I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius

I Became an Academy Overpowered Growth Genius –  118

EP.118 An Appetizer as Big as Taesan (2)

The grand mansion of the Taesan family.

In front of the vault located on the third basement floor.

Kang Seo-jun looked up at the large vault door. In the center of the door was a keypad that resembled a door lock. This keypad was the first locking mechanism of the vault door.

– Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! –

Kang Seo-jun tapped the keypad as if he were entering the password for his own front door.

– Beep! –

Soon, the keypad turned green, emitting an unlocking signal. Unlocking the password was not difficult at all. He simply had to enter the password he already knew from his extensive knowledge.

‘The troublesome part starts now.’

Naturally, the vault of the Taesan Group wouldn’t open with just a simple password. The keypad was merely the first locking mechanism.

– Whoong. –

Soon, a magic circle appeared below the keypad, glowing blue. This was the second locking mechanism.

– Click. Click. –

The method to unlock it wasn’t much different from the keypad. He just had to channel mana according to the known formula.

– Whoosh! –

Soon, the magic circle turned white and dissipated. This was a signal that the second locking mechanism had been successfully unlocked.

– Click! –

At the same time, a small hole opened in the center of the vault door. Inside was a crystal orb. This was the third and final locking mechanism.

‘The most bothersome lock.’

To unlock this, the direct bloodline of the Taesan family was required.

‘Hmm….’

He could manipulate the settings of the lock with the Eye of Providence, but he didn’t want to waste his mana on something like this, especially since he would be opening vaults like this all week starting tomorrow.

‘Well, it’s not like I don’t have anyone to call.’

Calling Park Seo-yoon would likely result in spending the entire night together, which he wanted to avoid. Park Tae-ho, on the other hand, was too important to bother with such a trivial matter.

Park Shin-hye could be summoned at any time.

– Beep! –

Kang Seo-jun immediately called Park Shin-hye on his smartwatch.

– Click! –

The call connected in less than three seconds.

[- Wh- What!?]

“?”

[- Why are you calling me!? At this hour!?]

“…Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”

It was still only 10 PM.

“It’s not bedtime yet, is it?”

[- N- No, but you! W- Weren’t you with Park Seo-yoon!?]

“?”

Why was she suddenly bringing up Seo-yoon?

[- I thought you two were… you know… doing it for a long time…! Cough! Sniff!]

What was she talking about? She was stumbling over her words and even sniffling. Something seemed off.

“Never mind that. Come down to the third basement floor for a moment.”

[- Wh- What!? Come down now?!]

“Why? Is it too much trouble? It’s just a few steps down the stairs.”

[- N- No, it’s not that. What about Park Seo-yoon?]

“I don’t know. She’s probably resting. I’m not with her right now.”

[- R- Really!?]

“Is that important?”

[- N- No….]

“…So, are you coming down or not?”

If she didn’t come, he’d have to use the Eye of Providence to unlock it.

[- I’ll come down! Just give me 5, no, 10 minutes!]

“Ten minutes?”

[- Eight, eight minutes!]

“…Alright.” –

– Click.

Kang Seo-jun ended the call and waited for Park Shin-hye while circulating his mana. Park Shin-hye arrived at the third basement floor about 20 minutes later.

“Hey. You said you’d be here in eight minutes. Why are you so late…?”

……?

Why does she look like that?

Kang Seo-jun stared at Park Shin-hye with wide eyes.

“Wh- Why did you call me….”

Park Shin-hye twisted her hair, which now reached her shoulders, avoiding his gaze.

“…….”

Her lips were excessively red, and her eyes were dark like a panda’s. Did she…?

“Did you put on makeup…?”

“W- What!?”

Park Shin-hye jumped.

“W- What do you mean!? Makeup!? Me!?”

“Well, your face…. Never mind.”

The power of female hormones was truly terrifying.

“Never mind that, just open this.”

“W- What!”

Park Shin-hye jumped again.

“Why did you call me here! This is our family vault! Did you get permission from Grandfather?”

“Yes. I got permission, so hurry up. I’ve unlocked everything else. You just need to unlock the last part.”

