Breaking Up With the Heroine in an Otome Game

21 – Side Quest Dungeon Exploration Failure and Strategy (1)

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A huge Hanok full of old culture.

In the spacious front yard of the Hanok, pine trees are always green all year round, showing off their majestic appearance.

The pond with a small stone wall was filled with golden carp and reddish lotus flowers.

Numerous guards were tightly guarding the outside of the traditional house, which exudes the ideology of Baesan Imsu (背山臨水).

This place, with dozens of employees and a 24-hour security system for crime prevention, is Yu Gap-ryeong’s main residence.

It was reminiscent of a king’s residence.

“… ….”

Yu Gap-ryeong’s relatives were sitting quietly at the table in the living room, which was made up of wooden floors, eating dinner.

Clatter. Rattling.

Only chopsticks, spoons, and the sound of breathing lingered in my ears.

Only unknown silence filled this place.

Even the air seemed heavy.

“…… “Yoo Seol-hyeon.”

Yu Gapryeong’s deep voice rang out.

The family shrugged their shoulders for a moment, and only Yoo Seol-hyeon slowly put down his spoon and raised his head to look at Yu Gap-ryeong.

“Yes.”

Yu Gap-ryeong’s solemn eyes whose intentions are unknown.

Yu Seol-hyeon just quietly looked at his paternal grandfather.

“…… “How is life at the academy?”

A word with multiple meanings.

“It’s okay.”

First test and match.

Sudden invasion of monsters.

Defeat monsters, receive commendations, etc.

…… There were many things she wanted to say, but Yoo Seol-hyeon didn’t say anything and just kept her head down.

“Okay. “That’s it.”

“… ….”

Yu Gap-ryeong also did not ask any more questions.

As if that answer alone was enough.

“Mother.”

“Your father.”

“Let’s go in first. “Finish your meal with the kids.”

“Yes.”

Yu Gap-ryeong slowly walked her steps, leaving behind her second daughter-in-law, who responded politely.

I looked at his back for a moment and then raised my voice.

She was a stepmother.

“Seolhyun, I heard you even received a commendation this time?”

“Yes.”

“You weren’t hurt?”

“Yes.”

Yoo Seol-hyeon gave a short answer to the second mother’s seemingly pretentious question and put down her spoon.

The second mother glanced at Yu Seol-hyeon with a slightly furrowed brow.

But on the outside, he just smiled brightly, pretending to be okay.

“I’ll just go in now.”

“Oh my? Already?”

Soon, Yoo Seol-hyeon also took a step.

I could hear my family talking in the back, but I tried to ignore it. It is clearly a disparaging remark against Yoo Seol-hyeon.

“…… Ha.”

Before he knew it, Yoo Seol-hyeon had reached his own room and buried his face in his pillow.

“…… “It’s frustrating.”

It’s been a while since I came back to my hometown…….

Just looking at the faces of those idiots makes my diaphragm tingle.

I don’t want to be associated with families who don’t even feel like family anymore.

“… ….”

Yoo Seol-hyeon looked up helplessly at his ceiling, hugging a soft pillow tightly.

Yoo Seol-hyeon quietly closed her eyes while looking at the beautiful pattern on the ceiling.

As I gently closed my eyelids, the events of the past few days started to come to the surface.

Performance evaluation, struggle with monsters, receiving a commendation…….

If there was a lot, there was a lot, if there was a small amount, there was little.

What I remember most clearly was the struggle with the monster.

“…… I really almost died, right? Maybe?”

Yoo Seol-hyeon smiled bitterly.

It was his first time encountering a monster of that level.

It feels like meeting a wild beast in the mountains in the middle of the night.

Not only Yoo Seol-hyeon but also the other children were unable to calm down in a life so intense that it was difficult to even breathe.

Lee Si-woon, Seo Nari, Yuliya, Jin So-yeon, all of them.

I became increasingly buried in unknown fears.

…… Except for one person.

‘Now that I think about it, Jinhyuk Lee looked pretty fine?’

Jinhyuk Lee.

The man seemed to be quite fine.

I was exposed to intense killing power in my first real fight, so how could I remain sane? Even the geniuses that the academy claimed to be producing were confused.

He was also so calm.

As if he had expected this situation.

