episode_0124

A dark alleyway.

It was a path I’d taken to avoid the trio of orcs, dwarves, and elves.

“Oh, long time no see.”

“……”

As soon as I saw Cheong Yurang, I awkwardly greeted her.

-You’re starting with that kind of greeting from the very first meeting?

‘Well, what else was I supposed to say?’

It was a greeting I blurted out, unable to bear the awkwardness.

Though the Holy Sword had scolded me for it,

after a brief moment of hesitation, Cheong Yurang responded to me like this:

“It’s been a while.”

With a slightly softened expression, she returned my greeting. I stared at her.

Her beautiful silver hair, tinged with blue.

And her glossy tail.

They were different from before. The Cheong Yurang I remembered had the air of a well-groomed dog.

But now—

‘It’s rude to think this, but…’

The thought crossed my mind.

She had changed—like a dog abandoned by its owner.

Gloomy eyes.

Dark circles heavy beneath them.

A lost, unfocused gaze.

Messy hair and tail.

This wasn’t the confident Cheong Yurang of the past.

Now, she looked like nothing more than a timid child. Her eyes held the fear of being abandoned again—yet she didn’t show any hatred toward me.

‘……Somehow, it really feels like that’s the case.’

The reason I had left Cheong Yurang behind was, in a way, for her sake.

When I had stayed at her home, strange rumors began to spread.

So, I had no choice.

It wasn’t right to ruin an innocent maiden’s future, was it? More than anything, I owed her a debt.

So, I ran away.

But.

‘……Maybe I should’ve at least invited her to join the clan.’

No, if I had stayed, the rumors might have gotten even worse.

-……That’s not the issue here.

‘Then what is?’

-Now that I think about it, the way those rumors spread back then was suspiciously fast.

‘……?’

-Meaning, someone deliberately spread them to slander you—no, “slander” isn’t quite the right word. It was more like they were trying to make it an established fact. That’s why it spread so quickly.

‘An established fact?’

The only one I could think of who’d do that was the Beast King.

But would the Beast King really do such a thing? His own daughter’s reputation was at stake.

He always acted like a doting father, more than he let on…

-And yet, he’s still the head of his tribe. For the sake of the entire tribe, he might sacrifice his daughter… No, in fact, she might have wanted it too. As the Beast King, he wouldn’t have hesitated. Or rather, since he disliked you, he probably pushed for it even harder.

‘……’

What the hell?

I was momentarily stunned by the Holy Sword’s words—that all my actions might have been pointless.

……No, more importantly.

‘I need to calm Cheong Yurang down.’

I looked at her.

Silently, as if ready to accept any punishment.

She stared back at me with trembling eyes.

“……By any chance.”

Before I could even open my mouth,

Cheong Yurang struggled to speak, her voice unsteady as she looked at me.

“This humble one has been thinking all this time.”

Her blue eyes bore into me.

“I wondered if perhaps… you had come to hate me now.”

“That’s impossible.”

I answered hastily.

I might not know much, but there’s no way I could ever hate Cheong Yurang.

“Is that so? Then why did you… back then?”

“……Strange rumors were spreading. I didn’t want to cause you trouble.”

“Strange rumors?”

Cheong Yurang repeated, tilting her head.

Her eyes held a glimmer of hope as she watched me.

“Yeah, like how we were dating, or that I’d become your master, stuff like that……”

“Th… that kind of thing?”

Cheong Yurang’s expression twisted in shock.

Then, her ears drooped.

“You… hate me, don’t you? I’m sorry. To think you’d run away just from rumors about us being together……”

“No, that’s not it.”

Honestly, who could possibly hate Cheong Yurang?

Unless a man had some bizarre tastes, everyone would adore her.

“Then what is it?”

“I was worried it might ruin your future.”

“That much is fine. It’s not like those people will ever be part of our lives anyway. Rumors like that are easy to dispel.”

Cheong Yurang nodded firmly.

“Then… will you come back to our Beastmen’s kingdom with me?”

“Anytime.”

“I… see.”

Cheong Yurang’s ears perked up—twitch—and her tail began to wag.

Her demeanor brightened so obviously at my words that I was inwardly flustered.

-So easy to read.

‘Yeah.’

It reminded me of the dog I used to raise at home.

“You seem to be in a better mood?”

“Mhm, much better. To be honest, this humble one had given you everything, so being abandoned like that was… painful.”

“…….”

I had nothing to say.

Master recognition… was it? I recalled when we were in the labyrinth together, when she’d been kidnapped.

Cheong Yurang had acknowledged me as her master. And through some ritual, she had transformed into a wolf.

‘Wolves are part of the canine family, so maybe that’s why she acts like a dog.’

Thinking that way, Cheong Yurang seemed unbearably cute.

Without thinking, my hand reached out and patted her head.

Her fur was fluffy—strangely addictive. I wanted to keep touching it.

‘……Her tail too.’

They say humans are creatures of desire.

Standing makes you want to sit, sitting makes you want to lie down—that’s human nature.

