I wasn't a charitable person.
Rather, I was the opposite of that. Lee Jihye, who was laughing while standing in front of me, was probably the same.
People nodded at us, obviously pleased to see two warriors, one with spear and another with sword, join them.
'That's not right...'
At this rate I would become a meat shield.
"Well, I said I would lead you to a resting spot, but honestly, there's not much to show. There's only two sections here. One for men and another for women to live separately."
"That's enough. And it's proper."
"Thank you for saying that. I was a little worried..."
"There's no need to worry about such a thing. Thanks for being our guide."
"That's kind of you. Hehe. Can I call you Deokgu oppa?"
"I-If you want to..."
"You are such a nice man."
This naive Park Deokgu was already half-way into the honey trap set by Lee Jihye. He sure felt good about being called 'oppa' by a woman six years his senior.
"Are you okay, Kiyoung-ssi?"
"You don't have to be so formal, call me as you like."
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Jung Hayan's expression wasn't looking good.
"Then I will call you Kiyoung oppa. Hehe. Ah! Hayan-ssi, please, come this way. We have no set rules for living here, but Hyunsung-ssi will tell you everything you should know. I will take Hayan-ssi with me, and teach her a few things. Have a good rest."
"Ah... okay. Kiyoung-ssi, see you later then. Thank you so much for today."
"Yes, see you later."
"Yup!"
Jung Hayan bowed her head, and then went to the women's section together with Lee Jihye.
It seemed like there were a variety of unspoken rules here, but frankly, I wasn't very interested in this.
What interested me was how we would now proceed.
"Hyung-nim, don't you think this place seems quite lively?"
"That's true..."
"Is there a problem?"
"It's not a big deal. Just..."
"Just...?"
"It's nothing."
"Oh, is that so..."
I wasn't happy with the idea of becoming a meat shield to keep this place safe, but if I changed my perspective a little, it actually wasn't such a bad thing.
'Only in this manner can I get what I need.'
This place offered endless opportunities.
Safe hunting with Kim Hyunsung, help with getting a class and roping Jung Hayan onto my side.
Perhaps it won't be smooth sailing, but that was a minor issue.
The next morning, Kim Hyunsung called out Park Deokgu and I.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yea, thanks to you."
Park Deokgu responded briefly to Kim Hyunsung's question.
When it was only me and Deokgu I couldn't sleep properly, so it was the first night in this place where I could relax a little.
I roughly knew what this guy was trying to get at. Instead of getting dragged into this by him, I bit the bullet, and opened my mouth first.
