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"For me, that's all that matters."
At that moment, something in Yinn Naron broke.
It was first a small crevasse, then several cracks. They extended outwards like the silky threads of a spiderweb. The wall that had boxed her in darkness for as long as she could remember was breaking apart.
Behind its cracks were streaks of light, slowly pouring into her world like a million shooting stars.
"I-I'm sorry. I—" Before she knew it, tears were trickling down her cheeks and the brown haired girl broke into a sob.
The members seemed to be taken back at her breakdown and exchanged awkward glances with each other. In the end, they decided to wait until she let go of all her pent up emotions. After all, she had been through quite a lot.
Despite her nonstop crying clogging her airway, however, Yinn felt a sense of release.
"Miss Yinn Naron." Through glassy eyes, she could make out a silver-haired man's gentle expression. "You have done well."
"M-Mr. Park?" Her sniffles muffled her voice as she looked towards him in surprise. She wasn't expecting forgiveness from Clarity nor any of the members, let alone words of comfort.
Jimin peered towards the brown haired girl who was in a teary-mess.
Truthfully speaking, he had seen her vulnerable state when he rescued her from the auction. But he chose to not do anything about it because he considered emotional turmoils to be personal problems. Problems that the individual should overcome by themselves.
As someone outside of the situation, Jimin believed that it would be best not to interfere unless the person had directly asked for help. He could see it now. Jimin thought Yinn Naron did not ask for help, but he was wrong.
She did try calling out. He just didn't hear her.
"Aigoo..." Sighing at the chaotic atmosphere, Seokjin clicked his tongue. "Let's not flood the conference room, alright? If Miss Clarity says it's fine, then let's just leave it in the past. It's a new chapter. New chapter."
"T-thank you all..." Voice quivering, Yinn blew her nose into a tissue.
Clarity lifted an eyebrow in amusement at the rare panic on Seokjin's face. If she had knew that Bangtan's eldest was weak to crying, she would have sobbed her way through the death flags when she first arrived into this world.
After Yinn had calmed down, the group returned to their previous topic of discussion. There were still things that had to be mentioned.
"Anyway, since we're all on the same boat now," Clarity said, smiling towards Yinn Naron. "There is something I must tell you as well."
Yinn blinked twice.
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"...I'm the female protagonist in a book?"
After Clarity updated her with everything that had happened, Yinn could only stare with incredulity at the person before her eyes.
"And you're from another world?"
The short-haired girl smiled awkwardly in response.
"...Wow." Yinn did not know what to say. It seemed like her life had taken a 180-turn in the just past few hours.
"Anyways, I know this is hard to believe, but I thought it would be best to let you know in preparation for future events," Clarity explained.
The banquet was coming up, and there was no way to know if things were going to go according to the book. Chances were that it would not, but she had to prepare for as many potential situations as possible.
This was why Clarity decided to confess her identity to Yinn Naron. Now that the original female protagonist officially joined the team, it would be troublesome if she continued to stay at Bangtan's mansion without knowing anything.
In fact, Senyu was probably also aware of her presence, so if they found out that both Yinn Naron and Clarity Moon were alive, and that Tara's plan was an utter failure, they would no doubt send more people after them. In order to avoid unnecessary dangers, everyone had to be on the same page.
Confirming she had everyone's undivided attention, Clarity started to explain the events in leading up to the banquet.
In the short-haired girl's explanation, she mentioned the bombs that were going to be placed in the banquet halls. Although Seokjin had set up security systems throughout, they still couldn't be one-hundred percent certain that Senyu wouldn't find a way to create chaos like the members themselves had done on the Auction.
"I think it would be best that Miss Naron stay here, then. Wouldn't it be safer that way?" Hoseok suggested after hearing the information.
The members were all skilled and experienced, so they weren't too worried about chaos. However, things could get difficult for ordinary humans like Yinn.
"But since all seven of us are going. It may actually be safer for Miss Naron to stay with us." Namjoon tapped his chin in contemplation.
"Oh, she won't be alone. Clarity's staying with her," Seokjin said with a shrug, and the short-haired girl stared at him dumbfounded.
"I'm what?"
"Seokjin's right. It's too dangerous. You can't go." Taehyung's stoic gaze locked onto her, and Clarity unknowingly shuddered.
This incident made Taehyung realized something.
Senyu had always been Bangtan's enemy, but they didn't pose much of a threat as the seven of them were already living recklessly and without a care for anything but each other.
However, this was no longer the case.
Taehyung didn't have to worry about the other members. He trusted their abilities. On the other hand, he needed to constantly keep an eye out on a certain reckless girl so that Senyu couldn't lay their hands on her. He didn't know how much information Senyu had on Clarity, but the fact that this was not the first time they came after her was worrying.
Taehyung's role in the banquet required him to roam around the area and get rid of any uninvited intruders. This meant that he was going to be constantly on the move, and that he would be unable to stay with Clarity throughout the entire event.
This was why the raven-haired man was adamant on stopping her from attending. If something had happened to her while he was away, he didn't know what he would do.
He couldn't risk losing her, no matter what.
For the first time, Taehyung was acting on neither rationality nor impulse—but fear.
"No, but I have to go." Clarity frowned. "I'm the only one who knows where the bombs are hidden. I need to go so we can get rid of them and prevent a disaster."
