Chapter 19

<Episode 20, Huh... This level of stuff isn't enough to hurt me... right?>

Why am I such an idiot?

Yujin sat in the corner of the school, spacing out.

He just wanted to make friends, that’s all.

But he almost got someone he thought could be a friend arrested by the police.

…

‘No, I actually did get him arrested. I just managed to pull him out halfway through.’

The shock must’ve been pretty bad since Chulsoo filed a leave of absence from school.

Of course, his homeroom teacher said he’d be back in a few days though.

Clearly, the shock must’ve been pretty severe.

Is there anyone this crazy in the world?

With any conscience at all, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to talk to him again.

“Uuuuuuuh! I just wanted to make friends, you know? Why does stuff like this keep happening to me?”

Maybe it’s because my luck stat is at zero.

Somehow, everything I do ends up going against what I want.

If it really is because of luck, maybe I need to reset my stats.

-Did you forget about raising your magic power first?

“Oh yeah, you’re still around.”

-How could you forget about me! A companion as unique as me doesn’t come around every day!

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.”

Actually, Yujin thought he could easily handle the slime’s request.

He figured stats could be adjusted anytime, raised or lowered as needed.

【The relevant stat has been invested in for too long and cannot be restored.】

Who would’ve thought there were limits on stats?

This kind of thing should be clearly stated beforehand!

An innocent user like me might misunderstand!

“Ugh, so to raise stats, I have to hunt monsters. But I just don’t have the motivation.”

-And yet here you are getting worked up over some guy.

“I mean, don’t act like you understand just because it’s ‘someone else’s problem.'”

Of course, Yujin knows his connection with Chulsoo is basically over.

Relationships aren’t one-sided.

Thinking that just because you like someone, they’ll like you back is naive.

He’s had more than enough of that kind of emotion in his past life.

And it rarely ended well.

“But still, he was the only one who talked to me first in this school.”

To the other students, being heir to Hwagcheon must be quite intimidating.

Even if he understood that.

Even if he wouldn’t have thought of the CEO’s son in his class as normal either.

At least Chulsoo never acted differently and was always straightforward.

Not sure how things will go with Chulsoo from now on though.

-Well, you’re not completely alone. There’s that female from before who went to the hotel with us.

“It’s Younghee, not ‘female.'”

-Whatever. Having one girl like that is plenty. Why are you so obsessed with making friends?

Yujin sighed deeply.

All he wanted was a decent, normal relationship.

Someone to eat with, play simple games with, exchange playful jokes via text.

Is even that not allowed for lonely losers like me?

Damn, it’s my own fault so I can’t even complain! What the hell!

Just as he was unusually dejected, someone spoke to him.

“Hey~”

Looking up, it was Younghee.

But she looked different from usual.

“Hair…”

“Yeah, I tried cutting it. Is it weird?”

Younghee shyly blushed while speaking.

Her originally waist-length black hair was now cut short.

But that didn’t diminish her beauty.

If anything, it gave off a different, mysterious vibe.

Though it was true he felt a bit of regret seeing it shorter.

“It suits you.”

“Really? That’s great!”

Younghee smiled shyly as she sat next to Yujin.

Then naturally leaned into him.

Without realizing it, Yujin’s body tensed up.

“I’ve realized something. You’re truly strong and amazing. Other guys can’t even compare.”

“Huh?”

“So from now on, I’ll only look at you.”

Saying that, she gave an uncharacteristically feminine smile.

It was a look the old Younghee would never have made.

Whereas the original Younghee was purely beautiful, now she seemed…slightly seductive.

“Well, I’ll be going now. If you have any troubles, feel free to consult me too!”

Younghee waved happily and quickly walked off somewhere.

Yujin was left feeling slightly dazed.

Was Younghee originally like this?

No, she was extremely reserved and rather timid.

-Hmm, her efforts to impress you are pitiful.

“Why would she try to impress me? For what?”

-Well, isn’t it obvious she’s realized her situation? Sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself to protect what’s precious.

