Chapter 90 – What a great day

Shin Jonghak had been having a great day.

Classes were out because of the investigations at Cube. Nobody was bothering him for once since he'd told his usual lackeys to go be productive and do their own things.

And then Jonghak managed to get a date with Senior Seo Youngji.

It had been happenstance.

Since Jonghak didn't have anything better to do, and since Suho had gone home to visit his parents, Jonghak had just been wandering around the campus to kill time.

Then he bumped into her since she was part of the investigation team.

At first, she had been interested to hear more from Jonghak because of his grandfather. But after they talked a bit more, they were surprisingly compatible.

Jonghak didn't need to prove anything to Youngji since she already respected him for his family, as well as what he had showed off during exams. And she apparently appreciated that he understood when to back off after Suho tried to take it to a reckless level.

But more importantly than that...

Youngji liked to listen. And she didn't judge.

For the first time, Jonghak had met someone who just looked at him for him.

And for Youngji, she met someone who wasn't trying to use the 'promising rising Hero' for their advantage.

In short, it was a surprising synergy and affinity.

But just as Jonghak was feeling high on life and heading back to his dorm room with Youngji's personal number and her entire calender so that they could fit in another date...

He got a text on his phone.

From Yeonha.

Ordinarily, that would be fine.

Since he, Yeonha, and Nayun were childhood friends, they usually texted each other.

Of course, they hadn't recently because of various reasons.

But that wasn't too surprising.

At least, it wouldn't be if it was just her.

But then he got a text from Yeonha's father. And Yeonha's mother.

Then Nayun's father.

Then Nayun herself.

And before long, Jonghak's phone was buzzing nonstop.

"What the hell is going on?"

Since it wouldn't stop, he quickly turned off his phone while he hopped into the elevator back up to his dorm room.

But then his smartwatch started vibrating instead.

Jonghak frowned and decided set it to silent mode. Then he looked at what Yeonha sent him.

===

[Yoo Yeonha]

Jonghak.

You fiend.

Monster.

Lecher of a man.

I thought we were friends.

I admired you.

But this entire time you were pining for Senior Youngji and just kept Nayun and I as options?

Unforgivaable.

Unforgivabale.

Absolutely unforgivable.

===

Jonghak froze.

"That's..."

It wasn't intentional.

It absolutely wasn't intentional.

Jonghak was interested in Nayun and cared for her and might have had a crush on her, but it wasn't like he wanted to keep her as an option.

And Yeonha... Jonghak never saw her in that way.

But apparently Yeonha saw HIM in that way. At least from her reaction.

As for Senior Youngji... Jonghak had been interested in her. Admired her. Might have also had a crush on her since the Agent Military Academy.

But it wasn't like he was targeting her and just leaving Nayun and Yeonha as just consolation prizes.

Yet.

With the way everything lined up.

And with how Suho must have absolutely texted something to everyone to make them misunderstand...

And especially with how Jonghak had been acting since the start of Cube with how he had tried going against Lee too...

"Oh, fuck me." Jonghak murmured. "I can't talk my way out of this, can I?"

Explanations wouldn't work.

Senior Youngji would understand, of course. She understood Jonghak in a way that he didn't really understand himself... probably because she was a bit more mature and was patient.

But Nayun? And Yeonha?

DEFINITIONS of misunderstanding and impatient.

Speaking of Nayun...

Jonghak stared at the notification that he had a text from Nayun.

He couldn't lie to himself about it.

He was definitely scared about what might be on the other side of that message.

But since he was fucked either way at this point...

===

[Nayun]

💀💀💀

You thought you could put me on a roster?

Bruh.

XDDDDDDDDDD

I would literally date Hajin before you.

Like.

Unironically.

Happy for you if you really like Senior Youngji, but...

💀💀💀

Yeonha seems pissed though.

RIP.

Try not to die.

Her parents are already highstrung because she eloped with Hajin and got pregnant, so...

💀💀💀

===

Jonghak stared at the messages.

He scrolled up through the thread.

He read each message again.

Then he realized that, no, he wasn't reading that wrong.

