Chapter 29

Chapter 29

I Installed a Dating App and Girls from Another World Became Obsessed with Me.

Episode 29: Martial Arts (6)

The sun was high in the sky, mid-afternoon.

After roughly finishing lunch, we continued walking towards Xi’an.

Pushing through the overgrown bushes where no one had ever walked before, we looked like pioneers.

Which meant we were suffering a lot.

“Can I ask you something?”

“No.”

“Isn’t there another way besides this forest path? It would be easier to walk if there were at least traces of other people.”

My clothes weren’t torn and I wasn’t injured, but I kept getting poked by something and stepping on something unknown, making me feel like I was deliberately making myself suffer.

“Do you remember what I said yesterday?”

“?”

“…I suspected you were an assassin. Of course, I don’t suspect you now, but if you’re not an assassin, then assassins hired by the First Young Master are still looking for me somewhere. Walking on a path where people go would risk being discovered by them.”

“Ah.”

It didn’t seem likely that assassins would come with daggers in broad daylight, but considering this world without CCTVs, it was possible.

To put it bluntly, if someone killed a person and threw the body to wild animals, who would know who the culprit was?

“…You.”

Cheon Yeo-hwa pulled on my sleeve.

“I can’t explain the details, but if you stay with me, you’ll be in danger too. I can tell you the direction to Xi’an, so why don’t we part ways here?”

Her voice and the hand holding my sleeve were trembling slightly.

“Although our meeting was based on a misunderstanding, you’ve done me many favors in a short time. I don’t want you to…”

“Sorry, but that won’t work.”

I grabbed Cheon Yeo-hwa’s wrist.

If we were going our separate ways, we would have done so already. I had no intention of backing down now.

In fact, I was worried about getting alopecia trying to figure out a reason to stay with her after arriving in Xi’an.

“I have a terrible sense of direction, so even if you tell me the way, I’ll get lost and fall off a cliff.”

She even gave me a reason to stay, so I would be dumber than a dolphin if I didn’t take it.

I was going to get my settlement reward.

“…Thank you.”

Cheon Yeo-hwa felt grateful for his frank answer, but also felt a pang of guilt.

It was an emotion that Cheon Yeo-hwa from the Moon Spirit Witch era had never felt.

He had already done so much for her.

But she hadn’t repaid him at all, and now she couldn’t even refuse his offer to accompany her on this dangerous journey.

She hated her weak choice, but looking at his broad back as he walked ahead made her feel something strange.

Since meeting him, she had been learning one new emotion after another.

After walking and resting for a long time, the sun was setting.

If we didn’t want to find a campsite in the middle of the night, we had to move quickly.

Fortunately, we found a suitable clearing nearby and set up the tent and fire pit like yesterday.

While we were hurriedly preparing dinner, the sun set completely and the dark night fell.

If we had been any later, we would have had to set up the fire pit and tent in a place without any light, which would have been a real hassle.

Of course, we could have used a light, but I didn’t want to use mana when I was tired from walking all day.

“What’s this…?”

“A hamburger. If it’s hard to eat, press it down and eat it.”

Some people would call it heresy to eat like this, but we couldn’t eat a hamburger with a knife, could we?

Or eat it with our jaw dislocated.

“I’ve never had food like this before. Where did you come from that you keep bringing out such dishes…?”

“Curious?”

There was no answer.

Cheon Yeo-hwa probably felt it wasn’t right to ask about my identity when she was hiding so much from me.

“If you really want to know, how about we each ask and answer one question? I’ll even give you the first chance to ask.”

To be honest, I wasn’t that curious about Cheon Yeo-hwa.

I roughly knew her name, age, background, and current situation.

This wasn’t so much an exchange of information as it was a way to get closer to Cheon Yeo-hwa.

Of course, I wasn’t hoping to become lovers like Iris with just one truth game. That would be too greedy.

But if we got closer, there might be a chance.

At first, I was more interested in the settlement reward, but now I was interested in Cheon Yeo-hwa as a person.

Not to mention her looks, but…

‘…But she’s so overwhelmingly beautiful that I don’t think I need another reason.’

Her personality seemed a bit eccentric at first, but she had a cute side too.

Like how she ate a hamburger like a squirrel.

She looked like a girl crush third-generation chaebol who would shop in Cheongdam-dong or Gangnam.

“Name.”

“Huh?”

“We haven’t even introduced ourselves yet.”

Come to think of it, only I knew Cheon Yeo-hwa’s name, but she didn’t know mine even after 16 hours.

It was strange that we had been together for 16 hours without knowing each other’s names and it hadn’t been awkward.

“Kang Hyeon-u.”

Hyeon for appear, u for help.

I don’t know what it means. My parents didn’t tell me what kind of person they wanted me to be before they left.

“Kang Hyeon-u…”

Cheon Yeo-hwa quietly repeated my name, as if savoring it.

Her reaction made me feel a bit awkward.

The only people who had called my name like that were the orphanage director, Iris, and Cheon Yeo-hwa.

“Then it’s my turn.”

I decided to visit the orphanage again after this matching ended.

“What’s your name?”

“…Cheon Yeo-hwa.”

