58 – Debts and Flares

A few moments later, she was bowing to the restaurant staff and customers,apologizing profusely. Then the man surprised her again by paying for the damages.

"How…how much do I owe you?" Yihwa asked hesitantly, scared of the potential figure.

"We can talk about that later. Come on, let's get away from these people first before they lynch us, and grab some food somewhere else," he said, putting an arm around her protectively as he led her away from the hostile atmosphere.

She bit her lip and did not object to the physical touch, lest she cause another disaster.

They made their way to another restaurant, which was even more upscale than the previous one.

'Is he rich?' Yihwa thought as they entered and sat down at a table for two.

The man ordered while Yihwa was still too mortified to speak.

They were served tea before the silence was broken.

"So…you were objecting to being called high maintenance?" The man said pointedly, much to her burning shame.

"I…I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to do that!"

"Sorry, it was a bad choice of words on my part. What I meant was just that, like you said, it's hard work and a lot of maintenance being a beautiful girl, and I'm glad that as a man, I don't have to do all that work," he said.

"Oh…" Yihwa sank deeper into herself in embarrassment.

"I'm going to get a change of clothes, since these have been destroyed," he said.

"Sorry about that too…" Yihwa mumbled, watching him get up and go to the restroom. 'How am I going to pay him back? Should I just make a run for it while he isn't here?'

She glanced around and shuffled in her seat. Then she settled back down, hands in her face.

'No...! As an elite from a Great Family I can't just run away from my debts…'

Some of the food arrived, and it looked both delicious and expensive.

Yihwa checked the menu again. It didn't even have prices, which meant it was one of those places for the rich that didn't even care what the prices were.

'Ugh…I'm hungry but this food…he knows I can't pay for this right…? This is bad…he must be expecting things from me now? And I'm already in debt to him…I can't just leave…but if he asks for those things…do I have to…? No way…! I'd rather ask my family for help then! Argh…but if they found out how much trouble I'm in…damn it I don't know which is worse...maybe if he doesn't take it too far…there are those kinds of relationships where they don't actually have to do it, right?'

She was drawn out of her rampaging thoughts when the man returned.

The sound of background chatter from other customers melted away as if his presence demanded her sole attention.

The man had swapped for another dress shirt, his hair was also brushed, and looked much better.

His sunglasses had turned into normal glasses after going indoors, so Yihwa could see his kind brown eyes.

'…he doesn't look bad at all…and he seems nice…he even survived my flames! He must be really strong…maybe he'll agree to be my teammate…? Nobody else will take me because I can't control my flames, but if he's strong enough that it doesn't bother him…maybe I can finally…'

"Why didn't you just run away?" He asked suddenly with an amused expression. "I gave you the perfect opportunity. Then you wouldn't need to owe me anything. I don't care about it anyways."

"I-I w-would never even think of that!" Yihwa stammered, cheeks reddening again at the memory of herself contemplating it. "I'll pay you back s-somehow…"

"Okay, if you say so. Let's dig in," he said, picking up his utensils.

Then he noticed Yihwa was hesitating. "Don't worry about this meal, by the way. Just consider it my treat. An apology for what I said earlier."

Then she couldn't resist any further and also began to eat. "Thank you!"

The man swallowed some food then asked. "Are you climbing the Tower by yourself?"

Yihwa nodded.

"Your flames are pretty strong. I could imagine the previous floors must have been pretty easy for you. Most Regulars don't have any sort of Shinoo Quality by this time."

Yihwa smiled at the compliment. "That's right, I'm an elite! I entered the Tower when I was fourteen and it hasn't even been five years yet."

"Why not find a team? With that sort of strength, it shouldn't be hard to find some good teammates. You can share some expenses and make it easier on yourself. Maybe get someone that can cook for you," he said.

"Umm…" Yihwa's eyes turned downcast again. "…because of things like what happened earlier…"

"Oh, that wasn't just a one-off thing? You have trouble controlling your flames?" He asked, slicing into a thick steak.

"Yeah…I've always had trouble with it…" Yihwa said hesitantly.

