Impure Desires and an Uninvited Guest
Impure desires are… Damn it, what was it again? Just thinking about that time gets my blood boiling.
Calm yourself. Anger is the root of all e—
I wish that voice would just shut the hell up.
It’s useless the rest of the time, but it always crawls out with a lecture at moments like this.
Even while thinking that, I couldn’t help getting swept up in what the inner voice said.
What a shitty passive.
“Huu…”
I let out a long sigh to bleed off the anger.
Our positions are just different, that’s all.
“Anyway, there’s nothing else. Satisfied?”
You showed me the outside? Fine. You explained how the world works now? Good. You bought me delicious food? Amazing.
But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stop being suspicious of people.
“When you two looked around, was there any trace of someone having been there? There wasn’t. You saw it was a place no human hand had ever touched.”
The world I saw after smashing through that rock was the very picture of peace, even if it was all an artificial illusion.
No matter how hard I tried to sense the outside from within, I could never see it.
A space that wasn’t too big or too small.
And not a single person inside it.
“How else am I supposed to explain this? What do I have to do for you to believe me?”
Should I crawl between your legs or something?
No, that would be more like a reward.
I swallowed the ambiguous thought and calmly spilled what was really on my mind.
For nearly ten years, if I didn’t like something I’d simply smashed it apart. I had become the kind of person who gets sick if I hold it in.
“It seems like there’s a misunderstanding. This matter is extremely impor—” “I understand how you feel, Mr. Gong Yul.”
Just as Lee Yu-jin was hurriedly trying to correct herself, Lee Yu-ra—who had been quietly observing me—jumped into the conversation.
She gently patted her older sister’s hand and said, “My sister just has a lot on her mind. Please don’t think too badly of her.”
I had never thought badly of her. I was just frustrated.
This is probably her way of saying let’s have round two.
In times like this, I needed to act like I understood. I reluctantly nodded, and Lee Yu-ra asked with a bright smile.
“You’re incredibly strong, right, Mr. Gong Yul? You stayed inside that rift for ten whole years!”
The standard for “strong” would be those 10 Strongest guys or whatever. I hadn’t even faced them yet, so how could I compare?
There’s no reason I couldn’t.
They might be stronger than me. They escaped first and climbed the tower, so they obviously possess more. But still.
“Obviously. I don’t know about anything else, but I’m confident I won’t lose to anyone with a sword.”
I can just climb it too.
Anyway, I had wanted to go there at least once.
I wanted to conquer it.
“I see. I’m jealous.”
To my confident words, Lee Yu-ra replied in a soft, fluffy voice. She really did sound envious.
“But Mr. Gong Yul, don’t you have any questions? For example, about what I said earlier—how I went around looking for you?”
Lee Yu-ra giggled.
She said it was a joke anyway.
Besides, I didn’t even need to ask. I already knew the rough answer.
The reason they kept circling the rift, the reason they even used items obtained from the tower—it was all to break the curse.
Back when I first met the two of them. I had lightly chased them off, yet they kept sticking around. I thought it was strange.
That was why they had given up on the tower.
“Forget it. I don’t care about that stuff.”
Everyone has their own circumstances. There was no need to share them. We had only met today anyway.
“Order me one more of these.”
So let’s just eat. It had been so long since I tasted the flavors of the outside world that the rich taste was driving me insane.
The meal that had been racing toward disaster calmed down after Lee Yu-ra’s mediation. Even though both sides had been at fault, Lee Yu-jin apologized while guiding me to the accommodation afterward.
An apology and gratitude.
The lodging that carried both meanings was so luxurious it made me forget what a cave even looked like.
Three bedrooms.
Two bathrooms. The bathtub was a free service.
A fridge built into the wall like I’d only seen in dramas. A system air conditioner.
It was so nice I seriously wondered if I had arrived in heaven.
An unbelievable change in life. No—it was a straight-up promotion.
Lee Yu-jin, who had given me this place, bowed deeply from the waist once more before leaving, apologizing again. She said it was all she could prepare on such short notice.
Isn’t this enough? Can it get any better than this?
It was an unbelievable statement.
Just how much weight did the word chaebol carry?
I wiped my face with a towel while envying what others had. It was just the other day that I had been wiping my face with rabbit skin.
Now even that memory was erased. This was the first time I had ever experienced such softness.
Sweat covered my entire body and felt sticky.
Whether it was sick house syndrome or whatever, when I lay down to sleep I couldn’t.
To organize my thoughts, I lightly stretched my body.
I can’t swing a sword inside the house.
But if I went outside, the residents would probably report a crazy guy doing gymnastics under the moonlight.
After exercising I took a light shower in the bathroom.
It was paradise.
So hot water feels this refreshing.
That was why the old men at the bathhouse would say it felt refreshing while soaking in hot water.
A refreshing feeling as if all the fatigue piled up in my body had been washed away.
I felt like I could repeat the swordsmanship I learned from books from beginning to end ten times right now.
That’s just how I feel, though.
