Chapter 43
Jingle-
“Welcome.”
At the jingle of the bell announcing the door opening, Choi Ihan, a part-timer at a convenience store in downtown Cheongun City, greeted the customer with a perfunctory nod.
Once they turned the corner toward the aisles to choose their items, he quietly sat down, opened his textbook, and resumed studying.
At twenty-one, he was currently enrolled at Cheongun Academy as a third-year student nearing graduation.
It was a point at which, unlike underclassmen, he had no choice but to care more desperately about his grades.
Although the full-fledged examination period was still a little way off, Choi Ihan had begun studying the theory subjects covered on written exams whenever he found a spare moment while working.
He was relatively weaker in written exams than in practical subjects, in which he was reasonably confident.
He kept focusing on his textbook while repeatedly sneaking glances toward the front in case a customer came to pay.
‘The formula for calculating range and firepower control according to the simplification of elemental magic……? How am I supposed to know this?’
Of course, as a physical-type Awakened, Choi Ihan was even more hopeless when it came to magic theory.
But what could he do?
He had messed up his course registration and ended up taking a magic-track class; that was ultimately the individual student's responsibility.
So Choi Ihan merely grumbled inwardly, but he remained diligent in his studies.
“Checkout, please.”
“Ah, yes.”
His shift wasn't over yet, so he couldn't exactly devote his full attention to studying.
He ought to be grateful that the store owner was considerate enough to let him study in his spare moments.
Choi Ihan sprang up at the customer's presence by the register and picked up the barcode scanner.
Beep, beep-
Then, moving both hands with practiced ease as he scanned the barcodes, he examined the items out of the corner of his eye.
‘Snacks, orange juice, tonic water, and Absolut vodka……? Ah, condoms.’
It wasn't that he was especially curious; the items simply caught his eye naturally during the checkout process.
Even so, Choi Ihan couldn't help but frown at the combination.
It was only natural, given that he had spent most of his three years at the academy single.
Since the store was located near the motel district downtown, there was nothing to be done about it.
Quite apart from the sad fact that seeing such things made him angry every time, it was also a fairly common combination.
These customers would probably head to a motel with liquor, snacks, and condoms, just like all the other couples.
He nearly let out a sigh, but Choi Ihan was a veteran convenience-store worker in his second year by now.
Having quickly managed his expression so the customers wouldn't feel needlessly uncomfortable, he lowered his posture and spoke.
“That'll be 42,900 won in total. Do you need a bag?”
And just as he pulled a black bag from beneath the counter, already knowing the routine question would be answered in the affirmative.
“Yes, I'll pay by card.”
……?
It was only then that Choi Ihan got his first proper look at the customers' faces.
While putting the items into the bag, he naturally met their eyes, and inevitably—
‘What the hell.’
And, exercising his professional composure, he kept the change in his expression to a minimum, but inwardly he was so startled that an involuntary ‘Gasp’ escaped him.
It was late in the evening, and the weekend at that. Considering that Cheongun City was essentially a city for academy students, the customers' identities were fairly obvious.
Naturally, they were a student couple who had come out to spend some intimate time together over the weekend, weren't they?
Choi Ihan knew that all too well, which was why he felt even more miserable.
Some people were busting their asses working part-time and studying at the same time.
Meanwhile, these two had come out on a leisurely date and were now off to go get laid─. That was how it seemed.
So, at this moment, what disconcerted Choi Ihan was not their status as students.
It was the identities of the individuals themselves.
‘B-Baek Seol-ah?’
The first thing to catch his eye was the male student standing in front of him, the famous Han Taeyang, whose name even a third-year like Choi Ihan had heard.
But the real reason Choi Ihan felt genuine awe was the female student standing beside Han Taeyang, fiddling with her phone.
It was the presence of Baek Seol-ah herself, currently the top student among all second-years and the daughter of Baek Gangho, one of the few S-rank Awakened in the country.