The slime chuckled watching Younghee’s retreating figure.

-Speaking of which, she would’ve been quite amusing to stay inside instead of me, hmm.

Yujin couldn’t fully grasp what the slime meant.

Younghee had no real reason to try to impress him.

As a friend, Yujin was prepared to do pretty much anything for her anyway.

Though it did prick his conscience a bit that it wasn’t his own money.

Still, if a rich kid wants to open their wallet for a friend, why would anyone complain?

“And doesn’t Younghee like Chulsoo…right?”

Last time, her desperate plea to save Chulsoo felt genuinely urgent.

Even though Yujin was planning to save Chulsoo anyway, it wasn’t necessary for her to beg like that.

Seeing her beg so earnestly showed how important Chulsoo was to her.

“…Hmm, thinking about it, this makes me seem like I’m butting in where I don’t belong, doesn’t it?”

Currently, Chulsoo dislikes him, and Younghee seems to have some affection for him.

But that’s likely because she realizes her own mistakes.

From Chulsoo’s perspective, who has no idea about that, it’s understandable he’d be angry.

But if Younghee likes Chulsoo, it would be proper to step back gracefully, wouldn’t it?

“Damn it, no matter how I think about it, it all comes down to not having any friends in the end!”

Born with a silver spoon and good looks, yet making friends turns out to be this hard.

Now he was starting to feel a bit wronged.

After all, considering how much time has passed, talking to only Chulsoo and Younghee is quite pathetic.

Which is why…

“Excuse me, do you mind if I talk for a moment?”

When a random female student suddenly spoke to him, he was genuinely surprised.

She had an average appearance – plain if described harshly, ordinary if put nicely.

Of course, that’s compared to Younghee.

In a world where average looks themselves are rare, she had her own distinct charm.

For instance, her pink hair.

The girl with her pink hair tied back had a surprisingly determined expression.

“Hm, who are you?”

“My name’s Soohyun. Ah, you probably don’t know me. We’ve never talked before.”

Her words made Yujin even more perplexed.

As she said, everyone else found him intimidating.

People would tremble and apologize just for making eye contact.

But this girl was different somehow.

“You’re probably wondering why someone like me would approach you, right?”

Yujin internally flinched.

While he hadn’t exactly thought that…

He did find it strange, so…

“Ugh, is it showing on my face? Damn, this is why I become a loner.”

It was rare for a student to approach him first.

Considering his recent attempts at socializing,

Yujin gathered his courage and smiled while responding.

“What do you want with me?”

“Eek!”

For some reason, the girl took a startled step back.

What, that reaction is rude!

I just smiled!

Even a seasoned loner would cry at this point!

“Hmm, hmm! You’re reacting more positively than I expected. Maybe it’s because the original story and its development have changed.”

The pink-haired girl muttered strangely then cleared her throat before continuing.

“The things I’m about to say might be hard to believe. However, I believe your intelligence will allow you to realize the truth.”

The pink-haired girl’s expression was unusually serious.

I wonder what kind of important story she’s about to tell.

Yujin himself felt tense.

“The truth about this world is that it’s actually an adult game called ‘Trouble Two Fight,’ and I’m an embodiment character who came into this game. And you are the villain of this world.”

Yujin stayed silent for a moment.

He blinked repeatedly as he stared at the pink-haired girl.

Surely some unexpected, hilarious joke is coming next, right?

Right?

But no matter how much time passed, there was no sign of it.

She just kept staring at him tensely.

“As an embodiment character, I’m asking for your cooperation. Of course, I’ll provide appropriate compensation.”

Her eyes seemed to be asking ‘Will you believe this truth?’

After staying silent for a bit, Yujin gave a wistful smile.

“…I see.”

Ah, so you have ‘Joonggyulbyung’, huh?

It’s been a while since someone talked to me, and they turn out to have ‘Joonggyulbyung’.

Kuk kuk, should I reply that a black dragon is sealed in my left hand?

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