Chapter 192
A few days later.
After digging into Blitzen’s whereabouts, I found out that he was in the shopping district.
It wasn’t difficult to figure out where Blitzen or the twins were at any given time, even without gathering information.
‘They always drag along a chorus of squeals wherever they go.’
That’s the power of their looks.
I headed to the shopping district, and it didn’t take long to locate Blitzen.
A group of girls were gathered in one spot, chatting away like a flock of birds.
‘This is it.’
There was no mistaking it.
I knew because their conversation went something like this—
“Do you really not have anything to pawn?”
“I told you, I don’t! You said you didn’t either!”
“If I had anything, I’d pretend to pawn it just to go inside the pawnshop.”
“Can’t we just go in and take another look? He’s too handsome to only see once!”
“That wasn’t just blonde hair—it was sunlight! He had the sun on his head!”
“What are you talking about? He is the sun!”
“And his eyes… rubies. Oh my…”
—Yeah, that could only mean Blitzen was nearby.
If there was another guy who’s that handsome around, the entire town would have been buzzing about it.
Handsome men were a rare species.
I stared at the girls with slightly tired eyes.
‘…Blitzen is handsome, but is he really that handsome?’
As I thought about it, I shook my head.
‘I guess I’m just too used to Dad’s face.’
Sure, Dad was absurdly handsome, but Blitzen had a face that was impressive in its own right.
Anyway, it seemed like Blitzen was inside the pawnshop.
‘Why would he go to a pawnshop?’
As I pondered that, I heard someone grumbling behind me.
“How much more are you going to buy…!”
A voice, almost tearful, urged me.
I turned around to see a mountain of herbs stacked high.
I spoke to the pile of herbs.
“I’ll take everything over there.”
“What?!”
Han Ji-hyuk’s face popped out from behind the mountain of herbs.
“I can still see your face, so you can definitely carry more.”
I grinned, and Han Ji-hyuk shouted,
“Hey!”
“I’m kidding. There’s nothing left to buy anyway. You’ve cleaned them out.”
I pretended to browse the street, but I was really just keeping an eye on the pawnshop to see if Blitzen would come out.
Han Ji-hyuk lowered his voice and asked,
“Weren’t you just pretending to shop so you could run into him by chance? Why are you buying so much?”
“It’s a waste of time and money if I only pretend. I’m buying because I actually need this stuff.”
Might as well take care of everything in one go while I’m out.
Doesn’t he know about efficient housebound routes?
This guy clearly wasted his time in Korea.
Han Ji-hyuk glanced at the heap of herbs in his arms.
It was all the same herb: tricolor grass.
Whenever it appeared on the market, I snatched up all of it.
“Are you trying to corner the market or something?”
“Even if I wanted to, there’s not enough tricolor grass around to hoard.”
At least in the Astra shopping district, I could find this much.
“Then why are you buying so much tricolor grass?”
I just smiled.
‘Why else? Because it’ll all come in handy if I stockpile it.’
“We’re going to run out of herbs at this rate. Handle it carefully. It’s precious.”
“You won’t even tell me why.”
Han Ji-hyuk grumbled but lifted the herb bags higher.
Just then, something caught my eye.
“Ah!”
“What? What is it now?”
Han Ji-hyuk, startled, poked his head out over the herb pile again.
“They’re selling tricolor grass over there! I can buy even more!”
Across the street, a shabby herb shop had bundles of tricolor grass on display.
I turned to Han Ji-hyuk and beamed.
“Isn’t that great?”
“…Yeah. Really great. Fantastic…”
A little while later.
I walked out of the herb shop with Han Ji-hyuk, who looked somewhat resigned.
Though, I wasn’t sure if he was actually resigned, since his face was completely hidden behind the mound of herbs.
As we walked side by side, I overheard some hushed whispers.
Thinking it might be news about Blitzen, I perked up my ears—
‘Wait, did I just hear my name?’
Was I imagining it?
I turned around to see a group of boys quickly look away as our eyes met.
They were clearly whispering about me.
‘…What’s going on?’
“Do I look strange today?”
I asked Han Ji-hyuk, and he answered grumpily.
“You look strange every day.”
“Do you want to die?”
Even though his face was hidden, my frosty tone seemed to reach him, and Han Ji-hyuk winced.
“Why is everyone staring at me?”
“It’s probably because of the popularity contest.”
“Popularity contest? What contest?”
“It’s a poll. Who’s more popular—the pure and delicate Selene, like a white lily, or the talented and glamorous Erylotte, like a rose?”
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