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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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…Honestly, I wasn’t in the mood to have dinner with Ha-rin, but I had no choice.
I had already rejected her once, and I didn’t have a good excuse to decline again.
However, I thought it would have been better to refuse after all.
I couldn’t focus on the conversation with Ha-rin at all.
It definitely wasn’t Ha-rin’s fault. This.
Since returning from the dungeon with Si-hwa, I couldn’t get a grip on anything.
Even though I had obtained a new sword, training diligently should have been the original plan, but none of that seemed important at all.
Unable to even see Ha-rin off, who seemed sulky, I returned home and threw myself on the bed.
Could it be that Ha-rin didn’t return…?
From the moment I realized that Si-hwa had returned like me, I began to think that others besides us might have returned as well.
Considering the fact that the primordial spirit mentioned marriage, and that Si-hwa was my wife, there were two strong candidates left.
Ha-rin and Ye-na.
That’s why I intentionally brought up my mom to Ha-rin.
If Ha-rin had returned, there was no way she wouldn’t know the answer to my question.
But she answered too nonchalantly that she didn’t know, and instead asked me who I was confusing her with.
Although it couldn’t be confirmed yet, judging from her reaction, it seemed more likely that she didn’t have memories of her previous life.
Should I ask Ye-na this kind of question too?
But if Ye-na had returned…
Since my return, I had done nothing but rude things.
I approached her as if nothing had happened after doing terrible things to her.
If I confirmed that she had the same memories from her previous life…
I had no right to be by her side.
In the dark room with the lights off.
Staring at the pitch-black ceiling, I prayed.
I hoped that only Si-hwa and I had returned.
I hoped that Ye-na in this life would live without the painful memories of having a pathetic husband.
* * *
Even after returning home from the MT, my condition didn’t return to normal.
How much did I drink…?
This was all because of Choi In-wook and Yoo Si-hwa.
If it weren’t for those two, I wouldn’t have gone on a drinking rampage.
But ironically, the one who took care of me in the morning and drove me home was Yoo Si-hwa.
It was a truly complicated feeling.
Recalling what happened at the MT, I grabbed the handle of the club room door.
As I opened the door and entered, Choi In-wook was there without fail.
He was immersed in drawing, not even sparing me a glance despite my entrance.
He really couldn’t draw, but his pose was like no other painter.
I couldn’t help but chuckle.
As expected, when I sneaked behind him to check his canvas, there was something drawn that looked like a monster or something.
“Hey.”
I tapped his back.
Despite tapping him very lightly, he was startled and flinched.
“Oh… Oh! Ye-na. Hi.”
“What’s up? Why are you so surprised?”
I felt a bit embarrassed by his expression, as if he had seen a ghost.
…It’s not like I did something wrong, right?
And after the last MT, I decided to change my mind.
What happened in my previous life was, after all, in my previous life.
I decided not to take out my anger on Choi In-wook of this life for no reason.
I decided not to treat him with a sharp attitude anymore.
“Did the dungeon go well?”
It felt awkward to talk to him in a kind tone after a long time.
It was more natural when we were dating…
I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
“Yeah! It wasn’t that difficult of a dungeon in the first place… Haha…”
Despite putting down the brush, Choi In-wook didn’t look at me and talked while staring at the floor.
Why is he acting like this when he usually makes eye contact well?
Does my tone still sound cynical to him?
Hmm, then…
I pulled a chair and sat next to him.
“In-wook.”
Ugh…
It’s hard to get used to calling him like this after a long time.
In the latter half of our relationship, I called him In-wook instead of Mr. In-wook.
Of course, there were other nicknames, but they weren’t appropriate for the current situation.
It’s not that strange for friends to call each other by their first names, right?
I looked at Choi In-wook’s face to check his reaction…
His face had turned pale.
…Is it that shocking for me to call him by his name?
Was I that terrible…?
Choi In-wook’s expression, which was more serious than I thought, started to shatter my own mental state.
This… This isn’t it…?
“Uh… Yeah! Ye-na…”
He seemed to find it burdensome to even talk to me.
