By Zephyria 
“Then shall we go to the Ferris wheel or the teacup ride?”
Even though I strongly refused, crossing my arms in an X, he spouted such nonsense. My expression towards Seong Hae-min automatically turned cold.
Did he really want to ride that after coming all this way? It wasn’t to see the night view, nor was it a date.
“You ride it all you want. I’m going to ride the Viking.”
“Hae-jun! Come with me!”
It seemed like it would take all day to persuade Seong Hae-min to ride the rides I wanted, so I decided to go ahead with my plan. As I strode forward, the Four Heavenly Kings followed me in a line. They looked like a school of fish caught in a net, being pulled up one after another.
“Si-hu wants to go toooo!!”
“Huh? Hae-jun?”
Min Si-hu’s hurried footsteps chasing me faded into the lively background music of the amusement park. Ahead, two girls walking towards the Viking ride turned back. They waved at me. I wondered who it was, and sure enough, it was Ban Pyo-ran and Kim Yi-dam.
I should have been happy, as they were the ones who would draw the Four Heavenly Kings’ attention away from me, but I felt a sense of unease, as if I had witnessed a forced plot twist by the author.
Oh, this world full of forced developments!
“Hae-jun! Nice to see you! We were supposed to meet later, I didn’t expect to see you here first!”
“Uh, hi.”
As we talked, it seemed they were originally supposed to meet the Four Heavenly Kings, and I had apparently moved up the schedule. It wasn’t unusual for me to act as a bridge between the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Pyo-ran. When they heard the two girls were also heading to the Viking ride, we decided to go together. In an instant, a large group of seven people was formed.
We stood in line together. I watched the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Pyo-ran chatting from behind the long queue.
‘…I don’t know why I’m even here.’
The situation was unfolding exactly as the novel predicted. Perhaps that’s why I was already anxious. The hostile gazes of the girls around us, glaring at Ban Pyo-ran with the Four Heavenly Kings, made my cheeks sting.
I could already see what was going to happen. Throughout our time at the amusement park, Ban Pyo-ran would be the target of envy and jealousy, and Lee Beom would protect her, further deepening their love. The conflict would reach its peak when we encountered Do Yun-hyeok.
‘I don’t care.’
Just as I turned my gaze away to forget reality for a moment, an incident occurred.
“Oh my!”
“Ah!”
Beyond the winding, overlapping queue, a girl with a distinctive curly perm and a giant ribbon in her hair spilled a drink on Ban Pyo-ran. There wasn’t even time to react and block it.
“Kyaaak—! Pyo-ran, are you okay?”
“Uh…”
So it finally happened.
“Hey, you bitch!”
“Hey, what are you doing?”
But of course, they were the protagonists. There was no need for me to step in. The Four Heavenly Kings faithfully defended Ban Pyo-ran. Kim Yi-dam’s vulgar curses were immediately followed by Lee Beom sharply grabbing the arm of the girl who spilled the drink.
“Kyaak, Beom grabbed my wrist!”
Yet, the girl covered her mouth with her other hand as if she were honored.
I felt like I was looking at a stone wall plastered with cement. It meant I was thinking, ‘Why am I even here?’
“I asked what you were doing. Why did you spill a drink on her?”
Lee Beom was truly Ban Pyo-ran’s prince.
“I… I just… my hand slipped…”
“I saw you spill it on purpose!”
“Beom, she said it was an accident. I’m fine.”
“R-right… it was an accident…!”
The ribbon-wearing girl stammered, flustered by Lee Beom’s interrogation. Ban Pyo-ran shook off the drink and tried to stop Lee Beom, but he seemed not to hear her, his eyes blazing.
“Are you doing this to make me angry?”
“B-but…”
The hesitant ribbon-wearing girl squeezed her eyes shut and shouted.
“Th-that girl is flirting with you!!”
What did I just hear? This is the end of days.
I watched the scene unfold, clicking my tongue as if watching a Chuseok special movie on TV. The people in line, even those on the rides and the part-time workers, all turned to look at the commotion. Ban Pyo-ran, having been doused with a drink, was struggling to stop Lee Beom from interrogating the girl.
‘How did I end up here…’
I want to go home.
“What do you mean she’s flirting with me?”
Lee Beom, hearing the big ribbon girl’s words, roared in anger. He was usually so quiet, I had never seen him get this angry. Lee Beom irritably ran a hand through his hair.
“Ah, damn it… You’re making me misunderstood!”
With the word ‘misunderstood,’ Lee Beom glanced at me.
The glance was so quick it disappeared before I could register it, and I thought I had imagined it. I blinked like a mudskipper who had lost its way back to the tidal flat.
As people’s gazes followed Lee Beom’s, Min Si-hu stepped forward.
“Kyaang!”
Like darts hitting a dartboard, attention was now drawn to Min Si-hu.
“Si-huuu~!”
“Kyaak-!”
“So cute…”
“Mean-hearted friends!! I really hate it!! Ugh!!”
