S-Rank is My Side Character - Chapter 30

‘…… I made a mistake.’

Binnari remained silent upon hearing Ihyeon’s words. Ihyeon, who was almost nestled in Binnari’s arms, slightly lowered his eyes. He became afraid to lift his head again and check Binnari’s expression.

For him, being rejected was always a fearful thing. He had honed his speech to ensure that no one could ever reject him, but in a moment of impulse, he had failed, and a sense of self-reproach dominated his entire being.

“Ah, um, Binnari. I’m sorry. It must have been sudden for you, I……”

“Then, you.”

Clang! The mug she was holding fell to the floor. Ihyeon’s body fell backwards. Binnari, who had climbed on top of Ihyeon and tightly grasped his hands, stared at him with an expressionless face.

“…… Binnari?”

“You know, if you do that. What if, I……”

Eyes that had turned pitch black without any light stared straight at him. Binnari’s interlocked hands were filled with strength.

Ihyeon looked at Binnari, thinking she might have been displeased. Her brows were tightly furrowed.

“What if, I.”

Seeing Binnari unable to utter the next words, Ihyeon smiled slightly.

‘Ah, she’s just. Feeling anxious.’

Behind Binnari’s back, a dark psychic power was slowly spreading. Wherever the psychic power touched, there was an illusion of cracking. Binnari was emitting an illusion without any signal.

Illusionists find it more comfortable to convey through illusions than words. That’s why he had heard that they sharply arm their minds every time to clearly distinguish between reality and illusion, but if she was emitting psychic power like this without any awareness.

There was no doubt that Ihyeon’s words had stimulated Binnari that much.

He liked moments like this. He liked the moments when Binnari and Rude were so overwhelmed with the affection they received from him that they couldn’t help it. It was even more so because they had rejected all affection from others.

Who on earth would dislike being treated as special? Ihyeon always showed a leisurely and perfect side to Binnari, but he was also a human who felt anxiety.

It’s just that his way of expressing anxiety was more cunning than Binnari’s.

“It’s okay, Binnari. You don’t have to say it.”

He held her interlocked hands tightly and smiled with his eyes half-closed. Ihyeon, who gave his usual bright smile, spoke in a light voice. Because Binnari was weak to this kind of voice. It was an act done under thorough calculation.

“No matter what happens, I’m on your side, Binnari. I can’t help it.”

“Even you wouldn’t be able to say that if you knew what I was thinking.”

“Binnari, I’m a clergyman. And not a believer.”

Ihyeon closed his eyes tightly and smiled. The fluorescent light flickered and then went out completely, and there was a rumbling, crashing sound of the house collapsing.

But this was an illusion. Ihyeon remained unshaken. He read Binnari’s true message. That’s what a clergyman does. In the dark room, he reassured Binnari with a smiling face.

“How could I betray you when you are the direction of my life?”

At his words, the sound stopped. Binnari’s dark psychic power that had been spreading all around was slowly being retracted, and the pitch-black eyes that seemed to not even let light in returned.

Binnari, who seemed to have come to her senses, hastily removed her hands and stood up straight from the sofa. With a flushed face, perhaps from embarrassment, Binnari raised her hands and stammered.

“Gasp, sorry! No, I didn’t mean to do this.”

“It’s okay! It was me who provoked you first.”

“Ack! What are those cracks on the wall? I’ll fix it, just a moment!!”

Binnari turned her head unnaturally and waved her hands frantically at the cracks filling the wall. The dark psychic power dispersed again, revealing a smooth wall.

In fact, since they both knew it was an illusion, it was an action to awkwardly escape the situation out of embarrassment. Ihyeon, who knew her, reassured her slightly.

“I’m really okay! I heard that those who use illusions often get overwhelmed by anxiety. I’m glad if you feel reassured.”

Ihyeon, who sensed that it was time to slightly distance himself, returned to a businesslike attitude. Because Binnari yearned for others’ affection but feared having a truly deep emotional relationship with others.

“…… Phew. Thank you.”

Binnari let out a deep sigh, seemingly relieved. She retracted the illusion scattered throughout the house and fiddled with the side of her hair.

“Maybe it’s because my psychic power is a bit strong, but when my anxiety or fatigue increases, there are times when I get devoured by my own psychic power.”

“I’ll keep that in mind from now on! You must have been tired this time, right?”

“Probably……”

Binnari ran her hand over her face once and then down. Ihyeon was also fiddling with the side of his hair. A brief silence flowed between them.

As they were busy racking their brains, glancing at each other, trying to figure out how to break this awkward atmosphere.

[Please answer the phone. This phone will explode if not answered within 3 seconds. 3, 2……]

“Ack, just a moment!!”

Ihyeon’s cell phone, which was left in the living room, rang at a good timing. Binnari flinched at the strange ringtone and stared at the cell phone, but when she saw ‘Guild Leader’ on the screen, she nodded her head in understanding.

“Yes, yes, Guild Leader. Ah, yes. I’m at home right now. Yes, Rude has woken up. No. Nothing much, she just seems to have been tired. Yes, yes, ah…… Should I ask her? Ah. Yes, I understand!”

Ihyeon tapped the phone and handed it to Binnari. After clearing her throat a few times, Binnari, who imitated Rude’s voice with an illusion, took the phone. The Guild Leader’s voice sounded a bit tired.

