Chapter 118: The Battlefield Of Proof, Ulleung (4)
A woman who was suggesting going to Ulleungdo first?
-Dr. Love, I have a question. A girl I’m seeing suggests we go to Ulleungdo together. What should I do?
-Oh dear. When she says let’s go to Ulleungdo, it’s like suggesting booking a wedding venue! How can you even date if you don’t know that? All you need to do now is to book accommodations in Ulleungdo! Even if you spend your entire month’s salary, make the reservation!
-She’s already made the reservation.
-In that case, you should be deciding on baby names right now! What are you doing?
This was quite the situation.
It was undeniably significant.
Not just a patriotic duty but a situation where one could elevate the nation’s prestige.
If one simply saw this situation as between the Student Yumir and Teacher Do Ji-hwan, it would be so.
“Look at this?”
Yumir was trying to seduce me.
Not just ordinary seduction; she was determined to reel me in.
Though she might act shy, demure, and innocent…
In reality, she was hiding her intentions, much like the praying mantis who consumed the male after mating, intending to suck everything out of him.
Of course, I didn’t mean she’d literally eat me.
Joking about our conversations aside, since she already knew that Do Ji-hwan was the Goblin, seducing Do Ji-hwan was the same as seducing the Goblin.
She aimed to gain significant aid for her hero activities through this.
She had an objective of asking the Goblin to ‘execute’ villains or demons she didn’t want to kill.
Ultimately, her goal was to convert the Goblin from a despised creature into a Golden Priest, a Sunlight Rider, or something similar.
Not simply out of affection.
Not just because she liked me.
She was trying to “claim me” not just as a man but also in the realm of heroes and villains.
“Are you serious about this?”
“Yes, I’m serious.”
“Do you understand the implications? Once we enter Ulleungdo, records of our entrance will be made, and there’ll be rumors.”
“I want to make those rumors a reality. Isn’t it possible?”
“Ah.”
It was not possible.
Because right now, Yumir believed I was “two-timing,” but she didn’t think I was “octopus-legged.”
“Yumir, there’s something you don’t know about me.”
“… I think I know everything about you.”
Of course.
She knew Do Ji-hwan was the Goblin.
But there was something she didn’t know.
“Do you really think you know everything about me?”
“Yes?”
“Yumir.”
I whispered coldly in her ear.
“Do you think you’re the only girl I’m in contact with?”
“……!”
Yumir’s expression turned cold.
Her hands and feet trembled, and her eyes shook.
“What…?”
“I mean exactly what I said. And one more thing.”
I opened an app on my smartphone and showed a reservation I had made.
“I’m going to Ulleungdo in the morning.”
“……Who with?”
Yumir immediately pressed me for answers.
“Who did you find out that I’m dating? Is that person the main one, and I’m the side?”
“It’s not quite that, but…”
“But? Not ‘no’, but ‘but?’”
Being a perceptive girl, she quickly grasped the superficial reason why I was saying all this.
“Who is it? Tell me. Even though I’m an E-tier ability user, my heart is EX-tier-”
“This person.”
I showed her a photo, and Yumir was immediately shocked.
“That’s impossible… How…?”
“For the sake of honor, I’d like you to keep this quiet for now.”
“No, wait a second. Ah, ugh…”
Yumir, deeply shocked, clutched her head and began to wobble.
“Is it true that you approached her?”
“Rather than approaching, it just naturally happened. For me, it just turned out that way while I was simply breathing and chatting.”
“Hold on. Did she go there…?”
“She took off her Taeguk Watch and flew over.”
To be precise, she didn’t fly. She surfed between islands.
Even national swimmers were able to swim for extended periods between Ulleung Island and Dokdo with enhanced stamina. Why wouldn’t it be possible for an S-grade ability user?
“Are you joking?”
“Does it look like a joke to you?”
“It sounds like a mean joke. How could you do that today?”
“What did I do today? I just did special tutoring as Do Ji-hwan.”
“……!!”
A mix of confusion, anger, and betrayal flashed in Yumir’s eyes.
“Huh. I see. Naturally.”
It seemed as if she had realized something; negative emotions faded, and a sense of superiority began to show.
“Are you making fun of me right now? I get it. It’s not yet time to go to Ulleung Island, right?”
“You’re starting to escape from reality. Are you confident?”
Today, there were many instances where Yumir’s resolve was questioned, but this felt different.
“Why don’t you follow me to school? It would be interesting to have a three-way confrontation.”
“Are you crazy?”
“It’s easier for both of us if you trust me.”
Me, Do Ji-hwan.
“When you say ‘two-timing,’ it sounds trashy, but ‘a flower in each hand’ sounds skilled.”
