Ch. 10
Saturday arrived, and it was finally the day Selene and her mother went shopping. The Valen family's limousine rolled smoothly through the downtown district, heading toward one of the city's most exclusive malls.
Yuna sat beside her mother, both of them dressed elegantly for the occasion. She glanced out the tinted window, watching the city pass by.
She wasn't unfamiliar with luxury.
Back in Seoul, Yuna had earned more than enough to live comfortably. She could afford nice things whenever she wanted them. But she had never been the type to spend recklessly. Even when she could afford an expensive car, she had stuck with her BYD because, in her words, a car was still just a car.
This, however, was different.
The Valens, however, were on an entirely different level. Their wealth wasn't something that had been built overnight.
The Valen family had been wealthy for generations.
Their ancestors had started with boutiques, land and property development, acquiring large pieces of land when the city was still expanding. Over the decades, the family business grew into what was now known as Valen Holdings a conglomerate primarily involved in real estate and property development.
Their portfolio included luxury residential developments, commercial complexes, hotels, and several high-end properties across major cities.
As the generations passed, the family expanded into other investments as well, from hospitality and retail to private equity and financial ventures.
Real estate remained the foundation of their fortune.
And unlike Yuna's wealth in her previous life, which she had built through years of work and climbing her way up the corporate ladder, the Valens had something she had never experienced.
Generational wealth.
Yuna glanced at the car's immaculate interior. She couldn't help but think about the difference.
I was rich.
But this family is ridiculously rich.
The limousine slowed as they approached the entrance of the exclusive mall. Yuna looked at the grand building ahead.
And apparently, this is just a normal Saturday for them.
Both mother and daughter entered the mall. The moment they stepped inside, several salespeople immediately recognized Mrs. Valen.
She was a familiar face among the mall's most important clients, and the staff quickly straightened themselves as a few managers and personal shopping assistants approached to greet her.
"Good morning, Mrs. Valen. Welcome back."
"It's a pleasure to see you again, Madam."
Yuna remained beside her mother, quietly observing as they were greeted one after another. She noticed a few curious glances directed toward her.
It wasn't surprising.
Selene had spent most of her teenage years abroad and rarely appeared at social events back home. Unlike her mother, she wasn't exactly a familiar face to the people working here. Still, it only took one look at her for some of the staff to figure it out.
The Valen features were unmistakable. Even if they had never met her before, there was little doubt about who she was.
The family's only grandchild.
Miss Selene Valen.
A manager offered her a polite smile before turning toward them.
"Shall we prepare the private fitting room for you, Mrs. Valen?"
"Yes, please."
The staff immediately led them toward the VIP section. Yuna followed quietly behind her mother. She couldn't help but glance around.
So this is what happens when your last name carries this much weight.
She didn't even need to introduce herself. Being a Valen was introduction enough.
"Choose anything you like, dear," her mother said with a fond smile. "It's been so long since we've gone out together."
Yuna glanced at the rows of dresses before looking back at her mother.
"Anything?"
"Anything you like."
"What if you don't like what I pick?" Yuna hesitated for a moment. Her mother blinked, then smiled warmly.
"Then we'll simply choose something else."
"Alright." Yuna nodded slowly. She turned toward the racks, scanning through the dresses.
"Then I'll choose something I think you'd like too."
"That's my girl." Her mother smiled, clearly pleased.
She reached for a cream-colored dress from the rack and held it up for her mother to see.
"This one." She glanced at her mother before handing it to her.
"Try it on, Mom."
Her mother looked at the dress, then back at Selene.
"You think this would suit me?"
"Yes. The color would look good on you."
"Alright, then." Her mother smiled and took the dress from her. She disappeared into the fitting room. Yuna waited outside, looking through the other dresses on the rack.
A few minutes later, the curtain opened. Her mother stepped out wearing the cream-colored dress. Yuna studied her for a moment, taking in the fit and the soft color against her mother's complexion.
"...It suits you."
"Really?"
"Mm." Yuna nodded, then adjusted the sleeve slightly.
