Chapter 32
Chapter 32
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 32
Chapter Title: Weak Men, Stay Put!
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Four days had already passed since my first meeting with Princess Kurumi.
During that time, I had received invitations from her without missing a single day.
"Let's meet again tomorrow."
"Tomorrow... too?"
"?! Is tomorrow no good by any chance...?"
"Ah, no! Of course it's fine."
As expected, my unique constitution seemed to apply to all Beast Hunters.
Maybe because I was the first person she didn't feel disgust toward, Princess Kurumi had spent the past few days chatting happily with me.
On the first day, she had to leave quickly for lunch, but the next day we ate lunch together, then dinner the day after, and today she even gave me a snack on my way out.
"This is mochi, Japan's representative dessert. It's like sweet glutinous rice cake, so have some when you're feeling bored."
"Ah, yes. Thank you..."
By now, the curtain-like cloth in the center of the guest room I entered first when visiting the mansion had long been removed.
Of course, Princess Kurumi herself always wore an eyepatch, so this was purely a consideration for me.
She wanted me to see more of her or something like that.
'Well... since I'm in charge of protecting her, it's better if I can see her clearly, right?'
I seemed to have grown surprisingly close to the princess.
My parents were thrilled about it too, and after two days, Aunt Rolling and Uncle Seok-gyu had given me thumbs up.
"Shin-woo, this is a gift from the Hunter Association Branch Chief, as a token of her gratitude."
"From the Hunter Association Branch Chief...?"
I never thought I'd live to receive a wreath from Branch Chief Lee Jin-ah saying "thank you for your hard work."
Of course, among them...
"Her conduct is vulgar!"
There was exactly one person who viewed my relationship with the princess negatively...
"Talking that close, even eating meals together... And she's a princess! Her conduct is vulgar!"
"Sophia, judging the princess like that over something so minor..."
"Oppa, can I eat this mochi?"
"Yeah. We'll all eat it together later."
"Yay!"
"Anyway, it's vulgar! Her conduct is vulgar!!"
As a day, two, three, and four passed, I could see anger and worry alternating and building up on Sophia's face.
She kept grumbling nonstop about Princess Kurumi.
I was starting to worry she might cause a big incident later.
"By the way, Sophia. Have you seen Yoo Si-hyun since then?"
"Yoo Si-hyun?"
"You know, the pink-haired girl from the first day."
"Ah~. That psycho bitch who acts all pretty?"
Psycho bitch who acts all pretty.
It was, in a way, the nickname that suited Yoo Si-hyun best.
It was while heading home from Princess Kurumi's mansion with Sophia.
The main heroine, who had vanished after the first day, suddenly came to mind, so I asked about her.
And then...
"No idea? I haven't even caught a glimpse of her since."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I was planning to rip her arms off if I saw her again. Guess she got scared and hasn't shown up."
Sophia shrugged with those brutal words.
Still, since she was the original heroine, I hoped she hadn't met a gruesome end.
'Hmm... Did she just back off like this?'
I'd been startled by her appearing earlier than in the original story, but if she just disappeared from this arc, I wouldn't need to worry about her.
"But why are you asking about that girl?"
"Huh? Oh, just..."
"......"
Was she worried about me meeting a bad woman because we're family?
Under Sophia's sharp glare, I made it back safely to the Shilla Hotel today as well.
It had already been a week since I started being Princess Kurumi's playmate.
Now that I'd run out of stories to tell, she was even giving me a chance to ask questions.
"If there's anything you're curious about me, feel free to ask."
"Really... I can?"
"Of course."
Who would've thought I'd get a chance to question someone from a Hunter family—no, one of the world's top ten families—so easily.
In the original story, even building trust with ordinary Hunter families was painstakingly difficult, let alone the top ten.
And rightly so—even in the 21st century where class systems were abolished, invisible walls still existed between ordinary bloodlines and superior ones in this world.
'What question should I ask...?'
It had been a week since I started meeting Princess Kurumi.
And in the original story, her mansion started getting seriously targeted around a week in.
Because escorts are toughest during the first week.
Even if everyone was still working hard, they inevitably relaxed as they got used to the site.
In other words, the question I needed to ask here had to be directly related to Princess Kurumi's survival.
