"What if the party members feel betrayed upon learning this? What if they discover that I was nothing more than a pitiful person with nothing to offer? What should I do? I just want to run away. Should I ask Lina for a memory-erasing spell? Should I use the favor I owe her to make it happen? But I'm supposed to save that for a critical moment. Even if the memories are erased, I can't look at the party members the same way again. What if there's no going back? I... I... What should I..."
I swallowed hard. Her words were an exact match to the thoughts dominating my mind.
But then, in the next moment,
Shin Se-hee smiled brightly and opened her mouth to speak.
"It's okay, Jin Yuha."
Her words made my eyes widen.
Her tone was firm.
"No matter who you were in the past, what kind of past you had, or what kind of world you lived in—none of that matters to me."
Shin Se-hee set down her wine glass and continued.
"Of course, I was surprised at first. But being honest with my feelings, I found the answer surprisingly quickly."
She pointed her finger at my face.
"You're the one who saved me. The one I desire and hold feelings for is you. The one I love is you—not your past self, but the you standing in front of me right now."
Her words made me look up, and with great effort, I managed to open my trembling lips.
"…Th-then, Se-hee, what do you think of the current me—"
My voice shook terribly.
"What do I think of you now?" "Um…"
"The original you was, honestly, unreal. Hard to believe. You commanded battles perfectly, were stronger than anyone else even in a man's body, and were a leader who earned everyone's respect and admiration. It was hard to believe someone so perfect could even exist!"
Shin Se-hee furrowed her brow.
"So sometimes, you didn't feel real to me. It didn't seem possible for someone to be so perfect. Like a hero from legends or fairy tales. Back then, you felt… a bit distant, I guess? Like I was always chasing after your back."
But.
She paused briefly.
"Now I understand. You weren't perfect. A one-star trash, lowest physical abilities, swordsmanship specialized at E rank."
Her gaze deepened as she repeated the words I had once said.
"Oh, so that's why you worked so hard to overcome it."
"…"
"You trained until you coughed up blood every day, burned yourself out for us…" "…"
"It must have been tough. It must have been heavy. Behind the great hero's back was a desperate, struggling, fragile person."
A wave of emotion surged within me.
I clenched my teeth to stop it from spilling out.
But Shin Se-hee seemed determined to keep speaking.
"Now I see your true self. It wasn't because you were perfect. It was because you knew your shortcomings and worked harder to overcome them. That's what made you more beautiful."
Her smile became clearer in my wide, astonished eyes.
"That's why I've fallen for you all over again, Jin Yuha."
I was speechless.
A single tear rolled down my face and dropped from my chin.
A moment of silence followed.
Languid jazz music flowed between us.
Shin Se-hee looked at me warmly, as if to say I had worked so hard.
I hadn't realized it.
That the moment I feared so deeply could turn so warm so suddenly.
Swoosh—
Abruptly, Shin Se-hee stood up.
"By the way," she said.
She walked slowly to my side. The atmosphere of the restaurant, filled with jazz, felt sweet.
Standing close, she met my eyes and smiled.
"Since I've laid all my cards on the table for you, don't you think I deserve a little gift in return?" "…A gift?"
"Well, I had an excuse ready about wanting to ease my anxiety about you. But that feels a bit cowardly now. The truth is, I just want to do this."
I furrowed my brows, unsure of what she was about to say.
And then—
Smooch—
Shin Se-hee brushed aside a stray lock of hair, leaned down, and lightly pressed her lips against mine.
The contact was brief, but her lips were as sweet as wine.
I stared at her with dazed eyes.
.
.
.
"W-Wow... T-This is, um, really embarrassing. Way more than I thought…"
Shin Se-hee hastily pulled away, speaking incoherently with a face flushed red.
Without realizing it, my own face was burning up. The warmth of her lips still lingered vividly.
"Y-You just now… That was…"
First kiss.
