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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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The next day, in a required major class.
As I entered the lecture hall, I confirmed that the expression on Lee Se-hwa’s face was not good.
She must have heard about Yoo Seung-hyun’s situation, right?
I, who had brightly greeted my classmates, handed a banana milk to Se-hwa.
“Want to drink this? You don’t look so good.”
“Uh… huh?”
Se-hwa, who had flinched her shoulders, turned her head.
Her expression softened just a little when she saw me.
“When did you get here?”
“Just now. What are you thinking about…”
– Ooooh!
I couldn’t finish my sentence.
It was because my classmates, seeing me hand the banana milk to Se-hwa, let out an exclamation in a playful tone.
If Se-hwa accepted the milk here, she would be teased too.
I could see her looking flustered.
Shrugging my shoulders, I casually tossed the milk to the male classmate I could say I had become closest with yesterday.
The classmate, who caught it neatly, tore off the wrapper and said.
“What, are you giving it to me because you’re embarrassed?”
“Your voice was the loudest, so I gave it to you as a hint to quiet down a bit.”
“What a score! Thanks!”
He, who grinned from ear to ear, chugged the milk.
I, who gave Se-hwa an apologetic look, found an empty seat and sat down.
A seat a little ways away from Se-hwa.
I took out my book before class and then took out my phone.
And I sent a text to the number I had gotten from Se-hwa yesterday.
[Did you get home okay yesterday?]
Se-hwa, who checked the message, stealthily turned her head to the side.
Then, she sent a reply.
[No. It was the absolute worst.]
I cheered inwardly.
I thought she would send a short reply like [Yeah.] or [No.], but for her to tell me how she was feeling.
I, who tried hard to hide my inner thoughts, fiddled with my phone again.
[Is it because you drank too much?]
[I didn’t even drink half a bottle of soju yesterday, you know? What about you? Are you okay?]
[What about?]
[Your stomach, is it okay.]
[It was a little upset until this morning, but I felt better after eating hangover soup before coming to school. I found a tasty place.]
[I wanna eat hangover soup too…]
Se-hwa, don’t use a cute tone.
You’re a savior who will become a warrior of justice.
So please show some dignity.
But she is cute, though.
[Then you should eat it. Want to go together for lunch?]
[You said you already ate hangover soup.]
[What’s wrong with eating it again. The hangover soup place is in a bit of a corner, so let’s go with our classmates. I don’t think the kids know there’s a restaurant here. It was all just office workers on their way to work.]
[Look in front of you.]
She didn’t answer and just randomly told me to look in front.
I did as Se-hwa said.
And then I couldn’t hide my smile.
She was giving an okay sign over her shoulder.
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After several classes, it was lunchtime.
The five people who met at the back gate at the promised time moved towards the hangover soup place, following my lead.
And there, they practically devoured the hangover soup.
“Kuaaa… Now I feel like I can live.”
The male classmate’s expression looked like a huge sweet potato had finally slid down.
He, who was cleaning his teeth with a toothpick from the table, asked me.
“How do you know about a place like this?”
“I also just happened to find it today. It’s good, right?”
“It’s not just good, it’s fucking great. I think I’ll come here often from now on. The prices are good too.”
“Let’s keep it a secret from everyone except the first-year Future Science Department students. I don’t want this place to get famous.”
“Oh… a sense of belonging… not bad.”
The other classmates also had satisfied expressions.
To be honest, I didn’t give a damn about their expressions, but as long as Se-hwa was satisfied, that was enough.
When many people gather, there are always those who try to take the lead.
One classmate said he would pay with his card and asked for money.
And I noticed Se-hwa hesitate for a moment when she was taking money out of her wallet.
‘Hmm… Did Yoo Seung-hyun ask to borrow money or something? No, he’s not that kind of guy…’
Let’s dig into it later.
My classmates suggested going to a café, asking whether we wanted coffee or just to chat.
But I had no intention of doing so.
“I’m just going to take a walk to digest. There’s a small mountain behind the university. I’m thinking of going there for a bit.”
“Ah… don’t you know the party’s over if one person says they’re not going?”
One classmate whined.
I apologized, saying I was sorry, and then headed for the mountain behind the school without looking back.
As I was walking along the quiet trail, reviewing my future plans, I heard a pretty voice from behind.
“Ji-hyuk!”
It was Se-hwa’s voice.
To be honest, I didn’t expect her to follow me this far… have we already progressed this much?