That, yes, Yeonha had gone full drama and eloped with the bottom barrel nobody who was practically a random extra with an average face.

That, also yes, Yeonha was now potentially pregnant.

And that her parents needed to vent, and he was a sudden and very convenient target.

Jonghak let out a long and suffering sigh. "...Dammit, Grandpa. Is this karma for something? What the hell did you do? You're supposed to the hero who saved us all, so why the hell is your precious grandson getting so much flak, huh?"

Nobody was around in his room except Jonghak.

But for some reason, he felt like someone was laughing at him...

===

Back at the Chae family estate.

Nayun had just returned from Australia with her dad and was unwinding in her bathtub when all the groupchats about Jonghak it her phone at the same time.

And she had just finished giving Jonghak that last text before she tossed her phone to the side and leaned back in her bathtub to relax. Letting out a content sigh, she murmured, "This is nice."

The stress that she'd had since her father mentioned pulling her Oppa, Jinyoon, off life support had faded a bit.

Since they had managed to find her grandfather and update him on everything... specifically how the mysterious ailment that Oppa had was because he was harboring a Devil Seed and that it could be fixed by finding King Solomon's artifacts...

And since her grandfather had immediately headed towards Israel to go Dungeon hunting...

Nayun felt relieved.

Idly scooping up a bowl of water to pour over her head, Nayun murmured, "Things are really going well for once. That's good..."

There was hope- No.

Certainty.

One way or another, Oppa would be healed.

Lee had said that he was working on alternative solutions in case the artifacts ended up not going through.

But because Nayun had explained everything to her grandfather, he had changed his mind about pulling her Oppa off life support too.

Since there was a clear causation now, Nayun's grandfather, Chae Joochul, was reallocating resources to properly heal her Oppa.

The reason was a bit misogynistic... After all, Nayun's grandfather cared about the family name and prestige. He had been willing to compromise since Nayun had been doing well at Cube, but he would still prioritize a proper male heir.

Nayun didn't care though.

"...I'm not someone who can carry the Chae family anyway." Nayun murmured as she grabbed a loofa and idly started washing her body.

She wasn't like Rachel or Yeonha.

From the start, they were expecting to carry the weight of their family, so they were properly prepared.

Nayun hadn't been.

If she was honest with herself...

Nayun was more of a spoiled brat than people expected.

Although she was more of a tomboy these days... a fact that she acknowledged herself.

That was a byproduct of circumstances.

Because she lost her mother and her older brother, and since her father was so busy, she HAD to become self-reliant. And since she didn't have too much proper training at the start...

Well, she DID have sword training for a while as well as a proper master.

But her nature had been more to relax and have fun than to try and be the best.

So...

"Days like these are definitely what I love more." Nayun murmured as she sank into the warm water to relax.

Lazing about. Leisurely spending time in comfort...

Nayun chuckled and said, "Maybe I should just retire early and be Eva's babysitter?"

If Nayun was being honest, she didn't really like being a Hero anyway.

Spending time with her friends and being able to fight alongside them was nice.

But active duty Hero work and everything...

When compared to just leisurely training while enjoying high class things like being Evandel's full-time babysitter or auntie...

"Mm. I should bring it up with them later."

Lee and Rachel both clearly loved Evandel, but they also... well, weren't normal people.

Which was ironic considering that Nayun was a chaebol heiress.

But either way, they lacked common sense and also definitely spoiled Evandel too much.

"They're lucky that Eva's such a good and well-behaved daughter. If she was anything like me or Yeonha when we were kids..."

A mess. An absolute and utter mess.

But Evandel wasn't like that, so it would be fine.

Still, it was something for the future.

They were still only in the mid-terms for Cube. There was plenty of time left to decide on what to do in the future.

Not only that, but there were plenty of things that could happen too... and WOULD happen.

Like Yeonha giving birth next year.

Nayun smirked at the thought of it. And the inevitable panic Yeonha would be having once all the symptoms settled in...

A faint knock echoed on the door. Then, a female voice echoed. One of the many maids working in the estate.

"Lady Nayun. The evaluations have arrived. Would you like to read the physical copies?"

