# Chapter 16
“I’m sorry. Honestly, I don’t remember.”
“It’s okay. Even the doctor said you might not remember things properly because of the shock after you fainted back then.”
“What? …Really?”
In that moment, Wonyoung felt like a ray of light was shining down on him. Come to think of it, the purpose of this game was romance with the capturable characters, so there was no way it would let relationships with those characters be ruined so easily. Honesty really was the best policy.
Heegang, who had been quietly observing Wonyoung’s visibly brightening expression, casually asked:
“So what’s this about school bullies?”
“Huh?”
“What you mentioned earlier. About trying to save someone from bullies and hitting them.”
“Ah.”
“…Was there someone else besides me? Someone who looked after you like that.”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“I’m sure I took care of all of them.”
Wonyoung, who was racking his brain over the arrival of a second crisis, didn’t catch what Heegang had quietly added. Heegang just shook his head, saying it was nothing.
Not thinking much of it, Wonyoung answered Heegang’s original question.
“I think it happened somehow. Actually, I don’t remember that incident well either. I even mistook who helped me for you.”
“I see.”
Wonyoung was quite satisfied with the answer he’d made up on the spot. Heegang also seemed relieved after hearing Wonyoung’s explanation.
“That could happen. You were always so kind since you were young, Rae. Oh, do you remember this? You brought home a motherless kitten, and the two of us secretly raised it together.”
“Yeah, I remember that. Of course.”
While internally shouting that he didn’t remember a single thing, outwardly Wonyoung answered confidently. He had a feeling that a third crisis was about to hit.
And that feeling proved correct.
“We each wrote down 100 name candidates. But the name we finally chose was pretty ridiculous.”
[That’s right. After all that deliberation, you ended up naming it ‘Neuschwanstein the 13th’.]
[That’s right. After all that deliberation, you ended up naming it ‘Butterfly’.]
‘Are you really trying to test me?’
Looking at the choices in front of him, Wonyoung ran his fingers through his hair. He felt like tracking down whoever created these options and punching them. This wasn’t even teasing anymore.
But right now, getting past the immediate crisis was the priority. Wonyoung narrowed his eyes at the options.
Since Heegang said they’d thought of 100 candidates but ended up with a ridiculous name, “Butterfly” might fit that description. But like with previous choices, there could be a hidden trap.
‘You thought I’d think that? Not falling for it this time.’
The game probably wanted him to overthink and choose “Neuschwanstein the 13th,” but Wonyoung, mocking the game’s intentions, selected “Butterfly.”
“That’s right. After all that deliberation, you ended up naming it ‘Butterfly’.”
“Butterfly?”
But instantly, Heegang’s expression turned cold.
“Whose cat was that?”
“…N-Neuschwanstein the 13th? Maybe?”
Wonyoung quickly changed his answer, but Heegang’s expression remained unchanged.
“Who else did you raise a cat with besides me?”
Raise a cat, my ass. The real Wonyoung was allergic to cat hair!
Wonyoung decided to give up on pursuing Heegang, resolving to give the system a good beating next time. If there were no more capturable characters, it seemed he’d have to choose between morality and professional ethics. Taerim and Siyeon, that is.
“Rae.”
“I’m sorry. The truth is I don’t remember, but I lied.”
“Lied? Why?”
“Why, you ask…”
Having already given up on raising Heegang’s affection, Wonyoung answered without much thought to his serious question.
“To look good to you?”
“Huh?”
“If I said I couldn’t remember, you’d be disappointed, right?”
“…”
After looking dumbfounded for a moment, Heegang soon broke into a bright smile. Wonyoung, wondering why he was suddenly acting this way, looked at his radiant smile with indifference.
“So that was it. And I didn’t even realize.”
“…”
“I’m not disappointed, Rae. How could anyone remember such small details?”
“Really…?”
Hope suddenly filled Wonyoung’s face. It seemed the spark of conquest was rekindling.
Of course, by Wonyoung’s standards, being rushed to the emergency room after eating bell peppers or naming a cat Neuschwanstein the 13th were not small matters. But just this once, he decided to rely on Heegang’s generosity.
“There’s nothing you could do to disappoint me, so don’t worry about that.”
At Heegang’s affectionate reassurance, Wonyoung inwardly rejoiced. This guy was the one. The key to bringing him back to reality!
“Ah, it’s already this late. Should we move somewhere else? You haven’t had dinner yet, right?”
Heegang eventually asked. He was such an excellent friend, moving things along smoothly.
“Yeah, let’s go eat.”
So Wonyoung nodded readily and got up from his seat. As Heegang moved, small screams erupted from various places. The occasional clicking sound of camera shutters was also heard.
Feeling hundreds of eyes following their every move, Wonyoung felt somewhat uncomfortable. Even if one was accustomed to it, it was still something to be conscious of, yet Heegang seemed completely unbothered, which was remarkable.