I didn’t know what it was, but it was a good thing.
It was a chance to get closer to her and to find out what had happened between those two.
“What are you doing here?”
“Ah, I was just going to take a walk too. The lady at the hangover soup place gave me so much rice that my stomach feels like it’s going to burst.”
“Really? Well then… let’s go together.”
As Se-hwa matched her pace with mine, I asked.
“What about the others?”
“The guys said they’re skipping class on their own and going to a PC bang. The girls went to a café.”
“You didn’t go to the café?”
“Not really… I didn’t feel like drinking anything.”
It’s obvious you didn’t go because you wanted to save money.
I, who nodded my head pretending to be nonchalant, took a latte out of my bag.
It was a coffee I had bought to drink before coming to the mountain.
I held this out to Se-hwa.
“Want some?”
“It’s okay. I told you I don’t feel like drinking anything.”
“Your voice is cracking, what do you mean you don’t feel like it… Just drink it. I drank enough water earlier.”
Se-hwa hesitated for a moment, then took the latte.
“Thanks. I’ll buy you the same one later.”
“It’s fine. Anyway, are you feeling a little better now?”
“My mood?”
“You said it this morning. That you were in the worst mood.”
“Ah… that…”
Se-hwa hesitated for a moment.
It seemed she was weighing her words, as it was a serious topic.
I, who put on a comfortable smile, reassured her.
“You’re too nice for your own good. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“No. It’s not a particularly serious story… can I ask you something?”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
“What would you do if the person you love went through something big, but said they would take responsibility for it alone?”
Aha, I can pretty much guess what’s going on.
Yoo Seung-hyun must have explained the situation to Se-hwa and said, ‘I’ll take care of it, so don’t you worry.’
But Se-hwa, who loves Yoo Seung-hyun very much, would have suggested either paying it back together or suing for insurance fraud.
Then I should say what Se-hwa would like to hear.
“Hmm… if I had gone through that, or if I heard the story from the person I love, I would try to bear it together.”
“Right? That’s right, isn’t it?”
“At least, that’s what I would do.”
“Me too.”
“Looks like you fought with your boyfriend over the accident. Am I right?”
Se-hwa flinched.
She asked with a surprised look.
“How did you know?”
“Your boyfriend got into an accident, you went to see him, and today your mood is the worst. That’s enough to get a rough answer. I didn’t know I’d get it exactly right, though… Maybe I should become a shaman.”
Se-hwa, who giggled, took a sip of her latte.
And then, she let out a deep sigh.
“Haa… I’m really worried. The future seems bleak. It just feels like I’m completely blocked in on all sides.”
She was revealing her inner thoughts without realizing it.
Seeing Se-hwa’s appearance before her awakening was always refreshing.
To think a girl like this would put Tyrat… no, me, in a difficult situation every time.
“First, you should try getting a consultation with a lawyer. If it’s insurance fraud, you have to find a way to dig it up, right?”
“That’s true, but…”
You don’t have the money, right? I know.
So I’ll help you a little.
That’s why I concocted this evil plot.
And don’t worry, I have no intention of completely ruining Yoo Seung-hyun’s life.
I’m just going to fuck him up enough so that the time he can be with you becomes very short.
I took a business card case out of my pocket and rummaged through it.
As business cards of all sorts of designs came pouring out, Se-hwa’s eyes widened.
I, who gazed intently at one of them, handed the business card to Se-hwa and said.
“Go see this person.”
Se-hwa checked the contents of the business card and then mumbled.
“A law… yer?”
“They were the dedicated lawyer for my parents’ company, but after my parents passed away, they opened their own private office. Go there with your boyfriend sometime. I’ll arrange it so you can have the consultation for free.”
“J-Ji-hyuk, this is too much of a burden…”
“You have to help your boyfriend. Right?”
Se-hwa, who was about to hand the business card back, hardened her gaze at my words.
I continued.
“In return, if something happens to me, you have to help me out.”
“What ability do I have to…”
“I think you underestimate yourself too much. Anyway… will you? Or won’t you?”
“…. I will. Thank you so much.”
I smiled slyly on the inside.
By now, Marcella must have finished everything.
Se-hwa will meet my adjutant, disguised as an intelligent lawyer.
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Antarctica, Tyrat’s base.
“Why am I doing such a trivial thing… can’t I just kill them? The Demon King-nim is really… what is he thinking…”
Marcella, who had burst out in complaint, threw down her suit.
