Chapter 140

Chapter 140
Chapter 140
Jimin had been very busy, because she had been in the process of expanding her company . This was why she was unable to spend as much time as she wanted with Shinhae in recent days . This was why she had scheduled a day where they would go out and eat .
Jiyoon was invited to the outing, because she had a pretty significant relationship with Shinhae, and she had looked after Shinhae today .
Shinhae was so happy that she circled around Jimin in joy .
“We’ll be eating out with Shinhae . Would the two of you like to join us?”
Jimin returned to her office to get her belongings . As she did so, she posed the question to the Ross siblings . The two of them looked around at the people within the company .
“Is the whole company going out to eat?”
Tim asked the question .
“No . I’ll be going out with Shinhae and Ms . Jiyoon . This isn’t a company dinner . It is a meal between close acquaintances . ”
The welcome party for the new employees had already passed . Jimin planned on having another one when Sungyoon came back, but she had no plans on taking the new employees to a private gathering .
“May I tag along?”
Whenever Shinhae was mentioned, Emily showed interest .
Tim looked over at Emily . It was said that love changes a person . Still, he always became surprised whenever his sister showed initiative .
“Of course . ”
“Thank you . ”
Emily quickly jumped in feet first . Of course, she expected Tim would come with her, but he shook his head from side to side .
“I’m fine . ”
Emily stared at Tim in surprise .
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I want to go check if everything is ready for our departure . You should go . I can do inspection by myself . ”
It was merely an excuse . He felt a bit awkward being the only male between the three women .
Of course, he didn’t think of Emily as a woman . She was just his sister . Still, there were two other women, and he absolutely refused to be stuck there .
Emily was a bit conflicted . She was an introvert, and she didn’t feel comfortable without Tim’s presence . He was putting her on the spot .
However, they were siblings, so they knew each other’s tendencies . Emily knew Tim wouldn’t go back on his decision .
She turned her eyes towards Shinhae .
She saw the cute child’s smiling face .
She firmed her resolve .
“Then I’ll go by myself . ”
“Alright . Have fun . ”
As her big brother, Tim encouraged his sister’s courage .
***
A delicious smell permeated her surroundings, and she could feel the lively energy from the people around her . Emily looked a bit awkward as she watched the meat being grilled in front of her .
The dish was called Galbi . A metal grate was placed above the charcoal, and the heat from the charcoal cooked the Galbi . The smell of the dish stimulated her nose .
She had never seen this dish before, but it looked delicious . It was enough to make Emily’s mouth water .
Jimin was the one grilling the meat .
Jimin sat next to Emily, and she flipped the meat with practiced hands . She made sure the meat didn’t burn . Shinhae sat right across Jimin, and Jiyoon sat next to Shinhae . Jiyoon continued to take care of Shinhae .
Jimin used the tongs to move the completely cooked Galbi to the corner of the grate .
“Please eat . ”
After giving permission for Jiyoon and Emily to eat first, Jimin started to pick out the most well-done pieces of meat, and she placed them in Shinhae’s dish . If there was a slightly burnt part, Jimin used the scissor to trim the meat .
“Thank you for the food!”
Shinhae spoke in excitement . She was now quite familiar with using her chopsticks . She picked up a piece of meat .
She tried to cool the meat by blowing on it with all her might . It took a while to cool it .
She put the piece in her mouth and chewed .
“So good!”
The girl laughed . A smile appeared on the lips of the three women when they saw Shinhae’s innocent laughter .
“Unni will cool it down for you . ”
Jiyoon cooled Shinhae’s Galbi by blowing on it . Shinhae looked happy as she once again chewed on more meat .
“You should eat your vegetables too . ”
Jimin placed a lettuce in front of Shinhae . Children usually frowned in disgust when presented with vegetables . However, Shinhae wrapped the meat in the veggie, and she ate it all .
Jimin and Jiyoon took care of Shinhae every step of the way, and Emily couldn’t participate . She didn’t know Korean, and she had no idea what these foods were . She couldn’t step up and take care of Shinhae .
