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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: Designated Bully (2)
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The bishojo game, "Velvet School Life!"
This notoriously broken, unprecedentedly terrible game features a system called 'chemistry' between characters.
Some characters, when grouped into a single party, form a mutually beneficial relationship. That is, they create an overwhelming synergy where '1+1' becomes '3' or '4'.
While others are so incompatible that grouping them into a party can lead to disastrous results where '1+1' turns into '1' or even '0'.
It's not simply a matter of picking and grouping the strongest characters.
Therefore, players must summon as many diverse characters as possible to create suitable combinations.
This was a clear example of the developers' tenacious commercialism, aiming to sell even more characters.
Among these, the chemistry between 'Shin Se-hee' and 'Lee Yu-ri' was particularly intriguing.
On the surface, their differences are stark.
One is a young lady from a wealthy Hunter family, with an exceptionally brilliant record, a cunning personality, and a high 4-star rarity.
The other is a 'dirt spoon' with nothing but debt at home, possessing an innocent nature, and a 3-star character whose angry expressions are delightful.
Based solely on this superficial information, it would seem Shin Se-hee would overwhelmingly dominate Gukbap-i, but...
'But that's not how it works out, is it?'
I curved the corners of my lips at the scene before me.
"Cheonhwa-ssi? I apologize for suddenly intruding on your meal."
"...It's fine."
Shin Se-hee nodded, her face frozen stiff.
Her voice was barely a whisper. Her mouth was rigid, as if she were experiencing extreme tension.
"But I didn't realize Cheonhwa-ssi would eat something like this?"
"...Jin Yu-ha-ssi said he liked this kind of food."
The place we headed to was a simple Korean set-menu restaurant.
It seemed Kang Do-hee had chosen a private room, as she was always disturbed during meals.
"I've heard a lot about Cheonhwa-ssi."
Munch, munch—
Lee Yu-ri said, picking up side dishes with her chopsticks.
"What... what did you hear?"
"Jin Yu-ha said he'd been very indebted to Cheonhwa-ssi until now."
"I see... I, I also received a good look at Lee Yu-ri-ssi's achievements. The Gate of Camella's Fores—"
Gasp!
Shin Se-hee covered her mouth, her face crestfallen.
One of Lee Yu-ri's eyebrows arched upwards.
"Received a look? You're speaking very strangely. How did you know I cleared the Gate of Camella's Forest? Jin Yu-ha, did you tell her?"
Lee Yu-ri turned her head towards me.
"No? I never said anything."
"Then that's really strange, isn't it?"
"Th-that! It became quite a hot topic, didn't it?! It was a widely discussed incident, exploring the unknown and preventing a Gate explosion—"
Shin Se-hee, unable to hide her panic, stammered out the addition.
"Hmm, even so, that happened less than two weeks ago. The report would have just been submitted... I haven't even received the remaining settlement payment yet."
"Th-that..."
"By any chance, did you... investigate me?"
Lee Yu-ri glared at her with eyes full of suspicion.
Shin Se-hee now completely bowed her head, avoiding her gaze.
Suddenly, Lee Yu-ri smiled with her eyes, a bright, innocent look.
"Oh, come on, no way. Cheonhwa wouldn't do that. She's the idol of all Hunters. She wouldn't openly do something so shady."
Lee Yu-ri 'cooked' Cheonhwa, lifting her up and putting her down like a seasoned chef.
Shin Se-hee's composure and smile crumbled in real-time.
Today, Shin Se-hee was flustered, unable to even provoke Kang Do-hee.
'No need for extra side dishes with this entertainment.'
Nom, nom.
I continued my meal, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.
It was an official setting of Velvet School Life that Lee Yu-ri was Shin Se-hee's designated bully.
Even in the game, Shin Se-hee would evade Lee Yu-ri the moment she appeared in the distance.
In PVP, if they faced each other as enemies, her magic failure rate would skyrocket.
So I brought her along, wondering if it would be the same now that it was reality.
It was even more extreme than in the game.
From the moment she saw Lee Yu-ri, Shin Se-hee was completely at her mercy, like a frog before a snake.
'But why is this happening?'
Honestly, I had no idea.
It was just... how the setting was.
* * *
Shin Se-hee was flustered.
'What is this person? She keeps drawing my gaze...'
Even though she had things she needed to do right now, her attention and gaze kept drifting towards this one woman.
It didn't seem like she was using any special ability, yet Shin Se-hee's eyes relentlessly followed her.
A perfectly ordinary woman Jin Yu-ha had brought to the meal.
A Tanker. Lee Yu-ri.
She was clearly nothing special.
When she investigated Jin Yu-ha, she had already confirmed her name.
The record of her forming a party with Jin Yu-ha and clearing the E-rank Gate, Camella's Forest, just before coming to the academy.
Of course, she had achieved a decent feat, exploring the unknown and dealing with the boss monster to prevent a Gate explosion, but...
Since Jin Yu-ha was in that party, it couldn't have been particularly difficult.
In other words, she was a reasonably solid individual, but utterly insufficient to meet her standards.
That was Shin Se-hee's objective assessment of Lee Yu-ri.
And yet.
'...This is uncomfortable.'
She seized her gaze as if forcing her actions.
