A Rising Realm, and the Birth of Malice (1)
When I woke from my sleep, the red-haired woman lying beside me — wearing the ring I had slipped onto her finger with my own hands just yesterday — was still breathing softly in her sleep.
I reached out and gently stroked her hair, and before long Yeon let out a sleepy little hum and burrowed deeper into my chest.
"Mmmm...."
Thinking about how this woman showed a fire-breathing temper and swore without hesitation at everyone else, yet only ever showed me this side of herself...
it made me feel something hard to put into words.
In the middle of all that, Yeon cracked her eyes open into slits and, still tucked against my chest, spoke up.
Her voice was low and heavy with sleep.
"I wanna sleep a little more..."
I checked the clock. It was around eight in the morning.
By now Ellie would have just been waking up to prepare for the day's work.
I figured letting her sleep another thirty minutes couldn't hurt.
So there I lay, staying perfectly still so the woman who had unilaterally occupied my chest could sleep a little longer.
"Pet my head for me..."
It was only now that I truly noticed it — Yeon absolutely loved physical affection.
Most of her requests yesterday had been exactly that, after all.
And among them, the demand to have her head petted had come pouring out like a hailstorm.
Did she think she was a puppy or something?
Of course, if I refused, she'd instantly sulk, so it wasn't like I could say no.
Swoosh. Swoosh.
I raised my hand, rested my palm on the crown of her head, and slowly drew it down, smoothing her hair.
Looking thoroughly pleased with herself, she nestled even closer, and soon her breathing settled back into a steady rhythm.
The problem was...
"N-no... it's touching me..!!"
her soft, yielding parts were pressing against me far too much.
Having zero immunity to this kind of thing in the first place, I was a man who hadn't given a single thought to such experiences until Ellie got drunk and tried to seduce me.
Not to brag or anything...
it's just that this kind of experience wasn't familiar to me...
So while it was, in practical terms, only thirty minutes,
for me it was an agonizing eternity of endurance.
Finally, Yeon stretched with a yawn and said,
"Slept great... See? Mornings are so much better with a handsome man beside you."
"....."
Shaking my head side to side to clear my mind, I headed into the bathroom to wash up first.
By the time I'd washed my hair, washed my face, and brushed my teeth, Yeon was waiting outside the bathroom for her turn.
"What are you doing today?"
The moment I stepped out, she fired off the question burning in her mind.
I paused to think it over.
There wasn't really anything on the agenda today — at most, helping Ellie with her work, and that was about it.
Oh, right. I still needed to introduce her to my little sister.
The problem was whether my sister would stay quiet once she saw how things were going with me.
If she learned I had two girlfriends, she wouldn't just draw her bow — she'd probably fire her arrows while using her Dragon's Eye to track me down.
But I couldn't exactly skip the introduction either, so I decided to introduce my sister and Yeon to each other and get it over with.
"Have you ever seen my sister?"
"Your sister?"
She fidgeted, unable to get the words out.
She'd heard about my past from Ellie, so she was probably worried she might say something insensitive.
"Don't worry. My sister's alive."
".....Huh?"
"Lord Blue Dragon has been protecting her."
"Phew... thank goodness... She must be so loved by Lord Blue Dragon. To personally keep her own disciple safe like that..."
Loved or not — my sister was the child who emerged from among the disciples that the Blue Dragon had painstakingly raised.
Of course the Blue Dragon would take an interest in me, and place expectations on me.
"Go wash up. We need to let Ellie know about us, too."
"Okay."
Yeon's body was still in a bad way.
Two weeks of stiffness meant her legs didn't move properly, so she needed a bit of help from me whenever she washed — I'd been assisting her with the basics.
I helped her with her hair and part of her face-washing,
and was slowly blow-drying her damp, reddened hair with warm air.
"Ah!"
Startled by a sensation she'd never felt before, she grabbed her own head and spun around to look at me.
"Wh-what did you just do??"
"I'm drying your hair with my authority?"
"Oh... I see..."
What was that. What did she just get disappointed over?
"What on earth were you imagining, you brat?"
"...Mm, I thought you were blowing on my hair."
"....."
No, this girl is getting a little...
Before we started dating, she'd been a cheerful, easy-to-get-along-with friend.
Now? There was no one in the world who spent the entire day lost in nothing but indecent thoughts.
And she's actually disappointed that it wasn't breath on her hair?
My jaw just hit the floor.
Anyway. If I'm going to do something for her, I'll do it properly.
"Turn around. I'll finish drying it."
