241 – Back to the Original -5-

“What do you think?”

Mikhail’s gaze was fixed on me, earnest and expectant. With an expression that seemed to await the truth, Mikhail added a condition as he spoke to me.

“Please speak with sincerity.”

“…”

“Honestly, without lies.”

Sincerity.

‘I’m not sure.’

I couldn’t guess what kind of answer Mikhail wanted. Whether he wanted to hear something pleasant or something cold, I had no way of knowing.

Two answers came to mind.

One was a negative truth filled with the resentment of the academy, and the other was a memory of past main sorrow.

I avoided answering as I emptied my glass. It didn’t seem like any good words would come out anyway. I didn’t want to spoil the good mood.

“Why do you ask?”

I tapped on the desk, questioning Mikhail. Wondering why he would ask such a thing.

I honestly couldn’t sympathize with someone who wanted to learn swordsmanship from me, yet spoke words that revealed their flaws.

Usually, it’s common to ask what one thinks of themselves.

“I don’t see how today’s date has anything to do with Mikhail, so I’m not sure why you’re suddenly asking about him.”

“…”

“It’s a bit hurtful. I tried my best to go on a date. I even spent a lot… of money.”

“It’s not like that. I was just curious.”

“Hmm…”

I sighed deeply and nodded towards her. Since she wanted to hear it, I thought I should tell her.

Honestly.

And with a bit of a lie so she could understand, I told her.

“It’s unrequited love.”

“What kind of… love?”

“Unrequited love. The kind where only one side has feelings.”

Mikhail furrowed his brow and leaned in closer. Unsure if he had heard correctly, he tilted his head and wore a face full of questions.

I waved my hand at Mikhail, dispelling any misunderstandings. I thought the term ‘unrequited love’ was enough to cause confusion, even though I was the one who said it.

“It’s not that I really like you. It’s more like a love-hate relationship.”

“Love-hate relationship?”

“As a fellow academy alum, I think Mikhail is cool and impressive, but we had quite different views.”

“…”

“I’m the type who says, ‘Don’t take a loss even if others get hurt,’ while Mikhail believes in taking losses to uphold justice.”

“But that’s the right thing to do.”

I nodded in agreement with her retort.

“It is a valid point.”

I too once dreamed of being a hero when I was younger. I could fully understand sticking to and aiming for justice.

Still.

“There’s such a thing as moderation.”

Mikhail clenched his fist and looked at me squarely. Whether it was the alcohol kicking in or my answer had struck a nerve, Mikhail stared straight at me and questioned again.

“What’s moderation?”

“Pardon?”

“What rhythm should one follow to be right?”

“…”

“You asked me, didn’t you? If I had heard any rumors about you at the academy.”

“…”

“Yes, I heard them. In great detail.”

“What did you hear?”

I asked Mikhail in a soft, subdued voice. I had a rough idea of what he had heard, what he was thinking.

“You…!”

“Yes.”

As I looked at him squarely, Mikhail’s lips paused, punctuating the silence. He took a breath, once for the rising anger within, and then cautiously opened his mouth to speak to me.

“You were a troublemaker at the academy.”

“…”

“You destroyed all the academy’s property, acted violently towards students… I heard you were behind the bullying.”

“That’s correct.”

“Pardon?”

“Would you care to elaborate?”

Mikhail bit his lip and stopped speaking at my brazen request for more slander. A tremor was rising between the fists that tightly gripped his drink.

I nodded towards Mikhail. It was an undeniable fact. I could have stuttered if asked to name the victim, but I was fully capable of doing so.

But.

“Miss Secret Girl.”

I had my own limits.

“What do you think justice is, Miss Secret Girl?”

“…”

“Living kindly, even at a loss?”

“…”

“Forgiving the wicked?”

“…”

“Perhaps such actions are right and lead to good outcomes, because even villains have their stories. Especially Mikhail, he’s always been strict about his standards for me.”

“That’s because you haven’t changed….”

“Right. I’m not someone who changes easily, so he disliked me.”

I took a short breath and asked her again. How do you want to live, defending Mikhail?

“So, Miss Secret Girl, do you want to live a life forgiving enemies and being betrayed like Mikhail? Or do you want to live selfishly, like me?”

“I wasn’t betrayed. Everyone changed and started living kindly.”

“Hmm… But why do I always get betrayed? At the academy, I was stabbed by someone I had shown kindness to, and I was disciplined for something I didn’t do.”

“…”

“I like to think I was as kind as Mikhail, but if I don’t receive gratitude in return, does that make me unjust?”

