Chapter 274
Chapter 274
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 274
Chapter Title: Interlude – Two Lovers
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“So…”
The next day.
After leisurely completing her discharge procedures and spending a night at a nearby hotel, Ha-eun returned home and sat down with the two who had just finished breakfast.
She glanced over Oh-jin and Isabella, who were exuding a peculiar atmosphere, and a smirk formed on her lips.
“Did you do it?”
A straight shot with no warning.
“U-Unni!”
Isabella shot up, her face flushed red.
Oh-jin let out an unnecessary cough and subtly turned his head, avoiding Ha-eun’s gaze.
“You did it. You really did it.”
Tsk, tsk.
Ha-eun shook her head and sighed.
She had expected it, but seeing the two of them blushing and radiating a fresh, innocent vibe made her stomach churn for no reason.
Well, what was the point of regretting it now?
She was the one who had permitted their relationship.
“Oh, right, Oh-jin. That gorilla ahjussi was looking for you.”
“Director Han?”
“Yup. We talked a bit yesterday about you going to the Demon Realm, and he said he wanted to see you in person after you were discharged. Said he has something to give you.”
Something to give him.
“That Kim Si-hoo kid? He said the kiddo made it himself.”
“Really?”
Oh-jin’s eyes sparkled at the mention of an item from Kim Si-hoo.
An item from the boy genius, unparalleled in the country when it came to crafting Sacred Relics, was certainly something to look forward to.
“Did you hear what it is?”
“Didn’t hear the specifics. Just that it would be useful when you go to the Demon Realm.”
“Hmm… I guess I’ll have to go see him.”
“Go on. He was worried, saying you got wrecked by the Queen of the Serpent Constellation.”
“Wrecked? I didn’t get wrecked.”
“Did you win, then?”
“No.”
I got my ass kicked.
“…She wasn’t someone I could handle at my current level, to begin with.”
Ha-eun burst out laughing at Oh-jin’s grumbling.
To think that Oh-jin, who had always snatched victory like a phantom no matter how strong the enemy, would look so dejected.
Ha-eun playfully pinched and stretched Oh-jin’s cheek before pushing his back.
“Hurry up and go.”
“Alright. I’ll head over to the Association for a bit.”
“Take care, Oh-jin. Oh, should I have Roberto give you a ride?”
“It’s fine. It’s close by anyway.”
Oh-jin shrugged and went outside.
* * *
Click.
As the front door closed firmly, a dreadful silence descended upon the house.
“…”
“…”
Ha-eun and Isabella fiddled with their smartphones in silence, occasionally stealing glances at each other.
One man and two women.
In a twisted relationship that could hardly be considered normal, Ha-eun and Isabella didn’t know how to treat each other.
Though they had known each other for quite some time, they felt like strangers who had just met for the first time.
An awkward atmosphere settled in, like being in an elevator with a friend of a friend you only knew by face.
“Thank you, unni.”
Isabella was the first to break the awkward silence.
Wearing an apron as if she had just finished washing the dishes, she continued with a faint smile.
“If you hadn’t given your permission, I would have gone my whole life without knowing such a happy feeling.”
A sweet happiness, like melted sugar.
Having finally found fulfillment with Oh-jin, whom she had longed for, Isabella smiled beautifully, her eyes crinkling with bliss.
“You don’t have to thank me. I just went along with what that bastard Oh-jin chose.”
“But if you had opposed it, Oh-jin would have changed his mind.”
“Well…”
True.
If she had strongly opposed his relationship with Isabella, knowing Oh-jin’s personality, he would have cut ties with Isabella without a second thought.
Because to Oh-jinie, I’m more important than Isabella.
Ha-eun grinned and leaned back leisurely in her chair.
A strange sense of elation filled her, and her nose went up.
“…Unni?”
“Hm? Oh, it’s nothing.”
Ha-eun shrugged with a smug expression.
“Well, Oh-jinie has always followed me well. Even back at the orphanage, he’d go through fire and water for me.”
Ha-eun, puffing out her chest, recounted her memories with Oh-jin.
A long bond that had continued since their days at the orphanage.
A fortress of memories built over what was literally a lifetime together—a domain Isabella could not dare to trespass.
“…”
Isabella’s eyes narrowed slightly, a faint vein popping on her forehead.
Seeing Ha-eun proudly reminiscing about her memories with Oh-jin made something start to bubble up inside her.
“Well, if we’re talking about that, Oh-jin risked his life for me twice.”
Once when she was trapped in the Demon Realm, and again during Cassia’s attack.
Oh-jin had thrown himself into what was practically the jaws of death without hesitation to save her.
“That was because the situation was desperate. You don’t need someone to risk their life to feel cherished, do you? Trust between people takes a long time to build.”
Ha-eun kept emphasizing ‘a long time’.
Isabella smiled brightly and nodded.
Her lips formed a beautiful smile, as if drawn, but her eyes were ice-cold.
“Time is something I can slowly build up from now on. Eventually, there won’t be much of a difference between us, you know?”
“…Not much of a difference?”
“You know how it is. In your teens, a one-year age gap feels huge, but in your 30s or 40s, a year or two doesn’t even feel like a difference.”
The longer they were together, the fewer memories Oh-jin and Ha-eun alone would share.
“Hmph, you think that’s the same? Some things never change, no matter how much time passes. You have no idea what he was like at the orphanage, do you?”
“Oh my, is this what they call a ‘latte’ in Korea?”
“A latte?”
“You know. The people who always start their stories with ‘Back in my day…’”
Ha-eun’s shoulders flinched.
Her lips twitched as she continued.
“Are you jealous right now?”
“Oh my, of course not. I’m only the second, after all.”
Isabella leaned forward slightly and continued.
“And thinking about last night… I don’t think I have any reason to be.”
