Sweet Cravings and Sinister Assault
Truly, without a shred of lewd thoughts, "...You're joking, right?"
Yi Hayeon muttered as she paced back and forth in her room.
She was still mulling over what Namgoong Juhee had said earlier.
"I like girls."
How could such a scandalous statement be uttered?
A woman liking another woman.
Even for Hayeon, who knew the wisdom of East and West, ancient and modern, this was a first.
And utterly impossible.
"Well, to enjoy the pleasures of the bed, one's genitals have to mesh with..."
Haygeon's face turned beet red as she paced even faster around the room.
Such depraved thoughts—absolutely not allowed.
Wasn't this defying the natural order set by heaven?
But why was her heart pounding like this?
Ever since hearing Namgoong Juhee's words, Hayeon's heart wouldn't calm down.
It kept pumping blood through her body, urging her to move faster.
Though only her heart and brain knew what that haste was for.
At any rate, she seemed firmly ensnared by inner demons.
"If Hee-ya really means that... then... hmm. Would anyone in the Central Plains accept her? What if not?"
If not, then whatever.
That's what Namgoong Juhee would say if she heard.
And she'd probably add, "Why the hell are you worrying about it?"
But Namgoong Juhee wasn't here, and Hayeon kept spinning delusion upon delusion.
Pitying her for having to live alone forever, or claiming she had to take her in under the pretext of an alliance with the Namgoong family.
In Namgoong Juhee's modern lingo, Hayeon was chugging kimchi soup.
"Why isn't Hee-ya coming back?"
From there, it was only natural to worry about Namgoong Juhee's whereabouts.
After all, hadn't she fled from Namgoong Sihoon before?
What guarantee was there it wouldn't happen again? Insisting on bathing alone was suspicious too.
"Should I go check?"
And so, Hayeon stepped out of her room.
Absolutely no lewd intentions.
Just to confirm where Namgoong Juhee had gone—pure worry for a dear friend.
Of course, that meant entering the bathhouse, and she might glimpse her naked in the process, but what of it between women?
It was Hee-ya's fault for being late.
The thoughts of a ruthless merchant.
Back when Namgoong Juhee was in her homeland, she hadn't favored sweet foods.
Quite the opposite—she hated them.
To her, sweets were just expensive trash that only irritated the tongue, did no good for the body, and wasted money.
Better to save that cash for household expenses—that was her mindset.
Though she took it to extremes: when her girlfriend suggested cafe desserts after a meal, she'd blurt out nonsense like, "You've already eaten—room for that?"
Even hearing about her "dessert stomach," he'd sip an iced Americano with a baffled look, never getting it.
"Mmm—! Insane. This... this is it."
But now in a woman's body, why did sweets crave her so fiercely?
Even after meals, skipping dessert left her stomach feeling empty.
No honey candies, steamed honey buns, tanghulu, oil cakes, ice sweets, or honey tea? That meal was ruined.
The whole day felt utterly unsatisfying.
Especially during her period—sweets were the instant cure.
Her gut stabbed with cramps, blood gushing below, mentally spiraling: Is this really a game? Am I truly a woman now?—that's what Namgoong Juhee's cycles were like, dissolving into tears.
Pop a honey candy in then, and the sticky mood lifted somewhat.
Come to think of it, her period was due soon. She'd have to tell Yeon-ya to take it easy then.
"Yawwwn."
Namgoong Juhee stretched out a massive yawn.
The human body either perks up or crashes hard after sweets.
In modern Korea, it's called a blood sugar spike; in this primitive Central Plains, they blame laziness from gorging and wanting to sleep.
Both spot-on, really.
Blood sugar spikes are modern science-certified truth, and crashing after sweets means you're a lazy bum too.
"Ugh... can't hold back anymore."
The lazy slob finally rose from the bath.
Her bowls were spotless—must've devoured all those honey buns and candies.
If the two men outside knew, they'd cackle with filthy glee.
It meant every bit of the San Gong Dok she'd stashed was now inside her.
San Gong Dok was useless against Peak realm masters normally, but massive doses changed the game.
