Chapter 81: The Unspoken Truth and a New Beginning

He gripped my firm shoulders, and I gritted my teeth, closing my eyes until he finally let go. I tried to ignore the stirrings in my lower body and the deep ache beginning to throb in my gut.

“This tattoo. You didn’t go and get a new one without my knowledge, did you?”

Sagyeol, having finally pulled away, touched the tip of his nose to the space above my heart. His eyes were shadowed with an unreadable darkness.

I had been prepared when I drew on my power. The outcome was precisely as I expected. Lowering my gaze, I saw the tattoo, now incomparably darker than before.

Yet, my heart remained strangely calm, even more so than when only a faint trace had lingered after crossing into the Middle World.

There was no need to ponder the difference. The answer was already clear.

“I don’t understand why.”

It was the presence of this man before me, who was now openly expressing his annoyance.

“You’re undeniably sexy, yet the more I look, the worse I feel.”

His handsome eyebrows arched upwards, clearly betraying his displeasure. I certainly couldn’t tell him that it was probably because his instincts were on a beastly level.

“Well, that’s not what’s important right now.”

Sagyeol’s expression abruptly turned serious.

“Now, explain.”

My back met an invisible wall. There was no more ground to retreat, no corner to escape to. I knew I had to say something, but my scrambled thoughts couldn’t even conjure up a fleeting excuse.

‘Just tell him honestly.’

A chiding voice, as if frustrated, echoed in my mind.

As if I didn’t know that. My lips clamped shut even tighter than when I’d been trying to think of an excuse.

Sagyeol let out a small sigh. He unclasped his interlocked hands. It shouldn’t have been, but it felt as though he was giving up on me.

As I frantically parted my lips, his hand rose to cup my cheek.

Gently guided, I leaned in and met his kiss.

I had never considered myself weak, but whenever he acted like this, I was acutely aware of it. I was just a fragile human, easily broken.

His tender kiss, enough to bring tears to my eyes, sent my jagged heart tumbling.

“Don’t be afraid.”

“……”

“Why are you scared? I’m not angry, and I’m certainly not blaming you. I’m just a little… expectant.”

Expectant. As I savored the word’s meaning, my eyes widened gradually. Sagyeol chuckled softly.

“Of course, I guessed. You’re so clumsy when it comes to emotions. You wouldn’t really pretend you don’t know, would you?”

To that, I had no words, even if I possessed ten mouths.

“So this is… just me being spoiled.”

Thud.

Sagyeol’s head dropped onto my shoulder. The skin where he touched felt as if it were burning. My heart, which I thought couldn’t sink any lower, plummeted even deeper than the floor.

“Yeowon. I want to hear it from your own lips.”

As if by magic, all my hesitation vanished.

His words were like a perfectly fallen fruit, neither crushed nor distorted, not even lying on its side. It was a ripe, luscious crimson fruit, waiting to be carefully picked up. How could I not reach out my hand?

“I… like you.”

Sagyeol didn’t lift his head. Instead, he held me even tighter. After a slight hesitation, I deepened the hold of my hand on his shoulder, wrapping it around his neck.

Only then did he raise his head and look at me. Sagyeol was held within my arms.

“It seems I do like you.”

It felt a little strange to hear what should have been ‘I think I like you’ turn into such a definitive statement. Had I truly done it right? There was no need to ponder. Sagyeol’s lips twisted into a smile.

No words came to me. He was dazzling. Simply looking at him deepened my affection for him severalfold.

“Even if you hadn’t guided me to the depths of the flood, you still would have been my salvation.”

“I doubt you would have even glanced my way if I weren’t a Returnee.”

“What are you talking about? There’s no way I wouldn’t have noticed something this beautiful.”

Sagyeol’s expression hardened. It was so brazenly said, so utterly him. I took a short, sharp breath and bowed my head deeply.

It was too embarrassing to lift my head easily. Part of me wanted to bury my face in the sofa until the flush receded, but there were words I had to hear right now. Words that couldn’t wait.

Steeling myself, I lifted my head and cupped both of Sagyeol’s cheeks with my hands. When I pressed lightly, his handsome face crinkled.

Ah.

‘Even when his face is squished, his good looks don’t disappear.’

Pressing on him proved to be somewhat amusing. As I forgot my purpose and fiddled with his face, Sagyeol’s eyebrows twitched again.

“What is it?”

“I’ve said my piece, so you should say yours too.”

“With this ridiculous face?”

I let out a small laugh.

“Well, faces are important, aren’t they?”

“Indeed.”

His serious nod was utterly absurd.

“And here too…”

His hand subtly crept up and grasped my chest.

“It’s very precious, isn’t it?”

By now, I was beyond dumbfounded and felt it wasn’t even worth responding. I let him be, curious to see how far he would go, when Sagyeol supported my hips and thighs with his arms and, in one swift motion, lifted me.

“What the—”

I had never been carried like this, not even as a child. Moreover, I was now tall and well-built. I had never in my wildest dreams imagined being scooped up so easily by someone. As I tightened my arms around his neck in surprise, Sagyeol chuckled.

“Since you said it on the sofa, I’ll say it on the bed.”

What kind of dog logic was that?

Just as I was about to protest, Sagyeol pressed his lips against mine. Gradually, my head tilted to the side naturally. His tongue slipped through the parting of our soft lips.

