Chapter 35: What is this feeling?

“Lu… Luna is… the prettiest… in the world…!!”

Victoria clenched her fists and sniffled.

“Alright, 10 times, done.”

“Eeeek!! You, you fight me again!”

—Smack!

“Your words seem a bit short, Mr. Loser?”

“Fight me again… please…”

“Excuse me, Sihyun. Could you please forgive my sister now? I’m begging you.”

“If Elissa says so… I suppose I have no choice. I’ll forgive you, Victoria.”

“Ugh… Thank you…”

‘Come to think of it, she’s kind of cute… Haha.’

Sihyun chuckled, resting the wooden sword on his shoulder.

“You rascal. Even so, why did you go all out against another guild master?”

“It wasn’t a formal spar, anyway. By the way, why did you tell me to come to the training ground?”

“Nothing special… just take this.”

Dojin handed Sihyun a small, folded note.

“Dojin, I appreciate the thought, but I like women.”

“Stop joking around. That note isn’t from me; my daughter asked me to give it to you.”

“Gaeun? She was dispatched to an overseas guild for a long-term assignment yesterday.”

“She must have written it before she left. Why she asked me to deliver something she could have given you in person, tsk.”

“Gaeun has never been able to say goodbye since she was little. In that regard, she’s still like a child.”

The note contained various nagging remarks, starting with a neatly written reminder to eat well.

And the last sentence written was:

[If there are other women at your place while I’m gone… you know what will happen, right?]

‘Anyway, Luna’s at home, so I can’t even bring other people, let alone women.’

Sihyun folded the note small again and put it in his pocket.

“I’ll let her know I received it later.”

“Okay. Make sure to read it and reply. Otherwise, I’ll be the only one getting grilled again.”

“I’m heading to the office now, would you like to come with me?”

“No, I have something to discuss with Victoria while I have the chance.”

“Then I’ll head in first. Elissa, see you later. And Victoria, you too.”

“Let’s talk again sometime, Sihyun.”

“Eek! Why do you only use informal speech with me…!”

****

—After Sihyun left.

Victoria was still stomping her feet, as if she hadn’t calmed down yet.

“It was a condition that we couldn’t use our abilities, but… for me to lose to a normal person… ugh…”

“Sister, come here. You’ll make the building collapse.”

—Embrace.

Elissa hugged Victoria and patted her back.

“…I told you not to treat me like a child… And Elissa, your chest is unnecessarily big, it’s even more annoying…”

As a typical beauty, Elissa had a chest the size of Victoria’s head.

“Oh my. You used to say you felt comfortable when I hugged you. If you keep this up, I won’t hug you next time, alright?”

“Tch… You’re so womanly. Why am I like this…?”

Victoria didn’t like her appearance.

Even though she was Elissa’s superior and older sister, everyone always treated her like a child.

“I told you last time… your appearance is due to a ‘special reason’. So don’t be too disheartened. And there are men who like that kind of appearance. They’re called ‘lolicons’.”

“I don’t want attention from perverts like that!”

As Victoria squirmed in her arms, Elissa hugged her even tighter.

“Now, now, calm down, sister. Didn’t you have something to tell Master Dojin?”

“Oh, right. Thanks for reminding me.”

“I don’t know yet… but it seems you’ve already found an answer, sister.”

“Of course. I’m the Master of Eden!”

Victoria, still in Elissa’s embrace, only turned her head towards Dojin.

Her blue eyes glowed with a strong light, like azure flames.

“Master Dojin, after compiling the data and videos you gave me about Phantom, as well as people’s testimonies, I’m certain: he has a specific condition that only allows him to appear at night. No, rather than a condition, it feels more like ‘compulsion’.”

“Compulsion, you say… indeed, he was always sighted at night. And I heard you discovered something else?”

“This is just a guess, but… the Countermeasure Headquarters or the Dawn’s Light Guild—it’s probably the guild. There’s someone directly connected to Phantom within it. No more than three people.”

Victoria Crawford.

She didn’t receive her knighthood through swordsmanship or strength.

