“Huh? Make her cry?”

Muen stared blankly at the upperclassman in front of him.

“Why?”

“Oh, you know... Just a personal reason of mine,” Anna said, twirling a lock of her hair.

“You sure it’s not because you just want to mess with me?”

Muen couldn’t help but give a cold smirk that screamed I’ve seen through it all.

“I get it. This is another one of your new prank schemes, right? I’m not falling for it.”

“Oh? Junior doesn’t want to?”

“Of course not. No matter how you slice it, making a girl cry out of nowhere—that’s just asking to be struck by lightning.”

“So, making me cry is okay then?”

Anna gently brushed her finger along the corner of her eye, her expression already shimmering with impending tears.

“You clearly said before you’d do anything to repay me, but now you won’t even help with a tiny little thing? I guess playboys like you really are unreliable, huh?

Sob sob, Senior’s so hurt...”

“......”

Muen fell silent for a moment, then sighed.

“I’ll help. But Senior, you at least have to tell me why. You don’t seem like someone who would just bully a younger girl for no reason.”

“A reason, huh?”

Anna dropped the tearful act, rested her cheek on one hand, and let her gaze drift off into the distance.

And at that moment, Muen saw it again—that same loneliness, as though she didn’t quite belong in this world.

“Just think of it as me being selfish, Junior.”

...

...

“Here, Muen—try our signature creamy stew.”

“Oh, oh.”

“Here, Muen—try our signature escargot au gratin.”

“Mhm, mhm.”

“Here, Muen—try our °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° signature sirloin steak.”

“Ah, ah.”

In the delicately decorated little restaurant, music from a famous composer played softly. The slow, elegant melody and the soprano’s clear high notes flowed from the phonograph crystal like a babbling stream.

The doors and windows were shut tight. In the dim room, a few red candles burned atop pure white tablecloths, their flickering flames dyeing everyone’s cheeks a rosy red, just like the sparkling wine in their glasses.

Even the most etiquette-obsessed noble would have had to admit: this was a perfect candlelit dinner. The kind that sets the stage for a pure and innocent romance to blossom between a boy and a girl, climaxing in the ultimate date atmosphere.

And at this moment, if the boy pulled out a ring set with a huge diamond and confessed his undying love, there was no doubt the girl would be moved to tears—so much so that she’d vow to marry him even if he turned into a dog.

But the key detail was...

There were three people on this damn date!

Three!

That magic number that kills all romance on sight. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

What goes with “three”?

Closet hiding.

Under-the-bed hiding.

Infamous love triangle dramas.

Cuckold tags.

“I was here first!”

And goddamn poker.

A date involving three people? You might as well start swinging an axe!

So please, Senior—save me!

While dodging Shali’s obviously intentional close proximity and relentless feeding attempts, Muen kept throwing desperate glances at the instigator—his so-called senior.

But not only did Anna not rescue him, she even gave him a tiny fist pump under the table.

You got this! —that was probably what she meant.

Got this, my ass!

Ever since Shali realized this was a “date” involving Anna, it was like she’d turned into a completely different person. Her aggressive affection felt strong enough to melt even the most die-hard straight man into a starry-eyed romantic.

This totally doesn’t match your character, okay? What happened to your black-rimmed glasses and braided pigtails? Have you no shame morphing personalities in public?!

Muen was already starting to break.

Subtly scooting a little further away, he suddenly realized—sitting this close to him, Shali’s figure under that loose school uniform was every bit as impressive as Anna’s.

Which only made it even harder to sit still.

Especially with Senior watching like she was enjoying a damn drama.

“Um... Shali,”

Muen intercepted another spoonful headed his way and gave a wry smile.

“I’m not a kid anymore. I can feed myself.”

“But this is my way of showing appreciation!” Shali insisted.

“Well I’ve already received plenty of that appreciation!”

“Really?”

She finally gave up the attack and tilted her head.

“So, was it tasty?”

“Delicious! So, so good!”

Muen nodded vigorously.

He was too nervous to taste anything at all, but at this point, even if it was some kind of hell stew, he had to smile and sing its praises.

“I’m so glad you liked it, Muen,”

Shali beamed, like that single sentence made her entire day.

Looking at her shy, glowing face, Muen faltered for a moment.

But he quickly buried the flicker of guilt deep down and smiled as he pushed a rigged plate back in front of her.

“You’ve been working hard, Shali. You should eat too.”

“I...”

Shali’s eyes darted beneath her glasses. Her cheeks, lit by candlelight, flushed so red they looked like you could squeeze juice out of them.

“I want you to... feed me, Muen.”

“......”

Muen’s mouth twitched. But at this point, what choice did he have?

With trembling hands, he picked up a silver spoon and, under Shali’s eager gaze, brought the fragrant food to her lips.

She swallowed it in one bite, face full of bliss.

“So good. No wonder—it was Muen who fed it to me.”

“I-is that so...”

Muen smiled stiffly, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

What the hell?! He’d packed that food full of wasabi!

Was this girl a damn monster or something?!

Just as he was thinking that, Shali once again opened her mouth like a hungry baby bird.

More!

“......”

Senior!

Save me!!

Muen threw another SOS signal toward Anna.

But Anna was busy waging war on her steak and had no time to deal with his crisis.

She did, however, raise that dainty fist again and gave it a silent pump.

You got this!

Seeing her carefree face, clearly enjoying the chaos and maybe even stoking it—Muen suddenly felt something sharp stab into his heart.

—Senior, you’re so damn chill, I might actually cry.

Realizing he was completely alone on this battlefield, Muen took a deep breath.

Don’t panic.

Muen, don’t panic.

Think positive.

If Senior didn’t care about things like this, then he might be able to avoid the dreaded love triangle battlefield!

Meaning—as long as he carried out her request and handled Shali properly—everything might wrap up smoothly!

Yeah. A bright future was waiting!

Screw fate. He’d crush it with his own hands—

The wind chime on the door gave a soft jingle.

In that moment, it felt like endless light flooded his vision.

But it wasn’t his bright future.

It was the door to the sealed restaurant being opened from the outside.

“Excuse me, is anyone here?”

A figure in a maid uniform stood in the doorway, silhouetted against the light.

Apparently still adjusting to the dim interior, she squinted slightly.

And in that moment—

The moment Muen saw her face clearly—

The crisis alarm in his head went off like a bomb.

Even after facing death countless times, he’d never once felt it this intensely.

A bone-chilling terror shot into his soul like a thousand needles.

After a brief moment of confusion, shock, and fear, his mind began spinning at full throttle.

The shameless womanizer instinct buried deep in his soul exploded to life.

Before those dignified eyes could land on him, he sharply ducked down—

And dove under the table to clutch at Anna’s smooth, pale thigh.

“Senior... This time, you really have to save me!!”