episode_0234

A girl with a pale face lying in a hospital bed.

A boy who collapsed and fell asleep from exhaustion after nursing a girl all night.

Even though those were such painful days, on the other hand, it was something I longed for deep in my heart.

A sight so familiar, so familiar, yet so unexpected that I thought I would never see it again.

Seoyeon closed her eyes tightly, then opened them wide again.

I wonder if I’m still in a dream.

I was worried that maybe the painkiller was working too well and I was seeing things.

“… ”

But no matter how many times she blinked, the world before her did not change.

Instead, a faint, tired breathing echoed and tickled her ears.

At this, Seoyeon blankly raised her hand.

Then he pinched his cheek hard.

“Sigh… !”

And what I felt right away was a cold, stinging pain.

He pinched her so hard that she let out a groan of pain.

“Uh, uh, uh… ?”

It was a time when Seoyeon was fidgeting and not knowing what to do.

The eyes of the man who had been lying face down with his upper body suddenly opened wide, and then he quickly sat up.

The five senses were too vivid to be a dream, and the noise was enough to wake someone up.

The man who had risen muttered, brushing his tangled hair away from his mask.

“No one is allowed into the sickroom until further instructions are given… ”

Then the man suddenly stopped talking.

His gaze was directed at Seo-yeon, who was awake but didn’t know what to do.

I stared at it like that for a long time in silence.

After a while, he looked at her and let out a quiet word.

“Thank goodness… huh.”

It was a single word that contained many clots.

***

“Baek Il-yong was arrested by the suppression force at the scene. He is currently being held in Anhwa Prison. He will likely be sentenced to death at the upcoming trial… ”

A man’s low, monotonous voice resonated like a languid lullaby.

“Still, Paechon won’t be destroyed. It was because you reported the incident in advance that the rebellion was prevented. It will also be considered normal for you to step forward to stop Baek Il-yong. Of course, you’ll have to give up a few key businesses for cheap… ”

Seoyeon was silently listening to him as he mechanically recited the situation.

She had been in a battlefield full of blood and noise until just before. The reality that had suddenly come upon her was too much to bear.

Of course, on the one hand, my lips were twitching with curiosity.

Why are you taking such good care of yourself?

Why are you treating me as a person named Baek Seo-yeon and not as a rival from an enemy family?

But, worried that she might ruin the mood, she couldn’t open her mouth.

Seoyeon was now enjoying the sweetness like honey.

This moment itself was a precious moment to her that could not be exchanged for anything else.

Trivial things like Baekil Yong and Paecheon were just good things.

“The wound has healed well, but you will still need to rest for the time being.”

“Huh…? Uh, yeah.”

It seemed as if he was demanding an answer, so Seoyeon looked flustered but continued to answer.

The man, hearing her answer, also nodded his head as if he had finally felt relieved.

And then he saw the empty water bottle next to the sickbed, and he was just about to get up.

“Wait a minute… Ugh.”

“HyunA!!”

The man lost his balance for a moment and staggered. At the same time, the sound of the bowl falling and crashing to the floor echoed through the hospital room, making an ear-piercing noise.

Seoyeon instinctively sat up and hurriedly got out of bed to see the man.

“Hyun-ah!! Are you okay… Ah… ?”

And when she discovered something, she couldn’t bring herself to continue speaking.

Things that had been invisible to me while I was lying in bed, in a haze of dreams and painkillers, were gradually becoming visible.

The body of the slumped man was covered with large and small bruises.

Beneath the rolled up sleeves, a bandage was visible that covered the entire arm.

It was not just the silk arms, but it covered the entire upper body like a garment.

You could tell without even looking that he was seriously injured.

“Ah… ”

Seoyeon bit her lips as the sadness filled her chest.

The sight told only one thing.

This time, the boy saved Seoyeon’s life.

Sacrificing myself again, recklessly, foolishly.

With a stabbing pain in her chest, Seo-yeon once again recalled the terrible sin she had committed against him.

“I think my foot is a little twisted. It’s nothing serious, so don’t worry… ”

And just as the man was about to mutter something nonchalant in a voice that sounded embarrassed,

With a thud, Seoyeon collapsed onto the cold hospital floor.

