This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 274

Bora’s Perspective

“Th-the competition…?”

A competition, huh.

Honestly, I was a little flustered.

It was such a sudden suggestion, after all.

Of course, I already knew something like that existed.

I was aware that there were quite a few competitions held more often than I thought.

I even entertained the thought of giving it a try at one point.

That feels like ages ago now, but it was true.

Yet, the reason I never acted on it was simple.

I thought it would be pointless to try.

Sure, now that I’m living at Dogun’s place, things have gotten better, but until recently, I was living under the watchful eye of protection disguised as surveillance.

Literally, wherever I went, there was always a staff member from the Association with me, and that was even the case when I was at home.

So, when would I ever find the time to send a manuscript to the organizers of the competition?

Of course… I could have tried.

If I really put my mind to it, I could have managed to shake off the staff member trailing behind me for a moment or two.

But the problem was… indeed, what would happen after that?

Let’s say I successfully got rid of the Association staff for a moment and somehow managed to submit my manuscript to the organizers.

Even if I succeeded… how long would that secret last?

Honestly, it was painfully obvious.

There’s no way it would stay hidden for long.

And if they found out that I submitted to the competition?

It would become impossible to receive a proper evaluation for my entry.

And that was inevitable because that woman wouldn’t just sit idly by.

Without a doubt, she’d use her power to exert pressure on the organizers.

How am I so sure about that?

Well, it’s always been like that.

That’s just the way that woman operates.

She never says, “Don’t do that.”

She just makes it so you can’t do it, leading you to give up on your own.

From the perspective of someone who has finally made the resolution to take on a challenge, it felt infinitely more disappointing to think that way rather than the other.

If that’s how things are going to be, then wouldn’t it be much better to not start at all?

I thought that way and gave up on challenging myself, and I felt that even if I showed interest in it now, it would only lead to a sense of deprivation, so I didn’t pay it any mind after that…

But Dogun just casually let that out of his mouth.

So it was natural for me to feel flustered.

“A competition… can I really enter?”

No, should I even enter?

Honestly, I did want to give it a try at least once.

After all, isn’t it the fate of a creator to always be curious about others’ evaluations?

And also… thanks to the praises Dogun just shared, I came to realize how wonderful it is to show my creations to someone else and receive compliments about them.

Of course, no matter how many praises you gather from an unspecified number of people, it’ll never reach the level of what Dogun just told me.

But still… that would bring its own joy, wouldn’t it?

On the other hand, that made me more worried.

If I get my hopes up like this only for the Association Chairman to interfere and ruin everything, I would end up feeling deeply disappointed.

So I couldn’t muster a response and was just fumbling about… Did he somehow sense my hesitation?

“Honestly, I don’t know what I can do, but… Bora, if you’re okay with it, I’ll do my best to help…”

Those words, meant to encourage me, echoed in my ears and flowed right into my heart.

They were so sweet that it made me genuinely curious.

“Why…?”

So instead of saying thank you, I just blurted out that question.

It was only natural since I was curious.

What was the reason behind wanting to help me so much?

Was it sympathy after hearing what I just shared?

Or did he perhaps have some ulterior motive?

That’s what I was beginning to think…

Meanwhile, a strange expression appeared on Dogun’s face, as if he had been caught off guard.

It was a strangely embarrassed look.

“Um… it’s because it’s a shame?”

Is that what influenced him?

Unlike usual, Dogun stumbled over his words.

What followed was a long-winded explanation that felt almost like rambling.

“In simple terms, it feels like a waste to me as a fan.”

“A fan…?”

“Yeah. I mean… anyone who sees this would have to be your fan, Bora.”

“R-really?”

“Yeah, especially that first comic you showed; I feel like anyone would love it.”

Seolhwa’s Perspective

At that moment, as Dogun was instantly captivated by Bora’s comic, there was someone else who was still in a quandary due to Dogun, and that was none other than Seolhwa.

There was no other way.

While Yoonseo only perceived that something seemed to have changed between Dogun and Chae-rim, Seolhwa was fully aware of what specific change had occurred between them.

With that understanding, she couldn’t help but feel a stronger sense of crisis, and because of that, she had been entangled in her thoughts for quite some time.

And after this prolonged contemplation, the conclusion Seolhwa arrived at was…

‘First, I need to create a situation where it’s just the two of them…’

That was it.

No matter how much I thought about it, there was no other way.

Given the current scenario where everyone was present, if I tried anything, it would inherently be interrupted.

Especially… it was all about Chae-rim.

I wasn’t sure if it was common for Special-Class Heroes, but considering Chae-rim’s unusually excellent senses, even if I did my best to conceal everything using my talents, she would likely notice immediately and come to check.

In my frustration, I even considered sneaking into Dogun’s Room while he was asleep, but the truth was I dismissed that idea right away.

If Chae-rim happened to be out of the house, that plan might work, but with Chae-rim present in the next room, it would undoubtedly be useless.

If I could even get into Dogun’s room, it would be lucky; Chae-rim would probably come out first and ask what I was doing there.

‘Surely…?’

To insist on using the side room that was right next to Dogun’s tiny space…?

Seeing things this way, suspicion is genuinely frightening.

Once you start questioning one thing, it leads to another, causing you to doubt even things you never considered before.

Anyway… one thing was for sure: if I wanted to attempt anything, I needed to create a situation where it was just the two of them.

And fortunately for me, I had a plausible reason to do just that.

I could probably use training as an excuse.

After all, I’ve been conducting my training in the room to be considerate of Dogun lately.

The problem would be what happens next…

After creating a situation where it’s just us together, what would I do?

How could I break free from the current dynamic and move on to the next step?

After spinning in circles of thought, I cautiously stood up and headed toward the wardrobe.

I opened the bottom compartment of the wardrobe where I had kept something I had carefully stored.

I had ordered it thinking it would be convenient to wear while training, but once it arrived and I tried it on, it was so much thinner than I expected, I couldn’t bring myself to wear it in reality, leaving it just sitting in the wardrobe.

I took it out and tried it on again.

Honestly… until then, I wondered if it might not fit differently than the last time, given how delicious Dogun’s cooking has been, but thankfully it wasn’t that bad.

Maybe because I hadn’t slacked off on my training after passing the qualification exam.

In any case, I took what I had ordered and had only kept in the wardrobe and slowly made my way to the mirror.

As soon as I noticed my reflection in the mirror, one thought came to mind.

‘How scandalous…’

The already thin leggings stretched out to the point of almost revealing the skin beyond them.

What if I got all sweaty in them?

And what would happen if Dogun became excited upon seeing me in that state…?

Maybe I could use that as an opportunity to do something.

The moment that thought crossed my mind, my heart suddenly began to race.