Chapter 123 – Palace Maid (16)
When I entered the hotel room for the first time, I saw three gold medals tossed carelessly on top of the sofa.
Well… that makes sense.
The senior had only run in my place. There was no reason for him to feel attached to medals that weren’t his own honor or pension.
“That old man tried to drink alcohol using your body!”
Song Sun-young, who had naturally followed me in, exposed the senior’s bizarre antics.
“A national athlete drinking…?”
“Of course he didn’t get to. If he had, forget gold medals—he wouldn’t even have been allowed to compete. I stopped him.”
“Thanks.”
“Hmph! Now that you know, behave yourself from now on. And don’t get pushed around by that suspicious unni.”
“Ms. Jeon Ji-eun?”
“Yeah!”
Song Sun-young swept the three gold medals off the sofa onto the table and flopped down, looking extremely comfortable.
“…Sun-young.”
“What?”
“What about work? Did you take a long vacation?”
“The company I signed an exclusive contract with was acquired by Mao Zhai.”
“…Huh?”
What kind of development was that?
“So while they’re handling the takeover and restructuring, there’s no work until the Olympics are over.”
“What on earth is he thinking?”
I couldn’t understand the mindset of the rich. The senior—who’d once peeked inside Mao Zhai’s head—might know, but I didn’t.
“I overheard something yesterday. Apparently, he’s planning to make a feature-length film adapting the martial arts novel Is This Heavenly Demon for Real? Based on his own experiences.”
“Does he even have that kind of money?”
Period pieces—not modern ones—require everything from costumes to sets to be built from scratch. The cost easily doubles. Unless he planned to uproot an entire family line, it didn’t seem like a business you’d start on a whim or as a hobby.
“He said he made quite a bit this time—‘a lot, for pocket money,’ thanks to someone.”
“……”
It was getting harder and harder to tell who these Olympics were really for.
“Since word got around that you’re good at taekwondo, the odds were about seven times.”
“That’s not low.”
Which made the odds for the Olympic track 3000 m all the more absurd. Ninety-four times—did that number even make sense?
“You’ll be shocked when you hear your swimming odds.”
“How much?”
“Among the events you entered, the shortest one—the 2000 m freestyle—was 201 times.”
“……”
“Swimming requires technique. People figured it’d be hard if your aptitude didn’t match. Even my mom didn’t bet on the 2000 m freestyle—she said it made her nervous.”
“Ugh…”
The sheer amount of money slipping away right in front of me made my head spin.
Sports toto?
There was a rule—you could only place bets up until right before the Olympic opening ceremony. Which meant my chance was already gone forever.
And it would be the same in the future.
It’ll be hard…
If I competed again in two years, my ability would already be known. It’d be impossible to expect odds this high again.
In other words—I was depressed.
“I think I’m getting indigestion.”
“No way! I bet my entire fortune on the 2000 m freestyle!”
“…Seriously?”
“Seriously!”
“Why would you skip the safe events and—why…?”
For long-distance swimming events, I was confident I could take first place even with my eyes closed. Song Sun-young knew that too.
Her answer was short.
“Because I don’t want to lose to some mannequin.”
A mannequin.
From Song Sun-young’s point of view, every human except us was an inanimate object.
She usually hid it for the sake of social life—but the moment I looked away, her true nature showed itself.
So yes, everyone was a mannequin—but the one she was referring to now?
Jeon Ji-eun, obviously.
I’d known from the start what that family’s objective was in approaching me, so I wasn’t attracted in the slightest—at least rationally. I wasn’t some breeding stud.
Anyway,
“That was way too reckless. If I hadn’t woken up, you would’ve lost everything…”
“I trusted you.”
“……”
“And I’m different. That woman can’t do it—but I can. I don’t calculate things with my heart.”
“Uh… um… thank you.”
Saying that while sitting arrogantly with her legs crossed on the sofa probably wasn’t appropriate, but it was more than enough to put pressure on my heart.
Thump, thump!
