Chapter 123: A Slightly Late Summer Vacation (3)

On the same day, in the second-floor bedroom of the lakeside apothecary.

「Regarding the Black Slime material commission you mentioned last time. Something came up, so I was hoping to bring it to you this Thursday, three days later than originally scheduled. Would that be alright?」

“Ah, shit….”

Choi Hwayoung wasn’t exactly thrilled to learn of the tragic news the moment she woke up from her nap.

She had calculated the Black Slime fluid to run out precisely this evening, expecting the new Black Slime materials to arrive tomorrow.

The message stating that the delivery of the materials she thought would arrive tomorrow was delayed was more than enough to ruin her mood.

In other words, she’d have to endure day by day without her Black Slime cigarettes for at least the next three days.

This meant she had to wait three days, complete with the agonizing withdrawal symptoms she’d experienced in the past.

Still, she thought that compared to the months she waited last time, just three days should be manageable, but that thought lasted only a moment.

“Haaah…. I already want to smoke so badly I could scream….”

Choi Hwayoung’s brief moment of positivity scattered like smoke from a freshly exhaled cigarette, lasting less than a minute.

Trying to smoke a regular cigarette would be pointless, tasting bad and only intensifying her withdrawal symptoms.

For now, silently enduring it was the only solution she had.

“Fuck…. I guess I should just work….”

Under normal circumstances, Choi Hwayoung voluntarily sitting down at her research desk to make potions was practically unheard of.

Her usual M.O. was to barely start working right before the deadline, only completing items around the time the company or the Union started calling to rush her.

Choi Hwayoung had her own reasonable excuses for procrastinating.

Unlike Awakened individuals who possessed typical Awakening abilities related to pharmacy or alchemy.

Choi Hwayoung was the type of person who made potions purely by preparing ingredients with her own knowledge and mixing them in the appropriate way.

With related Awakening abilities, potions could be made simply by preparing the ingredients, skipping steps like trimming, processing, or heat treatment.

Choi Hwayoung was a pharmacist who made them using the so-called ‘traditional’ method, without employing such shortcuts.

Using the vast pharmaceutical knowledge she learned from her mother over several decades.

For Choi Hwayoung, several decades wasn’t that long compared to a human lifespan, so learning itself wasn’t the issue.

However, having to go through the tedious preprocessing steps every time she made a new potion was a task that completely clashed with her personality.

That’s why Choi Hwayoung’s method was to put off work until the very last minute before finally starting, but…

This time, she had to start a bit earlier because of something she had said previously.

The story about paying with potions when she spoke with the C-rank Hunter Kim Sungchul.

If she didn’t have the potions ready for their transaction, the deal itself wouldn’t go through.

In the worst-case scenario, he might get upset and refuse to supply the Black Slime materials.

She couldn’t bear the thought of the resulting disappointment, let alone the prospect of another indefinite wait.

Despite her annoyance, she started preparing the ingredients brought from the medicine storage, putting them in jars and beginning to boil them.

“Should I just make a lot of stamina potions? Maybe that’s too simple and not good enough…. Or should I make energy or mana potions? I should’ve asked if he needed strength-based or magic-based ones; now I have to make both….

Or maybe just play it safe with something standard like burn treatments or monster repellent sprays…. Do I have any spare spray bottles? What about preparing them in pill form….”

For Kim Sungchul, or rather, for the Black Slime materials, she could certainly be diligent.

Little did she know that the Hunter named Kim Sungchul, who was supposed to supply the materials, wasn’t actually interested in her potions.

“…Ah, right, the reply.”

She opened her smartphone, went to the chat window from earlier, sent a single, appropriate syllable as a reply, and then returned to her work.

「ㅇ」

It was a concise reply.

The next morning, Gimpo Warp Gate Terminal.

I was waiting for her at a corner of the Gimpo Warp Gate Terminal, right on time and at the location specified in the KakaoTalk message Do Sihee had sent earlier.

It wasn’t long before she appeared in my sight – a woman with blonde hair braided like a crown.

“Sihee-ssi, over here.”

“Ah, Sungchul-ssi!”

She, dressed in a light-colored sleeveless top, flashed me a smile brighter than her clothes the moment she spotted me.

Appearing in gold-rimmed sunglasses and short denim shorts, she was the picture of a classic summer vacation outfit.

It was a bit amusing to think of a summer vacation when September was just a few days away.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t had a proper vacation myself this summer.

