Chapter 65
The story continues off the page
Floaties for Everyone
Swim lesson at the water park, and she's demonstrating on you
Today at Meracle is a little hectic. Not because of work, but because of a deeply personal reason.
“Hey, you don’t need to get all dressed up for a wedding.”
I grumble to Ms. Kim, who is adjusting my tie. At my words, Ms. Kim lets out a sigh.
“J-just. H-hold still.”
“......You be the boss, then.”
“S-sure? Hand it over. Y-you’re an employee now.”
With a small laugh, Ms. Kim gives my tie one last playful tug, then loosens it again.
I stare at her in disbelief, but she slyly averts her gaze while keeping an eye on Lenea.
“How is it? Not bad, is it?”
“Y-yes, pretty.”
“Ahem.”
Lenea, all dressed up to the nines.
For the record, that outfit was borrowed as part of the styling service.
You never know when you might run into someone at another person’s wedding, after all.
Thanks to that, I’d also stuffed my pockets with business cards and put on a suit I used to wear back in the early days of the business.
I noticed it last time too when we went to Cyber City. Your clothes seem a bit big.
Maybe because I’d started exercising again, the clothes that used to fit me snugly now definitely feel loose.
That means I’ve lost that much fat, but even so, feeling baggy is a little much.
‘It’d be a waste to buy another suit.’
It’s not like I wear one that often anyway.
Ms. Kim, who had been staring at me, nods.
“I-it is a bit big.”
“Right? Haa, even when your body changes, money still matters. Everything in this world is money.”
All I can do is hope I don’t have to wear a suit very often.
* * *
I left the office in Ms. Kim’s care.
Lenea and I, neither of us having eaten lunch, are riding the bus together.
Today is Mr. Han Hyojae’s wedding.
Originally I was going to go alone, but Lenea said she’d never seen a wedding on the Third Floor, so she tagged along.
It’s not like she and Hyojae are strangers, either.
“Hoo......”
Lenea’s expression has stiffened.
I wondered if the bus had made her carsick, but that didn’t seem to be it.
“What’s wrong?”
“I-I’m a little nervous.”
“Nervous? We’re just going there to watch.”
“I know that. But once you get to be this age, going to someone else’s wedding can’t help but be nerve-racking.”
“......”
I’ve never been 1,900 years old, so I can’t really say anything.
Seeing as this was the perfect chance, I decided to ask something I was curious about.
“Did you attend elf weddings often?”
“Often? I was the elf queen. I spent over a thousand years bringing elves together before the World Tree.”
“......”
“Sniffle.”
You did a good thing, so why are you crying?
When I pat her on the back, Lenea looks up at me, teary-eyed.
“It’s truly kind of you to treat me so gently.”
I let go right away.
“I’m the boss, you know?”
“Your kindness really doesn’t last three seconds, does it?”
Her tears dry up instantly, and she grumbles while sitting there swinging her legs back and forth.
Back to the topic.
“How do elf weddings work? No, wait—how do elves date?”
Apparently, since elves are a long-lived race, they prefer to date and marry among themselves.
For us, dating for ten years counts as a long-term relationship, and marriage is the obvious next step.
I’ve heard that for elves, dating for ten years means they’ve only just gotten past the beginning of the relationship.
At my question, Lenea places a finger on her chin and searches her memory.
“As far as I know, there wasn’t much difference. The dating period was on the long side, though that trend shortened once the Tower appeared.”
“Oh?”
“In any case, we’re not the only long-lived race, are we? Especially among the beastfolk of the old Murim, there are some who live long lives, even if not quite as long as us.”
“That’s fascinating.”
It felt like listening to an elf grandmother tell old stories. Since elves are extremely rare at the matchmaking agency, getting information like this wasn’t easy.
[This stop is Baekja White Hall. Baekja White Hall.]
“Let’s get off. This is it.”
“Huuup! Haaaah!”
Once we got off the bus, a building that evoked white porcelain stood in the still-cold air.
Baekja White Hall.
A building created after the Tower appeared, when many countries disappeared and it took in a number of refugees.
In today’s Neo Seoul, there were especially many such native-style buildings and names.
Its purpose was to remind us not to forget our culture and identity.
This wasn’t a social phenomenon limited to Seoul; surviving places like the U.S. and China were similar.
The entrance was packed with people who looked like office workers. Hyojae was a management employee at a company, and the woman was an assistant manager on a small company’s accounting team.
They both had calm expressions, and I introduced them because I thought they’d suit each other, and they turned out to fit perfectly.
‘I’m proud of myself.’