“Nice name.”

A day had passed since we met, and before the second day began.

We finally knew each other’s names.

“It’s your turn now, don’t you have any more questions?”

“No, it’s fine.”

Dinner was over, and my question was answered, but Cheon Yeo-hwa didn’t seem to have any more questions.

“You… no, Hyeon-u, if you have any questions, you can ask.”

“…?”

I was a little surprised that she suddenly called me by my name, but I was more surprised by the 180-degree change in her atmosphere.

Why did her personality seem to be getting milder?

“Okay then.”

I had a question ready.

Who was the First Young Master she mentioned, why was she being threatened with assassination, and where did she come from?

The reason I asked even though I already knew was simple.

To become closer by sharing secrets.

But my question had to end before it even began.

Thump-

“Huh?”

Cheon Yeo-hwa, who was warming herself by the fire, suddenly collapsed.

“Cheon Yeo-hwa!”

I jumped up and ran towards Cheon Yeo-hwa.

“Haa, haa, haa…”

Cheon Yeo-hwa was clutching her chest, looking very distressed.

Her pale complexion and the cold sweat pouring down her face looked very serious.

‘What’s wrong? Is she sick? But she was fine just a moment ago?’

Anyway, I couldn’t leave her like this.

I immediately picked up Cheon Yeo-hwa and ran to the tent, gently laying her down.

“Cheon Yeo-hwa! Wake up!”

“Ugh, ugh…”

Was she so bad that she couldn’t even answer?

“What should I do in this situation…”

Should I carry Cheon Yeo-hwa to Xi’an right away?

But I didn’t know the way to Xi’an.

Even if I did, Cheon Yeo-hwa might die before we got there.

But leaving her like this was also a problem.

I didn’t know if she could recover on her own just by resting. I wasn’t a doctor.

“Is there any way… ah!”

At that moment, a method flashed through my mind.

“Weakness Detection.”

Weakness Detection was a skill that showed the target’s weaknesses.

For humans and humanoid monsters, the head and heart usually glow the brightest.

But just because they glow the brightest doesn’t mean humans only had two weak points. In fact, any place where a large blood vessel flows, where there are many nerves, where bones can break, and where joints can bend are all weak points in humans.

Then what about patients?

Wounds, organs in poor condition due to illness. Wouldn’t those places glow brighter than others after the head and heart?

“I found it.”

Weakness Detection, when used on Cheon Yeo-hwa, showed her head, heart, and lower abdomen glowing brightly.

Specifically, her dantian, a place that appeared in almost every martial arts setting.

“The color looks purplish… is it poison?”

I wasn’t sure, but it was the most plausible guess right now.

“Shop.”

As soon as I thought it might be poison, I remembered an item in the shop.

I hoped it hadn’t been reset.

[Shop]

[Low-Grade Antidote: Out of Stock]

[Sweet Apple: 250 Coins]

[Imperial Army’s Mana Sword: Out of Stock]

[Cultured Books for Elegant Ladies: 540 Coins]

[High-Grade Random Scroll: 600 Coins]

·

·

·

“It’s here!”

[Purchase Sweet Apple?]

[Y/N]

[Y]

[Purchased Sweet Apple]

[Remaining Coins: 1,200 Coins]

Sweet Apple was an item that appeared along with the Low-Grade Antidote when I searched the shop for an antidote after being poisoned in the dungeon.

[Sweet Apple]

[Grade: Rare]

[Grants positive effects when consumed.]

It was 50 coins more expensive than the Low-Grade Antidote, but it was one grade higher. In a way, buying this might have been more beneficial, but at the time, I needed an antidote with a definite effect.

So I skipped over it after reading the brief description.

“But she can’t eat an apple in her current state, can she?”

It smelled sweet, but it looked just like a normal apple. How could she eat it when she was in so much pain that she couldn’t even come to her senses?

“…All she has to do is eat it, right?”

I washed my hands roughly with drinking water and grabbed the apple.

“Just wait a moment, I’ll grind it up for you to eat.”

Of course, it was more like squeezing than grinding.

Squeeze! My mana-enhanced grip easily performed like putting an apple in a juicer.

The apple juice that flowed into the cup had an unexpectedly sweet aroma.

“This should be enough.”

Now I carefully brought it to Cheon Yeo-hwa’s lips with a spoon.

“Ugh…”

“…This isn’t working either.”

Even though I had ground it into a fine liquid and put it on a spoon, Cheon Yeo-hwa was still unconscious, seemingly in severe pain.

She probably couldn’t even drink water on her own in this state.

I had no choice.

“I’m saving your life, so don’t resent me later.”

I held the apple juice in my mouth and pressed my lips against Cheon Yeo-hwa’s.

I didn’t have time to enjoy the soft and moist sensation, so I carefully opened her mouth and let the apple juice flow in.

It wasn’t a kiss for personal gain, but I couldn’t help but feel a strange sensation.

After three kisses disguised as life-saving, Cheon Yeo-hwa’s complexion improved significantly.

