Bab 100: Mandatory Beach Episode – I
A private booth in the plane. There, Hannah stared at the former lover of her husband. The one who still clearly held a flame for Jihu in her heart.
Seonhwa took a long drink from her wine and then let out a sigh. It was weary. Fatigued. Even so, she held her head high and looked at Hannah. Placing a smile on her face, she said, "How have you been, Miss Kim?"
Miss Kim. It wasn't correct anymore, but Hannah didn't hold it against her.
If Hannah was in her position... If Hannah was being honest, she didn't think that she could forgive Seonhwa if the positions were flipped.
A smooth relationship just picking up again. And then out of the blue, it turned out that the one she loved hadn't just chosen someone else, but married that person in the blink of an eye and still had the nerve to say that he loved her too.
Really, it was no wonder that the seemingly ordinary beauty across from her was able to become the Sacred Empress. The amount of mental fortitude she displayed... it was incredible.
And also reminded Hannah that her husband was really the worst type of person to string Seonhwa along...
Ah. No. Stringing her along would mean that Jihu was doing it just for fun.
He might be a crazy, reckless, suicidal, and ridiculous bastard, but Jihu wasn't that sort of person. He wasn't a second Sung Shihyun who just wanted a harem and lived off sex, alcohol, and pretty women... Even if Jihu was the worst kind of carnivore in the bedroom.
Seriously, how the hell could he keep going for that long and hold her in so many positions like that...?
"Miss Kim?"
Hannah flinched and then cleared her throat. "Sorry. Lost in thought for a moment."
Seonhwa smiled and said, "It's fine. I'm sure that you have a lot to think about."
Hannah sipped on her own glass of wine and said, "I could say the same back to you." She frowned and said, "Are you okay with this?"
"Mm..." Seonhwa sipped on her wine again and glanced at Jihu. "I would be lying if I said my heart didn't hurt." She looked back at Hannah and laughed. "After all, I was just getting back to normal with Jihu. He was just getting back to normal. Now though..." She took a large drink from her wine glass and sighed. "Well. It's complicated. I'm happy for you though!" She smiled and said, "Jihu really cares for you. And you two make a good match too."
Hannah stared at Seonhwa.
She was being genuine. But at the same time, she was holding something back. Like she was purposefully drawing a line.
Something that Jihu honestly should have done in the first place, but at this rate everyone would get hurt. So...
It pained Hannah to compromise like this, but...
"You know that he cares for you too, right?"
Seonhwa paused and then slowly nodded. "I know." She sighed and said, "I know. And that's why it's hard." She looked up at Hannah and let out a weak smile. "I was number one. The one who he loved the most. And now..." She laughed and shook her head.
Ah. Yes... Hannah could see how that would weigh on her.
Seonhwa was Jihu's girlfriend. She even stuck with him through his entire gambling phase when he was self-destructing. But when he decided to pick his life up and pull himself together, she was left by the wayside.
And then Hannah swooped in and took Jihu for herself.
...It was more complicated than that, but it was essentially what happened. Not only that, but in Paradise, Jihu was a natural lady's man and charmed all sorts of other girls, all while distancing himself from Seonhwa.
And now he was going back to Seonhwa after he was married and saying that he still loved her.
But even if he did, since Hannah was Jihu's wife, all that Seonhwa could really be was Jihu's mistress. Earth didn't allow for polygamy, after all.
It was technically legal if you got married in different countries and did some legal loopholes, but there would still be that stigma.
And Jihu's family knew now too.
'Dammit, Jihu. Why the hell did you have to leave me with this mess to clean up?'
It was always like this with him.
Hannah should have known. Didn't she say it herself? That guy's wife was going to always need some headache pills with the messes he made...
"But enough about me." Seonhwa shook her head and looked at Hannah with a bright smile. "How has Jihu been? How did you two meet, and what's he been like? Is he still as much of a prankster as I remember?"
Hannah laughed. "Prankster... Well, he does act a bit playful, but he isn't really a prankster. Instead..." She thought about it and said, "Do you know about those dense Japanese animation protagonists?"
"Mm. A little?"
"If anything, Jihu's like that. Plus there's how he seems to be a doormat when it comes to women before pulling the rug out from under them by giving them everything they want and more..."
Seonhwa laughed, looking nostalgic. "Yes... That sounds like Jihu alright."
Hannah looked at Seonhwa and said, "What was he like in the past? You know, when he was younger? From how his family's reacted and what I know, he changed a lot. Did he?"
"Well..."
xxx
"It's not fair, Flonnie!" Yuhui pouted and then took a long sip from an apple juice box. "You're hogging Jihu!"
Flone shook her head and said, "I'm not hogging him."
