Everything changed in just one day. It may sound cliched, but that was the best way to describe the current situation. I[1] was uncomfortable with the attention I was receiving, but after some time, I had gotten used to it. Obviously, I wasn’t enjoying their jealousy because I knew better than anyone that all this was just an act. My situation wasn’t important to me. The only thing I cared about was how the people’s reaction would influence Kim Ki-Chul.

‘Ass… hole.’

I tried not to think about it again, but it was frustrating how I couldn’t get it out of my head. The nauseating sight and voice that I had seen and heard kept repeating in my head to the point that it was becoming unbearable—just imagining it was making me cry.

‘It’s annoying.’

I didn’t like the fact that I had to feel these emotions because of him, and if I hadn’t agreed to go along with this plan, I would have still been in my room crying all by myself. At first, I was skeptical about how doing this with Mr. Lee Ki-Young would help me, but it was definitely helpful. My heart felt like it was clogged up, and it felt good being freed from that feeling, even for a short moment. It felt like I had been relieved from the itchiness in my heart. I couldn’t really describe the feeling, but the fact that it relieved me from frustration was the most important.

When I was walking toward my dorm, I heard a voice.

“Ah-Young.”

It was obvious who it was.

“What?” I asked.

“What do you mean what? I came because I missed you,” Kim Ki-Chul answered.

He looked relaxed, but his face and actions showed that he was anxious, and I almost cried when I saw him. I kept having negative thoughts, but I felt kind of relaxed, and it was probably because I could see this man’s anxious face.

“You shouldn’t be out at this hour. I know that trainees aren’t allowed to leave their dorms after midnight…” I pointed out.

“Same goes for you…” he remarked.

“You know as well as I do that you and I are in different situations. I received permission to be out here, but you’re here without permission,” I told him.

“To be exact, I’m not here without permission. I have business I had to take care of as well,” he corrected.

“What kind of business? Did you receive an offer from a guild?” I asked.

“Well, s-something like that,” he stuttered.

“Which guild?” I questioned.

“It’s from a mid-sized guild. I’m not sure if you know, but they’re called the Giants Guild, and they’re located in Castle Rock,” he answered.

I have heard of them before. After their impressive performance during the Castle Rock defense war, they became one of the major guilds. Although I heard the Small Stone Guild was actually the guild that had significant power in Castle Rock…

‘They became a major guild after a man named Song Jung-Wook sacrificed himself for Castle Rock…’

I couldn’t remember the details, but I was sure that was what I had heard from Mr. Lee Ki-Young. Even though they weren’t in Lindel, it was one of the guilds the majority of the trainees were aiming for, and since their entry requirement had become stricter recently, I didn’t think it was a guild that Kim Ki-Chul could join with his grades.

‘This is frustrating.’

At first, I wasn’t sure why I was frustrated, but it didn’t take me long to realize that it was because I didn’t want the man in front of me to succeed.

“I don’t think you can join that guild with your grades,” I said.

After realizing what I said, I thought maybe I was being a bit blunt, but after seeing the frown on his face, I felt my frustration slowly disappear.

‘Ah…’

“With your grades, shouldn’t you be looking for clans, Oppa?” I asked.

I knew I shouldn’t be saying this, but I continued talking as if I were possessed. To get rid of my frustration, I talked bluntly without realizing it.

“If you’re going to join them without any salary, it’s better that you don’t join them, Oppa. I heard this from Mr. Lee Ki-Young, and he said that you would most likely become a porter for monster corpses. You won’t be able to join them as an actual guild member,” I said.

“You…”

“I’m saying this all for you, Oppa. How much is your salary…”

“A lot,” he replied.

“Really?” I doubted it.

“Yeah. When I told them I was going to go with you…”

“I never agreed to it. Why did you decide that on your own, Oppa?” I asked, cutting him off.

It was so ridiculous that I couldn’t speak properly. I knew something was off, but I had never imagined that he would just confess what he had done like this.

“You’re really going to join the Blue Guild?” he asked.

“What if I am? They promised to give me the best salary and treatment. Their benefits are better than the other guilds as well,” I replied.

“What about us joining together…” he asked.

“I never said I would join the guild with you. That was all your idea, Oppa,” I said.

