Chapter 320
Whispers of the Devil
Han Seo-Jin’s expression stiffens slightly as she looks at the date proposal card.
Her gray eyes flicker.
“What do you mean…?”
Han Seo-Jin replies cautiously, her tone different from her usual business-like manner.
Her gaze is fixed on the date proposal card.
What’s up with her?
“Date… I guess saying that sounds a bit off. Anyway, you have to spend Christmas day with me. This is… a bit difficult to give to just one specific person, but I can’t just not use it either.”
I said, waving the date proposal card in front of Han Seo-Jin.
If it’s anyone, it has to be Han Seo-Jin, someone everyone would agree on.
[Oh, a partner. Quite a smart choice, isn’t it? If it’s Han Seo-Jin… Yeah, not a bad choice.]
The Black Prince mumbles to himself in my head.
Han Seo-Jin’s eyes tremble slightly at my words.
A faint blush rises on her face.
It’s a different reaction from her usual cold demeanor.
What’s this?
“Are you okay?”
Is she unwell?
Seeing my gaze, Han Seo-Jin’s trembling eyes coolly settle again.
“Ah… I’m fine.”
Han Seo-Jin lightly slaps both her cheeks.
She bows at a 90-degree angle.
“I apologize for causing you concern, Mr. Kim Deok-Sung.”
“No need to apologize so much. So, what’s your answer? Will you go with me for Christmas?”
If she declines here, I’ll have no choice but to invalidate the date proposal.
“….”
Han Seo-Jin bows her head and remains silent.
Her reaction is oddly different today.
Something feels off.
“…I apologize, but could you give me until tomorrow to think over your glorious proposal, Mr. Kim Deok-Sung?”
Han Seo-Jin says in a small voice.
Wait until tomorrow?
There’s still plenty of time until Christmas anyway.
No reason to rush.
“Sure.”
I accept Han Seo-Jin’s proposal.
“Thank you. Then I’ll take my leave early today.”
Han Seo-Jin bows politely and leaves the room.
Thud.
The dormitory door closes, and I’m left alone.
The cold winter wind knocks against the window on this December night.
The scene outside is filled with heavy snowfall.
It’s here.
“Is the second semester really over already…?”
Unlike Korea, which has a two-semester system, Japanese high schools follow a three-semester system. After finishing the second semester and passing through winter break, you have to complete the final semester in spring to finish the year with a graduation ceremony.
“There’s really not much time left.”
The final episode of the original story, the academy destruction, happens at the point of the third semester, precisely after Valentine’s Day.
The last setting of the original work for the weakest hero is the graduation scene for the protagonist and heroines after the third semester.
The original story is slowly approaching its end.
After the sports festival, the league seemed suspiciously quiet, but I didn’t let my guard down.
I’ll be able to see the Messiah’s face soon.
[Yeah. We don’t have much time left, partner. Let’s do our best in the third semester.]
What I meant by the end wasn’t referring to the second semester.
There was no need to correct any misunderstandings.
Ignoring the Black Prince’s words, I gazed out the window at the snow falling.
It seems like this year will indeed be a white Christmas.
Well, it was a white Christmas in the original too.
*
Shuo Hero Academy.
Dormitory, servant accommodation.
Thud.
Han Seo-Jin, having closed the door of the servant’s accommodation, slid down to sit on the floor.
Thump, thump.
Her heart, beating like it’s broken, still wouldn’t calm down.
Thud.
As Han Seo-Jin entered, the light inside the accommodation turned on by itself.
Inside the fairly spacious room, every wall was covered in posters of Kim Deok-Sung.
On the desk with a computer was a Kim Deok-Sung mouse pad, a Kim Deok-Sung doll, and of course, the blanket on the bed was a Kim Deok-Sung blanket, not to mention the Kim Deok-Sung scroll hanging by the bathroom door.
The room was vividly decorated with Kim Deok-Sung merchandise.
“A date invitation…”
The image of the date invitation that Kim Deok-Sung had handed her earlier vividly popped up in Han Seo-Jin’s mind.
Along with his proposal too.
He wanted to spend Christmas together.
For Han Seo-Jin, who devoted her body and mind to serving Kim Deok-Sung, his proposal was enough to make her heart race uncontrollably.
“I know that’s not what he meant…”
Of course, Han Seo-Jin wasn’t a fool; she understood very well that the hidden intent behind Kim Deok-Sung’s proposal wasn’t a date.
Choosing just one person on a special day like Christmas would be enough to provoke the other harem members’ backlash.
The Harem Plan was gradually reaching its conclusion as well, but just like a last-year soldier in boot camp who carefully avoids falling leaves, the final stages of the plan are also the most delicate.
Now is the time to act with the utmost caution.
In that sense, being chosen by Kim Deok-Sung wasn’t his first choice but rather a second-best option.
“The best option would have been to propose dates to everyone…”
Han Seo-Jin considered the best option would be to spend Christmas partying with everyone together.
Thus, she should have rejected his proposal today and suggested a Christmas party instead, but Han Seo-Jin couldn’t do that.
Thump.
Her heart raced.
A devil’s whisper echoed in Han Seo-Jin’s ear.
“He personally made the proposal, and surely no one else would refuse. The reasoning is excellent; is there really a need to refuse?”
The devil’s whisper sounded like her own voice.
The whispers of the devil echoed in her ears.
Her heartbeat continued to rise alongside him.
Han Seo-Jin’s face turned red.
“Uuuh…”
A shallow moan escaped from Han Seo-Jin’s lips.
