Ch.138Miho 9

“Siho…”

My sister, holding my hand, looks down at me.

Despite receiving healing, her expression was unusually serious.

At her anxious voice, I raised my head.

Her golden eyes seemed confused, unlike their usual calm.

They were trembling uncontrollably.

“You couldn’t be…”

Her lips quivered softly.

But she couldn’t bring herself to finish what she wanted to say.

While she hesitated, heavy footsteps approached from the distance.

Sensing her question wouldn’t lead anywhere good, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Then I quickly turned to see who was coming.

There stood hunters from the Association who managed the International Village, along with some Japanese people.

They must have reported the commotion.

“Are those the people?”

Three hunters in security uniforms pointed at us.

The Japanese people smirked and declared confidently:

“Yes, they ruined our performance, recklessly used their abilities, and injured everyone!”

What nonsense…

Your performance was a scam from the start.

Besides, the only one injured was Suda, who fought fairly!

I hurriedly approached the hunters to argue.

But I had to stop in my tracks.

The cunning Japanese were pretending to be injured, clutching their waists dramatically.

Even if they’re perfectly fine, if they insist they’re hurt, the Association will ultimately take their side.

Damn… things are getting complicated.

Moreover, our current appearance certainly made us look more like perpetrators than victims.

Suda lying sprawled, covered in ashes.

The blackened ground and burn marks everywhere, though the flames had subsided.

And us standing unscathed above it all.

We were at a disadvantage in every way.

“You two, you’ll need to come with us.”

The security team radioed headquarters.

They gradually approached us, ready to make an arrest.

My sister didn’t make any gesture in response to their attitude.

She seemed willing to surrender, even rolling up her sleeve to prepare for handcuffs.

“Unnie, what are you doing?”

“I’m turning myself in… This happened because of me after all. If I explain properly, they’ll understand.”

My sister Jisoo’s inherently good nature is problematic at times like this.

As if they would believe that!

Their shameless acting would only exaggerate the charges against us.

To prevent that, the best option was…

Frustrated by her compliant attitude, I grabbed her wrist.

Her previously serious eyes widened at my touch.

“What do you mean turn yourself in? Let’s run away quickly!”

I shouted with my mouth wide open.

My sister stared blankly at my exposed long canine teeth.

Soon she began running, pulled along by my rough grip.

“Th-they’re escaping, catch them quickly!”

The security officers all started running at once.

They were certainly skilled enough to be government employees.

Their running speed was significantly faster than other hunters.

However.

“Let’s go!”

After my fox transformation, my speed had become so fast that even Anna couldn’t keep up.

Leading my sister, I dashed into the ornate Japanese-style streets.

“W-wait, Siho… you’re too fast!”

“Someone who trained under Anna shouldn’t be this slow!”

Perhaps it was because I surrendered to speed.

Or maybe it was because of the full moon in the deep night.

My heart was racing.

Running through the night with someone I cared for made my whole body feel excited.

As if to prove my feelings, my fox ears stood straight up.

The symptoms I had considered a cursed disease were actually helpful at times like this.

An unknown cheerful Japanese melody filled the streets.

We nimbly weaved between tourists and locals, reveling in our speed.

“A small woman in a gumiho costume and a tall woman in hanbok.”

The security team shouted loudly as they chased us.

The closer their voices got, the harder my heart pounded.

As we pushed through the crowd into a back alley,

I noticed a mask troupe’s stall we had passed earlier.

Their stand had various animal masks hanging in a row.

To hide our faces, I secretly stole two masks.

Then I handed one to my sister.

She hurriedly put it on while running.

A wolf mask.

It was a subtle brown color, like my sister’s hair.

I also grabbed a fox mask with a prominent nose bridge.

Wearing it made me feel even more liberated from moral constraints.

Together, we transformed into animals, cutting through the humid back alleys.

Trampling over someone’s garden.

Pressing on air conditioner units to climb over walls.

As we crossed a wall, security officers lying in wait attacked us with batons.

I almost got caught by the hem of my hanbok in their quick hands.

“Found them! Call for backup quickly!”

But with my newfound agility, I jumped high with my sister.

Using an officer’s shoulder as a stepping stone, we leaped even higher.

The hunters’ jaws dropped at our inhuman movements.

They could only watch helplessly as we disappeared into the distance.

This was fun.

I felt exhilarated, like when I escaped from Congressman Park’s laboratory.

But unlike then, it wasn’t scary or chilling.

Traditional music played in rhythm with our footsteps.

I was holding hands with the first love I had longed for.

It felt like we were eloping from the world.

“Haah…”

How long had we been running?

The Japanese traditional music and the footsteps of security had grown faint.

We finally had the leisure to look back.

The Japanese village now looked tiny, like a dwarf village in the distance.

We had made it all the way to the stone bridge connecting the two folk villages.

“Siho… you’re too fast…”

In that brief moment,

My sister clutched her chest painfully and breathed heavily.

Her white jeogori was now soaked with sweat.

It revealed her beautiful body line.

I stared blankly at those curves.

“Are you okay?”

Even after our rough escape, she worried about me first.

