Chapter 206

Seoyeon in her previous life was someone who couldn’t properly recognize emotions.

Happiness, sadness, and other various complex emotions.

Of course, within these elements, there was a sexual aspect as well.

‘I, is this really 15 years old?’

Seoyeon was in almost a state of culture shock.

As for sexual topics, Seoyeon had been deeply ignorant of them since her previous life.

But no, she would understand it all. She did know it.

Just that, separately, she hadn’t exactly seen much of it.

Even if she did see it, it was merely observation; she couldn’t feel anything from it.

At first, she tried to take an interest in the sexual elements like the men around her, but even that failed.

Afterward, she completely lost interest.

Even after being reborn, she had absolutely no interest at all.

‘Although *Gyeongseong Yeong-nyeo* doesn’t have scenes as intense as this…’

Seoyeon swallowed hard after watching the movie, which was filled with intimate scenes.

Instead of the movie’s content, what first came to her mind was the script of *Gyeongseong Yeong-nyeo*.

Fortunately, Seoyeon’s character, Kasugayama Yuina, had very few such scenes.

At most, one or two?

And those weren’t particularly significant; she remembered just holding hands or grazing shoulders or something like that.

‘Huh?’

Even though the movie might be appropriate for all ages, the acting might make it seem quite strange, she thought.

While watching the movie, Seoyeon felt this way.

‘Now I understand why Jo Seohui suggested we watch this movie.’

It was a movie that explicitly portrayed the emotion of love.

Even if Seoyeon didn’t understand this emotion, it was acted in such a way that even a fool could comprehend.

A slightly embarrassing feeling, a strange tickling sensation in her chest.

Her fingertips and toes wriggled, unable to stay still.

Still, comically, Seoyeon focused on the movie.

From a certain point onward…

***

“How was it?”

Exiting the movie theater, Jo Seohui glanced at Seoyeon and asked.

Though delivered with a confident tone, she was actually quite observant of Seoyeon’s reactions.

After all, she had made a mistake last time, and everyone has their own tastes, even if it’s a good movie.

Based on her observations thus far, Seoyeon mainly watched action movies.

Ironically, Seoyeon herself mostly starred in emotional dramas.

“…”

Seoyeon remained silent, throwing the remaining popcorn into the trash can.

Walking quietly beside Seohui.

‘D-did she not like it?’

Jo Seohui’s lips trembled slightly.

She had thought this was the perfect movie for Seoyeon to improve her romantic acting.

When she first watched it, she had soaked her handkerchief with tears.

This was their second viewing today, but her eyes were still slightly damp.

The feeling of watching the loved one connect with someone else, even the woman who has to help them, seemed so fitting.

‘In action movies, romance is just a side plotline.’

Not suitable for studying the emotional line.

But if Seoyeon says she didn’t enjoy it…

Seohui glanced at the posters hanging around the theater.

Perhaps it would be better to watch the new Japan anime theatrical release next?

Even more conveniently, Seoyeon’s outfit seemed similar to the one she wore in Japan.

Yes, if they hurry…

“It was good.”

“Huh?”

“The movie… It was good.”

Seoyeon answered somewhat awkwardly, sounding as if saying it was good was embarrassing.

‘Ah, what? How cute.’

That was what Seohui thought.

Seoyeon was generally a cool person.

Though she became more cheerful and playful during variety shows, in everyday life, she was often a poised, emotionless beauty.

But now, Seoyeon displayed a rather complex range of emotions.

‘At least stop being so formal while we’re here.’

Though she had this thought, since Seoyeon said she enjoyed the movie, Seohui straightened up her slouched posture and confidently smiled.

“Of course! Would I recommend some random movie?”

“But, to be honest, there were parts I didn’t understand.”

She truly did enjoy the movie; it wasn’t just empty flattery.

Seoyeon generally found most movies entertaining.

In the past, she even watched less interesting films for the sake of improving her emotional acting.

It wasn’t much different now, but the emotions she herself felt were increasing.

‘I should watch this movie again sometime on my own.’

Not because she was particularly concerned about the intense sex scene.

Really, she wasn’t.

“But I don’t understand why the protagonist made that choice.”

With that, Seoyeon began explaining her thoughts on the movie.

Which parts she felt were problematic.