As soon as I lay down on the bed again, sleep came over me softly.
I thought I had fallen asleep not long after closing my eyes.
Until a giant rock appeared.
“Fuck… what the hell…”
The guy I had definitely cut down was pressing down on me. Was everything I had experienced until now just a dream?
This couldn’t be. This didn’t make sense.
Even as I denied reality and struggled with everything I had, the rock didn’t budge an inch.
I started thinking I should just give up like this.
Ah, so it was all a dream.
That ending is the one thing that can’t happen…
Absolutely not. I had to find some way to survive no matter what.
With desperate hope, I turned my head.
And became puzzled at what was there.
A woman sleeping peacefully like a baby, eyes closed.
The one munching on the strand of hair that had fallen near her mouth was none other than Lee Yu-ra.
Why is she here?
When I thought this must be some kind of insane dream, my eyes snapped open and the rock disappeared.
Thank god. It was a dream.
But the relief lasted only a moment. Even though I had blocked my senses, I could still feel the weight.
With a sinking feeling, I turned my head to the side.
There was the exact same person I had seen in the dream.
“Lee Yu-ra?”
It was Lee Yu-ra, fast asleep as if the whole world was at peace.
She was so comfortable that she was lying on her side with her arms and legs thrown over me.
What the hell was going on?
Is this a dream within a dream?
When I couldn’t make sense of it at all, she reacted as if she had heard me call her name. She slightly furrowed her brows, then gently opened her eyes.
With a face that still looked tired, the Lee Yu-ra who met my eyes didn’t show any other reaction. She simply gave the same innocent smile as yesterday.
“Good… morning.”
“Uh, yeah.”
It was a good morning, but I had no idea what the hell was going on.
Well, let’s just say she came to get me for the examination.
But why was she lying in my bed with me?
Was it because I blocked my senses every time I fell asleep?
Did she get tired of trying to wake me and just fall asleep herself?
That makes no sense.
After opening her eyes, Lee Yu-ra naturally sat up on the bed and began stretching.
While fixing the clothes that had slipped down while she slept.
“Huaam. I want to sleep more, but I probably shouldn’t sleep here, right?”
With a long yawn, she turned her head and gave me a bashful smile.
“Wipe the drool from your mouth before you say something like that.”
“Huh? I don’t have that kind of habit…”
Lee Yu-ra wiped around her mouth with the back of her hand, then hurriedly turned her head away in embarrassment.
Taking that chance, I got up and quickly put on my clothes.
Since I had been under the blanket, she probably hadn’t seen anything.
“More importantly, Mr. Gong Yul.”
I was in the middle of pulling on my top. When Lee Yu-ra called me, I answered half-heartedly.
Then an astonishing statement came out of her mouth.
“I saw it yesterday too, but did you know you have a really great body?”
It might sound like a simple compliment, but the preceding words carried a completely different implication.
I saw it yesterday too.
Doesn’t that mean she saw it today as well?
Is this woman out of her mind? How can she proudly announce that she sneaked into a stranger’s room and looked at his naked body?
My precious friend who had always protected me.
The inner voice had nothing to say at a time like this.
Ahem! Men and women should not sit together after the age of seven!
The fact that the guy who should be saying exactly that was staying quiet made me realize he was no different from me.
It’s my passive. If it’s different from me, that’s a problem.
I set aside Lee Yu-ra’s dizzying statement, finished dressing, and straightened my clothes.
“Are you nervous about today’s examination?”
Lee Yu-ra flopped backward onto the bed and looked up at me. The soft mattress made her body bounce.
Her eyes were full of curiosity.
“Is there any need to be nervous? It’s just an examination.”
It’s basically a medical test, right?
“Ah, that’s right. I didn’t tell you yesterday.”
As if she had just remembered, Lee Yu-ra quickly covered her mouth with both hands and blinked.
Is there something else?
If even Lee Yu-jin forgot about it, it probably wasn’t that important.
“After the numerical examination, there will also be a spar to confirm your abilities.”
It was important.
Extremely important.
“…With who?”
At the word “spar,” I wanted to know who the opponent was.
Could it be that guy—the only Korean among the 10 Strongest?
I hadn’t expected to face him so soon.
Just as unnecessary tension began to rise—
“Hmm.”
Lee Yu-ra removed the hand near her mouth, thought for a moment, then flipped over as if she remembered and said,
“I only heard that it’s someone who applied for promotion to S-rank this time. Since you’re here, they’re using the chance to verify each other.”
I learned that the opponent wasn’t a verified powerhouse, but someone still walking the path toward becoming one.
The moment I heard that, strength left my legs.
I ended up sitting down right next to where Lee Yu-ra was lying.
She looked at me in puzzlement.
Ignoring her gaze, I simply stared at my hand.
Will I be able to do it?
It might sound sudden.
But I can’t help it.
A fight between strong people is simple—you just go all out.
But if the opponent is clearly weaker…
How the hell do I adjust my strength?
I’ll have to fight at an appropriate level.
…I trained alone for ten years.