Her prowess as an Awakened was extraordinary enough, but her peerlessly beautiful appearance had already made her the subject of countless rumors around campus……
And she was dating Lee Hyeonseong, another top-ranking second-year student.
‘……No way. That rumor was true?’
She was also the girl who had recently become the center of attention amid rumors of a falling-out with Lee Hyeonseong, especially on the campus community.
Apparently, since last month, she had increasingly been seen with Han Taeyang rather than her boyfriend, Lee Hyeonseong?
Choi Ihan remembered that she had become a hot topic, fueled by the baseless hopes and ulterior motives of all sorts of useless men wondering whether the seat beside that beautiful girl might soon be vacant.
Regardless of whether anything would actually come of it, it seemed the rumor hadn't been completely unfounded after all.
After all, she had appeared as Han Taeyang's partner in a shady motel district at this late hour.
Choi Ihan's eyes nearly shook in their sockets as he fixed his gaze on Baek Seol-ah, and—
“Boss?”
“……Ah.”
It was only when Han Taeyang called out to him in a puzzled tone that he realized he still hadn't handed over the bag even though the payment was complete.
Having belatedly recovered the part of his mind that had briefly run away, Choi Ihan hurriedly held out the bag.
“S-sorry. I spaced out for a moment.”
“No, it's all right.”
Han Taeyang gave a light chuckle and a small nod, as if to say there was no need to apologize so much.
Choi Ihan was dumbfounded by that courteous greeting, but only for a moment.
Soon, the two of them prepared to leave the convenience store without making much of a fuss, and Choi Ihan couldn't take his eyes off them until the very end.
More specifically, he couldn't take his eyes off the two boxes of condoms inside the bag Han Taeyang was carrying, or the revealing crop top Baek Seol-ah wore as she followed behind him.
Gulp.
Choi Ihan knew he shouldn't, but despite that, he had to swallow dryly at the sort of fantasies instinctively filling his mind.
‘Where……. are they going?’
He even meaninglessly posed a question whose answer he already knew perfectly well.
Jingle-
The convenience-store door opened, and the two of them left. Choi Ihan's widened eyes remained fixed on Baek Seol-ah's receding lower back.
Just as much as her exposed navel from the front, the obscene cleft revealing a glimpse of the valley leading toward her hips was visible from behind.
Incredibly beautiful and alluring.
A truly captivating part of the human body.
‘……What a feast for the eyes…….’
His masculine instincts forced Choi Ihan's gaze to remain fixed on that rear view, ignoring even the brakes of his conscience telling him not to do this to an underclassman he wasn't acquainted with.
Only after they finally disappeared from sight could he draw the breath he had been holding.
“Whew.”
And by then, his reason had returned as well. Baek Seol-ah, who had been debuffing his mind, was gone.
With a complicated expression, Choi Ihan pressed his stiff neck and merely thought quietly to himself.
‘……Han Taeyang. That fucking bastard, I'm so damn jealous.’
Thus, he found himself harboring both unfair jealousy and well-deserved envy toward a male junior one year below him.
Remembering the rumors he'd occasionally heard, he felt a sense of incongruity with the courteous way Han Taeyang had just behaved.
Yet it didn't strike him as particularly puzzling. At this moment, he realized the truth contained in those rumors.
……When you thought about it, though, wouldn't it be strange if there weren't rumors about a guy who was fooling around with several girls that attractive?
Naturally, people would be liable to make up things that weren't true, too.
‘You'd better pay double taxes.’
With that gloomy thought, Choi Ihan stared blankly down at the textbook spread open on the counter.
His studying was over for the day. All he wanted now was to switch shifts with the next worker and return to the dormitory as soon as possible.
The two boxes of condoms they'd bought still lingered in Choi Ihan's mind like an afterimage.
It was a lonely and galling thing.
*****
“……What are you peeking at so much? Baek Seolgi.”
