Poor Merchen

Late spring. The streets of Hongseong were soaked and bustling under the weight of the season. Exhausted and emotionally drained under her parents’ contempt and coldness, Seo-Hee crosses paths by chance with a notorious playboy known for his promiscuity.

"Ah... I didn’t mean to take it this far."
"Guess I’ll be staying the night."

A man who freely drifts between tenderness and rudeness. A man who treats people like fleeting amusements. A man who scoffs at the idea of a beautiful fairytale, calling it a hollow illusion , Joo Tae-Baek. Wrapped in brilliance and danger, he crashes into Seo-Hee like a violent wave, shaking her to her core.

"Okay. I’ll keep your secret."
"...You mean it?"
"Sure, if you let me rock your world once, nice and loud."

A dirty fling. A fleeting rush. "No need to overthink it." She thought if she let herself be consumed by him, even a false love might be better than nothing. And so, she willingly threw herself into the fire, a lighthearted affair that was anything but; Was she out of her mind? Who the hell taught her that this was how you seduce a man?

"So... we’re done now, right?"

Seo-Hee tilted her head slightly toward the completely dazed Tae-Baek.

"I need to be gone before midnight."

So then... Who really got burned in the end?

(Source: Ridibooks, translated)