Chapter 53
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: Unexpected Incident
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Requested directly by the physician?
Jahwa-yeon tried to gauge the true intent behind those words... but for now, she couldn't tell.
If that woman's claim was true, then she had interfered with—and even intimidated—someone acting on a legitimate request from the physician himself.
If the physician found out about that...
Of course, a subordinate should accept whatever the sovereign chose to do.
But for some reason she couldn't pinpoint, Jahwa-yeon instinctively felt it wouldn't end pleasantly.
"......"
The blood-red hue slowly faded from Jahwa-yeon's eyes.
The dark aura swirling around her dissipated gently as well.
For now, this was as far as it went.
"Enough."
Jahwa-yeon gave the frozen ruins one last sweeping glance before turning away.
"Geumgang."
"Yes, Supreme One."
A massive figure rose silently from the shadows behind her—emerging as if he'd always been there—and knelt on one knee.
"Evacuations?"
"I've contacted the Association."
Geumgang replied with his head bowed.
Right then.
- Beeee-yooooong.
A blaring siren wailed from the distance, growing louder by the second.
Several emergency vehicles were racing toward them like mad.
Association evacuation vehicles.
Jin Sea carefully adjusted Yoo Seon-woo in her arms.
Then she slowly began walking toward them.
The chaotic kidnapping ordeal was finally over.
Hunters in Korea hone their skills and prove their worth through monthly internal guild tests.
"Hoo..."
- Kwaaang!
A massive dummy scarecrow burst apart with a shriek.
Union Guild's state-of-the-art training ground.
There, S-rank hunters Luna and Elise—the beastkin sisters—were undergoing their routine physical ability tests.
"Luna Hunter, another record broken... You're in incredible form lately!!"
"No, not really."
The excited voice of the performance analyst echoed throughout the training ground.
But Luna herself just stared blankly down at her hands.
'This is weird...'
Her body definitely felt lighter.
Speeds and power that once required her full effort now came naturally.
- Kwaaaaang!
Elise's high kick landed squarely on a dummy.
"Elise Hunter's at peak condition too!!"
Elise was in top form as well.
Moments later, the two stood before the analyst.
"Luna, your strength and speed are up 15% from last month... Elise, strength up 20%... Both of you are seeing explosive growth in physical abilities..."
"I see..."
"Any special training lately...?"
"No."
"None at all?"
Their answers came in unison.
In truth, it was a mystery even to Luna and Elise themselves.
"I see..."
The analyst tilted his head in confusion, about to log the data on his tablet.
Just then, the training room door opened, and another hunter—a female fox beastkin named Lily—sauntered in with a lazy gait.
She was next in line.
"Not done yet~?"
"Almost! Just finished up!"
Luna and Elise were already preparing to leave.
"Whoa... what? Record breakers?"
Lily glanced at the numbers on the display board and shook her head.
Then, with a sly, mischievous smile, she turned to the sisters.
"Looks like my little bunny sisters both found themselves a stud."
"?!"
"...!"
At those words, Luna and Elise whipped their heads toward Lily.
Hesitating for a moment, Elise spoke up first.
"What're you talkin' about?"
"Oh~ You don't know?"
Lily wagged her tail, clearly amused by the innocent bunnies' reactions, and continued.
"For female beastkin like us, when we find a male we like, our bodies react first."
"To beat out the competition and claim that male for ourselves—our physical abilities explode instinctively."
Luna and Elise's eyes widened slowly at the shocking revelation.
It was the first they'd heard of it.
"And that power peaks right when..."
Lily's red lips parted slowly.
"Heat season hits."
At that final word, Luna and Elise froze solid.
Neither could utter a word.
Stiff as boards, they robotically bowed to the analyst and Lily.
Then they shuffled out of the training ground.
Like soulless husks—or rather, rabbits.
Watching their retreating figures, Lily thought to herself.
'A hundred percent?'
And with a satisfied smile, she murmured.
"Now you finally act like beastkin~"
Female beastkin were supposed to keep a favored male crying through the night, after all.
"I'm up next, right~?"
Lily said as she stretched her back and headed toward the analyst.
Meanwhile.
- Tak, tak.
The quiet corridor echoed only with the footsteps of two people.
No one spoke.
Luna tried cooling her flushed cheeks with her cold hands, but it was no use.
Even her hands were hot.
Lily's final words kept circling in her mind.
Unbidden, a certain someone's face flashed into her thoughts. Her heart began pounding wildly.
Elise felt the same.
The playful expression was gone from her face.
'...This is bad.'
Her face flushed red, she walked forward with a rigid expression.
The two rabbits returned to the guild lounge.
But the atmosphere there was chaotic.
Hunters were clustered in front of the TV, holding their breath as if by agreement.
An emergency news broadcast was playing.
