Chapter 58
Having gained confidence, Gam Deokbae challenged himself to clear a dungeon alone.
He wanted to test his own limits and see how far he could go.
And the result was—
Gam Deokbae succeeded in soloing a D-rank dungeon.
The clear time was one hour and thirteen minutes,
which was faster than when he had tackled it with Lee Hyun-ah.
====
I wasn't so oblivious that I didn't know what was going on.
Lee Hyun-ah had suddenly become so downcast; did she really think I wouldn't know why?
She was acting that way because she was jealous that I had pulled ahead of her as a Hunter.
On top of that, she must have become depressed because she was feeling inferior and loathing herself for being unable to become as strong as me.
I could empathize with how Lee Hyun-ah felt, since I had often been in her shoes.
But I couldn't pretend to be weak just to spare Lee Hyun-ah's feelings.
I would continue to grow, and if Lee Hyun-ah couldn't keep up, we'd eventually have to go our separate ways.
In other words, there was no point in accommodating a fleeting emotion.
It was unfortunate, but that was reality.
Still… I could at least try to comfort her.
I arranged a drinking session under the pretext of celebrating my first solo clear.
I planned to have a drink with her and help her get her spirits back.
***
“How are things with your boyfriend these days? Did you make up?”
“…That bastard…”
“Huh?”
“That bastard… He's a total fucking asshole!”
Ah, shit.
I had been trying to bring up her life outside of hunting, but I'd accidentally hit her trigger.
She'd said her boyfriend opposed her working as a Hunter… My mistake.
“Is he still telling you to quit being a Hunter and come back down?”
“Putting that aside, that bastard cheated on me!”
Ah, fuck, I really screwed up.
I felt like a batter who had hit into a double play and killed the mood.
No, fuck, what was so great about that bastard that he could cheat on a girl like her?
Lee Hyun-ah had been grinning and chatting with me until just moments ago,
but now she was tearfully pouring out her grievances.
Damn, this was only going to make things worse. I was going crazy.
-Gulp, gulp
-Clack!
“…Gulp. Tell me, Misterrr! How could he do that? Huhhh?”
“…Yeah… How could he do that?”
Lee Hyun-ah wasn't much of a drinker, yet she forced the alcohol down.
Then, emboldened by the alcohol, she shouted at the top of her lungs.
From what she'd told me, it was far too obvious to be a misunderstanding.
If a guy was in the same room as another woman first thing in the morning, it was game over. On top of that, apparently he'd even cooked her breakfast.
She didn't even have a sister, so even I could tell it was definitely cheating.
“That bastard… sniff, this isn't the first timeee.”
“…What?”
“He was two-timing meee!”
Ah, fuck, I was utterly screwed.
I felt as if a pitch had flown straight at my head and beaned me.
Was he a habitual offender? What kind of bastard was he for her to still be dating him after all that?
“Sob… What a bad bastard… sniff, fucking bastard… Waaah.”
Lee Hyun-ah was now sobbing uncontrollably.
Her mental state had already been shattered by her boyfriend, and then a coworker suddenly reawakened and soloed a D-rank dungeon, only to bring up her cheating boyfriend at a drinking party?
‘Holy shit.’
Even I would've reacted the same way.
Under the weight of all that guilt, I couldn't bring myself to look up.
“He kept apologizing like that… hoo… saying he'd treat me better from then on! Sniff.”
“Again! Again! Lies…! Waaah.”
I felt like I was sitting on a bed of thorns.
I felt too guilty to just sit there, so I moved beside Lee Hyun-ah and comforted her.
“Sob… Mister… Misteeer!”
When I gently patted her shoulder, Lee Hyun-ah collapsed into my arms and sobbed.
My T-shirt grew damp from her tears, but I couldn't bring myself to stop her.
‘But her boyfriend really is a fucking asshole.’
He had two-timed her and made her sever ties with her only friend,
then, with nowhere left to turn, he had gaslit her into looking only to him.
He was an even bigger piece of trash than I'd imagined.
After hearing all this, Siwoo really was a good guy.
He was just an oblivious pushover, never a bad person.
I should treat him well the next time I see him…
***
This time, too, I carried the completely plastered Lee Hyun-ah toward her home.
It had been the right decision to hold the drinking session near her place in case something like this happened again.
Even so, there was so much luggage to carry that it was a real nuisance,
but the large, soft feeling pressed against my back kept me from minding it.
“Sniff… Misterrr… Don't be like that…”
Unlike last time, Lee Hyun-ah didn't fall asleep today.
Apparently, she hadn't gotten quite that drunk.
