Episode 78
âWhat?â
I had no idea what Eugene was talking about.
âSad? What does he mean all of a sudden?â
I tried to figure out the situation by spinning my brain fast.
âApart from the fact that you suddenly disappeared from the Academy because of the regulations, I thought you would say something after it was over.â
Eugene squinted his blue eyes and said, looking down at me.
âRegulations? Suddenly disappearing from the Academy?â
Only then did I notice that he was talking about the appointment as a Housekeeper.
âBut youâre not even coming to me, so I canât talk about it.â
âHey, what do you want to talk about?â
Did he want to know what the meeting actually felt like?
But he seemed to know better than I do.
Even though he wasnât in the Housekeeper conference yet, he would have heard from his father about it.
âThatâs weird. He hasnât really picked a fight with me lately.â
When I looked at him with all kinds of thoughts, Eugene gave me a rather strange look.
âNo, isnât it natural if I want to congratulate you?â
The moment I heard Eugeneâs words, I felt as if I had been beaten in the back of my head.
âAh.â
âNo, apart from that, what else can I say?â
âYesâ¦â
âYou didnât think Iâd be here again to pick a fight, right?â
When he asked me that, I lifted my index finger and thumb, almost to touch each other.
âA little bit.â
âThis girl, really.â
Eugene was grumpy with an irritating accent, but his expression didnât look as angry as I thought.
âCongratulations, anyway.â
For some reason, it was a calm and resonant remark.
I looked at Eugene, who turned his head slightly to the side and turned his gaze outside the door.
As he rolled his deep blue eyes, Eugene noticed that I was looking at him without a word. He opened his eyes wide as if surprised for a moment, then turned his head to make eye contact with me.
âWhat, whatâs wrong?â
Only then could I come to my senses.
âOh, no, thanks.â
âThereâs nothing to be thanked anyway.â
Eugene mumbled in a low voice with his arms folded.
And for a while, the silence sank.
In the meantime, both I and Eugene seem to have been staring down at the ground, unable to think of what to say.
âHow does it feel to be a Housekeeper?â
Eugene first broke the silence and asked.
âAs expected, you wanted to ask that.â
I didnât know what to say.
I didnât know how to convey my feelings to Eugene, who is already sensitive to being a Housekeeper because of his family affairs.
After all, I decided to be honest.
âWell, the pressure was tremendous.â
âI guess so.â
âBut I feel better because there are good people.â
At the words, Eugene opened his mouth as if to say something, but for some reason, he shook his head and shut his mouth.
âWhat, you got something to say?â
âNo, itâs no big deal.â
âWhy, you can say it.â
âNo.â
âItâs all right.â
In the end, Eugene showed signs of agonizing, stroking his chin with his index finger, then sighed and opened his mouth.
âYou saw my father, didnât, havenât you?â
I replied with a nod to the remark.
âYes. I saw him.â
I didnât bother to say that his father had done a cheap thing to me by moving the meeting place 30 minutes before the appointment time.
ââ¦did he look all right?â
Eugene hesitated slightly, and said,
To Eugeneâs question, I asked him again, slightly narrowing the gap.
âIn what sense?â
âHealth. Maybe did he look too tired, things like that.â
âOh, he looked totally fine, just like he looked at us at the banquet.â
In the first place, there was no way that a person without energy could give off the spirit of tearing and killing a wild wolf with just his eyes.
But thereâs no way I can say such a scary sermon.
âOh, I see. Thatâs a relief.â
Eugene scratched his head awkwardly and talked.
Then he hesitated slightly, poking his head out to the side and talking to me carefully.
âBy any chance, what did my father say to you?â
When asked by Eugene, his fatherâs figure looked at me with cold eyes like an awl that froze me and pressed me in a cool voice, appearing before my eyes.
ââ¦uh, he said a lot.â
He replied, kicking his tongue with a voice containing his complaints. Then Eugene came to me with a very sorry expression.
âIâm sorry. Well, he didnât mean to hurt you, heâs justââ
âEugene, thanks for the consolation, but Iâve already been picked up by your father.â
âUhâ¦â
I sighed at Eugene, who rolled his eyes helplessly.
âReally, it felt like it was only cute to hear what you said.â
âIt sounds like youâre turning me around.â
Eugene, who was secretly protesting, slowly opened his mouth, tapping his fingers and thinking about what to say for a moment.
âWell, heâs a littleâ¦â¦ he can treat you harshly, but donât put too much meaning on it. Because he does that to most people.â
Honestly, I thought it was right.
When I saw his tight lips and his chilling blue eyes, I wondered if there was any object or person in the world he liked.
