In an instant, two pairs of eyes locked onto me, freezing me where I stood.
Since I was the source of the sudden noise, there was no excuse I could make. Even so, I had no desire to become the target of those burning stares.
I subtly looked away.
“Go ahead and finish your fight. I won’t interrupt.”
[Seong Yu-un, you’ve got some nerve.]
A sneering laugh rang in my ears.
[First you barge in between those two, and now what? “Go ahead and finish your fight”?]
“…”
[You won’t interrupt?]
I could practically see Min Yu-un shaking with laughter, wheezing for breath.
Thanks to him, the tension that had briefly seized me shattered at once. Feeling drained, I bent down to pick up the fork.
Quest 5: Take a photo alone with Lee Soo-hyeon.
★ TIP: A special tip just for you, since you keep getting dragged around! ★
How about taking a photo of just the two of you? Sometimes, a photo becomes the only memory!
I froze as the quest window filled my vision.
It pulsed with bright light, demanding my attention.
Slowly, I straightened.
A photo?
And alone with Lee Soo-hyeon?
Compared to Quests 3 and 4, this one seemed much easier. Lighter, too.
But why Lee Soo-hyeon all of a sudden?
I had thought the quests were assigned based on whoever I was not close to.
First Han Tae-ryeong.
Then Yoo Si-eon.
And now Lee Soo-hyeon?
“Haa.”
A deep sigh reached my ears.
When I lifted my head, the two of them had already stepped apart and were fixing their disheveled clothes.
The sigh had come from Lee Soo-hyeon.
He casually dropped his bag on the floor and started looking for cutlery.
“I’ll get you a new fork. Don’t use that one. Eat with the clean one.”
“You’re not going to fight anymore?”
The question slipped out in a monotone.
Lee Soo-hyeon snatched the fork from my hand and replaced it with the new one he had brought over.
“Yu-un, you completely ruined the mood.”
His previously expressionless face softened into a faint smile.
“And you need to eat.”
“It’s fine. I don’t usually eat breakfast anyway.”
At my flat response, Lee Soo-hyeon’s eye twitched slightly.
“Really? Then I guess I’ll just have to make sure you do every morning.”
“Stop barking like a dog and go change your clothes, Han Tae-ryeong.”
Han Tae-ryeong seemed to consider Lee Soo-hyeon’s words for a moment before the corners of his lips rose.
His smirk was so sly that he looked like the final villain of a novel.
“But Min Yu-un likes it better when I wear a robe.”
I shuddered involuntarily.
“Or should I just take it off again, like yesterday?”
My eyes trembled as I stared at Han Tae-ryeong.
I barely managed to part my lips and force out a sound.
“Just go change already.”
The amusement vanished from Han Tae-ryeong’s face in an instant.
He seemed to lose interest the moment I denied him the reaction he wanted. Grabbing his clothes, he headed toward the room.
Lee Soo-hyeon clicked his tongue in disapproval.
“Tsk. That bastard, seriously.”
Silently, I ate a piece of scrambled egg while watching Lee Soo-hyeon.
Had he used those same curses when he blamed me in front of Han Tae-ryeong and Yoo Si-eon?
Had he looked at me with that same irritation and resentment?
Was what Min Yu-un did truly so unforgivable?
“What?”
Lee Soo-hyeon asked, noticing my gaze.
Instead of answering right away, I took a bite of bread. My movements were slow and careful.
“I was just thinking you must have cursed me the same way.”
“Why would I curse at you? Ah…”
It seemed he had remembered what happened on Friday.
Or rather—
“You have plenty of reasons to curse me.”
He looked at me as if I were being absurd, but to me, it was obvious.
Lee Soo-hyeon had every reason to curse me.
So did the other two.
I shifted my gaze slightly and glanced at the door Han Tae-ryeong had disappeared behind.
I could still sense his presence beyond it.
“Yu-un, you know…”
“I thought the three of you were really close.”
Lee Soo-hyeon fell silent for a moment, his eyes widening slightly.
Then displeasure spread openly across his face.
“Me and Han Tae-ryeong? You thought we were close?”
I nodded.
“Are you serious?”
His face twisted even further with frustration.
Of course, Han Tae-ryeong and Lee Soo-hyeon were not inseparable best friends.
They were rivals—the male lead and the second male lead of the novel, both vying for Yoo Si-eon. And yet the three of them often showed a kind of camaraderie so tight that outsiders could not easily slip between them. Some readers had even joked that they might as well all be dating.
I had assumed the same.
I had never intended to interfere in their relationship or examine it too closely.
I had only wanted to stay out of it.
But I had no choice but to get closer to them.
And in the process, I learned something.
Han Tae-ryeong, Yoo Si-eon, and Lee Soo-hyeon were not as close as I had thought.
They shared a bond that resembled brotherhood, but there was no deeper affection beneath it.
No warmth.
Maybe it’s because I apologized.