Thankfully, Jimin and Jiyoon were quick to pick up on this . They tried to bring her into the conversation as they helped her get along with Shinhae .
Moreover, it helped that Shinhae was very interested in Emily’s brown hair . She looked very different from the people around her . This was why Emily was able to achieve her small wish of getting a bit closer to Shinhae .
“I’m done eating!”
The three unnis kept putting food in front of her, and she kept eating . Shinhae put down her chopsticks when her stomach protruded like a little tadpole .
She was adorable as she let out a little burp .
“I’m going to go play!”
She stood up from the dining table, and she headed towards a playroom located in the corner of the restaurant .
All the women had laughter in their eyes as they sent off Shinhae . However, an awkward silence descended amongst them when Shinhae was gone .
The three of them had met each other not too long ago, and all three of them didn’t have outgoing personalities .
The only commonality was their interest in Shinhae . Once Shinhae was gone, they fell into this hilarious yet awkward situation .
“Let’s… . ”
Jimin was the president, so she spoke first .
“Let’s drink some alcohol?”
Both Jiyoon and Emily nodded their heads .
Several bottles of beer had been emptied, and they were slowly starting to get drunk . This was why the three of them started to speak a little bit more freely .
Of course, Emily was a Connector, so she wasn’t drunk at all . However, the mood had relaxed, and she was finding it easier to talk .
Still, they didn’t know much about each other . Of course, the conversation naturally flowed towards a topic they shared .
However, the only common topic they shared was about Shinhae and Sungyoon . This was why they naturally found themselves talking about Sungyoon .
“When I saw Mr . Sungyoon for the first time, there was an air of sadness around him . I also thought he was just a regular 1st Gen Connector . ”
Jimin swirled her alcohol in her cup . She spoke in English for the benefit of Emily .
Emily couldn’t speak Korean at all, but Jiyoon was quite fluent in English .
“Ah . I know what you are talking about . It was the same for me . ”
Jiyoon thought about the day when she met Sungyoon for the first time . He was a shabby middle aged man that had fallen to the bottom point of his life . However, he looked brighter than ever when he was with his daughter .
“I met him in a very dangerous situation, so I’m unable to clearly remember my first impression of him . ”
Emily had met Sungyoon in a really dramatic fashion . At first, she had been very disappointed when Sungyoon turned down her offer of teaming up against the Bigfoot . However, he had changed his mind, and any disappointment disappeared in an instant when they defeated the Bigfoot .
“Still, I do remember that there was a feeling of sadness around him . ”
The three women let out small laughters .
From that point on, they started to engage in an animated conversation . The most sociable one amongst them was Jiyoon, so she spoke the most . Emily kept asking question, so she could learn about Sungyoon’s everyday life . Jimin joined in occasionally .
After they conversed for a while, Emily and Jiyoon could sense it . They knew they loved the same person .
Basically, a rival in love had appeared .
However, the two reacted in an entirely different way .
Emily looked a bit uneasy, but she didn’t feel truly threatened by Jiyoon . It wasn’t a matter of confidence . Even if Sungyoon chose a different woman, she was willing to become his 2nd or 3rd wife . She didn’t think too much about it .
She grew up in a Connector household, so this was how most people around her thought about marriage .
On the other hand, Jiyoon had grown up in a normal household, so she wasn’t familiar with such a concept . Jiyoon’s gaze was much more guarded compared to Emily’s gaze .
Jimin had an odd look in her eyes as she observed both of them .
“Unni!”
Another awkward silence was about to descend when an energetic and cheerful voice broke it all apart .
Shinhae had come up on them without their notice, and she draped her body over Jimin’s knees .
“You are done playing?”
Jimin stroked her head as she asked the question . Shinhae shook her head from side to side .
“I want another bite!”
Shinhae pointed toward the grilled meat, and she opened her mouth . She looked like a baby bird asking for food from her mother .
Jimin rolled a well grilled Galbi into a lettuce then she placed it in Shinhae’s mouth .
“Nyam!”
