A Lewd Sketch Artist in a Gender-Reversed World - Chapter 69

Chapter 69 : Button

No matter who was sulking, the drinking session itself went quite smoothly.

After all, the power of alcohol was quite great.

A moderate amount of alcohol broke down unnecessary control mechanisms in the brain and removed inhibitions in dealing with people.

Although it increased the likelihood of making mistakes, it was perfect for breaking the ice between awkward acquaintances. As such, the people in the room quickly started to open up.

"Ah, so you originally wanted to go to the Business Administration department?"

"Yes, but Jae-young said she wanted to go into economics. Actually, since it was related to marketing, I thought it wouldn't matter and just followed along."

"Well, the names are similar..."

Se-won listened to Song Jae-eun in front of him while eating a piece of French fries. The salty and crispy taste of the fries lingered in his mouth.

Although the fries had become a bit soggy over time, they were perfect for soothing the bitter taste in his mouth.

Thanks to that, a slight warmth was added to his churning stomach, but it was a level he could endure. After repeating the motion a few times, the French fries were soon all gone.

Seeing that, Yoo Bo-ram beside him spoke up.

"...Slurp, the snacks are all gone. Should we order something else?"

"Ah, sure."

"I want to eat hwachae!"

"Hwachae nonsense, you and Song Jae-young are both villains, damn it."

"You eat hwachae well when it's actually ordered."

In the end, the next snack was decided to be hwachae.

The drinking session proceeded roughly like this. Usually, they would have such trivial conversations, and if the pace of drinking slowed down, they would play simple drinking games to liven up the atmosphere.

Before they knew it, quite a few soju bottles had piled up on the table.

Starting with 4 bottles, the number slowly increased to 6, then 7... and now, 11 soju bottles were crowded in one corner of the table like a bustling marketplace.

A total of 11 bottles... roughly speaking, it meant that each person had drunk at least 2 bottles of soju. It might seem like a small amount at a glance, but it was enough to knock most people out.

In fact, Song Jae-young, who had been boasting about her drinking skills early on, was already asleep, leaning against the table. As expected, those who showed off at the beginning were the first to go down. Thinking that life might be similar to this, Se-won pushed his glass forward again.

Originally, if one person raised their glass, everyone else had to follow suit.

That was the etiquette of a Korean drinking session, and it applied to people of similar ages as well. When he asked for a toast, Song Jae-eun panicked and asked,

"No, how can you drink again so soon after drinking?"

"...Chicken?"

"No, not chicken... aren't you dizzy?"

She was genuinely surprised. To be honest, she was already at her limit.

She was a twin similar to Song Jae-young, and her alcohol tolerance was similar as well.

If she hadn't eaten enough snacks before drinking, she might have been the one passed out by now.

By now, her stomach was probably exactly 5:5 with half snacks and half soju.

'What kind of man...'

Even though she prided herself on drinking more than average, seeing a man who could drink better than her made her feel strange.

Still, she did toast with him. If she backed out now, she might be called a lesbian. Se-won had a talent for subtly irritating people despite his cold appearance.

Clink!

Once again, the glasses clinked, and alcohol went down their throats. The dizziness intensified, and their stomachs felt even more queasy.

She wasn't the only one feeling this way; the others probably felt the same.

Still, for now, it was bearable. Jae-eun shook her head, thinking so.

That's when it happened.

"Phew, it's hot."

Se-won mumbled and shook his clothes. The shirt he was wearing seemed quite stuffy, so he started fanning his clothes with his index finger.

Once, twice, every time the clothes moved, pale skin peeked out.

The chest, which was barely visible, was quite tantalizing.

'...!!'

Song Jae-eun unconsciously looked in that direction. It wasn't a conscious act. It was an unconscious behavior stemming from instinct.

And it wasn't just her; even Eunbyeol, who had been quietly sipping her drink beside her, and Yoo Boram, who had been grumbling about having to order hwachae, were drawn to his upper body.

The trivial conversation stopped, and a momentary silence filled the room. It felt like watching a sensual gif.

'Oh, wow...'

Song Jae-eun thought his appearance was quite sexy.

---

Was it because the weather was summer, or was it because this place was a stuffy, airtight room?

Despite the air conditioning being on, the room was as hot as a sauna. The alcohol in his stomach was also making his head quite dizzy.

Heat was not a pleasant feeling. It made his already dull head from the alcohol even duller.

