Looking for the Runaway Heavenly Maiden - Chapter 6

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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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6.

“Why are you working so hard from day one, Jiho? At this rate, I’m going to lose first place.”

At his words, I lifted my head to look at Cheonhaerang. He was smiling brightly, his expression showing no hint of disappointment.
Watching him like that, I turned his words over in my mind.
Lose first place. That meant Cheonhaerang had been in first place all along.
First place and class representative too. He really did dedicate himself to school life.
So why was he staying at this school to such an extent?
To capture that man?
Was running away from home in the first place because of that man?
What exactly is that man?
Questions piled upon questions, but they soon cut off.
♩ ♪ ♬ ♪
Bang—! Pitter-patter!
The door opened and the children rushed out in an instant.
I watched the now-empty classroom with a bewildered expression, blinking my eyes.
The remaining students stood up leisurely and filtered out of the classroom in small groups. Not long after the bell rang, only he and I remained in the class.
The hallway was noisy, but the classroom was quiet. A few students in the hallway peeked at us through the window. Their gazes were curious.
Cheonhaerang met those glances over my shoulder with a cold stare. The students flinched and hurried past the hallway.
By the time all the students had gone to the cafeteria and the hallway had grown quiet, Cheonhaerang finally stood up from his seat.

“Shall we go eat now?”

Cheonhaerang naturally extended his hand, and I grasped it without thinking, my response equally natural.
His hand was large and warm. And soft. Like the hand I had held when I was young.
It was a hand that seemed never to have wielded a sword. Yet I had watched Cheonhaerang sever that man’s neck with a blade.
He was skilled with the sword.
There were four types of weapons one could learn in the Heavenly Realm. Originally there were three, but one was added to match the changing times, or so I’d heard.
The crescent blade, the sword, the gun, the bow. Among these, I wielded the gun.
Just as I had learned marksmanship, he must have learned the sword. Yet his hands were this delicate.

‘It must be because he’s using transformation magic.’

Lost in thought, I didn’t notice the stares directed at Cheonhaerang and me, nor did I register that I was holding his hand in such a crowded place.
Before long, we arrived at the Cafeteria.
The delicious aroma tickled my nose, and the children filling the Cafeteria came into view.
And I felt an odd gaze. The students’ furtive glances lingered on my hand.
I looked down at my own hand. Only then did I become aware of the surrounding stares.

“…!”

I startled and tried to pull my hand away. But Cheonhaerang’s grip was firm.

“Wait, this is…!”

I whispered to Cheonhaerang, reading the room around us.
Cheonhaerang watched my flustered state and hesitated for a moment.
He would have to let go eventually to receive his meal. But seeing my reaction, a mischievous impulse arose. He didn’t want to let go.
Yet he also didn’t want to be disliked by me.
In the end, Cheonhaerang chose to cleanly release my hand.

“Fine. Got it.”

His hand fell away as if he hadn’t been gripping it so tightly. Then, taking his tray, Cheonhaerang kindly placed it in my hands.
Receiving my meal in a daze, I looked at Cheonhaerang. He was smiling and greeting the cafeteria workers helping with the servings.
The favored Cheonhaerang’s tray was piling high with food.

* * *

“Jeonghyeon, today’s Wednesday with the good food. Aren’t you eating?”

Ms. Kang’s soft voice, the second-year Korean teacher, pierced Jeonghyeon’s ears.
Jeonghyeon looked up from the documents and met Ms. Kang’s eyes.
The eyes cannot hide emotion. I read the unmistakable affection in Ms. Kang’s gaze directed toward me.
I smiled and answered in a playful tone.

“I have plans this evening, so I’m trying to save room.”
“You must be eating something delicious.”
“Ha. A friend is treating me to a buffet.”
“My, how nice for you.”
“I’m planning to clean it out completely. Enjoy your meal, Yunju.”

After exchanging pleasantries, Ms. Kang left the Faculty Office.
The other teachers had already headed to the Cafeteria, so once Ms. Kang departed, silence settled over the Faculty Office.
Jeonghyeon lowered his gaze back to the documents—the student record of Ryujiho, who had transferred to his class today.
In the photograph, Ryujiho wore a school uniform and smiled in an oddly strained way.
He shifted his eyes to check Ryujiho’s home address.

