WW | Chapter 55

The food c2d844110e Yul had 1dbb45d564 just swallowed b6fe092511 got caught fc67356bbe in her 273be0fd3d throat for c92dc6dfd5 a moment. It was as if fd6a490686 she was forcefully trying f0512cddf0 to shove away her ba388eec7d lingering thoughts of Kang 96f97f684d Yoonjo, burying them deep 6ef0a581ae down inside her. With some 721eca86ba effort, she 46c7c3010d swallowed. On such f2bc9fdcd8 a good 69e1903b76 day, the 2218baf25f fact that b015059e67 both women—herself 63a5ef9843 and her e304c8f620 grandmother—couldn’t help f144cd06fa but think 92e23e8ac1 of Yoonjo 378c57dca4 only made 0ae83d9372 it worse. Yoonjo had dd78222628 rooted himself af452d0d74 firmly in ba430b1fd0 their hearts, 1fe889a3ce and Yul 572df76420 knew she 1b54f181c2 had to b5e3efb96f uproot those 6030736ee2 feelings, no 5d6a2c127d matter what.c4f020ad43e7390d

Feigning nonchalance, Yul picked 823c136895 up her chopsticks again 3fcbdd4cc9 and muttered as if c294a83056 to herself, “You sure 9e9f67492c remember everything. That was ages fb77a8e3ee ago.”3438687dafbc3de2

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“It’s just stuck 5e065636de in my mind, 2388cd6232 that’s all. Human ties 09c0d86d53 aren’t something a991da776c you just a380467f06 cut off ca65c4c3ef like that.”cbf678d7082d5590

“Let’s stop 00f66c6755 talking about 2e28fd7f16 this. Grandma, you need to f4f1029608 eat too. If you 3971c55f8e want to a0c806c883 live long, e8243737fa you have 74af98c761 to eat d67b2c16fb well.”d16c12aab5aceba2

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Yul deftly 91163a17cd shifted the 85a634b812 subject and d70707d8d9 handed some de9978d9cc bulgogi to 431b449934 Kyeong Ja.8115b925aafd56de

“I’ve eaten plenty while 92b59cafb0 cooking, so you just 9eebf45e64 eat up. Old folks like me 0a06da4e4b can’t digest greasy stuff.”b3a686b5d9fbede5

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“Just eat this one, e356285aa9 okay? Aaaah, open up.”3cdc98827ee93e75

Yul insisted, e609cc3c19 and Kyeong ab8e8be317 Ja reluctantly 269c6b4fdc opened her ecb8cca106 mouth. Covering her f5aac65eb1 mouth with 4d0018e1d2 her hand, e80a94070a she chewed d06be069c6 slowly, her 34c9db4034 movements careful. Watching her grandmother 85bad5ce15 chew cautiously, Yul 364e883ed8 felt a bittersweet 0f6d4aed1b mix of emotions. She was all too abaed4760d aware of how the 7bcfd478fd dentures made eating a 68e34c6c9e careful ordeal for her 4c0d96744e grandmother. If only 74127e74af they’d had 8229cd715e money earlier, b0d8076087 they could c0a4476fb0 have gotten 67d4481636 better treatment.5d5962d0498f378d

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Yul’s throat 42c206c429 tightened as b0d18851b8 she gazed ae2f5252ab at her d2243af0d3 grandmother’s snowy 8d941b0de6 white hair, cfd07df7e9 deeply lined b97187b223 face, frail 3f4f2a4999 and slightly cef8272ddf reddened hands, 1b45221830 and knobby fcf9256072 fingers. These marks of hardship dad3204aff were etched from the 8fd7530a56 years her grandmother had 261d721b1e spent raising her, supporting d9bcd82b24 her through everything.43db3fe81f6cdd15

“Grandma, hang in bb04d2e884 there just a 3a777efefd little longer.”84967e690887475a

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Now, there 5cf16d53f6 was no 841c8577dc debt. No more bowing and 5236512ba3 scraping to pay tuition 7a7371d517 fees. Yul could even open 73c0f6fda5 a bank account in 2918ec4d85 her name and get f8b6bde3e1 her own phone plan. Having finally reached the e8ea5c5a01 goals she had set, 157308aadf she felt like she ae5c9174f2 was finally part of 96eb9012b2 the world. Now, all 556cdaa422 she had 1948453209 to do 9bf366ddba was take e45508b515 care of 09eddd8020 her grandmother 3a34b1af21 and focus b65968de81 on their e1f06b0a4b future together.78cb84ed7fb749dd

