Seo-ah let out a sigh. Yeah. She figured this would happen.
“Seo-ah, this is really you!?”
Her closest classmate, Lee Hye-jin, shoved a very familiar magazine spread in front of her face, looking wide-eyed.
Seo-ah just nodded quietly.
“…Yeah, it’s me.”
“Whhaaat…! Wait—so that d-d-dragon lady was your sister!?”
“Dragon lady? What even is that supposed to mean?”
“That’s just what people are calling her.”
“Why are they calling her lady anything? She’s just my sister… They don’t even use her name? What kind of weird title is that?”
“Still, didn’t she take care of that terrifying mutant who showed up on campus? She protected us, right?”
“She’s not really the self-sacrificing, noble type though…”
“But seriously, why are you so pretty all of a sudden? And more importantly, when did you become a model!?”
“Well…”
Seo-ah explained to Hye-jin what happened.
That Seo Jin-ha, who had originally taken an interest in her sister, saw her and asked if she’d try a photoshoot too.
“What…? That really happened?”
Then, seeing Seo-ah appear confidently in the magazine, Hye-jin nodded as if it all made sense.
“Okay yeah, seeing this, I kinda get it. Wait a sec—are you even the Yoon Seo-ah I knew?”
“Who knows.”
“This world is so unfair.”
“What is?”
“Some people get a face like that, and model potential too…”
“I don’t have any model potential.”
Seo-ah’s remark left Hye-jin speechless.
Then what was this magazine in her hands supposed to be?
Sure, her sister was impressive, but even Seo-ah herself had a completely different aura now.
Hye-jin had thought the face in that magazine on the morning news looked familiar, but she never imagined it’d be her own classmate.
She always thought Seo-ah had a great face, but seeing her fully styled and photographed.
She didn’t look out of place at all next to those celebrities who went through extensive beauty management.
Hye-jin suddenly found herself wondering.
How did someone like this end up becoming friends with her?
“Then what do you call this? If you have no talent, how come you look like a total celeb? When I first saw this, I seriously thought you were some famous actress.”
“Is it really that much?”
“It is that much. I’m not just being dramatic… People are looking for you all over right now. Check your phone.”
“…Why are you bringing up my phone all of a sudden?”
And the moment Seo-ah checked her messages.
She couldn’t help but wear a dazed expression.
It was exactly as Hye-jin had said.
All kinds of people were reaching out to her.
“…Why is everyone like this?”
“You’re not seriously asking that, are you?”
“I mean… this is exactly why I kept it a secret that my sister’s a mutant.”
“Don’t you think that ship’s already sailed?”
At Hye-jin’s words, Seo-ah let out another sigh.
She wasn’t wrong.
“True, but still.”
“Just give up. It’s already too late. You already had plenty of people interested in you even before this.”
“Sad thing is, I’m not interested in them.”
“There she goes again. Then who are you into?”
“Dunno… I’m way too busy for any of that dating nonsense.”
“You really live such a boring life. If it were me, I would’ve already snagged some hot guy by now.”
“That’s you. Besides, there’s no one in our department I’m into.”
“Wow, high standards too.”
“Do my high standards cost you anything?”
“Well, not exactly, but… Hey, are you going to keep modeling after this?”
“I’m still thinking about it.”
“I mean, just being Seo Jin-ha’s model is already a huge deal, right? Feels like you’re set for success.”
“What are you talking about? I was just tagging along for my sister. That’s it.”
“…Looking at the amount of work that went into your shots, you were definitely not just a tagalong.”
“Well, duh. Of course they’d put in effort if it’s going in the magazine.”
“Oh.”
“Why are you acting surprised at something so obvious? Anyway, if you look at how it went at the shoot, I was definitely just a background extra. Here, look at this. You really think anyone was paying attention to me?”
“Okay, fair point. Still, the fact that someone like her even noticed you means you’ve definitely got what it takes to make it in modeling, right?”
“I’m still thinking it over… Trying to decide if this is a path I should actually go down. I’m planning to contact Jin-ha later and ask.”
Hearing that, envy bloomed across Hye-jin’s face.
“I’m so jealous… You even have her number and everything.”
“I only met her because of my sister, honestly.”
“Still, that’s a big deal. When you become a super famous model, you better not pretend you don’t know me, okay?”
“I won’t.”
“Oh, as expected of you, Seo-ah! Finally, I’ve got a celebrity in my circle!”
“I’m not one yet. Don’t get ahead of yourself.”
“Heh, the way I see it, it’s only a matter of time. Just wait.”
“Fine. If I make it big, I’ll bring you along for the ride.”
“Oh! Say that again—let me record it this time!”
Seo-ah just laughed off Hye-jin’s excited reaction.
But even so, a small part of her felt uneasy.
She knew all too well that sudden attention like this would definitely attract the wrong kind of people.
Sure, Hye-jin was her closest friend, so she wasn’t worried about her.
But there was no guarantee that others would see her in the same positive light.
Chances were, she’d end up tangled in something unpleasant one way or another.
Her sister being the head of a government agency meant most people wouldn’t dare mess with her.
But the world was full of all kinds of crazy.
Some people couldn’t control their emotions, and those people often showed their true nature in the creepiest ways.
And it wasn’t like she was particularly close to anyone in her department besides Hye-jin.
So honestly, something bad happening soon felt almost inevitable.
That was the part that worried her the most.
