The Geum Eun-dong triplets, who shared the surname Geum, served as the catalyst for Kwon-woo and Haneul’s friendship in the game. Known as Do Seung-woo’s henchmen, they’d earned the nickname “Cerberus” but preferred to call themselves…
「Ugeun-dong & Ueun-dong & Udon-dong」
“When we’re mentioned—”
“The guardians of hell’s gates—”
“The three-headed dog—”
“The Cerberus of Gangnam Academy!”
Ugh…
That’s exactly how it played out in the game, complete with their signature poses. Though minor villains with limited screen time, the triplets were unforgettable. When the game went viral, fans on SNS even mimicked their lines and poses in challenges.
But even so…
“They’re not to be taken lightly.”
The triplets, who styled themselves as Cerberus, were cunning and coordinated in battle. In the game, novice players often lost to them early on, stalling the story’s progress. Some frustrated players would wail in the Brave Hearts community, calling the triplets the “early-game gatekeepers.”
“So I can’t let my guard down.”
I decided to stay wary. These sly guys might pretend to submit to me while plotting something else.
“How do I know their bowing isn’t just to gain momentum?”
Maybe they crouched to hide weapons in their clothes. Or perhaps while I focused on them, others were lying in wait.
“I don’t sense any other presence, though…”
I cast my detection net again. The rooftop seemed empty except for them.
Then—
“Hm?”
A presence lurked behind the rooftop door.
A familiar one.
I knew it instantly.
“Yeon Ha-neul? Didn’t she go home?”
Why was she here?
I glanced at the door. A white bunny ear peeked through the crack.
It was her. No one else in this school had bunny ears.
“No idea why she’s there, but at least there’s no one else besides these guys…”
I turned back to the triplets.
What was their game? I needed to find out.
“Looks like I should knock them out first.”
“What!? What are you….”
“How do I know you’re not faking this to pull some trick?”
“No, hey….”
“Better to neutralize you completely.”
“We have no intention of fighting!”
“You can tell me whatever you want once you’re conscious.”
Knocking someone out is simple. A strike to the neck does the trick. I’d learned the basics from Do Seung-woo’s earlier defeat.
As I moved to strike the nearest neck…
The triplets erupted in a barrage of words.
“We’ll do anything you ask!”
“Please, help us out!”
“You’re our only hope now!”
“Sponsor us!”
“…Huh?”
At their plea for sponsorship, I lowered my sword. I needed to hear this.
To prove they meant no harm, the triplets placed their hands behind their heads and began their story.
“So…”
Cutting through the noise, I summarized their tale.
The gist was simple.
“Do Seung-woo dumped you guys?”
That was the case.
According to them, after their humiliation at the sword dojo, Do Seung-woo went radio silent. Then, out of the blue yesterday, he declared he’d no longer sponsor them.
And it didn’t stop there.
“Do Seung-woo got you banned from all Shin-Gum Do sword schools…”
He’d blacklisted them from every sword dojo run by the Shin-Gum Do clan.
“So he’s cut you off completely.”
This wasn’t in the game. Of course not—the triplets never crossed paths with me in the original story. It made sense, though, that Do Seung-woo would be disappointed after their defeat. Still, his overreaction and sudden move against them were suspicious.
One theory came to mind.
“Because he lost to me?”
Two days ago, Do Seung-woo was bested by me. It was likely he took out his frustration on the triplets. The timing was too perfect.
In any case…
“Now that he’s cut you off, you want me to sponsor you instead?”
“We’re begging you! Please!”
“We know we’re shameless, but!”
“We want to be Hunters!”
The desperate triplets had come to me—no, summoned me via letter.
I sighed, looking at them with their hands vulnerably on their heads.
“If that’s the case, why not just tell me? Why the letter and the rooftop meeting?”
“We thought you’d ignore us…”
“And why no names on the letter?”
“Same reason! You’d ignore us if you saw our names.”
“The handwriting was pretty neat, though.”
“We can’t write well, so we asked the best writer in class to do it.”
“You didn’t sign it, but you did hint it was you, right?”
“Yeah! The stickers on the envelope! Three different colors—gold, silver, bronze! You should’ve figured it out! You’re so… sorry, our bad! Please forgive us!”
“And the heart stickers?”
“To express our feelings!”
“Our feelings! Please accept them!”
“Nope.”
The triplets groveled, flattering me shamelessly. Their loud pleas made my head spin, and my thoughts raced.
“What should I do…”
I didn’t particularly want the story to unfold as before. But I also didn’t want to meddle too much and risk a butterfly effect I couldn’t handle.
In that sense…
The triplets, with their minor role in the story, could change their futures without major consequences.
“Even if these guys’ futures change, it won’t lead to a bad ending.”
So their plight wasn’t my concern.
In fact, it was entertaining. Watching them despair after losing their future—how delightful.
I could sit back and gloat without lifting a finger.
A huge relief.
But…
“Ha…”
I didn’t feel relieved at all.
Instead, I felt uneasy.
Like my heart was clogged with sweet potatoes.
Seems I couldn’t be the villain after all.
“This pushover… no, this moral guy.”
Was I like this in my past life too?
Hard to say.
