Chapter 16 Part 4: Adaptation.

First of all, there was no concept of eating at a set time in this academy.

There were several types of restaurant buildings, and it seemed like you just had to go there and eat before lunch break was over.

Of course, it wasn’t mandatory to eat the provided meals.

Unlike a normal school, it seemed very free.

So, it seemed like there would be no problem going to the snack bar.

Above all…

“I’ll pay!”

Since Siwoo confidently asserted this.

Food that someone else buys you is always the most delicious, right?

So, there was even less reason to refuse.

So, I started walking towards the snack bar alongside the two of them.

And while we were walking, Siwoo explained what happened yesterday.

“The villain during the entrance exam was Invisible Man.”

“That’s right.”

“Of course, unlike you, we fell down quickly… but we still exchanged blows, right?”

“So you got an allowance or something?”

“Of course. My parents were satisfied. So I got a lot of allowance, that’s why I’m saying I’ll treat you.”

Siwoo puffed out his chest as he said that.

It seemed like he was saying they wouldn’t have gotten an allowance if it wasn’t for him…

Sia would definitely tell me if that was true or not.

And it seemed like it wasn’t true, as Sia cut off Siwoo’s words and interjected.

“Um, Oppa? Shouldn’t you correct that to say that we twins got that allowance?”

“…What?”

“And the martial arts we learned are more effective when we work together, and it wasn’t just you, I also fought Invisible Man.”

“…That’s true.”

“So I also have a share of the allowance, shouldn’t we correct it to say that we are treating?”

“Okay, we’re treating.”

Sia finally smiled contentedly, as if she was satisfied.

On the other hand, Siwoo scratched the back of his head awkwardly, saying he was sorry for forgetting that.

I tried to hold back my laughter as I watched the two of them.

Their banter was so funny, it was like watching a comedy show.

I really thought I made a good decision to become friends with them.

Being with Siwoo and Sia was quite fun.

It always was, watching a life I couldn’t have.

Of course, I also lived this kind of life in my previous life.

But that past life was already only fragments.

I didn’t remember anything properly.

It must have been like this. It must have been like that. Maybe it could have been like this.

It was just a series of assumptions.

…My sisters and brothers thought it was a side effect of the experiment.

Under the plausible name of schizophrenia, I received various treatments.

Of course, every time there was that treatment, I lost myself.

To protect my ego, I had to act like a normal person…

The me inside the glass wall realized it too late.

I should have dealt with it sooner, but I think I was too thirsty.

Even if my ego started to crumble into dust.

I couldn’t give up on talking to people, so I ignored it.

The result… well. It’s gotten to the point where it’s more annoying to think about it now.

So I felt good whenever I saw these trivial things.

Even if it was just a trivial thing like twin siblings squabbling and fighting.

It was like a precious experience that I couldn’t obtain.

Whenever I saw things like that, I could somehow piece together my crumbled ego and fragmented memories and reminisce.

Maybe, I was like that in my previous life.

So I needed to get closer to Siwoo and Sia.

I thought I could have a very fun time with them.

And that thought isn’t wrong even now.

Siwoo and Sia were having a heated debate about what kind of bread to eat.

I listened to their debate and walked forward pleasantly.

After walking for who knows how long.

The two, who had been 고민ing whether to eat donuts or pizza bread, seemed to have finally decided to eat both.

I watched them nod for a moment, then looked around to see where the snack bar building was.

Siwoo also looked around with me, then suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke to me.

“Yeji.”

“Hm?”

“Do you want to come over to our house?”

“…Visit your house?”

“Yeah. Our parents seem to really want to see you.”

“Wouldn’t it be bad to say it like that?”

“…Oops.”

I laughed, trying not to look like I was mocking him too much.

Siwoo looked frustrated for a moment, and Sia lightly hit the back of her brother’s head.

And then, she slowly invited me.

“Actually, we also wanted to invite you to our house. We also want to play together.”

“You should have said it like that. That you have a game console at home. Or movies.”

