As Andrew was about to jog over to L, he froze mid-step. His eyes widened when he saw a familiar face across the field. Seojun was standing just a few paces away, looking around with his usual calm demeanor. Without thinking, Andrew grinned and started running towards him, leaving L behind.


    "Hey! You made it!" Andrew called out, slinging his arm around Seojun''s shoulders as he caught up.


    Seojun stared at him for a moment, blinking slowly, his expression unreadable. Then, after a brief pause, he spoke in a t tone, "Oh, it''s you."


    Andrew pulled back slightly, his smile faltering as he pouted. "You forgot me, didn''t you?! My name is Andrew!" he eximed, crossing his arms in mock indignation.


    Seojun shrugged nonchntly. "Yeah, I just remembered." His eyes flickered down to something at his feet.


    Andrew followed his gaze and saw a small dark slime sitting at Seojun''s foot, its round body wobbling slightly. "Aww, it''s the slime!" Andrew said, bending down to get a closer look. "This slime is really your familiar? Dang, you must have low mana," Andrew said with a yful grin. "But wow, the Familiar vs Familiar match was amazing! I didn''t know slimes could fight like that."


    Without waiting for a response, Andrew leaned down, scooping up the little slime. He began squishing it in his hands,ughing as it bounced around.


    "It''s like a little ball of slime! What''s its name?" he asked, his voice full of amusement.


    Seojun looked down at the slime for a moment, then said, "His name is Sui."


    Andrew raised an eyebrow, still holding the slime in his hands. "Sui, huh? Well, you''re lucky to have such a cool familiar." He chuckled, giving the slime onest squish before carefully cing it back on the ground. "But man, it''s really cute!"


    Sui bounced happily, its eyes sparkling with excitement. "Kyuu! Kyuu!"


    Andrew grinned at the slime''s antics, then turned back to Seojun. "You know, you''re not so bad after all, Seojun!" He gave Seojun a friendly p on the back. "d we made it here! Now, let''s catch up with L. She''s probably already having a st."


    As Seojun and Andrew stood in the open field, Seojun nced over at L, who was chatting with some other contestants near the sanctuary sign.


    "Who''s L?" he asked,


    Andrew turned, following Seojun''s gaze, and his face immediately brightened. "Oh, her?" He pointed dramatically at L. "That''s L! She''s the one I''ve been hanging out with. Isn''t she cute?" He grinned widely. "She''s a bit of a sadist, though, but still cute, right?"


    Seojun watched L for a moment, and then, as if a memory clicked, he furrowed his brow. "Isn''t she the one who tamed that deer beast?" he asked, recalling the event from earlier in thepetition.


    Andrew''s eyes widened in excitement. "Yeah! That''s her! She''s awesome, huh?" He chuckled, then suddenly covered his eyes with his hand, as if shielding them from something.


    "Wait! Don''t stare at her! She''s mine!" Andrew''s voice dropped a little lower as he leaned in closer. "She''s my crush, so find your own.


    Seojun blinked, his expression unreadable as he stared at Andrew''s antics. He was quiet for a moment, then spoke calmly, "I''m not interested in her."


    Andrew''s face lit up with surprise. "Oh?!" He raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. "You


    must


    have a crush on someone, right? Come on, tell me! Tell me who it is!"


    Seojun couldn''t help but shake his head, feeling both amused and slightly exhausted by Andrew''s enthusiasm. "How energetic…" he muttered under his breath.


    [His annoying host.] Seojun''s system''s voice rang


    "Kyuuu! But I can feel that he''s a good friend, Master! Kyuu, I like him!" The little slime excitedly said as Andrew is still holding him.


    Andrew, oblivious to Seojun''s internal thoughts, grabbed Seojun''s arm and started pulling him toward L. "Come on, Seojun! Let''s go say hi! You can talk to herter. She''s really fun once you get to know her!"


    Seojun allowed himself to be dragged along, sighing quietly but not resisting. As much as he didn''t care to get involved in Andrew''s crush drama, It''s not like Andrew will stop.


    "Alright, alright," Seojun said, letting Andrew pull him toward the group. "But I''m not interested in her."


    Andrew grinned,"Good then! Your my bestfriend now!"


    As Andrew dragged Seojun toward L, Seojun muttered under his breath, "When did I agree to that?"


    Andrew, grinning like a kid who''d won a prize,ughed. "You can''t do anything about it anymore! Hahaha!"


    Seojun, shaking his head, sighed. At this point, it was easier to just go along with Andrew''s antics. "Whatever," he murmured, resigned.


    As they got closer to L, she suddenly turned around, her expression dark. Her fists were clenched, and she red at Andrew.


    "Hey, what''s with that re?" Andrew asked, raising an eyebrow. "Did your friends say something?"


    L''s eyes shot fire. "Whose friends?!" she snapped, her voice sharp. "Those are not my friends!"


    Andrew winced, holding up his hands defensively. "Geez, calm down!" he said, leaning back slightly. "What did they do to you anyway?"


    "Ha! Why do you care?" L shot back, her re now shifting to Seojun, as if she were sizing him up from head to toe.


    Seojun felt the weight of her gaze, but didn''t flinch. He wasn''t intimidated by her,


    "And who''s this now?" L asked, still eyeing Seojun critically.


    Andrew, clearly excited, grinned and pped Seojun on the back. "This is the guy I was talking about! My best friend, Seojun!"


    He then grabbed both of their hands and pushed them toward each other. "Seojun, meet L! L, meet Seojun! Shake hands!"


    Before Seojun could react, L forcefully pulled her hand back, giving Seojun a quick, pointed look.


    "The guy with a slime familiar? No wonder you''re friends," she said with a scoff, crossing her arms.


    Seojun raised an eyebrow, unimpressed by her reaction.


    "Tsk." He said, unable to hide his amusement at how easily L''s attitude shifted.


    Andrew, oblivious to the tension, grinned even wider. "See? You two are getting along already!"


    L just rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath,


    "Whatever." She turned away from them, clearly not interested in ying nice,


    "Let''s just get this over with."


    Seojun nced at Andrew, who was happily following L like a puppy.


    He couldn''t help but think, ''


    What did he saw to this woman?''