Chapter 9

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 9

Chapter Title: The Understanding One

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Time ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠when the word "daytime" lost all meaning.

The sun had set just a few minutes earlier.

Lights in some buildings were flickering out one by one.

I was the only one left in the counseling room.

To wrap up the remaining paperwork and prepare for the Union Guild visits starting next week.

"...It's really pouring."

Rain fell outside the window.

- Plip-plop.

More than I'd thought.

A lot more.

I couldn't say why.

Isn't weather always like that?

Coming without warning, completely out of the blue.

I sat alone in the empty counseling room, simply listening to the sound of the rain.

And that night, what arrived without warning or expectation... wasn't just the rain.

- Creeeak...

The door to the waiting room outside the counseling room opened cautiously.

I'd normally have it locked, but today I left it open.

Maybe that meant I was half-expecting this.

"......"

I slowly rose from my seat.

And carefully opened the counseling room door.

Cold night air rushed in.

The lobby, with all the lights off.

In the heart of that darkness.

A single figure stood, drenched to the bone.

- Flash!

Lightning cracked outside the window.

The brief glare illuminated her silhouette in the gloom.

Black hair plastered to her face from the downpour.

Black eyes, vacant and unfocused.

It was Jahwa-yeon.

Wearing the exact expression I'd anticipated she'd return with.

I called out to her softly.

"Heavenly Demon."

A comfortable environment...

That shouldn't be too hard.

At the sound of my voice, her vacant eyes slowly began to focus.

I said nothing more, just approached her and gently took hold of her rain-soaked, icy arm.

She offered no resistance, yielding to my lead like a puppet with cut strings.

I carefully seated her in the plush chair.

And my movements flowed seamlessly from there.

First, I grabbed the remote and turned on the counseling room heater.

- Whirr.

With a mechanical hum, warmth began to spread through the damp, chilly air.

Next, I shrugged off the thick white doctor's coat I was wearing.

And draped it over Jahwa-yeon's slender, trembling shoulders.

For the first time, her shoulders twitched in response to the feel of the thick, dry fabric still holding my body heat.

'Next...'

I headed straight to the small kitchenette in the corner of the counseling room.

I popped the brownies I'd baked earlier into the mini oven, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠warming them just enough to heat through.

I hesitated for a moment.

Black tea with caffeine might be poison for her in this state.

She needed deep sleep. Stability, not stimulation.

I poured milk into a small warmer, added a spoonful of honey, and stirred slowly.

- Ding!

The oven chimed cheerfully, signaling the brownies were ready.

I quietly set them down on the table in front of her.

Warm brownies and steaming honey milk.

Quickly, but without fuss.

I'd built her a perfect little shelter: safe, warm, and sweet.

A place to forget everything, if only for a while.

"......"

I sat across from her, saying nothing.

Now it was her turn to speak.

Waiting wasn't hard.

It's a counselor's basic virtue.

How many minutes passed?

Around the time the water droplets on her clothes began drying one by one in the heater's warmth.

Jahwa-yeon's lips parted.

"Counselor."

I met her gaze without replying.

Her eyes were trembling.

"...You were right."

Her voice echoed hollowly.

I waited calmly for her to continue.

"I thought everything was settled. The Left Protector... he wasn't just some subordinate to me. He was like an uncle I'd trusted and followed since childhood."

Her voice quivered faintly.

"So I wanted to believe it. That it was just a moment of blindness ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from lust for power. That if I set everything straight and disciplined him, things would go back to normal. Back to that loyal man he used to be. That's what I thought."

She bowed her head.

"But it wasn't."

Jahwa-yeon gazed down at her slender hands.

"I saw his final gaze. No pity, no regret. Just the rage of a failure—and hatred ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠toward me."

I listened without a flicker of expression.

Then, in a voice so small it was almost a crawl, she whispered.

"So. I."

"......"

"...killed him."

"The Left Protector, with my own hands."

I took in her calm confession without a change in expression.