Having lived her entire life without being swayed by anyone, this situation was incredibly unfamiliar to her.
Her mind was a mess.
Her composure vanished.
Her smile shattered.
Mistakes she would never normally make kept tumbling out.
She found herself foolishly answering every question straightforwardly.
"I see... I, I also received a good look at Lee Yu-ri-ssi's achievements. The Gate of Camella's Fores—"
Oh, no, another mistake.
She had let slip that she'd done background research.
Normally, she would never make such an absurd error.
The more she tried to fix it, the more tangled it became.
It felt as if she were under some kind of spell.
'What on earth... why am I like this?'
Shin Se-hee furtively glanced at Jin Yu-ha. Though her gaze immediately darted back to Lee Yu-ri right after.
He was just shoveling plain rice into his mouth, as if her predicament was quite amusing.
'...What is this? Is he treating me like a side dish right now!?'
As if he had anticipated this outcome.
That audacious face.
Indignation welled up inside her, and her tightly clenched fists trembled.
'Right, so from today, I'll seriously start on Kang Do-hee...'
Just as she tried to think of Kang Do-hee to distract herself.
"Cheonhwa-ssi. I have a question. I heard you made a deal with Jin Yu-ha, what was that deal?"
"...A necklace."
Gasp!
'Oh, seriously! What is this!!!!'
Shin Se-hee immediately shook her head frantically at Jin Yu-ha.
'You can't tell her that!!!'
At that, Jin Yu-ha flashed an ominous grin.
He opened his mouth towards Lee Yu-ri.
"Well, you see..."
"Yes?"
"Hmm—"
He gave her a sidelong glance, an arrogant expression on his face, as if testing her patience.
The initiative that should have been hers was completely snatched away.
Thump-thump—
Thump-thump—
Her heart pounded rapidly as she stared at his lips.
He let out a small, derisive laugh.
"It seems that's Shin Se-hee-ssi's personal information, so it would be a bit difficult to just tell you."
Haa—
A sigh of relief escaped her.
"Oh? Well, can't be helped then."
Lee Yu-ri also brushed it off lightly, as if it wasn't a particularly important question.
"Try some of this too. It's delicious."
"Okay!"
Between the two who had started to playfully interact, Shin Se-hee felt a miserable sensation, as if she had become a mere bystander.
Though she had only met her today, she knew.
Lee Yu-ri.
This woman was incredibly uncomfortable.
What's more, she was the only one who felt uncomfortable.
In other words, she was her natural enemy.
She could do nothing but lower her head in shame, as if she were naked, and continue her meal.
* * *
Wow, bringing Gukbap-i along really was the answer. I should have brought her sooner.
After lunch, Lee Yu-ri left first, as the training ground was a bit further away.
"Bye, Gukbap-i."
"Okay. I'll come here tomorrow too!"
I waved my hand, seeing Lee Yu-ri off.
Immediately after her figure completely disappeared into the distance.
Shin Se-hee, who had been standing stiffly beside me, spoke in a low voice.
"That woman... what exactly is she?"
"Gukbap-i."
"...Gukbap-i?"
"Yeah, my reliable tank."
"She's suspicious, Jin Yu-ha-ssi. You shouldn't get close to that woman."
Shin Se-hee said to me, her face hardening.
Who was she to call someone else suspicious? It was absurd.
"Sorry, but from my perspective, you're the suspicious one."
"So, you're saying you'll bring that woman here to eat every day...?"
"Yeah. I'm planning on it."
"..."
Shin Se-hee bit her lip tightly.
She glared at me for a long time before parting her lips.
"I won't eat with her..."
"But I'm planning to bring her."
"Forget it...! You two can just enjoy your sweet little meals without me!!!"
She yelled at me, her face bright red.
Ah.
She's completely backing out here.
That's a bit of a shame, actually.
No, is Gukbap-i really that scary?
It was only the first day, and it seemed like she was being quite polite and hadn't said anything particularly harsh.
Shin Se-hee, on the other hand, had blabbed everything herself. She'd self-destructed all on her own.
Honestly, it was baffling why she was so terrified of someone who was just cute and reliable.
'Gukbap-i wasn't Shin Se-hee's leash... she was an awesome disciplinary stick, perhaps?'
I could only tilt my head in confusion.
* * *
The next morning, at dawn.
Ding-dong—♪
Kang Do-hee frowned at the sound of her phone, heard through her sleep.
"...Mmm."
Kang Do-hee fumbled with her hand by her bedside, then grabbed her phone and brought it before her eyes.
━━━━━━━━━━
[Designated Request.] — A-rank Hunter Kang Do-hee
Request Type — Investigation Request.
Subject of Investigation — Jin Yu-ha, male quota preliminary student at Velvet Hunter Academy.
Request Purpose — Confirmation of the subject's potential as a Demon (魔人).
Reward upon Completion — 50 million won.
Request Period — Until the end of basic training.
Related materials will be delivered sequentially, with timing adjusted.
※ Direct contact with the subject of investigation is strictly prohibited, as this requires top-secret confidentiality.
━━━━━━━━━━
Kang Do-hee skimmed through the attached documents, her brows furrowed.
"What fresh nonsense is this? That quota guy... a Demon...?"