Chapter 21 : Chapter 21

"..."

"..."

"W-were you waiting?"

After waiting for a while without a word, I asked, and Shin So-hee shrugged her shoulders.

"Not really?"

No, it seemed like she was waiting.

She attends a school completely in the opposite direction.

It didn't make sense to say she dropped by on her way home.

Unless she happened to run into me by chance, the only conclusion was that she was deliberately waiting here.

"Oh, no, it's just…"

More than anything, even though she answered, "not really", Shin So-hee's expression looked extremely displeased.

With one eyebrow raised, she was looking down at me as if she had something to say.

No, rather than having something to say, it felt more like she was expecting to hear something.

"If you had contacted me first, I wouldn't have kept you waiting."

When I nervously put my fingertips together and said that, only then did Shin So-hee smirk.

Her smile, unlike her previously expressionless face, was quite natural, so I let my guard down for a moment—

"Oh~ Contact?"

Then, after shrugging her shoulders again,

"I guess I didn't think about that. I do remember saying yesterday, 'Next time, it's on me', and you smiling and replying, 'I'll look forward to it', but oddly enough, I don't recall ever getting your number."

Eek.

"I thought maybe I had received it and just forgot, so I searched my phone, but it seems your name isn't there."

Shin So-hee shook her phone in front of my eyes.

... Right. Now that I think about it, I had never given her my number.

I never even considered giving it to her.

Of course, it wasn't because I disliked or ignored Shin So-hee.

It was simply because I usually didn't carry my smartphone around, so it didn't cross my mind.

Most of the time, it was in the pocket of Yang Hye-in's maid uniform, and even when I went to school, it remained in her pocket.

The chairwoman was obsessively determined to isolate Ye Sara from the world.

Naturally, she would have thought to prevent her from carrying any means of contacting others while outside.

Though, she probably never expected I would scale the wall and escape.

Well, considering Ye Sara was trained that way from a very young age, it wasn't surprising that she let her guard down.

If Yang Hye-in had reported my odd behavior to the chairwoman yesterday, they might have assigned someone to monitor me, but… Well, there's nothing I can do since I don't see anyone around right now.

"Oh, um, well…"

I opened my mouth, trying to come up with an excuse to the clearly irritated Shin So-hee, who had been waiting in the cold street—

Tap, and Yoo Ha-neul landed gracefully next to me.

As if she were performing a long jump in gym class, Yoo Ha-neul touched down with perfect posture and seemed to immediately sense the awkward tension between me and Shin So-hee, glancing between the two of us from her invisible motorcycle stance.

"Is something going on?"

With a tone that implied she had been expecting to see Shin So-hee, Yoo Ha-neul asked us.

"...Hah, no."

Shin So-hee sighed deeply and scratched her head.

"It's nothing, so don't worry about it."

"Really…?"

Yoo Ha-neul didn't seem to fully believe her, but she didn't press for details.

Tap.

Finally, Lee Soo-ah jumped down.

As gracefully as Yoo Ha-neul, her posture was so elegant it almost looked poised.

"Hello?"

Lee Soo-ah greeted calmly, not at all flustered by Shin So-hee's presence.

"Oh, yeah…"

...It seemed Shin So-hee, the most normal person here, was now past caring as she returned the greeting with a nonchalant expression.

*

Anyway, we ended up following Shin So-hee.

Since she had come all this way without my contact information and wanted to take care of things quickly, we had no real reason to refuse.

Besides, all I could do these days was wander around outside.

I didn't even have my wallet right now.

No matter where they went to hang out, I had no money to pay.

...It's a rather sad situation for the daughter of the number one family in Korea, but Ye Sara's environment was far from normal anyway.

Luckily, thanks to Shin So-hee's insistence on treating us as repayment for yesterday, I didn't have to spend any money.

Honestly, I felt a bit guilty about it.

The meal I treated them to yesterday didn't feel like I had spent my own money.

Even if that mansion truly belonged to me, and even if I was paying for its maintenance with my own funds, I had grown up a commoner.

I never felt the same sense of money leaving my pocket unless I paid for something directly.

Considering my estimated assets, that small amount wouldn't even register as a real expense.

Still, if I refused after saying something like that to Shin So-hee, it would probably hurt her feelings.

In fact, even though Shin So-hee's family wasn't poor, they were at least middle-class.

Living in an expensive area like where Hwayoung High School is located was already a sign of wealth.

And from what I saw of the house layout in the CG, it didn't look small at all.

However, in Ye Sara's backstory, most of the students at Hwayoung High School were treated like "commoners."

...So for now, I'll just keep quiet and let her do as she pleases.

Shin So-hee led us to a bustling area nearby.

There was a large subway station where you could transfer to another line, and naturally, many businesses clustered around the station.

If you looked hard enough, there were even a few expensive restaurants around.

Is she planning to splurge on an extravagant meal?

As I followed her, lost in thought, Shin So-hee came to an abrupt stop.

