Chapter 443

1.

Body Factory.

Even if you looked around these days, it was one of the gyms you’d see pretty often—

but it was one of the franchise gyms that was especially popular, because the tools and the scale of each location were bigger than you’d expect.

It was well-known for being run by a pretty famous bodybuilder, so guys in their twenties used it a lot.

And even though a gym was the kind of place you’d think would mostly have men—

Body Factory was a little different.

They had a decent amount of Pilates equipment, and they even hired professional Pilates instructors, offering Pilates classes and letting people use Pilates on their own too, so—

it was popular enough that the gender ratio was close to fifty-fifty.

Yoon Somin was one of those people.

Now freshly twenty years old, she’d lived her whole life loved wherever she went, with a pretty face that drew attention anywhere.

If she stayed somewhere even a little while, girls naturally gathered around her, and guys went out of their way to treat her well.

So she couldn’t help growing up without any rough edges.

Of course, there were side effects that came with that too.

‘This place is full of annoying guys too.’

Was it that she was a little full of herself?

Since everyone constantly babied her—

she couldn’t help thinking she really was something special.

Of course, Yoon Somin put in effort to take care of her looks too, but she genuinely believed she was superior, so she tended to be arrogant.

That was why she came to Body Factory again today—and the moment she arrived, she let out a tired sigh when she saw the guys immediately trying to hit on her.

It made sense.

“Ah, Somin, you’re here?”

“Are you doing Pilates again today? Haha—how about trying weights this time? Working out doesn’t make you bulky like me, haha.”

“Should I help you?”

“The weather’s nice today, right?”

The number of guys who latched onto Yoon Somin the moment she arrived was already four.

And that was just the four she’d spoken to—she was drawing most of the guys’ eyes the instant she walked in.

She had that fresh, just-turned-twenty vibe, and a beautiful figure where everything that should stick out stuck out and everything that should be slim was slim.

And the part you could call “finished,” above all, was her face.

A neat, elegant impression, with clear features—soft, yet seductive, with a kind of refined dignity.

She had a luxurious kind of beauty.

And on top of that, she still had that fresh, just-turned-twenty youthfulness.

How were men supposed to not go crazy?

But then.

Two men caught Yoon Somin’s eye.

No—more precisely, one man.

Two men were working out, and one of them was explaining things here and there, like he was teaching his friend.

And out of them, her gaze went to one man in particular.

“Wow.”

A face that made her blurt out admiration without even realizing it.

Not just handsome—more like, should you call him a noble young master?

Pale skin, that refined “boyish” noble look.

And on top of that, his body was in incredible shape too.

A man who looked even more handsome than celebrities she’d seen on the street.

Yoon Somin swallowed hard, thinking she’d never expected she’d be the type to fall for someone at first sight.

‘How can a person be built that perfectly?’

She could understand a little why men never left her alone.

And sure enough—

it wasn’t just Yoon Somin. Other women were looking at him too.

Men and women alike were all watching Seong as he did chest training, pushing weights.

Guys were staring like they were watching some kind of superhuman, seeing him repeatedly handle such heavy weight—

and the women were staring because they were taken by Seong’s face.

And Yoon Somin, realizing what she was doing, felt a little embarrassed and cleared her throat.

“Ahem.”

At that throat-clearing, with a bit of coquettishness mixed in, the men nearby couldn’t help being struck.

How could even a cough sound cute and pretty?

But when they saw that Yoon Somin’s eyes had gone to Seong—

the men couldn’t even feel jealous.

Well, it was only natural.

If the difference was small, you’d feel jealousy. But if the gap was overwhelming, you felt nothing at all.

Seong was that kind of gap.

‘No, f***, why doesn’t he work out somewhere else.’

‘If a superhuman who repeats heavy weight like that is handsome too, that’s cheating.’

‘Ha... I never even thought I’d end up with Somin, but seeing [N O V E L I G H T] her look at him, I’m getting hit with reality so hard.’

‘The world’s unfair, seriously.’

The four guys who had been flirting with Yoon Somin all lowered their tails like that.

Normally they’d try something—show off their strength, do whatever they could—

but they couldn’t.

Because in this gym, there wasn’t a single person who could lift more weight than Seong.

They couldn’t even pick a fight.

And besides—

all four of them had already recognized Seong.

“Ha... the Demon King’s working out today too.”

“He’s even diligent.”

“Right?”

“He’s good at the game, good at working out, and handsome.”

“The game?”

At those four guys’ talk, Yoon Somin’s interest sparked.

