Late at night. One a.m.
A single girl tossing and turning in bed, unable to fall asleep no matter what.
'I like you, Cha Eun-ju.'
"Ughhh...!!"
Ever since returning home, Cha Eun-ju groaned under the covers at Lee Seon-ho's words echoing relentlessly in her mind.
'C-Calm down, Cha Eun-ju. Strictly speaking, Seon-ho didn't confess to the real me.'
That was right.
He had confessed while hugging her body tight, but that was only to the "hypnotized Cha Eun-ju," not her true self.
So she had to act exactly as before. If she slipped up in front of him, he might realize she had only been pretending to be hypnotized.
But... could she really keep up that brazen act tomorrow when she saw him?
It was no wonder Cha Eun-ju, who wasn't skilled at lying, couldn't sleep from sheer worry.
'Tomorrow... will he want to do that "hypnosis" thing again...?'
If so, did that mean she had to pretend to be hypnotized once more?
'It's not that I hate it. I don't hate it, but...'
Just thinking about hearing that embarrassing love confession straight to her face again made her heart pound uncontrollably.
There had been guys in school who approached her with ulterior motives because of her large breasts, but Lee Seon-ho's feelings seemed so pure by comparison.
She sensed it wasn't driven by lust or desire, but genuine affection toward her as a person. That made his confession weigh even heavier on her heart.
'Still, we promised to go out tomorrow.'
To enroll in Cheonmu Hunter Academy, she needed to pass the practical exam anyway. And as Seon-ho said, more real combat training was better.
Maybe he wouldn't suggest hypnosis tomorrow. It might have just been a one-day release of pent-up urges he couldn't hold back.
Of course, even if he asked to hypnotize her again, she had no confidence in refusing.
...She didn't particularly want to refuse in the first place.
'A-Anyway, I need to sleep soon. I have to wake up early tomorrow...'
Tomorrow, she'd style her hair more neatly. If she'd known, she would've bought a few extra outfits beforehand.
With those thoughts, Cha Eun-ju desperately clutched her racing heart and forced her eyes shut.
...
...
...
'I like you, Cha Eun-ju.'
"Ughhhh...!!!"
...But it took another two hours before she finally drifted off.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Day two of practical exam prep with Cha Eun-ju.
My mood wasn't great as I stood in front of the training hall building, waiting for her as promised.
It was already noon, two hours past our agreed time, and Cha Eun-ju still hadn't shown up.
'No way I'd get ghosted on day two.'
Things had been going according to plan, so this was completely unexpected.
The timid Cha Eun-ju suddenly ghosting Lee Seon-ho without a word was utterly unimaginable.
'Did I push too hard on day one...?'
...I'd thought even Cha Eun-ju could handle a hug and confession.
Maybe I'd underestimated her immunity to romance as a shut-in hikikomori. I should've stopped at just petting her head to play it safe.
I never imagined a little skinship like that would heighten her wariness and lead to her standing me up...
-Bzzz, bzzzzz...
"Hm?"
As I pulled out my phone thinking I'd text her before heading back, it rang—an incoming call from the number I'd saved yesterday.
Maybe things weren't ruined after all. A spark of hope flickered.
"Cha Eun-ju?"
"S-S-Seon-ho?! W-Where are you right now?!"
"Me? In front of the training hall."
"S-Sorry!! I swear I'm not lying, I overslept...!! I'll get ready and head out right now... Kyaaah?!"
"...Cha Eun-ju? You okay?"
"I-It's nothing...!! J-Just tripped over the clothes rack..."
...Her vivid reaction made it clear she really had overslept. I'd already confirmed her terrible acting skills during yesterday's hypnosis test.
Her voice over the phone sounded genuinely apologetic, too. It didn't seem like she was ditching me on purpose or wary from yesterday's actions.
"It's fine, take your time. Waiting an extra hour at this point doesn't make much difference."
"30 minutes...! N-No, 15! I'll be there!! I'm really sorry, Seon-ho!!"
"I said it's okay. No rush."
