Chapter 32
The Gold-Silver-Copper Triplets, owners of Ussi Castle.
They were the ones who provided the opportunity for Strongbyeol and Dogyunwoo to become friends in the game, known as Doseungwoo’s hunting dogs.
However, it seemed they didn’t like being called that, as they preferred another alias.
And that alias was…
“Ugeumdong & Ueundong & Udongdong”
– If we were to speak for ourselves!
“The Gates of Hell!”
“Cerberus!”
“It’s the Cerberus of Geumgang Academy!”
Uh…
It was exactly like that in the game.
Taking on a dedicated pose as well.
Although the Triplets were considered minor extras in the role of villains, they were quite a memorable character.
During the game’s peak popularity, there were even challenges on social media where people mimicked the Triplets’ lines and poses.
But even so…
“He wasn’t just a pushover.”
Despite the Triplets calling themselves Cerberus and carrying on, they were quite coordinated in combat.
And cunning.
In the battle between Kang Hanbyeol and the Triplets.
For players with clumsy controls, losing to them and getting stuck in the early stages of the story was a common occurrence.
To the extent that they would come to the “Brave Hearts” community, complaining loudly.
I’m not sure if they were the Gates of Hell, but they were definitely the gates of the early stages.
“So, don’t let your guard down.”
I decided not to let my suspicions go.
Even though these cunning individuals may outwardly kneel before me, who knows what they might be thinking inside.
From Noble mtl dot com
“How can I know if their kneeling was to gain momentum?”
Perhaps the reason they are contorting their bodies like that is to conceal something in their embrace.
Or maybe, while I’m focused on them, others might be lurking somewhere, ready to attack.
“I don’t sense any other presence, but…”
I extended my senses once more.
It seemed like only these guys were on the rooftop.
Just then.
“Huh?”
I sensed a presence hiding behind the rooftop door.
It was a familiar presence.
I couldn’t be mistaken.
“Yeon Haneul? Didn’t she go home?”
Why is she here?
I turned my gaze towards the rooftop door.
Peeking through the crack in the door were white rabbit ears.
It was Yeon Haneul.
The only person in this school with rabbit ears was her.
“I don’t know why she’s there, but regardless, besides these guys, there’s no one else around…”
I turned my gaze back to the triplets once again.
What could be their intention in summoning me?
Even if just to confirm that.
“As expected, it might be best to make you faint.”
“What!? What does that mean…?”
“How do you know what kind of schemes you three are up to by pretending like that?”
“No, hey…”
“That’s why you need to be completely incapacitated.”
“We have no intention of fighting…!”
“If you have something to say to me, do it after waking up.”
Making someone faint is not difficult.
Just hit them in the neck.
Thanks to having made Doseungwoo faint before, I had somewhat mastered the technique.
I was about to strike the neck of those who were extending their heads…
It was then that the triplets spoke in unison.
“If it’s about making something happen, we’ll do it all!”
“So, please make a request!”
“You’re the only one left now!”
“Support us!”
“…What?”
Upon hearing the request for support, I lowered the sword I was holding.
It seemed like I needed to listen to their story.
—
To prove that they had no intention of harming me, the triplets, who placed their hands behind their heads, began their story.
“So… “
Cutting out unnecessary words.
I summarized their story.
The point was brief.
“Was it that you were abandoned by Doseungwoo?”
It could be said so.
According to the triplets, after being ridiculed at the swordsmanship institute a while back, Doseungwoo’s contact with them dwindled.
And yesterday, out of the blue, he contacted them to say that he would no longer support them.
But that wasn’t all.
‘Doseungwoo took measures so that he couldn’t attend any swordsmanship institute…’
It seems Doseungwoo had been banned from enrolling in any swordsmanship institute run by the Sin-Geom Do.
‘I’ve been cast aside by Doseungwoo.’
It was something that hadn’t happened in the game.
Of course.
There was never a story involving triplets and me.
Therefore, it wasn’t reasonable for Doseungwoo to be disappointed in the triplets due to that incident, nor was it understandable why he would turn against me.
There was just an excessive sense of dealing with it, and it was questionable why the triplets would now turn against me.