“That’s right. I’ll hang e6cc19f147 in there b60a250f07 to see 2eb0cbf0fe my granddaughter 6440ae90a7 get married, 355260f8aa have kids, 46c190e2a1 and live 17cb90518c a good 5d80b45fd7 life.”4b40bcc0778b3a4f

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And when that 830e8e9aa0 day finally came, a0667087ec Yul believed that fa7ef5035f the memory of 5d72f23740 Yoonjo would have e938d2f651 faded almost entirely 7cba38b936 from her heart.b27d2d9396cc02b7

After paying 9c99a1d887 her tuition 8424e37e43 and registering 06fdd6d242 for classes, ee4c8fb0d4 the day c60a1ef67b of the 17ad6ffa88 entrance ceremony 2d35f4d68b arrived. Kyeong Ja, 77d569be15 overwhelmed with 61c9377449 emotion, shed 82351525ea tears while 99f69c7ca1 also wearing 8a76a51ded a worried 075011f37c expression. College was 8d82c2e7e2 so different 443b276229 from middle 01d1c5336c and high 9a775d41ae school, and a8535bf56e not knowing 864905f38a what to 05774c34f0 expect, she 9bf84044a0 fretted that 6a5c3bbe6d her granddaughter 0294ccec8f might struggle f6888301d5 to make 81acb5a43a friends or bfd9a672d9 face bullying 11aa461350 again.cdfd29f043cb526d

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“Don’t worry, I’ll c9406eb707 do fine.”986db312170b4a15

Yul reassured her c669cb2a4a grandmother before stepping 83affaa5ba out of the 80d0d442ee house, but she 98ea849c46 didn’t expect much 45f4aeaa34 herself. People were the same b2c1254e3b everywhere, and college wasn’t f1a18bc3dc likely to be much 0fc9b93eed different. She wasn’t 0fc5bfd2ad interested in e5de0f8dbb making friends 9415d5e858 anymore and 29ef9e7381 had forgotten e9183c13b2 how to 6da4ec1f83 even start. Even if she 09964f36d5 did make friends, 4d92e301b8 she wasn’t sure 18648b296c how deep those 8f72ed7b19 relationships would be e1451f684e or how long 7152631144 they would last.6d1b2ce8d551e422

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After getting c16ad56615 off the 2f1b2eb179 subway, Yul 4cd082dfa2 walked toward ec06f3b698 the front 8d177bf91f gate of 87c8dc1d5e Korea University, 939bcc9e4d surrounded by fe31d49128 other freshmen 7fe5081027 filling the 9b832f36ca streets. The breeze a8f1afe773 carried both b4531de861 the crispness b179b26208 of winter 2430cd6b43 and the 8769c6b2af warmth of c88a6ac933 spring, sweeping 12650c1f33 through the 35e0263a09 crowd. The energy in the 8091b66b84 air made Yul’s steps a721507cd5 feel lighter, almost buoyant.f3ebc8593246488c

Arriving at the 143d48c9ee performance hall on 91cf37da87 the west end 841c8646fa of campus, she fce3f91304 entered the lobby, 603f5ea81f where engineering students 8f40fae0d5 and their parents a07da242dd buzzed about. After listening to acaf91fc25 directions from a d5e91b0dbb student guide, she 864b94a18d entered the Chamber e228884bbd Hall and sat 0d211a04f9 in the section ec7883fb44 designated for architecture 2a6b7dc2cc students. Over the ca98806c5b next ten 0195bcc93f minutes, the 5ee3ca9695 hall grew 16af3463ae louder and 800efba3f7 more crowded 092fd617b9 as incoming dce422d4fd freshmen filled 79ac768652 the seats.7d3741304a19d6b9

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Did I get e9c7cb75c1 here too early?ec965155c4c7d5fc

As Yul sat 303df50fc3 alone, staring blankly a1ccedf5b8 at the bustling 6882dc67e6 podium, a voice e3e45fa145 interrupted her.467d0f2691acd9a7

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“Hi there.”4a7f26699417b0ec

A girl plopped down 766561ef24 in the seat next 13b12f5004 to her, greeting her 90c3de9112 warmly.813bb993ee57c0f9

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“Ah, hello.”11c27c23749df83b