‘…… If you think about it carefully, Jinhyuk Lee had a lot of strange things about him.’

The abilities and weaknesses of the opposing team that were revealed throughout the performance evaluation.

A strategy that fits strangely well.

He looked calm even though it was his first battle where his life was at stake.

Eyes that always seem full of confidence.

‘And especially the last…… ‘That arrow I showed you last time.’

Just one arrow.

I cannot forget the arrows that rushed in like a beam of light.

That’s because when the arrow hit the monster, it cried out, poured out blood, and went crazy.

Even though none of the children’s attacks could cause much damage, how was it possible to cause such a big shock to the monster with just one arrow?

‘Lee Jin-hyuk played it off, wondering if he had accidentally hit a vital spot…… It didn’t make sense in the first place.’

His arrows were sparring arrows.

The end was blunt and the magic power was not contained well.

In other words, it means that it is an arrow that cannot inflict fatal wounds.

‘But how?’

Doubt.

I doubt it.

If you ask him, he will not give you a proper answer.

I wanted to question him further, but I couldn’t argue strongly because I owed my life to Jinhyuk Lee.

‘Could it be a strange ability?’

If it is an abnormal ability, it is understandable.

There are so many different types of strange abilities in this world. Isn’t it possible that he might be lucky enough to have extraordinary abilities?

But Jinhyuk Lee has extraordinary abilities.

He is a person who has not awakened his ideal abilities.

…… Unless it was hidden on purpose.

“Ah. Head hurts.”

Yoo Seol-hyeon sighed.

Even if I think about it carefully, I don’t know.

There is nothing you can know if you think about it like this now.

It is true that Lee Jin-hyuk has a lot to hide and is a suspicious person in many ways, but even so, it is not proof that he is hiding abnormal abilities.

…… Of course, Yoo Seol-hyeon was half suspicious that he was hiding strange abilities.

‘Well, anyway, Jinhyuk Lee seems to be a talented person.’

Irrespective of whether he had abnormal abilities or not, he consistently showed a calm demeanor even in his first battle.

No matter how good your skills are, there are people whose minds turn blank in actual combat situations and their skills are lower than usual, while there are people whose skills improve as they judge more calmly the more they engage in actual combat.

It seemed like Jinhyuk Lee was the latter.

Because I understood the situation before anyone else and calmed the children down.

It could be said to be an essential talent and quality for an operator.

Yes, qualities.

Qualifications are an area that cannot be easily corrected through effort.

It had to be something you were born with.

‘The more talented people around you, the better.’

Yoo Seol-hyeon knew.

Your limitations as a hero.

It doesn’t mean there is a lack of talent. I dare say that compared to Lee Si-woon, I can confidently say that he is not that far behind.

But it is not an abnormal ability.

Yoo Seol-hyeon’s abnormal abilities are not suitable for battle.

Rather, it was a strange ability that was closer to that of a supporter.

That’s why Yoo Seol-hyun wanted a team.

A team that can fill in each other’s shortcomings.

So that each ability and talent can exert synergy with each other. Jinhyuk Lee is a bit disappointing as of now, but it will change depending on what he is hiding in the future.

“I wonder what it will be like?”

Yoo Seol-hyeon hoped he was hiding more secrets.

As I said before, the more talented people there are, the better.

And if it’s Jinhyuk Lee… ….

Well, I was confident that I could scout as much as I wanted.

***

“This is the end for today. Everyone, don’t do anything else and go straight home.”

The homeroom teacher’s funeral has ended.

For someone who risked his life fighting a Minotaur not long ago, his condition seemed quite normal.

If the original story had gone as planned, he would have been lying in the hospital by now.

“Soyeon, Soyeon. “Do you want to go to karaoke today?”

“Ah. “Is that so?”

When class was over, Jin So-yeon, who had been invited to sing karaoke by several children, glanced in my direction.

Then the children laughed and came up to me.

“Hey~ Jinhyuk, are we going to karaoke?”

“Ah. “I have something to do today.”

The male trainee tried to act as a friend and encouraged me, but unfortunately, I didn’t have time to go to a karaoke bar.

Because today.

Because it is the day that the incident takes place.

This is the first incident where Yoo Seol-hyeon degenerates into a villain.

“Don’t do that, let’s go together.”

“Sorry.”