“R- Really!? Grandfather gave you permission? He never gave me permission.”

“Yes, really. Now hurry up and open it. I’m tired.”

“Are you sure!? You got permission from Grandfather!?”

“Ugh! I told you, I got permission! Hurry up!”

Kang Seo-jun grabbed Park Shin-hye’s wrist and pulled her towards the vault.

“Eek!?”

“Why are you stalling! Just touch it!”

“N- No!! I can’t!”

Park Shin-hye struggled to resist, but it was futile. She was too weakened to overpower Kang Seo-jun.

– Thud! –

In the end, she was dragged and forced to place her hand on the crystal orb.

– Whoong! –

The crystal orb reacted to Park Shin-hye’s touch, vibrating slightly.

– Click! –

At the same time, the vault handle began to turn on its own.

‘This is tiring in its own way.’

Kang Seo-jun crossed his arms and waited for the vault door to fully unlock.

Once the vault door opened, all that was left was to enjoy the contents inside.

“Hey, hey!?”

While savoring the anticipation, Park Shin-hye called out to Kang Seo-jun in a panicked voice.

“What?”

“Are you sure you got permission!? If we get caught, we’re both dead!”

Park Shin-hye anxiously rubbed her wrist, clearly not convinced that he had permission.

“Heh.”

Kang Seo-jun laughed in disbelief.

“Why don’t you believe me? I told you I got permission.”

“Then why did you call me instead of Grandfather or my sister!?”

“Hey. I can’t ask Grandfather to do such trivial tasks. And your sister… well.”

Kang Seo-jun paused briefly before continuing.

“She cried a lot today. She needs to rest.”

“What!?”

Park Shin-hye scoffed in disbelief.

“I’m tired too, you know!”

“Hey. You’re different. Can’t you do this much for a friend?”

“F- Friend!?”

– Ouch!

“Ugh….”

Park Shin-hye clutched her chest.

“……?”

Why did she feel so conflicted about being called a friend? It wasn’t an offensive term at all….

“Anyway, now that we’re done here, you can go back upstairs.”

“W- What!?”

“Why. You said you were tired. Go upstairs and rest. I can handle the rest alone.”

“Wait a minute!”

As Kang Seo-jun was about to enter the vault, Park Shin-hye suddenly grabbed his sleeve.

“…?”

If she let him go now, the ache in her chest would only worsen throughout the night.

“Ugh.”

But she didn’t know why she had impulsively grabbed him. She had bravely stopped him, but….

“Umm.”

Park Shin-hye hesitated, biting her lip, before finally blurting out something.

“Did you… really marry Park Seo-yoon?”

“……?”

Why was she suddenly asking this?

“Yeah. I did.”

“…Why? What, what did you like so much about her!?”

“What?”

Kang Seo-jun crossed his arms and tilted his head, puzzled by Park Shin-hye’s intentions.

“What are you trying to say right now?”

“N- No, it’s just that. Um….”

“Sigh…. If you’re going to talk nonsense, just go upstairs. I’m busy.”

Kang Seo-jun waved his hand dismissively, like swatting away a fly, and entered the vault.

“Hey, hey! W- Wait a minute!”

Park Shin-hye shouted at his back, but Kang Seo-jun didn’t even glance her way as he went into the vault.

“Ugh…!”

She could have followed him inside, but she felt that if she did, she would only be told to leave again, so she couldn’t bring herself to move.

“Sigh….”

In the end, Park Shin-hye let out a deep sigh and returned to her room.

‘Why do I feel like this?’

Ever since she saw her sister hugging Kang Seo-jun and crying, she had been in a bad mood.

‘…It must be because of Kang Seo-jun.’

What exactly was bothering her so much that she couldn’t stop thinking about him?

‘…Kang Seo-jun doesn’t even care about me right now.’

– Ouch. –

Thinking that made her chest ache again.

“It hurts….”

Ouch.

……!

Suddenly, Park Shin-hye felt goosebumps all over her body.

‘No way…!’

Could it be that she was feeling down because she wasn’t getting attention from Kang Seo-jun?