“No, um.”
After leaving the convenience store and heading toward the motel I'd reserved in advance, I glanced at Baek Seol-ah walking beside me.
She kept glancing back at the convenience store with a subtle expression, as though something was bothering her, but—
Though she didn't seem certain, she answered with an unmistakably uneasy air.
“It's just, how should I put it? That part-timer from earlier.”
“Yeah.”
“He somehow seemed like someone I know.”
“Huh?”
I blinked at that, and Baek Seol-ah scratched her cheek before adding.
“We aren't acquainted……. But I think he was a third-year senior I'd briefly gotten to know through a group assignment around last year.”
“Ah.”
Hearing that, I too felt as if I knew what she meant.
Sure enough, he'd been responding in a purely businesslike manner, but then his eyes had gone wide when he saw Baek Seol-ah.
Apparently, it hadn't been solely because of her appearance.
A concern surfaced a beat later, and I subtly watched Baek Seol-ah's expression as I spoke.
“……Are you okay with this? Even if someone from school catches us walking around like this together.”
“Huh?”
I brought it up because I was worried about Baek Seol-ah's reputation, or perhaps the rumors that might spread later.
Of course, it had already been more than a month since she and I had started spending time together.
But wasn't simply hanging around together on campus a separate matter from being spotted in a motel district at night?
I had broached the subject because I wondered whether Baek Seol-ah might feel uncomfortable about that.
“So what if some rumors spread?”
“……?”
Unexpectedly, Baek Seol-ah's response was far more nonchalant than I'd expected, even somewhat indifferent.
She glanced once at the black bag I was carrying, then continued casually.
“We only saw him for a moment, but he didn't look like the sort of person who'd spread pointless rumors. More importantly, honestly, haven't they already spread as far as they can?”
“……What has?”
“The rumors about you and me.”
“……”
Unable to affirm or deny it, I fell into an awkward silence, and Baek Seol-ah let out a small laugh.
“I only found out recently, but apparently our school has an online community too? I heard it caused an uproar from the time I sat beside you in the lecture hall.”
“……Well, that.”
“You don't need to worry about pointless things. As you know, I'm not the sort of person who cares what other people say. Besides, Hyeonseong…….”
When she mentioned Lee Hyeonseong next, her eyes briefly grew hazy, then her lips twisted sharply, irritation mixed with a faint displeasure.
“……Hyeonseong doesn't seem to mind at all that I get swept up in those ‘rumors,’ either.”
“What?”
“No. If anything, I think he'd like it?”
That damned perverted masochist──. The chilling remark that followed a moment later was so unexpectedly vicious that I wondered if I had heard it wrong.
Even though it wasn't directed at me, I flinched as Baek Seol-ah's cold smile and frigid gaze washed over me.
‘……What happened between those two this time?’
From my perspective, it was the only possible interpretation of her reaction. Either something had happened, or they'd had an outright fight.
It also seemed to give me a rough idea of how today's date had come about……
In any case, given her reaction, there didn't seem to be anything to gain from adding unnecessary comments.
With a false cough, I looked away and simply quickened my pace toward the motel.
Fortunately, Baek Seol-ah didn't unleash the anger blazing in that gaze upon me.
Its target seemed to be set on one person alone, and if so, that left only one thing for me to do.
“Here.”
“!”
Though she looked ready to explode at the slightest touch, Baek Seol-ah had nevertheless followed quietly behind me all the way into the motel room.
The moment I inserted the key card into the slot in the wall, I tore open the bag and first ripped open a package of SaeXkkang.
Then I picked up a piece and popped it into Baek Seol-ah's mouth. Her eyes went round, but soon she accepted it like a baby bird.
The most effective way to calm a woman wasn't a warm hug or a few gentle words.
More than anything, the things with reliably proven performance were sweetness, saltiness, greasiness, and umami……
Anyway, all those sorts of things.
