Looking for the Runaway Heavenly Maiden - Chapter 48

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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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48.

* * *

Kim Seulgi stood in place, watching until the purple car disappeared from sight.
Ryujiho. And the celestial maiden Yerim.
Ryujiho appeared rather foolish, but Kim Seulgi hadn’t missed the sharp glint in Yerim’s eyes as she gazed at me.
Ryujiho—the one I’d thought would never return to school.
The fact that he’d come back with Yerim meant there was certainly some intention behind it.
Perhaps something like bait to lure us in.
Then what about Cheonhaerang?
Ryujiho is Cheonhaerang’s only weakness.
There’s no way Cheonhaerang would leave Ryujiho alone.
Yet Cheonhaerang didn’t come.

“How was meeting them?”

At Yueul’s question, Kim Seulgi answered with an expressionless face, as if he hadn’t seen her smile so brightly just moments before.

“Foolish and appetizing-looking.”
“Oh no. That won’t do. That won’t work. It’ll cause problems.”

Yueul spoke as though troubled, yet his voice carried a playful undertone.
Ryujiho was a divine being. If they consumed him, there was no predicting what side effects might occur.
Unless someone lost their mind, no one in the Heavenly Realm would dare consume Ryujiho.
Moreover, Ryujiho was the one our master chose. No one would dare go against our master’s choice.

“Divine beings overflow with vital essence and life force.”

Yueul spoke, recalling his master’s words.

“Tell the others too. Our master will use him.”
“Ah, is that so? Then that won’t work.”

Kim Seulgi smacked her lips as though disappointed. Yueul observed her vacant expression for a fleeting moment.
My prediction had been wrong. There was already one whose eyes were beginning to roll back.
It seemed I would need to restrain hunting for a while. At this rate, she might lose all sense of propriety and rampage.
The one I told to rampage is broken and silent. The ones I told to be silent are rampaging instead.
Yueul clicked his tongue with a soft tsk.

“Refrain from hunting for a while.”

At those words, Kim Seulgi’s eyes turned toward Yueul. Her hollow gaze carried a sharp, distinctive glint.

“Why?”
“So you don’t get caught.”
“Why should I listen to you?”
“Then will you listen if it’s my command?”

An authoritative voice cut between them. Kim Seulgi hastily dropped to one knee and bowed her head.

“I greet you, Master.”

Gihyeongrang looked down at Kim Seulgi with cold eyes.
It seemed I had let her taste human flesh far too much. She could no longer distinguish between heaven and earth.

“As Yueul says, refrain from hunting for a while. We cannot know how they will attempt to expose you.”

Gihyeongrang seemed to be taking Yueul’s side, which displeased Kim Seulgi, but it was the Master’s command. She had no choice but to accept.

“…I shall obey your command.”
“Now go.”

Gihyeongrang waved his hand dismissively as though annoyed. Kim Seulgi’s form vanished shortly after.
Gihyeongrang then gazed for a moment at the place where Kim Seulgi had been looking.
Yerim had descended again as Ryujiho’s guardian. It was plainly evident that she was being used through knowledge of her relationship with him.
Still thinking she cannot be touched.
A foolish notion. Why couldn’t she be touched?
I could touch her instead and make her see only me.
And thus make her obey only me.

“I found one who might be useful enough, Master.”
“But he’s also a Jade Emperor. Will it be meaningful?”
“Wouldn’t it be entertaining to play with him for a while?”

At Yueul’s bold words, Gihyeongrang let out a chuckle.
Playing with the Jade Emperor, no less. His audacity alone deserved praise.

“Very well then. Go ahead and have yourself some real fun.”

Yueul bowed deeply, his face brightened considerably.

“I obey your command.”

* * *

The night had grown late, yet the Jade Emperor had not returned home.
Yerim seemed oddly pleased by this, but I felt somewhat worried.
Of course, given the Jade Emperor’s capabilities, there should be no cause for concern, but one can never be certain about the ways of the world.
I myself had never imagined that Cheonhaerang would collapse and fail to open his eyes.

‘I wonder if Cheonhaerang is doing well….’

Thinking of Cheonhaerang made my heart flutter. He still hadn’t opened his eyes.

“What’s this. You’re still waiting, little one?”

I, sitting on the living room sofa, lifted my head sharply at the voice piercing my ears.
The Jade Emperor stood there smiling. Only then did I feel relieved.

“Jade Emperor!”
“Oh, this is the first time you’ve welcomed me like this. It feels quite nice.”
“Nothing happened to you, did it?”
“Of course not. Who am I? I am the great Jade Emperor, equal to the heavens themselves.”
“Then I’ll head to bed now. Sleep well.”
“Huh? Uh….”

