111) Chapter 17. What Should I Do? (6)

“Pfft.”

And there was one more person who almost sprayed something just like Nam Jinwoo.

It was Soi.

Whether she found the girl’s comment funny or she just couldn’t hold it in, Soi bowed her head and shook her shoulders for a while, barely managing to swallow her food instead of spitting it out.

No—thinking about it again, it seemed less like she burst out at the word “succubus” and more like she burst out because Jinwoo actually sprayed water.

“A succubus is female, though?”

Chae‑yi asked.

It didn’t sound like a serious question—more like she was continuing the joke. Maybe not spit‑take funny, but still amusing.

“Huh? But doesn’t he feel more like a succubus than an incubus? You know, how should I put it…”

The girl hummed, thinking for a moment.

“Incubi feel like they sneak in at night and pounce on you, right? But he doesn’t give off that kind of vibe.”

Wow, surprising.

I don’t know if succubi actually exist in this world, but at least in terms of gender, she guessed correctly.

Come to think of it, in the original story she was the type who teased Nam Jinwoo a lot. Not crossing the line, but she had a big role in the cross‑dressing episode.

…….

But then why did Jinwoo get embarrassed back then? If she’s originally a girl, cross‑dressing is basically just wearing her own clothes, isn’t it?

Maybe it was because she wore a heroine’s outfit.

“Th‑Th‑Th‑That…”

Jinwoo stuttered badly.

“T‑That’s… not… like that…”

“No one said it was. I’m saying your ability feels that way.”

“S‑Succubus ability feels like that?”

“Uh, I don’t actually know?”

The girl’s expression went blank at Jinwoo’s question.

“Wait, are succubi even real? If unicorns exist, maybe succubi do too?”

“…What does a horned horse existing have to do with succubi existing?”

Hyeonji finally spoke.

“Well, unicorns were supposed to be imaginary creatures… before they were discovered, I mean.”

“Yeah, that is weird. There are way stranger animals in the world than a horned horse. Why did everyone assume they didn’t exist?”

In a world where common sense is twisted, conversations like this happen.

Even if they exist, there aren’t many of them.

For reference, that unicorn seems to have been basically released onto campus, because at some point it started hanging out in a corner of the lawn, peacefully munching grass.

…Weren’t horned horses supposed to be dangerous? Are the students here so used to danger because they’re superhumans?

Every time I walk past, it tries to follow me. Maybe because I’m always with Soi, Chae‑yi, Hyeonji, and Jinwoo—a group of pure girls—so it’s even more drawn to us.

“Anyway, succubi absorb life force and use it as their own power, right? In stories, it’s more like energy absorption than stealing superpowers, but isn’t it similar?”

“Now that you say it, kind of.”

At the girl’s words, Soi nodded with a strangely convinced expression, and Jinwoo’s face turned red.

Maybe I should step in and defend her a little.

After all, she dresses as a boy because she doesn’t want people to know she’s a girl.

“If he were a s‑succubus…”

Right. Since unicorns came up—

“U‑Unicorns… wouldn’t be interested in him.”

“……”

The room fell silent instantly.

“N‑No, no, no.”

Chae‑yi quickly waved her hands.

“Unicorns don’t only chase after people with no experience, okay? Didn’t they say they can’t tell the difference with kids our age?”

“O‑Oh, did they?”

Soi answered reflexively.

“It changes when you get older, though.”

Chae‑yi added.

We were probably all thinking of the principal.

That was… well.

Shocking, I guess? She’s definitely old enough that being married wouldn’t be strange.

“But I heard something else too.”

The girl continued cluelessly.

“If someone has too much experience, apparently unicorns can tell.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah. If they can tell when someone has no experience because they’ve gone a long time without it, then the opposite is also true, right? If someone has a ton of experience, that should also be noticeable. So if it’s, like, they do it so much that it's really obvious? Maybe they can tell?”

“Whatever the case, it’s not characteristic of a succubus then.”

Soi answered blankly.