Galaxy Apartment 201-1104, Haeyeon-dong, Seongdeok-gu.

Ryujiho lived there with his older sister—a sister with a significant age gap who had recently transferred from Jeongseon, Gangwon Province to Seoul.
According to the student record, the age difference between them was exactly twelve years.
Well, that much of a gap was necessary to make Ryujiho’s background seem plausible.
Jeonghyeon removed his eyes from the documents and leaned back deeply into his chair.

“An older sister, huh…”

He murmured softly, then let out a short laugh.
He found himself genuinely curious about what kind of sister had been sent.
Curious enough that he was drawn to home visits, which had become almost obsolete by now.

* * *

Delicious. Really delicious.
That was my first thought the moment I put a spoonful of shrimp fried rice—one of today’s menu items—into my mouth.
The moderately oily fried rice was perfectly balanced with vegetables, shrimp, and egg.
The udon served as soup, the kimchi, even the crispy fried dumplings—there wasn’t a single dish that disappointed.
So when Cheonhaerang offered me a dumpling from his tray, I accepted it eagerly.
Cheonhaerang looked at me with an expression that suggested he was full just from watching, but he wasn’t on my mind at all. Eating was far more important to me.
Since Cheonhaerang wasn’t eating and was just sitting there, it was only natural that the other students kept glancing over. And it was none other than Cheonhaerang himself.
Cheonhaerang was famous at Seonhwa High School. Wherever he went, he drew the attention of the students. Being the subject of their gossip was nothing particularly special to him.
But with such a famous figure clinging to the side of the transfer student Ryujiho, I too had become famous at Seonhwa High School from my very first day.
The students whispered quietly among themselves.

“I thought it was just a rumor, but they’re actually dating, aren’t they?”
“Right? So did she transfer here because Cheonhaerang goes to this school?”
“Wow. That’s some serious love right there.”

The students’ whispers reached Cheonhaerang’s ears as well, but satisfied as he was, he had no intention of correcting them.
Having finished my tray, I smiled with satisfaction at the clean plate before me. True to my nature, there was barely any food waste.

“Did it taste good?”
“Yeah.”

I nodded at Cheonhaerang’s affectionate question.
Then I noticed his tray was nearly untouched except for the dumplings.

“Why didn’t you eat much?”
“Me? Ah, well….”

If I told him the truth—that I’m full just looking at you—he’d give me that bewildered expression as if to say, “What nonsense are you spouting?” So Cheonhaerang’s mind raced quickly for an alternative.
He soon found an appropriate answer.

“My stomach’s been a bit off today. Would you eat mine too, Jiho?”

Though I was fairly full, having exerted myself since morning, it seemed I could use a bit more. It felt wasteful to let this precious food go to waste.
I nodded.

“Yeah. I’ll eat it.”

I pulled his tray in front of me and ate while asking him a question.
Though it wasn’t genuine concern, as a subject I needed to look after the princess’s wellbeing.

“Medicine? You don’t need to take it?”

Yes, this was why I’d brought it up—to hear such concern.
I finished my tray neatly, and while no trace of worry or anxiety could be found in my expression, I’d heard the concern regardless. Cheonhaerang was simply satisfied with that.

“So I’m planning to stop by the infirmary later.”

Hearing his answer, I hesitated for a moment.

‘Should I go too…?’

I slurped a strand of udon noodles and glanced at him sideways. His eyes held a note of expectation.
I couldn’t ignore that gaze, not with what lay ahead. My conscience pricked at me.

“…Should I go with you?”
“Really? That would be great. Thanks, Jiho.”

Cheonhaerang answered as if he’d been waiting for the question. I wondered what would have happened if I’d said I wasn’t going with him. I swallowed back a hollow laugh and slurped down the udon broth.

‘But then why did we even come to the cafeteria? Is this some kind of school tour?’

I was puzzled, but I soon refocused on my meal.

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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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