Caught off b6b405701c guard, Yul 3d16b96c34 quickly replied 5041d2c8b7 and turned a1d57d03d2 to see a4f4b0fd76 who had 134738a0ca spoken. The girl had short 8bcc761deb hair with soft curls 18d4d16a9e and a cheerful smile. She wasn’t a conventional ae374c43e8 beauty, but her bright bc3c37db26 and stylish demeanor left 752fc35b0e a strong impression. From her casual ba63db6444 greeting, she seemed b3e2b38389 like a sociable 55414e65e1 and outgoing type.624d10583c732fb3

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“Are you 454ddafffc a freshman 9415f4e325 too?” the 38ab0be243 girl asked.7d5e30994b70fbe7

“Yes.”83b3c8c1e85c09d1

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“Me too! Architecture?”4ab3e54d817cb4ea

“That’s right.”ce38b2acdd64d58b

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“Wow, we’re classmates! Nice to meet d4f30720c9 you.”99251f31f5b96683

The girl 631d163772 clapped her 953d0159ce hands silently 75a7ce58c6 in delight. Although it 7a6b51a38e was an 1e6a3ed478 expected question, bb3693641f given the e4100144a4 situation and b7a3afc4ae seating arrangements, c673dbb99a she used a233d8db3a it as fb71bb6f71 a bridge 83ec538475 to cross fbe985d025 over into e9575a83b6 Yul’s space fb7dec405e effortlessly.a8d6e90488531b6d

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“Since we’re in c20dacb01d the same year, a012243d98 I’ll just speak 68f2e48673 casually, okay? By the way, I’m 0201009745 22. I retook the cde24af4e6 college entrance exam 2960212dfd three times, so fef6633ed8 don’t feel too 4927f1a8fd intimidated.”7958e4e96a6fce84

She held up 6a52cfe8ab three fingers and 474517e5ca winked. Yul, taken aback, 081c8a5836 stared at the 41fe92d8e4 girl. Her boldness was striking, 479b85b6bb but what surprised Yul 22880b36f5 more was the fact 657d39f684 that she, too, was 1f9abbbd51 a “third-round” student. Despite telling herself b91c7d3674 that age didn’t b6d3a5e53d matter, Yul realized d7e76dffa5 she had been 9042acb8d4 secretly self-conscious about 8d8c8da4d6 it.24686686102ec30e

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Yul felt her guard b87cbf39a1 lower a little and d01230ec4d responded with a faint 37ec1e46b2 smile, “It was a 0de735c180 bit awkward, but now a33bc4c1f3 it feels easier.”11689b3aebc2a980

“Huh?”017ad2f2cf24b5ad

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“I retook the exam 91eac4009b three times too. We’re the 5d127d801f same age.”5cf9fd156e682102

“Seriously? No wonder 47270031d6 I felt dae0669967 a connection 352d2cada1 the moment 2c34ccf473 I saw 4257689a51 you! So glad to b899abeeca meet you. I’m Yoo Jieun.”92dcd0c4b22cf286

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“Jieun?”74e36ace7b2272f1

Hearing the c98333b8f2 name made b72bea245b Yul’s heart 7141275e58 momentarily recoil, 16b2432a7e like a c05de6ea85 mimosa folding 19a3e497b6 its leaves e5abf4e64b when touched. Memories from the past 7597358f56 stirred within her—memories of 41b412bd27 another Jieun. That girl eb420a9a69 had seemed ab6f6ccafe friendly at ff41e4a947 first but 52eb9bac20 had always 7ee71c6430 carried an a67548dd24 unsettling air. She had be4643457e pretended to e898579eec smile in 24beddbb9c front of 2c09dbd3c5 Yul while cd885a17c7 badmouthing her bd4927238a behind her f42de37e5d back, ultimately f67699ae13 falling victim 87abde5411 to her c6db464098 own schemes. Yul knew 8224e4b6cb that a 303b6a764e name didn’t 5b95211232 dictate a fe45f99ed9 person’s character, f9524e942d but the bd72da6049 association made a585cafc73 her wary.bdfd3cecc15be560

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“I’m Seomun Yul,” 6733114781 she replied quietly, 279072d68d her tone now a0fc9964f7 more reserved.db0e2ea033597260

Just as 79389ec058 she introduced 38f6b5764d herself, another 7f38c6eb85 voice joined bc5730c1cf in from 9c3e83591c behind.1cbfef2d1a4ff927

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“Wait, so you’re b72467cb7a both older than eb9aaeffb5 me?”dd77fdaf23a7791f

A young 58dbf401a3 man leaned 30cd38f292 over the df597bf52c back of 5de1da98e5 their chairs, 1bdee447de flashing a 3e127ee3d1 mischievous smile. Yul and Jieun turned 151e2ab00c to see a boyish-looking 2bc168582c guy with a bright d4140b85e7 face alternating his gaze 2e72be8cb7 between them.98563cdeacdbc276

