Chapter 85

### Chapter 85: Dinner Appointment

Liliana went into her room, saying she needed to organize the ecology of hell.

Is she thinking about what to do in hell ten years from now?

She'll figure it out, I guess.

I slowly checked my backlog of messages.

Contacts ranged from guilds I had never heard of to large guilds I was familiar with.

Among them, one message caught my eye.

"Huh?"

A message had come in?

I checked my smartwatch.

"Oh... I had it set to silent, so I didn't see it."

I had turned off notifications for messages from unknown numbers because of all the disaster alerts and spam, so I didn't notice it.

The message came the day I received the contact information last week, and when I didn't reply for two days, another message was sent.

This message came on Friday. After I didn't read it over the weekend and into Monday, another one came yesterday.

And just now, another message arrived.

Summarizing the long message, it basically said, "Come to our guild, the first to recognize you."

I don't really want to join a guild... but I should at least respond out of courtesy.

As soon as I sent the message, a reply arrived.

What kind of business is this?

I've never heard of Min Ye-ji, but I have heard of the Iron Blood Guild.

It's one of the top five largest guilds in Korea.

Being affiliated with such a place, she must be doing well... but whether it's the Iron Blood Guild or anything else, I can't join right now.

My primary goal is to seduce the heroines at the academy... I don't want to cause any trouble by making a contract with a guild.

It would be a waste of time for public matters, and there are various restrictions.

After that, no more replies came.

Kim Sae-ne.

I saved Min Ye-ji's phone number and turned off my smartwatch.

Ding!

"Damn, I just turned it off. Who is it?"

The sender was Sulin.

As soon as I saw the name, I hurriedly opened the message.

- Sulin: Ho-yeon, do you have time tonight? I need to talk to you.

- Me: Of course! Should I come right away??

- Sulin: No, no, no. I need to prepare, so I'll contact you when I'm ready.

- Me: Okay, I understand!

The reason Sulin contacted me at this time is obvious.

The principal clearly said, "I'll send Sulin next time," so she must be here to reward me for bringing Baek Ah-young to the academy.

I picked up my student uniform and went to the sink to check my face.

"Not bad."

Of course, my face is always not bad.

I roughly ran my hands through my hair and got ready to go.

Sulin and I had been postponing our dinner plans, so it's a relief that we finally have a reason to meet.

After finishing my preparations and resting on the sofa, a message arrived.

- Sulin: Are you ready?

- Me: Yes! Should I come now?

- Sulin: Yes, but I don't like crowded places... I'll send you the address, so come there.

- Me: Okay.

Sulin soon sent me the location of a place outside the academy.

"I'm going out."

"Okay~."

I greeted Liliana and left the dormitory.

*

The outside air was quite cold.

It was warm during the day, but the late-night chill made it hard to decide what to wear.

"I should have dressed warmer."

I regretted wearing just a hoodie, especially since the academy was quite far away, and I had to walk a lot.

"Why is it so far...?"

I looked at the map on my smartwatch to find the restaurant.

It was a building at the end of the street in the commercial area.

There was no sign, so I wondered if this was the right place, but when I went inside, it was a restaurant in operation.

"Hello."

I approached a nearby server and greeted them.

"Welcome. What's the name of your reservation?"

"Is it for Sulin Moon?"

"Oh, you're with Sulin Moon. I'll take you to room 205 on the second floor."

"Okay."

A server in hanbok led the way upstairs.

Upstairs, all the seats were private rooms.

You couldn't see who was inside from the outside. That's why she asked me to come here.

"Enjoy your time."

"Thank you."

Knock, knock.

"I'm here, Sulin."

Just in case, I didn't call her name.

"Come in."

I quickly opened the door, went in, and closed it.

Sulin Moon was sitting in a room that exuded a luxurious atmosphere.

"You came early? Did you leave as soon as I contacted you?"

"Yes. It's a dinner with Sulin, so I couldn't be late. I prepared in advance and was waiting... huh?"

Sulin, in casual clothes, was still beautiful. Her platinum blonde hair, neat features, and porcelain skin.

Her beautifully shaped chest, slim hips, and firm thighs were all radiating cuteness... and she wasn't wearing her glasses.

Her beauty, hidden behind her clunky horn-rimmed glasses, was revealed, and I was momentarily speechless.

Her clear eyes met mine, and her cute lips curved into a slight smile.

"Is it strange...? I tried changing my image by wearing contacts."

★ Heroine Status Window

- [Affection: 63]

- [Lust: 25]

- [Hunger: 50]

- [Fatigue: 73]

Current Status: Maybe I overdid it... I should have brought my glasses.

