Chapter 61

Everyone has lost their memories.

And, clearly, I’ve experienced a similar situation before.

‘Could it be that it’s not just a simple disappearance, but that their souls were eaten by a yokai?’

I’ve also lost my memories before.

A man and three women I met in an abandoned house.

My memories of them vanished in an instant.

Of course, those memories have returned now.

I don’t know the reason.

I didn’t even try to remember, but suddenly, one day, the memories came flooding back.

Anyway.

The symptoms of the others now are too similar to what I experienced back then.

‘It seems like it’s definitely the work of a yokai.’

If it wasn’t the work of a yokai, this situation wouldn’t make sense.

According to the teddy bear,

Humans whose souls are eaten by yokai disappear from existence.

In other words, they are forgotten in the memories of others.

‘But why weren’t my memories erased?’

The fact that my past memories returned,

And the fact that my current memories are intact, is strange.

‘···I should ask Maehwa about this later.’

While I was thinking that,

Palgui lightly tapped my shoulder and spoke.

“Se-hoon?”

“Ah, uh···. I must’ve been confused for a moment. Maybe it’s because I had a weird dream this morning.”

I lied about having a weird dream,

And brushed off the question casually.

Even if I explained that everyone lost their memories due to a yokai, they’d just think I’m crazy and treat me like a lunatic.

“Oh my. Se-hoon, you must’ve been really nervous because of our daughter.”

The police chief laughed heartily.

“Well, our daughter is quite pretty, isn’t she? Men can’t help but lose their minds. Hahaha.”

He was under a strange misunderstanding.

Well, it was easier for me to let it slide like that.

“Ah. So that’s what it was. Se-hoon, you know she’s pretty···. Ah! But does that mean I appeared in your dream? Ooh.”

At the chief’s words, Palgui also made a face like he had an epiphany.

The chief is one thing,

But Palgui really seems to have below-average intelligence.

“Our daughter, who does she take after to grow up so upright and pretty? Haha.”

“Definitely not her mom.”

“You wanna die?”

While the mother and daughter were doing their comedy skit,

The soldiers were also whispering among themselves.

“Wow. It seems like that guy is really head over heels for our platoon leader? To the point of confusing dreams and reality.”

“···Isn’t he just tired?”

“Right. Our platoon leader isn’t that great.”

“If she grows her hair out a bit more, she could easily outshine most celebrities.”

“Hmm···. To me, she doesn’t look that different from us.”

“They say men and women see things differently.”

“Mostly, it’s similar.”

“Then does that guy like Sergeant Park Gyu-ri?”

“Where’s the guy who makes a meal appointment with a woman he’s not interested in?”

“That’s true.”

“Did I hear wrong? Can’t friends just make plans?”

“I don’t know. I don’t have any male friends.”

“I don’t know either.”

“Me neither······.”

“But looking at this situation···. Maybe Sergeant Park Gyu-ri wasn’t lying when she said she’s popular with men···.”

The last line sounded familiar.

Anyway.

The misunderstandings kept piling up, but as I said before, I had no intention of clearing them up.

It’s easier to just let it slide like this.

And honestly,

I didn’t mind being linked with Palgui.

***

After excusing myself to the restroom,

I hurried to the checkout counter and handed my card to the staff.

But something unexpected happened.

Our table had already been paid for.

While I was flustered,

“You were really trying to pay secretly···.”

A familiar voice came from behind me.

Turning around, I saw the police chief walking slowly toward me.

“Uh···. Did you pay for us, Chief?”

“Yes. Actually, Gyu-ri said that with your personality, you might try to pay secretly.”

“······.”

“So I paid in advance just in case.”

Palgui was surprisingly quick-witted.

I thought he was just dumb, but this was unexpected.

“Haha! Where’s the man trying to pay!”

Palgui, who had followed belatedly, laughed with his hands on his hips.

In some cases,

This could be misunderstood as a sexist remark.

I looked back and forth between the chief and Palgui and said,

“No. But since I’m the one who received help, it feels wrong to just take it.”

“Se-hoon. Today, Gyu-ri’s squad members were also here, so it’s right for us to pay. We invited them without telling you in advance. If it bothers you, let’s make another appointment later, and you can treat us then.”

The chief smiled kindly and replied.

His choice of words was incomparable to Palgui’s.

And he subtly suggested a second appointment.

“···Alright. Then, thank you for the meal today. I enjoyed it.”

I had no choice but to accept this time and decided to treat them next time if the opportunity arose.