When she asked back like, What do you mean, game?

the four guys kindly explained.

“Ah, you know Eternal World, right? Think of him like a ranker there.”

“He’s insane.”

“These days if you don’t know the Demon King, you’re basically a spy.”

“Right.”

With everyone explaining so helpfully,

Yoon Somin looked at Seong like she’d gotten a bit interested.

And—

‘If it’s me, I’m not really beneath a guy like that, right? No, aren’t we actually a perfect match?’

Thinking that made her feel weirdly good.

Yoon Somin thought that if she approached him, he might be even more interested, so even though she normally only did Pilates, she went near Seong and started working out.

The four guys looked regretful as they backed off, but they still told her that if she ever wanted to learn weights, she should call them anytime, then disappeared.

Either way, Yoon Somin worked out near Seong like that.

Thinking that if she stayed there a bit, he’d talk to her first.

But—

what was this?

‘...He’s not talking to me?’

It had already been twenty minutes since she started working out while lingering around Seong—

but Seong didn’t even show interest, didn’t even meet her eyes once, focusing only on his workout.

Watching that, she looked at him like it was ridiculous.

She even checked her outfit, wondering if she looked ugly today.

But there was no problem.

It was perfect, like always.

And he still didn’t meet her eyes even once.

At first, it bruised her pride a little—

but then she thought it was actually good.

‘Yeah, a guy who just works out quietly like that is the real thing.’

He wouldn’t be the type to get distracted by other girls for no reason, right?

So Yoon Somin decided she should be the one to approach first, and she walked over.

And then—

“Excuse me.”

When Yoon Somin spoke to Seong,

everyone around them was watching with interest.

A meeting between Yoon Somin, who could be called Body Factory’s queen, and Seong, who could be called a true emperor—

people were staring, curious.

And Yoon Somin could feel those eyes too.

At the same time—

‘I’m kind of nervous.’

Up close, Seong’s looks shone even more.

He was drenched in sweat and had just been working out, so heat rolled off him—

but it wasn’t unpleasant.

If anything, it brought out his masculinity more, and Yoon Somin liked it a lot.

And maybe because she really was nervous, the fresh, twenty-year-old youthfulness in her made her cheeks flush a little as she worked up courage and spoke to Seong.

Not even imagining that she might get rejected.

“Could I get your OutStar ID?”

“...OutStar ID? I don’t use OutStar.”

“...?”

Thinking it was a cold rejection, Yoon Somin stared at Seong like she couldn’t believe it.

Was she being turned down?

No way.

Then... maybe—

‘He really might not use OutStar.’

She thought that.

She’d heard there were quite a few guys who didn’t use it.

So she changed what she said.

“Ah, then... could you give me your contact info?”

“Contact info? Why would I....”

Seong’s face really looked like he didn’t understand the intent at all, and Yoon Somin’s pride crumpled.

While Seong just stood there like he truly didn’t get it—

Geon-dong, who’d gotten tired from working out and was resting nearby, spoke up.

“Haa, haa... no, Seong, she’s asking for your number because she likes you.”

“Huh? Ah.”

Only then did Seong look like he understood the situation.

And the face that had flushed red from excitement turned into a carrot-red.

Embarrassment, awkwardness—and on top of that, the humiliation of everyone watching all at once.

Still, now that he understood—

wouldn’t he give it to her?

Clinging to that hope, she hurriedly pulled her phone out of her pocket.

Then she thrust it toward Seong and said,

“Ah, since you get it... will you give it to me?”

She was trying to be polite, but because she was in such a rush, her tone came out a bit blunt.

She wanted it now, as fast as possible.

But contrary to her expectation, Seong said,

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

“...Pardon?”

“Um... I’m seeing someone right now.”

“Huh???”

Yoon Somin stared at Seong with a face like she genuinely couldn’t process what she’d heard.

And Seong kept saying he was sorry as he went right back to working out.

Yoon Somin stood there blankly, staring at Seong after being rejected.

And the people watching her—

they were pretending not to know, but there was no way they didn’t know.

Yoon Somin knew that too, so with her face burning, she rushed out of the gym.

Whether that happened or not, Seong kept working out.

Watching him, Geon-dong said,

“Seeing someone? Who, maybe...?”

“Shut up.”

At Seong’s answer, Geon-dong smiled in a lewd way.

Like, You acted like you weren’t, but you’re a guy too, huh?—that kind of face.

Seong ignored Geon-dong and turned his head away.