"No, no. You're really beautiful, Sulin. It's a big deal."

"Phew. Why are you overreacting? Sit down quickly."

"Yes, yes."

My heart was pounding.

What is this? I've seen many beautiful people, but Sulin had a different charm.

I could understand the vice president's feelings. How could you not confess to a face like that?

"I ordered my favorite dishes... is there anything you can't eat?"

"Of course not... I can eat anything."

If I'm eating with Sulin, I could eat rice cakes and still enjoy it like a gourmet meal.

"I can eat rice cakes with you and enjoy it."

Oops, I said that by accident.

"Really? Thank you. I'll pass on your thanks to the principal. Thanks to you, the Saint has gained a lot by coming to the academy. So, I wanted to... thank you."

"Sulin."

Before the food arrived, I interrupted Sulin, who was about to start talking about work.

"Yes?"

"We agreed to have dinner together. Let's talk about work after we eat."

"...Okay?"

I couldn't bear to see her beautiful face filled with fatigue any longer.

Sulin seemed a bit moved by my words.

"Of course. I went to the infirmary during practice today. Professor Kim Jin-hyuk... "

"Phew. That professor is still like that, huh?"

"Exactly. Plus, Professor Hyun Jae-hunter has been replaced by Dr. Kang Hyo-rin... "

I tried to keep the conversation light and unrelated to work.

Sulin's smile never left her face throughout the meal.

*

"Wow... this is really delicious. Here."

I had guessed it was a Korean restaurant when the server in hanbok came.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. It was a bit difficult to make a reservation."

"Really? But it was that delicious."

I had never eaten such delicious Korean food in my life.

It was so good that I wondered what I had been eating all this time.

"Shall we move on to business?"

"Yes!"

I sat up straight and prepared to listen.

"First, as I said, the Saint's arrival at the academy is thanks to you... so we decided to thank you."

"I did it for you, but I'm grateful for the reward."

"Hehe, even the words are appreciated. Since I don't know what you want, I brought a list we prepared. Would you like to take a look?"

Sulin handed me a piece of paper.

———–

.

.

.

———–

"Wow..."

The list was filled with names of elixirs I had only heard of.

"I'll think about it carefully."

"Okay. If you need anything else, feel free to say so."

"Yes, I understand."

We fell into a brief silence.

"Is that it for the business talk, Sulin?"

"Yes. Isn't it? Should we go now?"

"If it's okay with you, I'd like to talk a bit more."

Sulin took off her glasses.

Her beautiful face was revealed, but this was actually a bad sign.

Removing her glasses is an event that occurs when her affection for me is very high or when my stalking behavior is too intense...

★ Heroine Status Window

- [Affection: 63]

- [Lust: 25]

- [Hunger: 50]

- [Fatigue: 73]

Current Status: Ho-yeon is really kind.

My affection was still in the low 60s. I liked her, but I didn't love her.

So, the cause of the event was the latter.

"Should we... do you remember when I said being too famous would be difficult?"

"Of course I remember."

It was something Sulin said when she was worried about me getting close to Professor Im Sol.

"Now that you're famous too... do you understand me a little more?"

"Sulin..."

"Sorry, it sounds like a celebrity's problem, doesn't it? Hehe."

Sulin's expression was filled with various thoughts.

Regret, misery, disappointment, and depression. She seemed to have brought all the negative elements.

"I always say, Sulin."

I stood up and met Sulin's eyes.

Standing in front of Sulin, I firmly grabbed her slender shoulders.

"Ho, Ho-yeon? What are you doing?"

"Sulin. I've always said I'm on your side. The world-turning magician Ho-yeon is on Sulin's side. Don't worry, and be confident. If anyone harasses you, I'll take care of them."

"... G, G, Gosh, you're making me nervous... "

Sulin's face turned red, and her eyes darted around due to my sudden actions.

★ Heroine Status Window

- [Affection: 75]

- [Lust: 35]

- [Hunger: 50]

- [Fatigue: 73]

Current Status: Ho, Ho-yeon likes me? Maybe he's not bad...

Affection 75. This is the level where a confession would work.

It's not high enough for her to confess to me yet, but I'll be satisfied with this for now.

"Sulin. If you're having a hard time, you must talk to me. Got it?"

I emphasized this as my final point.

"Y-Yes... I understand."

Sulin nodded, seemingly captivated by my presence.

I need to be the first person she thinks of when she's really struggling, even before her family.

I'll start by making her dependent on me, slowly.