The Support Ate it All

I had received a request to visit the Ruby Magic Tower during the last week of mentoring, which was the 8th week.

And now it was already the 12th week.

It had been a month since I said I would go.

The reason I had delayed my visit until now was to handle more pressing matters first.

Resolving the conflict with the swordsmanship club and completing the Treasure Map were prime examples.

Also, I had judged that the Ruby Magic Tower wouldn’t need my consultation urgently.

It’s about time I go now.

Most of the important issues had been dealt with by now. I was left with more free time, and it wasn’t polite to keep delaying a visit after receiving an invitation.

So when Hong Yeon-hwa brought it up, I readily agreed to follow her.

It seemed Hong Yeon-hwa sent word ahead while we were on our way.

“Welcome. It’s been a while.”

“I’m sorry for not coming sooner.”

“No, I told you to drop by when you had time.”

Hong Ye-hwa gave me a soft smile and said that she was thankful I came, even now.

Unlike Hong Yeon-hwa who wore her emotions on her face, this older sister of her was far more skilled at navigating social situations.

Having been pushed and pulled between various factions to reach the position of club president, it was only natural that she had become adept at such things.

“…….”

On the other hand, ever since the three-way meeting had begun, Hong Yeon-hwa had been staring intensely at her older sister as if she was demanding something.

Even though Hong Ye-hwa shot back a stern look as if she was telling her to hold back, Hong Yeon-hwa showed no signs of backing down.

From what I had observed so far, Hong Yeon-hwa’s fiery personality rarely conceded to anyone, but her older sister was one of the few exceptions.

However, in this particular staring contest, it was surprisingly Hong Ye-hwa who surrendered first.

With a deep sigh, she finally spoke.

“I’m really sorry to ask this as soon as you got here, but could I make a small request?”

“Go ahead, senior-nim.”

“We had a bit of an argument…”

Hong Ye-hwa trailed off with a conflicted expression on her face as if she was debating whether or not to continue.

But with Hong Yeon-hwa still pressing her silently, she had no choice but to keep talking.

“Well… she says she sleeps better when she leans on you. Honestly, I don’t really believe it, but if you don’t mind…”

“You want to confirm it, is that right?”

“Mhmm. If you’re not comfortable, feel free to say no.”

I could already picture what had happened.

After seeing me and Seo Ye-in sleeping together during the midterm exam, Hong Yeon-hwa showed some curiosity about the “Kim Ho pillow”.

So she volunteered to be the second test subject and tried leaning on my shoulder.

The experiment had been abruptly stopped due to Hong Ye-hwa’s sudden appearance.

I could only guess that during the sisters’ argument, something along the lines of “You try leaning on him too!” must have come up.

Which would explain why she now wanted to test it out.

“…….”

Hong Ye-hwa waited for my decision with a somewhat ambiguous attitude.

She seemed half hoping I would refuse, but she was also half wanting to see it through.

I felt just as awkward.

If you were visiting a friend’s house and their older sister suddenly asked to lean on you for a moment, wouldn’t you feel uncomfortable too?

Still, I should go through with it.

Does the Kim Ho pillow really have the power to induce deep sleep?

It was still an unresolved mystery for me.

With the third test subject having walked in on her own, it seemed right to confirm it now.

So I nodded my head.

“I don’t mind. Feel free to try it.”

“…Okay.”

With my approval, Hong Ye-hwa pushed two chairs together.

She sat me down in one, then moved to sit in the other, but paused again and let out a deep sigh.

“Haah…”

Her breath carried a mix of complicated emotions.

After glaring at Hong Yeon-hwa for a moment, she finally sat next to me.

Then she slowly leaned over, rested her head on my shoulder, and closed her eyes.

“……”

Hong Yeon-hwa watched the scene with bated breath, and her expression showed strong conviction.

She likely believed that her sister would fall asleep any moment now.

Although Hong Ye-hwa had only rested on my shoulder for about ten seconds, for everyone in the room, those ten seconds must have felt like hours.

At last, Hong Ye-hwa lifted her head from my shoulder and slowly straightened her body.

A thick vein appeared on her forehead.

She then opened her mouth and started emitting a terrifying killing intent.

“It didn’t work.”

“Huh…?”

Hong Yeon-hwa’s pupils trembled violently.

Her face was full of disbelief, like a child hearing for the first time that Santa Claus wasn’t real.

She jumped up from her seat and tried to rush over.

“N-No, that can’t be…! Let me try agai—”

“Sit.”

“Yes…”

At Hong Ye-hwa’s sharp command, she obediently returned to her seat.

The confident attitude she had until now disappeared and he had become meek and deflated.

“Haa…”

Hong Ye-hwa let out another long sigh.

Unlike earlier, when her sigh had been filled with frustration, this one seemed to hold back deep anger.

No wonder she’s upset.

I could fully understand how Hong Ye-hwa felt.

From her perspective, she had been pressured by her younger sister into resting on a first-year male student’s shoulder for ten whole seconds.

It wouldn’t be surprising if all that embarrassment had turned entirely into anger.

Subject No. 3 is a failure.

However, it was too soon to definitively say whether the Kim Ho pillow was effective or not.

The sample size was still too small, so it could be determined after conducting a few more experiments.

While I was lost in those thoughts, it seemed that Hong Ye-hwa had managed to momentarily suppress her anger.

After briefly thanking me for cooperating, she moved on to the next topic.

