51. An atmosphere where you have no choice
51. An atmosphere where you have no choice
-Kkuk! Kkuk!
Cheon Hwa-ryeong kept pressing firmly on Ryu-o's furrowed brow as he looked up at her.
She pressed down on the soft fuzz sprouting slightly on his wrinkled brow, smoothing out the creases...
'Cute little guy...'
Ever since that day... you know, the day she got 'that' from him, Cheon Hwa-ryeong hadn't been able to bring herself to use force against Ryu-o.
Just looking at him made her chest tighten painfully, her legs go weak, like all her energy was draining away?
If things had gone according to her original plan, she would've seduced this lewd bastard who got hard just from seeing her naked...
"So, what's the next realm?"
"...Jeoljeong. The highest realm known for humans to reach. The stage where you wield your internal energy like your own limbs."
Every time she tried to take off her clothes, her hands hesitated, her thighs clenched tight, making it so damn hard.
Why was this? Being with this guy made her heart disobey, her face heat up.
Just chatting like this made time fly by.
Cheon Hwa-ryeong, who had so desperately craved sleep, now found it unwelcome these days.
She should wake up refreshed and full of energy, but instead... it was just cold and empty.
Even with sunlight pouring onto the bed warming her body, it lacked any real warmth.
Oblivious to her thoughts, Ryu-o just kept asking questions with an intrigued look on his face.
"So, what's the next realm after that? Oh, I think I've heard of it somewhere..."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong wondered if she'd been swallowed by demonic temptation.
His thoughtful face looked pretty, his chattering lips cute, this was insane...
She just placed her hand on his forehead and murmured softly.
"Cho-jeoljeong. The final realm for a human. The limit and the highest stage."
"Sis, are you okay? Does it hurt somewhere?"
The sudden question flustered Cheon Hwa-ryeong.
Hurt? Where would it hurt when she was explaining so well...
-Swsh...
"Anemia? No, I got worried 'cause you were touching your forehead."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong blankly looked down at Ryu-o as he removed her hand and pressed his own to her forehead.
She'd thought he'd just excitedly ask about the next realm.
This cheeky bastard, worrying about who she was?
Normally, she would've snapped at him, Cheon Hwa-ryeong.
But her tongue twisted, pressing against the roof of her mouth, and nonsense came out.
"Y-You... Hm! Khum! I'm fine."
Ryu-o let out a groan and furrowed his brow.
"Tsk... Your forehead's burning up? Sis, you got a fever or something?"
...Cheon Hwa-ryeong shoved away Ryu-o's hand that was heating up her face and gritted her teeth.
-Smack!
"I said I'm fine. I'm already beyond the realm where fevers can touch me."
"Yeah? So what's your realm then, Sis? Cho-jeoljeong?"
Having achieved Hwangoltaltae and entered the realm of Hanseobulchim, Cheon Hwa-ryeong quickly cooled the heat from her face and feigned calm.
"Hah, a realm I surpassed long ago."
"Our age difference isn't that much..."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong looked at Ryu-o's sullen face and laughed happily.
"Kukuku, right? Not that much... unlike with some people."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
Reflecting on when she'd become so petty, Cheon Hwa-ryeong cleared her throat and explained.
"Ahem, Hwagyeong. The realm that surpasses the great wall of being human, beyond Gwongi..."
Normally, Cheon Hwa-ryeong would never act playful like this.
But her excited heart made her move.
As she clenched her fist, glowing threads of internal energy wrapped around Cheon Hwa-ryeong's hand.
"Wow..."
Finally, the bundled and woven threads blazed brightly as if to set the heavens ablaze.
-Bzzz!
It stole Ryu-o's gaze in an instant with its fierce, menacing light.
"The realm where you can wield Gwangang."
"...That's seriously cool. How'd you do it?"
Ryu-o's eyes sparkling wide, mouth agape.
Cheon Hwa-ryeong's chest warmed, her expression melting softly.
She lost all dignity, her lips curling up as she said.
"Hah, you draw out Gwongi thinly and call it threads, then weave and compress them to make Gwangang."
"Draw out the energy thinly? Oh..."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong wanted to hug Ryu-o tight and stroke him.
Mash him around, pin him down, roll around...
'...I need to put more effort into Training.'
Cheon Hwa-ryeong gathered her softening mind back to steel.
Recalling the great task she mustn't forget, wetting her body again with the blood of her followers...
-Bzzz...
"Huh? This?"
As Cheon Hwa-ryeong's gaze fell on Ryu-o's hand, a dumb sound escaped her lips.
"...? Huh?"
Vague threads of energy fluttered in the air from Ryu-o's palm, not quite Gwongi threads.
But the texture was similar—if he drew out even thinner strands, maybe?
No, first off, they shouldn't be floating around like hair in water...
It looked spineless, but if he ramped up the output and wrapped them around his hand, he could kinda mimic it.
Cheon Hwa-ryeong felt like the heavens she'd struggled to climb had collapsed.
A first-rate martial artist mimicking Seongganggi?
This couldn't be. The heavens would rage and punish this insolent fool.
The fluffy feelings from looking at Ryu-o vanished, her eyes rolling back.
"How the hell did you make that!!!"
"Huh? W-Why, what's wrong?"
"Quickly!"
Ryu-o, whose energy had been sloshing like seaweed, began explaining.
"Um... With a technique called Uitae—you know sweat glands? I made 'em like a dense body mesh on my palm, then let the energy flow gently like channeling..."