Which ones she liked.

It was quite a straightforward analysis.

Thanks to this, Seohui was pleased.

Yes, this was it.

There’s a charm in watching a movie and exchanging thoughts on it.

“I didn’t understand why Siyoung acted that way, knowing the male lead didn’t choose her.”

Siyong was the female lead in the movie, secretly in love with the protagonist.

In the love triangle, she was the one who confessed first to the male lead.

However, the protagonist already loved someone else and therefore rejected her.

“Isn’t it common sense to move on after getting rejected? Honestly, it felt too clinging…”

“That shouldn’t be said in front of Yeo-hee. Understand?”

Reality outdoes fiction.

Siyong had been in unrequited love with the protagonist for four years.

Four years was long by most people’s standards, but…

‘Yeo-hee had been for twenty years.’

If Yeo-hee saw it, she might scoff at how trivial a four-year unrequited love was.

Still, Seohui thought four years was already sufficient, and twenty went beyond the limit.

If she herself were on the receiving end of such one-sided love, she’d find it somewhat scary.

“But I guess she liked him that much. The character you’re playing now, Kasugayama Yuina, isn’t much different.”

“Yuina leaves though, even though she could stay.”

“Her heart is still there. She just didn’t stay physically.”

Kasugayama Yuina was the villain.

Of course, the main character, Yeon Seonye, and Amanabi Michiko’s relationship was hampered by her presence.

And she was also their rival.

At the end, Yeon Seonye and Amanabi Michiko move to Japan together.

Yuina also returns to her homeland but chooses not to stay with them.

Even when Yeon Seonye extended her hand at the very end, Yuina steps back.

“Pride comes into play there. She steps back so Yeon Seonye can find true happiness.”

In a way, this was similar to Yeo-hee.

Yeo-hee had gone to Seoul soon after being rejected by Young-bin.

Perhaps she had thoughts of moving on and starting anew, yet she hadn’t let go of those feelings from her youth.

She had frozen in time during her brightest years of youth.

‘Maybe Yuina feels the same.’

Seoyeon reflected, thinking about dramas and Yeo-hee’s story.

Love, it seemed, was more complex and not always a good thing.

Most people think of love as something brilliant and beautiful, like a shining star.

But the nature of love can be immensely varied; it can come entwined with thick and painful suffering too.

Yuina belonged to the latter category.

‘I feel like I understand somewhat.’

When she meets Yeo-hee next time, she’ll ask about it.

Of course, whether she can actually do it well, that’s something she’ll have to try and see.

The emotional line might be somewhat evident to her now, but actually executing it herself was a different matter.

“Thank you for showing me the movie today. It helped a lot.”

“Huh? What, are we saying goodbye here?”

“Huh?”

“Would I just watch a movie and then leave?”

Seoyeon stared blankly at Seohui.

So, what were they supposed to do next then?

“Hmph, when I saw you shopping with Lee Jeon before, didn’t you say you wanted to shop together?”

“That was only because Jeon was also going…”

But that was when, Lee Jeon was also invited. This wasn’t just the two of them.

She considered Jo Seohui more than just a friend now.

Honestly, though she thought of her as a friend, saying it outright felt strange and irksome.

Of course, it wasn’t because Seohui had called her a “parachute” when they were younger.

Her somewhat covert acts of betrayal and making Seoyeon’s life difficult raised doubts of whether they were intentional.

“Clothes? I bought too much in Japan.”

“Oh.”

On second thought, Seoyeon had recently been to Japan.

She did say she bought a lot of things then.

If she bought that much, it was pretty clear she wouldn’t need anything immediately.

“So…”

Seohui hastily turned her gaze.

Coincidentally, it was a bustling district, so there were plenty of places they could visit nearby.

‘Cosmetics stores… that’d be meaningless. Clothes too…’

Seoyeon’s interests generally leaned towards things men usually liked.

According to Lee Jeon, if you took her to a cosmetics store, she wouldn’t know what to buy.

‘Even though she takes care of her skin, how can her skin be so good?’

There was simply no fairness.

While Jo Seohui’s looks were also outstanding, it was due to diligent care!

Apparently, Seoyeon’s skincare routine consisted only of lotion and skin care.