“……”

Jinwoo couldn’t say a single word and just focused on eating with a burning face.

I ended up teasing her even more by accident…

“But you guys.”

A trembling voice made us turn our heads. Hyeonji was gripping her chopsticks, face red, glaring at us.

“Do you really… have to talk about this… while eating?”

“Ah.”

We all fell silent.

“S‑Sorry…”

With nothing else to say, I quickly apologized and buried my face over my tray.

*

Normally, Soi or Chae‑yi—or both—are always stuck to my side.

But sometimes one of them is gone, or both are.

The biggest reason they stick to me is overprotectiveness. I went through a lot as a kid, so they naturally became protective.

And because of that, when we’re somewhere completely safe, they sometimes leave me alone.

Like at my house. Or like now, in the dorm room.

Chae‑yi went to shower, and Soi went downstairs to the vending machine to get drinks after her shower.

Thankfully, the girl whose name I still can’t remember didn’t come visit our dorm. And of course, Jinwoo is treated as a “boy,” so she can’t enter our building anyway.

So now I’m alone in the room with Hyeonji.

“……”

Hm.

Awkward.

Hyeonji is a discipline committee member.

She’s not as strict as she was in the original. There are many reasons, but maybe her threshold for “shameless behavior” has gotten really high.

Not intentionally, but she sees me, Soi, and Chae‑yi stuck together every day.

If you see three girls sleeping in the same bed every night, maybe you start thinking physical closeness is normal…?

…….

No. Judging by how she looks at me, definitely not.

I couldn’t even sit or lie on the bed. I just stood there nervously. Hyeonji too.

She had her arms crossed, staring at me with a face full of things she wanted to say but didn’t know how to start.

“Um… I‑I’m really sorry.”

“…It’s fine.”

Her expression didn’t change at all, but she answered.

“It wasn’t your fault. Your leg is hurt too. I’m the one who got mad for no reason.”

“N‑No, it’s not like that.”

“But still, there’s something I need to say.”

She sighed deeply.

“You stick too close to them. Don’t you think it might look weird to other people? Aren’t you worried about misunderstandings?”

“Misunderstandings?”

“For example—”

But she stopped there.

Honestly, I knew exactly what she wanted to say.

She meant: What if people think you’re in that kind of relationship?

The problem is, saying that out loud is hard because Soi always insists she’s my older sister.

Telling someone not to stick to their “sister” because people might misunderstand? That’s like telling a brother and sister not to walk together because people might think they’re dating.

“……”

I hesitated.

I understood her, but I didn’t really want to follow her advice.

Because honestly, I like it.

I really like Soi and Chae‑yi. Being close to them makes me feel safe. They’re soft and warm.

So—

“Um, so…”

“Hm?”

“T‑That thing earlier… that happened…”

“……”

It was vague, but of course Hyeonji understood.

“A‑And, well… just apologizing with words feels like it won’t be enough.”

“N‑No, it’s fine.”

Her face reddened again.

“S‑So I thought… maybe… if you did the same thing back… it’d be fair?”

“…What?”

Hyeonji froze.

“What?”

“I mean, just…”

Okay, even I know this sounds weird.

But—since I buried my face in her chest, if she buries her face in mine, doesn’t that make us even?

And that’s not the only reason.

Even if I understand her point, I don’t really want to stop sticking to Soi and Chae‑yi.

So maybe if Hyeonji also experiences how nice it feels to be held by someone, she’ll understand.

Honestly? It was “making her an accomplice.”

Soi and Chae‑yi say it’s normal for girls to cling to each other, and that girl didn’t think it was weird either.

If Hyeonji tries it once, maybe she’ll nag less.

“…How do you even reach that conclusion?”

Hyeonji asked.

“D‑Do you not want to?”

“……”

Honestly, if she said no, I’d accept it.

But for some reason…

I felt like she wouldn’t completely refuse.

…….

No, I actually knew why.

It was a sneaky thought, but—

In the original, Hyeonji secretly loved hugs.

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Pub: 10 May 2026 09:02 UTC

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