"Mm... It's fine." Nayun grabbed her smartwatch nearby and slipped it on. "I'll read it online. Thanks."

"Understood... Ah. Your friend, Mister Shin, also sent a few gifts. Would you them brought to your room?"

Nayun paused. "Gifts?"

"Yes. They appear to be some antiques of sort?"

"Hm... You can set them in my room. I'll look at them later."

"Understood. Enjoy your rest, Lady Nayun."

After that, footsteps echoed, walking away from the bathroom door.

Nayun was curious on what Lee had sent her, but for now, she started reading through her evaluation.

And the very first one was from Kim Hajin.

"Hoh?" Nayun tapped it open, curious on what that guy had to say. Since his Gift apparently helped him with all osrts of long-ranged weaponry, maybe he would have some insights...

===

[Evaluating Cadet - Kim Hajin]

There is nothing to add. Chae Nayun has reached a new frontier of archery by establishing it as a complete form of combat. It's an unprecedented style that will undoubtedly create absolute dominance in both single encounters and against groups of monsters in the future once she learns to apply her vast magic power.

The only words I have to say are that she should trust in her own path going forward.

===

"...Huh."

Nayun stared at the short evaluation and blinked. "...That's unexpected."

It was surprisingly serious.

And because of that, Nayun was sure that Hajin had seen something in her that shocked even him.

Realizing that made Nayun feel both smug and proud.

Smug because bow superiority won out.

And proud because it meant that the archery she was working on was something that even a bullshit Gift like the one Kim Hajin had couldn't piece together.

Nayun chuckled at that thought and said, "All the more reasons to work on the fundamentals then."

People seemed to forget, but Gifts were crystallizations of talent. If you got one, you got the 'talent' for something, but that didn't mean you became the master of it.

...Well, Hajin's Gift seemed to be bullshit, so maybe there were exceptions.

Seriously, being able to pick up ANY ranged weapon and be able to use it at a proficient level was absolutely ridiculous.

But for most people, Gifts were just like normal talents. It could put you ahead, but you still needed to put in the work to master it. And even if the talent was only meant for one area, you could broaden it with understanding.

Like how Lee had turned his Lightning Thrust, a basic Gift that simply gave a lightning fast spear thrust, into whatever crazy thing he had now that let him speedblitz people.

In short...

"Make it as natural as breathing and then add more. That's probably it, right?"

...Just like how she had been experimenting with her magic power to develop [Mana Radar] as a sixth sense and attuning with the ambient mana. Like how she was experimenting with condensing her bow movements and body movements even more by substituting some steps with ki reinforcement to supply the power...

Nayun let out a soft smile, envisioning the peaceful life in the future of becoming a retired Hero training students in an entirely new way of fighting.

'Rachel wanted to open up an Academy in Britain, right?'

Nayun vaguely recalled her saying that at some point. If that was the case...

'Britain is also known for archery. Maybe I should try to convince her to be the first staff member...'

While indulging in some daydreaming about the future and unwinding, time slowly passed.

But after Nayun was satisfied, she dried up, changed, and went to take a look at what Lee had sent her.

And when she opened the nondescript spatial bag that the maids had dropped off...

"Huh?"

Nayun pulled out a plain looking bow with faded tribal patterns. Attached to it was a small note.

===

[From your bestie, Lee]

Since your Grandfather is the literal boogeyman, you should be fine to have this.

This is the traditional Apache bow that belonged to the infamous Native American, Geronimo.

It needs some reinforcement to be used without breaking, but after injecting it with some mana, it woke up with some ridiculous effects.

I had a friend appraise it, and the following should be the details:

<Geronimo's Bow - Pinnacle-Grade | Grudge-Attribute | Historic Artifact>

1. When wielded against those you consider mortal enemies, all stats doubled.

2. When used in close-quarters, every arrow fired shoots twelve spectral arrows that deal damage based on resentment you feel towards the target.

3. When fired from stealth, chance to instantly kill the target.

===

Nayun slowly blinked as she finished reading the note. Then she said, "...Lee really has a habit of giving the women in his life things that make them absolutely lethal to people who piss them off, doesn't he...?"