Your Commander-in-Chief – Chapter 249

“Hi, heeek…”

“Great job today.”

I looked down at Jupiter, who was sprawled out like a rice cake at the dungeon entrance.

It was currently 7 in the morning.

It was just about the time for office workers to begin waking up, but for me, it was a decent wake-up time.

“Uh, Blood Demon King…”

“Yeah?”

“How did I do today…?”

Today’s Jupiter?

He had started off shaky, but now things were different.

“Good.”

Jupiter stared blankly at my words, mouth agape.

Seeing him so happy with just a little praise made me think I should compliment him more often.

“Hehe…”

Jupiter, who was squirming on the floor and chuckling, logged off.

He must have worn himself out from being dragged along in my ruthless pace.

After all, it was way past bedtime for ordinary folks.

I too should be heading out soon.

Using the Return Stone, I planned to wrap up my day by organizing items in the warehouse back in the Capital City.

What a truly fulfilling day it had been.

*

Emerging from the capsule, I spotted the shining screen of my phone.

Curious about what was up, I turned my head to check the screen, and there it was—a message from Sohee.

What could Sohee want at this hour?

I tilted my head but reached for my phone to see what the message said.

Sohee – [Yeo Na. You’re not still sleeping, are you?]

Sohee – [Yeo Na. I’ll be at your house by 8:30, so get ready.]

Sohee – [Yeo Na? Yeo Na. You can’t sleep in. Today is an important day.]

I frowned as I read the messages.

An important day? The only important thing for me was Deron’s raid.

While I blankly stared at my phone screen, I suddenly recalled something I had forgotten.

“Ah…”

It started as a sigh.

A 16-year-old beauty.

After finishing middle school, I had been holed up at home playing Deron.

That’s right. Today was the entrance ceremony for high school.

“Argh!”

Then it became a scream.

High school students in South Korea experience an insane amount of studying that is recognized worldwide.

Becoming a high schooler meant I would have significantly less time to live in the world of Deron.

“Aaaaah!”

Next came despair.

I dropped my phone to the floor and knelt down.

There was no time to sit here like this.

I got up from the floor, grabbed my phone, and began typing a reply to Sohee.

Me – [Of course not. I just woke up.]

Sohee – [Thank goodness… If you had been sleeping, I’d have to carry you.]

I let her know I wasn’t asleep.

I threw my phone onto the bed and dashed toward the bathroom.

Sohee had said she would arrive by 8:30.

I had plenty of time to spare.

After finishing my shower and stepping out of the bathroom, I ran into Harang in the corridor.

He was lazily yawning while scratching his messy hair.

“Oh, you’re up already?”

“I’m not up.”

“What…? You didn’t sleep again? Today is the entrance ceremony, you know?”

I crossed my arms and frowned at Harang’s words.

Why the heck did he know my schedule better than I did?

The Harang in this world was truly a mysterious creature.

“What are you staring at? Go dry your hair.”

“Ah, I was about to do that anyway.”

“Just hurry up and get ready. I’ll be going in place of Mom.”

In place of Mom?

I squinted my eyes, recalling a fuzzy memory.

I wasn’t sure when it was, but when I went to the living room for a very late dinner as usual, Mom said:

“Hayun.”

“Yes?”

“I’m really sorry… I don’t think I can make it to your entrance ceremony…”

“I don’t mind.”

“Still…”

At that time, I couldn’t understand why I was so worried about a high school entrance ceremony.

No, more accurately, all I wanted was to quickly finish eating and log into Deron.

What had Mom’s expression looked like back then…

She had looked very regretful.

“Mom’s not here?”

“She’s on a business trip.”

“Well…”

It hadn’t bothered me back then, but now that I thought about it, I felt a bit sad.

I nodded while running my fingers through my damp hair.

“Got it.”

Returning to my room, I plopped down on the floor and started using the hairdryer.

Listening to the whirring sound as I zoned out, I lost track of time.

I was now familiar with the task of drying my hair.

Once I dried my hair thoroughly, I approached the full-length mirror in my room to check my reflection.

A small frame and a cute face.

But I wasn’t satisfied.

I pondered while squeezing my soft breasts over my underwear.

Soft – soft –

Why wasn’t this body growing?

Even my chest remained the same.

Didn’t girls in their growth spurts usually grow like crazy day by day?

It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that seeing Sohee’s increasingly larger chest confirmed that.

“Um…”

Honestly, I didn’t care what size my chest was.

Having a big one had more inconvenience than benefits.

My main concern was my height.

Looking at my pretty face showed for sure that I had inherited my mother’s genes.

Even I had to admit I had a face that could make anyone gasp.

Being this pretty, good at games, having a nice personality, and let’s not forget studying.

Whenever I took exams, I was always in the top 10 of the entire school, so I could say I was the most perfect middle school girl, no, high school girl.

