F-Rank Secretly Becomes Stronger - Chapter 65
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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65
There wasn’t any.
After that, there were surprisingly no incidents whatsoever.
In the morning, she would wake up carried on his shoulder to meet his friends.
As always, she would watch Jung Juhyeok’s back as he protected her, and that would be the end of it.
One day, she had even clung to his back.
She thought it would create some romantic scene, but when she actually tried it, it felt no different from a cicada stuck to a tree.
[Are you two dating by any chance?]
[No.]
[Even though you two stick together like that?]
[There’s a story behind it.]
Jung Juhyeok firmly dismissed all kinds of questions.
Of course, they absolutely weren’t in that kind of relationship, but to refute it so decisively without leaving any room for doubt.
Honestly, her pride was a little hurt.
So she felt like trying some subtle skinship in front of others just for the sake of it.
[There’s dust on your shoulder.]
Her hand gently brushing off his clean shoulder.
She had heard he’d never dated a woman before, so she thought his heart might flutter a little at such a warm gesture.
[Thanks.]
As expected, Jung Juhyeok was Jung Juhyeok.
Even when she touched his shoulder, his face remained indifferent.
Actually, this was the same guy who slept in the same bed without any concern, so there was no way he’d blush over a little shoulder touch.
‘How annoying.’
In short, he was like a stone.
Even during training, there’s no big change in his expression.
A mischievous person who only shows a slight smile when occasionally teasing her.
Yet his actions subtly contain consideration.
Like pouring water first during meals and then finishing the setup.
He always carries wet wipes and immediately hands them over when something gets dirty.
When he thinks her blood sugar is dropping from walking around outside too much, he pulls out a piece of candy from his pocket.
Each and every one of those gestures is annoying.
While staying together, he never lays a hand on her while simultaneously showing considerate behavior – why is this so unpleasant?
She didn’t understand the meaning and didn’t bother asking anyone about it.
“Today’s the last day of this nonsense.”
“Yeah, according to the contract it’s until 7 AM tomorrow, so once we sleep and wake up, it’ll be over.”
And so the final day had arrived.
As always, after finishing their showers, the two were lying on the bed.
She still positioned herself on the edge side.
Jung Juhyeok, as always, relaxed his body tired from training in the center.
“So you still have no intention of telling me why exactly you’re doing this nonsense?”
“I told you, I have no intention of telling you.”
“Would it kill you to tell me?”
How petty.
She’s helping him this much, yet he has no intention of even telling her why he made such a contract in the first place.
He was so infuriating that she wanted to run away 10 meters immediately.
‘If only Mephisto hadn’t shoved that contract with me in my face, I would have just run away.’
If that happened, that guy would probably be in the weaker position right away.
If he had become the one in power, wouldn’t the other side have shown a flustered and panicked appearance?
As he was momentarily lost in delusion and enjoying himself, Jung Juhyeok spoke.
“I have someone I’m more grateful to than you.”
“Someone you’re grateful to?”
“Yeah, the person who helped me the most during my Hunter life.”
He turned his shoulders and continued speaking.
“I hid everything from that person too, saying it was a story I could never tell anyone.”
Yena.
She was the first person he met when he started his Hunter life.
Their first meeting wasn’t a good impression, but they grew closer as they went through many things together.
Whenever there was trouble related to Hunter work, Yena would always step forward to help, and thanks to her, he had no difficulty finding Gates.
Even though he said he wouldn’t join Mir Guild, she said it didn’t matter and helped him anyway.
It was a secret he couldn’t confide in even such a person.
[You don’t have to join the Guild, just keep your promise not to get hurt.]
“If I tell you after all that, I’d feel sorry toward that person.”
How could he confide that to someone else?
Jung Juhyeok thought of Yena and slightly raised the corners of his mouth.
“….”
Jia caught that faint smile without missing it.
At the expression he hadn’t shown when he was with her, something like disgust welled up from deep within her heart.
Without realizing it, her mouth moved first and she asked.
“A woman?”
“A woman.”
“Do you like her?”
“That’s not it though.”
It doesn’t look like a lie.
Does he really have no feelings, or does he just not know his own heart yet?
Whatever else, his quick answer somehow helped heal her hurt feelings a little.
“I see.”
She lets out a meaningless yawn.
Her feet wiggle restlessly while resting her chin on the pillow.
She turned on her cell phone and tried to distract herself for a moment, but her head was full of other thoughts.
Jia played a video without really watching it, then switched to another video, repeating this several times before speaking again.
“Isn’t it unfair?”
“What is?”
“You get something through me, but I don’t even know what it is and I don’t get anything.”
She can slack off thanks to Jung Juhyeok, but that’s one thing and this is another.
Jung Juhyeok can get what he wants thanks to her smooth cooperation.
On the other hand, even if Jia fulfills the contract conditions by tomorrow, she gets nothing.
“You also can’t stay away because of your contract with Mephisto.”
“I can’t stay away. If I do, I’ll just get a severe headache as a penalty and that’s it.”