Teresa drained a can of beer and then glared at Flone. "You are! And you already had your first time with him! That's not fair! We talked about this! It was supposed to be a double attack!"
Flone coughed and then blushed. "W-Well... I couldn't resist?"
"You're a Saintess!" Teresa grabbed another beer can from a nearby cooler and said, "Show some modesty!"
Flone huffed and said, "I wasn't a Saintess by choice! Besides, I died a virgin! And I've already been waiting thousands of years with all of that pent up frustration! You've just been waiting a few months!"
"Still!"
Yuhui looked between Flone and Teresa. After that, she giggled.
Teresa rounded on Yuhui and said, "What's so funny?!"
Yuhui shook her head and said, "It's just..." She smiled and said, "I serve the goddess of lust, but it seems like you two would be much better candidates than I am."
Teresa blushed and stammered, "I-I would not!"
Flone giggled and said, "So you're shy about that now, Resa?"
Teresa crossed her arms and said, "I'm not shy! I just... want to spend some time with my hero more."
Yuhui placed her juice box on her chest and then leaned forward, holding her face up with her hands. "Don't we all?"
The three shared a collective sigh.
After that, Teresa looked to Flone and said, "So what are we doing over here anyway? And why are we traveling by this metal carriage?"
Flone leaned back and said, "It's called an airplane, Resa. But we're here to let Jihu and everyone else relax."
"Mm." Teresa nodded and said, "I suppose they all deserve a rest after that chaos. Let that bug squirm for a bit trying to sort things out, right?" She grinned and sipped on her can of beer.
Yuhui giggled and said, "Well, that woman's definitely in for a big surprise if she thinks everything is going to keep going her way."
Teresa paused and said, "Speaking of things going their way..." She looked at Yuhui and said, "Are you sure it's alright for you to go on this trip? Weren't you worried about those old bastards and stuffy priests doing something?"
"Hmph." Yuhui scoffed and then crushed her juicebox, finishing it all in one go. After that, she tossed it to the side and said, "Those bugs can squirm around all they want to try and change my mind, but I've already decided on sticking to Jihu. If they're that upset, they can bring it up with the goddess... Or try prying me away from Jihu themselves."
Flone laughed. "That'll be fun to watch." She leaned forward and said, "If people think our Jihu is weak right now, they're going to be in for a biiig surprise."
Teresa stared at Flone and said, "Like the 'big surprise' you had the other day, Flonnie?"
Flone smiled and tugged at her shirt.
Yuhui sighed. "In any case..." She looked at the others and said, "What do you girls think we should do first when we land? You haven't seen the ocean yet, right Resa? Do you want to go swimming?"
"Swimming?" Teresa hummed and said, "I guess that'd be fun..."
Flone shook her head and said, "Forget about swimming! The first thing we do is to dress in sexy swimsuits and then grab Jihu before anyone else does!"
Teresa blinked.
Yuhui paused and tilted her head.
Flone looked at them and frowned. "What? We've got to secure your places in line before the other girls squeeze in, don't we? Oh, and speaking of other girls..."
xxx
The moment that the plane landed, I grabbed my luggage and dashed off.
Totally not because I lost the poker game or anything. Definitely not. I won that, and easily too.
After all, even if my luck and abilities were sealed, it wasn't like my trained senses and body suddenly vanished.
Reading cues, catching the cards people held from the reflection in their eyes, keeping track of the cards that had been dealt already and doing some sleight of hand to pull out barely winning hands while purposefully losing a few here and there.
Yeah, it was easy.
That wasn't the reason why I was running. No, the reason why I ran was-
"OPPA! You cheater!"
"Dammit, Darling! I want a rematch! A rematch!"
"You hustling brat!"
...Was because I got found out.
Fortunately, I was closest to the door and Shin was a total bro who let me out first.
...He also had on the look of a guy staring at a person on death row, but I decided to ignore that.
Also because I felt a pair of very thirsty gazes on me from the back of the plane that had to be Yuhui and Resa.
I felt a bit bad about bailing on everyone, especially Seonhwa, but I needed allies and quickly before I got dragged into a giant mess.
Hopping off the plane, I smoothed my clothes, adjusted my bag, and then quickly headed down the hall towards the reception area.
Reception hall?
The place where people waited to pick up new arrivals.
Since we arrived on a private jet, there weren't many people waiting around at our gate. In fact, there were only two. A man with neatly swept gray hair and sharp eyes standing next to an austere beauty with long blonde hair and hazel eyes that almost seemed gold.
A beautiful couple that could have stepped right out of an old portrait of European royalty... if not for the fact that the man was wearing a colorful Hawaiian shirt and shorts while the woman was wearing a matching floral dress.
