Chapter 113: A Woman's Transformation is Innocent, But This Much is Definitely Guilty (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 113: A Woman's Transformation is Innocent, But This Much is Definitely Guilty (2)
Early dawn.
Beep-beep-beep— Beep-beep-beep—
The alarm blared before the sun had even risen, waking Shin Yu-jeong from her sleep.
After splashing some water on her face to wash away the lingering drowsiness, she left the house.
“Hoo… hoo…!”
She sprinted forward, overtaking everyone who had started their day with a light jog.
This was a new addition to her workout routine, something she’d started a few days ago.
There was only one reason she’d started jogging.
‘I can’t lose to Elena!’
She had been spurred on by Elena, her teammate and a fellow Tanker.
Shin Yu-jeong had never once thought her stamina was lacking.
But for the first time, watching Elena move while carrying a tower shield heavier than her own gear, never tiring before she did, made her feel inadequate.
She didn’t want to lose in a single category.
Especially not to someone in the same position.
So, she decided to increase her training.
She considered extending her morning or afternoon strength training sessions but quickly gave up on the idea.
‘I can’t cut down my time with Do-jin.’
She already felt like she didn't have enough time with him. Reducing it further was out of the question.
But her pride wouldn't allow her to just accept defeat.
After much deliberation, she made her choice.
‘I’ll just sleep less!’
She usually slept for about six hours.
She decided to sacrifice one of those hours.
“Hoo…!”
After running for a full hour at a pace several times faster than an average person, her entire body was drenched in sweat.
Thirty minutes out, thirty minutes back.
Having run for a solid hour, she headed straight home.
She opened the door as usual, but something felt off.
“……?”
Normally, the moment she opened the door, she would be greeted by the sounds of cooking from the kitchen and the mouth-watering aroma of food. But today, there was nothing.
Tilting her head, she walked toward the kitchen.
Instead of her mother telling her to hurry up and wash, she was met by a dark, silent kitchen.
She soon decided not to think much of it.
“…She must have overslept.”
It had never happened before, but her mom was only human.
If she was tired or not feeling well, she could oversleep.
“She’s getting older, after all…”
It was a sad thought, but her mother wasn't young anymore.
Her face was still youthful, so she didn't look her age, but she couldn't fool her own body.
‘Should I offer to cook sometimes…? Do-jin seemed to like my cooking.’
It was a filial thought, but one that would make Kim Do-jin jump out of his skin if he heard it. With that in mind, she opened the refrigerator.
As she turned around after pouring herself a tall glass of cold water, she sensed a presence behind her.
“Sorry, sweetie… It seems Mom overslept for once. I wonder why I didn't hear the alarm…?”
Shin Yu-jeong was gulping down the water to quench her burning thirst as she turned around.
“Pfft—!”
The moment she turned, she spat out the mouthful of water.
Drip, drip.
The water trickled powerlessly down her chin.
She asked with a dazed expression.
“…Who are you?”
She had turned around after hearing her mother’s voice.
The person she was facing was definitely her mother, and yet… it wasn’t.
* * *
“Kyaaah!”
Even before my alarm could go off, another sound intruded, waking me from my sleep.
I knew what was happening the moment I heard it.
It seemed my dear Jeong-hee had woken up and seen a mirror.
If so, her next move was obvious.
Bang, bang, bang!
“Do-jin! If you’re awake, could you open the door… No, even if you’re not, could you please wake up and open it?!”
Her urgent voice pierced through the door.
Then, another voice rang loudly in my ears.
“Hey! What the hell did you feed my mom, you crazy bastard!”
Ah.
That was unexpected.
Come to think of it, I wasn't the only one who would see her face in the morning.
“I’m in for another earful.”
A bitter smile formed on my lips as I imagined the lecture I was about to get from her.
Putting that aside for now, it was time to admire Jeong-hee’s newly changed face.
I walked leisurely to the entrance and unlocked the door.
The door opened immediately.
Her face, backlit by the bright sunlight as if by a halo, came into view.
“D-Do-jin. I just woke up and… I look like this…”
“Uh, um.”
They say that when a person is truly shocked, they become so bewildered they can’t react at all.
I was experiencing that feeling for the first time in my life.
Really… I was speechless.
I just didn't know.
How to react, what to say first.
It felt as if all my rational senses, my ability to judge anything, were completely paralyzed.
It wasn't that her face had drastically changed.
The hundred-year moonflower may be a spirit flower, but it wasn't capable of the ultimate cosmetic surgery, like turning an ugly face handsome.
Her aura hadn't changed much either.
Elegant, graceful, gentle… yet at the same time, endlessly bewitching. Just as she always was.
The one thing that had changed dramatically about her face was the trace of time.
No matter how young she looked, her skin had borne the marks of the years she couldn't quite overcome.
Things you wouldn't notice from afar, but would become apparent up close.
All of those marks had vanished completely, replaced by vitality and elasticity.
Her skin was firm and dewy, a porcelain complexion with pores so fine they were nearly invisible even up close.
I had already imagined it last night while drinking the tea.
What would she look like, even younger than she was now?