"You can tell Yoongi the location of the bombs. He'll know what to do."
"That's not the point," Clarity retorted with a sigh. "You can't just make me stay after hearing everything I just said. The banquet was the climax of the book. Although this world is a stand alone from the original plot, I've got a really bad feeling that something big will happen. I can't just be safe all by myself when all of you are putting yourselves in danger!"
"Exactly. That's why you can't be involved." Taehyung crossed his arms. "That 'something big' is going to be dangerous. Do you not remember the forest assassination and Tara Lee? They know your face."
"I'll be careful, I swear! And plus, they also know all of your faces." Clarity threw her hands up, exasperated. "Trust me, if all of us appear in the same picture, the spotlight is always going to be on all of you."
Imagine seven godly-looking men and a secretary with the face of a Passerby A—it was quite obvious which of the two would receive the attention.
The other members and Yinn shifted their gaze back and forth between the two. The argument had reached a deadlock, with neither sides yielding to the other's request.
Clarity slowly exhaled. Sure, she understood where Taehyung was coming from, but there was no way she was going to let the members handle this all by themselves. Although she was weaker than them, she still had the skills of the original Secretary. She was capable of protecting herself, or at least buying time if it came down to it.
However, if she just stayed in sanctuary while the members were engaged in the mission, she would never forgive herself if something were to happen to them. To Taehyung.
If anything, she wanted to be there with him, no matter what.
"Are you set on coming?" Taehyung lowered his eyes. Sensing a moment of capitulation in the raven haired man, she nodded promptly.
"Don't worry, I promise I'll keep myself super safe. Two heads are better than one. Eight brains are better than seven." Clarity clung on to his arm like a koala. "Plus, I don't think there are any chances of me being in danger when you're here, right?"
Taehyung's eyes seemed to finally soften at her words as he exhaled in resignation.
"You're really driving me crazy," he said as he turned to the eldest. "I'm sorry, Jin, but I think I'll have to take up another role in the plan."
"...You're both driving me crazy." Seokjin shook his head at the reckless pair before him. He then spoke to the brown haired girl to his left. "Miss Naron, I apologize, but it looks like it'll be better if you come with us to the banquet after all. You'll be safer with us than staying alone here."
"Got it," Yinn assured him with a smile. "I will make sure to not become a burden and get in the way."
"Your parents are going to be there, too. Are you going to be okay?" Namjoon had an apprehensive gaze as he saw Yinn flinch at the mentioning of her parents.
He had heard from Clarity the other day about how Yinn Naron was sold off by her parents in exchange for money. She was abandoned by her family for monetary gain.
Namjoon pitied the girl. No one should ever have to go through something like that in their lives.
"...I'll be fine." To his surprise, the brown haired girl glanced up with a firm gaze. She still seemed scared, but there was light in her eyes. "If we do end up meeting each other, I will confront them once and for all."
Her soft voice was coated with determination. Yinn looked at the group with a rueful smile.
"I do not want to be pursued by darkness anymore."
This was the first choice she made with her own free will. It was her first step towards the light.
"I will be with Miss Naron to make sure she is alright," Jimin said, tilting his head with a smile. "There is no need to worry."
"Jimin-ssi, that's kind of cool," Jungkook wiggled his eyebrows before getting smacked on the head by the silver-haired man.
"Come to think of it," Yoongi, who had been dozing off suddenly spoke up. His nonchalant gaze casually shifted towards Clarity. "You're still dead, aren't you?"
Silence poured into the room.
"Huh?" The latter blinked, dumbfounded by his statement.
"Ah!" Jungkook seemed to understand the older one's words as he took the baton to continue. "Tara Lee asked Miss Naron to poison you, right? So technically, isn't Senyu under the impression that you're dead right now?"
At the members' words, a light bulb lit up in Clarity's head. She had forgotten all about the poisoning.
Indeed, Tara Lee had left Bangtan's mansion thinking that she had "fell" for Yinn Naron's tactics. After all, that poisonous cookie was only inches away from entering Clarity's mouth. Suppose she had reported to Senyu about the successful assassination, would she then continue her fake identity as Bangtan's housekeeper?
As if responding to Clarity's questions, she then heard the buzzing of a cell phone. Vibrating from Seokjin's pocket, the eldest clicked open the screen before the corners of his lips tugged into a smile.
"Now this is a pleasant surprise." Letting out a breathy chuckle, he flipped his screen towards the people in the room, revealing the caller to be none other than [Housekeeper Lee].
The temperature in the room suddenly dropped by a few degrees, sending goosebumps to the back of Clarity's neck. With complicated expressions, the members stared at their eldest with a gaze that seemed to say 'there's-no-way-to-stop-him-now'.
Unaware of their reactions, Seokjin continued on. "Speaking of the devil, and there she is! To think she would return on her own will. Housekeeper Lee must really love her job."
No one in the room mentioned this, but at that moment, they all thought that the most devil-looking one was no other than Kim Seokjin himself.
"People who work hard should be rewarded, don't you think?"
Gulping at his words, Clarity silently offered Tara Lee her condolences.
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devil seokjin makes his return! thanks for reading and next update will be on wednesday :)
lori ✿