"I see. Must be rough. That's how it is with having too much talent sometimes," he said sympathetically. "I'm sure you'll get the hang of it if you keep working at it though."

When the man didn't say anything further and just quietly ate his food, Yihwa began to think rapidly again while eating. 'He brought it up first…he must be thinking about it? If he's interested in more than just my body…is he waiting for me to take the initiative and ask? To see if I'm willing to be humble? Or is he just shy? He wasn't shy about staring at me earlier…was that just because his shades were on then?'

She swallowed a particularly delicious piece of lobster while continuing to think. 'If I'm his teammate it's not that bad…at least I'm not just selling my body for money! The family doesn't have to know if we're doing anything else…wait, no, what am I thinking I'm not going to do anything else! I'm going to be his teammate, not his mistress! He should be grateful that I'm even letting him look!'

A few moments later, she caught him looking at her again. He smiled, and then her eyes darted back down.

"You look like you're enjoying the food. It's good, right?"

"Y-yes," Yihwa said, glancing back up at his smile and smiling back slightly.

"Eat as much as you like. Order more if you want. Such powerful flames must use a lot of energy…so make sure you get your nutrients. I hear that pretty girls are usually self-conscious about eating more than a guy when having a meal together, but you don't have to worry about that with me. I may not look like it, but I can put away a lot of food…Basically, I can eat as much as you need me to, so there's no need to hold back on my account," he said.

'He can eat as much as I need him to…? That's a metaphor for enduring hardship, right? So he can be romantic too…or wait, was he indirectly telling me I don't need to hold back my flames around him?'

"You don't have to do that," she said, giving the polite response first. But she smiled wider and began to eat faster. 'If he doesn't mind…then I should emphasize how much power I have!'

"My flames don't use that much energy. There's so much flame in me that I could use it all day without getting exhausted. That's why it's hard to control, there's just sooo much."

"That's incredible. Beautiful and powerful. If you keep working hard, you'll definitely be the elite among elites," he said.

"You're flattering me…I'm not that amazing," Yihwa said, giving the expected humble response even as a fluttery feeling arose in her stomach. 'He gets it!'

"Maybe I am flattering you, but you deserve it," he said.

"T-thanks," she said, her voice suddenly a pitch higher while staring at her plate.

The table lapsed into the silence again, filled only by the sounds of their utensils and eating. Yihwa was left to her thoughts again.

'I should say something, shouldn't I? Guys like girls that can hold a conversation…and he led the topic twice already, it's my turn isn't it? But what do I say? Should I just ask him to team up with me now? But isn't that too blunt? Aren't guys supposed to do the asking? He already knows I'm available…wait, does he know I'm from a Great Family? He hasn't said anything but my headband is right there…Maybe he's shy because of that…'

She sneaked a few more glances at him while he seemed to be just enjoying his own food now.

I don't see any family symbols on him…is this just the proper etiquette when a common man deals with a noble lady? Why did nobody tell me how to handle this kind of situation before I entered the Tower?!'

The man drank a bit of his tea, then took another look at the menu.

'A noble lady should offer her hand before the man can kiss it, right? Does that apply here…? How am I supposed to do that?'

"Do you want any alcohol?" The man asked suddenly. "Some wine, maybe?"

"Alcohol? That's…" 'Oh no…was this his real plan? To get me drunk before having his way with me? I knew it was too good to be true…! I won't fall for it!'

Yihwa shook her head. "No thanks. I'm good."

"Okay, no problem. You were looking at that restaurant and bar earlier so I thought maybe that's what you wanted. I'll just order some for myself, don't mind me," he said, while completing his order with the machine.

'Ah…did I misunderstand? It's true that there was a bar there…but it was just a coincidence. I'm not even the right age for it yet…it'll be several more months before I turn nineteen.'

"To be honest, I'm not much of a drinker myself. I greatly value what's up here…and all my memories," He said, tapping his head. "And so I dislike the idea of impairing myself in any way…I have especially been very careful not to have ever gotten drunk before. But people say that good food like this should be paired with wine, especially in a high class place like this…so it would feel a bit strange not to have a little."