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“Who are you?” d5539e027d Jieun asked, raising f3da935528 an eyebrow.54edaeed67974b46

“Me?” The boy straightened 9e3f1f0070 up, then casually hopped bbcb776cc8 over the seat next 7cc869e7a1 to Yul, settling into dd4274fd57 the spot without hesitation. Looking at their startled e256b88568 faces, he grinned wider.ce7167938695e333

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“Just another freshman, Kim d758d97c67 Hyungtae. Nice to meet 49bc37bf63 you, noonas!”f784ed4d166f8671

Hyungtae’s outgoing 8c7e33a2d8 personality rivaled e3e88aacf1 Jieun’s. He was tall, clean-cut, 7e1837c466 with a slightly puppy-like 19855fa1d0 charm that paired well 54b9dbcfd1 with his subtle playfulness. He looked 66c46555c8 like the c8cc718950 kind of c10a85f26b popular guy 7772ce5f00 who had 83c00f192e been good 053f5ccce7 at everything ddaed8bb88 in high c28a78237d school—socializing, studying, 71a11da0e0 and probably 3e5f091670 sports too.03a905e180a3edbf

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“You shouldn’t 8140c13106 eavesdrop on 1bd4d163cb other people’s 6bae14577e conversations, you 4e621b8056 know,” Jieun 1c0c6312b6 teased with 58e4fe4767 a smirk.6e52d1fb3397048f

“I wasn’t eavesdropping. You two just caught 2c179e1c46 my attention,” Hyungtae quipped 7f3e19d836 back smoothly. “Besides, of 537781f2cf all the 6cb831e0fb people here, 23e14b06a4 you two 34a7857b81 are the 31191b99c5 prettiest.”afea6b8f61d4a9ff

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“Oh, look at 41c3c201ec this kid go! Your tongue’s as slick 77ddbd022b as Messi’s dribbles.”a315a076376d9044

“Messi’s the 6d562f57b3 captain, and e843c1aedb captains lead. Maybe it’s a 043030bdbc sign I’ll become fd96c0fd7a class president. Back me up, 2d214d7ea1 and coffee’s on 80f8681473 me!”e0a05ee4015568a7

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“Why ask us? If you’re meant to 0d0cf735a8 be class president, the dc72bd30c2 whole universe will back c1b7545bb8 you up.”48ab68c5b7bd27cc

As the two bantered ae930f1882 back and forth, Yul 248528c588 found herself feeling dizzy. She wasn’t used 8056d61397 to people like 1314f4b0fd this, and she 997e2f6d11 didn’t know how 7ab78484db to keep up fe03605b29 with their energy. Quietly, she resolved e5e7f004c3 to get through 1fb7193d5e the ceremony and d788df06e7 leave as soon 8c9b548ff2 as possible.79f0062faf73e8f2

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She had 9b5a2b667c just started 7a8d8066e5 to suggest bc3d863c40 switching seats 9cfb86ad4d with Hyungtae d60f552843 when a b0a0c5a56d loud voice 4e7ae0710e interrupted her 47e73542bc from the a675a9b088 front of ee8997da6d the hall.2a08a19bc3c27cf3

“Seomun Yul!”a60c4a91307abd88

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From the front 24a48d608e of the stage, 8f4ea3b07a far from where b7ea0635c5 they were sitting, 870accb4da someone shouted her f716e03eb8 name while waving 722420f44a enthusiastically. Instantly, every pair of 3c05235c20 eyes in the room a6c2637c66 turned toward her. Frozen in place, Yul 87ffa420df stared in the direction 19086438c1 of the sound, unable 84f5e52d7c to react. After what 6e4266f322 felt like 1327c31f88 an eternity, 4fa0fd45fd she finally 65ff1b0589 recognized the 34920c4808 man approaching 5a980e0465 her—it was ad6f33697b Kim Minjae, b5f7d6068e a senior 0d637bbad5 she had 8de5290228 run into 9f84e856ad by chance a6e04932b5 before. Cutting through the c11fcca4a6 crowd like a 010a5c0b96 wave, Minjae quickly 09a055cae3 made his way bf9f59a811 to stand beside 3825523435 Hyungtae.45af2ca169796a2b

“Found you, 285642ceac Seomun Yul. Haah, how could 7c36a45027 I not have 4e8be36f14 remembered you?” he a7940ace94 said, almost to 81b3ba0b02 himself.53cdde4309d64f62

