Chapter 4. Jealousy Is My Strength

Hyde was over the moon. She had finally done it. She had finally managed to redefine her stagnant relationship with Carbon.

“Are we dating now?”

“……If that’s what you want.”

Carbon couldn’t bring himself to act as though nothing had happened. The one who started it had been Hyde, but the one who had lost his head halfway through and devoured her was Carbon. He was not the kind of man to wash his hands of responsibility.

“I want it. What about you, Carbon?”

“Mm.”

Carbon nodded instead of answering. It was a lukewarm response, but Hyde was satisfied that he hadn’t refused outright. And just like that, the two of them were cleanly sorted into the category of a couple.

The problems didn’t disappear, though.

Even after becoming a couple, nothing changed. Carbon still treated Hyde as nothing more than a sidekick he needed to look after. When they were alone and she tried to get close, he would flinch and pull away. He had never once done anything that resembled what couples did. No kissing, no pecks, not even a hug. No, they hadn’t even managed the embarrassing thing of going to a nice restaurant together and feeding each other.

‘What is this? Is this what dating looks like?’

Hyde grew anxious. She wanted to go public with their relationship. But Carbon was against it.

“Going public isn’t an option. The risk is too high.”

“Why? Are you embarrassed to be dating me?”

“That’s not it.”

Carbon sighed.

“It’s for your sake.”

Carbon explained calmly and in detail what kind of damage going public now would do to Hyde, who had only just started her career as a hero. The public would be especially harsh toward her for being young, without a reputation, and a woman.

Hyde shrank in front of Carbon as he laid it out step by step. She hated feeling like a petulant child throwing a tantrum.

Hyde understood the reasons Carbon gave. But……

‘I still don’t like it.’

Carbon was popular. Not just as a hero, but as a romantic prospect.

Beautiful women always swarmed around him. She was jealous. She was anxious. She was afraid that one day he would tell her he had fallen for someone else, that he was sorry, but it was over……

Then one day, something happened that set fire to Hyde’s already simmering unease.

[HeroTV News = Reporter Na Geul-hae] A photo of top hero Carbon and Milopy wearing matching outfits at the recent charity party hosted by T Corporation has spread online, sparking rumors of a romance between the two.

Having debuted as heroes in the same cohort and maintained a close friendship ever since, the catalyst for their alleged relationship is said to be the disappearance of Riela. According to reports, Milopy comforted Carbon after he fell into despair following the disappearance of Riela, with whom he was known to be romantically involved, and their relationship developed from there. One insider stated that the two are serious, and that marriage may not be far off.

Meanwhile, Carbon, universally recognized as the top hero of the second generation, has previously been linked to Atika, Belomy, and Dieris, among others, prior to the Riela rumors.

HeroTV News Na Geul-hae (Idowriting@herotvnews.com)

Hyde’s hands trembled as she read the article.

She knew Milopy well. She and Carbon had been close friends for a long time, stayed in regular contact, and occasionally had meals together.

Milopy was one of the very few people the busy Carbon made private time for. She was easygoing and warm-natured, kind to children, and had looked out for Hyde since she was small.

Of all people, if it was Milopy, Hyde couldn’t even bring herself to resent her. Hyde’s vision blurred. She sniffled and scrubbed at her eyes with her sleeve.

“I can’t just sit here crying……”

The one silver lining was that this would probably remain nothing more than a rumor.

Both Milopy and Carbon were straightforward people. They wouldn’t deceive Hyde. If the two of them had genuinely become something serious, they would have told her first.

On top of that, the two of them were…… truly just friends. Milopy wasn’t Carbon’s type, and above all, she already had someone. Hyde had even been introduced to them. A well-matched pair, clearly in love with each other whenever they looked at each other.

But what about going forward?

Articles like this would keep coming. Every time one did, Hyde would have to tremble with the fear that this one might be true. Even knowing it was false wouldn’t make it easy. Seeing an article saying her partner was in a romance with someone else wasn’t a pleasant thing. It would leave a bad taste every time.

