‘Shit, shit, shit…!’
He’d been caught.
How? No, that didn’t matter now. The fact was, he’d been caught. Absolutely, utterly caught!
“I-I’ll leave!”
Without even thinking, Baek Saheon stammered in a trembling voice.
“Supervisor! You’re right—I’m not fit to be your roommate! I’ll leave immediately! I swear I won’te back!”
Kim Soleum frowned.
“Ugh, my head’s pounding. Don’t you know any etiquette? Why are you shouting in a shared building thiste at night?”
<i>Shit…!</i> Internally cursing up a storm, Baek Saheon begrudgingly shut his mouth, hating himself for doing so instinctively.
“Braun.”
In the meantime, Kim Soleum turned back to the rabbit doll and spoke.
“Hearing someone beg so loudly makes me think… maybe I should give him one chance, even if he’s not qualified to live here.”
What?!
“I don’t ne—”
“Don’t need it?”
Kim Soleum turned his head sharply.
“You’re saying you don’t need the chance to live here?”
“……”
Why did that sound like ‘You don’t need a chance to continue living in this ne of existence’…?
Baek Saheon swallowed hard and answered,
“I need it.”
“Really?”
“Yes…”
“Good. Then hand over the item.”
“……!”
“The fountain pen you were using. The one where you write something on a sticky note, and it bes a suggestion.”
“……”
“I don’t trust you not to pull another stunt, so I’ll keep it somewhere safe for now.”
How the hell does he know that?
Even as fear crept up his spine, Baek Saheon gritted his teeth.
“I… can’t.”
“……”
“T-Think about it, Supervisor, sir. Honestly, I haven’t caused you any harm with my actions, have I?”
He spoke desperately, his voice full of urgency.
“I <i>need</i> this item. I absolutely can’t give it to anyone. I swear I won’t use it on you again, so please…”
“Hmm.”
Kim Soleum responded tly.
“Why would I believe that?”
“……!”
“Take a good look at yourself.”
Kim Soleum pointed at him.
“I told you the confirmed entry method to get into Sekwang Technical High School. Even when you tried to kill me there, I didn’t get mad…”
It was a simple fact.
“And yet you repay me with hypnosis? I have no reason to trust you.”
“……”
<i>That… that was…</i>
He couldn’t argue with that.
Even if the supervisor in front of him was a lunatic, he was a skilled one. And perhaps Baek Saheon was the crazy one for picking a fight with him.
‘What’s happening? Was I wrong?’
Baek Saheon’s mind whirled, torn between faint guilt, self-loathing, and overwhelming fear, all tangled in a storm of rationalization.
And then—
“But since it’s still your item, hmm… Let me offer somepensation.”
Huh?
Kim Soleum reached for something he’d ced on the kitchen table.
It was transparently wrapped and…
“Your left eye.”
What the fuck!!
Baek Saheon barely suppressed a scream as he stared at the small ck sphere with a faint violet iris shifting within.
But…
“This isn’t just an eye. It’s bio-equipment.”
“……!”
“A piece of equipment with certain abilities…”
Kim Soleum exined the capabilities of the ‘eye’. As he continued, Baek Saheon’s expression shifted dramatically.
“……”
“Do you want it?”
Baek Saheon clenched his teeth.
It was hard to believe, but…
“…Yes.”
He willingly handed over the pen.
With trembling hands, a mix of anticipation and confusion, he epted the bio-equipment Kim Soleum offered him. <b>* * *</b>
‘Huu…’
That’s a shitton of cold sweat.
I finally ended my conversation with Baek Saheon and slumped onto my bed, battling headaches and coughing up blood.
It had been a struggle to mask my pain.
‘I managed to maintain control, didn’t I?’
At one point, he’d lunged over to nab the eye and I almost flinched. It was ridiculous to be dealing with this in my condition, but…
There was no time for self-pity.
I couldn’t leave a sociopath with a brainwashing item lingering near me while I was sick for the next three days.
‘I think I handled the carrot-and-stick approach well.’
I thought about the purple eye I’d handed over.
It wasn’t a threat to me but had useful features for Baek Saheon.
Well, it just so happened to be a left eye, so he could use it without needing an extraction.
Anyway, of all people, I ended up as roommates with that guy… Though,e to think of it, Go Yeongeun and Jang Heoun were the special cases, and Baek Saheon might just have the averagepany personality.
In this ce, it feels like you can’t swing a stick without hitting a sociopath!
‘The more I dwell on it, the more depressing it gets. Let’s think of something positive…’
For example… the uing gift presentation ceremony.
“Braun.”
I stood up and retrieved an item from my tattoo inventory.
A ribbon hair tie, which I had bought in lieu of change at the boutique.
“A gift.”
– ……!
“Do you like it? I had a feeling you might have guessed it’s for you.”
If it didn’t suit his aesthetic, I’d probably end up sweating bullets trying to find another offering…
But Braun’s response was cheerful.
– Ah, it <i>was</i> quite obvious, wasn’t it?
– Not realizing it would’ve been uneptable as a show host, but pretending not to notice is also part of an entertainer’s job.
– Atst, even this stuffed body can be properly dressed.
His tone carried a rare note of excitement.
‘Thank goodness.’
Smiling, I adjusted the hair tie and neatly tied it around the plush bunny.
“Thanks for everything, Braun.”
The bunny’s round button eyes gazed into the air. When I looked away, his familiar, upbeat host’s voice followed.
– As your <i>friend</i>, it was the natural thing to do, Mr. Roe Deer.
The ribbon might have been purely ornamental, but Braun’s voice brimmed with joy as it was donned like a bowtie.
– A neat appearance is an essential courtesy for anyone performing in front of an audience, wouldn’t you agree?
Braun seemed delighted as I repeatedly adjusted the bowtie for the perfect angle. At the same time, he urged me to rest.
– Mr. Roe Deer, maintaining your condition is a basic professional skill. Rest is essential, so it’s best you head to dreand promptly!
“Gotcha.”
A gift presentation ceremony for a good friend—one of today’s few rewarding moments…@@novelbin@@
Normally, I’d revisit the wiki for a read-through, but I doubted my broken phone or my ailing body could manage it tonight.
‘I’ll get a new phone or repair this one first thing tomorrow…’
As long as the Memorial Popsocket was intact, swapping phones wouldn’t hinder my wiki ess.
Iy backfortably on my bed and prepared to remove the popsocket from the broken phone.
“……”
– <i>Friend</i>?
I quickly flipped the phone over.
The popsocket… had a crack.