That was the objective assessment up to this point.

I sighed as I looked at my short stature.

I thought I would grow taller and be at eye level with Sohee when we entered high school, but my height was still the same.

How was it possible for the sizes of the uniform I had fitted in middle school and the one I had fitted for the entrance ceremony to be the same?

It was truly a sad reality.

The time was now 8 o’clock.

Plenty of time left until Sohee arrived.

I slipped on my school uniform and headed to the living room.

There, Harang was tidying his hair in front of the mirror, looking sharp.

Normally a mess, he was actually connecting these dots now that Sohee would be coming.

I crossed my arms and glared at him disapprovingly.

“You’re not the one participating in the entrance ceremony, you know?”

“What…?”

“What are you getting all dressed up for?”

“I mean… if it’s an important occasion, I should look presentable.”

“That’s important for me, not for you.”

“You crazy girl…”

“Is that something you say to your cute little sister?”

“You’re totally nuts…”

I looked down at myself at Harang’s words.

I was puzzled because he was reacting so coldly.

Aren’t I cute?

When I checked in the mirror, I really did look cute.

The black knee-high socks biting into my thighs and the slightly settled skirt above.

The black innerwear and the large ribbon on my chest drew attention to my figure.

“Aren’t I cute?”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

“I’m just stating the objective truth.”

“Sigh…”

Harang neither agreed nor disagreed.

Instead, he exhaled a loud sigh and brushed all his hair back, changing his hairstyle to a slicked-back look.

His already fierce-looking face appeared even more intimidating.

After that, Harang fell silent.

He merely sat on the sofa, arms crossed, and frowned as if he was uncomfortable.

I also had nothing to say, so an awkward silence settled between us.

I didn’t know how long it had been.

The moment the clock struck 8:30, my phone screen lit up, and a call from Sohee came through.

“Hello?”

[Hey, Hayun. I’m here.]

“Should I go out now? I’m all ready.”

[You’re wearing your school uniform, right? Not your middle school uniform, the high school one.]

“Yeah.”

Harang, who had been sitting next to me, stood up and started heading outside the moment the call began.

I followed him out while continuing the call.

“Thanks as always, Sohee.”

[We’re friends, right…?]

“Usually friends wouldn’t go this far.”

[What, then… more than friends…?]

More than friends?

If it was about being best friends or close friends, that was definitely a possibility.

“Sohee wants to be more than friends with me?”

[Yeah.]

“But we’re already more than friends, right?”

[Ah…]

As I stepped outside, I waved goodbye to Sohee’s sedan, which she always took.

Ending the call, I waved towards her.

“Sohee!!!”

Whenever we were heading somewhere, Sohee always came to pick me up.

Today’s entrance ceremony was no exception.

As usual, Sohee lowered the window and waved at me.

I rushed over and got into her sedan with Harang.

Harang sat in the front seat with the driver while I sat in the backseat with Sohee.

“Hello, sir.”

“Thanks as always.”

Sohee and Harang exchanged a brief greeting before turning their attention away.

Sohee, sitting next to me, naturally reached out and grabbed my hand.

The act was so casual that I only realized I was holding hands with her belatedly.

Sohee’s warm and soft hand moved delicately, gently stroking my palm.

The car began to smoothly move forward.

As I stared blankly out the window, I suddenly remembered an important fact.

A whole new chapter of my high school life was starting.

Naturally, it meant class assignments would change.

I squeezed Sohee’s hand tightly.

“Sohee.”

“What is it?”

“Do you happen to know how the class assignments came out?”

If I entered some personal information on the school website, I could find out which class I was assigned to, but I wouldn’t have done such a bothersome thing.

Even though we were on our way to the entrance ceremony, I didn’t know which class I was in.

“I’m in Class 2.”

“Class 2…”

“And you’re in Class 2 too.”

“Me…? Really?”

“Yeah.”

I let out a sigh of relief at Sohee’s answer.

But then a question popped into my mind.

How did Sohee know which class I was assigned to?

“I’m counting on you again this year, Hayun.”

“Ah, yeah. I’m counting on you too!”

But as soon as I saw Sohee’s smile, that question faded away.

Who cares?

It’s fantastic that I get to spend this year with my close friend.

Good things are good.

I didn’t think too deeply about it.

The car carrying us sped quickly and quietly to the high school where the entrance ceremony was being held.

I gaped at all the people outside as we arrived.

“There are so many…”

There were just too many people.

Students in their uniforms, as well as people who looked like their parents.

I gawked at the sight.

“Are you feeling overwhelmed?”

Sohee asked.

I nodded in response.

“Yeah. I’m worried everyone might stare at me.”

“Why’s that…? ”

“Because I’m pretty.”

I was worried about the moment we got out of the car.

I released a small sigh.