Instead, she kept squirming around while on my back, making it difficult to carry her home.
“You know, right? Never! You must never do that, okayyy?”
At this rate, I wouldn't get to fuck her tonight.
I could force the issue with Erogenous Stimulation, but this wasn't the time or place.
Anyone could see that Lee Hyun-ah was in a fragile state; if I touched her wrong, I felt like I'd be staring into a deep darkness.
“Hup… Let's stop in for a moment.”
“Sniff, okaaay…”
I should just put her to bed quietly and leave today.
Thinking that, I took Lee Hyun-ah into a convenience store.
I was there to buy a hangover-relief drink and a cup of ramen to help settle her stomach.
While I was choosing things with the unsteady Lee Hyun-ah beside me, she suddenly clung to me.
Then she raised her head, looked at me, and started acting cute.
“Misteeer… This one's tasty… sniff… Could you buy me one?”
“Ah! This one too! This is suuuper tasty… Hehe.”
It was as if she'd developed bipolar disorder, with her emotions swinging from one extreme to the other.
I wasn't sure how to respond to her mood swings, but one thing was certain.
‘She's fucking adorable…’
The way she was acting cute was incredibly alluring.
Enough to make me want to fuck her.
Ah, no. I had to resist.
If I messed with her for no reason, I felt like I'd break her…
So I had to resist.
“All right. Pick whatever you want to eat. I'll buy you everything.”
“Really? Hehe… This is amazing…! Then this one, and this one…”
Delighted by my words, Lee Hyun-ah linked her arm through mine and dragged me around, choosing items one by one,
while I enjoyed the soft sensation against my arm and placed the things she picked into the basket.
“Please ring these up.”
When we went to the counter, the clerk couldn't take his eyes off Lee Hyun-ah's breasts.
After I cleared my throat and asked him to ring us up, he looked at me admiringly.
Ah, it wasn't like that. Ahem… I couldn't help but puff out my chest with pride.
“Oops, I almost forgot this!”
Suddenly, Lee Hyun-ah picked up an item displayed beside the counter and placed it on top of the basket.
Was she seriously out of her mind? Why was she doing this?
The clerk and I both stared at the item in shock.
Had she gotten it mixed up because she was drunk? Did she think this was a dream?
Otherwise, I couldn't understand her behavior.
“Please take this out.”
“Right… We don't need it after all… Hehe.”
No, don't put it like that; you're going to give him the wrong idea.
I sighed and looked at the clerk, who was staring at us with his mouth hanging open.
“N-no condom…”
“Hey, hurry up and ring us up.”
“Ah, yes!”
Was this guy crazy? He was actually saying that out loud.
And that's not what this is, okay? I really am just planning to let her sleep tonight.
***
When we arrived at Lee Hyun-ah's home, I took off only her socks and coat and laid her on the bed.
Since she hadn't fallen asleep yet, I wanted to at least wash her face, but
as soon as she got home, she seemed to relax and promptly fell asleep.
I left her alone and began tidying up.
A messy stack of papers sat atop the desk, making it look dirty at a glance, so I couldn't just leave them there.
“Oh, this Chinese restaurant is good. Hyun-ah has good taste.”
The name of my regular Chinese restaurant was written on the top sheet. I never expected to see it here, so I felt oddly pleased.
After finishing the cleaning, I did the dishes too, then washed my hands and
approached Lee Hyun-ah to at least look at her face before leaving.
She was sleeping soundly, breathing softly.
Even thinking about it again, I couldn't understand how he could cheat on a girlfriend that beautiful.
You poor thing. How did you end up with a guy like that…
Feeling sorry for her, I reached out and stroked her hair.
“Hnnng…”
She'd really been through a lot.
Living alone away from home was difficult enough, but she'd been fired from her guild, failed to maintain her connections and ended up without a single friend, and her long-distance boyfriend was cheating on her…
Even so, she never let any of it show, always putting on a bright face.
How could she be so kind and admirable?
“Hyun-ah. I'm always on your side. So don't try to bear everything alone. If things get hard, you can lean on me and act spoiled anytime. I'm your colleague, remember?”
So I should at least look after her.
Thinking that, I offered words of comfort to the sleeping Hyun-ah, who couldn't hear me.
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In the quiet studio apartment, not long after Gam Deokbae had left,
Lee Hyun-ah slowly opened her eyes.
She raised a hand to the spot on her head he'd stroked and smiled bashfully.
It felt as if his warmth still lingered there, warming her heart.
“So what happened that day really was a dream after all.”
In the deep darkness,
she murmured in a slightly wistful tone.