There was only one deduction that came to mind.
“Is it because he lost to me?”
Two days ago, Doseungwoo lost to me.
There was a possibility that he took out his frustration on the naive triplets.
The timing was perfect, almost too perfect.
Anyway, so….
“Since he can’t get support from him, will he now seek support from me?”
“I’m asking you like this! Please, I’m begging you!”
“I know you have no shame!”
“We want to become hunters!”
The out-of-control triplets came looking for me.
No, perhaps it’s better to say they summoned me through a letter.
I sighed as I looked at the guys who had put their hands on their heads defenselessly.
“So, can’t you just say it straight? Why did you write a letter and ask me to come to the rooftop?”
“I thought you might ignore it….”
“Why didn’t you write your name?”
“It was in the same context! We thought you might ignore it if you saw our names.”
“The handwriting was quite nice though?”
“Because our handwriting is hard to read, we asked the best writer in the class to do it for us.”
“Still, you didn’t write your name, but you implied it was us!”
“What? How?”
“You put stickers at the entrance of the envelope. Three stickers of different colors.”
“Gold! Silver! Bronze! If you saw that, you should have realized it was us! You’re so…sorry, my bad! Forget it!”
“Hmm…the stickers were hearts?”
“We wanted to express our hearts!”
“Our hearts! Accept them!”
“No, I refuse.”
The triplets groveled to cater to my taste.
Openly trying to win my favor by any means necessary.
Their chattering made me restless and pensive.
‘What should I do….’
I didn’t particularly hope for the story to unfold as it was.
But I also didn’t want to interfere with the story, causing an uncontrollable butterfly effect.
In that sense.
Even if the future of the triplets, who didn’t play a significant role in the story, changed, it wouldn’t have a major impact.
‘Even if these guys’ futures change, there won’t be a bad ending.’
So the situation of the triplets is none of my business.
Quite amusing.
As someone who holds personal grudges against them, all I have to do is mock their predicament.
How enjoyable it is to witness the faces of those who have lost their future and are in despair.
I can hold my nose high without lifting a finger.
It feels truly refreshing.
But then again.
“Sigh….”
I didn’t feel refreshed at all.
Instead, I felt uncomfortable.
It was as if sweet potatoes had tangled themselves inside my heart.
It seemed like I couldn’t become a bad person after all.
‘This fool… No, a moral person.’
Was I like this in my past life?
I don’t really know.
Even if I had realized my past life, I didn’t think I could stoop so low as to ruin someone’s life.
“Gyeonwoo, please….”
“….”
The triplets sniffled tears.
In the end, after much contemplation, I decided to accept their plea.
“Stop crying and get up.”
“….Huh?”
“You didn’t hear me? Get up.”
“Uh, uh!”
The triplets were taken aback.
I hastily got up from my seat and pointed at each of them as they stood at attention.
“Gold, silver, bronze. From today onwards, you are under my command, my lackeys. If you want to receive my support, listen to me well. If I tell you to buy bread, buy it, if I tell you to bark like a dog, bark like one….”
“Lackeys? What kind of lackeys among friends of the same age!?”
“That’s right! Seungwoo didn’t say that!”
“Let’s at least call them subordinates!”
“Mm.”
“Continue what you were saying.”
“Should we buy bread?”
“Woof!”
It’s actually turning out well.
Let’s think positively.
As I watched the groveling ones, I decided to change my perspective.
‘Just as I was looking for people to manipulate, these ones might not be that bad.’
The academy city that serves as the stage for the game.
Not only the Academy but also many people in the academy city would be useful to prepare for incidents that occur across the city.
If they were triplets, they would be suitable for the role.
It may not be of much help, but it was enough to entrust them with a delicate task.
“I will talk to my father, so you can continue to visit the swordsmanship hall as before.”
“Thank you! Seriously, you’re the best!”
“But if by any chance Doseungwoo plans to use you as spies with this scheme… then I really might die. No matter how good I am, betrayal is unforgivable.”
“That will never happen!”
“We are not spies!”
“I swear allegiance! Allegiance! Allegiance!”
“I’ll see how well you do from now on. Ttomani Gold, Silver, Bronze.”