After much deliberation, my first question.
"About that cloth you always wear over your eyes. Can't you take it off?"
"Pardon?! My eyes...?"
"Yes."
I was personally curious why she sealed her own vision, but more importantly, an attack like in the original story was coming soon.
Securing vision was an indispensable element in battle.
If she ever had to protect herself, that eyepatch would only be a hindrance.
So out of concern, I asked.
"...Our Kitsune family is the strongest Beast Hunter family in human history, but we're also the clan that suffers the most from the 'human disgust' constitution that all Beast Hunters feel."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. If an ordinary Beast Hunter's human disgust is rated as 1, ours is 2 to 5 times stronger, depending on how pure the family blood is."
"...!!"
Sophia, even as an adult, still had panic attacks in crowded places like she did as a kid.
And they suffered even worse?
"For reference, as the daughter of the main house, I have the worst case of human disgust in the family."
"Then that eyepatch..."
"Yes. I... Lady Kurumi of the Kitsune sealed my vision myself because my disgust toward humans reached an extreme—I couldn't stand the sight of the world humans created."
In human society, the easiest thing to see with open eyes was naturally the 'world' built by humans.
So Princess Kurumi, who could only see 'hell' with her eyes open, had blocked her own sight, she told me.
"I see..."
"Yes."
"Doesn't it bother you in everyday life?"
"Hehe. No need to worry about that. I've trained my other four senses to the extreme since childhood, so I can perceive my surroundings without sight."
"That's... impressive!"
"I'll gladly accept the praise."
She could see around her without opening her eyes?
If so, it should be fine in battle too. I felt relieved.
But at the same time, I couldn't help pitying her.
It was like she'd given up her sight entirely due to human disgust worse than Sophia's.
Growing up with Sophia, a Beast Hunter, I knew full well how much she'd suffered from that constitution.
And this was even worse...
If I were half monster, half human.
Maybe then...
"I could look, right?"
"...Pardon?"
"......Ah!"
I'd meant to mutter it to myself out of pity, but it slipped out loud.
"S-Sorry! Princess."
She'd only permitted questions.
I hadn't gotten permission to make suggestions yet.
In other words, what I'd just said was extremely presumptuous.
'In the game, even suggesting solutions to Hunter families got you kicked out if you didn't get permission first...!'
Class systems were gone, but talent, symbolism, and generational connections remained.
My words were, by Hunter family standards, an arrogant demand to "just look at me."
So...
'Am I getting kicked out...!'
I squeezed my eyes shut, wondering if I'd have to guard from outside with Sophia.
"Look..."
As I braced myself...
"W-Would that be okay?"
"...Pardon?"
The princess was asking my permission instead?
Was she really thinking of removing the eyepatch she'd worn since childhood because of my one comment?
Her hands were slowly rising toward the back of her head, as if she meant it.
"Shin-woo, um..."
"Y-Yes..."
"Do you want to see my eyes?"
"Your eyes?"
Right before she removed the eyepatch.
Princess Kurumi asked, her face flushing an unnatural red.
And my answer was, of course...
"Of course!"
"...!"
"What man in the world would turn down a beauty's face?!"
"B-Beauty...!"
Even with her eyes covered, Princess Kurumi had top-tier looks that could outshine most actresses or models.
And now she was going to show her eyes, the identity of her face?
It was an honor beyond words.
So I did my best to reassure her not to feel burdened, praising her appearance.
"Ha, haaah...!"
Suddenly, she fidgeted with her lips and trembled.
She'd mustered her courage(!)
"Princess, then show me your bare face!"
"Ah! ...Y-Yes!!"
Just like some masked singer reveal after 60 seconds, her hidden face was about to be unveiled.
Kaboom!
"Wh-What?!"
The ground suddenly started shaking with a rumble.
At the same time, the person who'd been facing me at a distance moments ago...
"Shin-woo, I'll protect you. So stay put."
Was now beside me, extending one arm toward me in a flawless combat stance.
...Wait a second.
"P-Princess? The one who needs protecting is me, not you...?"
"No! The daughter of the Kitsune family isn't so weak that she needs protection in front of a 'fragile man'!"
Hmm...
In this world, being a man really offered zero merits in battle, just as I'd thought.