The Final Boss Has Returned, Episode 103
"Erena, Verda, and even Sharp. The fact that these three all have a one-sided love for you. Surely you aren't unaware?"
Upon hearing those words, Yujin's expression blanked for a moment.
Erena, Verda, Sharp!
Famous Over Ranker users known respectively by the titles of Saintess, Grand Sage, and Divine Archer, members of the Lightwing Guild, and at the same time, comrades as precious as family to Yujin!
Yet Yujin had not realized that they might be harboring a one-sided love for him.
'They... have a crush on... me?'
Yujin's cheek trembled.
Of course, Yujin wasn't completely without tact, and since he had spent six whole years with them, he had vaguely become aware recently that something about the atmosphere was unusual.
But for all three of them to simultaneously have a crush on him!
For Yujin, hearing such a fact was like opening Pandora's box.
"That... Ah, it can't be..."
The shocked Yujin stammered.
Drakan looked at Yujin and laughed inwardly.
Yujin.
The guy had already fallen into the trap.
No matter how insensitive the guy was, if he began to entertain the possibility that his three comrades might have a crush on him!
The human relationships within the Lightwing Guild would enter an irreversible phase from that very moment.
It would begin with a small doubt, but its destination would be hell.
And what Drakan had to do was pave the road to that hell beautifully, under the guise of goodwill.
"Saying it can't be at this point? Think carefully. Objectively. How the three of them have treated you until now. Why the three of them engaged in a war of nerves over this dungeon raid more than necessary."
Drakan relentlessly stirred Yujin's heart with a direct tone.
Trickle.
Cold sweat began to pour down Yujin's forehead like rain.
The moment he recalled Drakan's words, memories of the time he had spent with them from the very beginning flashed through Yujin's mind.
The Saintess, Erena.
Since she was the same age as Cha Yuna, his younger sister, her actions—things he had until now regarded as simply having one more younger sister—rose before Yujin's eyes.
'Oppa, I like you,' the words Erena used to carry around like a habit. But in his memories, where he had regarded them as mere jokes, as simply a younger sister liking her older brother, Erena's face had been dyed as red as a beetroot.
The Grand Sage, Verda.
The way her ever-expressionless face would relax whenever she looked at him. The way she said, 'Yujin-nim is the only person to whom I can show my true feelings.' The way her attitude clearly changed when dealing with others versus dealing with him. And finally, the way her ears sometimes turned red—Yujin had simply thought it was because he was her most precious friend and comrade.
The Divine Archer, Sharp.
She was always quick-tempered, but the way she became strangely kind before him. The way she would grumble yet do everything he asked. The way she blushed and became docile, like a cat, when he patted her head. That face flashed through Yujin's mind.
As Drakan said, it wasn't just about this dungeon matter.
Over the course of six years, the three had always been at odds over trivial things.
Starting from petty things like who went to the convenience store with Yujin, who sat next to Yujin during meetings—they clashed over all manner of big and small matters.
But if all of that had actually been because they had a crush on him?
Yujin's thoughts stopped there.
"It seems you didn't know. Or rather, you unconsciously knew but deliberately denied it, deceiving yourself."
Drakan looked at Yujin and spoke.
He had already expected that Yujin wouldn't have known.
After all, everyone in the know in these circles was aware that the guy was dense when it came to romance.
But regardless, he needed to lay the groundwork in advance for what he was about to say.
Yujin sat still with a blank expression, saying nothing.
Drakan's words echoed in Yujin's mind like a reverberation.
He had unconsciously known that the three of them liked him, but had denied it and deceived himself.
Because those words pierced his chest like a dagger.
A painful truth to face slowly began to reveal its ugly form before Yujin.
Drakan drove the nail in while looking at Yujin.
"Anyway, it's rather fortunate if you didn't know. At least it wasn't intentional. If you did it knowingly, you know? No matter how you package it, that's just stringing them along."
Stringing them along!
It was a term that meant deliberately playing hard to get and torturing an interested party with hope, like a caught fish, making them unable to escape the tank. Yujin knew the definition of stringing them along.
At the same time, he was shocked the moment he heard that word.
Drakan.
If it was really true that the three had a crush on him, as he said.
If he had really noticed unconsciously but deliberately denied it.
Then there was no fault in his words that it was stringing them along, no matter how he packaged it.
Perhaps he had committed the evil act of stringing along the three comrades who were as precious as family.
Yujin's pupils dilated as his thoughts reached that point.
Yujin felt self-loathing at the high possibility that he had committed such an 'evil act' himself, that he might have been hurting his family-like comrades all this time.
Why…….
"I……"
Yujin's hand trembled.
"I just wanted... to be with everyone in the guild... as it is now, continuing into the future... living like family……"
To live like family with everyone!
It was one of the greatest desires held by Yujin, who had been an orphan, who had no family besides his younger sister, Cha Yuna.
And Yujin knew.
If it was really true that those three liked him.
That such a dream of his would vanish like a bubble!
Drakan looked at that sight and laughed inwardly.