"Though I think this part would look better if it's altered a little."
One of the assistants immediately stepped forward.
"Of course, Miss Valen. We can have it adjusted."
"What happened to the girl who used to say she didn't care what I wore?" Her mother looked at her with an amused smile.
Yuna froze for half a second.
Did Selene really say that? She quickly recovered.
"I've changed my mind."
"Well, I'm glad you did." Her mother simply laughed.
Yuna looked away, pretending to examine another dress. For some reason, hearing that made her feel strangely warm.
As they moved from boutique to boutique, her mother insisted on buying her shoes, bags, and even a new perfume. Yuna didn't resist, she simply let herself enjoy it. And Yuna found herself relaxing little by little.
Another day passed, and Yuna gradually grew accustomed to her new routine as Selene in this world.
The awkwardness she once felt whenever she spoke to Selene's family had slowly faded.
She had also stopped complaining about school.
To her surprise, university life as Selene wasn't nearly as exhausting as she had expected like her old life.
She tied her hair into a loose ponytail and casually walked around the open field.
Selene looked surprisingly cute in her PE uniform, drawing more than a few admiring glances from the students around her.
Some of the girls couldn't help but feel a little envious.
They were all wearing the exact same PE uniform, yet somehow it looked completely different on Selene.
The design hadn't changed but the impression it gave certainly had.
As her grandmother often reminded her, all of Selene's uniforms were specially tailored to fit her. The design was the same as everyone else's, but there were subtle differences if one looked closely. Embroidered on the chest was the Valen family crest.
It was a long-standing tradition at the university.
Students from well-known or wealthy families had their family logos stitched onto their uniforms. The design remained identical for everyone, but the embroidered crests quietly distinguished those who came from influential households.
Yuna walked over to her classmates. Her blockmates for this subject were laughing, stretching, and chatting across the field. But the moment Selene appeared beside them, some of the laughter died down and the group noticeably quieted.
It wasn't that they were afraid of Selene. There was just something about her presence that naturally made people feel intimidated, even when she wasn't doing anything at all.
Yuna, already used to this kind of reaction from her classmates, simply let out a quiet sigh.
"Everyone! Line up here!" Professor Richard called out to his students.
This was the first time he would be teaching them PE. He had previously taught fourth-year students, but due to a faculty reshuffle, he had been assigned to teach first-years this semester.
Richard smiled as he looked over the students gathering in front of him. Most of them looked fairly athletic at first glance.And he already found himself scanning the crowd for potential recruits for the university's badminton team.
"Everyone might be wondering why there are two classes here today, right?" Professor Richard said with a grin.
"Anyway, since this is our first meeting, let me introduce myself. I'm Richard, your Physical Education professor. My main focus is sports, and I'll be handling your PE classes this semester."
He then gestured toward the group of students standing on the opposite side of the field.
"As for the class over there, they're my second-year students."
A few curious murmurs immediately spread among the freshmen. Richard's grin widened.
"And yes, they're here for a reason." He clapped his hands once.
"They're going to be your opponents."
Some students looked excited, while others were already eager to prove themselves. A few even seemed thrilled at the idea of competing against upperclassmen. Yuna, however, couldn't help but wonder.
Why second-years?
Wouldn't it make more sense to pair us with another first-year class from a different course?
Isn't this a little unfair? They're already a year ahead of us.
While the freshmen continued whispering among themselves, a student from the second-year class suddenly raised his hand.
"Professor, what sport are we playing today?" he asked.
Several students immediately turned toward Professor Richard, waiting for his answer.
Richard smiled and winked.
"Glad you asked! It's badminton."
The entire second-year class immediately cheered, some of them even praising the professor for the choice. A few of the first-years looked disappointed, while others seemed genuinely excited.
"And since there are quite a lot of you, we'll have two pairs from each class playing at a time. We'll only do one set per match so we can keep things moving. We have four nets, so we should be able to finish everything within two hours. That should be enough, right?"
"Choose your partners so we can get everyone lined up!"