Hand Ogeong watched as I excused myself without hesitation, as though my business was done, and found it slightly puzzling.
Behind him as he tilted his head, Yerim appeared with a somewhat gloomy atmosphere.
In truth, Yerim had preferred to pretend to sleep and didn’t really want to greet him.

“Celestial maiden Yerim, I bow before the Jade Emperor.”

Hand Ogeong turned to look at Yerim. A celestial maiden he hadn’t seen in ages.

“Yeah, it’s been a while.”
“Then I shall take my leave now.”
“What? You all waited for me this whole time just to exchange greetings? How dull. But you—don’t go inside. Stand right there.”

Hand Ogeong trudged over to the sofa and sat down. Yerim barely managed to suppress the grimace forming on her face.
This was definitely work talk. The kind Jiho shouldn’t hear.
This was exactly why cohabiting with a superior was so inconvenient. Work came up at all hours.

‘I have to go to school tomorrow too…’

Yerim swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to say.
Though her time in Cheongyeokgyeong hadn’t been long, she had worked there. She knew Hand Ogeong’s temperament well.
Honestly, there weren’t many who could treat Hand Ogeong casually. Jiho was one of them.

“You’ve heard everything from the princess, I assume?”
“Yes, Jade Emperor.”
“So far, we’ve confirmed two from the Heavenly Realm.”

Hand Ogeong’s eyes turned crimson.

“The ones who approached Ryujiho as classmates are Eul and Gi. They go by the names Yueul and Kim Seulgi.”

She had met Kim Seulgi, but not yet Yueul. Yerim repeated the name Yueul silently in her mind as she spoke.

“I’ve met Kim Seulgi. Starting tomorrow, I’ve arranged to go to school with Jiho.”
“Good. Make sure you protect Jiho well.”
“Yes.”

Yerim now held a faint hope that Hand Ogeong would tell her to leave. But Hand Ogeong casually dashed her expectations.

“Can you become lovers with Gihyeongrang again?”
“…Pardon?”

What the hell kind of question was that? The words that immediately flooded Yerim’s mind were exactly that. If the person asking hadn’t been Hand Ogeong, she might have blurted out what the hell he was talking about.

“No, forget it. Pretend you didn’t hear that.”
“…?”
“Just go to your room.”
“…Yes.”

Was this bastard messing with me right now? Yerim mentally chewed Hand Ogeong to pieces as she headed into her room.
Hand Ogeong, entirely indifferent to whatever Yerim might be thinking, recalled Yeonhwa’s face from earlier—how it had hardened at her words.
She appeared to be lost in deep contemplation.
Things were unfolding differently than the plan she had anticipated.
Before Cheonhaerang awakened, they were to eliminate the Heavenly Realm and recover Seongyeonggyeong from Gihyeongrang.
That was what they had planned. They hadn’t anticipated that the Evil Spirit’s power would grow stronger than before.
Hand Ogeong rose from the sofa and walked toward the window. The city’s lights shimmered in countless colors below.
It was a different era than before. Yet the malevolent emotions were far greater than they had been then.
Perhaps even if Gihyeongrang hadn’t broken the seal, the Evil Spirit’s imprisonment was destined to shatter regardless.
Could evil truly disappear? Wasn’t it impossible as long as humans existed on this land?
Hand Ogeong couldn’t arrive at an answer easily.
Unlike the glimmering lights of the city, her heart was dark.

* * *

“Hello, sister!”
“Hey there.”

The next day, Jiho stared intently at Kim Seulgi’s cheerful greeting. To anyone unaware, she would appear nothing more than a diligent student.

“Huh? What is it, Jiho?”

Sensing her gaze, Kim Seulgi turned to look at Jiho. Jiho shook her head.

“It’s nothing, really.”
“Come on, that doesn’t seem right?”
“Just get on the bus.”
“That makes me even more suspicious?”

Kim Seulgi climbed into the car after Jiho with a playful remark.
Humans carried the scent of humanity. Especially those with evil in their hearts—they reeked of corruption.
Yet the car was not filled with the scent of humans. Instead, it carried a fresh, crystalline fragrance as though it had captured sunlight itself.
A scent that revealed what she was not.
I felt as though I’d encountered this scent long ago. But it hardly mattered now.
Kim Seulgi opened her mouth to chatter away.

“By the way, Sister, if you don’t mind me asking… is it okay to ask something like this?”

Her tone was rather familiar. Yerim nodded readily.

“Actually, I’ve been thinking a lot about my future lately. What kind of work do you do, Sister?”

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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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