But even after realizing my past, I doubted I could ruin someone’s life that callously.
“Kwon-woo, please…”
“…”
The triplets teared up.
After much deliberation, I decided to help them.
“Stop groveling and stand up.”
“…Huh?”
“Didn’t you hear me? Stand up.”
“Uh, yes!”
The triplets jumped up, snapping to attention. I pointed at each of them.
“Gold, Silver, Bronze. From today, you’re my lackeys and bread runners. If you want my sponsorship, obey me. Buy bread when I say, bark like dogs when I tell you…”
“Lackeys? We’re the same age! What kind of name is that!?”
“Yeah! Seung-woo didn’t treat us like that!”
“At least call us subordinates!”
“Shh.”
“Finish what you were saying.”
“Buy bread?”
“Woof woof!”
This could work out.
Thinking positively, I reconsidered.
“I was looking for people to run errands anyway. These guys might fit the bill.”
In the Academy City of the game’s world, having underlings to handle minor tasks was advantageous. The triplets could fill that role.
“I’ll talk to my father so you can return to the dojo as before.”
“Thanks! You’re our only hope!”
“But if this is a trick by Do Seung-woo to spy on me… I’ll really kill you. I may be kind, but I won’t forgive betrayal.”
“We’d never do that!”
“We’re not spies!”
“We’ll swear loyalty! Loyalty! Loyalty!”
“I’ll be watching you closely. Gold, Silver, Bronze.”
“But seriously, are you really going to call us that?”
“We have names—Ugeun-dong, Ueun-dong, Udon-dong…”
“Can’t you add ‘-dong’ at the end?”
“Gold, Silver, Bronze. Your names are hard to remember. Let’s keep it simple. Okay?”
“…”
“I’ll think about your real names later. Now, loyalty.”
“Loyalty! Loyalty! Ugh, damn it…”
And so.
I took in three lackeys.
Time to put them to good use.
(Lucky Break)
Phew…
Yeon Ha-neul, who’d cracked the door open just enough to peek onto the rooftop without being noticed, let out a sigh of relief.
“So it was… the triplets.”
Ugeun-dong, Ueun-dong, Udon-dong.
The triplets were infamous for their bold and brash personalities.
Anyway, it wasn’t a girl.
Knowing the sender of the letter to Do Kwon-woo, her heart settled.
“I can still stay by Kwon-woo’s side.”
The thought struck her.
“Why am I feeling this way?”
She was caught in a strange sense of relief—indescribable in words.
Her face grew hot, her chest fluttered.
Her lips threatened to curl upward.
“No, don’t rise!”
A foreign yet not-unpleasant feeling.
It tickled her heart, making her fidgety.
Weird, weird, weird.
Embarrassing, awkward, shy.
If she indulged in this feeling, she’d lose control of herself.
She’d cease to be herself.
No, she’d become something else.
It thrilled her, yet scared her.
“I shouldn’t dwell on this.”
To shake off the feeling, Yeon Ha-neul shook her head vigorously.
She scrunched her face to stop her lips from rising, pressed her hand firmly to her chest to calm the fluttering, and pressed her ears to her head as if to hide her face.
“Calm down, Ha-neul. Ha-neul, calm down. Calm down…”
She repeated the same words to herself like a mantra, closing her eyes as if to sink into the darkness.
Then it happened.
“What are you doing over there?”
“!”
Lost in her emotions, she’d been caught by Do Kwon-woo.
Yeon Ha-neul spun around, startled by the voice behind her.
He was staring at her with a flat expression.
“Aren’t you supposed to be home? I told you not to follow.”
“Uh, well…”
What should she say?
She couldn’t hesitate in this situation.
She had to speak quickly.
Otherwise, he’d grow suspicious.
Panicking, Yeon Ha-neul blurted out whatever came to mind.
“Well, you know! In case something happened, someone needed to report to the police or the teacher…”
“I could’ve handled it alone, yet you insisted?”
“W-well, you never know! And didn’t you say before? That great Hunters assume the worst-case scenario.”
“…”
This fool, idiot, dumb bunny!
Does that even make sense?
Yeon Ha-neul realized how nonsensical her rambling excuse was and inwardly tore at her bunny ears.
But the excuse worked.
“You have a point. Makes sense.”
“R-really?”
Do Kwon-woo nodded seriously.
Relieved inwardly, Yeon Ha-neul quickly agreed to avoid suspicion.
Then she swiftly changed the subject.
“So, um, did things go well?”
“Yeah, those guys wanted to be my bread runners.”
Bread runners? Oh, um… right.
“Is there anything you want to eat?”
“Huh? Why?”
“Just tell me if you crave anything. I’ll have them get it for you.”
“…”
“You can boss them around too.”
“Oh, sure… if I ever need to.”
“And here, I’ll return your sword. Luckily, I didn’t use it at all.”
Do Kwon-woo, unabashed as if looking up at the sky, proudly declared he’d acquired bread runners.
Yeon Ha-neul found her partner absurd yet funny and cute.
Soon, he shrugged.
“Since we’re done here, let’s head home. You don’t have anything else to do, right?”
“Yeah! Nothing!”
Yeon Ha-neul beamed.
As she had since becoming his partner, she walked home with him today too.
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