Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: The Yandere Fairy's Gaze is Strange
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The living room was quiet.
Faint moonlight filtered in through the window, adding to the serene atmosphere of the night.
A cup of warm tea sat on the table, but no one had touched it yet.
Swish.
Butler Lee Hyun-seok sat in the chair across from me.
His posture was somewhat rigid. His hands rested neatly on his knees, but the tips of his fingers trembled faintly.
He let out a short breath and spoke.
"Now that even King Yama has left, why don't we have an open and honest chat? I've got a lot of questions myself."
At my words, Butler Lee Hyun-seok quietly drew in a breath before opening his mouth in a calm voice.
"To start with, let me introduce myself. I'm forty-three this year. And it's been exactly ten years since I began serving Fairy Jua."
"T-Ten years?"
"...Yes."
To think he'd served that crazy woman for a whole decade...
It was more astonishing that his mind hadn't snapped.
I continued with a sigh.
"So, during that time, how many men did Fairy Jua kidnap and rape?"
"T-Too many to count..."
"How did you first meet Fairy Jua?"
"Ten years ago, while hiking. I was bewitched by her beauty and followed her into the villa—that was my downfall."
"You're brave. The world's a scary place these days—how do you just follow a stranger to their villa on a first meeting?"
At that, tears welled up in Butler Lee Hyun-seok's eyes.
"I regret that day..."
"Did she make you her butler right away?"
"...At first, she beat me relentlessly for a full day. Looking back now, it was like a ritual to show me the difference in our power."
"And then?"
"Then she started beating and raping a man she'd already kidnapped, right in front of me."
"Beating him first to instill fear, huh?"
"Exactly. I had no choice. After that, there were other butlers besides me, and I learned the job from one of them."
There had been three other men in the villa serving Fairy Jua besides Butler Lee Hyun-seok.
All of them had been sent straight to hell by King Yama before they could even live out their full lifespans.
I leaned forward.
"One of the original butlers—the one King Yama sent to hell earlier—is that who you learned from?"
"No. He couldn't resist Fairy Jua's temptations and slept with her..."
"And?"
"He lost his memories, and I have no idea what he's doing now..."
Resignation colored his voice, but there was no lingering attachment or resentment in it.
No wonder, then, that when King Yama tried to send him to hell, he'd begged to be thrown into the most agonizing pit.
"You know forced actions don't erase your sins, right?"
"I do. If it weren't for you, Haeseong, I'd be in hell by now too."
I'd begged King Yama, who was about to send Butler Lee Hyun-seok to hell.
Instead of damnation, couldn't he let the man atone by my side?
Why did I do that?
Because it was a chance to gain a obedient slave who knew everything about the fairies—what would I pass up?
Besides...
It wouldn't hurt to leave a guard dog behind whenever I had to head up to Seoul occasionally.
And I'd get plenty of intel on the fairies too.
'Plus, now that I've got the title of Sea Dragon Envoy, he could be useful there.'
I took a sip of tea and smiled faintly.
"Besides Fairy Jua, do you know of any other fairies who kidnap and rape men?"
"I know a few."
The Gold Fairy had mellowed out now, but she'd shown the same tendencies at first, so I'd asked just in case—and sure enough.
I chuckled and tilted my head back.
"Oh ho, really?"
"But I don't know where they are now or what they're up to."
"Well, I'm not planning to hunt them down right away anyway."
"...You plan to catch them?"
Honestly, the 'Sea Dragon Envoy' title didn't come with any real sense of duty to hunt other fairies.
It was just a temporary gig, like King Yama said.
But now that I had powers no human could dream of gaining in a lifetime, didn't I have to test them at least once?
If I did catch one, the rewards would make it a total win-win.
"Not right now, but since I've got the abilities, shouldn't I handle at least one case?"
"...The villa has CCTV. Fairy Jua ordered all footage of other fairies deleted, but I secretly kept some."
"Oh?"
"Most of the fairies who visited the villa share Fairy Jua's tastes."
