Chapter 208

Mira was looking at me with a face that clearly expressed, “What on earth are you talking about?” It felt like she needed more explanation. I could definitely provide that.

“Mira is not at fault. It’s all my fault. So, what I mean is that I’m atoning for Mira.”

“…You said it’s not your fault, Oppa.”

“But I feel responsible.”

Mira briefly closed her mouth. Perhaps she was momentarily taken aback by my bombshell suggestion, recalling the stories she had just brought up. It was her embarrassment, yet, it was also the truth of her feelings.

“What do you think about your parents?”

“…I don’t dislike them. But, but… it annoys me. I hate their foolishness, their helplessness, and how easily they give up. I dislike that they are so poor that they can’t even help me retake the exam, and I don’t want them to tell me to give it up.”

Honestly, she was still just a child. Even though she said she did not hate them, the statement of dislike kept coming out. Yet, ultimately, she could not fundamentally deny her parents.

“Right, I guess I need to say this.”

That statement would not be a lie.

“It’s pathetic.”

But, it was certainly not everything.

I smiled. It was neither a sneer nor a self-deprecating laugh. It was simply a smile. A smile that emerged from the realization that Mira was indeed a child who could not hate her parents.

You are truly a different person from me.

“Are you going to stay in that house forever?”

“…Don’t say strange things. Why would I live here?”

“I’m not saying you should live here for your whole life. I said I would leave soon anyway.”

“Really?”

“I mean, try living away from home for a few days. It’s not that you’ll understand your parents’ feelings, but it’s about giving them time to think of you. Of course, it’s something you have to decide.”

Mira hesitated. She realized that this would ultimately be a suggestion to run away to change her parents’ hearts. But now, she was no longer a child; could running away really change her parents’ hearts? Whether it could or not was secondary, but wasn’t she too childish? She wasn’t a rebellious middle school student.

“For the record, Eun-a succeeded.”

Strictly speaking, it was a failure, but let’s just say it was a success for now. Perhaps because of Eun-a’s story, Mira’s expression was noticeably shaken. I couldn’t help but delve deeper into my thoughts. Yes, think about it like that. What’s important isn’t this.

“…Would this really change my parents’ minds?”

“If it doesn’t, then you can just live here for the rest of your life. There are many empty houses around. I’ll leave, but…”

“I don’t have money to rent a place like this.”

“The landlord will give you a good deal if you talk to him. He’s a good person.”

He truly was a good person, Ham Yejin. Of course, it would be Han-bom delivering that request, not me.

Well, Han-bom would be more than willing to help, even with just that. If all else fails, I could just suggest she stay at Han-bom’s place.

“…I don’t really understand what you’re thinking, Oppa.”

Mira was indeed smart. She had noticed that my suggestion had motives beyond the surface.

This proposal had a different purpose. It was nothing grand, just something trivial.

It was the story of a benevolent uncle.

~

In the end, Mira, having changed her mind, returned to her house to pack her things. She would declare her intention to run away as well.

Left alone, I organized my thoughts. It was truly a simple story. When Mira returned, her parents would soon come looking for her. After all, Mira had not gone off to some alley but to a friend’s house, so the police wouldn’t have trouble finding her.

When her parents came, I would set up a meeting to talk separately without Mira present.

I would say I wanted to support Mira.

Should I call it support? In reality, it was compensation for the influenza, or a reward for saving me.

In the end, I owed my life to Mira.

The day those fake reporters surrounding me were thinking of abducting me, if Mira hadn’t been there, I might have suffered an irreversible wound.

So, in return for that, I could definitely do this much.

I intended to cover all the expenses for Mira’s retake.

The reason I would tell her parents was because if I told Mira directly, she would absolutely refuse to accept it. Before pride, she would think it was money she had no reason to accept. She was quite the stubborn child.

I was also curious about what kind of people Mira’s parents were, who she described as pathetic.

Mira was a good kid but sometimes lacked awareness. Just bringing up her parents in front of me was a clue. There had been similar incidents before.

But now, I wasn’t Tippetarius; I was Ozma of Oz, so I couldn’t say much.

If you only heard Mira’s story, her parents would seem like really foolish and pathetic people, but saying that, I could see the mixture of anger and hesitation in Mira’s eyes. It was partly sincere, but also words she didn’t truly mean. In that respect, I understood.

Perhaps, Mira’s parents loved her.

It was a painfully obvious realization, one that was hard to accept.

It was too obvious to Mira, but not for me.

“Did you come back?”

“I’m only staying for a few days…”

When Mira returned, I hid my expression and welcomed her.

~

[So, is Mira noona there right now?] [For the time being?] [Can I stay there for a few days?]