I answered her warm gaze with a smile.

“Yes, my stamina is really good these days.”

“That’s a relief.”

Soon my sister smiled too.

She took off her mask and pushed it up to her forehead like goggles.

This revealed her pure face, beaded with sweat.

She had such a noble aura, as if she knew nothing of love or romance.

Perhaps it was because I saw her damp face,

But my animal instincts seemed to grow stronger.

I swallowed the saliva pooling in my mouth.

Then I shook my head vigorously.

Get a grip.

This is because of the disease.

Even though I liked my sister, not like this…

I secured the fox mask more firmly on my face.

Jisoo surely likes men.

Not a frail body like mine, but a strong man who can protect her.

“Should we rest a bit? The Japanese village is far behind us now.”

“Let’s do that. I’m tired from running so long.”

We stood on the stone bridge, slowly catching our breath.

The bridge was very quiet.

Only the soft sound of crickets filled the silence.

“This is too awkward…”

Thankfully I was wearing the fox mask.

At least my embarrassed face wasn’t visible.

I shoved both hands into my hanbok pockets, deliberately avoiding her gaze.

Suddenly, my fingers touched a warm phone.

To break the awkwardness, I took out my phone.

I forced myself to check if there were any messages.

“I had some calls…”

“From whom?”

“Jeoksa.”

She had called me four times.

She’s probably angry that I disappeared without saying anything.

“Aren’t you going to call her back?”

“No, it should be fine.”

Actually, thinking about her angry face made me uneasy.

But if I tell her I was with my sister, it should be okay…

She’ll forgive me since I was with a guardian.

I cleared my throat and stuffed the phone back into my pocket.

I took a deep breath.

Then I stared up at the night sky.

My sister followed my gaze, looking at the dark sky.

We had much to say to each other, but had to be content with just looking at the same sky.

But…

Until when?

It had been almost two months since I reunited with my sister.

Whenever she questioned my suspicious behavior, I always evaded.

And I kept hiding my feelings for her.

Would I hide them forever until the end?

“…”

I asked myself.

But my foolish heart couldn’t readily answer that question.

As if to fill our emptiness, the sky over the Japanese village began to brighten.

Soon, the sharp sound of rockets came from the horizon.

We both listened intently to that sound.

“Unnie, can you hear that?”

“Yes.”

Fireworks.

The festival’s highlight, the fireworks display, had begun from the Japanese village.

“It’s beautiful…”

“Yeah, like a scene from a movie.”

Brilliant fireworks of various colors bloomed, filling the lonely night sky.

Just like… how my sister bloomed in my world that had been desolate since the possession.

We stared blankly at that beautiful sight.

Thanks to it, the awkward atmosphere could dissolve.

My sister gazed down at me intently.

I also looked up at her.

The fireworks reflected in my sister’s golden eyes.

Empowered by that radiance, she finally spoke.

And like a launched firework, she said to me:

“Siho, can I finish what I was about to say earlier?”

I couldn’t answer her question.

As I failed to find courage, she drew closer.

“Actually, I know about Dohyun’s younger sister.”

My heart sank at the mention of “younger sister.”

Could it be… did she know everything all along?

“That child… died a long time ago. She didn’t even have healing abilities.”

There was no way out of this situation.

She was staring at me with eyes full of certainty.

“You… could you be Dohyun?”

Beautiful fireworks bloomed in the sky.

My eyes, visible through the mask, trembled intensely.

Using the loud noise as cover, I approached her.

A subtle floral scent emanated from her.

Intoxicated by that fragrance, I whispered:

“I’m sorry, unnie.”

I lifted the fox mask slightly.

And… gently pressed my lips against Jisoo’s.

I silenced her question with my lips.

The moment our lips met, her golden eyes trembled softly.

Only the sound of exploding fireworks filled the bridge.

Soon our lips parted.

“I’ll probably never be able to answer that question.”

I lifted the mask I was wearing slightly.

Then firmly lowered it again.

Thanks to it, I could speak to her shamelessly.

“This was an apology kiss.”

I tucked a strand of her disheveled hair behind her ear.

“It’s okay because we’re both women, right? A friendship kiss…”

With those words, I turned my head abruptly.

Then I ran with all my might toward the dark folk village.

I didn’t look back once as I ran.

I was too embarrassed that my sister had discovered my identity.

All the unmanly behavior I had shown.

A appearance with not a trace of Dohyun left.

Surely my sister would no longer see me as Dohyun.

She might have been shocked by how much I had changed.

Thinking this, tears fell beneath my mask with each step.

I threw away the stifling mask and just ran.

With each stride, the familiar mark around my neck grew hotter.

It tormented me as I resisted my instincts and practiced restraint.

But I resisted, biting my lips tightly.

I ran with all my might, only to get away from my sister.

“—.”

My sister just watched as I disappeared into the distance.

She murmured to herself.

“Dohyun…”

My sister stared into the darkness like a noble lady encountering a mysterious being.

Then, as if her legs gave out, she collapsed onto the bridge.

Even when facing an A-rank hunter.

Even when confronting a ranker like 08, she had stood firm.