A case of Transmigrating as a Sick Villain chapter 112

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Now that it’s fully autumn, you can step outside and enjoy the view of the yard covered in fall foliage.

The weather had become quite chilly, so Jingyeom wrapped himself in a thick knit sweater and coat before sitting on the bench, staring blankly up at the cloudy sky.

They said it would rain in autumn, but for now, it was just overcast.

Watching the darkened sky with the sun hidden behind clouds, mirroring his feelings, made Jingyeom feel even more melancholic.

“What’s really going on?”

Since calling out Baek Jingyeom’s name in desperation a few days ago, Jinwoo had somehow changed.

He had become more physically affectionate, catching Jingyeom off guard more than once.

Moreover, as if sleeping in Jinwoo’s arms that night wasn’t enough, the first thing Jingyeom saw upon waking the next day was Jinwoo’s firm arm and chest.

It was shocking, to say the least.

Even though they had slept in the same space before, it was the first time they had slept so close together.

Soohyuk had also been contacting him more frequently, with his expressions of affection so direct that Jingyeom often found himself flipping his phone face down instead of replying.

Soohyuk had told him to take his time to think, but the pressure made it feel like he was demanding an immediate answer.

Even Wonbeom, who had been quiet, was no longer so.

Normally not one to call or text, Wonbeom had sent a brief message around lunchtime asking if Jingyeom had eaten.

It was enough to make Jingyeom suspicious that they were all deliberately trying to tease him.

On top of that, Cheongoh, who naturally approached him whenever he left the house, and Jeong Sanho, who kept in touch frequently, ensured that Jingyeom no longer had any free time like he used to.

Even though his exams were coming up this weekend, Jingyeom found himself flipping over his problem book after attempting some mock grading.

The red pencil marks made the entire book look as if it had been soaked in red rain.

“…Looks like I’m not cut out to be a secretary.”

The initial enthusiasm was long gone.

Jingyeom buried his face into the mat Jinwoo had bought for the bench to make it more comfortable, anxiously tapping his feet.

At this rate, he wouldn’t even qualify for a regular office job, let alone a secretary.

So what kind of work should he do to earn a living?

Jinwoo had once casually mentioned YouTube.

It crossed his mind to try it, but he quickly dismissed the idea, thinking it wouldn’t be right to expose himself when it wasn’t his own body.

He also considered the café job he hadn’t fully committed to before.

Since he’d tried it once and it wasn’t too tough, maybe it wouldn’t be a bad option.

His phone kept vibrating, but he was too lazy to check, so he stayed sprawled out for a while.

Before long, he heard the sound of someone climbing the metal stairs.

When he turned his head slightly, he saw Cheongoh approaching.

Cheongoh looked at Jingyeom lying on the bench and let out a quiet sigh. He immediately called someone.

“He’s at home. He’s lying on the bench right now.”

As Jingyeom stared blankly, Cheongoh bowed his head in greeting.

Jingyeom sat up and returned the gesture, waiting for him to finish his call.

After a while, Cheongoh approached the bench.

“Excuse me, but may I take a few photos?”

Without further explanation, Cheongoh took out his phone and snapped a few pictures.

Jingyeom blinked quickly, confused.

“What’s this about?”

“There are people worried about you because you weren’t answering your phone. They asked me to send pictures to show that you’re okay.”

Realizing the reason, Jingyeom’s face turned sour.

Since Cheongoh mentioned “people,” it clearly wasn’t just one person, meaning it had to be Soohyuk and Wonbeom.

Jingyeom clicked his tongue and slowly picked up his phone.

Missed calls and messages were overflowing.

He couldn’t believe how these people had held back their urge to contact him all this time.

Among them, Wonbeom’s messages were notably few—just one call and two texts.

In contrast, Jinwoo and Soohyuk had sent a considerable number.

Since Cheongoh was likely to report back to Soohyuk and Wonbeom, Jingyeom decided to reply to Jinwoo first, explaining that he was studying on the bench and hadn’t looked at his phone.

The difference between not seeing and ignoring is clear, so Jinwoo just acknowledged it and told him not to stay outside for too long.

In contrast, Soohyuk called immediately after getting the message from Cheongoh.

Jingyeom hesitated to answer, and Cheongoh, standing nearby, quietly spoke up.

“If you don’t answer, he’ll come to the house.”

“…He would, wouldn’t he?”

With a short sigh, Jingyeom answered the call.

― It’s really hard to get through to you!

“I told you I was studying.”

― When? You didn’t say that to me. Are you confusing me with someone else?

“I mentioned it during our lunch call. I said I was going to study now.”

― I must’ve been too focused on your voice to remember the conversation.

“Oh, come on…”

Without realizing it, Jingyeom responded curtly again.

He wasn’t uncomfortable with Soohyuk being so expressive; it just felt awkward and made his skin tingle and his whole body itch.