Mikhail pressed his lips together tightly.

I smiled faintly at Mikhail, lightening the heavy atmosphere. I hadn’t brought this up to start a fight.

“I hate being played for a fool, that’s why I’m doing this. I snap like a hedgehog and bite like a mad dog. It’s not that Mikhail is bad.”

“…But you’re the one who did wrong.”

“That’s right.”

I nodded cheerfully, affirming Mikhail’s interrogation.

“It’s my fault, indeed.”

However.

“There may be people who cry and are sad because of me, but somewhere, there are those who smile because of me. Isn’t that justice in its own way? Just like the lady I serve has become human.”

“You’re selfish.”

“I know. That’s why I was expelled from the academy.”

I smiled faintly, lightening the subdued atmosphere.

“It seems to be because I come from a humble background.”

“A humble background?”

“Yes.”

I smiled faintly, looking at Mikhail.

“I may have been born pretty, but I’ve lived a life full of twists and turns. Despite appearances, I come from the slums.”

At the word ‘slums,’ Mikhail’s eyes widened like a child eager to ask a question, his fists clenched.

Mikhail looked at me, his voice heavy with emotion.

“Which slums are you from?”

I smiled faintly, replying to her, who was full of secrets.

“That’s a secret.”

“…Then.”

Mikhail’s lips quivered as he spoke to me in a trembling voice.

“Do you know a person named Ik Minhyuk?”

“…”

[There are restrictions.]

I gave a bitter smile and shook my head towards Mikhail.

“I don’t know.”

“…Then at least since when have you been living?”

“That’s also a secret. I’m a person with many secrets, you see.”

I took a swig of my drink, spitting out a somewhat honest tale. The taste of the liquor was good, the snacks were delightful, and before me lay a long-cherished memory. Having a pretty face was just a bonus.

“You asked what I think about Mikhail?”

“…”

“Just like the secret girl.”

I think he’s a good person.

“I don’t dislike him.”

*

Mikhail walked down the street, his head bowed.

1. Show Ricardo your true self. (1/1)

2. Go on a date with Ricardo. (1/1)

3. Listen to Ricardo’s sincerity. (0/1)

There was no gain.

Mikhail, dressed in a white dress, walked powerlessly towards the alley where he had hidden his school uniform.

‘Sincerity.’

He did not hear it.

Mikhail clenched his fist upon realizing that what he thought was Ricardo’s sincerity—how Ricardo felt about him—was the wrong answer.

‘I tried not to laugh.’

He had thought it was enough to show his true self in front of the man he disliked, but as he walked with Ricardo, laughter spilled out.

As if Ricardo knew his bucket list, he gifted Mikhail experiences he normally couldn’t have.

He wasn’t one to laugh carelessly, yet Mikhail hated himself for laughing repeatedly today.

[Ricardo’s affection for ‘Mikhail’: 71 ＞ 80]

└Only 3 hours left.

‘I can’t give up like this.’

Mikhail clenched his fist and swallowed his frustration under the dark alleyway.

‘There won’t be another chance.’

Missed opportunities don’t come back easily. Walking through the dark alley, Mikhail slowly began to fade into a deserted place.

And when he reached the alley where no human presence was felt.

“Hey, kid.”

An unforgettable man’s voice came chillingly from the darkness.

Chills started to run down Mikhail’s back.

It was the voice of the man he loathed the most, the one he wanted to cut off from this world immediately.

Mikhail stiffened and slowly turned his head.

And he looked at the man before him.

With one arm missing.

A man with a scar over his eye and a chilling smile.

The Grand Sin Archbishop of Oblivion.

‘Yung’

He emerged gently from the darkness and offered Mikhail a small greeting on his shoulder.

“We still have a story to finish.”

Mikhail quickly reached for his waistband and bit his lip as his hand caressed the empty air.

“It’s gone.”

The sword is gone.

Mikhail, realizing too late that he had come unarmed to deceive Ricardo, clenched his teeth and swallowed his frustration.

Yung slowly drew a dagger from within and approached Mikhail.

And then.

-Thump.

He pierced Mikhail’s abdomen without resistance.

Blood flows.

An unbearable pain in the shoulder paints a future to be felt.

Just as Mikhail’s eyes slowly begin to close, they snap open at the sound of a ‘ding’ alarm.

“I was ‘worried’ when you went alone, but you found your way back.”

-The quest has been completed.

Ricardo’s voice shattered the nightmare.

“I was worried.”