SRSBO: Chapter 13

The movie was overall quite interesting.

The main character, Evan, was born with burn marks like scar on half of his face.

Because he was born with a different appearance from others, Evan suffered contempt, scorn, and abuse from his family and others since childhood, leading a difficult life from a young age.

But then one day, a turning point came to his miserable life, that had been rolling around in the mud.

On an unusually hot summer day, his brother pushed Evan off the railing on the second floor. Evan fell down, smashing his head against the floor.

However, miraculously, Evan did not die. When he opened his eyes again, he had returned to the day he was pushed down to his death.

Death gave him another way of life.

Once, twice, and countless times…….

Evan was murdered in various ways each time, and each time he returned to the day before.

At that point, he realized that he could not die.

Tired of the life that kept repeating itself, Evan soon began to feel boredom. He began to take revenge on people in the same way he had died.

That day was no different from usual. After committing a murder as he always did and returning home, Evan accidentally dropped something and discovered something strange behind the mirror.

Although he had no memory of writing them, a pile of notes written in his handwriting was discovered.

‘Keep going.’

‘Stop.’

‘Kill.’

‘Don’t kill.’

‘Kill.’

A series of contradictory words were written on the notes.

Evan, who found the notes, searched the room thoroughly in a frenzy.

As he searched the room, he eventually found a man with the same face as his own under the bed where he had been standing.

And as soon as Evan found the man, the man slit his throat with the dagger he was holding in his hand.

“Ooooh!!”

At that scene, I let out a loud noise of exclamation without realizing it.

It was chilling to see someone with the same face as mine suddenly emerging from under the bed.

After all, the more likely it was that something could happen in reality, the more frightening it was.

Joo Yunwoo heard my exclamation and comforted me.

“Don’t worry, Sister. It’s just a cinematic logic that would hardly happen in reality. You can’t slit someone’s throat in one go with a dagger like that. You have to consider the spine in place as well.”

“…… ?”

“If it were an axe or a sharp sword, you’d have to strike from above to slit properly. Attacking from that angle and below, it’s impossible to cut so cleanly. The muscles might be slit, but the bone would block it, so you’d need to strike two or three more times.”

It was a comforting method I had never heard before.

For a moment, I was taken aback by the unexpected reassurance, but soon curiosity began to rise within me.

“But can’t you slit the throat with a real dagger in one go?”

In the Hermann Empire, swordsmanship users were able to cut through bones even with such a small knife.

“An Esper with such abilities might be able to do it, but isn’t the main character a Non-Awakened one?”

“Ah.”

That’s right. There are Awakened ones now.

Back in high school, when there were no possessions or world-changing events, I used to watch fantasy or sci-fi movies and enjoy these kinds of scenes without a second thought.

Now, thinking that all of this might actually be possible in reality, I couldn’t help but feel strangely unsettled.

The movie was steadily moving toward its climax.

The man under the bed was Evan himself, the one who had died before. I realized this when I noticed the rope marks around his neck, which were the same as the cause of death from the previous time.

The countless Evens who had died. Those half-corpses, who couldn’t even fully possess their own identity, kept killing the version of themselves that constantly repeated their lives.

Killing and being killed, as if they were trying to become one someday…

The pleasure of killing someone. And the fear that he might be killed at any moment.

As things continued, Evan eventually went crazy.

On a dark night, lit only by the moonlight. Evan stood in front of the mirror, faced his reflection in the mirror, and pointed the gun at his own head.

And that’s how the movie ended.

“…… That’s the ending?”

Watching the protagonist, who suffered so much and was unable to complete his revenge, only to be punished instead, left me with an uncomfortable feeling.

As I sat on the sofa with a displeased expression, Joo Yunwoo handed me a small box from the side.

Inside the box was a chocolate that glistened with a beautiful, jewel-like sheen.

“Here.”

“Huh? Oh, uh, thank you.”

I bit down on the almond with a satisfying crunch.

The outside was coated in a layer of powdered sugar and a bittersweet dark chocolate, while inside, there was hazelnut chocolate and almonds. It was incredibly delicious.

Did he give it to me because I looked like I was upset? I chewed silently, touched by the unexpected kindness.

It felt wrong to just brush it off as simple gratitude. There might be a reason for returning favors, like lending a house, but there’s never been one about giving delicious chocolate.

I quietly held out my hand.

“Uh, would you like it right now…… ?”

“Would you like some more chocolate?”

“No, that’s not what I’m trying to say…….”

I’ve never been in a situation like this, so I was not sure how to say it.

So far, there had only been one person I had guided, and with Yang Hyunwoo, it was as simple as saying, ‘If you have time, could you help me with the experiment?’ and that was it.

“About the guiding. If you need it, I can do it for you.”

“…….”