***

After saying goodbye to the police chief,

And exchanging greetings with the soldiers one by one, I returned to the parking lot.

By the way, Palgui stuck to my side until the end, insisting on seeing me off.

“Ppalgguri.”

“Huh? No, don’t call me by my nickname in real life. What if someone hears?”

“What are you talking about? I just called you Park Gyu-ri.”

“Oh, really? Did I mishear?”

“Open your ears properly. Anyway, Ppalgguri. Since we’re here, why don’t you show your face on the broadcast?”

“Suddenly? Didn’t you want to keep our meal a secret?”

“It wasn’t really a secret? I was just being considerate.”

“Really? But if I show my face on the broadcast, I’ll probably get a ton of hate.”

Actually, I suggested it so he’d get some hate.

Palgui seems to have an excessive amount of confidence in his looks.

Of course, he is pretty.

But having such a pathological level of self-love isn’t good.

This needed some mental treatment through Guburi’s sharp tongue.

“If you don’t want to, it’s fine.”

“No. I actually wanted to show off a bit, so this works out well.”

Palgui accepted the offer without realizing my intentions.

Before opening the truck door,

I quickly checked the chat window on my smartphone.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─When is Gyesekkihoon coming?

【Yoho】─He’s still not here?

【Reverse Rape Mania】─I just came back after a long time, and this is too much.

【Semen Thief】─This is my first time here. ㅠㅠ

【Qkrnfl892】─I’m coming now. ㅋ

【Drifting AI】─I’ll say it. He says he’s coming now.

【Big Girl】─How do you know?

【Drifting AI】─I’ll say it. I checked the CCTV.

【Big Girl】─Ah. Okay.

The maid’s game broadcast seemed to have ended.

“Guys. I’m here.”

After taking the camera out of the car, I immediately filmed Palgui and myself.

“Ah. And next to me is···.”

“Hello, ugly losers! I’m Ppalgguri, who had a sticky meal with Se-hoon today. Haha!”

Palgui cut me off mid-sentence,

And suddenly pressed the viewers’ rage button.

He was worried about getting hate,

But he started picking fights himself.

He’s definitely a bit off.

***

As expected,

Most viewers didn’t compliment Palgui’s looks.

As if they had teamed up,

They were busy criticizing Palgui.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─Is that military guy really Ppalgguri?

【Handsome Licker】─ㅋㅋㅋ The real deal is crazy. Lick lick.

【Se-hoon Defense Team】─Oh ㅋㅋ Ppalgguri Sergeant appears. ㅋㅋㅋ

【Yoho】─Gasp···.

【Min Ji】─Did you have a meal appointment with Ppalgguri?

【Yoho】─No! Why won’t you meet me? ㅡㅡ

【Reverse Rape Mania】─Oh. She’s pretty.

【Semen Thief】─Is that soldier Qkrnfl892?

【Balloon Gum Collector】─Wow! Why are you only eating with Ppalgguri? We’re not even invited!!!

【Maid】─No! Bring cola when you come.

【Maehwa Tree】─Don’t stick too close to Se-hoon. Ugly girl.

【Juji Joa】─Ppalgguri is so clingy. Keep your distance.

【Maehwa Tree】─You look even uglier next to Se-hoon. Get away quickly.

“Yeah. I won’t leave. Se-hoon doesn’t really mind me sticking close like this. Of course, if it were you ugly girls, he’d curse you out immediately.”

【Yoho】─??

【Min Ji】─Don’t get ahead of yourself.

“This is reality, guys. If you’re jealous, be born pretty like me.”

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─Wait, didn’t you say Ppalgguri was pretty during the video call? Gyesekkihoon is full of lies. ㅋㅋ

【Handsome Licker】─For real ㅋㅋ She’s uglier than me. Lick lick.

【Yoho】─Ppalgguri, should I recommend a plastic surgeon?

【Min Ji】─Even plastic surgery can’t fix that. ㅎ

【Maehwa Tree】─Our Se-hoon. Your standards are really low, huh? How did you survive with your heart racing like that?

【Juji Joa】─ㅋㅋ Maehwa, stop showing off.

【Balloon Gum Collector】─Wow! Can’t I eat with Se-hoon too!!!

【Big Girl】─She looks pretty to me.

【Drifting AI】─I’ll say it. Big Girl, are you blind in one eye?

【Big Girl】─Yes. I’m blind in one eye. My left eye is blind.