Elise quietly asked the nearest colleague.
"What's goin' on?"
Without turning, the colleague stared at the screen and answered.
"The counselor who made a house call to our guild before..."
"He just got kidnapped..."
At those words, Luna and Elise's minds went blank.
Counselor?
Who?
There was only one counselor who'd ever visited the guild.
"Teacher...?"
Luna murmured hollowly under her breath.
Elise was the same.
Fear began clouding the rabbits' eyes.
"Oh, but luckily, he's been rescued already and he's fine..."
The colleague finally turned, sharing the good news late.
"Huh?"
But no one was there anymore.
Meanwhile, in the deepest office at the heart of the Azure Heaven Alliance headquarters.
Early morning sunlight filtered through the windows, warmly filling the room.
"What a lovely fragrance."
The air was filled with the pure, clear scent of spring orchids.
Yi Seo-ryeong had neatly rolled up the sleeves of her silk robe and was meticulously wiping the morning dew from each orchid leaf with a soft cloth.
Every movement was elegant and noble.
Only after drying even the last leaf did she rise from her spot.
She approached the antique wooden desk by the window.
Sitting in the chair, she picked up a book from the desk.
The cover read:
[How to Be a Good Mother.]
Korea was a place incomparably superior and wondrous compared to the Central Plains.
In the Central Plains, the first thing one read to learn martial arts was a martial arts manual.
But such manuals weren't for just anyone—they were rarer than stars in the sky.
Here, though, they even published books on how to be a good parent.
And for a small sum, anyone could buy that knowledge.
[Communicate at your child's eye level.]
[Praise the process, not the result.]
[Express unconditional love.]
These days, Yi Seo-ryeong made daily vows while reading such passages.
It was her effort to correct the mistakes of the past, even now.
Even if Yu-wol never acknowledged it.
She just had to try harder.
With that resolve, Yi Seo-ryeong closed the book.
"......"
A faint blush began creeping across her jade-like cheeks.
She glanced around cautiously.
Confirming she was alone in the vast office, she opened the deepest drawer of the desk.
And pulled out another book.
Unlike the glossy new one from before, this cover was worn, its pages yellowed and marked by the passage of time.
[How to Serve and Minister to Your Husband]
At first, she'd read modern books from this world like "How to Be a Good Wife."
But their contents clashed utterly with her beliefs.
'Maintain an equal relationship with your husband.'
'Don't blindly follow your husband's opinions.'
She couldn't comprehend it at all.
How could a wife act that way toward her heaven-like husband?
Worse, some books preached dominating and lording over one's husband—utterly absurd and insolent notions.
So Yi Seo-ryeong had delved into ancient records instead.
Seeking teachings she could understand and rightfully follow.
This book was a record left by some nameless virtuous wife from the Joseon era long ago.
She reverently turned to the first page.
And began etching its lessons into her mind.
[One. Your husband is your wife's heaven; do not defy heaven's will.]
This first passage especially resonated with her.
A wife should disrobe when her husband bids, prostrate when commanded—that was the way of things.
All her life, men had been objects of hatred and contempt...
But she was still a woman of the Central Plains.
Now that someone worthy of serving as her lord husband had appeared, the deep-rooted ideologies resurfaced.
And in truth, the most crucial part of this book was...
"......"
Yi Seo-ryeong's gaze stopped at the seventh chapter.
The blush on her white cheeks deepened.
[Seven. Your husband's body is like jade; do not neglect it.]
[Every night, in bed, tenderly caress your weary husband's body with utmost sincerity to replenish his vital essence. This is a wife's duty.]
[Below are several bedroom arts that a woman must master to please her husband...]
Yi Seo-ryeong swallowed dryly, reading the words more intently than any martial arts manual.
Just as she was slowly stepping into this new world.
- Knock knock.
- Flap flap flap!!
At the sudden knock, Yi Seo-ryeong startled and shoved the book into the deepest part of the drawer.
She quickly straightened her posture, cleared her throat, and replied in her usual voice.
"Enter."
The door opened, and the Dark Shadow Division Leader stepped inside.
His face was far graver than usual.
"Division Leader, what is it?"
Yi Seo-ryeong asked as she picked up her brush and began painting orchids on rice paper.
The Dark Shadow Division Leader bowed his head and spoke heavily.
"Alliance Leader. There's been an incident at Haetae Guild."
"Incident?"
"Physician Yoo Seon-woo... was kidnapped."
- Crack.
The brush handle in Yi Seo-ryeong's hand snapped in two.
She shot to her feet and demanded of the division leader.
"What did you say?"
The gentleness vanished from her face.
The warm air in the room froze in an instant.
There stood no devoted mother vowing to be better, no woman smiling at thoughts of her husband.
The woman who once terrorized the Demonic Cult.
Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman, Yi Seo-ryeong.