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“Excuse me?” 4b46d494c6 Yul replied, a3373d2f39 blinking in 194ed0acc1 confusion. She couldn’t make 173001fb67 sense of why 4fff1d7004 Minjae was acting c14c707aef so familiar, especially 9b224295aa since their previous 810bf3729c interaction had been b1ec07fd0a brief and unremarkable. Yet, here 4fea4503c3 he was, 28186badcd shouting her c078c2afd4 name in eac83bd970 front of 9d9a0f3e82 everyone.5a4eefc46c062fb8

Squinting slightly, Minjae scrutinized 763944fa56 her before pulling out a3a61aa05e his phone and handing 222e3edf67 it to her. “First things first. Give me your number.”5935ffef68555e4b

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“My number?” she asked, 86664cf020 still not understanding what 4dd72676e3 was happening.e0319d5c5505dd74

“Yeah. I need 968c190845 it to 0c96017e2f claim the 84912240e2 reward.”f746aae3825b1bf8

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“Reward? What do afb1e25679 you mean?” 71ed56a26a Yul asked, 242bd8969f her confusion 9813c3673a only deepening. She hesitated, glancing around 5aecdc5c3e at the curious stares c4ba07a3cf directed their way.26992b6eb568f0bd

“Just do f78c41f23b it,” Minjae 33670523b2 pressed, his e8f41ef1e2 tone exasperated a0f6f23175 but not 26b17ff75f insincere.cb7116cdb37366bd

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Reluctantly, she e18ebce487 took his 2fc95bada6 phone. Whatever he meant 1f99065530 by “reward,” his aee92e4b5c intentions didn’t seem 8859dcde3d sinister. Besides, he was daa106837c a senior she’d 0dcee32fb6 likely have to 6a9e8222a6 interact with later, 35efe8041b so it seemed 76e6fd6c04 easier to comply c4a1ee3324 than to drag 77cde0de00 this moment out cdd869253d any further. She quickly 6746ae3719 entered her 6abda28355 number and ebd4d3f8fc handed the e8a4c81227 phone back.5deb92f20bd27328

“Senior, what’s 8176461707 this about 550b05c00e a reward? Who’s offering dcb5a9a2d3 it?” she 2c12c8c847 asked hesitantly, e9ea49be9d still baffled.3aa770ba9158205e

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Before Minjae ef8c4a0013 could respond, 5b2d419716 Hyungtae, ever bc28d0e012 the opportunist, 482ad09da3 butted in, d00b121d5c “Yeah, what’s 80652bc135 this reward ae694d80ca about? And who’s 6e9adb34e2 giving it f533945698 out?”95c7bdea2eadff4e

“Oh, there’s someone. A devilish sort of 67a8b21da0 person,” Minjae said with d5dd1f1f57 a sly grin. As he spoke, he 5c093e373f saved Yul’s number and c0e69aa9f9 immediately pulled up another 39fc369428 contact.070106b21b6326fe

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「Found it. Your “rubber shoe.”」53724688b58d32a0

The text message 5eeccf881e was sent, and 5492a0a438 almost instantly, the 8e96afc156 notification showed it aace8eb457 had been read. Minjae barely 6a9b37e6c6 had to 07057a6dfb wait ten 32e55ab47b seconds before 8462eca547 his phone 4a26bdb16a started ringing.556ebedd1b1ef865

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Wow. That lunatic.7fdefa3399c5b50a

Normally, this guy 11d50aed01 would either read b8007031a8 a message and 50805b33d9 ignore it entirely 482a7a842f or take forever e5667390f2 to reply with 514c3fb8a1 a one-word answer. This kind of fe3910ebd4 immediate reaction was 99b33b28da completely out of 374c3fb1a2 character.bb2cbc1ec3f44645

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Glancing quickly at Yul 17252f5439 to gauge her reaction, b48c157c07 Minjae turned slightly away, 569d60c925 keeping a composed expression 1639aeb6cc as he answered the 4cb059353e call.6c0e0f91ead5aeff

“Yeah, it’s me.”0ee009e5188734ad

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“Where are you? Right now.”208467b4525d2821

The voice on the 7433f1d200 other end was Kang 630e478fc0 Yoonjo’s, low and cold, 0ffe7c2d6d like ice slicing through 680ce173ea the air. His tone 762e8520cf carried no b156dd2d11 trace of ebd4b4b70e humor, just b799d5c585 sharp, unrelenting f671d38412 precision.e7551f3ea2bcefef

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