― So when are we having dinner? You said we’d eat together later, but you haven’t set a date.

“I have exams this weekend, so let’s do it next week.”

Even though he knew the exam would be a disaster, he’d paid for it and bought the books, so he figured he should at least focus during the remaining time.

“Oh, and about that part-time job we talked about, I’ll start looking after the exam, so no need to find one for me.”

Originally, Soohyuk was supposed to introduce him to a part-time job once he returned to Korea.

But after Soohyuk’s confession, Jingyeom felt it would be wrong to ask for a job while still unable to give a clear answer.

He mentioned it, concerned Soohyuk might still be thinking about it.

Starting this week, he planned to send out resumes and go to interviews so he could start working after the exam.

― Don’t worry about it. Just wait a little longer. I told you I’d find a good place, and I meant it. It’ll be worth the wait.

“You’re not creating a position just for me, right?”

― It’s not a new position. Just tweaking an existing one a bit.

What exactly does he mean by tweaking? Could he be thinking of offering him an assistant secretary position?

― You mentioned wanting to work at a café.

“Oh! A café?”

Jingyeom’s face suddenly brightened.

He had just been thinking about how nice it would be to work at a café, and now here was an opportunity at one!

It felt uncanny, almost as if the person on the other end of the call had read his mind.

The fog of worries and the red marks on his test paper vanished from his thoughts as if they had been washed away.

“Yeah, just hang in there a little longer. Oh, the meeting’s starting. Don’t overdo it with your studies. You’ll get a headache from straining that small brain of yours.”

Soohyuk quickly ended the call, leaving Jingyeom staring in bewilderment at the phone screen displaying the call duration before tossing it aside.

It seemed like Soohyuk had called just before a meeting.

Jingyeom was starting to doubt if Soohyuk was actually doing his job properly.

But considering that he had even gone on a business trip, he must be working… right?

Jingyeom squinted at Cheongoh, wondering if he could get some information about the part-time job he hadn’t yet taken up.

“You know about it, right?”

“No, I don’t.”

“I didn’t even say anything, just asked if you knew. Why are you saying you don’t?”

“…”

Jingyeom’s eyes narrowed even further.

“I’m leaving now.”

Cheongoh left before Jingyeom could stop him.

Jingyeom had asked out of pure curiosity, but Cheongoh’s reaction made him worry that something bigger was in store than he had anticipated.

“…He’s not planning to open a new café or something, is he?”

The thought seemed absurd, but with Soohyuk involved, anything seemed possible.

Jingyeom shook his head.

“No way…”

---

Jingyeom tried hard to dry the drenched workbook with a hairdryer, but it was beyond saving.

“I should just buy a new one. The pages are so crumpled I can’t even read the writing.”

“I was almost done with it. It feels wasteful to buy a new one.”

After finishing the grading, Jingyeom felt too drained to study anymore and ended up lying down on the porch for a long time.

It was chilly, but he was too lazy to get a blanket.

He put on some soft music on his phone, feeling a bit sentimental, and soon fell asleep.

Then, as if on cue, it started to pour, drenching him completely.

It wasn’t like Korea was a tropical region, so the sudden downpour like a squall was unexpected.

Unfortunately, his workbook got soaked, but at least he hadn’t brought his laptop outside.

Remembering what had happened earlier, Jingyeom shivered.

“Are you cold? Should I turn on the boiler?”

“It’s not that bad.”

Jingyeom said it wasn’t necessary but crawled into the room on his knees to grab a blanket from the bed and wrapped it around himself.

The chill subsided a bit after that.

The indoor temperature of his poorly insulated rooftop room wasn’t much different from outside.

Seeing Jingyeom shivering, Jinwoo silently turned on the boiler.

As soon as the sound of the boiler starting up filled the room, Jingyeom lifted his head.

“You shouldn’t catch a cold, hyung. We should probably get the heated mattress out soon too.”

“The boiler’s enough.”

“I told you before, you’ve had pneumonia before.

If you catch a cold, it’s not just a few days of suffering like for other people.”

Jinwoo’s firm tone made Jingyeom fall silent.

He hadn’t mentioned to Jinwoo that he’d been caught in the rain earlier.

Jinwoo only knew that Jingyeom had left his books on the porch.

He didn’t want to make him worry unnecessarily.

It was just a brief moment in the rain.

He had taken a warm shower as soon as he got home and had stayed inside afterward, so he thought he would be fine.

But hearing Jinwoo’s words made him start to worry.

If he did catch a cold, it would cause a big fuss, so he figured it might be better to take some medicine before bed, just in case.

“…Do we still have any cold medicine?”

“There should be some from the last time you got a prescription. Do you think you should take some and rest?”

Without a word, Jingyeom nodded.

He knew better than to be stubborn at times like this; he’d learned that the hard way the last time he was sick. He really hated being sick.

But despite Jingyeom’s hopes, he ended up catching a cold anyway.

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