Looking for the Runaway Heavenly Maiden - Chapter 47

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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47.

* * *

What is evil born from?
Can we truly judge what is good and what is evil?
Can you claim your judgment is absolutely correct?
Then can you say you are not evil, but good?
And thus, can you prove that you are not evil?

* * *

“Jiho!”

The long day at school had finally ended.
As I packed my bag, I turned at a voice that wasn’t unfamiliar.
Kim Seulgi approached me with a bright smile.

“Let’s go home together.”

I wasn’t particularly inclined, but I nodded anyway.
Slinging my bag over my shoulder, I walked alongside Kim Seulgi.
We passed through the hallway filled with the cheerful chatter of students leaving school and crossed the playground.
Kim Seulgi chattered away, unbothered by my sparse responses.
Like at lunch, she talked a lot—as if laying down a smokescreen to hide her true self.
As I listened to her, I spoke first for the first time.

“Seulgi, want to ride with my sister?”
“Your sister?”
“Yeah. She’s picking me up.”

At those words, something flickered in Kim Seulgi’s eyes. I didn’t miss it.

“Is that okay?”
“Of course. She’ll be happy. You’re my first friend besides Cheonhaerang.”

Even I had to admit that the lie rolled off my tongue as smoothly as if I’d oiled it. I never knew I could deceive so effortlessly.
I had already settled things with Yerim. She had agreed to help me explore the Heavenly Realm.
At my suggestion, Kim Seulgi broke into a radiant smile and linked her arm through mine.

“Really? Thank you so much, Jiho. This is amazing. I’m your first friend.”

Her last words carried an oddly tender inflection. I pretended not to notice and spoke.

“Me too. Thank you for being my friend.”

Anyone watching would have mistaken us for the closest of friends. Yet we had only just met today.
Before long, we arrived at the school gate. A car was parked in front of it—a purple one I recognized well.
The woman leaning against it, sunglasses on, was equally familiar.

“Unnie.”

At my call, Yerim turned around. She pushed her sunglasses up onto her head.
It felt strange—we’d only parted days ago, yet it seemed like years had passed.
Yerim smiled brightly and waved her hand.

“Jiho.”

Even as she greeted me, her sharp eyes didn’t miss the girl beside me.
Yerim had said that the Heavenly Realm’s “essence” had approached me. This girl was that essence. At school, her name was Kim Seulgi.
Yerim pushed herself off from the car and strode toward us.
Kim Seulgi greeted Yerim with an innocent smile. She looked utterly guileless.
Seeing only this, it was hard to believe she was from the Heavenly Realm—the one who hunted humans so cruelly.

“Hello, unnie. I’m Kim Seulgi, Jiho’s friend.”
“Hey, nice to meet you.”
“Thank you so much for offering to drive us home.”
“Don’t mention it. I was heading that way anyway.”

Though that’s not really your true home anyway. Yerim swallowed the words on her tongue.
Yerim opened the back door for her. As Kim Seulgi climbed in, our eyes met briefly in the process.

“Thank you, unnie.”
“Don’t worry about it.”

Kim Seulgi was playing the role of a well-mannered student quite convincingly.
If Jiho hadn’t told me beforehand, I probably would have passed right over it without noticing anything.
From the driver’s seat, I lowered the volume of the music that had been playing loudly and started the car.
The car pulled away smoothly without a hitch. I struck up a conversation with Kim Seulgi.

“So where does our friend live?”
“Oh, I live in Haeyeon-dong! You can drop me off in front of Seongwon Villa.”

Haeyeon-dong. The neighborhood where we lived.
It could only be seen as intentional. Perhaps she had known our address from the very beginning.
Seongwon Villa was located on the way to Eunha Apartments.

“Really? We live in Haeyeon-dong too. We’re at Eunha Apartments.”
“Wow, really? How coincidental!”

Coincidental, my foot. I muttered inwardly.

