Chapter 132: How to Tame Her (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 132: How to Tame Her (3)
Was it because I loved her more, or was that just my way of loving, regardless of the weight of our affections?
Or perhaps, was I the one being trained by her?
I don't know for sure which it was, but she was always the one on top.
And where there is a top, a bottom naturally follows.
Yes.
I was always beneath her.
I thought it was only natural.
When an argument arose, unless we were prepared for a life-or-death struggle, the best solution would have been for both of us to take a fair step back. But what could I do if one side didn't want that?
The next best thing was for me to be the one to step back first.
Since that resolved most things amicably, I was naturally tamed into it.
People are just hard to understand.
So… to summarize all of this, I lived my life worshiping her like a queen.
It wasn't difficult at first.
The phrase "worshiping her like a queen" felt hollow because she loved and understood me just as much.
But now, I feel like all of that was wrong.
It makes me wonder if her coldness toward me is because of that past.
The thought that, deceived by comfort, she came to see my actions as her due, and her own behavior as correct.
So this time, I plan to try a different approach.
Not one where I accommodate her, but one where she accommodates me.
“How audacious.”
As Han Ju-hee said this, her eyebrow arched slightly.
The meaning was clear.
She didn't like the way this situation was flowing, against her wishes.
In the past, just seeing that expression would have been enough to make me grovel, but I won't do that anymore.
“It’s because I want so many things. And… what I want changes all the time.”
Her brow furrowed even more at my sly response.
“It sounds like you’re telling me to bring you whatever I can think of, and then you’ll judge and score my offerings… I’m not sure if I’m understanding you correctly.”
The mana in the air began to shift.
The translucent, blue-tinged mana started to glow red, hot like her crimson hair.
The entirely reddened mana affected the ambient temperature.
“…It’s suddenly hot.”
Despite the weather heralding the coming of winter, I felt a heat that seemed to scorch my throat.
It seemed she was a little angry.
I could understand.
Being toyed with by a young pup like me, it would be strange for someone with her pride to remain calm.
Most people would have been the same.
If an S-rank Hunter showed overt displeasure or annoyance, things would quickly start moving in the direction they wanted.
I was like that, too.
I never even intended to pressure them; I was just curious, yet everything would change in a flash to suit my wishes.
So, for her, who was so openly displaying her will, it was plain to see how things usually went.
If I were to submit and tuck my tail between my legs here, I would end up as just one of her many followers.
Just another person she could replace or change her mind about whenever she pleased.
To overcome that, I needed courage, and the ability to back it up.
“Is summer trying to come, skipping winter and spring…?”
As I spoke, I flicked my index finger, releasing a blast of frigid wind around the superheated mana.
The temperature plummeted in an instant.
“……!”
Seeing her eyes widen, I smoothed down the fluttering front of my shirt and offered the most refreshing smile I could muster.
“That’s much cooler now.”
Having witnessed something astonishing, her emotions subsided.
The mana, having lost its master’s anger, could no longer heat the atmosphere and dissipated into nothing.
I stopped the chilly wind once the temperature was just right.
With no magic circle, no incantation.
As one of the world's foremost mages, she had already achieved synchronization with her mana.
What had just happened was a result of that phenomenon.
As her emotions flared, her mana responded in kind, naturally extending outwards to heat the surroundings.
She is the Scarlet Witch, the mage who wields fire magic with the greatest breadth and depth in the world.
And I had just interfered with her emotional expression.
Of course, anyone could interfere.
All they’d have to do is release a cold wind like I did to cool the surrounding mana.
What made this simple method so shocking was that the process of activating it was completely absent.
The series of steps required for a spell to be cast correctly—magic circles, mana condensation, incantations—were all deleted, and the magic was activated instantly.
I had just revealed one of the cards I’d been hiding so carefully.
All to leave a distinct impact on her.
She was a woman worth the effort.
Whether for lust or for revenge, she was valuable enough for both.
After a long moment of shock, she finally parted her lips.
“…You’ve been hiding your true skills all this time. And something this incredible, at that.”
“As you can see, it’s the kind of ability that would draw endless obsession if it were known.”
