HRDH 09

Chapter 09

“Hey….”

Jung Sumin glanced at me faintly. So what? This was payback for laughing along when I got mocked earlier for not having any friends.

Myung Ajin clasped her hands together and blinked at him like a puppy.

“Sumin, even if you become successful later, you’ll still be my friend, right?”

That wasn’t something you said to someone you’d known for less than ten minutes. Jung Sumin laughed in disbelief, but he didn’t seem annoyed.

Watching the two of them, I let out a small chuckle.

The original novel’s heroine, whom I met for the first time, was unbelievably cute.

* * *

Since it was the first day, no crazy teacher actually opened a textbook.

It was mostly simple self-introductions and basic announcements.

After our homeroom teacher finished the closing session, the first day of high school ended blandly a little past 4 p.m.

“You’re going to the Association now, right?”

“Yeah. You heading home?”

I nodded at Jung Sumin’s question.

It had been a long time since we’d walked home side by side like this. It felt strangely nostalgic.

“Shouldn’t you be going to some academy now or something?”

“Please. I do just fine on my own.”

Back in middle school, I even ranked in the top ten of the entire grade without any private tutoring.

‘Well… that was only because we couldn’t afford academy fees.’

Now that I was living in the same house as the chairman, I could attend any expensive academy I wanted.

‘…But when I think I might die early, why does spending time on that feel like such a waste?’

First, I needed to deal with the Seo Jinhyung problem. If I was still alive after that, maybe I’d prepare for college entrance exams.

Until then, I really didn’t feel like studying.

“Isn’t that your house’s car?”

Jung Sumin pointed at the car parked by the school entrance.

“Yeah. I’ll go— …wait, Jung Sumin!”

I was about to leave when a thought suddenly hit me. I hurriedly called out to him. He stopped and turned around.

“What.”

“After your training ends tonight, let’s meet for a bit.”

“I’ve got time now.”

“So what? I don’t.”

“Then call me at nine. I’ll be done by then.”

“Deal.”

After parting with Jung Sumin, I got into the car. Seo Jinhyung asked,

“You’re back? How was school?”

“It was fine. Not much different from middle school.”

“That’s good.”

That was the end of the conversation.

We arrived home quickly, and I rushed straight to my room.

Because of that, Mom scolded me for not even greeting her properly. Seo Jinhyung greeted her instead and stole all the affection, but I didn’t have the luxury to care.

‘The notebook, the notebook.’

I rummaged through my drawer and pulled out a blue notebook.

It was the notebook where I had written down everything I could remember about the plot and information the moment I realized this world was the world of Not a Killer.

I’d written as much detail as possible, but thanks to my poor memory, the amount of information wasn’t that rich.

Muttering to myself as I skimmed through the messy handwriting, I said,

“As I thought….”

The moment my school changed, I realized the original story could change in small ways.

Like Mom’s remarriage.

But the fact that I, Kim Seyeon, ended up in the same class as Myung Ajin, who had been in the same class as the protagonist for two consecutive years in the original story?

“Isn’t that way too big of a change…?”

Someone directly connected to the hidden villain becoming the protagonist’s classmate wasn’t a minor change at all.

I let out a shallow sigh and ran a hand through my hair.

Come to think of it, Jung Sumin’s existence was strange too.

If he was a trainee from the Association attending the same school as the protagonist, he should’ve been mentioned at least once in the novel. But no matter how much I searched my notebook or my memories, no such character appeared.

‘Maybe my memory’s just bad.’

Still, the sense of unease was strong. I hadn’t done much, yet the original story kept changing.

Mom’s remarriage was something I desperately tried to prevent, so that was understandable—but I had no memory of doing anything to end up in the same class as the protagonist.

‘Is this the butterfly effect from being reincarnated with my memories?’

That was the only explanation I could think of.

‘Still, it doesn’t seem like a bad sign. At least… it means something can be changed.’

The story wouldn’t flow exactly the way the original novel did.

For someone like me, whose death was predetermined in the novel, that was a huge hope.

“Yeah. This is good! If I’m in the same class as the protagonist, I’ll have more chances to talk to her.”

I had planned to get close to the protagonist no matter what and make her my ally for the sake of the future.

And for that, being in the same school was better than a different one—and being in the same class was even better.

I forced myself to think positively.

* * *

After taking a long nap, I called Jung Sumin to the playground in front of my house late at night.

“Whoa, what’s with the clothes?”

“Cool, right? I got it.”

He pulled back his hoodie slightly and showed off the T-shirt he was wearing.

It was a black short-sleeve shirt with the small logo of the White Killer Association on it.

Honestly, I’d half suspected he was lying. But it wasn’t a lie. That meant Jung Sumin really was on the path to success now.

‘Meanwhile, I’m one wrong step away from death. Lucky bastard.’

I sat on the swing bitterly, and he sat next to me. After chatting lightly for a while, he asked,

“So. Why’d you call me? We’ll see each other at school tomorrow anyway.”

“Ah, yeah. Just… don’t take this the wrong way.”