But where am I supposed to put the wedding gift money?
I was wondering if putting it on both sides would be too much when Lenea, beside me, grabbed my lapel and marveled at the place.
“Oooh...... It’s splendid. Elf weddings were only ever held beneath the World Tree.”
Wait a second.
“Ms. Lenea, did you bring the gift money?”
“What’s that?”
“......You’re not planning to eat, are you?”
“What are you talking about?! Didn’t the boss tell me to come without eating because it was a buffet?”
Damn it.
After briefly explaining gift money, I pointed to the ATM.
“Y-you have a card, right? Go withdraw some from there.”
“I don’t have a card.”
“Why don’t you have a card?”
“I’m an old lady. I don’t know machines.”
“......”
“......”
A silent standoff began as we stared blankly at each other.
“I mean, it’s a way of expressing congratulations.”
“I don’t congratulate them. I wish everyone getting married except me would just drop dead.”
When I looked at her in disbelief, Lenea muttered and eventually headed for the ATM.
“My stomach is killing me, and I still have to give money. What is this? Tch, if this was going to happen, I shouldn’t have come along. Ah, I want to get married.”
What is she even talking about by herself?
A moment later, Lenea came back with the cash she had withdrawn.
We decided to put in 30,000 won each, and I’d put mine on the bride’s side while Lenea would put hers on Hyojae’s side.
After handing over the gift money and receiving our meal tickets.
“We’re going to see the bride. Would you like to come along?”
“......I don’t even know who that is. I’ll wait here.”
“I’ve been thinking since last time that you’re quite shy around strangers.”
* * *
Kim Juseon headed off to the bridal waiting room.
Lenea looks around with her mouth open.
High ceilings and a lavish interior.
And bustling crowds.
Elf weddings were much quieter than this.
Because they were held before the World Tree, so they had to be solemn.
If you asked which was better, it was still hard to judge.
But the envy was undeniable.
A kind of unease she never felt at elf weddings.
‘Did all these people really come just to celebrate the wedding?’
It wasn’t just the people.
That all of this had been prepared solely to bless the marriage of those two people.
Lenea was truly, deeply jealous.
* * *
Then—.
“Ms. Lenea?”
When she turned toward the voice calling her, Han Hyojae was there, greeting the guests who had come.
A dashing tuxedo, hair swept up.
The neat, tidy impression I’d seen before stood out even more clearly.
“It’s been a while.”
As Lenea greeted him comfortably, Han Hyojae came over.
“I didn’t expect you to come.”
“I came along with the boss.”
“The Meracle boss came too, I see.”
Han Hyojae gave a small smile.
The cold atmosphere I’d seen last time had clearly softened a bit.
“Actually, I had thought about sending an invitation to Ms. Lenea too, but I decided against it.”
“To me?”
“Because my conversation with Ms. Lenea clearly changed my outlook on marriage.”
“Me?”
The voices around them naturally faded away. Before long, Lenea was staring up at Han Hyojae, completely focused on his story.
“I thought marriage was, in the end, a business. But after hearing your values, Ms. Lenea, I realized I was wrong.”
“......”
“It shouldn’t be too romantic, but that doesn’t mean you should let go of it either.”
Han Hyojae gave a small laugh.
“If I hadn’t known that, I wouldn’t have been able to marry this person.”
“I’m glad I was able to help.”
The jealousy that had been bubbling up quietly subsided. It wasn’t a bad feeling to know that their conversation had helped Han Hyojae.
“And how have you been lately, Ms. Lenea......?”
My mood soured immediately.
“Ahem, ahem! I-I, well, I’m trying. Very hard!”
“......”
You could tell right away that things weren’t going well. Han Hyojae fell silent for a moment, then spoke after careful consideration.
“May I speak frankly?”
“Hm?”
“I mean—this might be a little hurtful.”
“Suddenly?!”
Lenea recoiled and stepped back.
The conversation with Han Hyojae had definitely been educational, but lessons are always bitter.
Still, he was serious.
“Ms. Lenea, you broke through the rigid thinking I had. The romantic ideals I had pursued were the exact opposite of the rational person I used to be.”
“......”
“So I hope things work out for you too, Ms. Lenea. If that isn’t too presumptuous.”
“......”
With her arms crossed, Lenea made an awkward sound. Honestly, it sounded painful, so I didn’t want to hear it.
The resolve to do whatever it took for marriage eventually made her nod.
“Go on.”
“How about quitting the matchmaking agency, Ms. Lenea?”
“Don’t hit me in the solar plexus!”
