Don't Cross the Line
I massaged the crease between my brows and ruffled my hair.
I wished the sight before me was just a nightmare, but the bright sunlight streaming in told me otherwise.
"Ah..."
A dull headache throbbed behind my eyes.
Damn it, just as I expected.
It's the aftereffects of the Spiritual Dream.
That exhausting sensation of having slept but not actually rested. The resulting headache and the fog clouding my mind. Whatever it was, it was my absolute least favorite feeling.
Irritation flared within me. The situation was already annoying enough, but the face looking back at me was more than enough to push me over the edge.
"Seriously, what a terrible way to start the morning..."
"You do realize there's a person standing right in front of you, don't you?"
Cheon Hye-in spoke, her expression a mix of disbelief and amusement.
"Of course I do. I said it for you to hear, so I'm glad you caught it."
It wasn't like I was crazy enough to mutter something like that to myself. Obviously, I wanted her to hear it.
"So, what brings you here so early? And without a shred of manners or basic courtesy?"
"It just so happens that I was assigned to guide Young Master Bang... ah, excuse me, Squad Member Bang today."
I narrowed my eyes at her words.
"I waited for quite a while, but since you didn't show, I decided to pay you a visit—uncouth and ill-mannered as it may be."
Throwing my own sarcasm right back at me, Cheon Hye-in smiled. I pushed myself up from the bed.
"I highly doubt that."
"Pardon?"
"You weren't assigned to this."
"What do you mean by that?"
Where did I leave my uniform? I looked around the room, searching for a change of clothes. Ah, there it was, neatly folded on the table. I picked it up and turned back to Cheon Hye-in.
"I mean you didn't get assigned. You pulled strings to make it happen."
"...What on earth..."
"My guide was supposed to be Do-hyeong, wasn't it? He's the youngest, and we've already met."
I rubbed my neck. Perhaps because of the phantom sensation of being decapitated in my dream, my throat felt unusually tight. I was parched, too. Was there any water? I looked around, but nothing caught my eye.
"Given the circumstances, the fact that you—the last person I want to see—showed up instead means you obviously schemed behind the scenes."
I clicked my tongue.
"If you're going to lie, at least put some effort into it. Don't treat me like an idiot."
"..."
"Ah, found it."
I spotted a half-empty water bottle from a few days ago. It had been sitting there for a bit, but it would do. After wetting my parched throat, I felt a prickling sensation on the back of my neck. I turned around to find Cheon Hye-in staring at me. No, staring wasn't the right word.
...I think she's smiling.
Man, that was a creepy look. It took a special kind of talent to make a face that beautiful look so terrifying.
"By any chance, Young Master Bang, do you dislike me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Was she seriously asking because she didn't know?
"I have no reason to like you, and a certain someone has given me plenty of reasons to dislike her."
"How can you say you have no reason to like me?"
Cheon Hye-in flashed a seductive smile, cupping her chin in her hands like a flower. "I'm incredibly pretty, aren't I?"
She practically radiated charm. She really was drop-dead gorgeous. However...
"Sure. But I'm also incredibly handsome."
"...Wow."
Cheon Hye-in's face instantly contorted in disgust. "You actually say that with your own mouth?"
"Did you use someone else's mouth to praise yourself?"
It was practically the only good thing I had inherited from my useless, wretched father: a decent build and a handsome face. Though my somewhat soft eyes were a minor flaw, objectively speaking, I was good-looking. However...
"There's nothing more annoying than people who try to get by on their looks alone. You've heard about my father, right? I grew up watching that nonsense, so I tend to despise it."
"..."
At the mention of my father, Cheon Hye-in stiffened. The faint trace of her smile vanished.
"So you're certain?"
"About what?"
"Certain that I know about your father."
"Ah, yes."
I wondered what she was getting at, but it was just that.
"You must have dug into my background ages ago."
"How can you be so sure of that?"
"Because that's what I would have done."
"..."
My shameless response left Cheon Hye-in momentarily speechless.
"Do you need any more explanation?"
"...Haha."
Her soft chuckle brushed past my ears. For some reason, it gave me goosebumps.
"...You really are fascinating. Just where did a person like you come from? You keep making me curious."
"I can hear you."
"I meant for you to hear it."
"Then I didn't hear it."
"Should I say it again?"
"No need."
I had no idea what kind of conversation we were even having. It felt like she was draining my life force.
...Damn it. Dealing with a virgin ghost wasn't even this exhausting.
Back in my past life, exorcising a malevolent spirit overflowing with yin energy hadn't been this draining. Just talking to this bizarre woman felt like it was going to kill me.
"Hey, can I ask you something?"
"No."
"Why aren't you angry at me?"
"I said no... Ah, for crying out loud."
I wondered if everyone in this sect was this self-centered. I was genuinely curious.
"Why would I be angry?"
"I figured you'd have a lot to say, but you're keeping quiet."
"So you do know?"
She had annoyed me countless times, and she was the one who had set up that ridiculous situation just yesterday. Of course, I had no hard evidence, only suspicion, but I was absolutely certain. And Cheon Hye-in probably knew that I was certain. That was why she was asking.
"It's not forgiveness, and it's not like you're just letting it slide... So what is it?"
"Why do you assume I'm not just letting it slide? I could be."
Even if she had annoyed me, I could have been a generous person who let things go. Yet, Cheon Hye-in's eyes held the absolute conviction that I would never do such a thing. It was oddly offensive. Just as I was wondering why she thought of me that way...
"Because that's what I would have done?"