Ding-

[Positive effect activated by consuming Sweet Apple]

[Analyzing Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower]

[Analyzing…]

[Analysis failed]

[Positive effect activated]

[Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower’s poison subsides]

[Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower’s remaining poison struggles]

[Positive effect activated]

[Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower’s remaining poison falls asleep]

In the deep dawn, when even wild animals were fast asleep.

“Ugh… huh…?”

Cheon Yeo-hwa, who woke up from her sleep, was bewildered by the sight of Kang Hyeon-u sleeping while holding her in his arms.

“Hyeon-u, why are you…?”

She was flustered.

It was one thing that Kang Hyeon-u had fallen asleep holding her, but she couldn’t remember how this situation had come about.

Only fragmented memories remained in her throbbing head.

Apart from a minor headache, Cheon Yeo-hwa’s condition was much better than usual, and she quickly pieced together what had happened from the fragmented memories.

‘Did I collapse because the poison was raging…?’

She still experienced occasional episodes of the poison acting up.

She suffered from extreme pain when the poison suddenly raged, but she always managed to maintain her sanity.

This was the first time she had fainted.

Her internal energy was running out compared to the increasingly powerful poison. As a result, she no longer had the strength to resist the poison.

In fact, before she met him, she had half given up, thinking that her lifespan was at most a month.

“I was sure that would happen… but what is this…?”

Cheon Yeo-hwa confirmed that the Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower, which had been constantly targeting her dantian, had lost nearly 80% of its power.

Even the remaining 20% was as quiet as a mouse.

The Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower was a type of potent yang-energy poison.

It was one of the three extreme poisons of the Heavenly Poison Unit, which cooperated with the First Young Master, and was extremely incompatible with her yin-heavy constitution.

In fact, it was considered virtually impossible to detoxify. Even the head of the Tang family, known as the master of poisons, and even the divine doctor who could revive the dead, would find detoxification impossible.

But what happened that improved her condition so much?

Cheon Yeo-hwa decided to try to recall her memories further.

Amidst the increasingly severe headache that came with delving into her memories, Cheon Yeo-hwa caught a glimpse of a short but intense moment.

“?!!”

The moment Kang Hyeon-u held something in his mouth and kissed her.

‘Ah, ahhh…!!’

A scream she couldn’t utter aloud echoed in her heart.

Cheon Yeo-hwa’s face turned bright red, as if it would explode.

‘It was my first time…’

Cheon Yeo-hwa carefully touched her lips.

It still felt like his warmth lingered.

Moreover, the fragment of memory wasn’t just a kiss.

As she could see from the way he fed her something mouth-to-mouth, he was clearly the one who detoxified the poison that had threatened to take her life.

She was surprised that there was an antidote that could detoxify Heavenly Extreme Yang Flower, but she was even more grateful to him for saving her again.

Cheon Yeo-hwa recalled the moment she was attacked by the bandits.

The helpless moment when her qi and blood were twisted by the sudden surge of poison, and she couldn’t even move a finger.

If it had been her past self, she wouldn’t have been caught off guard by such street thugs, let alone been attacked; she would have sensed their presence dozens of steps away and severed their necks.

But as she had said herself, that was the past.

A past that would never return.

If Kang Hyeon-u hadn’t saved her then, she would have been dragged away by the bandits without any resistance.

Of course, she would have pushed her internal energy to the point of qi deviation and killed the bandits.

And as a result, she would have died alone, pathetically vomiting blood.

Cheon Yeo-hwa quietly snuggled into Kang Hyeon-u’s arms.

As if it were her rightful place.

She regretted ever doubting his identity.

‘No matter what happens, I won’t doubt him anymore…?!’

Squeeze-

“Eek?!”

Before she could stop him, Kang Hyeon-u’s thick, large hand grabbed Cheon Yeo-hwa’s buttocks.

“Hye, Hyeon-u…?”

“Mmm…”

Too surprised, she let out a shriek and even called his name, but Kang Hyeon-u only made soft breathing sounds and didn’t react.

Instead, his hand, which was touching her buttocks, didn’t stop.

“What kind of sleep talk is this…”

What kind of dream was he having…

Kang Hyeon-u was mercilessly fondling Cheon Yeo-hwa’s buttocks.

Cheon Yeo-hwa was at a loss, having been sexually harassed for the first time in her life.

If the other person had been a pervert, she would have cut off his wrists and genitals without hesitation, but she couldn’t do that now.

“Hiss, sob… aren’t you… aren’t you rubbing too hard…?”

Despite her complaints, Kang Hyeon-u kneaded Cheon Yeo-hwa’s buttocks as he pleased, as if they were clay. Sometimes, her buttocks would slip out from his rough hands, and sometimes, he would gently stroke them like a pervert, tormenting her.

She wondered if this was something a sleeping person would do, but she couldn’t easily doubt him, thinking he wouldn’t be pretending to sleep.

“Do you desire my body that much…?”

On the other hand, Cheon Yeo-hwa was happy.

She had always thought of men as monkeys with nothing but lewd thoughts in their heads.

The only man she had ever given her heart to in her 20 years of life was Kang Hyeon-u.

“Hye, Hyeon-u…”

If it’s him… if he wanted it…

“I’m willing…”

“…Iris.”

“………Huh?”