"What the hell are you saying!"
Even with her profound martial arts level, Cheon Hwa-ryeong couldn't comprehend.
Uitae for energy? This wasn't a joke...
But Ryu-o's response was even more absurd.
"Uh, like pulling noodles? So I just pulled out the internal energy from my body like drawing out strands of dough~"
"Haha... Hahahaha..."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong had no confidence in explaining where this guy went wrong.
If manifesting Seongganggi worked like pulling dough, everyone and their dog would be in Hwagyeong.
Not Hwagyeong, then half-Hwagyeong?
Anyway, all Cheon Hwa-ryeong could say was this.
"You crazy bastard..."
"Yeah? Is it that good?"
Thinking back to when Ryu-o had sucked the energy right out of her, Cheon Hwa-ryeong felt dizzy.
She pressed her forehead against Ryu-o's, kneading firmly.
"Hoo..."
"Sis?"
"I don't have the energy to scold you. No confidence in messing with your methods either..."
Looking at Ryu-o's dissatisfied expression, Cheon Hwa-ryeong thought.
'...Long eyebrows...'
-Bam!
"??? What the! Why headbutt me?"
"Shut up! Sit in lotus position."
"Sis, I'm worried about you as your junior. Your Mago side effects have been getting worse lately..."
As Cheon Hwa-ryeong glared with a fierce expression, Ryu-o rolled his eyes and played dumb.
Her anger melted away in an instant, her face softening slightly.
Cheon Hwa-ryeong's chest kept tickling, so she pulled the lotus-positioned Ryu-o into a hug to hide her expression.
-Squeeze!
"Sis, you haven't been doing this pose lately, why today..."
Cheon Hwa-ryeong couldn't even imagine her heartbeat echoing into Ryu-o's head.
"...Yesterday's Training was tough."
She could only make a lame excuse with her brain refusing to turn.
Cheon Hwa-ryeong wasn't clueless.
Ryu-o wasn't clueless either.
The two pretended to fool each other, hiding behind each other's shoulders.
-Thump! Thump! Thump!
Cheon Hwa-ryeong thought.
'...Feels good.'
Herself melting into his firm embrace? The mingling warmth? The resonating heartbeats?
Or Ryu-o?
'All of it.'
Cheon Hwa-ryeong didn't realize her greed had diminished.
Normally, she'd have stripped everything off and put this lewd stud into heat...
Having lost the initiative, Cheon Hwa-ryeong would've settled for just this.
-Spring! Gulp♥
If only this lewd bastard hadn't shoved in that thing that made her holes clench just thinking about it...
"You... you crazy fuck... Hah, you were quiet for a while..."
"Mago!"
The two stared at each other with flushed red faces.
"It's because of Mago..."
"Y-Yeah... it is..."
Her overheated mind restricted even a Hwagyeong martial artist's vision.
Then what about a first-rate martial artist?
"Haa... haa..."
"Hah... I'm going crazy."
Right now, it felt like only the two of them existed in the world.
The two who thought they'd been holding back well.
Like a dam bursting... no, like a volcano erupting...
♥♥♥
The Labyrinth City, so open it's practically gaping wide!
The sleazy women's conversation topics always boiled down to one thing.
Guys.
Eastern guys look the best~ Western guys are the most aggressive~
'Hey! What about the North!' and Northern guys aren't popular.
'Cause their personalities are too strong? Too dumb? No.
Relative to their looks, their personalities are too prickly.
Over half the tribes in the North prize plump, chubby builds for men since they gotta spread seed.
'Eat a lot to shit a lot' or whatever... but they're arrogant and brutal too?
From a woman's view, even if offered, they wouldn't touch it.
Tangent over.
And when debating the open districts, one area always gets excluded.
The South.
The South isn't just open—it's a full-on pleasure district.
East and West have brothels and whorehouses too, but they're sneaky side gigs...
The South is blatantly for banging.
Given Labyrinth City's nature, women's libidos have no choice but to run high.
Their livelihoods are life-or-death, and after dungeons, stress makes their pussies itch like mad.
Eastern and Western merchants and pimps targeted that market, flocking to the South.
As it grew, Labyrinth City's South settled into that vibe entirely...
"Oh my~ Sis~ Swing by our shop!!!"
Guys in thin clothes hawking were everywhere, practically getting kicked.
A pink-haired girl waved and smiled at the scrawny dudes.
"Sorry! I'm looking for a whore!"
"Huh? Sis, you're into girls? Then head straight to the Southeast!"
"Oh! Thanks, gigolo! But not like that!"
-Ding~
The male prostitute deftly caught the tossed silver coin and grinned brightly.
"Hoho~ Thanks! Then, for that hot guy next to ya? For three, head to the Southwest~"
"... Haha, if the sky falls, maybe I'll check it out..."
Ethan, looking troubled, waved and followed Riner.
Riner skipped along lalala.
Ethan grew cautious in the face of true madness.
"Miss Riner? Where are you headed?"
His Master had been worried, so he'd followed.
Seeing Ethan tilt his head, Riner beamed.
"Gonna get a love potion!"
"...? Pardon?"
"They say the South's full of drugs that make guys' dicks spring up and shake their hips like crazy!"
How was that a love potion?
Just an aphrodisiac? Drugs?
Ethan smiled and nodded.
"Are you retarded, Miss Riner?"
Riner tilted her head like she genuinely had no idea.
"Yeah?"