The Beginning of the End

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We're getting close, folks...

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On with the chapter!

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Leandro was aware of the eyes on him. For some reason, people always turned around to take a second look at him. It was as irritating as confusing. He was handsome as well in his previous life, yet he never had this much attention from simply pulling up into a cafe. 

"Oh my~ Is that you, Leandro?"

The moment he sat down, a waitress walked up to him. If the mop of bright, blonde hair wasn't a dead giveaway, then the familiar voice and cheerful personality certainly were. Geum Bada approached with a smile so bright that flowers seemed to materialize around her. Leandro had to blink twice to make sure he wasn't seeing things. 

She sparkled. And he would be lying if he said she looked anything but perfect. But that was neither here nor there.

"Bada, it's good to see you again."

She looked cute in that uniform.

"It is~ Oh, I've heard that you and Seok Oh are not that close anymore." She tilted her head, looking at Leandro as if she were a fawn seeing a human for the first time.

"We were never particularly close in the first place."

Establishing a true friendship with someone who hadn't been through a tenth of what Leandro had was quite difficult. Then again, by that logic, he might as well become a recluse in some remote mountain and never come down.

"Oh." Bada pouted as she furrowed her eyebrows. "Really? Why is that? Oh, speaking of which, do you want anything?" She held a tablet in her right hand, posed to take Leandro's order.

"Ah, I'm a huge introvert. I don't like being peer-pressured into hanging out with him and his group of friends; I don't even like them. And that idiot thought it'd be wise to ask me, of all people, to help him get it on with Hari Noona." He went over the menu right quick. "And a ginseng latte will do, thank you."

"I see~ I see~" Bada hummed. "Would you like to order my smile as well, dear customer~?"

She leaned forward, winking in Leandro's direction.

A faint scent of lavender hovered over Leandro's face like a stubborn cloud. 

"Perhaps another time." He chuckled. 

Bada pouted. "It's for free!"

Leandro took a quick, sweeping look over the cafe, noticing the many women whispering to each other as they stared at him. "I think I've had enough smiles for today."

"Oh~" She nodded, likewise noticing the influx of mesmerized women. "Popular as always, huh?"

A shrug.

"Much to my dismay."

"Hmm~ You know how many boys would die to be in your shoes?"

Leandro laughed. "Too many, I guess. Though, wanting to die for such a stupid reason makes them all as shallow as these women."

"Pff~ They should." Bada brushed her hair back with her right hand, showing off the slimness of her neck as her lips curled in a coquette fashion. "Well, I don't blame them." She mumbled under her voice.

Leandro pretended not to hear.

"Anyway~ I'll go get your ginseng!"

With a bright smile, she scurried off in her heels. 

Leandro sighed as he laid back and observed the cafe once more. 'Is this what Nari wants to experience?' Honestly, being an idol wasn't something he actually wanted her to be. The entertainment industry was filthier than a back alley dumpster. 

The thought of some balding, slimy old man exploiting Nari sickened Leandro to the core. It's all about favors and platitudes.

Sexual favors in exchange of fame.

No, Leandro was against this path for his beloved. However, it wasn't up to him. He couldn't bring himself to shatter her dream, no matter how selfish he wanted to be.

That industry was truly a cesspool of corruption that was not so different from the Monolith.

If he could help it, neither Hari nor Nari would ever have the need of adventuring into the Monolith. They could live and settle in whatever city or town they wanted and eke out a living like normal human beings, except that the humans around them might not be normal, and safety would be expensive.

Strength...

It's always about strength.

Animals preyed on each other. Humans preyed on each other.

Even the Gods preyed on each other. There would always be power and those weaker. Those who sought it, and those who abused it. Those who helped, and those who destroyed.

Those who exploited the weak to curry favor with those more powerful; and those that let themselves be exploited because they were too naïve. 

Perhaps it's a universal law, something wired into every living organism across the universe. Maybe that's what triggered the apocalypse, in the first place. 

After some five odd minutes, Bada returned with Leandro's ginseng latte. Steam rose in a mesmerizing veil as the rich aroma of roasted ginseng flooded his nose.

"You're staring pretty hard~ Is there something on the menu you don't like~?"

"You know... I think I could use one of your smiles right now."

Bada blinked rapidly, a faint blush on her cheeks. "Oh? I-Is that so?" She lightly tugged at the collar of her uniform. "W-What brought this up if you don't mind me asking?"

"Just some dark thoughts that need to be pushed away. And your smile seems to have healing properties. Come on, hit me with one, Bada."

Leandro steepled his fingers under his chin, elbows on the table as he stared at her.

She bashfully looked to the sides, right and left. She scratched the tip of her nose, twirling in place once. Two times. Three. She cleared her throat, closed her eyes, and... "Nyaha!♡" She giggled so loud, several customers turned in the direction of Leandro's table. "Y-Yah! Stop staring at me!" She shuffled backwards, shyly hiding her face behind the tablet.

Leandro nodded, his eyes completely scorched off by the intensity of her smile. "Good." His frown slowly transformed into something resembling a smile. "Thanks."

"Uwawawa." Bada puffed her cheeks like a hamster, eyes turning downcast, trying to hide how red they had become. "Y-You silly brat. Don't tease me~ I'm at work. I'll get fired!"

"..." He rolled his eyes, holding his face with a hand, elbow on the table. "They'd be completely out of their minds to fire someone like you."

Bada mindlessly played with one of her braids, glimpsing at Leandro from the corner of her eyes. She coughed into a hand. Eventually, her red complexion slowly mellowed into a healthier hue. Her smile, however, remained on her lips. 

