Vol. 1 - Ch. 33

“Ah, sorry, did I wake you up?”I said I was being careful, but I looked down at the bed and apologized because I thought I might have been tossing around too much.

But, when I looked down, there was no trace of anyone, let alone Ja-hyun lying down.

When I realized he was still in the chair, I raised my head.

At that moment, Ja-hyun was looking in my direction, and our eyes met.

The eyes, which were solely on me, were clear even in the darkness.

“Ja-hyun, you didn’t even sleep, and you have your legs crossed like that.”

At that time I avoided eye contact with him and opened my mouth.

“Ju Eun-ri, why are you having trouble sleeping?”

“How much are you going to regret later when you don’t grow taller than now?”

Two voices were mixed.

“Umm…”

“…”

There was a short silence, and I stood up with both arms resting on the bed.

“You speak first.”

“I said everything I wanted to say. And what do you mean, I will regret it?”

“You said it all? You heard what I said too.”

I sat down on the bed and spoke. Ja-hyun, who was silent for a moment, opened his mouth.

“I asked you why you have been unable to sleep.”

“…” S~eaʀᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Why is he asking an odd out-of-character question? It is a topic I usually hate when I try to talk about myself.

I was flustered, but soon I opened my mouth as if nothing happened.

“Well, it is just… a lot has happened today, right?”

“…”

“I thought I was okay at that time, but when I actually lay down in bed, I felt…”

“…”

“It was kind of like that. Which is why I am having trouble sleeping.”

After I finished speaking, I swept up my flowing hair and smiled cheerfully. It wasn’t because I wanted to smile; it was to lighten up the awkward atmosphere around us.

“But, Ja-hyun, are you that worried about me?” \

“…”

Having said that, I had no expectations.

The expected answer to that would be ‘no’ or ‘are you mad?’, or maybe just get ignored.

But, Ja-hyun chose none of the three.

“Should I just kill?”

“What?”

Even though Ja-hyun was making words that sounded scary, he was twisting his lips into a smile like he found it funny.

I couldn’t understand why he said it, so I thought back. Kill? Whom?

“You know it isn’t that difficult for me to do it. At least I can slaughter those who give you nightmares.”

“…”

"I can cause them the most horrible, inhumane pain if that's what you want."

It was a refreshing voice compared to the content he held. All I could do was smile.

‘Haha, you are kidding right?’

“Kidding? Do I sound like it?”

No. Which is why it is more of a problem now.

Ja-hyun seemed to pretend not to notice how shocked I was and continued to speak his mind.

“As I am condemning those who dare to cause trouble in front of you, I will be willing to help you this time without taking anything in return.”

“….”

“So you don’t have to worry; just ask me. If you want me to kill them all.”

Ja-hyun stared at me closely after he finished speaking, and I couldn’t find even the slightest doubt of me kneeling down on him and begging him like I did before, holding onto his legs.

Feeling this chill run down my spine, I gently folded my feet on the floor.

‘So what you are saying is… kill the Old Dragon Association? Without having anything in return?’

Why? Putting my doubts aside, I couldn’t deny that Ja-hyun’s proposal did sound attractive to me. Though I kept it a secret, I was concerned that things might not work out the way the fortune teller said they would.

In my heart, I feared that if the Old Dragon wasn't cleaned up properly, conflicts between Jong Myung and the guesthouse might arise, which would bring more harm to me.

It was the Old Dragon Association, which is already more powerful than the Evil Blood Clan.

Jin-chun, who could keep an eye on them, has already left; isn’t it possible for them to accept the situation rather than waste power on fighting?

So, instead of worrying about not knowing when Jong Myung would come, it might be better to eliminate the root of the problem with the help of Ja-hyun.

Even though he claimed he wouldn't get paid or rewarded for dealing with them, it would still be preferable to being indebted to Gyu-ho and the Evil Blood Clan, who constantly target my body.

From the start, I treated Ja-hyun quite seriously… Even if it wasn’t harsh, what was the reason for treating him so well? Wasn’t it to leave the dangerous and dirty tasks in hands, which I couldn’t possibly handle in the future?

‘Right, it isn’t a bad offer to me. It is surely the right one, but…’

Why? His suggestion felt like a devil’s whisper to me.

“I…”

Now that he said it out loud, Ja-hyun was a great person who could have gone there and wiped them all out at once.

Suddenly, I realized that there really was a limit to the human tongue’s lies.

I knew I would regret saying this right away, but I had no choice but to say it because the weight was much heavier than I had anticipated.

‘No. don’t do it.’ \

“…”

“Thank you for your concern, but I am fine.”

Actually, I wasn’t fine, but what can I do? I just could find the heart to say that to his face.

‘Go kill those people.’

“Why?”

“Uh?”

I don’t know if this was my imagination, but I could see a change in Ja-hyun, who had an expressionless face till then. He seemed flustered.

