I would turn into a bad person.
Ari had always treated me like a real older brother.
It felt like she was even more of a little sister to me than my actual younger sister.
I wished I could replace my younger sister with Ari.
“Anyway. Haildo. I’ve saved you once. This is a debt. And you have a chance to repay that debt. Are you free this weekend?”
“This weekend? I have to hang out with Kkungkkungi and Bang Bang. I think I also need to groom Kalilnoi’s feathers. I also need to listen to the nymphs chatter.”
Scrunch-.
Seo Ye-rim frowned.
“Sounds like no big deal. Well, good. There’s a gathering of Telos Corporation executives this week. But the executives are all my distant aunts, uncles, and cousins. It’s basically a family gathering. You need to attend.”
“Why would I attend a gathering of Telos Corporation executives? You said it’s a family gathering?”
“Why? Because I don’t want to hear annoying things! This year, there’s no one more suited than you. I’ll give you the script and schedule from the trunk later, so memorize it until the weekend. Got it? You can think of it as a vacation at a nice place! We’ll be taking a private jet!”