His tone of voice seemed to come with ‘Kkyu!’ and ‘Kyaa!’ as passive skills. His antics, with expressions that automatically conjured emojis like (>ㅁ<) and (ㅜㅁㅜ), were met with surprise and admiration from those around him, not to mention endless praise for his drawn-out speech. "W-what do you mean, ugh... I-I'm sorry. I won't do it again." The ribbon-wearing girl, still having her wrist held by Lee Beom, looked on the verge of tears and apologized at Min Si-hu's words. Her expression, genuinely hurt and red-faced as if she might cry, shocked me even more. To be genuinely saddened by Min Si-hu's reaction... 'How pathetic!' More importantly, wasn't she truly sorry to Ban Pyo-ran? If she really liked Min Si-hu or Lee Beom, could she act like this? Or not? The part of my brain responsible for moral judgment creaked and ground to a halt. This was a world I couldn't understand. "Why are you apologizing to Si-hu? Huh? The naughty ribbon girl should apologize to the person she wronged. Huh?" "...S-s-sorry." "I'm fine, so please be careful next time." With Min Si-hu's sweetly cutting words, the ribbon-wearing girl gnashed her lips and finally apologized to Ban Pyo-ran in a tiny voice. And with the ever-virtuous female protagonist Ban Pyo-ran accepting the apology, the situation was resolved. Since Ban Pyo-ran, drenched in the drink, couldn't ride the attraction, she had to step out of line. Ban Pyo-ran apologized and told us to go ahead and ride the Viking, but it felt awkward to ride alone while she was covered in a drink. As Ban Pyo-ran left the line, the Four Heavenly Kings followed suit. Then, people who had lined up solely to see the Four Heavenly Kings also began to leave. I just sighed at the absurd mass exodus in the middle of the amusement park. 'This sly fox!' 'What? Scared? Go ahead and hit her! Hit her!' And then, to my surprise... no, not surprisingly, Ban Pyo-ran was harassed even in the restroom. Kim Yi-dam's voice, not backing down from the opponent, could be heard clearly from outside. It was frustrating, but since it was happening inside the women's restroom, I couldn't help, which was awkward. "Woo woo woo! Pyo-ran and Yi-dam!! When are you coming ouuut~?" Finally, Min Si-hu called out playfully from outside, letting them know the Four Heavenly Kings were waiting, and the scuffling noises from the restroom subsided. Why are so many people so obsessed with the Four Heavenly Kings? I scanned them with a renewed gaze. I had to admit they were incredibly handsome, but I didn't think they were handsome enough to warrant such malicious bullying. Ban Seo-yi's situation was due to family matters, but this was completely incomprehensible. Suddenly, I thought of my younger sister, whom I would never see again. She was good at securing her own interests. She was petty and cunning, and if she felt she was losing an argument with me, she would quickly hide behind our parents. If she had been in Ban Pyo-ran's position, she would have used the Four Heavenly Kings to make the girls bullying her cry their eyes out. Thinking about it, Ban Pyo-ran was truly gentle and rare. She even defended the girl who spilled the drink while trying to stop Lee Beom from interrogating her. People like that, who were consistent in their actions, were uncommon. It was probably Ban Pyo-ran's charm as set by the author, but seeing her suffer made me feel pity. A moment later, Ban Pyo-ran emerged from the restroom, looking much cleaner. "Shall we go ride another attraction then?" Ban Pyo-ran smiled without a trace of distress. It was amazing. At this point, she was practically a living Buddha. The Four Heavenly Kings, Ban Pyo-ran, Kim Yi-dam, and I, leaving the Viking ride where the unpleasant incident occurred, headed elsewhere. However, after Ban Pyo-ran left the restroom, a group of girls who had also emerged from the same place began to follow us suspiciously. They were loudly chattering about buying animal headbands and such, constantly glancing at Ban Pyo-ran. Their intentions were too obvious. The real problem was that the Four Heavenly Kings were so used to being followed by students their age that they paid no attention to this group of girls. The future was obvious, and I couldn't just let the incident happen. Unable to help myself, I watched the girls closely. When one of them, who had subtly separated from the group, deliberately stumbled towards Ban Pyo-ran, I quickly ran over and grabbed her arm. "Huh?" The girl, about to fall onto Ban Pyo-ran, looked up at me in surprise. Our eyes met, and she glared at me, her face flushing like a ripe persimmon. "Hae-jun? What are you doing? Who are you?" "Uh? Uh? I, I was just..." A beat late, Seong Hae-min, who had turned to look at me and discovered the situation, rushed over. His sharp questioning, as if fire was shooting from his eyes, made the girl falter. She would give some ridiculous excuse and then get yelled at by one of the Four Heavenly Kings and cry her eyes out. Not wanting to see that predictable future, I cut in before the girl could stammer out an excuse. "Stop bothering people and study. That will be more beneficial for your life." The girl, hearing my harsh words, looked up at me with an aggrieved expression. She pursed her lips, trying to appear pitiful. It was an obvious plea for me to overlook it. However, what came out of her mouth was unexpected. "Why, why are you protecting her? Do you, do you like her?" "Huh?"