“You also had a match today, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“How was it, Yeon-hwa?”

She was probably most curious about the performance of the defensive magic she had recently learned.

So I showed her a replay of the second match I’d fought alongside Hong Yeon-hwa, against the Go Hyeon-woo-Seo Ye-in team.

Ratatatatata!

In the crystal orb, Seo Ye-in fired her assault rifle in rapid bursts, but Hong Yeon-hwa was easily enduring the barrage of magic bullets.

As I showed her the scene, I commented,

“At this point, I think her defense has been significantly reinforced.”

“It does look that way. You did add an extra barrier too, but…”

“I heard there’s still one defensive spell she hasn’t learned yet. Once she learns that and improves her overall rank, she will probably become just as tough, if not tougher.”

“Mhmm, this isn’t bad at all.”

Hong Yeon-hwa nodded her head in satisfaction and said that it was much better than before.

Even Hong Yeon-hwa seemed a bit surprised to hear praise from me. Though she was huddled in the corner and trying to gauge the situation, her expression brightened a little.

Hong Yeon-hwa moved on to the next topic.

“There’s something else I want to discuss. Actually, this is the real reason I called you.”

“Yes, senior-nim.”

“I think it’s time to start investing in Aqua Flame.”

Hong Yeon-hwa said this while pointing at her younger sister.

Aqua Flame was a rare and powerful trait that only Hong Yeon-hwa possessed in the Ruby Magic Tower. It gave her an overwhelming advantage against ice attributes.

For example, she once completely overwhelmed Bukgong Han-seol, who had mastered ice-type martial arts.

However, its growth was really difficult, and it had been stuck at E-rank for a long time until it advanced to C-rank after she melted the Millennium Iron.

Now, it’s stalled again.

To move forward from here,

“As I mentioned before, you’ll need to enter an ice-themed dungeon.”

The goal was to burn down ice-attribute monsters as much as possible.

Among the many dungeons in the underground levels, there were countless ice-themed ones.

The higher the rank, the better.

I had passed this information on through Hong Yeon-hwa.

Hong Yeon-hwa nodded her head.

“Mhmm, so I wanted to ask… I heard you’ve been going down to the underground levels frequently. Is that true?”

Considering how I had been going up and down the underground like it was routine during every strategy battle week, it was only natural for rumors to spread.

Since it wasn’t exactly a big secret, and I didn’t think Hong Yeon-hwa would go around broadcasting it, I decided to give her a partial confirmation.

“I sneak down there from time to time.”

“What rank?”

“Most of the time it’s D-rank.”

Hong Ye-hwa’s eyes lit up when she heard the word D-rank.

Then, she made a suggestion.

“Would you be able to take Yeon-hwa down with you?”

“Wouldn’t it be more reliable to go with the club’s seniors?”

What I meant was, with all the second- and third-year seniors in the club, why ask a first-year like me?

Hong Ye-hwa explained with a wry smile.

“For the time being, I can’t get the second and third-years to move. It’s a bit complicated to explain.”

“I understand.”

“So, I have no choice but to bring in outside help, and since it’s D-rank, I thought it might be best to ask you.”

She had reasoned that it was better to entrust this to someone she was at least somewhat familiar with rather than a complete stranger.

Hong Ye-hwa then took out a jewelry box the size of her fist from her inventory.

A perfectly fitted ruby glowed a deep red.

“This is a gift. I really appreciate all the help you’ve given.”

“I’ll accept it gratefully.”

“If you’re okay with taking Yeon-hwa down there, I’ll prepare additional compensation.”

It wasn’t a bad offer.

Going down to the underground floors every strategy battle week was a given.

Hong Ye-hwa’s request was simply to choose the ice-themed dungeon from the ones I was already planning to enter and to take Hong Yeon-hwa with me.

For me, it was like gaining free manpower, and since Hong Yeon-hwa possessed Aqua Flame, clearing the ice dungeon would be a breeze.

On top of that, she’d throw in a ruby as a bonus for the clear reward.

You can never have too many jewels.

– Caw! Young monarch! You’ve brought something shiny!

After all, shiny things were the favorite bargaining material for dimensional crows, including the crow tailor.

So, I didn’t take long to decide.

“I’ll make time next week.”

“Thank you.”

For the next strategy battle week, I had already planned to enter [Gathering of Villains] with Dang Gyu-yeong and her group, and beyond that, my schedule was open.

So, clearing the rest with Hong Yeon-hwa wouldn’t be a bad idea.

“You’re okay with this too, right?”

Hong Ye-hwa asked a question that was more of an announcement than a request.

Hong Yeon-hwa had been visibly shrinking into herself until then, but when she was suddenly pointed out, she flinched and looked back and forth between us.

After a moment of what seemed like hesitation, she finally spoke.

“I think… it should be fine.”

Perhaps the trust we had built while working on our teamwork during the recent battle made her decide it would be okay with me.

Hong Ye-hwa smiled gently and spoke to me.

“Then let me know once the details are set.”

“Understood.”

The Hong sisters saw me off all the way to the entrance of the Ruby Magic Tower’s club room.

The last glimpse I caught of their faces had smiles clearly spread across them.

But not long after I stepped out of the room,

Boom! Boom! Boom!

“Ahhh!!!”

From beyond the closed door, I heard the sounds of something burning, explosions going off, a fierce smack to someone’s head—

And Hong Yeon-hwa’s pitiful scream echoed loudly.