When the body gets hot, the head automatically slows down. Just like a computer slows down when it overheats, the brain is the same.

In times like these, cool air was needed. Even if it was just for a brief moment, if cool wind blew, the head would quickly regain its senses.

Even if I enjoy this dizzy state to some extent, I still need to maintain some level of consciousness.

"Phew."

So, he just lightly shook his clothes. It was an unconscious act, done to create a light breeze.

Therefore, he had no idea that this would attract so much attention.

"...Huh?"

At the sudden silence, he looked up. For some reason, he saw three women staring intently at his upper body.

As if appreciating something, their eyes were quite blatant as they stared at him without blinking.

Of course, when he looked up, their gazes scattered.

"Hey, hey. Come to think of it, hwachae might be delicious."

"Huh? Ah, ah, right? See! It's a pretty good choice."

"......"

He saw them trying to resume the conversation as if connecting a broken film.

Although it was a brief moment of silence, there was no way he couldn't notice it.

'Look at these girls?'

He smirked. He didn't think much of it, just casually shaking his clothes, but who knew it would appeal to them.

A mischievous thought arose inside him. Since they were already exposing their waists, shoulders, and collarbones, wouldn't it be okay for him to expose a little as well?

Moreover, he was starting to sweat inside his clothes due to the heat. To relieve the stuffiness, he slowly unbuttoned his shirt one by one.

"Ah, is the air conditioner broken here?"

As if to say he wasn't paying attention to them at all, he lowered his eyes as if his only purpose was to cool down. This way, they could also focus comfortably.

Thud, thud.

Every time a button of his shirt was undone, he could feel the scattered gazes converging again. The sound of the button bouncing off the silk seemed unusually loud. It was that quiet around him. He slowly and leisurely unbuttoned his shirt, enjoying the situation.

*Gulp.

He thought he heard the sound of someone swallowing from somewhere.

Finally, all the buttons that had been tightly holding his shirt were undone, and something hidden inside was revealed.

He showed it to them without hesitation.

And.

"Ah......"

A sigh was heard from somewhere.

Inside the shirt was a pure white short-sleeved T-shirt. A clean white short-sleeved T-shirt that looked as if it had never been stained.

Who would have thought he was wearing such a thin shirt without anything underneath? He smirked and looked at them.

"What, is something wrong?"

Everyone had a look of betrayed expectations.

---

"I, I'm going to smoke."

"I'm going to the bathroom!"

After that brief incident, Boram and Jae-eun left the room as if fleeing. Their faces were slightly red, as if they were flustered.

Perhaps they had some risqué fantasies while watching se-won unbutton his shirt. That's why they were hurriedly going to cool down their heated minds.

Eunbyeol knew this well because she herself had similar strange fantasies. In the end, he was wearing an undershirt...

In a way, it was to be expected.

Eunbyeol tried to hide her fluster as much as possible and looked ahead for a moment. She saw se-won, who was giggling as the two women left.

He looked quite amused.

'He definitely did that on purpose...'

That's why he was showing such a reaction. Maybe even the time he took to unbutton his shirt slowly and pretending not to notice the gazes were all part of the act. She didn't know where he learned such fox-like behavior, but it was quite effective.

That's why she reacted immediately. She didn't know how flustered she was when she unconsciously let out a sigh.

"......"

"......"

Anyway, that moment had passed... and with the two of them left in the room, a silence hung in the air. The only sound in the small room was Song Jae-young's snoring. With the kids gone, the conversation naturally stopped, and silence took over.

Eunbyeol found this silence quite uncomfortable. Even when the kids were around, she didn't join the conversation much, but it was lively and good.

With just the two of them left, only awkwardness lingered.

'Should I say something...'

No words came out of Eunbyels's mouth. Now that they were alone, her body was slowly stiffening.

What should she say... how could she break this silence... She was thinking in her mind, but perhaps because of the alcohol, her thoughts weren't flowing smoothly.

That's why it might have happened. She opened her mouth unconsciously.

"...Oppa."

It might have been an act to somehow erase this silence, or it might have been the perfect timing with the kids gone.

Perhaps the alcohol in her stomach had broken the control mechanism in her brain. Emotions might have preceded rationality. Alcohol made people quite bold.

"How, how do you see me?"

Anyway, she spoke. Quite boldly. In a way, out of the blue.

"Not as a friend, but as the opposite sex."

"...Huh?"

He tilted his head.

Silence lingered in the room.