At this point, I began to think it wasn’t a matter of tone.
Hmm… I was wondering why he was acting like this, but suddenly a scene flashed through my mind.
The words I blurted out with the help of alcohol.
[Do you like me?]
…Crazy bitch.
No matter how drunk I was, I couldn’t believe I had said such a thing like a third-rate drama line, and suddenly I felt a surge of shame rising up.
And his answer to my careless remark was…
[…I like you. As a friend, of course.]
Wait… Wait a minute.
Then, could it be that Choi In-wook…
Thinks I confessed to him?
And Choi In-wook is drawing the line with me?
A drunk young man and woman.
A night sky filled with stars.
The atmosphere was perfect for a confession.
Oh my gosh…
I felt my head going blank.
Realizing the reason why Choi In-wook was uncomfortable with my attitude, my thought process was paralyzed.
Should I talk to him in a friendly tone again…?
No. But if he understood my words as a confession, wouldn’t I look like a clingy woman even after being rejected?
Then should I go back to ignoring him…?
Even I thought that would make me look like a person with mental issues.
I started to stutter like a wind-up doll with a broken mechanism.
“Ah… No.”
I couldn’t do anything when I imagined how he would look at me.
I thought I should clear up the misunderstanding that it wasn’t a confession…
But if I brought it up first, I would look like a pathetic girl who pretended it was a joke after failing a confession on April Fool’s Day.
This is driving me crazy…
In the end, I made the best decision I could make in the current situation.
I got up from my seat and picked up my bag again.
“…Are you leaving?”
Choi In-wook raised his head and looked at me.
“Yeah. I just remembered I had a part-time job today.”
Even I could hear the strange pitch of my voice.
I answered in an awkward tone that sounded like Chinese with incorrect tones, and grabbed the doorknob without waiting for his response.
“Keep drawing diligently.”
I left the club room and quickly went down the stairs.
I had made an excuse and ran out because I couldn’t stand the atmosphere any longer…
After leaving the academy, I entered the alley where I always smoked.
Phew…
Alcohol is the enemy…
From now on, I’ll stick to nicotine.
I deeply realized that alcohol and I really don’t mix well.
* * *
Today’s Ye-na had a slightly different atmosphere than usual.
Of course, it didn’t last more than 10 minutes, but her tone was strangely… softer, so to speak.
And most importantly, she called me “In-wook” for the first time.
When she called me by that name, I couldn’t help but flinch.
She had always called me Choi In-wook in a stiff manner, so when she called my name affectionately like when we were dating in our previous life, I was once again stunned by the thought that she might have returned.
Just as I was about to start thinking about what question to ask her to get a hint.
She packed her things and ran out of the room as if she was in a hurry.
Her tone when leaving was different from when she came in, with a strange tone.
Maybe she was in a rush for her part-time job…?
As a result, I was left alone in the club room without being able to ask any of the questions that had come to mind.
I picked up the brush again and slowly continued drawing.
There would always be opportunities to ask.
I didn’t leave the club room and lock the door until the sun was about to set, and then I headed home.
* * *
Feeling suffocated and having many things to worry about, I walked towards my house instead of taking the bus as usual.
The distance was quite far, but today, time seemed to pass surprisingly quickly.
I had to face Si-hwa at the student council meeting tomorrow…
Sigh…
I still wasn’t sure how to treat her.
Why did Si-hwa approach me first?
Did she also receive an order to get married like me?
But if she received the same order…
Would she want to marry me again, who was infertile?
I didn’t think so.
I had no memory of disclosing my fertility status to her.
I didn’t think she, who took pride in her achievements and career more than anyone else, would repeat the same mistake.
Then could it be…
Lost in thought with my arms crossed, I had already arrived at the crosswalk in front of our house.
As the signal turned green, I had to stop walking for a moment when I looked ahead.
…Because Si-hwa in her uniform was waiting for me on the other side.
Gulping, I walked across the crosswalk with slow steps.
“…What brings you here?”
“I have something to talk to you about.”
“What is it?”
And the words that flowed from her mouth were…
“…Honey.”
…Ah.
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