She looked at me with a much softer gaze and asked.
“Why show me a power you’ve kept so tightly under wraps?”
“There’s only one reason.”
“……?”
As she tilted her head in confusion, I threw out a cryptic statement, one that could be interpreted in many ways depending on the person.
“Because I’d like you, Tower Lord… Han Ju-hee, to become a little obsessed with me.”
Her brow furrowed slightly at my words.
Not missing the chance, I added another comment.
“You’ll get wrinkles on that carefully maintained face. You should probably avoid making expressions like that.”
A blatant attack on her age.
I had to constantly walk the line.
Only by relentlessly shaking her, by treading that irregular line drawn somewhere between rudeness and rugged charm, would even a sliver of a possibility emerge.
The possibility of dragging her down to the very bottom.
Before Han Ju-hee could voice her complaint, I continued.
“You probably won’t regret it. The more you obsess over me, the more you dig into me… the more you’ll discover things even more amazing than what I just showed you, you see?”
“……”
Her expression was one of deep thought.
She was probably trying to figure out if I was bluffing or if this was real.
Jumping in recklessly would hurt her pride, and there were likely many other complications.
Shall we stop here for today, then?
I stood up from my seat without any lingering attachment.
“You’ll need time to think, so I’ll give you some space.”
At that moment, another way to surprise her one last time came to mind.
Because of the brief spike in temperature, some of the plants by the window had wilted slightly.
“What a shame, all these precious plants have withered…”
I said in a regretful tone, picking a suitable plant and standing before it.
The one I chose was a moonflower, the most wilted of them all.
“Ah, did you know?”
“……?”
“That if a moonflower is fed the special nutrient of moonlight mana, it becomes a hundred-year moonflower.”
Simultaneously, I manipulated the moonlight mana I had copied long ago and fed it generously to the plant.
The drooping flower bud slowly began to rise.
In no time, the moonflower was vibrant and alive again.
“Plants really do look best when they’re fresh and green. Don’t you agree?”
“How did you just…!”
“Who knows.”
I added one last remark that was sure to make her blood boil.
“It just works when I do it.”
“……!”
Han Ju-hee bit her lower lip.
The moment I saw that expression, a refreshing sense of release, as if a hole had been punched through my chest, washed over me.
That’s right.
From now on, you’ll be someone who suits that expression.
“Well then, please think it over and contact me?”
Leaving her with that playful last word, I immediately turned and headed for the elevator.
I pressed the button, and the elevator arrived at once. I got in and pressed the button for the first floor.
Just before the transparent glass doors closed, I added one final, final word to her as she watched me with a complicated gaze.
“I won’t wait long.”
Han Ju-hee.
I won’t even give you much time to think.
* * *
A storm had swept through and vanished.
To be precise, one person had flaunted a storm-like presence before leaving as he pleased.
“Kim Do-jin…”
Han Ju-hee murmured the name of the man who had just sent her emotions on a wild rollercoaster.
The bizarre things he had shown her replayed in her mind in sequence.
She had dedicated decades to magic, but she had never heard of or seen such a thing.
“To omit the magic circle and incantation entirely… I never thought that would be possible.”
Was she trapped in her own preconceptions, or was he just that special?
“……”
Her heart leaned toward the latter, but she didn't want to admit it.
“I’ll just have to find out for myself.”
A sense of stubborn pride welled up.
The omission of magic circles and incantations.
If she could achieve that, she would be called the greatest mage in all of history.
A spark ignited in her chest as she faced a new line of research she wanted to immerse herself in endlessly.
At the same time, another one of his bizarre feats came to mind.
Her gaze fell upon the vibrantly revived moonflower.
“……”
She couldn't even begin to guess how that was possible.
After much thought, she decided to ignore it for now.
Once she solved the first research topic… a path for the second would surely reveal itself, she consoled herself.
Her thoughts began to settle.
But one thing, the image of Kim Do-jin, did not fade so easily.
His rude words and actions, never once bowing his head to her—was it all just the recklessness of a young man brimming with talent?
She couldn't seem to find an answer.