“Excuse me, you’re Baek Heegang, right? If it’s okay, could I just get an autograph…”
“Ah.”
Just as they were about to leave, one particularly brave fan who had been lingering around approached and spoke. Looking up, Wonyoung could see several more fans inspired by her actions starting to approach.
‘This might take a while.’
Feeling awkward just standing there while someone else signed autographs, Wonyoung tapped Heegang and said:
“I’ll wait outside…”
But before he could finish, Heegang coldly replied to the fan:
“No, it’s not okay.”
“…”
“I’m busy right now. As you can see.”
Simultaneously, Heegang’s arm naturally draped over Wonyoung’s shoulder.
“Let’s go, Rae.”
“Huh? Huh?”
While a confused Wonyoung was flustered, Heegang led him straight outside. Making eye contact with the fans left standing there watching them, Wonyoung belatedly grabbed Heegang.
“Wait, wait! What about those people? I mean, how hard is it to sign one autograph? I’m good at waiting. If your image gets damaged…”
‘What am I supposed to do when I need to pursue you? Trying to win over a ruined celebrity might be even more difficult.’
Unable to reveal such honest thoughts, Wonyoung looked at Heegang with desperate eyes.
But Heegang completely ignored Wonyoung’s earnest plea, pushed him into the car, personally fastened his seatbelt, and closed the door. The sequence was so firm and natural that Wonyoung lost any will to resist and slumped in his seat.
He thought he heard camera shutters from various directions when Heegang leaned in to fasten the belt, but Wonyoung didn’t have the mental capacity to worry about that.
Soon, the car carrying the two of them smoothly departed, and Wonyoung, who had been rubbing his forehead in silence, finally glared at Heegang.
“Mr. Baek Heegang, no, Baek Heegang.”
“It’s really nice.”
“What?”
But before Wonyoung could scold him, Heegang beat him to it, glancing at Wonyoung with smiling eyes.
“It feels so good that you’re worried about me. It’s like we’ve gone back to the old days.”
“…”
‘It’s not a concern for you, it’s a concern for myself.’
But as they say, you can’t spit on a smiling face—Wonyoung’s anger dissipated, and he turned his gaze away with an indifferent expression.
“But you don’t need to worry too much. Even my fans know I don’t like my private space being invaded.”
“What if they post it online though? Public image is so important for celebrities.”
Wonyoung responded somewhat seriously to the fact that his newly decided capturable character might become unemployed, but what came back was a sweet laugh that tickled his ears.
“Yes, I know very well what’s important for a celebrity.”
“…”
At that answer, Wonyoung felt somewhat embarrassed. Of course, how could the celebrity himself not know?
As Wonyoung pressed his lips together feeling awkward, Heegang, perhaps misinterpreting the silence, added as if making an excuse:
“It’s not that I don’t need your concern. No, I need it more than anything.”
“Oh, okay.”
“It’s just that nothing is more important to me than you. More than fans, more than my work—you’re more important, that’s why I did that.”
“Yeah. …Huh?”
Wonyoung asked in surprise, thinking:
‘Could it be that Heegang liked Narae when they were young?’
Having reasonable doubts about the excessively cringe-worthy remark, Wonyoung suddenly became aware of the silence filling the car and looked up. He had responded too carelessly without thinking. As if saying “you just realized that now?”, two character violation warnings had already accumulated.
Two warnings for two “yeahs.” What stingy bastards.
“Um… Heegang.”
“Hahaha.”
As Wonyoung was trying to defuse the situation by pretending to be close, he widened his eyes at Heegang, who suddenly burst into laughter.
“Our Rae is sulking, isn’t he?”
“What?”
Wonyoung retorted in disbelief, but Heegang was smiling with a face of absolute happiness. Temporarily blinded by that brilliant smile, Wonyoung gave up on protesting.
“Fine, let’s say that’s the case.”
“You’re cute.”
“Let’s say that’s the case too.”
Well, even in his own eyes, Narae’s face was cute. Just the face.
In that ambiguous atmosphere that could be either good or bad, they arrived at the Japanese restaurant that Heegang had reserved. It was clearly an expensive place just by looking—not only were all the spaces private rooms, but expensive-looking ceramics were placed in the corridors as well. It was precisely the kind of atmosphere perfect for VIPs doing shady business or famous people visiting incognito.
Eventually, an elegant meal was set before Wonyoung. When Wonyoung, who loved sashimi, unknowingly made his eyes sparkle, Heegang laughed softly.
“You really haven’t changed at all, Rae.”
Even while distracted by the sashimi, Wonyoung made sure to respond with some effort so as not to receive a third warning.
“You think so?”
“Yes. Though even if you had changed, I would still like you.”
“Right.”
Wonyoung, who had been deliberating whether to eat the chewy wild rockfish first or the tender blowfish, belatedly dropped his extended chopsticks.