[Will there be news at nine?]

[What a pity.]

Ji Kang-hyeon sent a stream of nonsense as he clearly had thoughts of flirting with Mira. At first, it was just a light notification, but as we talked, he naturally started to ramble.

[I don’t know how your boss raised you.]

[My mom did her best to raise me.] [And that’s how you turned out.]

[You do good business, but I guess raising kids was tough.]

I sighed and closed the chat. From the first day Mira came to my house, she had immediately started studying. I didn’t think it would go well because my mind was complicated, but Mira didn’t care and claimed my desk to study. As a result, I ended up lying down on the sofa in the living room.

I guess it was time to tell Eun-a.

[Mira is now at my place.]

[??]

[She ran away.]

[???]

[She’ll be staying for a few days.]

[What happened?]

[I can’t tell you. It’s a family matter.] [Ask her directly.]

[Can I go too?]

[Don’t come.] [By the way, I heard from Ji Kang-hyeon.] [He said he likes Mira?] [So, are you going to help him?]

[…Did he just say that?] [I don’t know. Let’s see what Mira thinks.]

[That’s just how he is.] [Honestly, I think Mira kind of likes him too.]

[He’s hitting on a noona who’s three years older than him?]

[Now that I think about it, he didn’t maintain a good image in front of Mira.] [It’s because he has a thing for older women.] [He’s done something similar to me too.]

[What a crazy guy.] [I haven’t even done that yet.]

[Stop flirting.] [Don’t talk about dropping out of college in front of Mira.]

[Huh??]

[She might get stressed out.] [Retake students are usually sensitive to things like that.]

I couldn’t say exactly what Mira had told me, but I believed Eun-a would understand if I indirectly hinted at it like this. She wasn’t a foolish child. While this might not solve the fundamental issue, it could at least be a temporary measure.

[I understand.] [What about our study sessions?]

[You can have them here.] [You don’t really need to anyway.]

[But that’s a bit weird now.] [I’m contemplating taking a retake.]

[Are you thinking about transferring?] [Can you really get into a better school from your current one?]

[There are a couple of options.] [I need some good grades to change majors.] [This first semester’s grade is going to be a disaster.]

[Speak more politely.]

[My first semester’s grade is going to be a disaster.]

[Are you crazy?]

[And our psychology curriculum doesn’t sit well with me.]

[Well, do your best.] [I don’t really know much about it…and it’s your life.]

[Then, see you on Friday.]

[I don’t get why you come every week so naturally, but okay.]

After finishing the conversation with Eun-a, I sighed again. Mira’s parents would probably be coming by tomorrow. Fortunately, Mira was busy with work all day tomorrow. I thought the conversation would be relatively easy. After all, Mira’s father didn’t even know her work hours.

However, it was obvious that Mira would realize her father was coming.

“My dad might come by today.”

“Yeah, I know. He probably told the police, and they quickly found her.”

In the past, if someone ran away for a day, they wouldn’t report it immediately, but these days, it seemed they could relay information quickly. It wasn’t a good thing, but it was a helpful change at this moment.

“My dad can be a bit overbearing. If he comes, don’t open the door for no reason, just ignore him.”

“Okay, okay.”

“…That’s suspicious.”

Mira was looking at me with doubt, but she couldn’t do anything about me. The time for her work was approaching, and she couldn’t just bail out suddenly. Mira probably anticipated what I would say to her parents. She might be trying to stop me, but I don’t think she truly believed she could.

“Do you not know where the work is?”

“I didn’t tell him. I don’t know more than that it’s two convenience stores and a PC room.”

“Be careful and come back.”

After Mira left for work, I lightly tidied myself up.

I couldn’t greet customers in casual wear, after all.

The chosen outfit was similar to usual but appeared a bit more mature. A black dress with a white cardigan, and I managed to tie my hair in a ponytail. The outfit was more suitable for outings than receiving customers, but I had to pick clothes that looked somewhat mature.

I didn’t even know what a proper outfit for welcoming customers would be.

Once I got dressed and looked in the mirror, I still looked like a middle school student, no matter how I styled myself.

Was this really my limit?

Still, Mira’s father probably would not expect someone like me to come out of a place where Mira ran away. It was an unexpected outfit. At least, I wanted to avoid looking down upon myself, as much as possible.

I quietly waited for the visitor, and after lunch, the doorbell rang. I could hear a voice from outside.

“Is anyone there? I’m Mira’s father. Is Mira here?”

When I looked outside through the intercom, there was a middle-aged man who appeared to be Mira’s father. I couldn’t help but be a bit surprised as he was not alone, contrary to my expectations.

Next to Mira’s father was Mira’s mother, who was in a wheelchair.