My Childhood Friend’s Stock Will Never Fail Chapter 39

Swish! Yoohee pulled the curtain open with all her strength.

 

And there, she met a pair of crystal-clear eyes.

 

The woman remained perfectly calm, as though she had known all along that Yoohee would come here.

 

“Senior…?”

 

A pretty face framed by long pink hair.

 

Familiar, yet strangely unfamiliar.

 

This person was…

 

[You have encountered the Thirtieth Transmigrator.]

 

“…”

 

Silence lingered between them.

 

There was something unmistakably foreign in the gaze meeting hers.

 

‘Senior Gayoung… is the Thirtieth Transmigrator?’

 

Yoohee stood frozen in shock.

 

Gayoung was the first to speak.

 

“So we finally met.”

 

Her tone was nothing like what Gayoung Yoohee knew.

 

“What a shame. I was so close to making it drop all the way.”

 

Her words sent chills racing up Yoohee’s arms.

 

‘This person… isn’t the Senior Gayoung I know.’

 

The Thirtieth Transmigrator…

 

She had possessed Gayoung’s body.

 

She had deliberately broken the imprint.

 

Because once the imprint was broken, Seo Hyunho’s heart would return to her.

 

Keeping an expressionless face, Gayoung stared at Yoohee before speaking again.

 

“You’re more shameless than I expected.”

 

The corner of her lips curled into a smile Yoohee had never seen before.

 

She must be saying that because Yoohee had taken Seo Hyunho away.

 

But Yoohee felt wronged too.

 

She hadn’t been trying to seduce him on purpose.

 

It was more like Seo Hyunho had somehow fallen into her lap.

 

“Wait, that’s not—”

 

“Hey.”

 

A cold voice suddenly cut in from behind Yoohee.

 

She turned around to find Seokhoon standing beside the curtain.

 

“It’s time for you to leave.”

 

“…”

 

“As you can see, she needs to rest.”

 

Seokhoon’s sharp gaze glinted as he looked down at Yoohee.

 

It was a warning.

 

Don’t bother Gayoung any further.

 

Yoohee’s eyes drifted downward until they landed on the bandages wrapped around Gayoung’s wrist.

 

Beneath them…

 

The imprint mark that had once been there was surely gone.

 

With Seo Hyunho absent, clinging to Gayoung now wouldn’t change anything.

 

“…I understand.”

 

She left the infirmary with heavy steps.

 

Where is Seo Hyunho…?

 

Feeling completely lost, she opened her inventory.

 

“Inventory.”

 

The only items she had were the White Day candy in her pocket…

 

And the Anywhere Door.

 

The Anywhere Door was the reward she’d received for catching—and then releasing—the black divine beast.

 

She’d thought it would be useless for a while.

 

But maybe…

 

‘I can use this to get to where Seo Hyunho is.’

 

She only had one chance.

 

She had to choose carefully.

 

Think.

 

Where would Seo Hyunho be?

 

‘In the original story… where did he go at a time like this?’

 

A certain scene suddenly came back to her.

 

A bridge overlooking the Han River.

 

Mapo Bridge, where A-rank Gates frequently appeared.

 

After his imprint was broken, Seo Hyunho had wandered into a Gate that opened there without a second thought…

 

And returned battered beyond recognition.

 

If he entered that Gate again…

 

She might never be able to win back his heart.

 

‘No…’

 

She didn’t know whether Seo Hyunho had followed the same course of events this time.

 

But Yoohee had no better option.

 

As she reached for the Anywhere Door in her inventory, a status window appeared.

 

[Would you like to use the ‘Anywhere Door’? Where would you like to go?]

 

“To Mapo Bridge.”

 

The instant Yoohee answered, a shimmering portal opened before her.

 

This is my only chance.

 

Please… let Seo Hyunho be on the other side.

 

***

 

A strong wind swept in from the river.

 

Spring had fully arrived, but the riverside air still carried a lingering chill.

 

It was early evening, with the sun slowly sinking below the horizon.

 

In the distance, an open gate came into view.

 

Police officers were restricting access to the area.

 

Yet beside them, people jogged along the riverside or chatted casually with their friends as if nothing unusual were happening.

 

Yoohee looked around for Seo Hyunho.

 

Don’t tell me… he’s already gone into the Gate…

 

“…”

 

Her gaze stopped.

 

Standing alone on one end of the bridge…

 

Looking down at the Han River…

 

Was Seo Hyunho.

 

Relief never came.

 

Because he looked so fragile…

 

As if he might disappear at any moment.

 

Tap, tap!

 

Yoohee quickened her pace.

 

Even though she was running, it felt as though Seo Hyunho was drifting farther and farther away.

 

Only when her fingers finally caught hold of the edge of his jacket…

 

Did she realize she’d been holding her breath all along.