Wow.
I almost admired her. She really knew how to throw my own words back at me.
"Was that the answer you wanted?"
"...About seventy percent?"
"What about the remaining thirty?"
I hadn't thought that far. As I stood there in awkward silence, Cheon Hye-in smoothly changed the subject.
"So, I came to ask because I was curious about what you could possibly do to me."
"...Haha."
A dry laugh escaped my lips.
"Setting aside your curiosity, did you honestly think I'd give you an answer just because you asked?"
"It doesn't matter if you don't. Honestly, I just wanted to see your face again."
To anyone else, it might have sounded sweet and fluttering, but to me, it wasn't even funny.
"Ah... Seriously, you're annoying."
The irritation I had been barely holding back finally boiled over.
"Hey."
"'Hey'?"
Cheon Hye-in's eyes narrowed at my sudden shift in tone.
"Stop bothering me."
My old temper finally flared.
"Actually, no. I can let you bothering me slide, treating it like a child throwing a tantrum."
I stepped closer, locking my gaze onto her eyes.
"But don't cross the line. This is my final warning."
"Hmm..."
Cheon Hye-in's eyes curved into a seductive crescent. "And what happens if I break that warning?"
Amusement dripped from her voice. She clearly didn't care in the slightest.
"I will stop treating you like a human being."
"Oh my? Does that mean you'll treat me like a beast? I didn't know you had those kinds of tastes—"
"Lady Cheon."
"..."
When I called her name in a low, quiet voice, Cheon Hye-in instantly shut her mouth.
"Stop while I'm still willing to view you as human."
I meant every word. After all...
"There is nothing I won't do to things that aren't human."
"...What a terrifying thing to say."
"The only reason I've tolerated you isn't because your antics are cute."
It was because, no matter how annoying she was, she was still human. Because she was a living person breathing the same air as me, I let it slide. That was why.
"Don't cross the line."
I stared straight at Cheon Hye-in. "This is your last chance."
"..."
"If you're done talking, get the hell out so I can change."
I grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her toward the exit. She offered no resistance, letting herself be dragged. I shoved her out the door and slammed it shut.
"...Whew."
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
Tsk.
Clicking my tongue, I grabbed the uniform I had set aside. The nightmare had already put me in a foul mood, and now my day was completely ruined. But what annoyed me most of all was...
Where the hell did that old man disappear to when things are like this?
For some reason, Yoo Chun-gil had been nowhere to be seen all morning.
Outside Bang Seong-yeon's quarters.
Having been kicked out, Cheon Hye-in stood frozen with a strange expression on her face.
"..."
- Hye-in.
A voice echoed in her ear as if it had been waiting, but Cheon Hye-in raised a hand to silence it.
"Just a moment..."
Her eyes were wide as she fell deep into thought.
Her mind was entirely consumed by the man she had just faced.
The young man who had looked at her with eyes full of sheer annoyance. That part was fine. Her original goal had simply been to gauge his reaction and stir up a bit of trouble. The problem lay in what happened next.
Lady Cheon.
"..."
The low, quiet voice warning her, and the look in his eyes.
The moment she recalled them, Cheon Hye-in rubbed her arms.
She felt cold.
It was a sensation of something freezing from deep within.
What was that?
What on earth was that? How could someone look at another human being with such coldness? It was utterly chilling.
The fact that Bang Seong-yeon had dropped his polite speech, and even the subtle battle of nerves they had been playing—none of it remained in her mind.
Just how many masks is he wearing?
His everyday demeanor. His demeanor during the duel. And now, the side of him he had just shown.
The more she saw of Bang Seong-yeon, the more peculiar he became.
His usual self was intriguing.
His self during the duel was shocking.
And his self just now...
...was dangerous.
An inexplicable sense of dread. The absolute certainty that he could crush her whenever he pleased, and those cold eyes that looked down on her as if she were less than human.
"Hahaha..."
Cheon Hye-in laughed as she recalled it. It had been a long time since she had felt this way.
To think I'd feel this again.
When was the last time?
Probably not since she had met the 'monster' of Mount Hua. Did that mean Bang Seong-yeon was on the same level as that monster?
Who knows.
Cheon Hye-in couldn't be sure. They were too different to compare. However, what truly mattered was...
...either way...
...Bang Seong-yeon had completely captured her interest.
"...I want him."
And Cheon Hye-in had never once failed to get what she wanted.
As if to prove it...
She gripped her goosebump-covered arms, her face somehow filled with sheer ecstasy.
Just then, the closed door creaked open, and Bang Seong-yeon stepped out. Sensing the movement, Cheon Hye-in turned her head.
"..."
She froze as she looked at him.
"What? Why are you blocking the way?"
The cold gaze from before was gone. His eyes were once again filled with the same calm, lazy annoyance as when they had first met. He looked so different he might as well have been a completely different person.
"Man, I'm tired."
Cheon Hye-in quietly watched Bang Seong-yeon as he lightly stretched his shoulders. Dressed in the Sowol Squadron uniform provided by Cheongwol Gate, he looked...
...definitely handsome.
He was good-looking enough that his self-praise didn't even seem arrogant.
"Let's go. Where are we headed?"
Although it was absurd to see him pick his nose with such a handsome face, Cheon Hye-in couldn't take her eyes off him.
"Aren't we going?"
He acted as if the tense warning from moments ago had never happened. Watching him, Cheon Hye-in shook her head.
"...No, let's go."
She took the lead, and Bang Seong-yeon followed close behind.