What was eating at Hyde wasn’t only the sensationalized rumor articles reporters churned out for clicks.

After much deliberation, Hyde clicked the link in the comments. A new window opened to an anonymous forum post.

Proof attached first

⊠

I was in the same cohort as Carbon. Carbon graduated early so we weren’t in the same graduation ceremony, only attended together for the first year. We were in the same class and got fairly close, so I know a few things. Figured I’d share.

…(excerpt)…

And Carbon’s taste in women is firmly older.

Some people might say it’s just because he enrolled and graduated early so he was always surrounded by older people, but does the reason really matter?

Either way, his type has always been consistent.

The only thing that’s changed is his age. Back then he was a teenager, now he’s in his mid-thirties, so the women he dates have shifted from teens and up to thirties and up.

So back then older was fine, but now… isn’t it rare to find someone older than us who’s still single? I’m honestly worried he’s going to end up in the news for seeing a married woman someday;;

Still, we went to school together, and I don’t want to see him caught up in a scandal like an affair.

…(excerpt continues)…

Carbon, you doing alright? Do you remember me? Hit me up if you do.

The comments were maxed out, but Hyde didn’t have the energy to read them. She stared at the screen with a hollow expression, her eyes fixed on the line that read ‘Carbon’s taste in women is firmly older.’

Those words completely broke down Hyde, who had already been feeling insecure about her relationship with Carbon.

Carbon had held her because she had taken the aphrodisiac and he was trying to help her through it. His agreement to date her was probably just something he had gone along with because they had already slept together and he felt he had no choice.

She had been the one to ask if they were dating, and Carbon hadn’t even given her a proper answer. And since then, he hadn’t done a single thing that couples did.

The one thing that had happened was the time in the cave.

“……Even then, did Carbon actually enjoy it?”

The filthy words and rough s*x that had been so unlike his usual self came back to her.

The thought crept in that if he had truly liked her, he wouldn’t have handled her that way.

How had he been with his previous partners. He would have been gentle with them, right? Tender.

Hyde’s expression darkened. Her heart sank like a stone.

Should I be the one to end things now? Am I hurting Carbon because of my own selfishness……

“No.”

Hyde clenched her fist and lifted her head, which had been slowly dropping.

“Carbon is the kind of person who would say no if he really meant no. He doesn’t get dragged into things against his will. He must have some feelings for me.”

Hyde had known Carbon for a long time. Longer than his own family, and she knew him better than he knew himself. She had kept every sense sharpened, watching his moods and words and actions, because she wanted to know everything about him.

So even now, when it felt like Carbon was only being dragged along by her, Hyde was certain his heart was with her.

If there had been no possibility from the start, if Carbon had truly disliked her, she would never have carried her plan through to the end.

So.

“I need to find a way.”

Even when there seemed to be no way out, a breakthrough had to exist somewhere. Finding it was probably what it meant to become a better hero.

Hyde intended to follow in Carbon’s footsteps and become a fine, capable hero in her own right, so she was confident she could handle this problem too. And as it happened, an opportunity to help her plan along was coming up soon.

* * *

Carbon was troubled. He had been ever since the incident with Hyde. D*mn it, he should have held back and stopped things then.

But it was done, and his relationship with Hyde had changed.

He didn’t know how to treat her going forward. He had been avoiding the question, but he couldn’t keep pushing Hyde away when she kept coming to him. It stung to see her hurt. At the same time, he couldn’t give her everything she wanted.

……No. He had been using her wellbeing as an excuse, but Carbon, knowing the truth of it, let out a quiet, self-mocking laugh. If he truly had her best interests at heart, he should have let her close the door on her feelings cleanly. Even if it hurt her in the short term, the right thing was to turn away without hesitation and give her enough time and distance to move on.

The excuse he had given himself, that he had no choice but to go along with it, was laughable. No choice? Who was it that had wanted Hyde like a beast in heat in that cave, who had left his marks all over her, who had driven her breathless and relentless through her very first time, and who had held her limp body in his arms afterward with his c*ck still stubbornly hard. If not him, then who.