"That's a thoughtful way of looking at it," said Yihwa. 'Kind and temperate, was there really such a good man out there…?'

When the wine came, he poured less than half a glass for himself.

"That's all you're having?" Yihwa couldn't help but ask.

"Haha, you never had wine before? It's normal to pour this much, you're not supposed to fill the glass. This way, you can do this," he said, before holding the glass by the thin handle area at the bottom and swirling it around lightly.

"It's not like I never had it before…I just didn't know! What is that for?"

"Can you smell it? By letting it mix with the air, the volatile compounds in the wine are released, and smooth out some odors that aren't so pleasant that are produced as a side effect of the fermentation process," he explained while holding the glass towards her. "This is the proper way to have wine and savor its taste."

She let the smell reach her and noticed what he was talking about. There was a slightly pungent odor initially that dissipated and was replaced by a pleasant fruity aroma after.

"But there's more. Since you're a young and pretty girl, I'll teach you this as well…there are lots of bad guys that might try to put things in your drinks or overdose the alcohol content."

Yihwa's cheeks burned up again. 'I'm not some naïve girl…! I know what guys are like!'

But then the man continued. "If you're having wine, you can use this same technique to check the alcohol level and see if it's suspicious," he said, pouring a second glass.

'Huh?'

"First, you can see that the color is darker in this glass that hasn't been swirled yet. So it's harder to see what's in there. Once you swirl it, the color lightens…but more importantly, see these 'legs' that the wine leaves behind? The higher the viscosity and number of legs left behind, the more alcohol there is in the drink. And when you swirl it up higher in the glass, suspicious things may get left behind. Of course, a simpler test is to watch that they poured it from the same source without tampering, and see if they will drink it themselves," he said, before drinking from the first cup. "Though sometimes that's not enough, because they might have already taken an antidote beforehand. But that's something you can do to protect yourself."

"…thank you…" Yihwa said in a small voice. 'That's actually helpful…and I actually suspected him…'

She reached for the other cup. 'But he shouldn't get the wrong impression of me…I'm not a little girl that doesn't know anything! I'm also cultured and mature!'

"Hey, you don't have to drink that just because I poured it, if you don't want to. It was just a demonstration," he said.

"No, I'll have some!" Yihwa said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes I'm sure, my flames will burn away the side effects anyway! So it's not like I was worried that you would get me drunk!"

"Well…okay…wait…aren't you actually too young for this? I just remembered, you said you entered the Tower when you were fourteen, and it hasn't been five years right? Isn't the legal age to drink nineteen?"

"N-no way! You must have heard wrong," she said, then quickly gulped down the glass of wine in a single go.

"…normally, when drinking wine with somebody else after they pour it for you, you should offer to clink the glass before the first sip," he said with a knowing smile. "And it's not good to down it all at once like that either, especially for someone who isn't used to it."

"…!" Yihwa felt both her throat and cheeks burning up. "S-so what if I'm not old enough? It's just a few more months until my birthday! Besides, once we enter the Tower as a Regular, age doesn't matter anymore anyways!"

"True, true," he said, pouring her some more. Then he raised his own glass to her. "Cheers, then."

She clinked her glass with his and drank another sip.

Now it really felt like her throat was literally burning, and she put a hand over her mouth while coughing. She felt a flicker of flame on her hand.

"Take it easy," he said, before resuming with eating.

After a while, Yihwa felt better and returned to her food as well. 'That was terrible…and I was too obvious…I just made myself look even more immature, didn't I? I can't let him surprise me again. I have to take control of this conversation, and then go for the kill! How do I do that…? He's been asking me questions every time…I should ask him some too. That's right, I should find out more about him rather than just go off first impressions.'

"So…I told you about me…how long have you been in the Tower?" She asked, as casually as she could.

"Me? Just under six years now," he said.

'That's pretty fast too…'

"How can you afford all this?"

"It's not a big deal. I got lucky and defeated a powerful Anima from the Lo Po Bia family with a lot of rare Shinheuh on the Floor of Tests; the test administrators let me take the spoils and sell it all. I haven't needed to worry about money since."

