Looking for the Runaway Heavenly Maiden - Chapter 62

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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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62.

Simply watching Jiho eat like this was enough to make me feel satisfied.

“Me too.”

“I like you too.”

“I want to date you, Cheonhaerang.”

It still felt like a dream. Yet this time we spent together was no dream.

“Why would I break up with you! I’m not breaking up with you!”

When I saw Jiho shouting and rushing out like that, I felt an indescribable satisfaction.
That satisfaction soon twisted into a dark and sinister possessiveness—a desire to lock Jiho away somewhere and make her see only me.
But I suppressed it.

“I chose this, Cheonhaerang.”

“Because I like you. That’s why I chose to protect you.”

“So none of this is your fault.”

But hearing those words made it truly difficult to hold back. I wanted to lock her away right then and there.
In a safe cage where she’d face no threats, no danger, and could only look at me.
Yet I knew I couldn’t do that. Even if I did, Jiho would break through the cage and escape.
To protect me.
Jiho said it wasn’t her fault, but it was. I was weak and trusted Gihyeongrang, and the tragedy began.
I was still weak, still unable to kill Gihyeongrang. I had only just killed one of the Heavenly Realm.
I looked down at my palms. The sensation of piercing my own heart with the Sword of Spiritual Dao remained vivid.
The power I felt from the Sword of Spiritual Dao as well.
And the Heavenly Talismans aren’t even fully gathered yet.
When all the Heavenly Talismans are gathered and the Sword of Spiritual Dao reaches its full power, will I truly be able to wield it properly?

‘I have to, even if I can’t.’

Even if my body were to shatter.
Just as Ryujiho wished to protect Cheonhaerang, Cheonhaerang also wanted to protect Ryujiho.
Because I love you.
The surging emotions could no longer be contained. So I spoke. There was no need to hold back anymore.

“I love you, Jiho.”
“…What?”

Jiho, who had been dipping fried squid into the tteokbokki sauce, was flustered by the sudden confession.
It was a confession she had already heard, yet it was enough to make her heart skip a beat.

“N-no, what, what are you suddenly….”
“So yes.”
“What?”
“Feed me too.”

Cheonhaerang’s subsequent attitude only flustered Jiho further. Between his parted lips, she could see his even teeth. And his deep red tongue.
A flush crept across her face. Her cheeks turned crimson in an instant. It felt distinctly different from when Cheonhaerang had fed her tteokbokki.
Her heart pounded rapidly. With urgent hands, Jiho quickly popped the fried squid she had been about to eat into Cheonhaerang’s mouth.

“There?”

Cheonhaerang chewed the fried piece that had entered his mouth. The outside was crispy, the inside chewy.
He smiled brightly and answered.

“Yeah, it’s delicious. It tastes even better because you fed it to me. So you too, Jiho.”

Before she knew it, a fried shrimp was being held up to her lips.
At Cheonhaerang’s gesture to open her mouth, Jiho had no choice but to bite the shrimp.
As she chewed the crispy shrimp, even her ears had turned red. Cheonhaerang rested his chin on his hand and gazed at her with contentment.
Ah, truly. I wanted to lock Jiho away. But that wasn’t possible.
So Cheonhaerang decided to substitute this dark desire by taking care of Jiho instead.

* * *

Following Yueul, I arrived at a hotel suite on the top floor. I had anticipated this much. He wouldn’t have brought me to his headquarters from the start.
Yet this place felt unfamiliar and awkward to me. A strange sensation stirred within me. I wondered if there had been any need for a hotel room like this.
Standing before the door, Yerim took a deep breath to compose herself. That was when the door opened without her even pressing the bell.
Yerim flinched but quickly composed herself and stepped inside. Behind her, she heard the door close with a click.
Indeed. The suite was spacious, befitting its status. Beyond the window that occupied an entire wall stretched the cityscape.
The man stood before the window, dressed impeccably in a suit complete with a necktie. The buttons fastened all the way to his neck imparted an almost ascetic impression.
Whether he had another appointment or had been waiting for her, I couldn’t tell.
My eyes met his reflection in the window. My heart lurched, and I deliberately turned away from the sensation.
Feeling this way toward that man was hardly a good sign.
The man’s lips curved upward. Then he spoke in a languid tone.

“So you wanted to meet me.”

Gihyeongrang turned his body. Now Yerim faced him completely.

‘…Is he using some kind of charm technique?’

In that moment, such a frivolous thought arose precisely because Gihyeongrang’s appearance stirred a peculiar impulse within me.
Yerim struggled to calm her racing heart.
Whether this thundering heart was due to the task ahead or the lingering remnants of feelings that could never be fully erased, she could not know.

“It’s truly an honor for me. Shall we have a drink to celebrate?”

She had no intention of doing so, but if she refused here, she might lose the opportunity to approach him forever. Yerim nodded.
At her response, Gihyeongrang moved. Following him, a bottle of wine and two wine glasses appeared on the table.
Gihyeongrang filled the glasses. A deep crimson, like blood, filled the vessel.
Yerim understood. The moment she drank from this glass, there would be no turning back.
She would wander through the past she had tried to forget.
Yet her answer was already decided.
Gihyeongrang even pulled out the chair for her. Yerim sat down. The crimson wine filling the glass seemed to shimmer before her eyes.
A sweet fragrance tickled her nostrils. Yerim felt her mind growing dizzy.
Ching.
The glasses clinked together. Yerim looked up at Gihyeongrang.
Holding his glass, Gihyeongrang met her gaze and smiled wickedly before drinking the wine. Her eyes were momentarily captivated by the movement of his throat as he swallowed.
Gihyeongrang set down his empty glass. Yerim’s gaze remained fixed solely on him.

“So, what brings the noble celestial maiden to wish to meet someone as insignificant as me?”

Two pairs of eyes, deep and fathomless, met. Yerim slowly opened her mouth.

“I wanted to ask. Why do you keep coming to see me?”
“….”
“Why did you say I was lying when I told you I’d forgotten my first love?”
“….”
“Then I’ll ask you something too.”

Yerim reached out her hand. She tapped Gihyeongrang’s fingers lightly and took his glass. The remaining wine swirled gently inside.

“Gihyeongrang. Have you forgotten?”

He let out a laugh that was almost a sigh. Then he rose from his seat.
Standing before Yerim, he took her glass and brought the wine to his lips, taking a sip.
Both of them already sensed where this wine would go.
He grasped her chin. Watching her eyes tremble ever so slightly, he slowly lowered his head.
As the sweet fragrance deepened, Yerim closed her eyes.

* * *

When I left the snack shop, stars were already twinkling in the sky.
I walked hand in hand with Cheonhaerang toward the bus stop.
With everything that had happened during the day and my stomach now full, the tension seemed to drain away completely, and drowsiness began to creep in. It felt like I could fall asleep the moment I lay down on my bed.
Only the cool night breeze blowing past kept me from drifting off.
I turned my gaze and looked beyond the fence. Only the study room in the New Building had its lights on.
Judging by the fact that students were still doing their evening self-study, it wasn’t that late.
Besides, when we entered the snack shop, the sun was still setting.
Yet even though it wasn’t that late, why did I feel such an eerie sensation?
As a chill ran down my spine, I shuddered involuntarily.
In that moment, the grip of Cheonhaerang’s hand holding mine tightened.
Then he whispered into my ear.

“Duck.”

Following the pull of his hand, I lowered my body and held my breath.

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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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