“Don’t you know that there are bad rumors about that guild? That man named Lee Ki-Young…” Kim Ki-Chul remarked.

“What about him? Aren’t you the one who told me that it would be good to get close to him? You told me to do that. And he definitely doesn’t seem like a bad person. That man is more amazing than you think, Oppa,” I explained.

“I’ve heard things, too. He has a complicated relationship with women, so it’s clear what kind of person he is. The power Mr. Lee Ki-Young had obtained… Do you really think he used a fair method to obtain it? He’s nothing but an alchemist,” he retorted.

I wanted to tell him, ‘You’re the same as him,’ but I decided to keep it in.

“We’re not even on Earth, so can that really be considered a flaw? I actually like it because he’s proud of it. He’s not doing it discreetly and everyone knows about it… I heard people with power are usually like that,” I responded.

“So… you’re saying you like that about him?” he questioned.

“It’s not that I like that about him, but it’s not bad either. That man… he’s capable and is worthy of doing something like that,” I answered.

“Don’t think that the attention Mr. Lee Ki-Young is giving you is genuine, Ah-Young. You don’t know how the world works because you’re too nice, but all of that is—”

“Is it really important whether he’s genuine or not? What do you think is the total cost of all the clothes that I’m wearing? You probably don’t know, Oppa. Even if you work all your life, you wouldn’t be able to afford even a single article I’m wearing. I thought they were just ordinary items, but this ring, I was told that it costs twenty thousand gold,” I interrupted him.

The deeper this man frowned, the more relieved I felt. In addition, I knew exactly what he was feeling.

‘Inferiority complex.’

“Did you sleep… with…”

“You really make assumptions based on what you see… You think I sold my body or something?” I asked.

“Tell it to me straight. Yoo Ah-Young, did you…”

“What if I did?” I retorted.

He frowned again, and I started shaking when I felt goosebumps on my back. I could feel the ball of frustration inside me being relieved at once. I thought that maybe I shouldn’t be doing this, but like an alcoholic craving for alcohol, I couldn’t stop.

“You!” Kim Ki-Chul shouted.

“That man… it’s not just his wealth and power that’s amazing,” I started.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“In every aspect, you can’t even be compared to him, Oppa. Do I really need to spell it out? This is the first time I was happy I was born a woman,” I answered.

“Yoo Ah-Young!” he screamed.

I saw his bloodshot eyes and trembling face.

‘So this is what he meant.’

I recalled what Mr. Lee Ki-Young told me earlier.

‘Guys like him would usually end up foaming at the mouth upon discovering that the woman he thought belonged to him was stolen by another man.’

At first, I didn’t really understand what those words meant, but when I saw how this man reacted, I finally understood what Mr. Lee Ki-Young meant. The goosebumps on my back were still there, but it felt like the frustration building up inside me had exploded all at once.

‘I feel better.’

I thought maybe I could be a bit more straightforward, so I was about to speak, but a thought popped into my head.

‘Is it okay for me to end it here?’

Usually, I wouldn’t have that kind of thought, but I wanted to see this man suffer for a little longer. I wanted to make him suffer even more. Similar thoughts started popping into my head.

‘I was suffering, too.’

I was heartbroken.

‘He needs to suffer as well.’

Only then would it be fair…

‘You need to know what it feels like to be abandoned.’

I heard Mr. Lee Ki-Young’s voice again. I knew he didn’t mean much by it, but for some reason, it kept repeating in my head.

‘You should continue the revenge until you’re feeling better. People who say that they feel uncomfortable or that there’s no point are people who have never experienced a proper revenge. If you do it properly, you’ll actually feel like you have been freed.’

I felt like I could fly, and I wanted to feel this emotion a little longer. I wanted to enjoy it while I could. In the end, I spoke while looking at this man.

“I only said it because I was angry. I have never done it with him.”

“You…”

It was only for a moment, but he seemed relieved.

“...”

“...”

“Ah-Young,” he called out.

“What?” I asked.

“You’ve been acting strange recently,” he answered.

“...”

“Is it because I made you upset? Is it because I suggested we should spend some time apart?” he asked.

“I don’t know…” I mumbled.

“I suggested it for you. I believed in the potential you had, and I thought maybe I was getting in your way. But seeing you now, I think I have been neglecting you too much recently,” he explained.

Bullshit. He was lying.