Om nom nom-
Sure enough, Baek Seol-ah took off the lace cardigan she'd worn over her clothes outdoors and hung it on a hanger, accepting every snack I handed her.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, I placed the food from the bag on the table one item at a time.
“……I've been wondering since the convenience store.”
Baek Seol-ah chewed adorably with her cheeks puffed out, partially covering her mouth as she pointed at the table with her index finger.
“What's that? The thing in the white bottle.”
“Ah……. Absolut?”
So that was what she was pointing at. Apparently, she'd grown curious about one of the things I'd bought for tonight's snacks.
Of those, it was the key item. By then Baek Seol-ah had come over beside me and was staring at the liquor bottle with curious eyes, so I answered her.
“It's called Absolut vodka, a decent entry-level drink. A great choice for beginners. It's also hard to mess up if you mix it with tonic water or orange juice…….”
As I continued, I took out the last condom from the bag and casually moved it aside.
I approached the room's mini-fridge, presumably looking for the bottled water that would be provided.
“As far as I remember, you don't dislike alcohol either, right? Hang on. If we mix a few things, at least one of them should suit your taste.”
Crouching in front of the fridge and rummaging through it, I thought of something else.
I'd wanted to have a drink with Baek Seol-ah at some point for personal reasons─.
But more than that, today I wanted to use alcohol's influence to draw out what Baek Seol-ah was really thinking.
I'd enjoyed myself after coming out with her, but I still had no idea why this date had begun in the first place.
‘I am curious, though.’
Since we were already here, I intended to coax out the sincerity she was keeping hidden inside.
“Ah, if you want to order some late-night food too, let me know later…….”
And just as I was about to add another word with a bottle of water in each hand.
Pop!
“……?”
I blinked blankly at the crisp sound that suddenly came from behind me.
Until that moment, I'd simply turned around to see what she was doing, without giving it much thought.
“Hey, if you drink that now—”
I warned Baek Seol-ah, though I doubted she'd actually do it, just in case.
Gulp, gulp-
“……”
It was truly unfortunate. By the time I turned around, it was already too late.
Baek Seol-ah, whom I'd expected merely to poke curiously at the liquor and carbonated water I'd bought.
Without giving me any chance to stop her, she'd opened the cap of the Absolut vodka and tilted it upright.
In other words, yes.
“……Has this bitch lost her mind? Hey, what are you doing!”
She had tilted the 700-milliliter bottle with a curious expression and drunk straight from it.
Naturally, it wasn't an amount anyone could finish in one go, so she hadn't emptied the whole bottle.
“……Uh, mm.”
But that alone was already a disaster. Judging by the heat traveling from the liquid, Baek Seol-ah had probably felt exactly where her esophagus was located as she gently furrowed her brow in discomfort.
I hurried over and snatched the bottle from her hand, but what good was that?
It was literally closing the stable door after the horse had bolted. Baek Seol-ah's eyes grew unfocused with slight dizziness, and soon she buried her head against my chest.
Thump!
“Urk.”
And she hit me squarely, too, without even seeming to intend it.
Even a woman's weight hitting you directly while you're off guard is considerable.
I grimaced at the pain in my chest and let out a brief groan.
“……Uhe, Han Taeyang?”
“……”
Before long, Baek Seol-ah had completely put her weight on me, merely poking her head out.
Looking at me with eyes that seemed to be hazily losing focus, she let out a foolish, tipsy laugh.
I was too dumbfounded to utter any words, not even a sigh, and simply stood there with a vacant expression.
‘No, what.’
Even if she'd been guzzling forty-percent liquor like a soft drink, there had to be limits.
Surely she couldn't feel drunk in less than a minute. This wasn't some cartoon─.
……No way, seriously.
You're kidding, right?
“Yaaawn.”
Watching Baek Seol-ah yawn cutely with both arms wrapped around my waist as though binding me, I slowly but surely began to break out in a cold sweat.