Side Story 37. Penalty (1/2)

A yellow, fist-sized bird was walking down the streets of Eva.

“Keuu….”

But there was something wrong with the way he walked. He was staggering left and right and was clearly drunk. Even his tiny beak was tinged with pink.

The bird was Little Chick.

Not long ago, he set out on a journey, dreaming of a rosy future. But now, he was full of distress.

“I’m… trash….”

A voice full of regret slipped out of his small beak.

Not long into his journey, Little Chick came upon Hui, a kind, white bird with plentiful feathers on her chest, with whom he fell in love. He was glad to have finally met his soulmate.

But that was before he met a red-feathered bird named Ra. Her bold, hot-headed personality caught Little Chick’s eyes, and he found himself attracted to her as he learned more about her warmer, friendlier side over time.

He made a mistake. It was fun while it lasted, but once he finished indulging in Ra’s fluffy feathers, a wave of regret washed over him. Little Chick couldn’t believe that he had ruined his future with Hui with his own hands.

Surprisingly, however, Hui forgave him with incredible generosity. She even accepted his relationship with Ra. “What’s done is done,” she said.

Little Chick vowed to himself to never make the same mistake again.

…But he did it again yesterday.

He did feel a little cheated by what had happened, but he admitted it was no use crying over spilled milk and that he was at fault for breaking his promise to Hui.

He was naive and careless. Having spent his entire life on the front line, he was defenseless against the seduction of a pretty pink bird called Re.

His heart sank when he opened his eyes in the morning and saw Re chirping beside him.

He couldn’t stay with Re, but he was too ashamed to go back to Hui and Ra. Little Chick wandered about for a while before finally setting course for Eva.

He knew he could rely on Seol Jihu no matter what.

“Partner!”

Ring! Little Chick called loudly as he opened the door of Seol Jihu’s restaurant.

“Partner! Where is my partner?”

As soon as he entered the restaurant, he saw Seol Jihu’s back.

Tears began to well up in Little Chick’s pea-sized eyes.

Suddenly, the times when they fought alongside each other, flashed through his mind.

Back then, Seol Jihu and Little Chick shined brighter than the stars in the sky.

How had he gone from that to this?

“Partner! You need to listen to m—”

Little Chick paused without finishing his sentence.

Something was wrong with Seol Jihu. He wasn’t looking back, even though there was no way he couldn’t have heard Little Chick.

Little Chick then realized Seol Jihu was on his knees, as was the woman next to him.

The atmosphere was cold and frigid.

Little Chick, who slowly lifted his eyes….

“Huk!”

…Gasped in horror at the sight of the woman sitting in the chair opposite the pair.

‘What the? Why is….’

A pair of pea-sized eyes quickly glanced about the room.

Little Chick gulped. He immediately understood what was going on.

Of course, he couldn’t quite figure out the details just by looking, but it was still clear to him that his partner was in a similar position as himself.

‘I should help him.’

Little Chick thought. He wanted to defend Seol Jihu, perhaps because he saw himself in his partner.

However, contrary to his intentions, he started backing away—because he was scared.

The woman in the chair was no longer the Seo Yuhui he knew. She was a demon, wearing only the mask of Seo Yuhui. Little Chick honestly thought she looked stronger and scarier than any opponent he had ever faced in his life.

Ring! The door opened and closed again.

‘I’m sorry, Partner! Please forgive me…!’

Little Chick ran away, scattering his tears in the air.

As soon as he left, silence once again descended in the restaurant.

“Huu….”

Suddenly, a long sigh broke out.

Seo Yuhui, who had been incessantly rubbing her temples, slowly opened her eyes.

Seol Jihu and Teresa continued kneeling before her, with guilty looks on their faces.

There were spots of kimchi juice scattered on Teresa’s cheek from when Seo Yuhui slapped her with cabbage kimchi when the princess foolishly provoked her by announcing that she would “willingly accept any kind of punishment.”

Teresa looked up at the sound of a sigh, but when her eyes met Seo Yuhui’s, she quickly lowered her head once again. That icy glare was enough to intimidate even the Princess of Haramark, famous for her audacity.

Phi Sora, who had been silently watching them from the sidelines, clicked her tongue.

‘Miss Seo Yuhui…. She’s no joke….’

Seo Yuhui, who had been glaring at Teresa, shifted her eyes to Seol Jihu, who kept his head down.

She looked at him with both love and hatred in her heart.

The two emotions clashed violently inside her, but in the end, love triumphed.

“…Jihu.”

Seol Jihu slowly raised his head.

His face was dark with shame and guilt.

Seo Yuhui sighed again.

“Come here.”

Seol Jihu blinked, doubting his ears.

Seo Yuhui clenched her teeth.

“It’s okay. Come here.”

Seol Jihu glanced at Teresa before turning his gaze back to Seo Yuhui. He stood up and began to approach her very slowly.

His hesitation must have instilled pity in Seo Yuhui, for she opened her arms and embraced him.

“You were scared, right?”

“…”

“It’s okay. Everything’s okay. You did nothing wrong.”

Seol Jihu had no doubt that she would break up with him this time. The unexpected hug brought tears to his eyes.

“It’s okay. Let’s just forget about yesterday, all right? Think of it like this. A passing dog bit you. Or you stepped on poop.”

Teresa, who suddenly became a passing dog and poop, looked at them bitterly.

“My Jihu’s done nothing wrong. You’re just a victim. The perpetrator is the one at fault.”

Seo Yuhui looked at Teresa as she gently stroked Seol Jihu’s back.

More precisely, she glared at Teresa with a look full of contempt.

“Miss Teresa.”

“…Yes. Yes!”

Teresa immediately straightened her posture.

“Is the entire royal family of Haramark behind this? I just want to confirm.”

“Pardon? N-No!”

Startled by the question, Teresa quickly shook her head from left to right and back again. The truth was—yes, they were all in cahoots, but she couldn’t risk being honest.

“That’s good. At least.”

Teresa had an ominous premonition the moment she heard the words at least.

“About yesterday.”

And her premonition….

“I’ll file a formal complaint with Haramark.”

…Soon proved correct.

“You’re wrong if you thought I’d let this slide. I’ll inform Valhalla, the Temple of Luxuria, and the other organizations throughout Paradise of your wrongdoing. And I’ll issue a statement calling for Teresa Hussey’s punishment. I hope you’re ready.”

In short, Seo Yuhui was determined to make Teresa pay.

The princess’ expression fell.

“What’s with that look? Did you really think I’d accept you after what you did?”

“N-No….”

Perplexed, Teresa glanced at Phi Sora, who was standing behind Seo Yuhui. Why can she but not me? Her face seemed to say.

Seo Yuhui let out a chuckle of disdain.

“Miss Phi Sora is different. Both of them made a mistake while drunk.”

“I also—”

“No. I won’t hear it.”

Seo Yuhui cut her off coldly.

“You raped the hero who saved Paradise. Don’t you think you deserve a punishment for that?”

“Rape?”