“I’m sorry, Ah-Young,” he apologized.

“...”

However, I couldn’t stop smiling. I wasn’t smiling because of his genuine apology. I was smiling because my heart started racing at the thought that I would be able to feel that emotion again.

“I don’t want to see you right now,” I stated.

“I'm really sorry, but please keep this one thing in mind. I love you,” Kim Ki-Chul confessed.

“I’ll leave first,” I told him.

“Ah-Young! Yoo Ah-Young!” he yelled.

“Also…”

“Huh?”

“I accept your apology, Oppa. Let’s… eat together tomorrow,” I suggested.

When I turned my head slightly and suggested, I saw Kim Ki-Chul smile. And it made me feel a tingling sensation on my back.

***

I[2] was sitting on the sofa that was on one side of Cha Hee-Ra’s room. I was reviewing some documents when I heard a voice next to me.

“You still haven’t picked a rearguard, darling?” Cha Hee-Ra asked.

“Yeah. We need to create a second party, but there aren’t any useful trainees. I wanted to recruit a rookie, but it looks like I’m going to have to recruit an experienced player,” I answered.

“There will be some mages leaving the Devil’s Guild soon, so wait for a bit. As long as they don’t renew their contracts… We’re thinking about bringing a few of them with us as well, so you should look into them,” she suggested.

“I actually wanted to recruit someone I could train from the beginning till the end. Someone like a blank canvas,” I told her.

“Ah, that’s always good, and that’s also the reason why people recruit rookies…” she commented.

There wasn’t anything wrong with experienced players, but having two more rookies to grow with the party would be better. I had been constantly using Mind’s Eye recently, but no one had caught my attention, so it would probably be difficult to recruit a rookie I liked. I knew there weren’t a lot of useful mages because they had to have an understanding of magic, talent, and the desperation to put in the effort. I would have recruited a mage if they were half as good as Jung Ha-Yan.

“Whew…”

“Despite being busy, you must be having fun playing around like that,” she said.

“It’s pretty fun,” I agreed.

“It’s really up to you, but… you’re going to tell your second girlfriend about Yoo Ah-Young’s case, right?” Cha Hee-Ra questioned.

“Ah… yeah. Ha-Yan is in Lindel right now, so I think it should be okay. Are you okay with it, noona?” I asked.

“I like these kinds of jokes. They’re kind of fulfilling, and it’s not like there are a lot of exciting things going on around here, anyway… I’m too successful to receive that kind of princess treatment, so I won’t have the chance to experience a situation like that. However, the vicarious satisfaction is there thanks to her,” she explained.

“Do you want to receive the princess treatment?” I questioned.

“You’re getting close to crossing the line,” she warned.

When I smiled, I noticed her calming down right away, but I did flinch a bit. We were talking as equals, but Cha Hee-Ra was still scary.

‘It’s because of that incident…’

It was natural for me to show that kind of reaction because I could still vividly remember how she charged at me like a madwoman with bloodshot eyes, all the while drooling.

“You’re thinking of that incident.” Cha Hee-Ra pointed out.

“I wasn’t… noona,” I mumbled.

“I can tell from your expression. Didn’t I tell you to forget about it?” she questioned.

“It’s not that easy…” I confessed.

When I was giving her an excuse, a guild employee opened the door and reported to give a report. I sent out a message a few days ago asking them to come, so I guess they had arrived.

I felt happy when I thought I could see Smartie again.

“Mr. Lee Ki-Young. You... have a guest,” the employee said.

“Please take them to my room. Let them know I’ll be there shortly,” I ordered.

“Well.. the door is small, so I don’t know if they’ll fit…” they mentioned.

“What?” I asked.

“I’m sorry to say this, but you should probably go check yourself,” they suggested.

“Huh? There’s no need… Isn’t Dialugia with them? I don’t understand what you’re saying…” I told them.

“Kyaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!”

The loud screech was different from usual. Naturally, I headed toward the direction where I heard the sound, and when I looked out the window, I saw an unfamiliar monstrous creature.

‘Smartie?’

It was like a large dog; no, it was more like a beast. I doubted my eyes for a second.

‘Smartie… how did you grow so big?’

1. Yoo Ah-Young’s POV ☜

2. Lee Ki-Young’s POV ☜