Seeing me fumbling with my words and touching my lips, Shin Se-hee frantically waved her hands with an even redder face.
"N-No! T-That just now! Um, it just happened by accident—no, not by accident, it was deliberate, but…!"
The calm and elegant demeanor she usually carried had completely vanished. She clutched her cheeks with both hands and shook her head vigorously.
"Agh… This is so embarrassing, I feel like I'm going to die... I-I've never done anything like this before."
The light of the setting sun pouring through the restaurant window illuminated her reddened face even more vividly.
"Um, well… I also…"
I tried to string some words together, but my mind had gone completely blank, making it impossible to form a coherent sentence.
Silence followed. In the quiet, only soft jazz music played in the background, as neither of us dared to look at the other, both blushing deeply.
"S-So, uh, the food's probably cold by now! L-Let's eat first!" "Y-Yeah, yeah. Sure, let's do that."
We hurriedly returned to our seats. Though it felt like we should say something, the awkwardness kept us from speaking.
Clink, clink.
The only sound in the otherwise still space was the faint scraping of utensils on plates.
"Um, Jin Yuha."
"Sh-Shin Se-hee."
Our voices overlapped.
"Ahem, Shin Se-hee, you go first."
"Well, uh, what were we talking about again? Oh, right! I wanted to hear more about the world where you used to live!"
Eager to dispel the awkwardness, we continued speaking, our faces still red.
I talked about my past world and how I had lived there. Though I'd mentioned it briefly before, today I delved into more concrete and realistic details since I couldn't fully explain the unique situation of being transported here before.
"It must have been tough living like that in the past."
"Yeah, kind of. Back then, there wasn't anything like mana to help me turn my life around.
Unlike here, where getting into Velvet Academy was a game-changer."
"So, in your world… there were no hunters? No monsters or demons either?"
"Nope, it was a world without mana. The level of civilization was about the same, though." "Sounds like it must have been a peaceful place."
"Hmm, not exactly. Money ruled the world instead of mana, and there were constant wars between nations because of conflicting interests… Not so peaceful."
"A-a world where the roles of men and women are reversed?"
"Yeah. Men were physically stronger than women, so men went to the army, men were more active, and women were better at managing daily life. Even online, most crude comments came from men."
"Wow… This finally explains the distance I felt with you and the way you act…"
"Huh? My distance? My behavior? Was something wrong?"
"Jin Yuha, did you have a girlfriend back then?"
"No, I didn't. Sometimes I'd get calls from women I wasn't close with, but they always said weird things." "Weird things?"
I frowned, recalling those women whose names I could no longer remember.
"Yeah. Things like, 'The light bulb in my house is broken, can you come fix it?' or 'My cat is cute, do you want to come see it?' or 'Don't you want to do something more fun than gaming?' There was even someone who insisted on teaching me how to cook and kept pestering me. They were all weird."
Indeed, they were all strange.
If their light bulb was broken, they should have called an electrician. Why call me? I wasn't a technician. What would they do if I got electrocuted?
Sure, I liked looking at cats, but I preferred watching them online rather than in person.
As for doing something "more fun" than gaming, I was a bit tempted, but knowing that woman liked clubs and parties, I declined. Being an outsider by nature, I wasn't a fan of such places.
And the cooking thing… Even thinking about it now made me annoyed. Who was teaching who?
As I recounted all these events, Shin Se-hee's expression darkened.
"So it wasn't about distance; it's just how you were…" "Huh?"
And so, despite our continued inability to meet each other's eyes, we awkwardly carried on with our conversation and meal. Oddly enough, the awkwardness wasn't entirely unpleasant.
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
New novel you must CHECK
✅Infinitely Regressing In A Loop
✅Bought By A Demon
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
Support the Translation! 🌐✨
30+ Advanced Chapters are currently available in Patreon, make sure to visit and support me.
patreon.com/Immortal_author
ko-fi.com /immortalauthor
discord.gg/KscfBegBPT