Because I kept appearing like some unpredictable natural disaster, disrupting the story however I pleased.
But that did not matter.
Min Yu-un wanted an apology.
And I had to obey if I wanted to die.
“We’re not close.”
After a long silence, Lee Soo-hyeon finally spoke.
“I don’t know about Yoo Si-eon, but Han Tae-ryeong and I? Never.”
He took a sip of juice.
“I mean it.”
“Got it.”
“I really mean it.”
“Yeah.”
I wiped my mouth and stood.
Lee Soo-hyeon followed me as if he were desperate for me to believe him.
I could already see my future.
He would repeat the same thing all the way to school.
A wave of exhaustion washed over me.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
*****
Before opening the classroom door, I turned to look at the two of them.
“Aren’t you going to class?”
Since we had waited for Han Tae-ryeong to go home and change into his uniform, there was not much time left before morning assembly.
“Of course.”
Han Tae-ryeong answered and headed toward his classroom without even saying goodbye.
It seemed Lee Soo-hyeon had been waiting for him to leave first.
The moment Han Tae-ryeong disappeared, the burning intensity in Lee Soo-hyeon’s gaze faded.
Then he let out a small laugh.
“I’ll come by at lunch.”
Before I could answer, Lee Soo-hyeon was already walking away.
[He said he’ll come at lunch! He must really be falling for me!]
I ignored Min Yu-un, who was bouncing with excitement.
A strange sensation welled up inside me.
After confirming that no one was around, I pressed a hand against my chest.
I had walked to school with them.
For just a moment, I had forgotten about paying for my sins.
Today, coming to school had felt easier than before.
Was it because I was getting used to it?
After walking to school with someone only twice, after talking to them for only a few days, I was melting into this world far too quickly.
Get it together, Seong Yu-un.
Don’t sink any deeper.
Don’t expect anything more. Don’t ask for anything.
Just complete the quests.
Do only what you’re told.
And then die.
As soon as possible.
*****
“Min Yu-un.”
The classroom door opened behind me.
Snapped out of my thoughts, I turned around.
“You came to school with them?”
Yoo Si-eon’s voice was unusually subdued.
His dazzling appearance had not changed. In fact, over the weekend—only two short days—it was as if he had found some shimmering powder and dusted himself with it, making him look even more breathtaking than before.
I stared at his soft pink hair.
“What? Are you going to say it looks like coral again?”
Yoo Si-eon suddenly leaned in.
Since I had already experienced this several times, I kept my expression calm.
Compared to Han Tae-ryeong, who closed the distance without warning, Yoo Si-eon’s movements were still relatively gentle.
“Sorry if you didn’t want to hear that.”
I walked past him toward my seat.
He followed right behind me.
“I didn’t say I hated it.”
“I wasn’t being sarcastic. Sorry.”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
Yoo Si-eon looked as though he was about to get annoyed, but he took a breath and swallowed the words back.
“How did you end up walking to school with them? Did you just run into them on the way?”
I set my bag down and opened the window.
A cool breeze swept in, stirring my hair and tickling my forehead.
That feels nice.
Once I completed all the quests, maybe I could wander the world as a spirit before finally disappearing.
The ocean.
The mountains.
Traveling for the first time as a wandering soul did not sound so bad.
“Min Yu-un, did you meet them on the way to school or not?”
Yoo Si-eon placed both hands on the window frame, trapping me between his arms.
Only a thin sliver of space separated us, but I could feel his warmth.
Even though I was aware of it, I did not move.
I was too absorbed in the vast world beyond the window.
A future where I had completed every quest flashed through my mind.
A quiet eternity where I would not have to hurt anyone.
A world where I could finally rest in peace.
“Answer me, Yu-un.”
A low breath brushed against my ear.
My eyes widened slightly, and my body went stiff.
I forced myself to focus, replaying Yoo Si-eon’s question in my head.
Did I run into them on the way to school?
I tilted my head in thought.
I did not realize that Yoo Si-eon was watching every small movement I made.
“Yeah.”
My answer was brief.
“No way.”
But Yoo Si-eon did not believe me.
“Those two always get to school the moment the gates open. And now, all of a sudden, they’re barely on time?”
“…”
“On the exact day they came with you?”
[What’s it to you?!]
Ignoring the now-familiar angry voice in my head, I turned to face Yoo Si-eon.
“Sorry.”
I lowered my gaze and muttered.
“I wasn’t planning anything against them. And I definitely wasn’t trying to do anything to you.”
Yoo Si-eon pressed his lips together.
“I know you don’t hate me. I know I said I wouldn’t get involved, but I still ended up walking to school with your friends. I’m sorry.”
Yoo Si-eon said nothing.
The background noise of the classroom seemed to fade into silence.
Slowly, I lifted my eyes to meet his.
Then, in the next instant, my eyes widened.
I grabbed Yoo Si-eon by the collar and pulled him toward me.
“You’re hurt?”
Our noses nearly touched, though not enough to hurt.