"Sounds like it'll be easier than I thought. Have the videos and data ready within a week."
"Understood."
I lightly tapped the table with my finger and tossed out the next topic.
"Alright, that's settled. I'm buying a house around here. Until it's all cleaned up, you can use that small room over there, butler."
Lee Hyun-seok looked up.
His eyes held a mix of relief and anxiety.
Like a prisoner finally paroled after years in confinement, breathing fresh air for the first time.
He nodded soon after.
"Thank you."
And silence fell again.
This time, it seemed Butler Lee Hyun-seok was the one hesitating.
He looked like he was debating whether to voice his question.
"Don't you have any questions for me, butler?"
I prodded first, and he drew a deep breath before meeting my gaze.
Pure curiosity mingled with a hint of fear in his eyes.
"If I may ask... What exactly are you, Haeseong, to converse so casually with King Yama?"
I couldn't very well say, 'A human who pays tribute with sweat-absorbing clothes and profits from it.'
I set down my cup with a small smile.
"Just think of me as the human who fulfills King Yama's wishes."
"W-Wishes?"
"Speaking of which, there's something you need to watch out for."
"Please, go ahead."
"No matter what happens, never go up to the rooftop."
Butler Lee Hyun-seok tilted his head.
"...The rooftop?"
"I always talk with King Yama up there. And he absolutely hates anyone eavesdropping."
"Ah..."
"Once, a friend came over and accidentally overheard our conversation."
"W-What happened to him?"
"King Yama tried to send him to hell, but I barely talked him out of it—ended up just erasing his memories."
Butler Lee Hyun-seok swallowed dryly.
"...I see."
"My friend nearly went to hell just for overhearing by chance. For you, with all your remaining sins... well, you can imagine."
"I won't set foot on the rooftop. Ever."
The lie was simple enough.
No need to share my intel or financial gains with the butler.
"One more thing: Unless I say so, don't open the door to anyone who comes here."
"Got it."
I crossed my arms heavily and nodded.
"Then, can I ask one thing?"
"Of course."
"That time Fairy Jua came to our house. She was trying to kidnap me, right?"
Butler Lee Hyun-seok sighed and spoke.
"Yes. She loves stealing other people's things."
"Stealing other people's things?"
He quietly tapped his glass with a finger.
"She knew you were close to another fairy. That's why she tried to kidnap you."
As expected, she had come for me.
I'd never dreamed the reason was her love of taking what belonged to others.
"I see."
"Fairy Jua will stop at nothing to get what she wants."
"Then why did she flee like that?"
This time, he didn't answer right away.
After a pause, he continued cautiously.
"She sensed another fairy in the house that day and rushed back to the villa. She looked utterly terrified."
"Terrified?"
"Yes."
Butler Lee Hyun-seok fell silent for a moment, as if recalling the scene.
Then, in a low voice:
"Fairy Jua was trembling so hard her face twitched. She said, 'There's a monster in there.'"
"A m-monster?"
"I don't know the details. But I'd never seen her that scared before."
Back then, the only ones in the house were me and the Silver Fairy.
So Fairy Jua had called the Silver Fairy a 'monster'...
Why?
"Do you happen to know the Silver Fairy?"
"The name rings a bell... but I can't quite remember."
"No rush. Tell me whenever it comes to you."
"Understood."
He bowed his head, then looked up sharply as if something had clicked.
"Ah! Come to think of it, one of the fairies I'll report on next week is Sowol Fairy. Do you know her?"
"Sowol Fairy? First time hearing the name."
"That's strange. Sowol Fairy came to the villa once..."
"...What?"
"I didn't hear the details, but during her talk with Fairy Jua, I clearly overheard the name 'Haeseong.'"
I shifted in my seat to ask again when my phone buzzed.
The caller was Junseok.
I held out my palm to Butler Lee Hyun-seok for a moment of privacy and hit accept.
And then—
"Haeseong-ah... Our Yerim is dying..."