“I’ll be running dungeons.”
Ban Eun-hyeol’s answer was simple.
Han Ji-bin and Ji Gang-han seemed to be of the same mind, nodding, then shifting their gaze to me.
Having avoided suspicion of being Nada by joining the guild, and with added skills and summons, I could now enter dungeons alone and close gates faster than before.
The only thing I planned was to search through gates to quickly return to my original dimension.
I had no particular plans like studying hard to go to a good university, or diligently engaging in guild activities at Blood Scent to amass a fortune.
Just hoping to have a slightly more abundant life if an item dropped from a gate, perhaps?
“Well. I guess I’ll just work hard at guild activities.”
Unable to bring myself to say I’d be looking for a way to return to my original dimension, I gave a similar answer to Ban Eun-hyeol.
Ban Eun-hyeol, who immediately caught on that I hadn’t given it much thought, chided me.
“We’re third-years now.”
He just talked about only one plan—running dungeons—yet he was picking a fight with my plan. I scoffed in disbelief.
“You don’t have a study plan either. What’s the difference between you and me?”
As I spoke, I suddenly recalled Ban Eun-hyeol’s background.
Come to think of it, he had an incredible setting, fitting for a male lead: a third-generation chaebol, right?
‘He’s a chaebol, but doesn’t he take business management classes or anything?’
I hadn’t had much chance to befriend chaebols, so I didn’t know much about their lives, but even before transmigrating, I remembered dramas and novels always having such content.
I recalled dramas where students who weren’t even adults yet participated in company management from a young age and even achieved results.
No matter if they were from a chaebol family, I thought this was a bit too much, but somehow, Ban Eun-hyeol seemed perfectly capable of doing just that.
“Do you participate in company management, or take separate business management classes?”
“Those are, of course, things I have to do.”
No, is that really true?
Ban Eun-hyeol’s words, that it was such a normal part of his daily life that he didn’t even include it in his vacation plans, lingered in my ears.
I could certainly accept high school students taking business management classes, but participating in company management?
‘Is that company really okay?’
I was genuinely worried.
Of course, since he was the male lead, his abilities would be extraordinary, but still, he’s a high school student?
It was just a casual question, but hearing such a shocking answer made my thoughts grind to a halt.
“Our Eun-hyeol is super capable! He even went on an overseas business trip for an important project during summer vacation.”
When I looked at Ban Eun-hyeol with my mouth agape in surprise, Han Ji-bin gave a thumbs-up and spoke as if boasting about how amazing Ban Eun-hyeol’s abilities were.
It was a heartwarming sight, filled with pride and affection for a friend.
‘If he’s that capable, it’s understandable to boast about him to friends…’
Ban Eun-hyeol merely smiled, lifting only one corner of his mouth, at Han Ji-bin’s compliment.
It was a natural reaction, as it wouldn’t be like Ban Eun-hyeol to wave his hand in denial or act humble.
“You feel so distant today.”
I deliberately walked a step away from Ban Eun-hyeol as I spoke.
A second-year high school student participating in company management and even going on overseas business trips.
Not only is he doing company work, but now he’s also operating a guild and closing gates…
‘Is this even within the scope of what a person can do?’
Before my transmigration, aside from going out to close gates, I mostly just lounged around at home.
But seeing him now, always skipping studying and classes, he seemed like someone who barely did anything.
Yet, he now appeared in a new light.
“What’s there to feel distant about? Don’t joke around, just come over here.”
Ban Eun-hyeol grabbed me from the edge of the sidewalk and pulled me inwards.
As I was led by his hand, I felt an unusual sensation.
This feeling, this bloodlust, I had experienced often at the beginning of the semester.
I just rolled my eyes and found the group of female students openly expressing hostility towards me.
About five or six girls were standing in a cluster across the crosswalk.
Judging by their uniforms, they weren’t from our school, and perhaps because of that, they didn’t seem to know who I was.
The light turned green, and the female students standing opposite walked towards us with angry strides.
“Hey, what should we eat for dinner after the PC bang?”
“How about pizza?!”
“I’m craving fried rice.”
The Four Heavenly Kings didn’t seem to pay any attention to the female students.
I kept a close eye on the approaching girls as I walked.
I didn’t want any unnecessary friction.
Of course, with the Four Heavenly Kings there, they wouldn’t overtly pick a fight, but I had to consider the possibility that one of them might not be in their right mind.
This was because female students who went crazy for male leads or groups like the Four Heavenly Kings were a common trope in online novels.
Thud—!
“Kyaa!”
Then, a loud sound accompanied by a scream, clearly made with conscious effort, was heard.
I was dumbfounded when I saw a female student who had tripped over herself and fallen after passing by me.
‘She tried to shoulder-check me and failed, then fell, right?’
To attempt a shoulder-check when the Four Heavenly Kings were clearly walking right beside me?
