Chapter 175 : Relationship (3)

Ho-cheol, who didn't know Ye-jin's inner thoughts at all, nodded his head nonchalantly.

“Right. Well, I can at least make you a bowl of ramen.”

Ho-cheol wrung out his wet shirt and asked Ye-jin.

“But looking at that statue, don’t you feel anything strange?”

“The statue?”

The beginning and end of everything.

The reason Ho-cheol had expressed it that way was not just to emphasize the relationship with Smiley.

Did he really think he had driven for several hours just to say this?

This place was not just a park named after her; it contained a deeper meaning and will.

Ye-jin squinted her eyes and stared at the statue.

But.

“I-I don’t know.”

She eventually shook her head.

“Is that so? A shame.”

Ho-cheol, who had muttered so, looked at the base of the statue.

Unseen by Ye-jin or other citizens, a door and stairs leading to the underground stretched long into the darkness.

It’s not time yet.

Muttering to himself, he turned around.

On the way back, he stopped by a supermarket and picked up a pack of ramen.

Ho-cheol, who had been staring at the 5-pack of ramen for a moment, recalled the past.

Since she was an awakened one, the amount she could eat was on a different level from her slender appearance.

Would a person who used to inhale 20 servings of meat at a time be full with just this?

He picked up two more packs. Ye-jin, who saw this, was a little flustered and grabbed his arm.

“Professor, even for me, 15 packs alone is a bit…”

It wasn't that she couldn't eat it, but it was a bit much.

“What was that? Ah, don't worry.”

Ho-cheol handed the ramen packs to Ye-jin and shrugged his shoulders.

“I have two more gluttons to feed.”

“Ah.”

Ye-jin belatedly let out a pitiful sound.

She had completely forgotten.

The counseling teacher, Han So-hee.

Of course, that was just her public identity, and she was Ho-cheol's surveillance officer.

Even though she was staying in the next dorm, their relationship was so close that it was no different from living together.

At this rate, the plan to pounce on Ho-cheol and make him family was already stumbling from the start.

She smacked her lips as if it were a pity.

A single question came to mind as she tucked the ramen packs under her arms.

“But why two?”

“Um. That’s…”

Ho-cheol scratched the back of his head.

In fact, he had no intention of introducing her to Ji-an already.

But now that he had revealed everything about Smiley's case, he was planning to lay everything out.

Come to think of it, just by having her here, from the victim's perspective, it could be felt as another betrayal.

“There's one more person I want to introduce you to. I'll explain that in person later.”

“Yes…”

She was curious, but she brushed it off nonchalantly at the words that she would hear soon.

As they were wandering around the supermarket, Ye-jin's footsteps stopped in front of the meat section.

The part about eating ramen was just an excuse.

Seeing the meat in front of her, a foolish greed welled up.

Swallowing her saliva, she pointed to the display and asked.

“…Can I buy some meat too?”

“Right.”

“Yay!”

She called an employee.

And so, they returned to Ho-cheol's dorm.

Ye-jin looked at the long corridor and muttered softly.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”

At the beginning of the first semester, when she was secretly working part-time at a cafe, she hadn't hesitated to do deliveries to get a higher hourly wage.

But she happened to catch Ho-cheol's call and ran right into him.

“It’s a good thing I got caught by you then, Professor.”

If it hadn't been for that fate that day, she would probably still be worn out from the painful academic schedule and part-time job.

Come to think of it, Ho-cheol had suggested she come into his dorm for a consultation, but at that time, she hadn't trusted Ho-cheol at all, and had found the man himself awkward, so she had refused.

Recalling that situation, Ye-jin let out a hollow laugh.

I never thought I would come to like him this much.

If I had accepted that offer that day, would we have become closer than now?

“Come to think of it, this is the first time I'm letting a student in.”

At his words, Ye-jin, who had been reminiscing about the past, her face brightened.

“Really?”

“Yes. In the first place, I tried to clearly separate my public and private life.”

Ye-jin's head snapped to the side.

The corners of her mouth rose uncontrollably, and she couldn't hold back her smile.

Honestly, she had also thought that her relationship with Ho-cheol was closer than just a professor and a student, but Da-yeon had always been on her mind.

Especially after the Invention Day event, she had been very anxious about her openly expressing her feelings for Ho-cheol.