“Oh, he’s pretending it’s expensive again.”

Jin So-yeon muttered dissatisfiedly.

I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

“I said I was sorry. “I have something really urgent to do today.”

“Well, they always say it’s urgent. “I couldn’t do it last time because I was busy with performance evaluations, and I couldn’t do it again last time because I was studying. Oh well, it’s okay.”

Is it because I recently turned down her offers one after another?

I seemed a little upset.

Anyway, it’s not a child.

“Don’t be too upset. “I’ll give you something nice as a gift later.”

With those words, I hurriedly walked away.

Jin So-yeon was grumbling behind me, but I had no time to pay attention today.

“That’s it.”

As I left the academy building, I saw several girls from Seolhyeon Yoo in the distance.

I approached Yoo Seol-hyeon.

“Yoo Seol-hyeon.”

“Ah. It was you. What’s the matter?”

“I have something to say to you for a moment.”

“What should I say?”

“Yes.”

When I answered by nodding my head once, the eyebrows of Seo Na-ri next to me started to raise up, and then I felt a twinge! She did and she was angry with her sharp eyes.

“No way, you! “You’re not planning on confessing to Seolhyun, are you?”

“Ah, is that so? hehehehe.”

Yoo Seol-hyeon counters Seo Na-ri’s nonsense.

I was dumbfounded.

Confession is the confession of some bastard.

“I’m sorry Jinhyuk Lee. “Like I said last time, the face isn’t to my taste.”

“No, I’m not trying to confess.”

0Second confession.

I think it was like this last time too?

“It’s somewhat important.”

“Important? What?”

“Dungeon.”

“Huh?”

I couldn’t say this openly in front of the children of Seolhyun Yoo’s group.

So, I hinted at it by mentioning just one keyword.

“It’s related to the Yeongdeungsan dungeon.”

“…… !”

For a moment, Yoo Seol-hyeon’s face became stiff.

The fact that he was related to Yoo Seol-hyeon must have been kept confidential.

The fact that she came directly to Yu Seol-hyeon and said this meant that she could not help but have many doubts.

“I have a suggestion about that. How is it? “Can you give me some time?”

“Huh? What is he talking about all of a sudden? Seolhyun?”

“… ….”

Seonari narrowed her eyes as if she was puzzled.

The other girls were the same.

Only Yoo Seol-hyeon remains silent.

“Okay. Good. “Would you like to move places for a moment?”

“Huh? Wait a minute, Seolhyun. Next schedule…….”

“It’s okay. I will take care of adjusting the schedule. Then go first, Nari. I’ll talk to him for a while and then leave. “You guys too.”

“Uh, huh. Okay.”

Yu Seol-hyeon sent Seo Na-ri and her followers away first and then stared at me.

And one word.

I spoke up.

“What are you?”

“What?”

“How much do you know? Why did you give me the Yeongdeungsan dungeon…? ….”

“Before we say that, should we go to a place where we can have a conversation? “There are too many eyes here.”

This is inside the academy.

I needed to move.

“I know a good cafe. “Let’s go there.”

“Okay. “Do it like that.”

***

“Soyeon, Soyeon.”

“Why?”

“Do you have any regrets about Jinhyuk?”

“What? No no. “Aren’t we in that kind of relationship?”

“Right? “What else can I say?”

In the middle of the city.

Jin So-yeon and her classmates were taking steps to go to karaoke.

“Because you have Siun.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that I’m not in that kind of relationship with Si-woon?”

“Huh~ Maybe a leg of lamb? After all, it’s worth the face, isn’t it?”

“Ugh. Okay, let’s not talk.”

“Ah~ Just a joke, a joke. “Don’t get upset~.”

The girl giggled.

“Anyway, Jinhyuk these days…… Huh?”

“What’s wrong?”

At that moment, the girl tilted her head, looking closely at the window of a cafe. Jin So-yeon turned her head towards the girl’s gaze. OK.

“Huh? Jinhyuk? Why are you in a cafe? ….”

All of a sudden.

Jin So-yeon’s words stopped.

That was because the person Jinhyuk Lee was with looked familiar. That can’t be right.

“Yoo Seol-hyeon?”

No.

Why are he and Jinhyuk meeting separately again?

The performance evaluation is all over?

Why?