I couldn’t bear to look into his eyes.

I couldn’t look at the white mask that covered the scars I had from the egg and liver.

With his head bowed like that.

Seoyeon finally opened her lips and let out a trembling voice.

“Why…did you save me?”

“… ”

“Why, why did you save me…?”

“… ”

“Why did I say such harsh things to you… and leave you behind… ”

And what I heard was a soft man’s voice.

“… I have a question.”

A sound like someone was rummaging through her bosom was heard. Soon, Seo-yeon felt his presence as he stretched out his arm forward.

And Seoyeon, who slightly raised her gaze, was soon able to recognize the object placed on his palm.

The old ring clearly showed traces of fire, like a scar that would never heal.

It was the very ring she had been cherishing for the past two years.

“… This ring.”

With that out, the masked man asked Seoyeon a question.

“Why did you have this?”

“… ”

Seoyeon lowered her head again. But eventually she opened her mouth and answered his question.

“… So that I don’t forget.”

“What?”

“You.”

“… ”

Her shoulders were shaking violently. Her voice was gradually becoming wet.

“And… the things that made you like that.”

“… Why?”

Now, confusion was also evident in the man’s voice. It was something he had tried hard to hide by pretending to be calm while dealing with Seo-yeon.

“… To kill them all.”

Her mouth poured out the sorrow that had been building up continuously like a broken dam.

“The night troupe… The Baekil Dragon… The Paecheon… The things that hurt you so much… I’m going to burn them all down… ”

***

A long, heavy silence settled between them. Only then did Seoyeon raise her head and look at the man.

He too just stood there frozen, blankly staring at her.

“… Why?”

The man barely opened his mouth and let out a trembling voice.

“To you… What reason would there be… to do that?”

“… Because I love you.”

“But you… clearly have a fiancé you love… ”

“I don’t have any other fiancée besides you.”

“… ”

And this time, Seoyeon shook her head violently. It was a very violent reaction, unlike her cautious attitude the whole time.

The man who heard Seo-yeon’s words slightly lowered his head and looked up at the sky. Then he muttered softly in a voice that seemed to be filled with emptiness.

“That’s right… ”

“… ”

“That’s right… Uh.”

As the feeling of emptiness grew, it was now a little difficult to even breathe. However, Seo-yeon was also able to realize that this was her last chance.

One last chance to give him a sincere apology.

“I’m sorry… ”

Seoyeon finally opened her mouth, her voice wet and trembling.

“I shouldn’t have done that to you. I shouldn’t have dared tear your heart apart like that… ”

“… That must have been hard.”

“Huh… ?”

But what she suddenly heard was someone’s voice that seemed to be comforting her.

Seo-yeon couldn’t help but question the soft echo that seemed to even cover up her confession.

And then she raised her head.

Two gray eyes, filled with only pity and compassion for Seo-yeon, were staring at her.

“You must have had a hard time.”

“… ”

Seo-yeon stared blankly at the white mask as if she had heard an unbelievable joke. Her long, tangled hair hung down along her drooping head.

“… Sob.”

And then she began to gradually shake her shoulders. What was leaking out between her clenched gums was a trembling sadness.

“Yeah… It was hard… Sob… Really… Really a lot… ”

She nodded repeatedly. The man silently accepted Seoyeon’s sadness.

“I feel like I’m left alone in this world without you… Sob… It’s really… hard… ”

Seoyeon, who was sitting down, muttered apologies in a hasty manner.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… It’s all, it’s all my fault. Because of me, because of me, you… I’m sorry… Really… Ugh… I should’ve said it sooner, sooner… ”

“… ”

“Actually, it was good. It was so good to see you alive again…sob…I was scared…that I would be hated again…like an idiot… ”

The symbolic sadness dripped down and soaked the floor.

“It was all a lie. It was something I didn’t mean. The words that said you weren’t trustworthy, the words that said you were a nightmare, it was all… ”

“I made you… I made your face like that. I ruined your life. I should have left you alone like that… I never should have… ”

Even under such a clear sky, raindrops continued to fall heavily and without stopping.

“I’m sorry… really… sorry… sob… ”