『‘Drifting AI’ has left the chat.』

【Se-hoon Defense Team】─Why did Drifting leave suddenly? ㅋㅋ

【Balloon Gum Collector】─Wow! Can’t I eat with Se-hoon too!

【Handsome Licker】─Balloon Gum, stop spamming. Lick lick.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─Wow. The more I look at Ppalgguri, the uglier she gets. ㅋㅋ Compared to Gyesekkihoon. ㅋㅋ

It probably wasn’t sincere.

Objectively, Palgui is pretty.

They were just blinded by jealousy and criticizing her.

Plus, Palgui provoked them first.

‘But the criticism is getting harsher.’

No one had crossed the line yet.

But if this continues, I feel like Guburi will cross the line.

“What, idiots? No matter how much you rant, the fact that I’m pretty won’t change.”

Palgui raised her middle finger at the camera.

Her confident expression remained.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─ㅋㅋㅋ You’re really ugly, you know? Do you even look in the mirror?

“Yeah. No. No matter how much you deny reality, the fact that I’m pretty remains the same.”

【Handsome Licker】─She’s really crazy. Lick lick.

【Balloon Gum Collector】─Wow! Fairly, can’t I eat with you too!

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─That bitch really wants to fight. Stop showing off.

I decided to intervene at this point.

Before things got out of hand.

***

【Qkrnfl892】─ㅋㅋ Loser girls. It’s so funny seeing you have a meltdown out of jealousy.

【Juji Joa】─I’ll kill you.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─Damn. Can a soldier act like that?

【Min Ji】─I should file a complaint.

After calming the situation,

I sent Palgui back to where the chief was.

If I kept her on the broadcast, the viewers would explode.

‘But even after getting so much hate, her confidence isn’t shaken.’

I couldn’t gauge how high her self-esteem was.

Anyway,

The Palgui incident gradually quieted down.

And after finishing a call with Kwaehwal Namsu, I was on my way home.

【Gyeongsang Guburi】─Gyesekkihoon. Are you eating dinner with the neighbors? Were you always close with them?

【Yoho】─It must be that mother and daughter we met during the hike.

I just told them who I was having dinner with.

Not just Guburi,

But all the viewers were spamming like crazy.

They kept suspecting that I was meeting another viewer, so I had no choice.

【Se-hoon Defense Team】─Hike? Mother and daughter? What did they look like?

【Juji Joa】─Their faces didn’t appear on the broadcast. Only their voices.

【Maehwa Tree】─Hmm. Just in case, I should secretly follow.

【Big Girl】─Why follow? Are you a stalker?

【Maehwa Tree】─No no, I just want to confirm if he’s really eating with the neighbors and not another viewer. I’ll just check and leave, so don’t misunderstand.

【Juji Joa】─That’s stalking, you idiot.

【Maehwa Tree】─Shut up.

【Juji Joa】─This guy is dangerous.

【Balloon Gum Collector】─Wow! Se-hoon, I’m near you right now, can’t you take me with you?

【Maid】─No!

【Balloon Gum Collector】─I want to eat with Se-hoon too!!!

Originally, I had made dinner plans with Kwaehwal Namsu.

Nam Hyun-soo, the 1 million-subscriber YouTuber I met at the mart.

But an unexpected variable arose.

‘A fellow YouTuber suddenly committed suicide······.’

A female YouTuber who was close with Nam Hyun-soo.

It seems she was driven to an extreme choice after being bombarded with hate comments.

So I had no choice but to cancel the appointment and contacted the neighbor’s mother and daughter for dinner.

They said the timing was fine.

Anyway, that’s how it happened.

I planned to visit the neighbor’s house after stopping by home first.

‘When I get home, I should call Maehwa and ask about the yokai.’

While thinking that, I was driving when I noticed a small object ahead.

It looked like a person.

‘What? Is it another hitchhiker?’

As I got closer,

Squinting, I saw a chubby kid on the side of the road waving at my car.

‘···He’s really short. He looks like a kid, could he be a missing child?’

I stepped on the brake and slowly reduced my speed.

The kid trying to hitchhike put down the bag he was carrying on his back.

Then he rummaged through the bag and pulled something out.

A large board.

The kid stood up and held the board high.

On the board, crooked letters were written in large print.

=====

Wow!

Meeting Gye Se-hoon in a place like this!

What an amazing coincidence!

This must be fate, so take me with you!

I’ll pay for the meal at the neighbor’s house!

<Balloon Gum Collector>

=====

I accelerated.

To 80 km/h.

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