‘N- No…! That can’t be.’

Park Shin-hye had never craved anyone’s approval in her life. It couldn’t be that she was feeling down just because she wasn’t getting attention from a friend….

‘Ugh….’

Or maybe it could.

Park Shin-hye was no longer the same person she used to be. Just a few days ago, she had accepted her changed self in Kang Seo-jun’s arms and had been reborn.

‘I have changed…. Now that I think about it, it’s infuriating! Why does that guy always change his attitude? Can’t he just be consistently nice? Why does he keep switching between being kind and cold?’

One day, he would approach her first, and on another day, he would be as cold as ice. One day, he would help her passionately, and on another day, he would just leave her alone.

‘Ugh…! I’ve been doing everything he asked for days! So why doesn’t he praise me even once!?’

Park Shin-hye clenched her fists and trembled with frustration.

How on earth could she get Kang Seo-jun’s attention again? How could she keep his interest consistently?

‘I don’t know…. I don’t even know what he likes….’

Looking at it this way, she realized she couldn’t entirely blame Kang Seo-jun.

‘Now that I think about it…. I really don’t know much about him…. Oh, no! If this keeps up, we’ll naturally drift apart and become completely awkward! No, no, I can’t let that happen!’

Park Shin-hye bit her nails.

Kang Seo-jun was the first person to make her feel ‘friendship.’ If it were the past when she had never felt friendship, it might have been different, but now it was impossible to go back to the way things were.

‘Absolutely not! If it comes to that, just wait and see. I’ll make sure he can’t help but pay attention to me, no matter what it takes.’

…….

……….

……It seemed she had no choice but to admit it now.

‘What I thought was friendship was just an excuse.’

This was affection.

As she became a woman, she had started to like Kang Seo-jun. That’s why she felt so conflicted.

‘I don’t want to lose him…. Why does it have to be Park Seo-yoon….’

The first person she liked turned out to be her sister’s husband? How absurd and ridiculous was that?

……Wait?

‘No, now that I think about it…!’

Wasn’t Kang Seo-jun also dating Jin Se- rin!?

‘Now I remember!? What kind of guy is this!?’

He said he married her sister in the future, but why was he dating Jin Se- rin now!?

‘Oh!’

Suddenly, an idea flashed through Park Shin-hye’s mind.

‘Maybe this could actually be good…?’

Park Shin-hye touched her lips, lost in thought. If, by any chance, Kang Seo-jun was a playboy who, upon returning to the past, was testing the waters with various women before remarrying Park Seo-yoon….

‘Doesn’t that mean I might have a chance too…?’

If Kang Seo-jun was a one- woman man, it would be difficult for Park Shin-hye to capture his attention no matter what she did. However, if he was a playboy who, upon returning to the past, ignored his wife and flirted with the much younger Jin Se- rin….

‘Winning Kang Seo-jun’s heart… would depend on my efforts, wouldn’t it?’

If things went well….

‘I might be able to make Kang Seo-jun completely mine!’

Just because Kang Seo-jun was Park Seo-yoon’s husband in the future didn’t mean he had to marry the same person this time. Regardless of past lives or future events, that wasn’t the current situation. Her sister and Kang Seo-jun hadn’t done anything together yet, nor did they have a child.

‘…Yes, that’s right.’

The emotions that had been knotted in Park Shin-hye’s chest began to unravel. Whatever might have happened in the future or past lives, in the present, nothing had happened between them yet.

‘I just need to act first….’

She needed to be the first to kiss him, the first to… to…

‘If I bear his child….’

At that point, no matter what the future or past lives held, they would have to accept the changed situation.

‘People’s hearts are bound to change….’

She herself had changed a lot since becoming a woman. It wouldn’t be surprising if Kang Seo-jun, having traveled from the future to the past, also changed in many ways. Just as he had changed her, she could change him too.

‘It doesn’t have to be Park Seo-yoon! Jin Se- rin is just a fling! In reality, I’m the closest to him! Kang Seo-jun!’

This was the moment Park Shin-hye resolved to win Kang Seo-jun over.