The Hidden Flame
She had been wounded.
By that wretch Sando of all people.
By Seol Si-yun. By Yoo Hwa-young. By Hae-sol. By the unknown Sando who wasn’t even Lee Cheon-seong, Lee Yu-na, or Dang Hwa-ran.
Her pride, together with everything else, had been pierced by that fool.
Crunch.
Crack… crack!
The sound of teeth grinding together echoed from deep in his throat, sharp and cold with rage at the fact that he had allowed a nobody to mark him.
From what he could see, the guy was using some kind of ability similar to the “Future Sight” he had heard about in his previous life—fighting while enduring pain, as if he could see the coming blows and dodge them.
Future Sight.
Seeing the future. Moving with that knowledge. Fighting accordingly.
The price of such an ability was always the same—some form of shock to the mind or the body.
Hah.
Pathetic.
There was nothing else to say.
It wasn’t even a perfect Future Sight.
More importantly, the cost wasn’t nothing. He had paid something to see the future at all.
Yet when he had looked at himself and Yoo Hwa-young earlier, the guy hadn’t been able to predict that. So the future he saw must have been limited to combat only.
By some half-baked ability like that.
He had been wounded by a nobody who didn’t possess the overwhelming talent of Seol Si-yun or anyone else.
“Now, the game is over.”
Red mana and green mana swirled together in his fist, burning like a flame that had been kindled.
Sounomang — Five Colors of the Clouds
Red — Flames of Fire.
The first fist of a burning flame.
The martial art he had created and once used in his previous life.
Sounomang — Five Colors of the Clouds.
A martial art that only he could use, one that demanded he consume his own unique mana—Five Colors—because no one else could handle it.
It was also a hex-based technique that could be applied to any weapon.
The only real problem had been the huge amount of mana required to wield it.
But that had been fixed as well. It now used only about half the mana it once did.
And above all.
It felt right to let the guy in front of him take a beating that could have killed him.
It was something his old self would never have done.
But the crimson killing intent blooming in Cheon Seong’s eyes ignited the ruthless heart of Cheon Seong.
Kaboom—!!!
“Kheh—!!!”
Sando flew backward from the impact of Cheon Seong’s flames and slammed onto the floor, rolling.
Seong’s eyes flashed with triumph at the sight of the man who hadn’t blocked the attack.
As expected of this guy.
His Future Sight required him to use his own abilities to counter whatever came his way.
Whether he could even predict and react to the attack Seong was about to unleash depended entirely on Sando’s own strength.
In other words, no matter how much he knew the future, an ineffective one was useless if he couldn’t respond to the attack.
Which meant the ability was too much for a weakling.
So this was the perfect situation for him.
Seong would strike with a force so overwhelming that Sando couldn’t even react before he even stood up again.
Sounomang — Five Colors of the Clouds
Red — Wind of Flames.
The flames burned fiercer with the help of the strong wind.
A strong wind could snuff out flames, but if the flames were stronger, they would burn even brighter.
With his left hand he kindled the flames, and with his right he summoned a gale to fan them even hotter.
Bringing both fists together.
Strike hard.
Kuhwaaaaa!!
The roaring flames shot toward the guy, and the fire—bolstered by the wind—grew even more intense, swallowing him whole.
Die.
Die, you bastard.
Show no mercy.
You are an enemy.
An enemy who coveted what was mine and shattered my pride.
Even more fiercely.
Even hotter.
Burn him.
Burn him to ash.
Sounomang — Five Colors of the Clouds
Green — Gale of Thrusting Wind.
A fierce gale rips the roots from even the strongest trees, sending mighty logs flying through the air.
A single weed like Sando would have no chance against it.
So die already.
The crime of coveting what was mine was grave.
Your crime was resisting me after coveting what was mine.
The gale would tear him apart.
That was the plan.
But—
Kuhwaaaaaaaa!
“Stop right there!! The duel is over!!”
Just as the gale was about to tear through, a professor blocked the path.
By academy rule, a duel between students could only happen if a professor was present to prevent major incidents.
So this unknown professor was here.
But someone who could at least be Mid-rank at the academy wouldn’t be weak…
Should he just kill him?
As long as he wasn’t Highest-rank, he would win.
Even if the guy was Highest-rank, unless he had already reached the peak like Ryu Se-rin, Seong would strike first and kill him.
“Hey! What are you doing?!”
Just then, a beautiful voice rang in his ear.
Turning around, he saw a woman with flowing crimson hair and eyes like brilliant rubies stepping right in front of him—Yoo Hwa-young.
“Why are you suddenly acting like this?! Did you plan to kill me?!”
Despite the shout shaking his body, Seong said nothing. He simply stared at her with his black, bloodshot eyes.
“Student Cheon Seong! That attack just now went too far! What were you thinking—?!”