I guess I should make my entrance now.
“You seem to have quite a few complaints, Marcella.”
“Huk! Demon King-nim!”
The startled woman prostrated herself flat on the floor.
The tail on her waist was nowhere to be seen, and her long ears had become ordinary.
I caught a glimpse before she prostrated herself; her fangs had also disappeared, and she had completely changed to look like a human.
If it’s to this extent, it’s possible…
But you were talking shit behind my back, so it’s cancelled, you bitch.
“I was thinking of giving you a reward, but I guess I’ll have to cancel.”
“A… a reward…?”
“That’s what I was planning, but…”
As I leisurely walked over and sat on a random chair, Marcella scrambled over and rubbed her head against my feet.
“D-Demon King-nim… what is the reward…?”
“Well, I wonder what it was, too. I’m getting curious myself. Hearing what you just said shocked me so much my memory disappeared. What was it you said… a trivial thing? Can’t I just kill them?”
“Demon King-nim… I’m sorry…”
Marcella’s human form, making a sullen expression, was quite cute.
Then again, her nasal voice in the game was cute too.
Even though she modified the monsters to an insane level and made me grind my teeth.
“Report.”
At those words, Marcella slowly stood up.
And then, she changed into her original form.
Long fangs grew out from both sides of her mouth, and blackish wings sprouted from her back.
Her tail, which had disappeared, grew long, and its tip sharpened.
Her fingernails and toenails also grew long and sharp.
A form that anyone would think was a demon, a succubus; that was Marcella’s true form.
She turned a monitor towards me and manipulated the screen.
Then, three people sitting at a round table in the middle of a well-appointed lawyer’s office appeared.
The disguised Marcella, the always pretty Se-hwa, and finally, the sucker Yoo Seung-hyun.
You couldn’t call him handsome, but he had a naive face that anyone would find likable.
That appearance of him, just weakly answering Marcella’s explanation with a face full of worry.
Ugh… sucker bastard.
Why did I ever think that was me? Just thinking about the past makes irritation surge up.
Marcella, through a long consultation, chose only the words that Yoo Seung-hyun and Se-hwa would hate to hear.
That this cannot be resolved without evidence, that there’s no recording, and that he didn’t even make a copy of the contract, so it’s a perfect checkmate.
With these words, she pushed the two’s expressions deeper and deeper into the abyss of despair.
And yet, at the end, she tried to give them a glimmer of hope.
– You said you were fired, right? Still, your employment documents might remain, so I will contact the company and review them thoroughly.
At those words, the faces of Yoo Seung-hyun and Se-hwa brightened, if only a little.
– Since young master Song Ji-hyuk made a special request… I have to do my best, too. Don’t be too down.
At the end, she even mentioned me.
Yoo Seung-hyun suggested to Se-hwa that they meet up when Mr. Song Ji-hyuk is available.
It seemed he intended to convey his thanks.
Se-hwa nodded with a bright face, and the two thanked Marcella over and over again before leaving the room.
After watching the whole screen, I burst into a loud laugh.
At that, Marcella’s face brightened.
“Very good. Very good indeed.”
“Really?”
“Well done, Marcella.”
“Thank… thank you, Demon King-nim.”
“Listen well, from now on, I will tell you what I am aiming for.”
I told Marcella all of my objectives today.
A long-term plan to command the powerful Beast Slayers as my own limbs.
Marcella, who had heard the whole story, clapped like a seal.
“As expected… as expected of the Demon King-nim! I, Marcella, will work hard to be of help to the Demon King-nim’s great undertaking!”
I’m grateful that you understand.
Now, don’t whine anymore.
When you talk behind my back, my heart gets startled. It’s scary!
“The company Yoo Seung-hyun was a part of? Can you control it as you intend?”
“Of course. I can handle humans from a small-to-medium enterprise. If need be, I can send Amon to hypnotize them all…”
“You’re getting ahead of yourself. Don’t get cocky and do this. At first…”
I presented Marcella with the subsequent guidelines.
So that thanks to Marcella and me, Yoo Seung-hyun could breathe a sigh of relief.
But not so that it would be a complete resolution.
If that happened, Yoo Seung-hyun would have to work his body to the bone for several months, and at that time, I planned to approach the guy.
I’ll give him a very good job.
A job that would be a huge problem if Se-hwa found out.
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