The Results of Education
The wolf wasn't breathing anymore.
Its oppressive aura had simply vanished.
They wondered what the hell the pair had done to it, but in truth the two hadn't done anything particularly extreme.
"Yelp!"
They had simply dragged the wolf around.
With all four legs tied, it had rolled across the ground, but that wasn't the sort of thing anyone but an animal protection group would complain about.
In reality, no greater violence had taken place.
It wasn't the kind of treatment that should have sent the creature to the afterlife.
"Weakling."
Ines spat the word coldly.
If it had grown up in the wild, it should have been able to endure rolling around a few times.
It was a rather psychopathic complaint, but Ines had every right to make it.
She had survived being beaten senseless by Kang Sian, so how could she not sneer at something like this?
"Let's dismantle it before it spoils and move it to the fridge. Do you have space in yours?"
"Quite a bit, actually. Once we remove the organs, it should fit well enough."
The conditions were perfect.
The two people who couldn't even imagine the wolf dying hurried along.
They had completely forgotten they were injured themselves.
Thus, Kang Sian ended up heading to Ines's house.
Stopping by a butcher shop to handle the boning and extra work seemed reasonable.
However, there was one problem with that idea.
"Oh, a butcher shop? Stopping there on the way doesn't sound bad."
"The professor might nitpick. Even if it's crude, we should do the dismantling ourselves."
There was a chance the professor would dock points for having the work done at a butcher shop.
If this were a normal cooking class it might not matter, but since it was a survival cooking class, the risk was real.
'This lecture assumes you're cooking on the side of the road! What? A butcher shop?! You two get an F!'
That was exactly what would happen.
So, despite the heat and the hassle, they hauled the wolf carcass all the way home.
"Mom! That lady and that guy are carrying a wolf!"
"If you study to become a hunter, you'll end up doing stuff like that when you grow up."
"Instead of judging other people's jobs so annoyingly, why don't you reflect on your own career?"
"What? What?!"
His irritation boiled over, and Kang Sian ended up snapping at the sarcastic stranger.
Considering a child was standing right there, it was rather excessive.
He regretted the words almost as soon as they left his mouth.
Some people would probably call him pathetic for it.
"Whoa..."
Still, from Ines's perspective, Kang Sian looked almost admirable.
It was only natural. She would have held her tongue in that situation, but he had confronted it head-on.
A splendid attitude for someone of such lowly blood.
He could probably be called an honorable southern gentleman without anyone batting an eye.
Ines opened the front door without even noticing the smile tugging at her lips.
She then shoved the wolf into the bathtub.
"But hey, filthy Asian. Do you actually know how to dismantle one of these?"
"More or less. I've never done a green-mane wolf, but it should be similar to the others."
Ines looked genuinely shocked.
She immediately asked how he knew that.
"Well, living life throws a lot of things at you."
To be precise, it was all because of one particular woman who had appeared without fail throughout Kang Sian's twelve years of life.
The girl who, despite being a regressor, had such stellar mental health every single day that a yandere would have been preferable, liked to say:
'I am Nartika itself.'
'This lady does not do vulgar things like dismantling.'
'Dismantling is a job for underlings.'
She would spout nonsense every time they had to butcher a monster or animal, which was exactly why Kang Sian had learned how to do it himself.
And while he worked, she would stand beside him offering useless advice that only enraged him. She really was hopeless.
Reflecting that experience, Kang Sian's hands moved with considerable skill.
He wasn't a professional, but the flesh, organs, and bones separated quickly.
"Do whatever you want with the meat still attached to the bones—throw it away or make soup. All the organs go in the trash."
"All of them?"
"I don't know how to make blood pudding or sausages."
"Ah..."
"If you really want to grill them, I won't stop you."
Still, meat was better than organs.
Ines quickly took the organs and fed them into the food waste disposer.
They began sorting the meat and bagging it.
Ines's refrigerator filled up neatly, but there still wasn't enough space, so some had to be set aside outside.
After cleaning up the remaining mess and finishing the aftermath, they left the bathroom.
Ines stood politely and handed Kang Sian a towel.
She's forcing herself to smile.
Kang Sian interpreted it as a desperate attempt to avoid getting beaten by him again.
Compared to before, this was practically angelic, so he was satisfied.
He moved to the living room to rest for a moment.
He sank comfortably onto the sofa he always used.
"Ow!"
Pain immediately flared across his back.
The wound hadn't received proper first aid due to lack of time.
Ines rushed over in surprise.
When she saw his back, her eyes widened.
"Blood...?!"
It looked like the wound that had barely closed had reopened.
She floundered for a moment before hurriedly retrieving the first-aid kit from the corner.
"It's fine. You don't have to do that."
Kang Sian stopped her.
Instead, he pulled a bottle from his bag.
"An elixir?"
Another elixir.
Ines looked at him suspiciously, wondering why he had so many.
Looking at his usual appearance, he didn't seem like the son of a rich family, so she had started to wonder if he was stealing them.
But that suspicion didn't last long.
Kang Sian was grunting, trying to pour the precious elixir over his own back.