“Then should we give our friend a ride to school from now on?”

To catch a tiger, you must enter the tiger’s den.
That was the method we had chosen.

“Oh, that would be wonderful! But I think I’ll need to ask my parents for permission. Sometimes they drive me anyway.”

I clicked my tongue inwardly. Her story was more airtight than I expected.

“Alright. Once you get permission, contact Jiho. Got it?”
“Yes! Thank you so much!”

Kim Seulgi began chattering happily to Jiho.
I listened to their conversation and thought quietly.
Jiho was right. Kim Seulgi talked a lot.
To deliberately hide her true self. Nothing felt genuine.
Soon, a building marked Seongwon Villa came into view.
I slowed down and stopped the car. I spoke brightly to Kim Seulgi, who had spotted Seongwon Villa.

“We’re already here! Thank you so much, noona.”
“Sure, go on in carefully.”

Kim Seulgi stepped out of the car. The silence inside felt heavier now that her voice was gone.
Yerim checked the rearview mirror as she pulled away from the curb.
Kim Seulgi remained standing in place, not entering the villa, watching them leave.
A chill ran down Yerim’s spine. If she had a choice, she would never want to be near that woman again.
Yerim quickly averted her gaze. Then Jiho’s voice came from the back seat.

“Sister, how have you been? Has His Majesty said anything unusual?”

A belated greeting mixed with curiosity.
Yerim let out a soft laugh as she answered.

“I’ve been well, and His Majesty hasn’t said anything unusual.”

Though he had personally summoned her and spoken to her, there was no need to tell Jiho about that.

“But Ryujiho, you knew about this. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Huh?”
“What? A boyfriend? Love at first sight? You lied through your teeth without batting an eye.”
“Well, it’s just that….”
“Never mind, it’s all in the past now. His Majesty must have had his reasons.”

Yerim answered coolly.
Jiho reflected on Yerim’s response. Now that they were in the same boat, it was natural that she knew the truth.
From the way Yerim addressed him as “His Majesty,” it was clear she understood that Cheonhaerang was no princess.
But just how much of the truth had Yeonhwa told her?
That Gihyeongrang, Yerim’s former lover, had tried to kill Cheonhaerang? That Gihyeongrang was actually Cheonhaerang’s half-brother?
Did Yerim know? What was her heart like as she cooperated in all of this?
Gihyeongrang had to be eliminated.
No matter how distant the past, she must have cared for him once to have called him her lover.
Would Yerim be alright?
The sudden question circled through Jiho’s mind, but she quickly dismissed it.
Pressing further would not be good for Yerim either.
There were more pressing matters at hand.

“By the way, sister. Did you know about this?”
“Know about what?”
“Living together with our Jade Emperor.”
“…What?”

The car screeched to an abrupt halt with a sharp sound.
Yerim turned to Jiho with a bewildered expression. Jiho looked startled by the sudden stop.
Yet Yerim’s eyes didn’t register Jiho’s expression at all.

“You’re serious?”
“Yeah. You didn’t hear me?”

I didn’t hear. Or did I?

“The Jade Emperor will be coming to the Human Realm as well, so don’t worry too much.”

That’s all I thought I heard. Was that what she meant? Living in the same house?
Even if he is the Jade Emperor, he’s still a man. A grown man and woman living under the same roof.
Actually, setting aside gender altogether.
The Jade Emperor was essentially my superior. And his temperament was far from ordinary at that.
Living under the same roof with such a superior. I could honestly say it was unbearably inconvenient—downright hellish.

“…Princess Yeonhwa said so?”
“According to the Jade Emperor, it’s more efficient this way to respond quickly.”

That made sense. Being together was better for handling danger than being scattered apart.
So what could I do? I had no choice but to endure this uncomfortable cohabitation.
Yerim answered with a sigh.

“Fine, then there’s no helping it.”

Yerim desperately hoped that hellish superior wouldn’t come home too often.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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