Chapter 74: Quest) please appease the princess!

[Princess of Seleneum, your farewell with Luna is imminent.]

Sihyun already knew.

That he inevitably had to part with Luna.

However, there’s an enormous difference between knowing something intellectually and accepting it emotionally.

‘To be or not to be, that is the question… what a load of crap. Screw it all! I’d rather choose death. Am I supposed to tell the beautiful and adorable Luna that we have to break up less than an hour after getting married?’

I won’t do it.

No, I absolutely can’t!

–Rubbing.

“Hehe… Sihyun, I love you…”

Her golden eyes were slightly teary. How could he possibly tell Luna, who was smiling brighter than the moon in the sky and rubbing her face against his chest, such a thing?

‘Ah, these damn laws of the world… I’ve never hated you this much, truly.’

[Once a Twisted Story ends, they must return to their own world.]

The biggest reason why urban legends could exist in reality was because they themselves were beings outside the laws.

Since that distortion had been normalized, it was natural for them to return to their original worlds and live happily.

But.

‘When I read about it, I didn’t think anything of it… but now it feels no different from forcibly returning a wild animal that’s grown attached to humans back to the wild.’

Sihyun was slowly starting to feel like challenging the author of Najakso to a WWE match.

–Kiss, kiss.

“Chup… Sihyun, am I good at kissing now?”

“Hmm~ I’m not sure? Want to try again?”

“Khih… Sihyun is a pervert…! Mwah!”

Whether she knew of Sihyun’s turbulent feelings or not,

“Hah-eup…! Ah, it’s still hard to breathe while kissing… Heh.”

The silver-haired princess continuously rubbed her face against him, kissing his cheek and lips.

Every time Sihyun faced Luna’s pure heart, he wanted to let the girl go even less.

‘Seriously, even if I had ten mouths, I’d be speechless.’

Sihyun absolutely couldn’t bring himself to tell Luna about their separation.

Of course, he also knew that parting with Luna didn’t mean it was the end.

‘The Notification Window confirmed that. It said that if I solve more urban legend stories in the future, we can definitely meet again later.’

It was his destiny to continue ending bizarre and horrific urban legend stories and level up.

It was an exceedingly clear and definite goal, but urban legends were still a troublesome existence for Sihyun.

‘You can’t know this unless you actually experience it. How horrific and cruel urban legends truly are.’

Thanks to the beginner’s package ability, calamities below disaster-grade could be ‘click-solved,’ but disaster-grade and above were impossible.

Until now, he had managed to solve them with a bit of luck, but in the most crucial ‘Story of Ruin,’ he had truly almost died.

He had unique abilities and felt somewhat chosen, but Sihyun was, after all, an ordinary person. It would be a lie to say he felt nothing.

However.

“For Luna… I can do even more.”

“Huh? Sihyun, what is it, what?”

–Mwah.

Upon seeing Luna approach, her eyes sparkling, Sihyun instinctively kissed the girl.

Luna’s cheeks flushed red from the sudden kiss, and she looked shy.

“Hunyaaa…?”

“Haha, it’s nothing. I just said I love you very much too, Luna.”

“Howooo… I like an assertive Sihyun, but it’s so embarrassing…! Hehe… I love you very much too, Sihyun!”

If only he could see the princess smiling brightly like moonlight again… Sihyun could overcome any urban legend, any hell.

Just as he had saved Luna by enduring pain that no human could ever withstand, amidst a storm of emotions.

Even if he were to suffer countless times and collapse in the stories to come, he would never give up.

For the beautiful princess with silver hair and golden eyes.

‘And besides, abandoning a heroine is simply not in my vocabulary! I’ve suffered so much from authors who abandon and give away heroines like it’s nothing while reading web novels—’

–Poke, poke.

Just as Sihyun was about to get lost in his thoughts, Luna poked his cheek, her golden eyes sparkling, as if telling him not to forget her.

“My husband, what thoughts are you having, leaving me aside? Hehet.”

Luna simply smiled brightly, saying she needed her beloved man’s attention.

‘I really… almost neglected Luna, who’s right beside me, by worrying too much about our separation.’

Sihyun decided to put aside his worries about parting for a moment and focus on Luna.

–Pat.

His gentle touch stroked Luna’s hair and cheek, as if caressing a small, precious cat.

For a while, the two sat silently in the grassy area, sharing each other’s warmth.