The condition Mephisto set was just to cooperate with this contract as much as possible, it didn’t have any stronger compulsion beyond that.
If she pretended to accidentally stay away, she’d probably just get excruciating pain as a penalty and it would end there.
If she put her mind to it, she could prevent him from getting what he wanted.
“But suddenly I don’t care about any of it anymore.”
Right now, for some reason, she’s starting to have lots of bad thoughts about doing just that.
“It’s been too easy so far. Spending all day stuck together with a pretty woman.”
“…You’ve gotten more jokes in the past few days.”
“It’s not a joke though.”
The atmosphere shifts.
What had always been peaceful between the two begins to creak due to unilateral actions.
The reason doesn’t matter.
She simply felt that way.
Jung Juhyeok didn’t panic and paused his stretching for a moment to face Jia.
“What’s bothering you.”
“I told you earlier.”
She spoke with an expression full of dark circles and somehow spiteful.
“You get something out of it, but I don’t.”
Looking at that expression, it didn’t seem like a particularly serious problem.
It was like a young child throwing a tantrum when things don’t go their way.
Jung Juhyeok barely held back a sigh that was about to escape and spoke to her soothingly.
“I’ll buy you bread again next time.”
“Do you think bread solves everything?”
“Then what do you want.”
What on earth could she want to be throwing such a fit.
Having no clue, he asked kindly, and she answered immediately.
“I don’t know.”
“….”
She boldly announced the absence of an answer.
For a moment his brow furrowed at what this was supposed to be about, then he suddenly grasped the questioner’s intent.
“You’re not trying to suggest I join Hyeonho Candy, are you?”
“It’s not like you’d join even if I suggested it.”
“Of course not.”
“Would I be doing this knowing that?”
Could it be that wasn’t it.
Then what could she want.
After thinking for a moment, Jung Juhyeok soon found a definite answer.
“Wait, just stay lying there for a moment.”
“Huh?”
Jung Juhyeok getting up from his spot.
Then he strode purposefully toward Jia and…
“What are you doing?”
“Catching you.”
“Huh?”
He pounced on Jia from above.
“Kyaah! Wh-what are you doing!”
“What do you mean what – I’m stopping you from running away.”
If she wouldn’t give him the answer, he had no choice but to prevent her from escaping until she did.
Having found a very wise solution, Jung Juhyeok held her squirming form tightly to make sure she couldn’t move.
“L-let go! I’ll scream!”
“Go ahead if you want your mouth covered too.”
“Th-this is…”
Her face turned red.
Her ears, which already turned red at the slightest contact, were now blazing crimson as if they might burst, being held so tightly against his whole body.
“Either tell me what you want, or decide if you want to stay hugged like this until 7 AM.”
“F-first let me go!”
“What if you run away after I do?”
“I won’t run away, so just let me go!”
“Hurry up and tell me what you want.”
“Damn it…!”
A perfect checkmate.
He thought that before long, she would obediently confess what she wanted.
But for some reason, she only blushed and didn’t say what she wanted.
Instead, she forced a smile on her reddened face and spoke with a higher pitch than usual.
“Did you think I’d talk just because you’re holding me like this? As soon as you fall asleep, I’ll slip right out and leave the room!”
Every day of repeatedly losing to Jung Juhyeok.
As someone with quite strong pride, she didn’t like the days of blushing alone and being flustered.
If it was going to be like that again this time, she’d rather endure until dawn while staying tightly embraced like this.
“You go to bed early every day, so you’re getting sleepy now, right? I’m someone who stays up all night as a daily routine, so I’m still perfectly fine. What are you going to do?”
These dark circles weren’t earned for free.
They were the product of effort gained after repeating for over 10 years the routine of staying up all night playing games and watching videos led by algorithms since leaving the facility.
A good child like Jung Juhyeok wouldn’t be able to beat her, a professional at staying up all night.
She showed him a mocking smile while confident of victory.
“Go ahead and try! Let’s see who wins and go all the way to the end.”
“…Alright, fine.”
A fight that started from petty stubbornness and led to protecting pointless pride.
The two were pressed close together at a distance where they could feel each other’s breath.
How many minutes had passed in that state?
It was gradually getting hot, sweat was forming on their bodies, and doubts began to arise about what they were even doing.
Still, they couldn’t stop.
Jung Juhyeok awkwardly continued to hold onto her body.
Jia quietly let out rough breaths without even thinking of escaping from him.
The moment when reason gradually returned and they properly realized how embarrassing this was.
Jia was the first to speak.
“Um—”
“Jia~ Since it’s the last day, we all came to hang out together!”
At that moment, the door burst open.
Several people, presumed to be Hyeonho Candy staff, came rushing in and entered the room.
There was no time to react.
They were just lying blankly on the bed when the door opened immediately, and within seconds people came right in, only to encounter the two embracing on the bed, even sweating.
“Ah.”
“Ah.”
Brief dying words.
That was all Jia could manage to say after being caught embracing a man in front of her friends.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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