Chapter 196 : Chapter 196

Chapter 196 - Side Story Chapter 3

“You want to buy clothes?”

“Yes!”

It felt a little absurd that a woman who usually only wore a nun’s habit was making such a bold suggestion.

As I was forcing a bitter smile, Darien grabbed my wrist and dragged me into a large shopping mall.

Hmm.

Come to think of it, I felt like I had a particular lack of connection with places like this.

If I think about my clothes, I just bought whatever I picked at a shopping mall, or I just threw on whatever Kim So-jin bought for me...

“...Ah, right.”

Come to think of it, she... she came over to this side too, right?

To be honest, I didn't think the Guardian of the Tower was the same person as her. Kim So-jin was already dead, and that woman should be seen as a separate being whose memories were just somewhat overwritten.

That woman had a life of her own, and if I were to just treat her as Kim So-jin, that in itself would be a great discourtesy.

“...Excuse me, Avatar of the Savior-nim.”

As I was lost in thought, Darien, with her cheeks puffed out, lightly tugged at the end of my wrist.

“Are you thinking about another woman while you’re with me?”

“...Sorry. My bad.”

“I’d like you to look only at me when you’re with me. Is that a difficult request?”

Seeing her say that with a gloomy expression and her hands clasped together, a cold sweat naturally broke out.

It was my fault, but that wasn’t the only reason.

Intuitively, her doing this... how should I put it.

For some reason, it reminded me of the image of a giant serpent with its mouth wide open.

A feeling that if I reacted to that and listened to everything she said, I would be eaten alive before the day was over.

“Oh my, welcome! Are you here to buy clothes as a family?”

As I stood there, sweating bullets, a clerk who was arranging products nearby approached with a bright smile.

But, a family.

That hits where it hurts.

Certainly, Darien was a beautiful woman. Whether someone was beautiful or not was a personal matter that no one could declare with certainty, but at least everyone would agree that she was above average by any standard.

But the me next to her, even with a slight modification to my face that made me look better than my original version, didn't have the kind of appearance that could compete with her.

So, there was a clear ‘difference in class.’

To the point where one would think at a glance, ‘This man could never be in a relationship with this woman.’

‘Isn’t your service spirit a bit lacking.’

As I was mulling over that thought with a bitter smile, Darien turned her head towards the clerk, still smiling.

That is to say, her last expression reflected in the corner of my vision was like that.

After she turned her back to me and faced the clerk, the clerk’s face instantly turned dark, so it was clear that she wasn’t smiling now.

No, beyond just turning dark, I could see that the clerk was on the verge of death just from making eye contact with Darien.

“We are not family, but a couple. Soulmates.”

“...Hey.”

Since when were we?

“A couple.”

“...No, I mean.”

“A. Couple.”

“...”

“Soulmates.”

“...Alright.”

Let’s go with that.

As I was clutching my throbbing head, the clerk swallowed dryly and nodded.

“M-my apologies. Would you like to come this way for men’s clothing?”

Let me correct myself.

Her service spirit wasn’t lacking at all. To maintain a customer service smile and attend to a woman who seemed to be possessed by a ghost like this. This clerk was undoubtedly a pro.

“...Avatar of the Savior-nim?”

In the midst of that, she noticed like a ghost that I was having some disrespectful thoughts.

I was dragged along by Darien with a bitter smile.

“How about this one? This one?”

“...They all look the same to me.”

“Come on, don’t be like that and try them on!”

Right.

I would try them on.

“...”

Isn’t there too much contact?

It felt like the acts of lightly rubbing or brushing against me, or even clinging to me as if hugging, were increasing as she held the clothes against my body.

And as those actions continued, the smile on her lips grew wider and her breathing seemed to become more ragged.

“...Ah, haak, haap, heueueueup....”

“...”

That, you know.

The image of that giant serpent I felt earlier was getting stronger and stronger.

I might really be eaten alive before today is over.

As I was reluctantly accepting the clothes with that thought.

“...I don’t think he likes those kinds of clothes.”

There was an interrupting voice.

***

The Guardian of the Tower was mulling over the thought that even she couldn’t understand why she was feeling these emotions.

Unlike the other women here, she definitely had a certain degree of composure and was more inclined to look around her surroundings.

Stepping on the human world with her own two feet after being freed from the shackles of the Tower was a novel experience even for her, who had eyes that could observe the entire world.

Kim Gyu-sik was one thing, but every single moment of directly experiencing the world, with its vibrant colors and real-time pulsations and changes, was so precious.

Until Kim Gyu-sik started picking out clothes with that woman named Darien.

‘...For some reason.’

It felt like her rightful place had been taken.

A feeling that this was a right she should have been enjoying.