And a hot bath? Perfect for activating the poison.
No Peak expert could withstand this.
"Nngh..."
Not that it scattered her inner energy—just made her insanely drowsy.
Thus, Namgoong Juhee's head bobbed sleepily.
Was she dressing or not?
She shoved her arms and legs haphazardly into sleeves, then thud—collapsed on the floor.
Though whether this was purely the poison's doing was debatable.
She looked exactly like a drunk bitch who couldn't pull herself together.
Even without the poison, she'd probably end up the same.
"About time it kicked in, right?"
"Yes, Young Master. Entering now."
Unaware or not, the two men cautiously slipped into the women's bath.
And there she was—an astonishing beauty!
Seong Mingyu had once heard that a woman's most beautiful sight was sleep.
The one time she could drop all pretense, her unguarded expression the mark of true peerless beauty.
Bok Dongsu had scoffed at that.
Sleeping women were ugly as sin.
Artifice made women pretty, after all.
Crafting the perfect angle and look under others' gazes—that was artifice's essence.
Modern Korea proved it best: so-called "cringe shots" stripped away the mask, turning even "world's top beauties" into hags or worse.
Beauty without pretense was like red bean paste without the beans.
Bok Dongsu had seen countless women asleep.
Drooling, eyes rolled back, all grotesque—clearly that saying came from some virgin nobody.
"...She's pretty, huh. Damn, a face like that staying unknown this long."
"..."
"Young Master?"
"..."
"Young Master!"
"Huh... uh. Yeah."
"You alright?"
"Yeah. Fine. She's a looker."
But seeing Namgoong Juhee asleep, Bok Dongsu realized his folly.
Her sleeping form was violently heart-stopping.
Damp red hair framing a bare face.
Her sharp eyes softened innocently; her glossy lips tempted a touch.
Gloss from oil on the candies, but Bok didn't know—his face just flushed.
"Steward. Can't do it."
"Young Master, what can't we do?"
"Gotta bail here. She's out cold—could carry her off unnoticed."
"Tch... Young Master."
The steward grimaced in distress.
Bok nodded, convinced.
True—this wasn't Safe Yang Gate yet.
Unlike their secured base, this was out in the open. Rumors could spread.
Cause a scene, draw a crowd—trouble.
Wise to head back to Safe Yang Gate.
As Bok moved to nod agreeably...
"Then hurry up. I can't hold back either."
"Ah."
Birds of a feather, as they say.
Unorthodox scum only chased the thrill right in front of them.
If they fretted the future, they wouldn't rack up grudges or toss dignity for a quick high.
But these two were dead average for their kind—what could you do?
Grab the chance while it's there.
"I'll go first then."
"Young Master, quick. Finish fast."
"Not that easy. I'll try."
Bok Dongsu dropped his pants.
Size suggested no worries about slowness.
Maybe premature ending—perhaps what awakened his twisted tastes.
"Heh... let's have some fun."
But for Namgoong Juhee, this was tragedy.
She'd seen pregnant women on the road before.
Impregnation system confirmed.
Take the seed quick, and she might bear life too.
"Now, let's see how pretty down there is."
Namgoong Juhee's chastity! Dire crisis.
As the genre shifted from RPG to parenting sim, a voice rang out.
"Hee-ya? You took so long, I came to check. You okay?"
The door slid open smoothly, revealing the voice's owner.
A red-haired beauty.
Slightly less stunning than the recumbent Namgoong Juhee, but top-tier for claiming "Central Plains' number one."
"...Hee-ya?"
No time to savor the beauty, though.
The beauty's face drained white—BOOM! Something exploded.
"Cough cough. What the—?"
"Young Master! You okay? This crazy bitch. Looks like you need dying once to wise up."
"Fuck... that bitch from before? Steward, draw steel!"
Bok Dongsu and Seong Mingyu yanked swords from their belts with a shing shing.
Fierce auras—any normal woman would've screamed and fled.
But the red-haired woman just stared them down.
Bloodshot eyes, on the verge of bloody tears.
Chills crawled up Bok and Seong's spines.
Far too late.