It was a sufficiently satisfactory achievement up until now.
Yujin was already facing a truth he did not want to encounter.
But Drakan was greedy, and therefore could not be satisfied with just this.
That was why.
Drakan added more words toward Yujin.
"A future where you continue like that. Well, I suppose that's possible. If you continue to act clueless and insensitive as you have until now, that is."
Upon hearing Drakan's words, Yujin's hands trembled like an aspen leaf.
His words were right.
If he wanted to maintain the status quo, he could continue like that, pretending not to hear, pretending not to see.
But Yujin now knew the ugly truth.
'I tried to deny it.'
Yujin overturned his past actions once more.
No matter how insensitive Yujin was, the time spent with them was well over six years.
It was stranger that he hadn't noticed during that time.
But Yujin finally realized only now that he had made excuses to himself each time.
That it was because they were comrades. That it was possible because they were comrades. That they acted this way because they were like family.
He had deliberately interpreted their displays of affection that way.
And the reason was precisely his own ugly selfishness.
Maintaining the status quo.
The ugly selfishness of wanting to be happy with everyone, wanting to make everyone his family.
Yujin felt self-loathing at the fact that this had brought the situation to this point.
But he also felt disgust at himself for being unable to cast aside that selfishness even so.
If he chose one person, it was clear he would grow distant from the other two.
Because reality was not some harem romantic comedy, it was impossible to choose everyone like the protagonist of a harem story.
But Yujin hated the idea of such a situation occurring with a passion.
He didn't want to let go of all three!
He wanted to be happy with the members of the Lightwing Guild forever, just like now!
Yujin simply could not discard such desire, such selfishness.
"From now on, I... I... What should I do?"
Yujin asked Drakan in a trembling voice.
Drakan stared straight at Yujin.
Dilated pupils, trembling hands.
Looking at Yujin's appearance, which made it obvious to anyone that he was having a mental breakdown, Drakan spoke.
"You have to find the answer to that question yourself. No one can solve it for you. I merely wanted to tell you the truth."
Swallowing the words, 'that you, like me, are an unavoidable human with selfishness and desire,' Drakan met Yujin's gaze directly.
"I see."
Yujin let out a hollow laugh at Drakan's words.
His words were right.
The answer to this question was something he had to find himself.
But Yujin couldn't make a decision.
Because the guilt of doing something terrible to his comrades, of trampling on their pure love like family, clashed continuously in his heart with the desire to enjoy the current happiness, even if it was a lie.
Looking at such a Yujin, Drakan spoke slowly.
"But, though I cannot give you the answer, I think I can offer some advice."
Upon hearing Drakan's words, Yujin's gaze turned to him.
Advice!
A very small spark of life returned to Yujin's eyes upon hearing that.
Yujin bit the bait that Drakan had thrown, and seeing that, Drakan smiled as if to deliberately ease the atmosphere and spoke in a joking manner.
"For what it's worth, I am in a relationship right now."
"You mean with Sin Hayeon?"
At the words 'in a relationship,' Sin Hayeon's figure rose in Yujin's mind.
Sin Hayeon.
When she, who was also someone he was wary of, had visited the Lightwing Entertainment Building before, the image of her affectionately linking arms with Drakan like lovers flashed before Yujin's eyes.
He had wondered why Sin Hayeon, who was always cold, was acting that way, but to think they were in such a relationship.
"Yes."
Drakan nodded.
Strictly speaking, Sin Hayeon was a somewhat more complicated relationship to Drakan than a mere lover, but it wasn't wrong.
More than anything, to deliver the 'advice' he was about to give, he needed to break through the current depressed atmosphere even a little.
In the slightly relaxed atmosphere, Drakan began the 'advice' he had prepared.
"Act as your heart tells you."
"My heart?"
"There's a common misconception people have: desire itself is not bad. It is only natural for humans to move for their own happiness, and it is a natural instinct."
Yujin's pupils shook upon hearing Drakan's words.
Pursuing happiness is instinct. Something only natural.
Those words shook Yujin's heart.
A smirk.
Drakan looked at that scene and laughed inwardly.
Of course, he could have left this situation as it was, or forced the choice of one of the three to cause discord among the guild members.
But Drakan thought that was the worst of all possible plans, and it was clear that the three surrounding Yujin had already prepared themselves deep down for a future where one of them was not chosen.
Therefore, provoking Yujin to choose one person 'right now' had a high probability of not being suitable for Drakan's ultimate goal—the 'division of the Lightwing Guild.'
That was why.
Drakan had chosen the method of touching the deep desire in Yujin's heart.
Drakan intended to awaken Yujin's desire of 'wanting to live happily with everyone,' gradually amplify it, and finally corrupt the noble hero Yujin and drag him down to become a mere human.
If black water began to stain the blank paper that was Yujin!
Not only would the loss of the grassroots support that had backed him until now begin, but the bonds of the Lightwing Guild, and furthermore the bonds of the Five Eyes, would begin to shake.
Recalling his own plan and the future that would result from it, Drakan slowly began his devil's whisper toward Yujin.