Adjusting the Gangster Male Lead’s Intensity [Novel] Chapter 28

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 28

Chapter Title: Mistake Notebook

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In the end, Yi-hae Baek turned off the computer herself. It was a perfect crime committed while Yeol Seo had his eyes squeezed shut.

"Our cute little Do-gyeom."

"……."

She'd soothed him, saying he should eat some tasty snacks to cheer up, then left him in O Seo-bang's care on her way back.

Yi-hae Baek grinned at Do-gyeom Seo. He kept his mouth firmly shut, as if he had nothing to say, which was both funny and a little endearing, so she laughed.

"You have more cute sides than I thought. Were you scared of ghosts?"

"……Just like you have things you hate, so do I."

His response was calm, but it only made him seem cuter, like he was trying so hard to act unfazed. For the first time, Yi-hae Baek thought he resembled Yeol Seo as she nodded.

It had the nuance of agreeing with Do-gyeom Seo's words, but anyone could see it was an exaggerated gesture meant to tease.

"Oh dear, oh dear, is that so?"

"……."

He was just so fun to tease.

She knew there was no malice behind it, but it was her own petty revenge for him denying she was family just moments ago.

Feeling her mood lighten, Yi-hae Baek scurried after Do-gyeom Seo as he headed to his room.

Suddenly, a look of exasperation bored into the back of her head.

"Why are you following me in?"

"To check if you've reviewed. I'll go over today's lessons too and mark them off."

"……We don't need to do this every day. You don't work out every day either."

Despite his timid protest, Yi-hae Baek shoved his back firmly. He could have resisted if he wanted to, but he obediently let her push him toward the desk.

Thanks to her recent efforts, the once-empty desk was gradually filling up with writing tools and books.

"I got a cold from overdoing it last time, so the old man limited me to three days a week. No matter how much you study, your brain won't catch a cold. Besides, you haven't been studying that much."

Do-gyeom Seo clamped his mouth shut at her calm, matter-of-fact words. Without even glancing at him, Yi-hae Baek continued.

"If studying makes you so sick you get a cold, I'll consider cutting back the sessions."

Of course, the sturdy Do-gyeom Seo would never have that problem. It was a fact they both knew well.

He let out a resigned sigh and sat down, then pulled over a chair for Yi-hae Baek to sit beside him.

"Any tough spots in the homework I gave you last time?"

"Wrong question. You should ask if there were any easy ones."

Yi-hae Baek was dumbfounded by his shameless reply. Still, it looked like he'd diligently memorized the English words.

His clumsy handwriting filled the notebook, written out multiple times.

'Memorization's got some potential at least. For English tests, just memorizing the textbook passages would get average scores. Mock exams or the college entrance test would be different, though.'

From Do-gyeom Seo's perspective, just improving his school grades would shock everyone, including I-heum Seo.

The problem was math. She'd expected difficulties due to his shaky foundation, but it was worse than imagined.

She'd even brought Yeol Seo's practically new middle school math textbook to teach him from the basics.

"It's okay to get them wrong. No need to aim too high from the start."

Yi-hae Baek could be mischievous and teasing at times, or even a bit immature, but when teaching, she was all grown-up.

Meanwhile, Do-gyeom Seo's gaze drifted not to the problems, but to Yi-hae Baek's fingers holding the mechanical pencil.

Her hands looked so small and delicate compared to his.

"The important thing is to figure out why you got it wrong after. That's what the mistake notebook is for."

Do-gyeom Seo watched her elegant handwriting as she noted the wrong answers, rewriting the problems and equations. It was a mature script.

His eyes flicked from the handwriting to her fingertips, then to Yi-hae Baek's face as she explained.

She was too focused to notice his stare.

"A mistake notebook collects your errors, rewrites them, and works toward the right answer. Tests won't have the exact same problems, but understanding the process lets you solve similar ones."

Her full, red lips moved as she spoke. He couldn't figure out why the same lips felt so different on her.

Was it because there were no women in his family, making Yi-hae Baek's presence bring these unfamiliar sensations every time?

Why did it bother him so much—her smiling like she followed his father around, or how she didn't push away Yeol Seo's casual touches?

Why did he feel a pang of regret that she no longer clung to him and relied on him like before?

If he had to nitpick, she seemed much happier now than back then, yet Do-gyeom Seo didn't like it.

"Do-gyeom Seo, are you even listening?"

Yi-hae Baek's eyes finally met his. Like her light brown hair, her eyes were brown too.

In bright light, they looked almost mixed-race, paired with her pale skin and overall light pigmentation—a complete opposite to his darker tones.

"Yeah, I'm listening. Mistake notebooks lead you to the right answers, right?"

"Good, your ears are working. Now point your eyes at the book too? No matter how pretty I am, you can't stare like that. It'll wear me out."

Yi-hae Baek smiled coyly. She clearly knew how striking she was.

Do-gyeom Seo knew it too. He might compare her to a small animal inwardly, but he was aware of her outward beauty standards.

Yi-hae Baek was lovable. Not strikingly gorgeous, but impossible to look away from, the kind who made you smile just by being there.

Yi-hae Baek, about to look back at the book, suddenly glanced up at him in surprise. Even then, Do-gyeom Seo's expression didn't change.

"What?"

His deadpan voice made Yi-hae Baek pull a strange face before shaking her head like it was nothing.

She sometimes had these incomprehensible reactions. Acting like she knew everything one moment, then playing dumb the next.

'The process of finding the right answer.'

Would making a mistake notebook just for Yi-hae Baek—not just math—reveal something?

Why looking at her left him frustrated yet wistful, stirring these new, unfamiliar emotions.

Of course, like the math problems before him, it'd be useless for Do-gyeom Seo's future. Pointless, like math he neither needed nor would use.

It was just Yi-hae Baek. Mere curiosity of the moment.

"If you still don't get it after checking the explanations, tell me. I'll explain. ……And stop with the weird thoughts."

"……?"

Do-gyeom Seo tilted his head, but Yi-hae Baek said no more. She just pretended not to notice, flopping onto his bed and urging him to hurry while playing a phone game herself.

Just as Yi-hae Baek found Do-gyeom Seo oddly perplexing, he thought the same of her.

What Do-gyeom Seo didn't know was the status window that had just appeared before Yi-hae Baek's eyes.

Yi-hae Baek sneakily glanced sideways at Do-gyeom Seo, who was diligently working on his mistake notebook in peace.

She couldn't focus on her phone game anymore, but Do-gyeom Seo had no idea.

Unknowingly, the two were influencing each other, for better or worse.

"Ah, I'm dead."

Staring blankly at the screen, the words "Game Over" appeared on Yi-hae Baek's phone.

Game Over.

A phrase that typically popped up with a game character's death.

……Whether this shift in their relationship would lead to a Happy Ending or a Game Over was something no one knew.