It was a natural decision for me, a hypocrite who wanted to remain as good a person as possible, but I thought the decision I made might have been somewhat unexpected for Ja-hyun, who lived his life as he wanted, regardless of hypocrisy.

“What? Are you afraid that your involvement will be discovered?”

“…”

“It's alright. It’s okay to let go of those unnecessary worries. If it was mere, I would find all four of them hiding in the village without anyone being noticed, and make sure that not even a corpse of theirs is left.”

‘Four? Not five?’

I was puzzled for a moment. I felt the need to cover my mouth, fearing that the next words which would come out might cause a rift between us.

“Now hold on, Ja-hyun, I am not afraid of getting caught…”

“…”

“Just… I just don’t feel like it.”

“You don’t feel like it?”

Although I didn’t look into Ja-hyun’s face, I could bet that his eyebrows were twitching right now.

“Right. I don’t want you to take someone’s life for me.”

No. Right, not yet.

“For me? Well, it is a huge misunderstanding.”

Without knowing what dark thoughts I was having behind his back, Ja-hyun’s sharp voice cut into my ears.

“I was just annoyed by the fact that Ju Eun-ri was being criticized all night long, and those arrogant people had walked away without a care.”

“…”

Isn't that what I said? I don’t know about the latter part, but I was worried about the former. But since I didn’t have the courage to tell him, who seemed to be in a bad mood, what my true feelings were, I just gave an awkward smile even when he was clicking his tongue.

“Rather, right. Killing someone might not be the only solution.”

“Not the only solution. That is a smart idea.”

I quickly nodded in response to the answer I was hoping for. But what I actually heard behind the scenes was quite different from what I wanted.

“Maybe too merciful. Rather than risking their lives, it would be better to cut off their limbs and throw them to pigs.”

“YAH!”

I was startled and screamed at Ja-hyun’s words.

What is he even talking about?

“Ughh….”

But it seemed like the shouting that came without knowledge was too loud.

I jumped out of bed and rushed to Ja-hyun's side because Eun-young, who was sleeping against the wall, looked to be about to wake up.

“How can you say such a scary thing?”

When I spoke to him just enough for him to pay attention, Ja-hyun relaxed his arms and mumbled.

“It is nothing.”

“Forget it; I can't sleep, so I need to drink some warm tea; if you want to, please follow me.”

Without hearing his answer, I went out alone to the kitchen. As I walked down the hallway, I glanced back and suddenly saw Ja-hyun following me.

When I caught a glimpse of the sullen face, I just increased my speed.

‘He is acting cute today.’

Although it was somewhat annoying, he had a similar face to that of a wild cat, and as it followed my lead, I felt a sense of pleasure as if I had tamed a wild animal.

‘Why are you smiling so unpleasantly? It is guly to see, go ahead and make some tea.’

“It would be just great if you can keep your mouth shut.”

“What?” \

“Nothing. Just talk to yourself.”

It seemed like there was a long way to go before he was completely tamed in the first place; I had no desire to completely tame him.

I finished making tea, ignoring Ja-hyun’s gaze on the back of my head.

I quickly made lotus leaf tea by taking dried lotus leaves out of the kitchen cupboard because I didn't want to spend any more time or effort than necessary.

Of course, Ja-hyun helped with the most annoying task, lighting a fire.

And thus, the lotus tea was finished. I decided that Ja-hyun must taste it first, not me.

“The worst”

“…”

“This is the first time in my life that I have tasted a tea with such a strong, grassy smell and an astringent taste even before it touches the tongue.”

Of course, there was no way that a tea made so roughly would get good reviews from Ja-hyun.

But, isn’t he a bit harsh?

“Ah, then don’t drink it.”

“I had no intention of saying anything more than this anyway. I lost my appetite for no reason.”

No matter what he said, I took a sip of the tea.

“Well, I can’t say it is well done, but it is pretty good.”

"Isn't that too little an amount to be true?"

“Ugh, no.”

After that, the conversation continued like a word play.

But since neither of us were people of a good talking kind, it was inevitable that silence came to us at some point.

The flame in the furnace hadn’t yet been taken down, and it burned with a crackling sound.

I sat with my butt on the slightly cool stone floor and laid my face diagonally on the sharp knees.

I must have emptied out half the lotus tea, which is said to be good for insomnia.

My stomach was warm, and the atmosphere around me felt cozy, and I was starting to feel drowsy.

Meanwhile, Ja-hyun, who was sitting a little far away, had his back against the wooden pillar and was sipping the very tea he had just criticized. See, it was pretty drinkable.

“Yah, Ja-hyun”

A slightly muffled voice came out one after another, as if it was mine or not. I quietly closed my eyes and buried my face between my knees.

You are trying to save me earlier in the evening, right? When you threw chopsticks before Baek-ri Jin-chun jumped into the guesthouse.”

“…”

“It is nothing, I just remembered that I haven’t said thank you yet…”

Well, thank you. For saving me, for worrying about me, for everything, I mumbled in shame.