Following the Chief’s orders to seduce a hero into infidelity, I aimed to bait two heroes at once.
“Just promise me. They won’t know about it. Okay?”
“If this situation is as I think it is…”
After briefly biting her lower lip, Yumir gestured with her hand and gave a signal.
I nodded towards her, and in a voice so quiet that no one else could hear, Yumir whispered.
“You didn’t… as the Goblin, right?”
“Of course not.”
“Ah, I see. Hmm…”
Talking to Yumir felt surprisingly easy.
Being the protagonist, she seemed to be able to deduce all answers with just a few hints, no need for detailed explanations.
“Alright. Let’s do it. This will be fun in its way.”
“Fun?”
“After all, you’re the one who will bleed-”
“Why would I bleed? The one who ‘sees blood’ is…”
“The ‘person who sees’ it, right?”
“……”
Exactly.
“Let’s continue this over the phone. It’s not good to be outside like this for too long.”
“Okay, but… not that over the phone?”
I dusted off Yumir’s shoulder and whispered in her ear.
“If you talk for more than 3 minutes, you’ll be monitored and traced. In this country.”
“…… You’re lying.”
“It’s true. You probably didn’t know because you never had anyone to call, but that’s how it is. So, if you want to meet up, just text me. Say you want to look at the moon, and I’ll come to you.”
If the situation allowed for it.
“I’m counting on you from now on, Yumir.”
“……”
I patted Yumir’s back and nudged her into the dormitory.
“……”
The surrounding gazes were filled with meaning, and I realized there was no turning back now.
By now,
On the dark web or some anonymous community, there would be posts or pictures saying, ‘Yumir and Do Ji-hwan are dating.’
In this world, on this Sejong Island,
Given that the entire world’s attention was on each ability user, and given that a Korean non-ability user and a foreign ability user were seen whispering in each other’s ears late at night…
The relationship between Do Ji-hwan, the librarian, and Yumir, the student, was practically public by now.
There was no such thing as a secret romance on this island.
That was why I hadn’t met with Baek Seol-hee directly on Sejong Island up until now.
In other words,
It was only a matter of time before Baek Seol-hee found out about my relationship with Yumir. If she was bound to find out eventually, it might be better to settle things sooner.
Sigh.
After Yumir entered the dormitory, I started my way back to the official residence.
The phone rang.
I dialed the number.
After several rings, a chaotic noise ensued before the call was answered.
“Hello?”
[Ah, Ji-hwan! Why are you calling at this hour?]
“It’s past midnight, so technically, it’s ‘today’.”
The voice, of course, was Baek Seol-hee.
“Actually, I’m going to Ulleung Island today.”
[I’m also heading to Sejong Island today.]
“We’re staying at the same place, Seol-hee.”
But.
“There’s another person who might be joining. Is that alright?”
[Wait, who is it?]
“It’s a woman.”
[…….]
Click.
The call ended.
“Right, that’s it.”
I shouldn’t be worried.
Even though I was courting two women, I had a ‘title’ I could proudly present to both of them.
Cheating Man.
“If she doesn’t come, I can go to Ulleung with Yumir. If she does, the three of us can travel together.”
If neither decided to come?
“… I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.”
This wasn’t reckless.
It was the best decision I, Do Ji-hwan, the Goblin, could make.
In the original story,
The protagonist naturally attracted women without effort.
The women created situations to be with the protagonist, and these situations intertwined to make a scene where several heroines were together with the protagonist.
I was not the protagonist.
In fact, the protagonist was Yumir, and I was just a villain troubling her.
For me to simultaneously court both Yumir and Baek Seol-hee was absurd in Sejong Island.
If I clumsily created an ambiguous situation, which led to misunderstandings, it could spell disaster.
Especially for someone like Do Ji-hwan, a ‘non’ ability user. If I drew attention, I might not just receive criticism but could even be abducted and threatened.
-Who does this non-ability user think he is to measure up to an S-grade ability user?
-S-grades should stick with their own kind. What’s a non-entity like you doing with a blonde beauty, and even trying to two-time?
However,
“I’ve never failed before. This is right. I am the Goblin. Not your average villain.”
Avoiding such a situation altogether was the Goblin’s way.
Creating a situation I desired and controlling it was Do Ji-hwan’s way.
“The one missing out isn’t me.”
If they wanted to go to Ulleung Island with a cheating man, they should come and submit first.
‘Ordinary novel protagonists have their heroines fighting over them, but the Goblin doesn’t.’
Now,
“The first one to say they want to go to Ulleung with me wins.”
Let the rivalry begin.
To begin with,
Making heroes fight each other was the villain’s role.
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