But that wasn't important. The important thing was that they were definitely the perfect shields- I mean, comrades to resolve this mess.
Without missing a beat... and with ignoring the quickly approaching footsteps from behind, I raised my hand and waved at the two. "Ghio!" I called out to him and quickly made my way over.
Ghio waved back, a bright smile cracking his usually stoic expression. "Benefactor!" He held out his hand and then started talking in accented Korean. "Have you been eating well?"
I laughed and shook his hand before answering back in Romanian. "I've been eating great, and I appreciate you taking the time to learn a bit of Korean, but it's not necessary."
Ghio blinked and then he shook his head. "Of course." He answered back in Romanian and said, "You never cease to impress, Benefactor."
"And I keep telling you that it's just Jihu, Ghio. We're brothers in arms at the least now, and I consider you a bro anyway." I smiled and finished the handshake. After that, I looked over at the side and said, "And you're Marika, right? Have you been adjusting well back to normal life? And side effects?"
Marika smiled at me. "I have been doing wonderfully, Benefactor."
I felt my eye twitch at her response.
Marika covered her mouth and laughed. "My apologies. Would you prefer Jihu then?"
"That'd be great. Thanks-"
"OPPA!" Maria called out from behind me and said, "Get back here!"
"Noona!"
And that was Sungjin.
"Please, calm down! You're making a scene!"
Ghio blinked and then looked back at me. "...Did something happen?"
I cleared my throat and said, "Since you're here, I'm assuming you came in a car to pick us up, right?"
"Y-Yes. There were arrangements for rental cars for the other members to use, but I had wished to personally receive-"
"Great." I patted his shoulder and said, "You're a great man. The best comrade I could hope for. Let's go."
"P-Pardon?"
[Scanning for location of Ghio's rental car... Match found.]
A trail of golden light emerged in front of me. My eyes reacting to my will and showing me the way.
Of course, since I used them, I could also see a giant tsunami of crimson coming up from behind.
Not the dangerous kind that my eyes usually showed... though considering the overwhelming affection coming my way, it'd be dangerous in a different way.
"It's the black sedan with the army keychain dangling on the rearview mirror, right?"
"Y-Yes. That is the one. But how-"
"Talk later. First, if you really want to pay off that debt, get me out of here ASAP."
Ghio looked confused.
Marika on the other hand looked amused. Especially after glancing behind me.
Not sure exactly what she saw since I didn't dare turn around, but I had a feeling it was bad.
"...Very well. This way then." Ghio nodded and started walking towards the parking lot.
"You're the best, Bro."
Ghio cracked a smile at that. And then he paused and said, "Though I must say, you are a great man indeed. To have so many beauties chasing after you..."
Marika cleared her throat. "Dear?"
Ghio laughed and pulled Marika into a hug. "I am merely making an observation, Beloved."
"...Of course. I'm sorry to have doubted you, my love." After saying that, Marika leaned on Ghio's shoulder.
...Yeah. This was totally karma coming back to bite me, wasn't it?
Well. Better dealing with watching lovebirds than being smothered by love from my girls, the women who want to be my girls, and the women who are being tsun about being in love with me.
...Dammit. Ian is going to roast me about being a harem protagonist the moment he sees me, isn't he?
xxx
"Achoo!" Ian wiped his nose and frowned.
Hugo paused in the middle of eating a burger and said, "Catching a cold already, old man?"
"Rude." Ian reached into a nearby cooler and pulled out a beer. "I'm far from an old man. Need I remind you how many broads I pulled with this sexy salt-and-pepper gentleman appearance?"
Hugo clicked his tongue and muttered, "That's just because these girls don't like chocolate."
A deep sigh echoed from nearby. Seora.
She lowered the 'Dating Guys for Dummies' book she was reading and said, "If you two are going to be misogynistic and boast about women, could you do it somewhere else? Or should I tell Oppa about how we had to call security because our reliable friends decided to go flirting instead of watching over us?"
Hugo flinched and quickly did a salute. "Sorry, ma'am! Won't happen again, ma'am!"
Ian let out a nervous laugh and cracked open his beer. "T-There's no need to go that far, Miss Seora."
"...I hope so. Oppa's here to relax after his hard work, not solve problems. Try to remember that."
After that, Seora checked on her sister napping on a beach towel beside her. That done, she went back to reading her book.
Hugo shook his head and went back to eating.
As for Ian...
He glanced off towards the airport in the distance and muttered, "Dammit, friend. Why do you have to pull all the crazy beauties and turn that crazy into being crazy about you?"
"What was that, Mister Ian?"
Ian laughed and said, "Nothing, Miss Seora." He went back to sipping on his beer.
Jihu really couldn't get here soon enough...
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone