GalaxyTL
The next morning.
Pa-pa-pa-pa-bam! Good morning!
Click.
I turned off the alarm, which was as noisy as ever, and opened my eyes.
And when I checked my phone in my half-asleep state, I couldn’t help but widen my eyes in surprise.
“……What’s all this?”
There were a ton of unread messages.
If it had been a group chat, I would have assumed they were just chatting among themselves, but these were individual chats with each party member.
My pupils quivered as if they were shaking from an earthquake.
‘Did something happen on the way back last night…?’
Was it really about the cooking?
Or did they get into a fight and decide they couldn’t stand being in the party anymore? Or were they upset because I made the decision to not accept temporary party members without consulting them first? Or was it because of the stupid thing I said at the end yesterday…?
Various assumptions intertwined and made my head spin.
‘Calm down.’
Gulping down my anxiety, I reminded myself, ‘I know their personalities. I know how to cheer them up when things go wrong. I know them well enough.’
As I repeated these words in my mind, my heart gradually calmed down.
‘First, Shin Se-hee.’
I had entrusted the management of the party members to Shin Se-hee, so if something had happened on the way back yesterday, she would have informed me.
‘There are a lot of messages from Shin Se-hee.’
With tense fingers, I opened Shin Se-hee’s chat.
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[April 11, Tuesday]
【Flower Bud ✿】
[April 12, Wednesday]
【Flower Blossom ✿】
【Flower Blossom ✿】
“Did she drink last night?”
I frowned as I read Shin Se-hee’s messages.
And there was also a separate text message from her, not just a chat message.
[ (Urgent) Jin Yuha! There was a temporary glitch on the server I manage. The chat app seems to have been maliciously hacked. The content written there has nothing to do with party activities. If you read it, your phone could be infected with a virus. I’m currently dealing with it, so please delete the app and reinstall it. Do not open the chat under any circumstances. ]
‘Hmm, I already opened it…’
In any case, the fact that Shin Se-hee drank meant that something frustrating must have happened. I frowned as I looked at her chat messages again.
Although the text was messy because she was drunk, I could still understand the general gist.
In summary, she was questioning whether I truly trusted her and asserting her innocence, claiming that she hadn’t done anything to me.
‘…Did someone say something to Shin Se-hee?’
The first person who came to mind was Kang Do-hee. Their relationship had been strained since the basic training session.
I opened Kang Do-hee’s chat next.
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[April 11, Tuesday]
【Fire Fist】
【Fire Fist】
【Fire Fist】
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Fortunately, Kang Do-hee’s messages didn’t contain anything of concern. They were just a few simple recipes for dishes that could be made at home.
The momentary tone of superiority, as if she was looking down on me, made the chef’s soul in me stir, but regardless, she had sent them with my well-being in mind. And since I had already lost to her in terms of cooking skills, it was only natural for the winner to claim their due.
‘Chet, anyway, it’s not Kang Do-hee… then could it be… Soup?’
Lee Yoo-ri, Shin Se-hee’s arch-nemesis.
Shin Se-hee couldn’t stand up to her, so it was possible that she had been hurt by something Soup said but couldn’t say anything in front of her in response.
‘So she might have gotten drunk and vented her frustration later.’
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[April 11, Tuesday]
【Not Soup】
【Not Soup】
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I smiled wryly as I read the Soup Boss’s messages. They were exactly the kind of songs I would expect her to recommend.
I tapped on one of the songs and played the music.
I am a tough woman who doesn’t bow down to the world~
Hmm, even after reading the Soup’s messages again, I couldn’t find any signs of discord from yesterday. And judging by the time she sent the message, she seemed to have gone straight to the dorm.
‘Then what the heck is it…?’
The only unread chat left was from Lim Ga-eul.
“……Shin Se-hee met Senior for the first time yesterday, and Lim Ga-eul isn’t the type to get into arguments with people anyway.”
I furrowed my brows, then bit my lip as a sudden thought occurred to me.
‘Could it be that she felt a sense of relative deprivation because I suddenly brought in a new person as a supporter? Because she’s not even an official party member herself…’
It was a fairly plausible hypothesis. Shin Se-hee tended to be sensitive about such matters.
And Lim Ga-eul’s chat preview added weight to that idea.
[ I’m sorry, Junior. Really… ]
Unlike the others, who started with asking if everyone was asleep, Lim Ga-eul began with an apology.
The first sentence made it clear that Lim Ga-eul had had a dispute with Shin Se-hee. Given her personality, if she felt that she was the cause of the conflict, she might even volunteer to leave the party.
‘……The chemistry between Shin Se-hee and Lim Ga-eul was originally not bad.’
As I felt my heart grow complicated, I opened Lim Ga-eul’s chat.
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[April 11, Tuesday]
【WarmAutumnWeather】
【WarmAutumnWeather】
[April 12, Wednesday]
【WarmAutumnWeather】
【WarmAutumnWeather】
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‘What the heck is this.’
As I read Lim Ga-eul’s messages, I couldn’t help but feel confused.
‘……It doesn’t seem like Lim Ga-eul fought with Shin Se-hee either, so what’s going on? And she’s not even saying that she wants to leave.’
My head tilted involuntarily.
Since I had a class with Kang Do-hee in the morning, followed by a class with just Shin Se-hee, I figured I’d ask her about it then.
‘By the way, this older sister really is a bit awkward in a kind way.’
I chuckled.
And then I headed to the bathroom to freshen up.