She placed a hand gently on her chest, recalling the memories of the previous night.
His hot breath tickling her skin.
The feel of his strong arms holding her body so tightly it felt like she would break.
Oh-jin had devoured her like a wild beast.
“Heehee. Oh-jin was really… even though his body hadn’t fully healed, he went at it so many times.”
Isabella, cupping her cheeks, recalled the passionate lovemaking of the night before.
“He really seemed to like ‘this’.”
Isabella glanced at Ha-eun and subtly pushed her chest forward.
The ample curves were emphasized, instantly drawing the eye.
Ha-eun gulped, her eyes fixed on the curves clearly visible even through the loose apron.
She herself wasn’t small by any means, but she couldn’t dare compare to those mountains of unbelievable elasticity and size.
Ha-eun’s expression crumpled.
“Hmph. I bet you couldn’t even do it properly anyway.”
“…H-How would you know that?”
Isabella’s expression froze for a moment.
Just as Ha-eun said, she had been so nervous last night that she had frozen up like a statue, only moving as Oh-jin led her.
Considering she was usually the one to actively seduce Oh-jin, it was a rather shameful first experience.
“It’s obvious without even looking.”
Ha-eun raised her chin smugly again, a smirk on her lips.
“As for me, I have a lot of experience with Oh-jinie, so I’m the one who takes the lead these days.”
“…Who takes the lead isn’t what’s important, is it?”
“Of course~ of course. Not important at all.”
Seeing Ha-eun nod with a victor’s smile, Isabella bit her lip.
Ha-eun’s relaxed demeanor, as if to say ‘You can struggle all you want, it won’t matter,’ made her blood boil.
Then, her eyes fell on Ha-eun’s chest.
The area where there was, without a doubt, the most definite ‘difference’.
She knew how childish it was to feel superior based on a physical difference.
But when people get heated, they tend to become surprisingly childish.
“Y-You and your tiny chest!”
“Let’s get this straight, I’m not small, you’re just unnecessarily huge!”
“They’re not unnecessary! You have no idea how much Oh-jin liked them, do you?”
“Look at you, trying to one-up me again. Did you already forget how you got burned last time?”
“Hmph, if you’re not confident you can win, just say so.”
“I-I’m not unconfident!”
“Oh my, your voice seems to have gotten a little loud for someone so confident.”
The two women, who had shot up from their seats, glared at each other fiercely, as if they were about to tear each other apart.
An awkward silence fell once more.
“…”
“…”
After about ten seconds of silence.
The eyes of the two women—no, the two lovers—met in mid-air.
Without prompting, they both let out a hollow laugh.
“Haaah. What are we doing, acting so childish when we’re both grown women?”
“I know, right?”
Ha-eun and Isabella sighed and shook their heads at each other.
“Anyway, this is all that bastard’s fault.”
“You’re right, unni. It’s all Oh-jin’s fault.”
The two, who had been growling at each other moments ago, looked at one another and let out a light laugh.
“Anyway… thank you, unni. For allowing me to be by Oh-jin’s side.”
A bright smile bloomed on Isabella’s lips.
“And… um, yesterday you said it felt like you’d gained a younger sister, right?”
“Ah, yeah. I did, didn’t I?”
Isabella fidgeted and turned her head away.
Hiding her apple-red cheeks, she continued.
“I also felt like… I’d gained an older sister. I have one, but… we’ve been apart for a long time.”
And it wasn’t just a long time.
The kind, affectionate sister from her memories had even tried to kill her.
Of course, it was because she was being controlled by the Cheonma.
In any case, their reunion in front of the Sanctuary yesterday hadn’t exactly been a warm conversation.
“Well, since it’s come to this, let’s get along.”
“You too.”
Ha-eun took Isabella’s hand and smirked.
“Oh, right. And if some other bitch goes after Oh-jinie…”
“Then I’ll step in and take care of it.”
A smile.
A chilling smile formed on Isabella’s lips.
“I’ll make sure no one else can even get near him.”
“Good.”
Ha-eun nodded in satisfaction, as if she had gained a reliable ally.
“Come to think of it, that one girl is a bit suspicious.”
“Who?”
“Nokjonseong.”
“Rebecca?”
“Yup. She just sat on Oh-jinie’s lap before, you know?”
“…Tell me everything.”
For a while, the two women put their heads together, plotting how to keep other women away from Oh-jin.
“We need to leave for the Demon Realm as soon as possible.”
“Right? If we have to go anyway, there’s no reason to dawdle.”
By receiving the title of Pagunseong, Oh-jin had gained immense fame.
An Awakened who hadn’t even reached the 9-Star rank being recognized as one of the Chilseong meant that factions targeting him would spring up like mushrooms.
And honey traps had long been a common tactic in power struggles.
Weren’t Russian spies famous for using them during the Cold War?
“Then I should start preparing to leave soon, too.”
“Need any help?”
Unlike Isabella, who led the massive Colagrande family, Ha-eun didn’t have much to prepare.
Isabella smiled brightly and nodded.
“Yes. I was just thinking I was short on hands.”
“But I’m not good with paperwork or things like that.”
“Oh my, you don’t need to worry.”
The Colagrande family was one of the top five most prestigious families in Europe.
A mammoth-sized family that operated dozens of businesses.
If Isabella were to be away, it was a given that various factions would descend upon the leaderless Colagrande family like hyenas.
In fact, she had already received reports that several families were eyeing the Colagrande businesses since she had been half-removed from her duties while staying in Korea.
There was only one optimal way to keep those hyena-like bastards from even sniffing around.
“You just need to… burn a few places down for me.”
Isabella held out her hand with a chilling smile.
Ha-eun took Isabella’s hand and smirked.
“Now, that’s my specialty.”
And so, the preparations to leave for the Demon Realm began.