"Here we are."

I turned my head in the direction she was pointing—

It was a typical burger franchise.

Not the one with the famous yellow M sign, but the other chicken burger place known for its affordability.

Though its shine has faded a bit over time, it was still praised for being cost-effective depending on the location.

It's the kind of domestic franchise that somehow always had a store near military bases, even in places without M or L franchise locations.

"Uh…"

When I made a somewhat baffled expression, Shin So-hee grinned triumphantly.

"What do you think? You've never had this before, right?"

Ah, I see now.

This is the cliché where the wealthy person in romance comics, dramas, or movies tries commoner food for the first time, and after hesitating, becomes addicted to it.

It's not just a media trope, though.

Some people genuinely hold that kind of prejudice.

But that's exactly what it is—a "prejudice."

According to some sociological research, wealthy people often enjoy everything from commoner activities to extravagant luxuries.

Just because someone is rich doesn't mean they don't eat ramen or order fried chicken.

Of course, the frequency might differ.

Well, Ye Sara's case might be different.

She was raised in isolation, only eating what was given to her.

The problem is, I'm not Ye Sara.

Having lived in a semi-basement during my childhood and even in an old villa with no elevator before coming to this world, I, the very definition of a dirt spoon, had obviously eaten from this brand.

I didn't need to limit myself to just this brand—growing up, I had experienced most commoner activities and foods.

Of course, since I was a commoner!

I probably had less wealth than Shin So-hee, too.

I glanced at the two people who had followed behind me.

Fortunately, Lee Soo-ah seemed unfamiliar with the place, tilting her head curiously.

Well, even though this world is set in Korea, the social norms differ somewhat from the Korea I knew.

Of course, there would be a "rich girl trope".

And Lee Soo-ah was the target character for Yoo Ha-neul, the commoner scholarship student.

Though I never played the game myself, it likely featured a stereotypical commoner-rich girl event or two.

But the problem was Yoo Ha-neul.

As smart and empathetic as she was, she had probably figured out exactly why Shin So-hee looked so confident.

The issue was, she was also from a commoner family.

As a scholarship student, she didn't have to worry about tuition, but it was clear that she had grown up enjoying most commoner activities, unlike the other students at Hwayoung High School.

Shin So-hee, of course, seemed to think Yoo Ha-neul, who was wearing the same school uniform, was also from a wealthy family.

Yoo Ha-neul's pupils trembled slightly.

She looked unsure how to act in this situation.

"..."

I thought for a moment.

Should I just be honest and say I've had this before?

Since I live in a rich family now, I could pretend I ordered it out of curiosity, and maybe she'd let it go.

...But when I looked at Shin So-hee's overly confident face, I just couldn't bring myself to say it.

She must have put a lot of thought into this choice.

And since she had come here with the expectation of seeing a rich girl marvel at commoner food, If I said I'd already tried it, she would definitely be disappointed.

"...No."

In the end, I told a white lie.

And seeing Shin So-hee's smirk in response, I thought,

Ah, I shouldn't have lied.

*

"Oh, no, it's just…"

I averted my eyes slightly, avoiding Shin So-hee's piercing gaze.

"I mean, it's delicious! Really, this is good! Wow~ it's a taste I've never had before~"

But the more I spoke, the more dejected Shin So-hee's expression became.

I definitely shouldn't have lied!

No, I mean, it was delicious.

Of course, it was delicious!

Chicken thigh patty, sauce, lettuce, pickles, and onions—how could that not taste good?

But what could I do if I'd already tasted it before!

I couldn't pretend to be amazed by something I already knew!

After watching me sweat for a while, Shin So-hee sighed deeply with a disappointed look and said,

"Sigh…"

"I guess, considering it's chicken, you might have had it at a fancy restaurant before. Maybe I shouldn't have chosen meat after all…"

Then she started analyzing the situation on her own.

Uh, no, that's not it.

While there was chicken, I had never eaten it in burger form before.

Usually, it was from fancy Western-style menus.

I was about to take another bite in an attempt to salvage the situation when Shin So-hee suddenly stood up and snatched the burger from my hand.

Was she telling me not to eat it if I wasn't enjoying it?

Shocked, I stared at her, but Shin So-hee put the burger down with a firm declaration.

"You can't eat much anyway. If you finish that whole thing, you won't have room for the next dish."

The next dish…?

"Today, we're going to keep going until you eat something you're completely satisfied with."

No, I was satisfied.

I was satisfied!

I just didn't express it with amazement!

Of course, since I had already lied, there was no way I could say that now.

I glanced at Lee Soo-ah and Yoo Ha-neul.

Lee Soo-ah, true to her rich girl character, was taking dainty bites of her burger with sparkling eyes—

But Yoo Ha-neul, upon hearing Shin So-hee's declaration, was still staring nervously at her half-eaten burger, her pupils trembling.

...

Looks like going home early won't be an option today…