BJ Villainess Chapter 300

Before I knew it, we had arrived at the barbecue restaurant that Senior Seonga insisted on going to.

 

Jin Wonwoo frowned as he looked at the restaurant. “If we were coming here, we could’ve just held the meeting at campus in the first place.”

 

The restaurant Senior Seonga had brought us to was a cheap and tasty place near the campus, popular with students. Bora and I nodded in agreement and looked at Senior Seonga.

 

Senior Seonga put her arms around our shoulders and spoke nostalgically, “We could go somewhere fancier, but once we graduate, we won’t have many chances to come here. We should enjoy it while we can.”

 

It was a very sentimental thing to say, fitting for Senior Seonga, who valued memories and relationships. We all quickly agreed with her and entered the restaurant to order before she started getting emotional about youth and memories.

 

[♥Honey♥: I’ll pick you up after dinner, so just let me know anytime.]

 

[Okay.]

 

Just then, as Senior Seonga was stuffing her mouth with side dishes, she suddenly said, “Why don’t you invite Ozworld to join us?”

 

I tried to avoid looking at Jin Wonwoo as I replied, “No, it’s our team dinner.”

 

“But Ozworld is an investor in our game.” Bora laughed and joked,

 

“That’s even more reason not to invite him. What if he thinks we’re using his investment money to have a team dinner?”

 

“Oh, right. In that case, let’s not invite him.”

 

Jin Wonwoo just smiled faintly and didn’t react much.

 

By the time the table was cluttered with empty soju bottles, Senior Seonga, now tipsy, mumbled, “I want ice cream.”

 

“I’ll go get some.”

 

I grabbed my wallet and stood up, and Jin Wonwoo followed.

 

“I’ll come with you.”

 

We walked to the convenience store near the restaurant in awkward silence. Jin Wonwoo was the first to break the silence.

 

“I guess you noticed that I still like you.”

 

Ugh, I had a bad feeling about this as soon as he suggested coming along.

 

When I made an uncomfortable expression, Jin Wonwoo shrugged and said nonchalantly, “Don’t worry about it. No guy in our department doesn’t like you. I’m just one of them.”

 

“What?”

 

“Why else would Ozworld go to such lengths to make sure everyone knows you have a boyfriend?”

 

I had always thought Ozworld did that because he was secretly very jealous.

 

“Anyway, it just means that anyone with eyes would naturally be attracted to you. …You’re blushing again. You know you’re pretty now, don’t you?”

 

I pushed him into the convenience store and snapped, “Stop talking nonsense and just get the ice cream.”

 

Jin Wonwoo shrugged and went into the store alone. And then I regretted it. On a Friday night, the campus area was crowded, and the front of the convenience store was swarming with men smoking cigarettes. One of the guys, who had been openly eyeing me, approached.

 

“Hey there.”

 

I awkwardly froze just as I was about to go into the store.

 

“Can I get your number…?”

 

At that moment, a tall man in a black hoodie suddenly stepped in front of me. He was dressed in all black, with a black mask covering his face.

 

“What the…?” The guy who had been trying to ask for my number muttered something under his breath, intimidated, and backed off.

 

The tall man, hands in his pockets, turned to look at me. As soon as our eyes met, I was startled and held my breath. Unlike Ozworld’s dark sapphire eyes, his were a bright, almost mystical shade of blue. Even though most of his face was covered, I could tell he was incredibly handsome.

 

Jingle. The bell attached to the glass door chimed as Jin Wonwoo came out of the convenience store. The man who had been staring at me turned around and left as if his business was done.

 

“Do you know him?”

 

I shook my head and watched the man walk away, feeling a strange pain in my chest. What’s happening? Puzzled, I returned to the restaurant with Jin Wonwoo.

 

* * *

I unexpectedly ran into the man again, this time in front of the vending machine closest to the campus library.

 

“Oh, the man at that time…”

 

I recognized him just as he was getting a drink, and he turned to look at me. He was wearing a black baseball cap and a black mask. But I could tell it was him because of his towering height and the unique aura he had, even when he bent down. And I was certain when I saw his faintly glowing blue eyes.

 

“I didn’t know you were a student here.”

 

Without a word, he handed me the drink. It was the exact one I had been about to choose, so I took it reflexively, and the man turned to leave without hesitation.

 

“Wait a minute.” I stopped him, confused. “Why did you give this to me?”

 

“Drink it.”

 

His voice was as pleasant to listen to as his slightly exposed features and eye color were striking. But still, his attitude was strange.

 

“Do you know me?”

 

“Shin Jiwoo.”

 

“I don’t know you.”

 

“I know.”

 

I was trying to tell him not to be so informal, but it seemed he didn’t understand.

 

I frowned and asked, “Do you like me?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Wait, that wasn’t what I was expecting. I had intended to mock him for giving me the drink, but his straightforward answer caught me off guard. Now, I was the one feeling flustered.

 

“Then I can’t accept this. I have a boyfriend.”

