—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Living a relatively uneventful life in this dimension, I had briefly forgotten something important.
The goddess-ordained trial.
In other words, the existence of someone in this world who is obsessed with me.
Of course, I had been cautious initially.
I had assumed there would be lingering attachments from the original owner of this body.
But there hadn’t been anyone.
Hana was a potential candidate, but her obsession was with money, not with me.
So I had relaxed.
This world seemed indifferent to my presence.
I had envisioned a long and prosperous life here, as long as I took care of this fragile body.
But I had inadvertently dug my own grave.
Tug, tug!
Her grip on my sleeve was surprisingly strong.
Tethered to her like a dog on a leash, I couldn’t move more than a few feet away.
“Ga-ram, please let go.”
Yanking my arm away would only hurt her, so I gently placed my hand over her clenched fist.
I could feel her hand trembling beneath mine.
Her gaze darted between my face and my sleeve.
She was biting her lip so hard I worried it might bleed.
“Ga-ram.”
I said her name again.
Let go of my arm.
That’s what I would have said if I hadn’t been responsible for this mess.
But I couldn’t bring myself to be harsh with her.
This was my fault. I had dragged her into this.
She shook her head, tears welling up in her eyes.
“N-no… you’ll leave if I let go…”
She choked out.
“I’ll… I’ll be good… just… please don’t leave me alone… please…”
“Ga-ram, I’m not going anywhere. But we need to leave the hospital. I’ll go get the doctor. We can’t stay here.”
I knelt down so we were eye-level.
“…”
“It’ll just be a minute. Less than five minutes.”
“…”
Her eyes were filled with suspicion.
I had never seen her look at me like this.
Where was the cheerful, energetic woman I knew?
Had she always been hiding this darkness beneath a bright facade?
Or had the darkness been created by the very light she had tried so hard to project?
It didn’t matter.
Dealing with the present situation was more important.
After a long hesitation, she reluctantly released my arm.
I stretched, rotating my stiff shoulders. The tense drive had taken its toll.
“Just wait here.”
“I’m going to count to five,”
She said in a small voice.
Normally, that would have sounded cute.
Today, it sounded ominous.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
After a brief examination, the doctor discharged Ga-ram.
The tests and IV fluids came to about 150,000 won, which I paid.
As we walked towards the parking lot, I saw Ho-chul sitting in the small rest area near the hospital entrance.
He stood up when he saw us.
He was holding a cigarette butt.
“Hyung-nim, are you… done?”
He looked at Ga-ram, who was clinging to my arm, and scratched his head.
I didn’t want to explain.
“You’re still here?”
I had assumed he would have gone home after his shift.
“Uh… yeah… well…”
He trailed off, glancing at Ga-ram.
“Is it important?”
He nodded.
It seemed like a sensitive topic, something he didn’t want to discuss in front of Ga-ram.
“Ga-ram, would you mind waiting over there on the bench? I need to talk to Ho-chul about some business.”
“Again? You’re leaving me again?”
“I’ll be within eyesight. It’s only about five meters away.”
“…”
Her expression was a mixture of anxiety, resentment, and something else I couldn’t quite decipher.
But at least she didn’t protest further and walked over to the bench.
I was relieved she hadn’t insisted on clinging to my arm.
Ho-chul and I turned our backs to her.
“Let me light this. You… quit, right?”
He put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it.
The ember glowed in the darkness.
“Sigh…”
He exhaled a plume of smoke.
“What did you want to talk about? Why are you still here?”
“Hyung-nim… about Ga-ram…”
He lowered his voice.
“What about her?”
“I think you should… distance yourself from her. She doesn’t seem… right.”
“…”
“I don’t know what’s going on between you two, but… maybe you should find another gym.”
“It’s not affecting my daily life.”
“It’s affecting your stress levels. You collapsed because of that Hana girl, remember?”
“Well, at least you’re not chasing after her anymore.”
He tapped his cigarette, flicking the ashes onto the ground.
I didn’t know how to respond, so I remained silent.
He continued.
“I’m not trying to tell you what to do. I’m just worried about your health.”
“Oh, you’re worried about me?”
“Of course. You changed my life. I owe you.”
His words, filled with genuine concern, made me smile.
I patted him on the shoulder.
“I appreciate that. I won’t push myself too hard. But what happened today… it’s partly my fault. I can’t just abandon her.”
“Your fault?”
His eyes widened.
“Yeah.”
I glanced back at Ga-ram.
She was sitting on the bench, nervously biting her nails, glaring at us.
“Hana was the one who instigated this.”
“That girl? But why would she target Ga-ram? They don’t even know each other.”
“Exactly. She should have come after me, not Ga-ram.”
“I told you she was trouble. I told you to stay away from her. I told you not to get involved with those streamers, especially her. I told you—”
“Okay, okay, I get it. I messed up.”
Why had the previous owner of this body lived such a reckless life, despite having such loyal friends?
“It’s late. Let’s wrap this up. Go home.”
“Yes, hyung-nim. You should get some rest too. It’s a shame your vacation got interrupted.”
He finished his cigarette and tossed the butt into a nearby trash can.
It bounced off the rim and landed on the ground.
“Just my luck,” I muttered.
I turned to walk back to Ga-ram.
“Hyung-nim,” Ho-chul called out.
“What?”
“Are you just going to let her get away with this?”
He was talking about Hana.
“Hell no. I’ll make her pay. Why would you even ask?”
I wiped my phone screen with my thumb.
“I always return the favor.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