I couldn’t take my eyes off her pale white legs, boldly emphasizing her superior genetics in those short hot pants.
Do I seriously have some kind of lecherous spirit attached to me…?
The senior’s scolding came to mind, and I even felt a hint of self-loathing.
“Moon-soo.”
“…Huh?! Y-yeah. What is it?”
“I still want to prepare myself mentally. How do you feel about the 2000 meters?”
“Hm… If the ability I lost before has fully recovered, I’d take gold by about 0.8 seconds. If it hasn’t… I’d probably come in last.”
“That’s extreme.”
“Can’t be helped.”
The 4000 m freestyle and the 10 km marathon were my specialties, so there was no problem there.
But the 2000 m was different. Ever since I’d been dragged into the world of Palace Maid Deok-chun and died once in such a ridiculous way, I’d been uneasy about it.
After that, I’d had two chances to grow—but I hadn’t practiced swimming separately or made use of those opportunities in my dreams.
“Confident?”
“At the moment, I won’t know until I try.”
“Then don’t put too much pressure on yourself. If we lose, we’ll just earn it back.”
“Even so—”
“I’m not going to kill myself over something like this.”
“Hey?!”
That just makes it more stressful!
To change the mood, I grabbed the remote lying on the lavish six-person dining table in the hotel room and turned on the TV.
Beep!
(The enthusiasm of viewers watching the Summer Olympics is hotter than the weather!)
(It’s interesting. The Summer Olympics are held every two years, but why does this year feel especially intense?)
At this time of year, no matter which channel you turned to, they were talking about the global event.
The Olympics.
Some argue it’s a political tool used to distract the public—but by that logic, the virtual reality game Molang Fantasy, which had pulled nearly 15% of the population away from reality, would be a breeding ground for politics itself.
(This year’s sports toto payouts have reached a 50-year high!)
(It’s not over yet. If the breakout star wins gold in the 2000 m freestyle swimming event, the record will climb even higher!)
“……”
They were talking about me here?
I moved my hand toward the remote to change the channel.
“Let’s watch a little longer.”
“…Alright.”
At Song Sun-young’s urging, I kept watching for a bit.
(It may be premature to conclude, but what kind of odds are we talking about?)
(201 times!)
(What? Not 65 times?)
(Yes! 201 times!)
(Good heavens! 201 times? How could odds like that exist? Even athletes evaluated as having poor chances rarely exceed 100 times…)
(The aptitude is the trap. Who could’ve imagined a shaman sweeping gold medals at the Olympics?)
(Was the aptitude test wrong?)
(Only P would know. We still don’t even know who—or what—P really is…)
Beep—
I turned it off immediately.
“Ahem! Even the news is boring!”
If I’d placed a sports toto bet, I would’ve watched happily—but right now, it just felt like they were mocking me.
I was extremely depressed.
“Do well. If I make money this time, I’ll pay for our dates from now on.”
“…Huh? Really?”
“Have I ever lied to you?”
“You have.”
I remembered it perfectly.
“When?”
“At the hospital, when we woke up together. On the rooftop, I asked you whether people still looked like mannequins to you.”
“Ah, that time.”
“You said they didn’t anymore. And then you added that I didn’t look like a man to you. Am I wrong?”
Flawless logic!
Song Sun-young snorted.
“Idiot.”
“Which part?”
“It meant you should try harder to look like a man to me again.”
“…How do you even reach that conclusion from the situation back then?”
“You’re just dense.”
“That’s a stretch.”
“If it weren’t, why would I be here right now?”
“Ghk!”
My supposedly perfect logic collapsed under Song Sun-young’s result-based rebuttal. If our relationship had really ended back then, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation now.
“And instead of trying, you moved without a word.”
“Ugh…”
Should I surrender before she dug up every one of my pathetic past actions?
Just then—
Ding-dong~♪
Like divine revelation—or salvation—my smartphone rang.
“Call coming in.”
“That ringtone… it’s the section chief.”
“Did you deliberately pick such a tragic-sounding melody?”