Ines quickly snatched it from his hands.
"Wait. I'll do it for you."
"You?"
His expression clearly said he didn't trust her.
From his perspective, it was inevitable.
How could he trust a woman who constantly discriminated by race and species and talked back to him?
He'd trust a passing Cheon Mari more.
"I won't do anything strange, filthy Asian, elf or not. Don't worry."
That choice of words.
There was no way he could trust her.
He hesitated, watching her.
But refusing would only waste the elixir.
"Tsk."
Kang Sian decided to trust her.
With the condition that any funny business meant he was done with her.
He peeled off his blood-soaked shirt.
Ines flinched at the sight of him undressing without hesitation.
Wow.
She was impressed by the result.
She let her gaze wander slowly over his bare torso.
It lasted only a moment.
For that brief instant, Ines's prejudice sank.
"What are you doing?"
"N-nothing. The wound is just... large."
She brushed it off and continued the treatment.
Erasing the discriminatory language from her mind, she applied the medicine slowly, as if treating someone from her own homeland.
It felt a little slow, but since the treatment was progressing, he didn't make an issue of it.
By the time the treatment was finished and he had dressed again, a faint sigh escaped Ines's lips.
Only she knew what kind of regret colored it.
"Mm, it looks good. Thanks."
"Y-yeah."
Ines avoided his eyes as if something felt awkward.
She soon turned toward the kitchen and the meat that hadn't fit in the refrigerator.
"Now what do we do with this..."
"That? We can just eat it today."
Kang Sian approached and pointed at the induction stove.
Ines thought for a moment, then nodded and poured oil into a frying pan.
She began grilling the meat.
She kept grilling.
She grilled more.
She grilled endlessly.
Kang Sian was horrified.
Why is this girl's cooking so bad?
She was just slapping it on the heat with nothing but oil.
Sizzle—
She was even burning it.
Only then did Kang Sian understand why Ines was taking the survival cooking class.
He had no choice but to step in.
He pressed against her from behind, grabbing her wrist.
"Eut?"
Using her hand as a guide, he seasoned the meat and adjusted the heat.
He also prepared and added extra ingredients.
The sight of her moving according to his will might have caused revulsion, but Ines surprisingly obeyed.
Thanks to that, the simple grilled dish turned out decent.
It was good enough to submit for the exam.
It meant he liked it, and that he wanted to try making the same thing himself.
They had only grown a little closer, yet an unknown desire was gradually mixing into her feelings.
Whether he knew it or not, he confidently suggested they eat dinner together.
The words had come out on instinct, so there wasn't a trace of shame.
"Sorry, I have plans."
But reality was always heavy.
After cooking for Ines, Kang Sian left.
His response was cold enough to freeze.
In the end, she was left alone in front of the house.
Just because an Easterner and an elf had disappeared.
The sight of her standing there was so out of place it felt surreal.
As if reflecting that she had never felt anything like it before, a strange sensation suddenly flooded her.
Ines reached into her pants to find the source.
"......Ah."
It was extremely.
Wet.
The tragic part was that even after that, Ines's discrimination continued.
No, it continued and grew even worse when directed at Kang Sian.
"Hic, kiiing, whine..."
"How long are you going to keep that up? Shouldn't you stop soon?"
Before, he had only beaten her during class.
Now they met suspiciously often, and every time she talked back, forcing him to beat her again.
Naturally, he had to visit her house each time to treat her serious injuries.
It was exhausting, and the hope that had begun to sprout felt like it was withering again.
The only saving grace was that nothing strange happened at her house.
Ines simply received treatment and entertained her guest.
However, it was still somewhat discriminatory to call the atmosphere completely friendly.
Thanks to that, Kang Sian always left with an expression of complete exasperation.
Ines would see him off and even shake his right hand every time.
She would even stare at him with hazy eyes, as if she had lingering attachments.
It was truly absurd behavior, but there was an even more absurd truth behind it.
Creak—
The moment Kang Sian disappeared from sight, Ines went back inside.
She freely savored the air of the house.
"Huaa... It's nice..."
It might have looked like simple happiness at being home, but the reality was completely different.
With a subtle blush on her cheeks, Ines walked lightly toward the sofa.
She took off her socks.
She took off her pants.
Her underwear already somewhat damp.
She sat exactly where Kang Sian had been sitting.
Her left hand touched her lower belly.
Her right hand slipped inside herself.
And she began.
Without noticing the passage of time.
"Haa, haaa... ♥"
Faint sounds rang from both openings.
They gradually intensified, the strength rising as if they would soar into the sky.
In the end, an indescribable, saliva-like liquid flowed from them.
Naturally, the sounds slowly subsided along with it.
Little by little, she relaxed as if returning to herself.
She took a careful deep breath and lowered both hands.
"Huuuuu..."
As if something had occurred to her late, she raised her right hand.
Ines stared at the two fingers covered in sticky fluid.
"Pointy-eared shitty Asian bastard... you fucking son of a bitch... haa..."
For some reason—perhaps instinct—she didn't know.
Every time this happened, the desire to become stronger swelled inside her.