'Better to be feared than loved.'

The line from The Prince I'd shared with her.

In truth, that wasn't the book's true intent.

'It is best to be both loved and feared. But if you must choose one, choose to be feared over loved.'

That was the full advice I'd given her.

If she'd had proper retainers and loyal vassals by her side, she might have pulled it off.

But surrounding her was an old tiger coveting her throne, and blindly vengeful zealots.

They might have helped at times, but not now.

In the end, Jahwa-yeon—who could never be a ruler loved by choice—finally embraced my counsel.

And became a ruler who inspired fear.

I didn't make her that way.

She didn't choose it either.

In the environment she was given, she'd simply made the best choice available.

She spoke softly.

"I can't forget it."

"Forget what?"

I finally replied.

"The looks in their eyes as they stared at me."

She slowly lifted her head to meet my gaze.

"Counselor."

"Yes."

"Are you... afraid of me?"

That question revealed just how cornered she felt.

A desperate one.

Heavenly Demon. Survival of the fittest. Supremacy of the strong.

The laws of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, natural as breathing.

Jahwa-yeon had grown up there since childhood, so she'd understood them intellectually.

But understanding and living it yourself were worlds apart.

She was also just a young woman.

Becoming an object of terror to everyone wasn't easy.

You just got used to it.

But surely there were people who supported and respected her.

If I pointed that out...

'5%...?'

That won't do.

The status window offered a clearer, better option.

Was my opinion that important to her?

I didn't look away from her gaze—instead, I leaned in a little closer.

"Can you read my expression?"

I whispered.

"I'm curious. Does it hold the same terror you saw in those subordinates' eyes?"

I met her eyes with a faint smile.

Jahwa-yeon's pupils slowly widened.

The black irises dilating bit by bit.

And then her head shook, ever so slowly, side to side.

"Of course not."

I lifted the corner of my mouth a touch higher and spoke deliberately.

"But on your face, Heavenly Demon... I see a hint of fear."

"What do you...!"

As she flustered, trying to respond, I gently cut her off.

"Don't be afraid."

If she wanted my support, I'd give it.

I'd be her understanding one.

Her one and only.

"I'll never fear you. Even if the whole world fears and shuns you, I won't fear the Heavenly Demon."

I declared it quietly, looking into her eyes.

"I'll love you as a sovereign. Ah, I mean as a loyal vassal offering my devotion."

Not romance. The Prince.

Her pupils shook violently, like an earthquake.

I watched her reaction calmly, then added with a tiny smile.

"Then at least to one person, you'll be a sovereign who is loved, won't you?"

Jahwa-yeon made no reply.

Couldn't, more like.

She simply lowered her head slowly, staring at the milk glass before her.

Silence filled the counseling room once more.

Only the patter of rain outside and the heater's hum occupied the space.

How much time passed?

As if recalling my final words, her face flushed red. She glared at me, stammering.

"I-Impertinent. This Seat is an existence like the heavens themselves. How dare you speak of such lowly emo—"

Like she'd scraped together the last scraps of her sovereign dignity.

"I see. Then I'll take it back."

"......"

I see.

But I had a better idea than just uncancelling.

I carefully cut a bite-sized piece of brownie from the table with a small spoon.

I dipped it briefly into the steaming milk glass—just enough to moisten it lightly.

The brownie, now infused with sweet milk, even richer and moister.

Into Jahwa-yeon's small mouth, which had opened in frantic protest.

"That's not wha— mmph!"

I slid it gently past her lips.

Her eyes flashed with surprise.

Then widened like a startled rabbit's at the sweetness on her tongue.

It must taste amazing.

As she lost herself in the flavor for that instant, I whispered softly.

"Forgive my impertinence."

A drop of white milk beaded at the corner of her mouth.

I naturally reached out with my thumb to wipe it away.

Her shoulders twitched again at the touch.

"I'll provide delicious treats like this from time to time."

"......"

Jahwa-yeon couldn't respond.

She simply nodded slowly.