It was her unparalleled insight (洞察力).

With this alone, she became the first female knight in Britain.

“That’s all for my opinion. I’ll have separate requests for the Dawn’s Light Guild regarding this later, so I’ll see you then, Master Dojin.”

“Understood. Then I’ll be taking my leave as well.”

Dojin left the two behind and exited the training ground.

“Then let’s go back too. I’m tired after sparring with that man, Sihyun, so carry me.”

“I understand, sister… but please… stop touching my chest… If you keep doing that while I’m carrying you… it’s difficult…”

“Tch, you were fine with hugging me just now. Elissa’s chest is quite big, but it’s soft to the touch, and that feels nice.”

—Squish—

“Sister, please…!”

“I wonder if men know? That Elissa’s chest is incredibly soft, and that she can make such a cute voice. Probably no one knows.”

‘If Sihyun knew that he once had his face pressed against my chest, there would be chaos… I really must keep that a secret…’

****

After safely finishing his day’s work, Sihyun bought Luna’s favorite salt bread and was heading home.

“Tsk. Is it because I held a sword after a long time? My fingertip is slightly scraped.”

He was slightly worried that Victoria might use her Master status to cause some disadvantage, but.

“Still, for a ‘knight’, she wouldn’t do something so cowardly. Next time I see her, I should just suggest we use informal speech with each other.”

—Click.

“Luna, I’m ho… huh??”

As soon as he opened the door, he saw the silver-haired girl curled up on the floor.

Luna had fallen asleep while waiting for Sihyun.

“Luna… you were waiting here again.”

Every time he told Luna to comfortably lie on the sofa or bed, the girl always waited for him here.

It was Luna’s own way of expressing that she wanted to be the first person Sihyun saw when he came home.

“With such a cute and beautiful Luna waiting for me, how could I even notice other women?”

Sihyun carefully picked up the gently breathing Luna so as not to wake her.

Her small, light body.

A strangely sweet scent.

‘I’m going crazy. How can she be so pretty and smell so good? The world is truly unfair.’

Then, he felt a small hand wrap around his neck.

“Si… hyun?”

“Luna, are you awake? I tried to carry you carefully, but did I shake you a bit?”

“No… a smell… was there…”

“I exercised a bit today. Do I smell like sweat?”

“A different smell… Sihyun, did you… meet another woman…?”

—Thump.

His heart began to pound rapidly.

‘I’m screwed. Was I with Elissa and Victoria for too long today?’

He hadn’t cheated, but he strangely felt like he had done something wrong.

‘Anyway, Luna shouldn’t accidentally use her powers again.’

But contrary to his worries, the girl didn’t use any power.

Instead, she just looked at him with slightly sad eyes.

“Sihyun… do you… dislike me…?”

“What are you talking about, Luna? Why would I dislike you?”

“Then why… another woman…”

It was a short sentence and slurred speech, but Sihyun understood Luna’s feelings within it.

Jealousy and anxiety.

Luna thought Sihyun had met another woman because he had grown to dislike her.

‘Hoo, I guess I deserve a beating today.’

—Smack.

Sihyun slapped his own cheek hard with his left hand.

‘I said Luna was precious and all, but I made her worry again. Get a grip, Sihyun!!’

“Sihyun, are you okay…?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. I just punished myself a bit.”

“……?”

“And Luna. I would never dislike you. If anything, I like you even more.”

“Really…?”

“Of course, really. Even if the world splits in two, I wouldn’t dislike Luna!”

“Rea… lly…?”

Luna kept asking repeatedly, even more so today.

She was still feeling anxious.

‘Hmm, no choice. I’ll have to use Sihyun’s special comforting method here!’

He grandly named it ‘Sihyun-style,’ but in reality, it was nothing special, just using a lot of exaggerated expressions.

“Luna.”

“……?”

“This is just a hypothetical, but even if you were to hurt me, and I died because of it, I wouldn’t hate you.”

“Ah…?”

For a fleeting moment, Luna imagined that scene.