“Hello. Guild Leader.”

[Yes, Rude. Good evening. Are you feeling a bit better?]

“Yes, thanks to you, I feel a bit better.”

[What have I done to be thanked? I called to check on your condition. I asked Hunter Kang Ihyeon to tell you, but he wouldn’t say a word.]

“I just woke up. I think that’s why I couldn’t contact you.”

Ihyeon and Binnari sat up straight on the sofa, tense at the sudden call from the Guild Leader.

Although she says she called to check on the condition, such words cannot be easily believed. They knew well that the main point of a Korean sentence comes at the end.

[Anyway, I’m glad there’s nothing wrong. I’ve processed it as sick leave, so don’t worry about the annual leave issue. Rest well and come to work the day after tomorrow.]

“Yes……!”

And the upright spine bent into a C-shape again at the sound of sick leave. Binnari’s tension completely dissipated with the feeling of having her precious annual leave as an office worker protected. Then.

[By the way, about that school. Was there anyone else besides Hunter Rude and Hunter Kang Ihyeon?]

“Yes…… Yes?!”

Suddenly, the Guild Leader’s uppercut came in. Binnari stood up from her seat in surprise and then sat back down. The Guild Leader continued.

[No. Looking back at the incident, it seems that someone intentionally stole the mana stone and broke the flow, and the artificial mana was barely holding on. It wasn’t your power.]

“Ah, um. That’s……”

Binnari made a defeated expression. Ihyeon was also squinting at Binnari next to her.

‘I thought I had erased all traces by rebuilding the school.’

Binnari, who newly realized that it was not easy to live as a hidden powerhouse in Korea, desperately searched for an excuse. However, the Guild Leader, who had already understood Binnari’s silence, spoke again.

[Could it be an unregistered awakener?]

“Yes. The person was a bit reluctant to reveal themselves……”

[It would be fine if they were under 15 years old. But that’s not the case, right? Seeing as they’re a high school student.]

Binnari smiled awkwardly, feeling as if Min Jaeyoon was crying out, “You must keep my secret−!!!” The Guild Leader sighed deeply over the phone.

[Rude, lying in this situation could be worse. You know that, right? First of all, there’s a high possibility that we’ll have to use force, but aside from that, that friend may face legal disadvantages later on.]

“Yes……”

Kang Sujin spoke with an edge in her voice over the phone. It wasn’t an accusing tone, but it was enough to persistently pick at someone.

[It’s troublesome for you to lie to me of all people. I’m the Guild Leader here. If something goes wrong, you, Rude, may have to take full responsibility. Can you do that?]

“No.”

Binnari, who hadn’t been scolded by someone in a very long time, held the phone and bowed at a 90-degree angle. Ihyeon was watching with wide eyes next to her.

[Tell me who that friend is. Or at least through Hunter Kang Ihyeon. If it’s revealed that you deliberately hid it, you don’t know how it will be used against you.]

“They said they don’t want to reveal it…… What happens if I tell you. Then.”

The Guild Leader fell silent at Binnari’s question. It seemed she thought that Rude, who had also been the talk of the town for a long time, would not readily reveal the name.

[They’ll have to register as an awakener. Whether they become a hunter or not will be their choice, but if they can create a mana stone to that extent, I think they’ll probably become a hunter.]

“Why do we have to go that far? Can’t we just handle it anonymously? There’s a reason they don’t want to reveal themselves, so why must we expose them?”

Binnari made a grim expression and tightly gripped the phone at the Guild Leader’s words. Rude’s voice coming from her mouth was suppressed.

“You say it’s their choice, but honestly, it’s not really a choice, and you know that too, Guild Leader. With an awakener of that level of power, there will always be pressure to get involved as a hunter. Then who benefits from that? We could just ignore it and move on……!”

Binnari herself had received tremendous pressure about the sense of duty as a hunter while using the sub-character Rude, and Kang Ihyeon next to her had also worked as a hunter to the point of wearing himself out. It was obvious that Min Jaeyoon would also end up doing hunter work despite not wanting to.

As if Min Jaeyoon was herself, Binnari was projecting her own emotions onto him.

[This is unpleasant. Why are you getting angry at me?]

The Guild Leader’s sharp voice cut off Rude’s words. Only then did Binnari come to her senses and grip the phone.

It wasn’t even an issue to get angry at the Guild Leader, but she ended up getting angry. Binnari pressed her brows tightly. Ihyeon was patting her next to her as if to calm her down.

“…… I apologize.”

[Rude, this is a matter of responsibility. Of course, I understand your feelings, but this can’t be resolved with emotions alone. Just as that student’s feelings are important, the feelings of the victims who want to know the truth are also important.]

“…… Yes.”

[I’ll give you two days. Get the student’s consent within that time. Don’t forget that I’ve been very considerate. And don’t be so confident that everyone will think like you. That’s arrogance.]

They were all correct words, so there was nothing to say. Feeling as if she had been hit on the head, Binnari could only repeat “Yes, yes” like a broken machine.

Finally, the Guild Leader spoke to Binnari in a slightly softened manner.

[…… I was worried, but as expected of you, Rude. I’m glad I can continue to trust and entrust you. Good work. Please hand the phone to Hunter Kang Ihyeon. You did well today. See you the day after tomorrow.]