Because jealousy… it could drive people mad in ways you couldn’t even imagine.
And surely, a few people would come along who couldn’t tell right from wrong anymore.
[Jo Min-hyeok: Yo lol what is this?]
Min-hyeok posted the photoshoot I did in the group chat.
Ah, right.
Of course these guys weren’t going to stay quiet.
[Yoon Seo-hyun: That happened…Didn’t I tell Han-gyeol about it last time? Guess no one else heard yet.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Oh yeah lol That time you suddenly transformed into a dragon and all hell broke loose—I totally forgot to tell the others.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Ah… right.]
[Heo Ji-hwan: This is seriously wild lol How does Yoon Seo-hyun end up in a photoshoot? Feels like the most mismatched combo on Earth.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Dude, if someone offered you clothes worth a billion won just for modeling, you’d say no?]
[Han Tae-hoon: ?]
[Heo Ji-hwan: ? A billion won? What are you even saying?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: The person who did the shoot was Seo Jin-ha.]
[Han Tae-hoon: Are you serious? The Seo Jin-ha?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: What, you all know her? Didn’t think guys like you would even know the queen of fashion.]
[Han Tae-hoon: Anyone who doesn’t know her isn’t Korean lol She’s literally one of the nation’s pride icons.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Then why didn’t my sister recognize her? And she’s someone who actually cares about fashion.]
[Han Tae-hoon: …For real?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Yeah… But she did say she’s been too busy lately to even pay attention to outside stuff.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Why though?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Back then, she was just a freshman about to enter college, and I was in the middle of mutating, stuck in a hospital bed.]
[Jo Min-hyeok: Ah, then yeah, makes sense lol Anyway, so you got clothes from that person?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Yep. I got quite a few outfits in exchange for doing the shoot.]
[Jo Min-hyeok: How much would that be worth if you sold it??]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Are you seriously trash? Why would I sell that?]
[Han Tae-hoon: Ew ew, what a trashy thing to say lol]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Fr lol]
[Jo Min-hyeok: Hey, it’s just a question ;;]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Honestly, it’s probably hard to even put a price on it. Especially if they find out it’s mine—there might even be some kind of “premium” attached.]
[Han Tae-hoon: Why would there be a premium all of a sudden?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: You know, “clothes worn by a dragon” or whatever. People love giving weird value to unique stuff. It’s like, if you hang it on your ear, it’s an earring; if you hang it on your nose, it’s a nose ring. Same thing.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: The more I hear you talk, the more convincing it sounds Anyway, the shoot came out insanely good.]
[Jo Min-hyeok: Fr, when I first saw it I legit didn’t think it was you, Seo-hyun.]
[Han Tae-hoon: Is this just the magic of good lighting or something?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Why, feeling the urge to start worshipping me or what?]
[Han Tae-hoon: Maybe a little? You’ve seriously changed after mutating—feels like you’re a whole different person now lol]
[Heo Ji-hwan: It’s so weird seeing you of all people say stuff like that. I still haven’t gotten used to it.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: You guys probably wouldn’t feel so weird if you saw her face more often, like I do. You don’t have any classes with her, right?]
[Heo Ji-hwan: Should we, like… do some kind of activity or something then?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: What kind of activity are you talking about all of a sudden?]
[Heo Ji-hwan: I dunno, just saying we should hang out or something.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: What kind of dudes plan a hangout just between themselves? That’s weird.]
[Heo Ji-hwan: Come on, hanging out with the boys is always fun. It’s not like I even go out that often with my girlfriend.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Maybe go hang out with her then, just saying;;]
[Heo Ji-hwan: I already plan all our dates and remember every anniversary, What more do you want from me? Sometimes a guy needs bro time too.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: But won’t she get suspicious if I’m there too?]
[Heo Ji-hwan: She knows you’re just my classmate, so no worries]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Then how about we go paragliding or something?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Uh…I don’t really need a paraglider, though.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Oh come on, just go fly around on your own then lol I’m just saying we should hang out this weekend, why do you always have to be so extra?]
[Han Tae-hoon: Paragliding, out of nowhere? I’m down though… Where would we even go?]
[Yu Han-gyeol: There are a bunch of places in Danyang, Chungbuk for paragliding. Let’s go there.]
[Han Tae-hoon: What about lodging?]
[Yu Han-gyeol: My parents run a pension there, so we won’t need to pay for a place to stay.]
[Han Tae-hoon: Legend!!]
[Heo Ji-hwan: Hey, Yoon Seo-hyun.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Huh?]
[Heo Ji-hwan: That’s the level we worship, okay? So, Han-gyeol hyung, should we like fan you or something?]
[Yu Han-gyeol: I’ll accept that gratefully.]
[Jo Min-hyeok: Ugh, look at these clowns.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: You coming too, Min-hyeok?]
[Jo Min-hyeok: What, you thought I wouldn’t?]
[Yu Han-gyeol: lol wouldn’t dream of it.]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: While you guys are paragliding, I’ll just spread my wings and cruise up above on my own.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Should the head of a national agency really be slacking off like that? That’s our tax money burning up, you know?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Just by existing, I stop mutants from going wild. I think I’ve earned a little break.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Why does that sound insanely enviable all of a sudden?]
[Yoon Seo-hyun: Jealous? Then go mutate too, lol.]
[Yu Han-gyeol: Who’s gonna push her off a cliff?]
At Han-gyeol’s last message, I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.