"Okay~."
At my words she turned her head, showing me the long fall of her hair.
I aimed the warm air at her head again and, combing through her hair strand by strand with my fingers, dried it slowly.
Though her hair was a bit more damaged than Ellie's — the ends had started to split.
It was probably the dryness, plus how tightly Yeon bound her hair whenever she wielded her sword. In our current situation, there wasn't a single jar of conditioning cream to be found.
I decided I'd just have to tell her to drink plenty of water.
That was the method my mother had taught me back when my own hair got split ends.
It took a while, but the results were pretty reliable.
"Your ends are splitting a little, so drink a lot of water."
"...? Okay."
She clearly had no idea what I meant, but her tone said she'd give it a try since I asked. At least she listened well.
The two of us left the room, and the first place we headed was Ellie's office.
The knight standing guard in front of the office gave us a small bow of greeting,
and Yeon and I both inclined our heads in return, showing proper courtesy to the man on duty.
I asked the knight,
"Is the Lord present at the moment?"
The knight nodded and answered.
"Yes, she's inside. Shall I announce you?"
I waved a palm lightly side to side.
"No need. This conversation might run long, so we'll go in ourselves."
At my words, the knight nodded and granted us entry.
I knocked on the office door, and the sound carried all the way into the room.
Ellie had given her permission, but... I was still so nervous.
What if she slapped me across the face and told me to get out?
Well, if that happened, it happened.
I'd just have to get down on my knees and beg. The saying that a man's knees must stay heavy is worthless advice when you've wronged your own woman.
'My son. If you ever anger a girlfriend or a wife, kneel at once. That is the way you survive.'
'Honey! What kind of advice is that for our son?!'
Father... only now do I truly understand your words...
Before long, Ellie's voice came through the door in answer to my knock.
"Yeah. Come in."
It wasn't an angry voice, or a weary one.
Even though she'd surely realized I hadn't been in her bedroom last night...
I went in anyway.
Meanwhile, Yeon apparently didn't feel a shred of nervousness — she flung the door wide open and marched in with a beaming grin.
"Ellie~"
And then, without a shred of hesitation, she greeted Ellie.
Ellie, seated at her desk, looked at her.
"Oh, it's Yeon. Welcome."
She received her warmly.
Meanwhile, I was learning firsthand what it meant to sit on pins and needles as I entered the room.
And when Ellie finally turned her gaze toward me,
she let out a little snort of laughter and rose from her seat.
"Why so terrified, hm? My dear lover?"
"....."
"Hyeon. You thought you'd betrayed my trust, didn't you?"
At that single line, which read my heart perfectly,
I nodded quietly.
"Yeah."
"You have never once betrayed my trust. Did you really think I wouldn't have noticed Yeon's feelings, and the feelings you'd been carrying all this time?"
As the lord of the domain, she was far more perceptive than anyone else around her.
It was precisely her role to read the tide of battle at a glance while waging war against the demons, and to steer it so that the situation flowed in our army's favor.
On top of that, running a territory meant she never shied away from business either — so of course she knew exactly how to read people's intentions and emotions.
"You've never broken my trust, not once. I had already given my blessing for you to confess to Yeon, so there was nothing happening that I didn't know about."
"And if you want to call it a betrayal, that wouldn't even make sense — because the moment you bring another woman to me, all you'd be doing is asking for my permission. That would be me commanding the betrayal, wouldn't it?"
Then she turned her gaze and asked Yeon a question.
"Has Hyeon ever disregarded your feelings, or deliberately refused to accept them?"
At Ellie's question, Yeon shook her head.
"Nope? He's been wonderful to me."
Ellie turned her gaze back to me.
"See? The Hyeon I know would never shatter my trust. But."
"...But..?"
"If you focus only on Yeon from now on, even I don't know what might happen. If you gave Yeon a one, then give me a one too. You can do that much, right?"
In the end, she was saying she wanted to be loved too.
Not love doled out equally — love doubled for both of us. That was what Ellie's words held.
I nodded.
"I will."
"Good. That's all I needed."
Still, it wasn't as if she had no desire to have me to herself.
Everyone needed to understand the sheer generosity of heart with which Ellie considered both me and the others.
At the very least, Yeon and I had to understand what was in Ellie's heart.
Realizing that this whole relationship endured only thanks to Ellie's enormous, forgiving heart, I moved to her side and began assisting as she restarted her work.
The workload had finally returned to its usual volume.
In the first week after the attack, there had been so much of it I genuinely wondered if I would work myself to death.