 

“Haa… Senior.”

 

Seo Hyunho’s eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment before becoming hollow once more.

 

“…Go back.”

“Don’t run away.”

 

At Yoohee’s words, Seo Hyunho turned to look at her.

 

His gaze was shaking uncontrollably.

 

Anxious, Yoohee reached out and grabbed his wrist.

 

“Senior, whatever happened, it’ll be okay. So… please don’t keep sinking deeper into it.”

 

But Seo Hyunho’s expression remained stiff.

 

“What do you know? You don’t know anything. You have no idea how I feel.”

 

“I’ll stay by your side. Whenever you need someone, I’ll be there. Isn’t… isn’t I enough?”

 

She pleaded desperately, determined to stop him.

 

Only then did Seo Hyunho finally raise his head and meet her eyes.

 

His expression was filled with bewilderment.

 

“You told me before that if anything ever happened, I should call you. I… I want to be there for you too when you’re having a hard time.”

 

Once, Seo Hyunho had said exactly that to Yoohee.

 

If anything happens, call me.

 

She might not be as dependable as he was…

 

But at the very least, she wanted to become a small refuge he could lean on whenever things became too difficult.

 

She truly meant it.

 

“You…”

 

Seo Hyunho rubbed his forehead, looking utterly flustered.

 

He still looked troubled, but he had visibly calmed down compared to moments ago.

 

“There might be things you can’t tell anyone, Senior. So… um, I don’t know exactly what’s happened, but… I’m on your side.”

 

The fact that his imprint with Gayoung had been broken hadn’t spread throughout the academy yet.

 

If it had, everyone would already be talking about it.

 

There was no reason to reveal that she somehow already knew everything.

 

“Oh, right. Here.”

 

Yoohee rummaged through her pocket before holding out a White Day candy toward him.

 

“They say eating something sweet helps you feel better.”

 

Seo Hyunho simply stared blankly at the candy resting in her palm.

 

“So… please, try it.”

 

She looked at him with pleading eyes.

 

Please… please…

 

At last, his resistance seemed to crumble.

 

He took the candy.

 

As if he no longer had the energy to argue, a faint chuckle escaped his lips.

 

“I’m telling you again… you’re seriously strange.”

 

Rustle.

 

The wrapper came off, and the round candy disappeared into Seo Hyunho’s mouth.

 

Only after seeing him begin to suck on it did Yoohee finally breathe a sigh of relief.

 

Then—

 

“Ah.”

 

Suddenly, Seo Hyunho’s chest rose and fell sharply.

 

He pressed his left hand against his heart, frowning as though in pain.

 

Startled, Yoohee quickly supported him.

 

“Senior, what’s wrong?! Are you okay?”

 

But something about him was…

 

Strange.

 

He let out a long, slow breath before blinking languidly as he looked at Yoohee.

 

That gaze…

 

It looked as though he were gazing at the person he loved.

 

“…Lim Yoohee.”

 

Seo Hyunho’s voice was just as lingering and affectionate as his eyes.

 

Wh-What’s wrong with him?

 

Yoohee blinked in confusion.

 

Then, a status window appeared above Seo Hyunho’s head.

 

[Due to the effect of the item ‘White Day Candy,’ male lead candidate ‘Seo Hyunho’s Affection has increased dramatically.]

 

[Seo Hyunho (Affection 1 → 10)]

 

…Something’s wrong.

 

His Affection had skyrocketed out of nowhere.

 

Even if it was the White Day Candy…

 

‘Come to think of it… what happened last time?’

 

She searched her memory, recalling the last time she’d given Seo Hyunho a White Day Candy.

 

[Due to the effect of the event candy, male lead candidate Seo Hyunho’s Affection increases by approximately twice the normal amount!]

 

Back then, it had merely said the increase would be about double.

 

At the time, Seo Hyunho’s Affection had been locked at 1% because of his bond with Gayoung, so doubling it hadn’t amounted to much.

 

But this time…

 

Along with the message saying it would increase dramatically…

 

His Affection had reached a number she’d never seen before.

 

And it wasn’t over yet.

 

[Congratulations, Twenty-Ninth Transmigrator! You’ve raised a male lead candidate’s Affection into double digits in a single leap!]

 

[As a bonus for the Twenty-Ninth Transmigrator, who shows the signs of a rising transmigrator, we will award you +2 Affection!]

 

Wait, I don’t need that!

 

But, as always…

 

The system had no intention of accepting a refusal.

 

[Seo Hyunho (Affection 10 → 12)]

 

It felt as though the darkness in Seo Hyunho’s eyes deepened even further.

 

“I finally understand my own feelings now.”

 

Seo Hyunho whispered the words gently.

 

…This had gone terribly wrong.

 

Just in a very different way than she’d expected.