“No, if you don’t need it, then forget that I said anything.”

I was about to pull my hand back in embarrassment when he suddenly grabbed it.

“Is it… okay if I hold your hand?”

As I was feeling both admiration and disbelief at his quick movements, he stared at me intently, his hand firmly holding mine.

The lights were dimmed to a minimum for watching the movie. His eyes, blending into the darkness, became deep.

As I pulled back, surprised by how close we had become, he leaned forward to close the distance.

Each time I pulled back, he came closer, and we repeated this several times. When I reached the armrest of the sofa, with nowhere else to go, I grabbed both of his hands tightly.

“Stop. Okay. Okay, back up now…….”

“Yes.”

Joo Yunwoo quietly pulled back.

‘……I was surprised for a moment.’

We maintained that distance, holding hands. It felt like a pose where a parent holds a child’s hands to scold them, making it incredibly awkward.

To reduce the awkwardness, I spoke up first.

“Ah, right. I should have asked this first, but I was so absent-minded that I completely forgot.”

“What is it?”

“Are you dating anyone right now?”

“…… What?”

“Please don’t misunderstand, I have no hidden intention. I’m a woman. Even if you want to repay a favor, I don’t think I should stay at your home if you’re dating someone. Have you broken up with the person you have been dating last time?”

Feeling the need to address it first, I asked, and Joo Yunwoo tilted his head.

“…… ? I’ve never dated anyone.”

“Ah, I see. So you’re saying you don’t have anyone you’re dating right now?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, and I don’t know who you’re mentioning either.”

“Okay. So are you sure you aren’t dating anyone? Then it’s fine.”

“I really never dated anyone.”

“I understand.”

“Really…….”

For some reason, Joo Yunwoo was fidgeting. I gently patted the back of his hand, letting him know that I understood.

It didn’t matter if he was dating someone. As long as he didn’t cheat while they were together, it would be fine.

Now that I think about it, I don’t know why everyone, including me, thought he was a womanizer.

He never met the same person again at the café; and each time, he met someone different.

[T/N: Err…. Dear Female Lead, isn’t it the exact definition of a womanizer?]

As long as someone doesn’t meet others while they’re in a relationship, isn’t it free to date someone else after they’ve broken up?

Through the hands we held, I slowly guided him, letting the feeling sink in.

As time passed, his face grew more relaxed, like a cat lounging in the warm sunlight.

‘What a pitiful guy.’

He not only was a low-ranking Esper, even his matching rate was low…….

I wonder if he’s one of those fate-driven matching believers? He shouldn’t worry about matching rates or anything, just hire a Guide who’s of a higher level than him.

According to Han Siyoung, assuming the Guide is of a higher level, if the grade difference between two Awakened individuals is significant, some level of guiding can be possible even if the matching rate isn’t high.

As I thought about helping him with the guiding while staying, partly to ease my mind and partly out of sympathy, the hand I was holding shook.

Nod, nod.

Joo Yunwoo’s head tilted slightly, as if he were sleepy.

‘Is this enough?’

Feeling that it was about time to sleep, I carefully withdrew my hand.

The moment I pulled my hand away, Joo Yunwoo’s eyes, which had been closed, snapped open.

“…… ?”

Joo Yunwoo blankly alternated between looking at his empty hand and my hand, which had moved away.

His expression made me feel as though I had done something terribly wrong, so I politely pointed to the clock.

“We should go to bed now. It’s already 1 a.m.”

“Oh…….”

He let out a small sigh of regret and slowly nodded.

* * *

Bang, bang.

Early in the morning, it wasn’t the sunlight streaming through the window that woke me up, but the noise.

Was the college student next door knocking on the door again, mistaking it was his house?

That guy was always getting drunk on some random day and knocking on other people’s doors. No wonder his grades were a disaster.

“Ugh…… That son of a bitch. I’m going to rip his insides out, stop knocking…….”

He was making such a fuss on my precious day off. I thought it would stop soon, so I covered my ears with my pillow and attempted to fall back asleep, but suddenly, the sound stopped.

Beep.

I heard the sound of the lock being unlocked and the door opening.

In an instant, my eyes snapped open. As I woke up, I remembered that I wasn’t in Kim Suhee’s apartment, but in Joo Yunwoo’s house.

“Who opened the door?”

I slipped out of the blanket, grabbed the metal lamp I had placed beside my bed the night before, and turned the locked doorknob.

I had kept it there for self-defense just in case, but I never expected I’d have a chance to use it so soon.

The landlord wouldn’t have made such a fuss, so it was obvious that it wasn’t Joo Yunwoo.

In the first place, I don’t understand why someone with keys to his own home would be knocking on the door so aggressively.

I cautiously made my way to the living room, my senses on high alert. Then I spotted someone with purple hair standing in front of the living room table.