With this invitation as a starting point, she had overtaken her again.

Ho-cheol opened the door with a key and entered.

“It’s humble, but come in.”

“Excuse me…”

Ye-jin dragged out her words and cautiously stepped in.

The interior was clean for a man living alone.

The bleakness, with no unnecessary furniture or decorations, suited Ho-cheol's image very well.

However.

Ye-jin's brows narrowed.

A cat-patterned rug in front of the bathroom, a small flowerpot growing on the desk, a small doll.

Besides that, there were other distinctive props that he couldn't have chosen himself.

As expected, So-hee's taste had deeply infiltrated Ho-cheol's life.

She had also confirmed on Invention Day that her feelings for Ho-cheol were more than just a friend.

So-hee's existence was the biggest wall to snatching Ho-cheol.

Still, this side is much younger! And honestly, she still didn't really feel it, but a connection called Smiley had also been formed.

The resentment was still greater, but if she could use it, there was no reason not to.

“Honestly, the secret of my birth alone was so shocking that I was a bit out of it.”

She said, cautiously sitting in a chair.

“Then what kind of relationship do you have with Smiley, Professor?”

Ho-cheol, who was taking out a pot from under the sink, answered nonchalantly.

“A hero and a villain. Simple friends. A lifesaver. A debtor and a creditor.”

“Eh?”

She could understand the previous relationships, but what was the last one?

“A debtor and a creditor?”

“It’s not a simple monetary debt and credit. Will and belief. I borrowed that.”

Smiley had believed in Ho-cheol until the very moment she died.

A hero who had died in the arms of a villain, not another hero.

Smiley had saved Ho-cheol several times.

But Ho-cheol had never once been able to save Smiley.

That just weighed heavily on his mind.

So he had promised.

“Or not. I don’t think she really intended to entrust it to me. I just said I would do it on my own.”

Smiley's last will.

A few people now knew about her legacy, but only Ho-cheol in this world still knew her last will.

“It's just a complicated relationship.”

There was no reason or intention to tell anyone else about this.

While the water was boiling, Ho-cheol took out his phone and sent a short text message.

Dudududu—

With the sound of footsteps in the hallway, someone entered the front door, pressing the password.

“Mister! You called me to eat ramen… you did?”

Ji-an entered with a bright smile, then froze when she saw Ye-jin.

Come if you want to eat ramen.

Such a short text message had come.

On top of that, since he had told her to come alone, leaving So-hee behind, she had thought they would be having a cozy dinner for two.

But there was a completely unexpected intruder.

Ji-an's hair stood on end when she saw her.

“You, who are you!”

She was so surprised that she even let out a tone of voice that was forbidden in front of Ho-cheol.

Ye-jin, who also couldn't understand the current situation, blinked her eyes.

“Professor. This kid is?”

She had thought he would call So-hee, of course.

But recalling their earlier conversation, she nodded her head.

“Ah, so this is the second glutton you mentioned.”

“Right.”

“A glutton! Insolent!”

Ji-an threw off her shoes as if throwing them and stood next to Ho-cheol, hiding behind his back.

“Mister! Who is she?”

“My student.”

“…You should separate your public and private life! How could you let a student into your house!”

She urged, gripping Ho-cheol's back tightly.

“Kick her out, quickly!”

“That’s not for you to say. You’re a student too.”

“Eeing.”

“Ah, so she’s a student too?”

“Right. A first-year who additionally enrolled this semester.”

“Oh……. A junior. Ahem. Then you should use polite language.”

As soon as she realized she was her junior, Ye-jin changed her posture.

From her, with her legs crossed, a delinquent atmosphere that she rarely showed in front of Ho-cheol exuded.

Well, even at their first meeting, she had mistaken Ho-cheol for a student and had been irritable.

“P-polite language!”

Listening to their conversation, Ho-cheol let out a sigh.

Right now, Ye-jin just thinks she's a first-year, and Ji-an just thinks she's an intruder, so they can bicker and talk like this.

But what would happen after he told them the truth?

Honestly, even he couldn't guess.

“Now.”

Ho-cheol casually threw in the soup and noodles and covered the pot.

Staring blankly at the boiling pot, he turned around as if he had made up his mind.