“I already feel weird and uneasy.”

I stood up abruptly and stepped in front of him.

“Can you give me a back hug?”

“…What?”

Caught completely off guard, Jung Sumin even answered in formal speech.

I wasn’t exactly thrilled either.

But I wasn’t sure whether that so-called “kangaroo play” really worked as psychological therapy.

I searched online, but there were no similar cases, which made me even more anxious.

Right now, I was just grasping at straws.

“Is this some kind of friendship test? You didn’t hear something weird somewhere, did you? Like I like you or something crazy like that—no, that doesn’t even make sense. It’s only the start of the semester.”

Tap.

I gently placed my hand on his shoulder while he rambled.

“Our friendship doesn’t need testing.”

“…Oh. Sure.”

Ignoring his suddenly cold expression, I quickly turned around.

“You can do it, right? Hurry up.”

“…You told me to?”

“Ugh, fine.”

Creak.

With the unpleasant sound of the swing’s chains, Jung Sumin’s large shadow fell in front of me under the streetlight.

‘He really is tall. Well, he did play basketball.’

After a brief silence, I felt his arms carefully wrap around my shoulders.

It was very different from Seo Jinhyung’s back hug.

For one, there was zero body contact. Jung Sumin leaned only his upper body slightly and pulled me in with just his arms.

It was incomparably restrained compared to Seo Jinhyung, who’d press his back, waist, and legs all against me.

I turned my head to look up at him.

“What are you doing?”

“A back hug.”

“Can’t you stick closer?”

“No. Absolutely. Never. Seriously can’t.”

“You hate it that much?”

He opened and closed his mouth a few times with an oddly wronged expression before finally shutting it with a short sigh.

What’s with him?

I brushed it off and asked my next prepared question.

“Fine then. How do you feel?”

“…Feel what?”

“You know. Like warm, or stable… ah! Comfortable?”

“It’s damn uncomfortable.”

Instant answer.

‘I shouldn’t have expected anything from this guy.’

I mercilessly smacked his arms off my shoulders. Honestly, I felt uncomfortable too.

“Just get lost.”

“What kind of situation is this?”

“A ‘get lost’ situation.”

“…Did I just get used?”

I fixed my jacket and checked the time on my phone. We hadn’t talked about much, but thirty minutes had already passed.

“I’m going.”

“You’re really going? Hey, wait. I’ll walk you home.”

“It’s right in front of my house. And I’m better at fighting than you.”

“Just let me, will you?”

He slung an arm over my shoulder and jerked his chin forward, telling me to move.

“…Fine. I was bored anyway, so I guess I win.”

But since my house was really just around the corner, we arrived within minutes.

Jung Sumin’s mouth fell open when he saw the grand two-story house.

“Whoa… this is your place?”

“Impressive, right?”

“Haven’t you already succeeded more than me?”

“So what? I’m moving out in a year.”

I snorted and used both hands to lift his arm off my shoulder with effort. It felt like weightlifting.

“Hey! Stop using me as an armrest. I’m serious, you’re heavy.”

“What are you talking about? I weigh less than you.”

“Are you crazy?”

We kept bickering in front of the house without pause.

“Go home already. Didn’t you train all day? Aren’t you tired?”

“If I cared about that, I wouldn’t have come here.”

“Must have stamina to spare.”

“It’s not that.”

His suddenly serious voice made me look up at him quietly. He scratched his head awkwardly and hesitated.

“…It’s just. You seem troubled these days.”

“Oh… I’m touched.”

I joked, but I meant it.

Even though I pretended otherwise, I’d been complaining about my life lately. It must’ve bothered him.

“Whatever. Go inside.”

“Yeah. See you at school.”

Jung Sumin waved silently.

I opened the gate and stepped inside, feeling strangely warm inside.

‘I picked a good friend.’

“You’re back?”

“Ahh!”

Startled by the sudden voice, I whipped my head around. Seo Jinhyung was sitting on a bench in the garden.

“Damn it, you scared me…! Why are you out here?”

“Just. You went out late, so I was worried.”

“I told Mom before I left.”

“You didn’t tell me.”

Well… that was true.

It wasn’t like Seo Jinhyung and Mom were close enough to discuss my late-night outings together, so I just accepted it.

For someone like him to worry was… almost impressive.

‘Whether it’s sincere or not…’

I slowly walked toward the bench.

“I’m back, so let’s go inside. It’s still chilly even if it’s March… Aren’t you cold without a jacket?”

“I don’t know. Maybe if Seyeon hugs me, I won’t be?”

“…?”

Seo Jinhyung opened his arms toward me.

I couldn’t tell if he was serious or joking. He always wore the same faint smile.

“Ka–kangaroo play? Here?”

He just smiled with his eyes.

After a brief hesitation, I let out a short sigh and stepped closer.

“We did that two days ago. Why again today…?”

“If you sit there, wouldn’t it be uncomfortable to hug?”

At his words, I froze mid-step before sitting down.

“…Then where am I supposed to sit? Don’t tell me—”