"You were that strong already on the Floor of Tests?" Yihwa asked with surprise. It was no small feat to defeat a member of the Great Families on the very first floor, before Regulars had a chance to grow. All the Great Family members would have entered with a lot of training and strong powers already.

"He underestimated me. Played around too much. He thought he'd already won and then I turned things around at the last minute."

"You must be really smart too to pull that off," said Yihwa.

"I just do what I can to win, haha," he said.

"You must have a good team as well? Strong, rich, and smart. Who wouldn't want somebody like you?" She asked, with a carefully crafted wistful tone and impressed face. 'I know how to flatter someone too!'

"Just one partner. Though, we were strong enough to get through all the tests without anyone else. She's a lot like you, actually…powerful, talented, beautiful…'

'Urhk! Of course he had someone already…'

"She even had a habit of hurting teammates too…though in her case it was more intentional…"

"Intentional?! Why?"

"You've probably met the type at some point—proud, arrogant, everything came easily to her, and unlike you, she had no problems with control either, so because of this she didn't consider anyone to be worthy of her. Her teammates were just tools or servants at best, unwanted burdens assigned by the tests at worst, and if she could sacrifice them to get ahead, she did it."

"That's terrible! Why would you team up with somebody like that?" 'Would I have been like that too, if I had control?'

"That was before she met me. Couldn't hurt me even if she wanted to. Found people that could stand at the same heights as her, and saw things more important than just winning. It probably helped that we had to fight off a deadly assassin together too. People tend to change their view on life when they go through a life and death situation where they have no choice but to rely on their comrades."

"Wow…that sounds like it would be an interesting story to hear…" She said curiously. 'They even have a romantic story, I can't compete with that! But I want to know…'

"It's a long story, so maybe I'll tell you another day. Anyways, I split up with her about a couple of years ago to take a break from climbing, since it felt like we were going too fast," he said.

Yihwa nodded absentmindedly at his words while her thoughts raced. 'A couple of years ago? That means he reached this floor in less than four years?! With only two people… but if his partner went up without him, that means this is my chance…! I can steal him for myself!'

Then she hesitated. 'Steal him? What am I thinking…I can't do something like that…that's wrong! But…can I really let this chance go? I don't have much choice left…I need to pass the test…I need a teammate…I need money…I need him! When will I ever find someone like this again? If my debt gets any bigger…I have to do this…just one floor at least!'

"Then she joined up with some other friends of ours that caught up to us, while I stayed back to learn some more and develop my skills more on my own. We agreed to meet up again in a few years on a higher floor."

'…just one floor…you can share for just that long, can't you, sister? You're not even here…isn't it despicable to leave him all alone like this? Joining up with other friends…isn't that just an excuse to enjoy yourself while your man is working hard by himself?'

The more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.

'Don't blame me, whoever you are…she probably doesn't even realize how good she had it…leaving behind a good man like this, she was practically asking for someone to come along! That's what always happens when a man and a woman have a long distance relationship, isn't it?'

Her face firmed up in resolve.

'It's not my fault he got lonely and looked at another woman. He's the one that came on to me first, anyways! I'm not doing anything wrong! I'm not even going to do any actual things with him! I just need some help to get past this floor, then everything will be fine. He needs a new teammate to climb up too anyways, so it might as well be me rather than some other unscrupulous woman.'

She swallowed and made sure there was nothing in her mouth, and sat up a bit straighter. 'You can do this, Yihwa!'

"By the way…" Yihwa leaned forward and moved some of her hair behind her neck.

"Hm?"

"You're the first person I've met that survived my flames without getting hurt…" She said while looking up at him coquettishly. "…my flames are too strong for anyone else to handle…if you don't mind…"

A slight pause as she suppressed a nervous change of pitch in her voice.

"…so…would you be interested in having me as your mistress?—I mean, t-teammate! TEAMMATE, I said!? D-don't misunderstand! I didn't mean anything else!" She drew back sharply and stammered with a completely red face.

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