He placed his hand on top of Ji-an's head.

“The villain who tormented us so much last semester. That’s her.”

“…Eh?”

Ye-jin made a foolish sound with a foolish expression.

It was a natural reaction.

And Ji-an also looked at Ho-cheol, visibly flustered as if surprised.

Is it okay to say this?

Her eyes were saying so.

Bubble bubble—

Even though three people were gathered, the sound of the ramen boiling was the only noise in the silence.

The excited atmosphere from just a moment ago was already gone.

Ye-jin bit her lip.

“…It was dangerous. We almost died. Especially Professor Se-ah. And Da-yeon was almost kidnapped several times.”

“Right.”

“And during the academy raid, the guards were all seriously injured.”

“That’s right.”

“I heard that the counselor and the professor almost died in the gate too.”

“That’s right.”

Ye-jin clenched her fists.

Her entire body trembled.

“But how can you be so nonchalant! No, why is she here?”

“Then. Should she have gone to prison?”

Ye-jin answered without a moment's thought.

“Of course!”

“First, minors are not legally sent to Zero Chain or an awakened person’s prison. At most, it’s a management facility. Second, she’s completely messed up in the head. Ordinary legal punishment, isolation and rehabilitation are meaningless. Third, society as a whole is also responsible for her becoming a villain and committing crimes. The environment she was given had no choice but to become a villain.”

The hand that had been on Ji-an's head went down and grabbed the back of her neck.

“Most importantly, even setting aside all these stupid reasons, just as I was given a chance, I wanted to give one to this kid too.”

Originally, he had planned to further develop Ji-an's social skills, and after her socialization was complete, he was going to make her go around and apologize to the people she had harmed.

Looking at Ye-jin, who was barely suppressing her emotions, Ho-cheol let out a small sigh.

That expression and atmosphere.

He could easily guess what kind of thoughts she was having.

He added, to relieve her of that burden.

“I’m not asking you to forgive her.”

Ye-jin looked at Ho-cheol with a surprised expression.

“I-I thought you would ask me to give her a chance, Professor.”

“That would be difficult. No matter how great a hero is, to embrace all personal grudges, in a way, is a sucker.”

Ho-cheol grabbed Ji-an by the scruff of her neck and shook her back and forth.

She, who also had her own sins, meekly let him, with a pitiful expression.

“You don’t have to accept her apology later. You can continue to resent her, thinking she’s a villain, or you can think that since she’s your enemy, you’ll definitely put her in prison someday. As a victim, you have every right to do so.”

The ramen was already ready, but no one was paying any attention to it.

“I’m trying to make her into an adult who can properly apologize. So just wait until then.”

“…Well, if you say so, Professor. I’ll try to endure it for now.”

In fact, it wasn't that Ye-jin had been seriously injured.

If you thought positively, she had been able to develop her practical sense thanks to the trouble Ji-an had caused so far.

“But what are you going to do about the real victims? I don’t think they’ll let it go so easily. Especially Da-yeon.”

“Well.”

Ho-cheol finally let go of the scruff of her neck.

“We can kneel and beg together. That’s all we can do.”

It was not a situation to eat ramen.

In the end, no one could pick up their chopsticks and they went back.

After sending both Ye-jin and Ji-an back, Ho-cheol went out of the academy again.

He let out a sigh.

“Haa.”

The time he had begged from the Sword Master was just over a day.

After that, the twins would have their faces on the villain list, and from then on, it would be beyond the scope of what he could handle.

This time, it was a personal operation that he hadn't even told the Association or Clington about.

That's why Ho-cheol was moving alone this time.

Ho-cheol, who had been walking, suddenly stopped in his tracks and closed his eyes.

His head spun with dizziness.

He pressed his temples and muttered.

“I’m going to die.”

Although he had been unconscious for several hours during the day, there was no way his condition would return with just that.

I should get some proper rest after this is over.

Fortunately, their headquarters had not moved, so he headed straight for the building he had seen before.

And so, in a back alley leading to the building.

A person suddenly popped out from a corner.

A welcome, but not a welcome face to meet now.

The boy looked at Ho-cheol with an expressionless face.

He had a lot he wanted to say, but Ho-cheol just remained silent for a long time.

Instead, he took his hand out of his pocket.

“Want some candy?”