Now that the festive sounds of the celebration and the lingering afterimages of fireworks had all passed.

Only the sound of the wind and the gentle chirping of insects enveloped the space.

“Luna, it’s getting late, so should we head back to the accommodation? I’ll pat you to sleep again tonight.”

“Yes! Today, tomorrow… and always, you’ll do that for me, right…?”

Luna’s voice sounded somewhat tearful.

–Hug.

Sihyun hugged her tightly and replied gently.

“…If my princess commands it, I shall do so until the end of the world.”

“Yes…! It’s a promise…!”

Luna’s voice, speaking in a faint whisper, carried a lingering, somewhat slow resonance.

–Flash!

“Kyaaah…?!”

“Then, Princess, I shall escort you safely to the accommodation!”

Sihyun stood up, holding Luna, who had been on top of him, still in his arms.

“Uh, Sihyun? I can walk by myself…”

“The way back is through the grass. You might step on a rock, Luna. You shouldn’t get hurt, so just stay in my arms quietly. Haha.”

“Really… such a fool who only cares about me…”

Luna let out a small sigh in Sihyun’s embrace and wrapped her arms around his neck.

The starlight of the night sky slowly illuminated the silver ring on her ring finger.

–Sparkle.

At first glance, it was a beautifully shining ring, but for some reason, its sparkle looked a little lonely.

As if it were a fragment of the moon, fallen alone beneath the sky.

****

–Rustle.

“Sihyun… do you love me…?”

“Of course. I love you very much, Luna.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really, really.”

“Really, really…?”

“Really, really, really~! Hahahaha!”

Sihyun was walking back to the accommodation, carrying Luna in his arms through the grassy area.

Luna spent the time asking if he loved her every time Sihyun took a step.

As if she needed constant reassurance.

“Hehe… why do tears come when I hear you say you love me…? It’s so strange…!”

–Sniffle.

Tears flowed from Luna’s moonlight-like eyes.

Every time he saw the girl’s tears, a mix of sadness and joy, Sihyun’s heart felt increasingly tight.

How long did they walk, asking and answering about love?

“Sihyun, wait a moment.”

“Huh?”

Luna carefully reached out her hand to the half-mask Sihyun was wearing. Her hand was slightly trembling for some reason.

Unlike her smiling lips, suppressed emotions floated at the center of that smile.

“Do you remember…? Sihyun was wearing this kind of half-mask at the masked ball held in Seleneum.”

“That’s right. Because a certain princess insisted I absolutely had to cover my eyes.”

“Khih… I was worried other ladies might fall for Sihyun if they saw him.”

–Slide.

The girl gently put on the half-mask, then got down from Sihyun’s embrace and took a few steps forward.

Her steps were light, as if she were at a ball, but within them hid a sad and quiet tremor.

Just like someone preparing for a farewell.

“Somehow, walking through this grassy area… reminds me of that day, when I secretly left the ball and was walking in the Moon Garden, and I met Sihyun…”

“……”

Luna put her hands slightly behind her back and extended one foot forward, adopting an expectant posture.

‘Sihyun… might have forgotten such a trivial day… what am I hoping for?’

Just as Luna was about to turn around and say it was nothing.

“Princess, where are you going in such a hurry?”

“……!!”

The exact same words from that day in the past were heard from behind her.

“Y-You… why are you here instead of enjoying the ball…?”

“To see the princess more beautiful than moonlight.”

“Y-You could have approached me at the ball…?”

“I thought it would be better if we met alone.”

–Stomp.

Sihyun, his deep black eyes shining, slowly approached Luna.

‘Ah, no…! If I’m held in Sihyun’s arms again… I, I’ll…!’

Luna raised a hand to Sihyun, who was approaching her, signaling him not to come.

“No…! D-Don’t come closer…!”

“Luna…?”

“Sihyun… you shouldn’t come… don’t come…!”

“……”

Luna suddenly and vehemently refused his approach.

Why had the girl’s attitude, who had been whispering words of love in his arms just moments ago, suddenly changed?

‘Haaah…! I-I can’t cry… I have to pretend it’s nothing… I have to deceive Sihyun…!!’

Luna slowly retreated from Sihyun, bit by bit, and opened her mouth.

“Sihyun, actually, royalty cannot marry a Savior. Just as priestesses cannot interfere in politics, a Savior, blessed by the gods… cannot be united with the royal family.”