It was a good thing I had noticed early and dodged, otherwise, I would have had to deal with the tiresome situation of her claiming she bumped into my shoulder and fell.
“What? Are you okay?”
“Did you bump into her? Dana, is your shoulder broken?”
“I didn’t bump her. She fell on her own.”
“Ji Gang-han is right. I didn’t bump her.”
The female student, who had slumped on the road and watched us talk, got up with the help of her friends.
By now, I had become numb enough to easily brush off things like this.
“Hey, let’s go quickly. The green light only has a few seconds left.”
Ban Eun-hyeol didn’t even care about the fallen girl and pulled me along.
Seeing this, the group of female students gnawed on handkerchiefs, seemingly pulled from nowhere, and glared at me.
‘Are they filming a comedy show?’
You don’t usually see such behavior in everyday life.
Seeing someone actually gnawing on a handkerchief, I found it strange and my gaze kept returning to them.
“Did you see them purposely try to hit Dana’s shoulder earlier?”
After arriving at the PC bang and turning on the computers, Han Ji-bin brought up what had just happened.
I thought everyone hadn’t noticed since they seemed unconcerned, but it seemed they knew and were just ignoring it.
Ban Eun-hyeol and Ji Gang-han sighed with tired expressions and said,
“She was a head taller than this little kid, so I watched, and she dodged well on her own.”
“Who are you calling a little kid?!”
***
“Those seemed like kids from Baek Ji-woo’s school.”
“Right. I knew from their uniforms. Has Ji-woo’s popularity dropped lately? Her school kids came all the way to our neighborhood to pull stunts like that.”
Han Ji-bin spoke with a genuinely worried expression.
To think that Baek Ji-woo’s popularity had dropped, causing her schoolmates to come all the way to this neighborhood to see the Four Heavenly Kings…
He, too, knew his own popularity very well, even if he didn’t show it.
[∑((주)으뜸(8) : Whose popularity has dropped?]
Just then, a chat window suddenly appeared before my eyes.
“What? Where’s Baek Ji-woo?”
“Gah! You scared me!”
I was as surprised as Han Ji-bin, nearly falling backward.
I hadn’t expected Baek Ji-woo to be here at all, and to send a chat after hearing everything we said…
‘I almost let it slip that I read Baek Ji-woo’s chat.’
That was close.
This isn’t a horror movie, why does he have to make such dramatic entrances?
I took deep breaths, trying to calm my still-pounding heart.
I felt a cold sweat breaking out, thinking I might have been caught being part of that chat room.
“You can see everything from here.”
Just then, a tall male student in Supreme Technical High School’s uniform stood up from the opposite side.
He had a baseball cap pulled low, but I knew it was Baek Ji-woo just from his voice.
Baek Ji-woo seemed quite displeased about hearing “popularity has dropped,” speaking in a sarcastic tone as he looked at us.
I truly hadn’t considered Baek Ji-woo sitting opposite us.
The Four Heavenly Kings also wore bewildered expressions, seemingly just as surprised.
“Ji-woo! You know how I feel, right?”
“I know very well. I clearly heard your inner thoughts, brother, thinking my popularity has dropped.”
Han Ji-bin hurriedly tried to placate Baek Ji-woo, but it was useless.
Baek Ji-woo, who didn’t even blink at Han Ji-bin’s aegyo, shifted his gaze to me.
“It seems like my schoolmates picked a fight for no reason. Are you okay?”
It seemed he had been listening to our entire conversation from the start.
Well, it was a position where he couldn’t help but hear.
“I’m fine, only she fell.”
“As expected, it’s not for nothing that I coveted you, unnie.”
Baek Ji-woo proudly gave two thumbs up with a satisfied expression.
At that, Ban Eun-hyeol, who had been watching us all along, twitched his eyebrows, appearing displeased.
He crossed his arms, leaned his chair all the way back, even crossing his legs, and opened his mouth, looking at Baek Ji-woo.
“As expected, what? Aren’t you managing your school kids properly? And why are you even here?”
“Nah, I’m not a guild member, so what management? Whatever my schoolmates do has nothing to do with me at all.”
Baek Ji-woo waved his hand, smoothly brushing off Ban Eun-hyeol’s words.
Even as a vein seemed to pop out on Ban Eun-hyeol’s forehead, Baek Ji-woo paid no mind and continued speaking.
“I’m here in this neighborhood because I have an appointment. I’m meeting Do Yi-hyun.”
At Baek Ji-woo’s last words, my eyes shot open.
‘Meeting whom?’
I hadn’t had any reason to contact Do Yi-hyun since the aquarium talk.
It was already clear it would be quite tiresome with the Four Heavenly Kings and now Baek Ji-woo drawing attention, and it would definitely get worse if Do Yi-hyun arrived too.
Just then, a male student with an undeniable silhouette walked into the PC bang from the entrance.
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