 

“What does that have to do with the drink?”

 

The man, who had been giving curt replies, finally spoke in full sentences. However I was left speechless by the absurdity of it.

 

“Just drink it.” And with that, he walked away. His consistently rude attitude made it clear that his confession was just a thoughtless remark.

 

After that day, I started to run into him more often on campus, mostly in the library, which was strange. He was a foreigner, and though I wasn’t sure if his hair was naturally that color, it was a perfect silver. Besides, he often appeared in the library.

 

The man reminded me of one of the male protagonists in the game I was making. Maybe that’s why I became curious about his identity.

 

“Senior Seonga, do we have an exchange student at our campus with silver hair and light blue eyes? He’s almost 190 cm tall.”

 

“Hmm… I’m not sure. Is he handsome?”

 

“He always wears a baseball cap and mask, so I’m not sure, but probably.”

 

“I’ll find out right away.” As soon as I mentioned that he might be handsome, Senior Seonga eagerly ran out of the classroom.

 

“There’s no need to go that far…” I scratched my cheek and headed to the library to study for exams.

 

I wonder if he’ll be there today.

 

I decided that if I saw him, I’d ask his name.

 

A butterfly?

 

A black butterfly suddenly fluttered past me. Its striking black wings caught my attention. Before I knew it, I found myself following it like a curious child.

 

The black butterfly led me to a secluded corner, and what I found there was shocking. A huge noise was emanating from the space as if it was glitched, like a rendering error. The distorted area was so unsettling that it gave me chills just looking at it.

 

“What is this…?”

 

The black butterfly fluttered in front of the noise, almost as if it was beckoning me closer.

 

Could this glitch-filled void be the answer to the ‘dungeon’? Impulse and decision often go hand in hand, and I decided to follow my intuition. Since my regression, following my instincts has never led me astray.

 

Crackle!

 

“Never trust Ozworld.”

 

“-!”

 

The shock that swept through my body was so intense that it felt like my heart would either burst or stop.

 

Whose voice was that, ringing in my head like an alarm? Who could be warning me so urgently?

 

I staggered away from the noise. The black butterfly circled me once, then sped off like a bee. It seemed to be telling me to get out of here, so I forced my trembling legs to follow it. But something was off.

 

Why is no one around? The space that should have been bustling with students was completely empty.

 

Bzzz!

 

[♥Honey♥]

 

Of all times, Ozworld was calling me now.

 

Bzzz! Bzzz! Bzzz! My phone felt like a ticking time bomb, and I instinctively threw it aside.

 

At that moment, a dizzying headache overwhelmed me. I couldn’t stand anymore and collapsed to the floor as an overwhelming flood of information invaded my mind. These were memories I had forgotten. More precisely, they were past events that Ozworld had erased.

 

“Gasp…!” As I struggled with the terrible feeling that my mind was being torn apart,

 

“Jiwoo, I told you to answer my calls.”

 

Ozworld approached me where I had collapsed.

 

“Who are you really? What are you hiding from me?”

 

Ozworld, however, retorted, “Does that really matter?”

 

“Do you even hear yourself?”

 

I had thought that his inhuman side had disappeared after he turned 18. But I was wrong. He had just become better at hiding it.

 

“Let’s get married.”

 

Of course, he could say something like that in this situation.

 

“You’re insane.”

 

“But you love me, Jiwoo.”

 

I confirmed, “I do.”

 

Ozworld’s face lit up with euphoria.

 

“But that’s all a lie.”

 

I realized that this place and even Ozworld himself were all fake.

 

Ozworld knelt and cupped my cheek, lifting my head. “This is just a backdrop.” He wiped away my tears and spoke soothingly, “The important thing is that I love you, and you love me.”

 

What Ozworld loved was the ‘me that loved him.’ He denied the ‘me that didn’t love him.’ He would even turn back time to change that.

 

Someone, please help me.

 

“If this place is the problem, should we change the setting? I can create the world you want.”

 

Please, someone… Like a broken radio, I kept repeating the same thought until a sudden question arose up. Why am I wishing for someone to help me?

 

The moment that thought crossed my mind, I grabbed Ozworld’s hand, which was holding my cheek. “I’m scared.”

 

Ozworld hugged me tightly as I revealed my vulnerable side. His touch was full of affection as his fingers threaded through my hair. Ironically, it was at that moment that I realized how much he loved me.

 

In this strange world, we embraced each other like tragic lovers.

 

“I don’t want to lose you.”

 

That was the one truth without any lies. In the past and now, losing him has always been my greatest fear.

 

“It’s okay. That won’t happen, Jiwoo.”

 

Ozworld reassured me with clear eyes, then kissed me as if he couldn’t resist. He always got excited whenever I confirmed my love for him. Thanks to that, it was easy to slip the pocket watch out of his grasp.

 

The moment he noticed something was wrong and pulled back,

 

“Your proposal, I refuse it.”

 

Snap! Then I snapped my fingers.