“Are we really going to be called that?”
“For us, it’s Woo-Geum-Dong, Woo-Eun-Dong, Woo-Dong-Dong as names…”
“Should we add ‘Dong’ at the end?”
“Ttomani Gold, Silver, Bronze. Let’s make it easy, easy to remember your names. Alright?”
“…”
“Let me decide your names after seeing how loyal you are. Now, allegiance.”
“Allegiance! Allegiance! Darn it…”
And so.
I acquired three mongrel dogs.
I should raise them well from now on.
***
Thank goodness, really.
The situation took an unexpected turn.
“Phew….”
Peeking through the door crack without being noticed, Yeonhaeel, who sighed with relief, looked at the rooftop.
“I’m… a triplet again.”
Woo-Geum-Dong, Woo-Eun-Dong, Woo-Dong-Dong.
The triplets were known for their rough and tough personalities.
At any rate, they were not girls.
Knowing the identity of the person who wrote the letter to Do Gyunwoo put her at ease.
She felt that she could continue to be by Do Gyunwoo’s side in the future.
When such thoughts crossed her mind.
“Why am I like this?”
She was captivated by a strange sense of relief.
An emotion that couldn’t be described in words.
As she focused on that emotion, her face flushed, and her heart raced.
Her mouth was about to curl up.
“No, don’t curl up!”
Unfamiliar yet not entirely unpleasant feeling.
It tickles the heart, leaving it in a fluster.
Strange, strange, strange.
Embarrassing, awkward, shameful.
Once engulfed in this feeling, it seems impossible to control oneself.
Becoming someone else.
No, becoming something else.
It’s both thrilling and frightening.
‘Don’t be conscious of it.’
To shake off that feeling, Yeonhae threw her head back vigorously.
She pressed her ears against her head, covered her face with her hands to calm the fluttering in her chest, and tried to keep her lips from curling up.
“Calm down, Haneul. Haneul, calm down. Let’s calm down….”
Yeonhae closed her eyes to submerge into darkness.
She repeated the same words to herself as if soothing her own soul.
And then it happened.
“What are you doing there?”
“…!”
Lost in her emotions, Yeonhae was caught off guard by Dogyeong.
Startled by the sound from behind, Yeonhae turned around.
He was staring at her with a puzzled expression.
“Weren’t you going home? You didn’t have to follow me.”
“Oh, that’s….”
What should she say?
She couldn’t hesitate in this situation.
She had to speak quickly.
Or doubts would arise.
Yeonhae, too flustered to think clearly, blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“Well, the thing is! In case of an emergency, like needing to report to the police or inform a teacher, I thought someone should be there….”
“Even though I could handle it on my own?”
“Well, you never know! And you mentioned before. A skilled hunter must be prepared for the worst-case scenarios.”
“….”
What a fool, an idiot, a blockhead!
Does that even make sense?
Realizing how absurd her excuses sounded, Yeonhae mentally tore at her hair like a rabbit’s ear.
But surprisingly, her excuse was swallowed.
“Well, you’re not entirely wrong. There’s some sense to it.”
“R-really?”
Dogyeong nodded seriously.
Yeonhae, inwardly relieved yet slightly annoyed, quickly agreed to avoid any further suspicion.
And then he quickly changed the subject.
“So, um, everything resolved well?”
“Well, they said they wanted to be my bread shuttles.”
“Bread shuttles? Um, I see…”
“Is there anything you want to eat?”
“Huh? Why is that?”
“Just tell me if there’s something you want to eat in the future. They’ll order and buy it for you.”
“…”
“You can also indulge in them.”
“Oh, um… if such a situation arises.”
“And here, I’ll return this sword to you. Luckily, I’ve never used it.”
Dogyeonwoo confidently claimed to have obtained the bread shuttle as if not ashamed to look up at the sky.
Yeonnaneul found his behavior absurd yet amusing and cute.
Soon, he shrugged his shoulders.
“Since we’re done with what we needed to do, let’s go home. You don’t have any other plans, right?”
“Yeah! No, I don’t!”
Yeonnaneul beamed a wide smile.
As she had been doing since becoming his partner, she walked home with him today as well.