As she stared at his handsome profile, her legs were starting to get a bit wobbly for whatever reason. 

"Ahem~" Bada cleared her throat, feigning casualness, but totally failing. "It's been a while since we last saw each other. Do you have someone you fancy?"

If the blush she had earlier was the cute type, the glaring, crimson color on her face now was the feverish type, though Bada made it look natural. Hari would act meek and flustered. Nari would rock it like a cute kitten. Yuhee was a tough nut to crack, but once done so, she'd be out of her depth.

Bada, on the other hand, fully embraced it. 

Leandro arched one eyebrow as he took a quick sip of his ginseng, savoring the rich aftertaste. And perhaps savoring her bashful, hopeful smile a bit more. "Someone I fancy, huh?"

How many people have asked him that question? Who'll be the next? 

Bada fiddled with the tips of her fingers as she looked left, right, center, side-to-side, bottom, top, and sides again.

"Not really." He placed the mug back on the table. "I feel like it's too early to find a wife."

Whatever Bada was about to say was interrupted by the arrival of a well-dressed man. His head was oval-shaped, with thinning hair and a beard. More importantly, there were sparkles in his eyes. Literal sparkles. "Hmm~ Bada, who is this handsome friend of yours?" His voice had a coquettish drawl. 

The wink he not-so-subtly aimed at Leandro sent a shiver down his spine. 

"Ah, this is Leandro, an old… friend of mine~" Bada introduced cheerily. "And Leandro, this is my boss~"

The man smiled at him, a... blush on his face?

Leandro put his gameface on, expression polite as could be.

"Pleasure to meet you, sir. You've got a nice estabilishme—"

"Do you have a girlfriend?" The man interrupted, holding a hand over his mouth as he coquettishly batted his lashes at him.

Leandro shot a look at Bada, who was smiling airily without a care in the world, before redirecting his gaze back to her boss. "Ah, not yet."

"Not yet?" The man laughed, nudging Bada forward, who just shyly looked away. "Seems like you'll have one soon."

"..."

"Ahaha~ I should get back to work." Bada said, trying to defuse the situation, or her emotions.

Her boss waved her off. "No need. You can have a five minute break." And then he proceeded to walk off—well, not before sending another sparkly wink at Leandro. 

Bada sat down in front of Leandro. 

He took a sip of his latte, and after setting it aside, he finally looked Bada straight in the eyes. "Your boss… is he…?"

Bada tilted her head, blinking owlishly at him.

"Nevermind." He shook his head. "So, how have you been doing?"

She scratched her flushed cheek. "Mentally, a bit muddled. Emotionally, kinda frazzled. Physically..." She pushed her chest out. "... Actually I'm quite fine physically~ How about you?"

A chuckle.

"Meh. I've been better myself." He sighed as he played with the latte mug, stirring it left and right, then left and right again. "I was thinking of signing up for some martial arts competition, maybe go pro, and earn some money. Just to pass time."

"Just... to pass time?" Bada didn't know what to make of that. You don't simply go pro because you have nothing better to do.

"Well, yes, if only to have Yuhee Noona off my back. She's been trying hard to get me to work for her."

"Yuhee Unnie? Ah, right she's a CEO, isn't she?" Bada sighed dreamily, probably wondering what it'd be like to be that successful, or maybe she was wondering how many adorable mini-mes she could fit in her pocket. After all, who wouldn't want a pocket full of tiny, fashionable clones?

"She does, and it seems that my not joining has become some sort of personal goal she aims to achieve before dying."

"Hmm~" Bada rested her chin on her hand as she stared at Leandro. "Why don't you work here then?"

He gave her a half-glance.

"Here?"

"Yes~ Why not~? I can hook you up~ And it pays decently enough!" Bada exclaimed cheerfully. "You can work part time, and I'm sure you'd rock our uniform."

'Well, it's not like it's going to be a long term arrangement. It'll help keep me occupied until the Monolith appears.'

There wasn't any particular preparation he could do that would actually work in the tower, otherwise tanks and platoons of soldiers would have stormed in and spedrun the whole fucking thing. 

'Though… I should get myself a sword. Can't have my skills getting rusty.'

And winning some competitions would act as a solid background for whatever he ended up achieving after the 'integration'. 

"Ah, I apologize, Bada. I think I'd like to take up a martial art or something in the meanwhile."

She deflated into a puddle of melancholy, an exaggerated expression of sadness on her face. But this quickly transformed into a hopeful sparkle in her eyes, her smile the star in it all. She took out a piece of napkin from her pocket, a pen, and scribbled something on it. 

She gave it to Leandro.

There was a number written on it along with a cute drawing of a fairy sticking her tongue out.

Bada shyly smiled. "You should text me, silly~ Who knows when you'll change your mind~ I don't blame you though…" She nodded. "Working here is nice. We have cute uniforms and my boss has never tried to assault anyone."

'That's not something to be proud of.'

"I'll definitely hit you up if I change my mind." 

"That's great! Oh, I have to go back to work!" She stared at Leandro, hesitating. "But we'll keep in touch, right~?"

"Of course."

Bada nodded excitedly before standing up, saluting playfully at him. She gave him another beaming smile before running off with the tablet in her right hand.

'Hari. Nari. Yuhee. Bada.' Leandro stared at the bottom of his mug. 'None of them are simple acquaintances. Despite my best attempt not to get too attached, here I am, thinking about them.'

He closed his eyes momentarily before he got up. Grabbing a napkin from the dispenser, and the pen that Bada forgot on the table, he wrote:

—I never told you how good you look with blonde hair. 

He put the amount he owed on top of it, and left.