Through the second week it had gradually lessened, and only now had it settled back to this normal amount.
With me, Ellie, and now even Yeon pitching in bit by bit, the work picked up speed, and we finished far earlier than yesterday.
"Good work, everyone. That's today's duties done?"
"Good work, Ellie. You too, Yeon."
"Uuuggh... I thought I was going to die just staring at documents for so long..."
Watching her slump face-down across the desk, Ellie and I exchanged a quiet laugh.
And so, wrapped up in pleasant conversation with my two lovers, the time for my sister's training arrived.
"Shall we head over to the training grounds soon? It's almost time for Seul's training, after all."
At the mention of training, Ellie quietly rose from her seat.
As I stood to follow her and watch my sister's progress, Yeon looked at us and spoke up.
"Can't I come too?"
"You were going to introduce me to your sister anyway. And since I'll be helping with her training... can't I just come along?"
Come to think of it, I did need to introduce Yeon to my sister regardless.
If I wanted to avoid an awkward situation where they suddenly met and went 'Who are you?' / '? And who might you be?', introducing them quickly really was the better move.
I nodded in agreement, and Ellie likewise gave Yeon a firm yes, inviting her along.
As we left the office and headed for the training grounds, we heard something strike with ferocious force.
My sister was already firing her bow, it seemed.
Ellie had told me that, as expected of a Successor, my sister displayed truly astounding archery.
Apparently curving an arrow mid-flight was quite difficult, and she was still struggling with it — but Ellie had also said that my sister was the kind of girl who accomplished whatever she set her mind to, so she'd surely master that too in due time.
Before long, my sister's bowstring drew taut once more, and just as she was about to release,
she set the string back in place and lowered her bow, speaking in a low voice.
"Oppa. Come out. I'm using my skill right now, and I can see you in my field of view."
And here I'd been planning to watch her skills in secret. Mission failed.
"You can see me?"
"Mm. I can. Wait a moment. Let me just shoot this one."
"Got it. Go ahead."
Up close, I could see my sister's eyes — they were split vertically, like a serpent's.
When my own emotions had once run unchecked and the dragon's blood in me had stirred, my pupils had slit the same way hers were now.
Soon my sister twisted the bowstring in her grip once, then loosed the arrow fiercely forward.
Twang!
Thock!
The arrow bent its path into a single curve, and then — as if it had never changed course at all — it swerved back and buried itself dead center in the target.
"I did it!"
Even having done it herself, she seemed genuinely amazed, raising her voice louder than usual, her face glowing with triumph.
"Nice shot."
"Obviously. Whose daughter do you think I am?"
Um, excuse me, I'm our parents' son too, you know?
Whether or not she read that thought, my sister walked over to Ellie and said,
"Ellie, I finally did it!"
"I know, I was watching. Then this time I'll teach you something harder."
"Yes!"
Chatting familiarly with Ellie, my sister turned her gaze to the side and looked at Yeon.
Then she held out her right hand to her and said,
"Hello. I've heard a lot about you from my oppa."
Apparently she hadn't expected to be greeted first, because Yeon froze up, flustered, unable to do anything at all.
Watching her panic, it was my sister — of all people — who told her to relax and calmed her down.
Who's the older one here, exactly?
Yeon is one year older than Ellie, mind you...
Looking at her alone, I'd believe it if someone told me my sister was twenty-five.
"Your name is... Hwa Yeon, right?"
"Yes, that's me."
Having recovered thanks to my sister, Yeon nodded and clasped her outstretched right hand.
And with that, the ring on Yeon's left ring finger began to sparkle, flaunting its presence for all to see.
"That ring... isn't it really similar to the one Ellie wears? It's so pretty. Do you have a boyfriend?"
At those words, Yeon nodded and answered.
"Yes. I do. Is the ring pretty?"
"Mhm, it's almost identical to the one Ellie has, so I think that's why my eye keeps going to it."
What are you doing, showing off like that directly in front of the man who gave you that ring?
I dreaded to imagine what kind of look my sister would give me if she found out I was the one who gave Yeon that ring...
And then, a single line from my sister stopped that thought dead.
"So then, oppa. Why do I wonder... why Yeon's ring and Ellie's ring are exactly the same as yours?"
"....?????"
"Oppa, you keep forgetting my skill exists, don't you?"
Oh. Right...
But even so — how can you confirm a ring with a skill??
"So then. Explain yourself. Why is a ring that should only be worn by you and Ellie currently sitting on Yeon's left. ring. finger."