“Back when I had a bad experience in a patient’s dream, I resented the section chief for recommending me.”
“And now?”
“A respectable adult I’m grateful to.”
Still, I’m never changing this ringtone.
Beep—
“Hello.”
(Congratulations. Three gold medals. I’m in a good mood too—I recovered more than all the investment money that had been leaking away until now.)
“Did you bet on toto too, Section Chief?”
(Of course. Do you think I’m a volunteer digging in the dirt to take care of patients? Research funding is fairly generous, after all.)
“How’s the patient?”
(If you mean Yoon So-ra, she’s stable. She’s doing well enough to watch replays of your Olympic track events.)
“That’s a relief.”
“Strange. Why would a patient who just woke up be interested in your competition?”
“…Yeah. That is strange.”
At Song Sun-young’s sharp glance, cold sweat ran down my back.
(Don’t worry about that side… Ah! Do you want to talk to the patient?)
“…Yes.”
No thanks to Mao Zhai, round two!
That time was too sudden for me to stop it—but this time is different!
This time, I’m aboveboard.
(Hello. This is Yoon So-ra.)
“Hello. I’m the shaman Kang Moon-soo. I’m glad you woke up safely. As promised in the dream, I’ll help make sure you don’t have financial difficulties.”
(Thank you. So… does that mean you’ll take responsibility for me…?)
Responsibility!
That was an extremely dangerous word.
“I’m not Yoon So-ra’s parent, so I can’t take responsibility. But I will keep my promise—to make sure reality isn’t more horrifying than the dream.”
(Thank you. May I meet you in person later?)
“That…”
Did I really need to meet her in person?
I could feel Song Sun-young’s sharp gaze beside me as she quietly listened to the call.
Just then—
(The patient needs emotional stability. And it’s not exactly a difficult request, is it?)
Section Chief Seo Hye-joo took over the call again.
“…Understood.”
(Jeon Ji-eun will help handle the legal issues, so listen to what she has to say.)
“Yes.”
(I have no idea why someone who majored in biotechnology ended up handling counseling about women’s romantic psychology.)
“That’s not my fault.”
Until my aptitude test came back as Shaman, I’d been completely ordinary. I was surrounded by guys like Choi Kang-hoon, and the only women I ever spoke to were convenience store customers or school teachers.
(Is Sun-young there with you?)
“Yes.”
So please be careful with your word choice—no misunderstandings!
(From the perspective of an emotionally sensitive young female patient, you’re the black knight rescuing a princess trapped in a tower.)
“It’s already cringey!”
The princess beside me had been jumping out of towers like it was a daily meal—straight into suicide.
(From now on, when you persuade young female patients in their dreams, be careful with your wording. Otherwise, you’ll end up getting hooked.)
“That’s hard.”
(Relationships between men and women are always difficult. Say hello to Sun-young for me.)
“Yes.”
(See you later.)
Click.
After saying what she needed to say, Section Chief Seo Hye-joo ended the call.
“A black knight? How romantic.”
Song Sun-young immediately cut in, resting her chin on my shoulder.
Thump. Thump.
Her breath near my ear and the brush of her hair made my blood rush.
What is this…?
Like a frog in front of a snake, I couldn’t move a single finger.
“Ahem! Isn’t that a bit too cringey?”
“Not really.”
“I-is that so?”
Our emotional wavelengths were completely different.
“There are plenty of black knights and princes on white horses who are nice to pretty girls.”
“Well…”
That was male instinct—I’d invoke my right to remain silent.
“But to me, you’re the only man in this world. Remember that.”
“Yes! I’ll remember it!”
If I didn’t, I felt like she might kill me. Not the other way around.
“Good.”
Peck!
Satisfied with the answer from her one and only man, she pressed her lips to my cheek.
“Huh…?”
Even I—who could dodge a sniper’s bullet flying in without warning—hadn’t noticed it coming.
“Do your best.”
“…Yeah.”
At this moment, I felt like I could swim across the Pacific Ocean.
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