‘Ever since the *Eclat Étoile* advertisement, she’s been using their products exclusively.’

Having no intention to explore other cosmetic brands, Seoyeon stuck solely to Eclat Étoile products.

Thanks to her, Eclat Étoile’s sales were on a steady rise.

She might as well be their walking, talking advertising board.

Compared to the investments, her influence was nothing short of a bargain, making it impossible for other advertisers not to be interested.

“So… we could play games? There’s an arcade nearby.”

“Arcade?”

Seoyeon perked up.

She also realized that Seohui cared about her.

‘Does she think I dislike shopping?’

In the past, this was indeed the case.

Back then, the fiery Seoyeon would ask, “Why the heck do I need makeup?”

“What’s so fun about shopping?”

She’d rather use that time to exercise or something.

Generally, that was the kind of mindset she had.

So these days, though Lee Jeon knew Seoyeon’s preferences had changed a bit, she rarely invited her to shop anymore.

“Do you play games well, Seoyeon? I’ve started playing various games recently. They are subtly helpful, you know.”

As Jo Seohui said this, a slight smile appeared on her face.

Does Seoyeon play games well…? Frankly, there was no need to ask that.

“Yes, I’m good at it.”

Seoyeon believed wholeheartedly in her gaming skills, to the point that she believed she could win at anything.

Looking at Seohui, it was quite clear that she hadn’t been to an arcade before.

“Together, fighting games are perfect.”

“Yeah, that makes sense. But I haven’t played anything like this before; will it be okay?”

“It’ll be fine, I’ll teach you.”

Seoyeon confidently tapped her chest.

‘Of course, fighting games mean learning by taking hits.’

Seoyeon inserted the coin and took a seat opposite Seohui.

There was one thing Seoyeon had forgotten.

Jo Seohui’s virtual YouTuber character, ‘Ellis,’ was a comprehensive game streamer, known recently as a skillful gamer.

“Seoyeon…”

“…?“

“Maybe we should go somewhere else?”

“No, the match isn’t over yet.”

The match? It had ended long ago…

Jo Seohui couldn’t bring herself to say that.

Confidently declaring she’d teach her, Seoyeon had been utterly demolished by Seohui after merely five rounds.

‘What is this injustice?’

Indeed, during the first two rounds, Seoyeon had the upper hand.

But starting with the third round, the situation changed.

Moreover, fighting games actually were one of Seoyeon’s strengths.

Given her keen visual reflexes, she could easily recognize and react to her opponent’s attacks.

But…

She was the one always being hit.

“You have to memorize the frames.”

“?”

“Didn’t you know? Though even if you didn’t, it’s fine…”

Your reaction speed seems so fast.

Initially, Seohui believed that Seoyeon had memorized the frames.

The foundation of fighting games: recognizing an opponent’s initial moves and understanding the frame count, then executing a counterattack.

But Seoyeon was different.

It was almost like she just reacted and attacked instantly.

‘Could this really be possible?’

But with Seoyeon, you can’t discount it.

Honestly, this alone was already quite intimidating; her claim of being good at games wasn’t an exaggeration.

‘Should we have gone shopping instead?’

Seohui frowned as Seoyeon lost two more matches in a row.

‘This joystick feels off.’

Seoyeon almost pulled the joystick out of her hand.

‘I’d rather just go in and fight myself.’

She had reached that level of frustration.

“One more round.”

“Do you really want to? Haven’t you been saying that for ten rounds already…”

“This time I mean it.”

Seriously.

Seoyeon was slowly familiarizing with the moves Seohui used.

Of course, she still didn’t know the frame counts.

‘No other choice. Let’s just attack with short-range hands.’

The fastest attacks.

Regardless of the opponent’s attack, a close-range hand strike—essentially a jab—can’t be beaten.

It’s a trick she hadn’t used before because she thought it wouldn’t work, but…

No way she could lose here.

With that resolve, she decided to go for the fast, short-range punches.

At that moment,

“Oh? What’s this? Isn’t that Jo Seohui?”

A familiar male voice rang out.

Surprised, Seoyeon peeked her head out from the side of the arcade machine.

‘That idol who takes medicine?’

None other than Just X’s leader, Ro.

He was waving enthusiastically at Jo Seohui with a friendly smile.

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