...This seems way less salvageable, actually?
Having absolutely nothing to say, I couldn't produce a single word for my sister.
And toward me, standing there speechless, my sister said:
"Mom and Dad would be so delighted to hear this. Their one and only son, caught philandering right in front of his own little sister — they'd be simply astonished."
"N-no, it's not cheating—!"
"Save the excuses. Whatever the case, Yeon and Ellie are both your lovers right now, aren't they? Am I wrong?"
"...No, you're not."
"Hah. Look how shameless you are."
My sister turned her head toward Ellie and said,
"Ellie, aren't you even angry? That piece of trash brought another woman behind your back?"
And Ellie replied,
"Behind my back? I approved of it, you know?"
It was my sister, this time, who was thrown into confusion by those words.
"Wh... what? I must have misheard you. Approved of what, exactly?"
"You heard me right. I approved of that relationship."
My sister turned her head back toward me, wearing the death-glare of a vengeful spirit.
"What in the world did you do to make Ellie like that, hm?"
Before long, my sister drew an arrow from her quiver and said,
"I can't do it to Ellie or Yeon, so in their place, I'll personally take care of removing the problem for them."
At that chilling line from my sister, I asked, just in case.
"Th-that is... just to be clear... remove what, exactly...? Little sister?"
My sister's gaze slid downward.
"Don't worry. They teach sex education and all sorts of things over here too, so you already know how to make 'that thing' lose its function, don't you?"
Chills!
"...N-now hold on, that's not— wait, stay back."
"Come here, oppa. Aren't you coming?"
And so, after sprinting around the training grounds for a full hour, desperately evading my sister with my life on the line, I was currently hiding behind Ellie's back.
Of course, since I towered over Ellie by a good margin, I was hidden about as effectively as a barn behind a fence post.
My sister looked at the pathetic sight of me with utter contempt and said...
"Fine, I won't. Come out! Who said anything about actually removing anything?"
You were chasing me like you meant to kill me just a minute ago???!!
But if I voiced that thought, she might pick her arrowheads right back up and come after me again,
so all I could do was nod meekly and take the seat beside Ellie.
My sister sighed at the sight of me, then turned her gaze to the women and said,
"Seriously, why do you two like this absolute piece of garbage?"
To that question, Ellie and Yeon replied:
"He's cute."
"Because he's cute."
The identical answers naturally enraged my sister a second time, and she reached for her arrowheads again —
but thanks to Ellie stopping her, I survived.
Though my sister's disgust toward me seemed to have grown even larger.
"Ugh... to think something like that is my one and only blood relative..."
".....Mmhm..."
"Well, the Hung Continent legalizes harems anyway, so I can't really say anything. If everyone involved gave their consent, I have even less right to interfere."
It's way too late to be saying that now...
Oppa just felt more genuine terror there, no joke, than he did facing Asmodeus.
"But if you ever make Ellie or that 'Yeon-unnie' over there cry, you're dead to me."
"H-hey. I'm still your oppa, so the way you address me..."
"Answer me."
"...Yes..."
Ellie watched the whole scene looking utterly delighted,
and Yeon, apparently overjoyed that my sister had called her "unnie," couldn't wipe the smile off her face.
That's right... as long as Ellie and Yeon were happy, that was all that mattered...
And so, with the truth now laid bare before my sister as well, Ellie and Seul stepped onto the training grounds.
And the open space beside them was designated for Yeon and me.
Yeon's body had been stiff for two weeks, and she'd suggested that she wanted to loosen it up — by crossing blades with me. That was how this arrangement came to be.
The sword Yeon held now was not Moglay, but an ordinary iron sword.
Yeon had decided, unexpectedly, neither to throw away the shattered Moglay nor to have it repaired — she would simply keep it herself.
Because it was Moglay that had kept her from being hurt far worse, and because it was Moglay that had let her protect the person she loved.
And so, standing before Moglay, she had vowed: So I, your master, will never abandon you either.
The people of the Dong Empire tended to believe that a weapon given true affection carried a soul.
Perhaps that was why Yeon had shown such a side of herself as well.
Before long, as Yeon and I faced each other on the training grounds with our blades raised,
a powerful instinct struck me — that I had to pour my mana into the sword.
The moment I did, flames ran along the blade, blazing in dazzling brilliance.
Where Yeon's flame was the white flame that purified all things,
my flame was the black flame that devoured all things.
Everyone standing on the training grounds — watching me — could not take their eyes off the blade-fire I had raised.
And that included me, the very one who had summoned it.