Sihyun, spitting blood and dying, yet still smiling.

“Sihyun… dying…?”

Suddenly, Luna’s golden eyes began to tremble violently.

—Rumble.

Auras of destruction slowly began to rise around the girl.

“Sihyun… because of me…”

‘Oh, shit. Did I overdo it?!’

The words he said to comfort her were too extreme.

“Lunaaaa! I actually don’t die!”

Sihyun hugged Luna, who was surrounded by dark red aura, without a second of hesitation.

“I won’t die! Actually, I have a very special ability, so even if you kill me(?), I won’t die!”

“Sihyun… won’t die…?”

‘Well, I do have special abilities like the beginner’s package and notification windows. Whether I can’t die… I don’t know, but I’ll just say anything for now!’

“Of course! Even if something like that happens, I’ll just pop! back to life and return to your side, Luna. Because I’m under a spell that absolutely won’t let me die and leave you!”

“……”

—Swoosh—

The auras of destruction slowly subsided.

‘It’s true what they say, doing nothing often keeps you safe. I shouldn’t overdo it anymore.’

“Really… you’ll come back…?”

“Of course, of course. I would never lie to Luna.”

“……”

But the golden eyes looking at Sihyun still held an anxious tremor.

As if she was worried that such a thing might actually happen someday.

Sihyun held out his pinky finger to Luna.

“Here, I promise you this. That I’ll always return to your side, Luna.”

“Promise…?”

The girl just tilted her head, staring at the hand he extended.

Her expression showed she couldn’t understand what he was doing.

‘Ah, Luna doesn’t know what a pinky promise is.’

“Sihyun…?”

“Luna, if we hook our pinky fingers like this and promise to keep something, it’s a magic that ensures it will definitely come true.”

“Ma… gic?”

Sihyun felt like playing a prank on Luna, who was listening intently to his story with eyes that knew nothing.

“Hehehe… And if you don’t keep a promise made with this magic, you’ll pay a tremendous price.”

“Price…?”

“Like, getting hit by a meteor and dying… something like that, anyway.”

“……”

The girl found Sihyun, who continued his explanation so casually, fascinating.

A man who didn’t hesitate to make such an enormous magical vow with her.

A man who said he wouldn’t hate her even if she hurt him, or even if he died because of it.

Sihyun, who claimed he was under a spell that would never let him die and leave her.

All his words felt like the girl was confessing her own destiny.

‘Again… this spot again…’

Thump.

Luna felt that strange sensation in her chest again.

‘What is this feeling… does Sihyun know…?’

Something soft and fuzzy.

Incomprehensible, but not a bad feeling.

“Sihyun… for a promise… do we only hook fingers…?”

“That’s right. Well, they say people used to exchange blood in the past, but now there’s no need for—”

“Sihyun… your hand is bleeding…”

—Sting.

Blood flowing from Sihyun’s fingertip.

‘Looks like the scratch I got during sparring this morning opened up.’

“Haha, Luna, this is just from earlier—”

At that moment, Luna brought Sihyun’s bleeding finger to her crimson lips.

“Lu, Lu, Lu, Lu, Lu, Lu, Luna…?”

“Chup…”

The girl, with her half-closed golden eyes gleaming, licked Sihyun’s wound.

“Haaah…”

Like a child tasting a sweet candy, Luna moved her tongue awkwardly but steadily.

With his finger inside the girl’s warm mouth, it was impossible for Sihyun to properly grasp reality.

‘Luna, what the heck is thasdfjkl#&×a#&×>;#.’

While Sihyun was unable to think, Luna calmly put his finger down.

“Si… Sihyun, does this mean… the promise is done…?”

“Y-y-yes, I suppose so?”

“I see…”

The girl, seemingly satisfied, snuggled back into Sihyun’s arms and tried to sleep.

Thump.

Thump-thump.

“Haa… I’m going crazy. What’s wrong with me…?”

But unlike Luna, Sihyun simply couldn’t sleep.

Because the warmth left by the silver-haired girl still lingered on his hand.