From behind came the scolding that the attack had gone too far, but it fell on deaf ears.
Only Hwa-young mattered.
Even as she scolded him from right in front of his eyes, the sound of her beautiful voice barely registered.
“No matter what, you were too dangerous just now—!”
Swish.
“Huh? Hey, hey! What are you—?!”
“I apologize, Professor. If it’s a punishment, I’ll gladly accept it later. Please forgive me for now.”
Seong suddenly pulled Hwa-young into his arms, princess-style, forgetting even the lecture he had been about to deliver.
The professor blinked in surprise at the sudden action.
Carrying Hwa-young in his arms, Seong answered without waiting for a reply and descended the training ground.
“Hey, hey! You’re so embarrassing! Put me down!”
Hesitating for a moment.
Hwa-young stomped her feet and struggled, but Seong stopped, gazing down at the girl now in his arms with a calm, cold, and composed voice.
“Stay still. You’re just supposed to stay in my arms.”
“E, eep… n-no…”
At Seong’s words, Hwa-young’s face flushed bright red. She bowed her head and buried it in his chest.
The arms holding her were strong and trained, yet to her they felt like the softest, coziest bed imaginable.
While watching the girl in his arms, Seong finally moved his feet and set off toward somewhere unknown. The students watching the scene began whispering one rumor.
It was that the Flame King’s Forbidden Flower—Hwa-young—had been taken into the arms of the man named Cheon Seong and carried into a dark room.
And the rumor spread…
“Kyaaaaak!! Bring that bastard right here!! I’m going to kill him!!!”
“Wah! Guild Master! Calm down!! If you go out like that, Miss will be angry!!”
“Let go! I’ll burn that bastard to death!! Kyaaaa!”
The owner of the rumor—a Transcendent, the owner of Korea’s number-one guild, and the only Shin-yeom (Divine Flame) in the world—had heard it.
At that moment, the Flame King Guild was thrown into chaos.
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And now.
Now, in the most heated rumor at the academy—its protagonist, Yoo Hwa-young, and Cheon Seong—were inside Hwa-young’s dormitory room.
Hwa-young’s feet finally touched the floor after being held in his arms. She pulled away, her face burning crimson as she pounded her small fists against his chest and shouted.
“What if I do something suddenly like this?! Do you even know how embarrassed I was?!”
“So you didn’t like it?”
Seong lowered his head and met her eyes, asking.
His pitch-black pupils locked onto her ruby-red ones, capturing the flush on her face.
“Ugh! T-that’s not it, but… b-but it’s still embarrassing…”
“Then you liked it after all?”
“Y-yes…”
Smiling, Seong asked in a gentle voice, and white steam rose from Hwa-young’s head as she lowered it and answered in a voice like a crawling insect.
“Is that so?”
At Hwa-young’s reply, a smile deepened on Seong’s lips. The distance between them grew closer.
Swish, swish
She pressed her back against the wall, covering her crimson face with her own flowing red hair. Seong gently tidied her hair and kissed her.
Chuk.
His red lips met her red ones, like ripe persimmon fruit.
Chuk, chuk.
Chuk.
“W-wait… breathe… mmmph!”
Hwa-young pushed against his body to catch her breath after the long kiss, but Seong again covered her lips with his.
“Mmmph, fuuuh! Nn!”
She staggered.
“You can’t fall yet.”
After a long kiss, Hwa-young’s legs went limp. Seong wrapped his arms around her waist, broke the kiss, and whispered into her ear.
“Yoo Hwa-young, who are you?”
“I-I don’t know… wait, why are you asking that suddenly…”
Chuk.
When she didn’t give the answer he wanted, Seong kissed her again and pinned her struggling body in his two arms, continuing the long kiss.
“Well, now tell me. Who… are you?”
“…S-Someone…”
Chuk.
Her tiny voice answered the question, and Seong wasn’t satisfied. He kissed her again.
The third long kiss.
Hwa-young’s legs finally gave out completely. She clung to him like she was being held. After the kiss ended, Seong asked her again, his eyes wet with unshed tears.
“I’ll ask one last time.”
Swish.
p>His fingers gently wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and lifted her cheek as he continued.
“Yoo Hwa-young, who are you?”
The flames of obsession burned brightly in Seong’s black gaze as he looked at her. The girl’s heart pounded as if it would burst at the knowledge that he wanted her. She answered in a small voice, but clear enough to reach his ear.
“…You… I’m yours, Seong… your person…”
“Good. Well said.”
Finally receiving the answer he wanted, Seong smiled radiantly and beautifully.
With the face of a man who would grant her a reward, he kissed her again.
Chuk.
It was the moment the Flame King’s Forbidden Flower—Yoo Hwa-young—became a regressor in the eyes of the world.