She looked like a chipmunk as her cheeks became full . As she chewed her food, she went back to the playroom .
“Won’t it be a joy to become that child’s mother?”
The two of them turned to look at Jimin .
“She has been hurt very much in the past . If you are trying to aim for the role of being her mother, you have to bring happiness to that child . If Mr . Sungyoon decided to remarry, he’ll pick a woman capable of doing that . ”
“…you are right . ”
It was a bit embarrassing, but Emily didn’t deny her feelings .
However, Jiyoon looked flustered .
‘Mother?’
Emily was basically saying she wanted to marry Sungyoon in the near future . Jiyoon had just awoken to her first love, so it was way too early to think about marriage . She was also the youngest amongst them .
Moreover, Jiyoon’s love had grown slowly over time as she saw the good aspects of Sungyoon . Emily had fallen head over heels in love when they had overcome a dangerous situation together . Maybe, this was why their love differed .
Emily didn’t pick up on Jiyoon’s troubled mind . She decided to ask the question that she always wanted to ask Jimin .
“What about you, president?”
Jimin’s relationship with Sungyoon was much deeper and longer compared to their relationship . Moreover, Emily could see that Sungyoon treated her differently behind the scenes .
Of course, Emily knew there weren't any romantic feelings between the two of them . However, Emily couldn’t help being bothered by it .
However, Jimin shook her head from side to side .
“It is true that I feel very grateful towards Mr . Sungyoon, but I do not carry such feelings towards him . ”
“I see . ”
Emily accepted her answer at face value .
However, Jimin somehow didn’t feel good about saying those words .
She was sure she didn’t see Sungyoon in a romantic manner . However, she was relying a lot on him a lot .
She had forcefully pushed her half given up goals on him, and he was performing beyond expectation .
She swore this on her life . This was the first time she had felt such strong positive feelings towards a man aside from her father and two siblings .
‘I’m sure this isn’t love . ’
She was sure of that right now . However, she also felt as if she wouldn’t be able to stop her heart from falling for him if some catalyst got the ball rolling .
“Unni . ”
A child’s clear voice broke her out of her reveries . Shinhae, who had been playing in the playroom, had once again appeared next to Jimin .
“Hmm? What’s wrong, Shinhae? Do you want to eat more?”
Jimin picked up her chopsticks, and she tried to pick up the remaining meat . However, Shinhae shook her head from side to side .
“When are we leaving?”
It seemed Shinhae was bored of playing in the playroom . Moreover, Shinhae’s eyelids looked a little bit heavy .
Jimin looked down at her watch . It seemed their conversation had lasted a long time . They had mostly drank and ate everything they had ordered .
“Shall we go?”
Jiyoon and Emily nodded their heads .
They exited the restaurant, and the three women went their own way .
However, each woman was in deep thought in regards to the conversation they had shared .
***
He looked up . He had been sick of seeing the hard ceiling of the labyrinth, but he was no longer seeing that . He saw the vast expanse of space .
If he let go of his mind, it felt as if he could leave the confines of his body . It felt as if he would fall endlessly into space . It was a fantastic sight, and at the same time, it was a terrifying existence .
Still, Sungyoon was very glad to see space . He had been trapped within the labyrinth for two weeks, and he had fought fierce battles against high rank monsters .
“What? Are you feeling the joys of life once again?”
Hyunwoo had followed out behind him . He smirked .
Hyunowoo slapped Sungyoon on the back .
“Don't be such a baby . Let’s hurry up and go . You said your appointment is tomorrow . We have to really go all out tonight and party . ”
Hyunwoo turned on his Moon Surface Vehicle, and he indicated for Sungyoon to follow him . Sungyoon quickly got on his Moon Surface Vehicle, and he followed behind Hyunwoo .
However, the distance couldn’t be compared to what Sungyoon had to travel to reach his Personal labyrinth . They were able to reach Armstrong in a short amount of time . Hyunwoo dragged Sungyoon off somewhere before he could object .
Hyunwoo went to the place where he had shared alcohol with Sungyoon . It was the bar within the unbelievable expensive hotel .