âAnd anyway, my father is a wizard and a very good Trump. Heâs very judgmental.â
âI agree with that.â
I could never have had a good impression of him, but I couldnât help admiring his leadership after the opening of the Housekeepers meeting.
As a newcomer there, I never seemed to be able to keep up with his deep insight.
That day I realized how much influence a person with innate sense, acquired effort, and age can have on others.
He was even very rational at the Housekeepers meeting, and he didnât ignore my opinion if it was a profitable matter.
That was why I couldnât say I had nothing to learn from him even though I had a bad impression in our first meeting.
âIâm going to be Trump-like my father. I want to be a strong and capable Trump like him.â
Listening to Eugeneâs story, I looked up at him with a frown.
âAre you serious?â
âWhy, you got a problem?â
I grinned at him who was so inquisitive.
âHey, thatâs not it. Iâm not going to be Trump-like your father.â
âWhat?â
Eugene frowned back at my words.
âSpade, I know you have a bad impression about him, but you have to admit my fatherâs ability as a Trump.â
âThatâs right, your father is a great Trump. I know it better than anyone since I saw in person. And I think there will be a lot to learn from your father in the future.â
As I said so, I took my back off the wall and walked out in front of Eugene.
âBut shouldnât we have a big dream?â
Eugene tilted his head as if he didnât understand what I was talking about. I answered with a confident look on my face.
âIâll be Trump beyond your father.â
Eugene, staring at me through, opened his eyes wide and looked at me blankly with his mouth open.
Then he smiled and covered his mouth with his hands.
âHa, youâre soâ¦â¦.â
But he did not utter the words that remained behind.
âI am really what?â
âNo.â
âWhat, let me know.â
âNo, I wonât tell you.â
Eugeneâs answer was like an iron wall, and I complained with my lips pout.
âDirty bastard.â
âIâm better than you.â
âWho is going to admit that.â
âOkay, are you going back to the territory for vacation?â
I answered his question with a nod of my head.
Eugene also slightly raised his head.
âDonât you go to the territory, too?â
âI have to go. Iâve never stopped by while I was in the Academy.â
âAre you leaving tomorrow?â
âYeah.â
Eugene answered and took his back off the wall he was leaning against and turned toward the door where we could see the campus building.
âAre you leaving tomorrow, too?â
âYeah.â
âItâll take some time to get there.â
âWell, the distance is similar to your territory.â
âGet some rest when you get there. You must have had a hard time putting up with the appointment.â
I twisted my purple hair with my fingers, glanced at Eugene and said.
âIâm gonna take a break. Go home and get some rest. Donât train early in the morning until you get home.â
âYou told me not to, so I should.â
âIf youâre going to do it, do it with care. Because itâs your own body that will suffer.â
âYes, you speak so beautifully.â
After a long time of dabbling, some time had passed.
âOh, I think Iâm going to have to get going.â
The eyes, as if they had blue sapphire in them, suddenly grew, and then returned to their original state.
âYes.â
âIâm going to get going.â
After greeting Eugene, I tried to step out of the door, but suddenly I heard Eugeneâs voice slightly crack behind my back.
âSpade, wait a minute.â
Turning my head back, Eugene was reaching out one hand as if he were trying to hold on to me out.
âWhy?â
âNo, just, I thought of something to ask.â
âWhat is it?â
For some reason, he rolled his eyes around and bit his lips slightly, and hesitated, killing his lips with his tongue.
The words that finally rang through his lips, were really unlike him.
âDo you believe in superstitions?â
I frowned and asked back at the nonsense words that suddenly popped out.
âSuperstition?â
âYes, superstition.â
âWhat kind of superstition are you talking about?â
Eugene, who was agonizing over what I said, answered dryly.
âJust, anything.â
When I delayed answering because I still didnât know his intentions, Eugene added an explanation.
âWell, you know. When you can make your wish come true if you do something specific.â
âOh, thereâs a lot of that.â
Still, I couldnât tell why he asked such a thing, but I replied with a light smile.
âI think what I do is more important than that.â
I spoke to him, looking at him in his eyes.
âOh, donât get me wrong. But that doesnât mean itâs wrong to believe in superstitions. I mean thatâs what I think.â
ââ¦â¦uh, I know what you mean.â
Eugene said with a nod.
âYes, I see.â
âDid I answer your curiosity?â
âUh.â
I didnât know if my answer would have been what he wanted, but Eugene seemed satisfied on the boat for now.
âYes, you can go now.â
âYes, then Iâm really going.â
âUh.â
Eugene waved back.
âHave a nice trip, Spade.â
At that time, his blue eyes were drawing fine curves like the crescent moon.
It was a beautiful, calm smile with eyes.
âYeah, see you later.â
Was it my illusion that his face at the last minute looked lighter?
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