A sudden blow made my back bend on its own, even though I hadn’t actually been hit.
For some reason, a strangely stinging pain shot through me.
The one who had done it remained calm.
“Ultimately, what you want is a relationship, Ms. Lenea. Romantic love, emotional exchange. An elf like you doesn’t look at marriage as a career the way I used to.”
“R-right.”
“Then what you’re hoping for isn’t marriage.”
“......Eh?”
Then what—?
“You’re hoping for love.”
At the flat declaration, Lenea stared blankly before shouting.
“You say something like that so casually?! I just got goosebumps!”
“This is the only way I can express it.”
Han Hyojae himself didn’t seem shaken at all.
If anything, that composure gradually calmed Lenea’s emotions too.
“Matchmaking agencies are calculating places. Of course, Meracle is different from other matchmaking agencies... but that’s because the boss is different, not the clients. The clients all move based on conditions and rank, just as coldly as I do.”
“......”
“Do you have any men around you?”
“One—no, two.”
One is Meracle’s boss, Kim Juseon.
The other is the convenience store owner.
He’s a good-natured man with two kids at home and a belly that sticks out.
Strictly speaking, he doesn’t even count as a man, but if I said there was only one, it’d sound like there wasn’t anyone, so I added him.
“Among those men, is there anyone you feel comfortable being with?”
“There’s one who’s comfortable to be around.”
“Do you have feelings for him?”
“Feelings......? I, I don’t really know.”
“Since you haven’t felt that sort of emotion for so many years, that’s only natural.”
“Do you by any chance have a counselor’s license?”
“I’m a married man, after all. This is my specialty.”
With a snap, Han Hyojae pushed up his glasses and shrugged.
‘What a damn show-off.’
Unaware of Lenea’s inner cursing, Han Hyojae continued speaking.
“Instead of the matchmaking agency, I think it might be good to have a purely personal meeting. The Meracle boss is smart and quick on the uptake, but... in the end, he sees you as a customer, so he probably won’t be able to point out things like this.”
“Just spend time with someone who seems decent. The two of you. That’s what I did.”
Maybe because he’s a married man.
For some reason, it sounds more convincing.
Han Hyojae bowed his head politely and finished speaking.
“This may be the last advice I can give you. I hope you also find a good match, Ms. Lenea.”
“......Later.”
As Han Hyojae was about to leave, Lenea said with a snort.
“You must come see my wedding.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
And then Han Hyojae left—.
* * *
A moment later, Kim Juseon returned.
“Ms. Lenea, are you enjoying yourself?”
“Mm! That was truly meaningful. The people, the venue, the air. Everything is blessing the two of them, so I’m terribly jealous.”
“......”
Kim Juseon gave Lenea a sidelong glance.
Lenea’s expression looked fine, but it seemed jealousy was unavoidable.
Kim Juseon patted her on the back.
“Don’t worry. You’ll definitely be able to get married too. I’ll be sure to introduce you to a good person.”
“I think I can go without introductions for the time being.”
“Huh?”
Of course I’d expected her to accept introductions from here on out, so this opposite request was rather baffling.
“I think I need some time to reflect on myself.”
“......Do you have a fever?”
Glaring at Kim Juseon, who checked her forehead, Lenea crossed her arms and grumbled.
“Enough, let’s go eat.”
“Right. You got a meal ticket, didn’t you? That thing earlier—”
Meal ticket.
The small scrap of paper in my pocket brushes against the back of my hand.
But—.
“That was a meal ticket? I threw it away earlier.”
“......What?”
“Oh no! If I lost the meal ticket, I won’t be able to eat.”
“You can just go ask for another one.”
“How shameless. How could I do that? Let’s just go. Let’s eat outside.”
“Tsk, has dementia started setting in too? I have a meal ticket, you know? I’m going to eat and—”
Yank!
Lenea immediately started dragging Kim Juseon outside by the suit lapel.
“Baaah! Go on! Let’s eat! The two of us—!”
“I said no?! You come to a wedding, and even if you don’t watch the ceremony, you still have to eat the buffet before you leave!”
“Baaah! The two of us—!”
“Wait! My suit’s going to rip! Ah, shit! Fine! I get it! I said I get it, so let go!”
In the end, unable to win against Lenea’s tantrum, Kim Juseon let out a sigh and threw the meal ticket into the trash can.
“That’s seriously fucking wasteful. It was 30,000 won.”
“What are you fussing about? I already greeted Han Hyojae, so let’s go.”
Smiling brightly, Lenea linked arms with him with me? Wait no.