25
Ep 25
Cheon Hye-rin’s wandering gaze eventually settled on me.
Just like it had every single day.
At the end of that gaze, there was a deep emotion directed toward me.
With barely a sheet of paper’s distance between us, our eyes met.
“…I’m starting to get a little annoyed.”
“…?”
“…Your face keeps getting more handsome… and as you become more well-known, other women keep flocking to you. It’s irritating enough that I can’t even sleep. It would be better if you toned it down a little…”
She spoke softly, leaning in close.
“I think it only looks that way to you, Cheon Hye-rin.”
“Y-you… what are you—”
For a moment, her expression froze.
Then her eyes widened as they met mine.
“Just like how I don’t see you as a cold-blooded Sword Empress, but as a warm person. If it were up to me, I’d want us to become even closer soon—”
“…S-stop. Stop! You really need to be more self-aware… honestly…!”
“….”
Cheon Hye-rin hurriedly cut me off.
Perhaps she realized how flushed her face had become, because a wave of heat spread across it.
She noticed my gaze and glanced at me, then away again, her expression turning subtle.
“…Don’t stare too much. You might get the wrong idea.”
It seemed like she was trying very hard not to show her feelings.
She barely managed to open her eyes and look at me again.
The pink aura around her was still clearly visible.
“…I’ll be going now.”
She forced the words out.
The way she sat there, composed yet trembling, was like a flower blooming shyly on a cliff’s edge. She had always seemed cold, but now her expression burned with warmth.
She covered her mouth with her hand.
She hesitated again and again, as if unsure what to do with these unfamiliar feelings.
…She really was someone easy to fall for. Beautiful, undeniably so.
When she turned her head, countless emotions flickered in her eyes.
It almost felt like she was expecting something.
“Take care.”
As I stood and moved closer, almost as if to embrace her,
Cheon Hye-rin flinched, her face turning red all the way to her ears as she stepped back.
“…It’s really hard to endure.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It means something that looks too appealing keeps tempting me, making my mind hazy.”
She seemed to be struggling to suppress the heat rising in her chest, but to me, it just looked like she was trembling slightly.
Maybe she was thinking about something delicious.
///
After that, I followed Ma-noe to meet the people Hongyeon had mentioned.
‘An informant…’
Talking wasn’t difficult. It wasn’t like I couldn’t find them. I could just report what I already knew.
But gathering solid evidence for each one was another matter entirely.
‘…Cheon Hye-rin does seem to think well of me.’
I scratched the back of my head.
She was probably already investigating those suspected of being spies.
The fact that she hadn’t brought it up meant she likely didn’t want to involve me in this matter.
On the other hand, Ma-noe probably had high expectations of me.
From his perspective, I was someone who had hidden my strength for years, and even mastered various supreme techniques of the Demonic Cult.
If there was any silver lining, it was that I roughly knew who the informants were.
During the story progression, I had personally seen countless traitors.
But I didn’t know all of them precisely.
Those without illustrations were harder to remember by name alone, and no matter how experienced I was, I hadn’t memorized every detail of the later parts of the story.
Still, there was one person I knew for certain. A spy embedded within the upper ranks of the cult.
But saying it outright would sound suspicious.
Even after thinking it over dozens of times, I couldn’t find a natural way to bring it up.
The more I thought, the more complicated it became.
In the end, I spent another sleepless night.
‘Maybe picking them off one by one wouldn’t be bad.’
But they were all survivors of the Demonic Cult, where only the strong endured. It wouldn’t be easy.
I couldn’t force an answer without proper reasoning.
‘Should I just name everyone I know?’
But that would only make things worse. Someone with no connection to the higher-ups suddenly knowing everything would only draw suspicion toward me.
I was already under scrutiny, so that would only make it worse.
Even if it was frustrating, I had to find another way.
Just as I was walking,
Ma-noe suddenly spoke.
“Do you know this? A woman’s heart… is quite different from a man’s.”
“…Pardon?”
“It may seem out of place, but… things like physique, appearance, wealth—they matter, but the most important thing is the heart. The heart.”
“….”
“How much a man cares, how much he loves, how devoted he is. That’s what matters. That alone is enough.”
“…What are you trying to say all of a sudden?”
“Well… you seem to lack confidence, so I thought I’d say something. If you’d like, I can even help. It’s obvious how deeply she’s fallen… so what do you say?”
“….”
So Ma-noe had this side to him too.
At his age, offering romantic advice.
He must have been quite frustrated.
“From today onward, these are the ones you’ll be working with.”
The Thousand Kill Squad.
One of the elite groups within the Demonic Cult.
Even the lowest-ranked members were at the threshold of the highest levels.
Whenever something happened in the cult, they were always the ones at the front.
And it was once led by Cheon Hye-rin.
She was already there, waiting. I noticed she deliberately avoided my gaze.
Meanwhile… the others seemed extremely wary of me.
“Have a seat.”
“So these are the famous…”
I glanced at the members sitting there.
One woman smoking a pipe while adjusting her bandages.
Another woman loudly shouting beside her.
…A massive muscular man as big as a boulder I once shattered.
And one more with tanned skin and blond hair.
Four in total.
“Welcome to the Thousand Kill Squad. You may call me Yang Hujang.”
“…That’s quite a unique name.”
The woman with the bandages stepped forward and extended her hand.
…Yang Hujang.
If you removed part of that name… it sounded rather strange.
When I looked at her, she clenched her fist with a terrifying expression.
It felt like she was warning me not to mock her.
“Xiaoxie, I’m called Lee Cheong… hmm, quite an interesting newcomer.”
The woman beside her also showed interest.
Her tone was oddly casual.
Just then, a man cut in with a rough voice.
“Here we go again. You lose your mind every time you see a man.”
The blond man shook his head.
“…Th-thank you.”
As I responded, he nodded.
But Lee Cheong raised her fist.
“Hey, get lost. Do you think it’s easy to find a man this appealing here?”
“You crazy woman…”
The two started arguing.
…Honestly, the quiet one seemed the most normal.
I sighed.
What kind of group was this?
One named Hujang.
A loud-mouthed woman.
A strange blond man.
And a silent giant.
“Anyway, welcome. You can call me Yang Taeyang. Most just call me Taeyang.”
“Are you close with her?”
“There’s one rule. Don’t group me together with that woman.”
“I’m the one stuck with you,” Lee Cheong snapped.
Their argument escalated again.
“…Did you just say something earlier?”
Taeyang froze.
Lee Cheong immediately jumped in.
“That’s right! He was trying to act likable—”
“That’s not what I meant! I like women too!”
They continued bickering.
I glanced at Ma-noe.
He didn’t even try to stop them.
“…Is this really the group?”
“Well, Taeyang is relatively normal. And the rest, despite appearances, are all near the peak of power.”
“…And we’re supposed to find informants with them?”
“You’re not really in a position to judge, considering what you’ve done.”
“….”
Fair enough.
That made me realize something.
Maybe this was exactly why I had been brought here.