“……”

“It’s a secret only known to the royal family, so Sihyun probably didn’t know. I’m sorry for deceiving you until now. I, I only used Sihyun because I wanted to get rid of my greed…!! It, it was all a lie!”

“……”

“I’ll tell you honestly now. Don’t forgive me for using Sihyun…! I’ll leave far away to a place where Sihyun isn’t, so Sihyun, you too, be happy without me, without me… be, be happy…!!”

“……”

Such a clumsy lie.

The girl was haphazardly spouting lies that no one, unless a fool, would fall for.

But Luna had to force herself to hurt Sihyun, to make him unable to approach her.

[Having completed the Story of Ruin, you must leave Sihyun’s side.]

The strange message that had appeared before Luna’s eyes for several days.

At first, she denied it, calling it a hallucination, but in truth, the girl knew to some extent.

That she was able to be here because she was an urban legend. And now that that distortion was gone, she had to return to her original world.

‘Sihyun wouldn’t know anything… if he knew that fate was forcibly intervening and we were parting ways, Sihyun would surely…’

Sihyun, who loved her so much, would clearly waste away from longing for her until he died.

So Luna hoped he would forget her, choosing instead to say hurtful things.

Then he would be able to live again.

–Throb!

‘Haaah…! I-It hurts… my, my chest hurts so much…’

The girl placed both hands on her chest and sobbed inwardly.

This was enough.

If only she hurt, Sihyun could live again.

‘Perhaps he’s already… trembling with betrayal and gone…’

But when Luna turned her head to check behind her.

“Your lies are still clumsy, Princess.”

“…W-Why…?”

Far from leaving, Sihyun was merely waiting right behind her for the girl to turn around.

“Luna, did you think I’d fall for that?”

“……!!”

“I told you many times. No matter how much you hurt me, I won’t leave.”

“H-How—”

“If a man doesn’t know when the woman he loves is crying, then that’s a true fool.”

Slide.

Sihyun gently lifted the white half-mask Luna was wearing with his hand.

Beneath the mask, the girl’s hidden eyes were red and wet.

Her resolve not to cry peeled away with the mask, and the emotions she wanted to hide burst forth in the form of tears.

–Trickle.

“Haaah…! I-I was barely… trying to hold it in…!”

Luna’s tears, previously hidden by the mask, began to stream down endlessly.

“It’s okay to cry, Princess.”

****

‘Well, I guess all that worrying about how to tell her we had to part was useless.’

Sihyun stroked Luna, who was sobbing miserably in his arms, and organized his thoughts.

Honestly, he had agonized over it for days, enough to give him a headache, but he truly hadn’t expected the word ‘farewell’ to come from Luna’s mouth first.

‘But this isn’t the time to be happy that things lined up perfectly.’

Now is what matters.

I need to use my dazzling eloquence (disguised as trickery) and brilliant mind to soothe and comfort Luna!

‘This is a hundred, a thousand times easier than telling her to break up.’

Just then, Luna, who had been crying for a long time in his arms, peeked her head out and stared intently at Sihyun.

“Hic…! I don’t want to part…! I don’t care about fate or missions…! I don’t need anything but Sihyun…! Why is the world trying to take Sihyun away from me?”

“Luna…”

“I’m scared Sihyun’s love will fade over time… I’m afraid it will end when we’re apart…! There’s no eternal sadness or love in this world, is there? If we part like this, surely… surely…! Hngh…!”

“Luna, there’s no eternal sadness or love, but there’s one thing that is eternal.”

“Hoo, sniffle…! W-What is it…?”

“That is—”

Sihyun closed his eyes for a moment, took a deep breath, and then said softly.

“Sad love.”

“Sad… love…?”

“Luna, as you said, there’s no eternal sadness, nor eternal love. But when the two come together, they can become eternal. Just like us… the sad love between a guard and a moonlight princess will never fade, no matter how much time passes. Until the day we meet again. No matter what hardship tries to separate the two.”

“……!!!”

Upon hearing Sihyun’s words, the girl’s eyes widened in surprise, still tear-filled.

‘Haha, it’s still too early to be surprised, isn’t it? Get ready, Luna, because I’m about to seriously comfort you!’

Sihyun wiped away the tears flowing from Luna’s golden eyes and officially began his ‘Operation: Comfort the Princess.’