Actually, it wasn’t just this summer; I hadn’t had a real vacation in nearly five years.

In that sense, her offer to take me on a vacation wasn’t a bad proposition for me either.

“Sungchul-ssi~~~!”

The moment she saw me, Do Sihee abandoned her rolling suitcase and charged straight towards me like a puppy spotting a bone.

As I opened my arms towards her, it wasn’t long before the blonde lady’s aggressively endowed chest crashed into my upper body.

“I missed you so much, Sungchul-ssi!”

“I missed you a lot too.”

“Heh heh, heheh….”

Whether intentional or instinctual, the moment Do Sihee hugged me, she began rubbing her entire body against mine as if marking her territory.

The unusual stimulation after so long caused my cock to get a little hard.

“Heh heh, heuht, eut….”

“……”

She seemed to be rubbing a bit too much, though.

This wasn’t a private place; it was a Warp Gate terminal with quite a bit of foot traffic.

There was a non-zero chance someone might frown upon seeing this spectacle.

“Sihee-ssi, isn’t this a bit premature, even for you?”

“…Ah, s-sorry. I was just trying to replenish my scent of Sungchul-ssi…”

“Replenish?”

“Ah, it’s nothing!”

She awkwardly shook her head, hastily pulled away, and fanned her face with her hand.

Although her eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, I could vaguely sense her avoiding my gaze.

Well, I’m not saying I dislike passionate displays of affection outdoors. Sex included.

But I do hesitate a bit in public places like this.

It’s not that I dislike my body being seen; it’s that I dislike the possibility of Do Sihee’s beautiful body being exposed to others.

While a woman’s naked body might not hold as much value compared to a man’s in this world, beyond that, I simply don’t want anyone else to see my woman’s body.

If we were to do it outside, I’d much prefer a secluded spot inaccessible to others, like at night or in a secret location.

Like the tomb of the ancient tree where I always have sex with Cha Yuri.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kim Sungchul-nim.”

Just as Do Sihee and I were sharing our reunion hug, feeling a bit embarrassed after so long, someone suddenly called my name from outside my field of vision.

Startled, I turned my head towards the voice and found myself facing a maid dressed in black and white.

“Yes?”

“I am Eunbyul, Do Sihee-nim’s personal attendant. Furthermore, I will be attending Do Sihee-nim and Kim Sungchul-nim throughout this 3-day, 2-night vacation.”

The woman with short black hair, introducing herself as Eunbyul, met my gaze with golden eyes that seemed to hold inscrutable thoughts.

I glanced at Do Sihee, seeking an explanation.

“Actually, the place I intended to go with Sungchul-ssi today is a private beach owned by the Dokyung Group.”

“…A private beach?”

“Yes, a private beach.”

So that’s what she meant by dressing for a vacation.

Ah, but I don’t think she mentioned bringing swimwear.

“I forgot to bring a swimsuit because I didn’t know I needed one, what should I do?”

“That’s alright. The villa on the private beach has most things prepared, like change of clothes and swimsuits, and other necessities. Of course, all tailored to Sungchul-ssi’s build.”

“I see.”

Seemingly relieved, Do Sihee continued her explanation, but then adopted a cautious expression, as if the real issue lay elsewhere.

“Actually… you absolutely need an attendant to enter the Dokyung Group’s private beach.”

“Is that so?”

“But this time, my personal attendant Eunbyul volunteered to be that attendant, so I wanted to ask for Sungchul-ssi’s permission before we leave.”

“Mine?”

“That’s right, Kim Sungchul-nim.”

Thinking it over, I figured it wouldn’t matter if an attendant was necessary anyway.

The fact that the personal attendant she brought was a woman suddenly crossed my mind.

After all, the reason Do Sihee invited me to a private beach was quite obvious.

She must be asking if I’d be uncomfortable having another woman present besides her.

“If I refuse, does that mean we can’t enter the private beach you prepared, Sihee-ssi?”

“Ah, no. Just in case, I did arrange for a male attendant to be on standby so Sungchul-ssi wouldn’t feel uncomfortable.”

“…Then I’ll just ask Eunbyul-ssi to guide us.”

The thought of Do Sihee’s body being seen by another man besides me wasn’t even an option from the start, so my conclusion was only natural.

As soon as Eunbyul heard my answer, she grabbed the sides of her skirt and bowed her head.

“I look forward to serving you for the next 3 days and 2 nights, Kim Sungchul-nim.”

…This is my first time receiving a formal maid greeting from an active-duty maid.