To make her feel properly indebted, I replied in a way that added a touch of pressure, then waited quietly for her arrival.
Not just over two hours late past our meeting time, but leaving me waiting without a word—she'd rack up plenty of guilt.
The more mental debt Cha Eun-ju owed me, the faster I could train her.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Hahk, hek, hahk..."
"Take it easy, take it easy. You'll collapse."
"Heh, hu... S-Sorry, heh... Seon-ho, haa, hng..."
The purple-haired girl sprinted toward the training hall building, gasping for breath.
Her breasts bounced lewdly with every step, tempting me to bury my fingers in them and knead away.
Cha Eun-ju now might even grant a request to touch them as apology for being late. Entertaining such idle thoughts, I calmly greeted her—two hours and twenty minutes tardy.
"I told you no rush. I didn't wait long."
"...Y-You didn't wait long...? Hek, n-no... Hoo, hoo..."
"Friends wait this long sometimes. Come here. Your hair's a mess."
"Uhk, hek...?"
She flinched reflexively as my hand touched her head, but relaxed upon realizing it was me and bowed her head again.
She'd grown accustomed to my head pats over yesterday, and above all, her immense guilt toward me now made refusal impossible.
In that sense, her lateness was actually a golden opportunity.
My goal was to build "debt" gradually, repaid bit by bit under hypnosis. Her self-inflicted massive debt made it far easier.
I just had to collect as much as I wanted, like a debt collector.
Thanks to her slip-up, we'd advance much further today than yesterday. Those two hours were practically an investment in conquering her.
"S-Sorry, Seon-ho... Really sorry..."
"It's fine. Just be careful next time."
"H-How can I make it up to you...? A-Anything I can do, I'll do it...!"
"...Don't say that so lightly, girl."
"Ah, s-sorry...! I-I didn't mean it like that...!"
...Anything she could do, huh? That made me want to order everything under the sun.
But voicing my real thoughts would scare her off. Obviously not now.
Still, her volunteering this showed yesterday's actions had lowered her guard considerably.
If I'd done anything "weird" under hypnosis by her standards, she wouldn't offer "anything" now.
She could say it because she believed I wouldn't push boundaries—seeing me as the "innocent kid who only hugged her under hypnosis."
"...Hey, Cha Eun-ju."
"Yeah?"
"But seriously, anything I can do, you'll do?"
"...Huh?"
Repeating her words shifted the mood. She panicked slightly, stepping back.
Wary I might ask something weird. She knew I liked her now, after all.
"Eun-ju?"
"Y-Yeah...?"
"Seriously, anything you can do?"
"...W-Well."
"..."
"I-If I can, yeah..."
Even her flustered look was this cute. Damn.
She was probably imagining all sorts of lewd scenarios right now.
Unlike Choi Marie, she'd consumed plenty of naughty comics and novels, so of course she'd interpret my words perversely.
After giving her time to stew in filthy fantasies, I made a request she couldn't refuse.
"So, about that favor."
"..."
-Gulp.
"I'm hungry. Buy me lunch, Cha Eun-ju. That'll cover being late today."
"...Huh?"
"We were gonna eat after training anyway, but it's lunchtime now. Let's grab a hearty ramen bowl at that place from yesterday and train. Sound good?"
"..."
Her baffled exclamation, awkward silence like her brain had frozen, then her face flushing red with embarrassment soon after.
I could easily infer: she couldn't process my tame request against her lewd expectations, realized her dirty mind was solo, and burned with shame.
"Cha Eun-ju?"
"Y-Yeah?!"
"What, can't do it? After making me wait two hours, not even buying lunch?"
"N-No! I'll buy it! B-But really, just that...?"
"Why? Hate ramen? I can go somewhere else."
"N-No...! Ramen it is! Extra spicy's fine...!"
"Stuffing up at lunch will just cramp you during training. I'm not that petty, so let's eat already."
"O-Okay..."
She knew it too. One bowl of ramen was dirt cheap for two hours late.
No matter. I'd ease her worries later.
I planned to milk today's "hypnosis" for every drop of that mental debt she owed me.