Now that I was patting Cheong Yurang’s head, I wanted to hug her tail and sleep.

To be even more honest, I think I liked her dog form more than her current one.

‘……That’d be rude, wouldn’t it?’

-Obviously.

The Holy Sword lightly chastised me.

“……Fufu, do you like this humble one’s head? You can pat it more.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“I see… So you really don’t like me after all.”

At my refusal, Cheong Yurang’s expression darkened again.

Her slightly teary eyes looked up at me from below.

“…….”

She’s picked up some weird habits.

I sighed inwardly and looked at her.

“How could I ever hate you?”

“…….”

Cheong Yurang’s expression went blank at my words.

“Back then, I had no choice… but even then, I was thinking of you.”

“I… I see. So you were always thinking of me.”

“……? Well, yeah.”

Not always, but…

Still, Cheong Yurang occupied a pretty big place in my heart.

“……Fufu. Is that so? I see.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

I patted her head again.

“By the way, have you booked an inn yet? If not, would you like to stay with this humble one…?”

“I’m with my party.”

“I see. Then, could you tell me where your inn is?”

“I don’t know yet. My party said they’d handle it.”

Well, it’s Ermé—she’ll figure it out.

“……? Do you have some way to contact them?”

“No.”

Times like these made me miss having a phone.

Like right now.

“But how do you plan to find your party?”

“That’s easy.”

“……?”

Cheong Yurang looked confused for a moment before her expression cleared in realization.

“Can you also track by scent like this humble one? But in a city like this, it’s not easy to pick up scents.”

“Scent is hard in a place like this, but there are other traces left behind. I just follow my party’s trail.”

“……?”

Cheong Yurang looked even more bewildered.

Hmm, she doesn’t get it?

I thought she’d understand, given who she is.

-You’re the weird one here. Tracking traces in a city like this isn’t easy.

‘It’s nothing special.’

I headed back to where my party had first scattered.

Cheong Yurang trailed after me, curious.

“How are you tracking them?”

“First, scent. Then footprints.”

“Footprints?”

“Yeah.”

In this era, people made their own shoes, so they were easy to identify.

“See those footprints over there?”

“Yes.”

“And the pattern on the sole—see how it looks like rippling waves?”

-Right.

“It’s from a shoemaker our clan often uses. Other people might wear them too, but these are specially made to adapt to all terrains, so they’re easy to recognize. And then, the scent.”

“Scent?”

“There’s a faint perfume smell. Two of my party members wear plum-scented fragrance, and there’s a hint of lavender too, so I know they went this way.”

For reference, the two with the plum scent are Old Man Volkan and So Yeonhwa.

“From here, it’s easier to follow.”

“You figured all that out just by glancing?”

“……Yeah.”

Actually, my Gift just tells me.

To be even more honest, I simplified it to a level she could understand.

‘At the level of Extreme, it’s still within human limits, but…’

From Divine Realm onward, it’s different. I can even tell how they talked while walking to the inn.

This isn’t just tracking—

‘It’s more like rewinding time and replaying their movements.’

Still, as I explained, Cheong Yurang quietly followed.

Following the trail, we soon arrived at a rather extravagant inn.

“Is this the place?”

“Yeah.”

For some reason, Cheong Yurang’s face brightened, and her tail wagged happily.

“What a relief. It seems we’ll be staying at the same inn.”

“Same inn?”

Well, we’re escorting the Crown Prince, and she’s the Beast King’s daughter.

If they’re staying at the same place…

“My apologies, guests. This inn has been fully booked for the day by a single party…”

“……?”

I was sure my party was here—who could’ve rented the whole place?

“I’m sorry. The Imperial Princess has reserved the entire inn, so we have no choice…”

“…….”

We have the Crown Prince with us, and now an Imperial Princess?

I felt a strange sense of foreboding, like I was about to get dragged into something troublesome.

‘Guess we’ll have to find another inn nearby…’

Just as I turned to leave,

two figures came into view.

Both with golden eyes.

One was a woman.

The other was the Crown Prince, traveling with our party.

“As the Crown Prince, renting three rooms is beneath your dignity. Please consider the Empire’s reputation.”

“My, isn’t it less about dignity and more about lack of class? This is a well-known inn, yet you’re kicking people out on the same day?”

“I paid extra, so what’s the problem?”

“Hmm, then I’ll double whatever you paid. How about you scram instead?”

“Oh my, trying to buy me off with money? But my ancestors were great people. As their descendant, I can’t possibly sleep on the streets like some vagrant.”

“Sleep on the streets? You mean in that luxurious carriage pulled by eight Silver Wind horses?”

Wow, the Princess and the Crown Prince are fighting.

This is exactly the kind of trouble I wanted to avoid.

I pulled my hat low and handed Cheong Yurang a cloth to cover herself.

“Let’s sneak out.”

“A lovers’ elopement…? Th-this humble one will follow you anywhere…”

No, it’s not an elopement.

Besides, that’s not even your character.

“Serving my husband like an emperor is only natural. I’ve been practicing for it.”

No, we’re not even in that kind of relationship.