As our tongues entwined, his arms tightened around me, and his body pressed closer. A shiver ran down my spine. I could feel his desire for me. My hips, knowing what was to come, subtly swayed.

Ever since I was caught in Kratus’s grasp, I had shuddered at obsession and desire directed at me. Even now, I sometimes woke with a start from sleep, trembling with the fear that I would see not a clean, modern ceiling, but a medieval-style room adorned with elaborate frescoes.

“Haa, mm.”

My body grew increasingly languid. My inability to respond actively was simply due to my awkwardness with such acts. There was no fear, no repulsion.

After a long moment, Sagyeol pulled away and quietly looked down at me. Staring at my reflection in his dark eyes, he spoke in a low voice.

“Come to think of it…”

“Come to think of what?”

“You might be right. I’ll hear what you have to say in bed.”

Sagyeol’s shoulders shook with laughter, a clear, refreshing, boyish sound. My body, held by him, swayed in response.

“You seem to be getting more shameless by the minute.”

“As if you’re any better.”

“That’s true.”

Sagyeol peppered my jaw and neck with kisses, whispering.

“Next time, I’ll show you what we can only do on the sofa.”

“……”

On the sofa?

That?

Well, of course, it was as large and plush as a bed, but the sofa was in the living room, and one entire wall of the living room was a floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city.

“What about the window?”

Sagyeol simply smiled, offering no reply.

Barely two minutes after my confession, I was already doubting my choice. Was this right? Was this guy truly the best option?

As if reading my inner thoughts, Sagyeol swiftly turned and headed for the bedroom. His legs were so long that in just a few strides, my back hit the bed.

Screech!

The expensive mattress shrieked under the combined weight of our two bodies. Sagyeol naturally settled himself above me.

For a moment, I lost myself. I had thought only looking down was a fresh perspective, but it seemed any unfamiliar angle was profoundly impressive.

‘No, isn’t that too superficial?’

Just as I began to question why my heart beat so easily for this man alone, Sagyeol bit my earlobe and spoke.

“No returns accepted, customer.”

“……”

The early days of the Gate’s opening.

It was a period marked by countless attempts, trials and errors, and failures. Experiments to tame demonic beasts and creatures were also conducted during this time. Many cities attempted various methods.

However, none yielded results, and the research was progressively abandoned.

After that, it became an accepted truth that anything crossing over from the Gate could never be tamed. What Credit’s Returnee had accomplished this time overturned that historical dogma.

The citizens, though shifting in excitement, were also preemptively disappointed.

“They’ll probably just send a proxy to make a statement again, anyway.”

“How precious do they think they are…? No, I know they’re precious, but if Credit is backing them, shouldn’t they at least be able to walk around Grisha openly?”

“Does this person live with their ears completely shut? This time, Hestia Guild Master Bae Gil-su tried to kidnap that Returnee and ended up dead, reversed upon himself.”

“What?!”

“Hestia and the Hunter Association apparently tried to keep it quiet, but can such an incident truly be suppressed? It seems a few people exposed it anonymously.”

The person next to them agreed.

“Exactly. If it weren’t true, Hestia would deny it, but seeing as they’re staying silent…”

A brief silence fell over the cafe table where several office workers were gathered. Those who had been pretending not to listen were now divided into two groups.

There were those who already knew, nodding inwardly, and those who, like the person who had questioned, only just learned and were now furiously typing on their devices. The latter group’s eyes widened after seeing the article on the main portal.

It was a piping hot article, posted just three minutes ago. His finger scrolled down the screen. The first article related to the Returnee had been two hours prior. It claimed an exposé, and the content was quite provocative.

“Huh?”

The ranking on the portal’s main page changed. He clicked on the article as if spellbound. He had seen similar things several times before, but they had all been so-called clickbait.

His eyes, reading through the content, slowly widened. He wasn’t the only one. Alarms began to ring all around.

“Wh-what is it?”

Some received calls instead of alarms. “What’s going on? Why aren’t you checking your messages? I’m talking right now… What?! Hang on.”

The young man, reacting violently, furiously tapped his device. Soon, everyone in the cafe lowered their heads. Dongjun, seated behind the counter, was one of them.

On the screen, a person was being interviewed. It wasn’t an official broadcast but an internet stream hosted by a Hunter Creator under the Credit Guild. Nevertheless, the number of concurrent viewers soared terrifyingly.

Dongjun knew who the completely stiff man on the screen was.

‘Jin…’

The familiar name he had called for two years now felt strange. Perhaps it was because he had belatedly learned his real name. His name, officially measured and announced by the Association, was Seo Yeowon.

Dongjun bit his lip at the name that pierced his heart. He had never told Dongjun his name. He didn’t know if it was because he was on the run, or if he simply thought it wasn’t important.

Though they could now contact each other again, Dongjun hadn’t asked. He considered clinging to such things as proof that he hadn’t moved on.

But how could he not love him? How could he not look his way and pass him by?

So lovely.

“…And so brilliant.”

Dongjun, his face twisted, caressed Yeowon’s image beyond the small device with his fingertips. He never thought he would feel so pathetic. He chuckled softly and stood up from his seat. Just then, a bell chimed, announcing a new customer.

The clear sound of the bell.

A day would surely come when he would hear the sound Yeowon left behind and feel nothing at all.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

A Tangy New Life After Breaking Up with My Girlfriend

HaremRomanceSlice of Life

Read Now →
Not interested