That taking care of that man, seeing his smiling face, and feeling a deep sense of fulfillment from it was something so important that it could not be yielded to anyone, that kind of.

“...What do you think you’re doing?”

As the Guardian was clutching her boiling chest and having these consecutive thoughts, Darien spoke sharply with a thorny voice.

“I remember that your turn isn’t yet. Isn’t cutting in line a bit much?”

“...I just happened to be in the area by chance.”

“Are you spouting such nonsense as an excuse?”

“Well, whether you believe me or not is up to you.”

The Guardian retorted with a voice just as stiff, not to be outdone.

A promise was a promise, but for some reason, the more she watched this scene, the angrier she became, to the point where such things didn't matter.

In the first place, that man was the same.

Why was he clinging to another woman in front of her, smiling so foolishly...

“...I don’t think I was smiling foolishly.”

“Shut up.”

Kim Gyu-sik, who had been protesting with an aggrieved voice, quickly shut his mouth as she shot back in a frozen voice.

“Oh my. What kind of way is that to talk to the Avatar of the Savior-nim?”

“You’re one to talk. He’s clearly uncomfortable. Clinging to him and calling him Avatar of the Savior-nim, don’t you think that’s a nuisance?”

“Are you jealous, you old hag?”

“What is this empty-headed girl who can’t even draw a proper line saying?”

“...Hey, you two.”

“Avatar of the Savior-nim, could you step aside for a moment?” “You stay out of it.”

“...”

At this point, they were both starting to get really heated up.

Gazes with a terrifying pressure that made even Kim Gyu-sik, the person concerned, sweat and take a step back were being exchanged between the Guardian and Darien.

“...Well, I thought it would end up like this eventually.”

Darien smiled with a terrifying expression and pulled her arm back.

As sinister demonic energy writhed and gathered, the demon weapon was summoned to her hand.

“You, you’re not that strong without your connection to the Tower, are you? It seems you won’t listen to anything but the logic of power anyway, so why don’t you just back down now?”

“...A brat who hasn’t even lived half of the life given to her. Do you think I’d be scared by a mere object?”

At Darien’s sneer, the Guardian snorted and waved her hand.

A blue-gray wand with a jewel embedded at its tip was grasped in her hand.

In an instant, dozens of incantations were deployed nearby as she entered a combat stance.

Each one was an incantation close to a bombardment that could easily destroy a building and then some.

“If you want to try, then come at me. But you’d better give up on your life beforehand.”

“Heeh. That’s what I wanted to say to you.”

Sparks flew from their gazes.

The atmosphere escalated into a hair-trigger situation.

“Then shall we decide on a reward?”

“What?”

“The winner takes all of the loser’s ‘time.’ If I win, I’ll take your day. How about you watch me and the Avatar of the Savior become eternally bound and just grovel on the floor and cry?”

“Hmph. Well, not bad. I’ll win anyway. I just hope you don’t hang yourself after seeing me and that man together.”

“...Hey. There are a lot of other people here. Are you two really crazy?”

Kim Gyu-sik argued with a dumbfounded voice, but as soon as the Guardian heard him, she shrugged and wrote another incantation.

At the same time, only silence remained in the huge shopping mall.

Although the backup of infinite mana from the Tower was gone, she was still one of the greatest spellcasters in human history, with few who could even come close.

“Is this better?”

“...”

Why on earth would they go this far over something as trivial as spending a day with him?

As Kim Gyu-sik was clutching his throbbing head and thinking that, several other voices were heard from nearby at once.

“...You’re having an interesting conversation.”

“That’s a good idea. The winner takes all of the loser’s time. Shouldn’t we have decided that from the beginning?”

Confirming that the voices of the women who had gathered before were all heard at once, Kim Gyu-sik clutched his head.

Anyone but a fool would have been able to figure out how things would unfold from now on.

With various sound effects like clank, click, swoosh, everyone drew their respective weapons.

A density of hostility that would make someone with low resistance to mana faint just by being nearby began to surge.

“Hmm, in that case.”

And, Seo Ah-in, who had also drawn her weapon, suddenly remembered something and tossed it towards Kim Gyu-sik.

When he reluctantly caught it, it was an envelope filled with something.

“...What is this?”

“Protective gear. If I win, I’m going to use all three of those packs.”

“...”

He didn't know what she meant, but the thought that he should never ask what kind of protective gear it was for flashed through Kim Gyu-sik’s mind.

“You’ve got guts. No matter how you look at it, there’s no way you can win.”

“You won’t know until you try, right?”

Seo Ah-in nonchalantly retorted to Evangeline’s words.

That was the signal.

Over the ‘time ticket’ to spend a week with one man, the most intense battle since the dawn of time was about to unfold...!

“...Why is that so important?”

Kim Gyu-sik’s dumbfounded mumble echoed emptily.

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