She was usually the type to handle things coldly and objectively.
But the moment she received the chance to go on a date, all her masks crumbled.
The selfish feelings she thought she had suppressed so well were erupting uncontrollably, sweeping through her heart.
Moreover, the devil’s whispers weren’t wrong.
Until now, Han Seo-Jin had hardly shown any selfishness among the harem members.
She had never spent personal time with Kim Deok-Sung, just the two of them.
Adding to that, her position was, coincidentally, Kim Deok-Sung’s dedicated secretary.
Since she acted like a personal maid, even if she were chosen on Christmas, no harem member would express dissatisfaction.
In fact, they might even cheer her on.
‘So this is the opportunity.’
Han Seo-Jin shook her head at the devil’s whispers in her ears.
How could someone like her dare to spend personal time alone with him?
Especially on such a special day as Christmas.
That was absurd.
It couldn’t happen.
She didn’t deserve it.
So the Christmas party…
‘Do you really think so?’
The devil inside Han Seo-Jin whispered.
Her face flushed.
The flustered gray of her eyes trembled.
“I… How do I…”
Just then, as Han Seo-Jin muttered to herself.
Ding-dong.
The doorbell rang, and the intercom turned on.
[Is Ms. Han Seo-Jin there?]
On the intercom was the figure of Bella, Olivia’s maid, neatly dressed in maid attire.
She was a resident of the adjacent room.
Startled by Bella’s arrival, Han Seo-Jin jumped a little.
“Uh-hem.”
She cleared her throat, stood up, tidied her clothes, and returned to her usual expressionless face before opening the door.
“Yes, Bella. What’s the matter?”
Han Seo-Jin peeked through the door.
Bella, the expressionless maid with a brown bob cut, scrutinized Han Seo-Jin’s face, her expression subtly stiffening.
Bella spoke.
“…I baked some snacks for the lady, and there are a few extras left. So I came to see if Ms. Han Seo-Jin would like to join me for some tea in the servants’ lounge.”
Bella held up a basket with snacks and a teapot in one hand.
“I see.”
Han Seo-Jin’s gaze shifted to Bella’s face and the basket of snacks.
Although not as strong as the harem plan members, Bella was a B-rank hero and Olivia’s main maid, so they had to build a friendly rapport.
Therefore, from the moment she enrolled, Han Seo-Jin had intentionally approached Bella, who was placed in the adjacent room, under the pretext of being neighbors and fellow servants.
Their relationship had deepened due to Olivia’s engagement incident, evolving into a bond where they could now share tea time.
Tea time with Bella was essential for her role as the architect of the harem plan, as well as Kim Deok-Sung’s dedicated secretary and a National Intelligence Service agent.
But today, her mind was too cluttered to feel like having tea.
It was so complicated that I didn’t feel like having tea.
“I’m fine today…”
“Is something troubling you?”
Bella cut in, her expressionless gaze directed at Han Seo-Jin.
“No, it’s…”
“It seems like there is something. The best way to calm your mind is to sip tea. Plus, I wouldn’t want to wrap up my scene just yet. Han Seo-Jin.”
As Bella spoke in an unintelligible manner, she grabbed Han Seo-Jin’s wrist and dragged her out of the room.
*Click.*
Han Seo-Jin’s door closed behind them.
Dragged halfway against her will, Han Seo-Jin arrived at the lounge inside the servant accommodation building.
True to the Shuo Hero Academy’s reputation for luxury, even the servant’s lounge boasted facilities that could rival those of a large corporation.
With a well-maintained indoor garden, you could see the heavy snow falling outside through the large windows, and a fireplace blazed warmly in the lounge’s cozy atmosphere.
Seating Han Seo-Jin, Bella busied herself pulling out snacks from a basket, setting the table with teacups, and pouring black tea with practiced ease.
*Slurp.*
Warm black tea was served in a white bone china teacup before Han Seo-Jin.
“So, what’s weighing on your mind? It’s the first time I’ve seen you troubled, Han Seo-Jin.”
Bella’s brown eyes were fixed on Han Seo-Jin.
As a maid for the honorable Bonaparte royal family ruling France, to her, Han Seo-Jin was indeed a perfect servant.
Han Seo-Jin’s skills were on par with the esteemed attendants serving the Bonaparte royal family.
That someone as capable as Han Seo-Jin was troubled was a first for Bella, who had known her for a long time.
Under Bella’s gaze, Han Seo-Jin flinched.
She fiddled with the steaming teacup in front of her.
“What do you mean by troubled…”
Trailing off, Han Seo-Jin’s mind raced.
Bella was someone she absolutely had to get along with and win over.
She couldn’t leave a bad impression here.
But was it okay to confide her troubles?
“I’ve heard there’s a Korean saying that it’s better to lift a weight together. I don’t know what’s bothering you, but I’ll help you figure it out. You won’t reach a conclusion if you puzzle over it alone.”
As Bella said this, she elegantly sipped her black tea.
“…”
Han Seo-Jin fell silent in response to Bella’s words.
Bella’s gaze narrowed as she watched Han Seo-Jin.
If she was troubled to this extent, it could only be about one thing.
Her master, Kim Deok-Sung.
And considering Christmas was around the corner…
Having combined all possibilities in her mind, Bella asked, “Has your master suggested a Christmas rendezvous with you?”
*Pfft.*
At Bella’s words, Han Seo-Jin spat out the tea she had been drinking.
The tea splashed across Bella’s face and shoulders.