“…We have a wall-mounted TV, are you interested?”

“That’s enough… I think I need to tell my family.”

“Okay, then we’ll invite you later. Let’s watch it together then.”

I nodded, accepting Sia’s invitation.

…I’ll have to tell my aunt, but I don’t think she’ll refuse.

Rather, she’ll encourage me, telling me to have fun.

So without any worries, I started looking for the snack bar again.

Fortunately, it seemed like we weren’t the only students trying to go to the snack bar.

Before long, I could see that the snack bar was in that huge six-story building.

The first snack bar we entered was…

Okay. It seemed like a snack bar, for starters.

…No, I don’t think I can call it a snack bar.

I slowly looked at the snack bar and came to a conclusion.

This wasn’t a snack bar, it was just a large supermarket.

It was that huge.

The snack bar I remember was… just something that sold snacks.

Getting a small space in the corner of the school, filling students’ stomachs at a cheap price…

It was a nostalgic place like that.

But the snack bar in front of me was nothing like that.

Basement 2. Basement 1. 1st floor. 2nd floor. 3rd floor.

It used five floors entirely.

And it wasn’t just selling food, it was also functioning as a stationery store.

So this couldn’t be called a snack bar.

What kind of snack bar operates a coffee shop on the basement 1st floor?

So this wasn’t a snack bar.

I came to that conclusion and trembled.

On the other hand, Siwoo and Sia didn’t seem to know what the problem with this snack bar was.

They seemed to realize that the facilities were very large, but they soon started to go around the snack bar to choose bread.

I was dazed for a moment, then followed them around.

And I started to get scared.

It was inevitable.

Siwoo and Sia were putting more than ten pieces of bread in their basket.

Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore and said to them.

“We have to eat lunch too, won’t you be full?”

“Huh? Our metabolism is really high, so it’s okay.”

“That’s right. If Oppa and I use our bodies a little, we lose weight quickly. We should rather eat a lot.”

“It’s not for nothing that our parents don’t put a limit on food expenses. So, you can choose as much as you want.”

“Haha…”

I laughed awkwardly and looked at the displayed breads.

There were so many kinds of bread that it seemed like it would take half a day just to choose.

I wondered if I could eat them all before graduating, even if I ate one a day.

So it didn’t seem like there was much point in trying something new.

So I decided to eat the most familiar thing.

I didn’t have many memories of eating convenience store bread in this world.

Recalling the memories of my high school days, the bread that comforted my hungry stomach when I was a male student.

So I chose a hamburger and picked it up.

The hamburger… honestly, it was strange.

It was too thick to be sold at a convenience store.

I mean, it was thick in a good way.

The bread seemed to be proper, and the patty and ingredients inside were also quite good.

This bread, which wouldn’t be strange to call a handmade burger, was only 2,200 won.

I felt that it was quite strange at this point, but I didn’t bother to say it.

Now that I looked at it, all the items in this snack bar seemed to be quite cheap.

Even the caffeine drinks I often enjoy were two for 990 won.

Outside, it would cost 2,200 won to buy one.

So I felt quite strange.

It felt like a forgotten memory was resurfacing.

It was a certain mart that started with P, but I didn’t think it would be good to remember.

So I casually brushed that memory aside and put the hamburger in the basket Siwoo was holding.

Siwoo immediately handed the breads to the snack bar lady, and soon after, we went down to the basement 2nd floor.

And there, in the eating area, we started to eat the bread.

I carefully took a bite of the hamburger.

And then, I slowly started to eat it.

The hamburger, which I hadn’t eaten in a long time, was very delicious.

It was quite delicious even though it wasn’t heated in the microwave.

And while I was eating the hamburger, Siwoo and Sia were also eating bread.

…The two of them ate bread at a very fast pace.

While I took a bite and chewed it, the two of them were already picking up other breads.

So I thought it was very cute.

Both of them were stuffing bread into their mouths like rodents.

Considering that snakes eat rodents…

It was a quite interesting observation.