…Vague fantasies are supposed to lose some of their power when they become reality, but this time, it was the complete opposite.
If anything, it made me lament how poor my imagination had been.
Conscious of Shin Yu-jeong’s gaze, I barely managed to suppress the urge to pull her into an immediate embrace.
“No matter how much I think about it, the only reason for this has to be the tea you gave me last night… Am I right?”
“Uh… yes, that’s right.”
I couldn't reveal the whole truth right now.
The hundred-year moonflower was not only expensive but an ultra-rare ingredient that was never on the market.
If she asked me where I got it, I’d have no answer, so I needed to fudge it with a plausible excuse.
“Well, I’m a little surprised myself.”
“Surprised…?”
“I, uh, found it while clearing a dungeon recently. I heard the flower was good for the skin, so I thought it would be a nice gift for you, Ajumma. I just brewed it for you, but I had no idea the effect would be this dramatic…”
I know, it’s a flimsy lie.
But what can I do? It is what it is because I say it is.
The flimsier the lie, the more brazen and composed one needs to be.
Just then, Shin Yu-jeong, who was standing behind her, shot a sharp question at me.
“A dungeon? What dungeon? You always went with us. And in all the dungeons we cleared, there wasn't a single flower.”
Sharp, but not sharp enough.
“…I went for a bit over the weekend. With someone else, not you guys.”
“Someone else? Who?”
There was only one person in my circle who could lend this lie a shred of credibility.
“With Yoon Ji-an.”
At the mention of a familiar name, Shin Yu-jeong’s face twisted into a scowl.
“Just the two of you?”
“No, it was me, Ji-an, and two other staff members from the Association. Four of us.”
“Hmm…”
I could see her anger subsiding a notch.
I turned my head toward Jeong-hee, who was still fidgeting, and said.
“I just thought it was a simple moonflower… but I guess it wasn't so simple after all.”
“I-I suppose so.”
She kept stroking her face with her hand, as if she still couldn't believe it.
It must feel completely different to her own touch.
She had now reached a point where it would be embarrassing to call her "Ajumma" in front of others.
Before, you could have generously guessed she was in her early to mid-thirties. Now, she could easily pass for her late twenties.
If someone called her "Ajumma" in public now, they’d probably get an earful for being so rude to a young lady.
“So, is that flower all gone now?” Shin Yu-jeong asked, hoping for a share of the prize.
This kid is so greedy.
What more could a girl who’s already young and vibrant gain from it?
“Unfortunately, I used it all up yesterday.”
“Ah…”
Shin Yu-jeong sighed and shot me a cute, resentful glare.
I’ll pretend there’s none left for now and slip her one later.
“Anyway, Ajumma.”
“Y-Yes.”
I spoke in a serious tone to her, who still wore a bewildered expression.
“Congratulations.”
At my words, her expression slowly brightened.
She seemed to have caught on to the meaning behind what I just said.
That her becoming younger wasn't an unintended accident.
Well, it’s fine if she figures that much out.
“…Yes, thanks to you, Do-jin, I’ve received a great gift.”
“Hmph, you jerk. You only give it to Mom and not me…”
Jeong-hee smacked the back of Shin Yu-jeong, who was grumbling and fuming beside her, and exclaimed cheerfully.
“Do-jin gave this to me because he was thinking of me. Why are you trying to get a share? You’re already young.”
“Ugh, whatever!”
As if to show just how sulky she was, she stomped her feet and stormed downstairs.
And just like that, the two of us were left alone.
I was about to reach out to hold her, even for a moment, when she made an unexpected move.
The moment Shin Yu-jeong was out of sight, she burrowed into my arms first.
“Fufu… You really kept your promise.”
The promise she mentioned must have been what I said back then, that I would let her live as a witch.
I hugged her even tighter and said.
“Of course, I had to. It was a promise to you, after all.”
I asked her as she rested in my arms with a smile.
“People will really think you’re a young lady when you go out now, won’t they? Men will be clamoring for your number.”
“Hoho, are you worried?”
“No.”
The time for such worries had long passed.
She looked up at me and said.
“Honestly, I don’t care anymore. Not about what other people think, or how I look to them. It’s just… how you see me, Do-jin… that’s what’s most important to me now.”
She gazed at me with an even more suggestive look in her eyes.
“So tell me. How do I… look in your eyes right now?”
I could come up with any number of compliments.
Given enough time, I could have mobilized all sorts of flowery language, dozens or even hundreds of words.
But the answer that came out was utterly simple, and for that reason, honest.
“You’re beautiful.”
Firm and clear, as if no other words were needed.
My attitude was rewarded in kind.
“Are you free tonight?”
“…Even if I’m not, I’ll make time.”
“Then make time.”
She pulled away from my embrace, gestured to herself, and continued.
“Looking like this… don’t you think it would be okay for us to go on a date outside?”
“…Definitely.”
The indescribable charm and atmosphere created by the mix of mature beauty accumulated over the years and a new, sparkling vitality left me dazed. All I could do was nod and stare blankly.
A thought suddenly struck me.
A dizzying thought… that perhaps, with my own two hands, I had just unleashed an impossibly bewitching creature upon the world.