## Chapter 210 – The Ritual of Flowers (2)
“…Then, let us begin the Ritual of Flowers.”
After those words, Na-eun noona was the first to approach me and bow her head.
Na-eun noona, whom I had known since childhood and who was my first love, the first person I felt attracted to as a woman.
That noona was bowing her head, wearing an expression I had never seen before.
“I am Shin Na-eun, the first to greet you. Of course, Your Majesty already knows…”
“Yes, I know. But noona, aren’t you angry with me? It was Chae-yoon and I who made you this way.”
“Not at all. I only feel gratitude towards Chae-yoon-nim, my master. To think she would grant an opportunity to a pest like me, who dared to aspire to the love between Master and the King…”
Yeah, yeah. I knew I would get this kind of answer, but still.
The Na-eun noona before my eyes was no longer the Shin Na-eun I knew.
The same face, the same voice as in my memories, but clearly a different person.
I felt a bit sad that the memories couldn’t be left as just memories,
but on the other hand, I started to get uncontrollably excited by that side of Na-eun noona.
My groin area started to swell slightly, and noona seemed to notice that small movement.
With a sultry smile like her master, she lightly licked her upper lip and knelt before me.
“Ah, this is the King I will serve in the future…♡ I want to start serving you right away, but I apologize.
I am just a flowerpot, and the ritual isn’t over yet, so I cannot covet the King’s body before my master…”
“No, it’s okay, don’t worry about it. I’m horny, but I can still handle it.”
“What a generous vessel… Thank you. Then, to expedite the ritual, I will introduce her.
I offer this flower, a dowry sent by my master, Lee Chae-yoon…♡”
Hair that had turned completely white due to the shock of blooming the flower, and deep red eyes.
And a white flower containing a red aura blooming on the right side of noona’s head.
“…Ah, Your Majesty…♡”
I gently reached out and slowly stroked the flower. The texture of a real flower, not an artificial one.
A slightly moist, firm, and soft healthy texture was felt at my fingertips.
And a sweet floral scent mixed with the pleasant smell rising from noona’s body.
“…Pretty…”
“…! Thank you for the praise!♡ Then, I have finished my introduction, so I will step back now.”
Whether she heard my small mutter, noona smiled brightly with a flushed face,
bowed to me once again, and knelt before Chae-yoon after rising from her seat.
…So this is what they call the Ritual of Flowers? It’s a strangely tense situation even though it’s not that big of a deal.
The grand word ‘ritual’ makes me feel like I should act formally.
But if this is all there is to it, it might end much faster than I thought.
“…Then, next…”
As I stretched out my stiff body from sitting in the same position for too long to loosen my muscles,
the blonde woman kneeling in front of Seo-hee walked normally and knelt before me.
And without saying anything, the woman closed her eyes and bowed her head with elegant and gentle movements.
“…Have I seen you somewhere before? It seems like we’re meeting for the first time…”
“Yes. It is also my first time standing before the King, but I have heard many stories about the King from my master.”
“Oh, really…? But isn’t your attitude a bit too stiff?”
A strange gaze that I had felt since I was talking to Na-eun noona earlier.
And a cold look directed at me before she approached, knelt, and bowed her head.
I thought it was just my imagination, so I asked her, who was greeting me stiffly, but…
“…Haa.”
“……..”
It wasn’t my imagination. This woman’s behavior was definitely the opposite of Na-eun noona, who was before me.
Seo-hee overlapped with the blonde woman who turned her head and let out a blatant, deep sigh.
What is this? Does the personality or characteristics of the flowerpot follow its master? Or is Seo-hee intending…
“….Ugh…! Ugh…!”
When I carefully shifted my gaze towards Seo-hee, I saw her biting her lip tightly and sweating coldly.
She was pale and looked so flustered, so it seemed like she didn’t intend it.
When I turned my head again and met the eyes of the blonde woman kneeling in front of me,
this time she clicked her tongue, saying ‘Tch…’ loud enough for me to hear on purpose.
When she’s this brazen, I don’t get angry, but rather feel a pure curiosity of ‘What is she?’
I was smiling, wondering what kind of novel thing she would do next, and the blonde reluctantly bowed her head.
“…I am Han Yeon-woo, the second to greet you. It is an honor to meet you, I guess…”
“…You hesitated a bit just now, didn’t you? I wanted to ask why you’ve been acting like that since earlier.”
“Haa, yes. I’ll answer you. I’m enduring it because it’s the most important ritual for my beloved master,
but I’m disappointed that a seemingly insignificant man like you will become my master’s king.
You’re not particularly handsome, and you don’t seem to have any charm, yet you’re the king… Would you say that’s a sufficient answer?”
“……..”
As soon as Yeon-woo finished her sharp, pointed words, I looked at Seo-hee.
Seo-hee, who was covering her eyes with a cloth and standing still without being able to make any noise,
was pale and sweating profusely, and I could tell what she was feeling.
“My master is falling for such a terrible man… What tricks did you use?”
…Well, it doesn’t seem like Seo-hee intended it. Yeon-woo must have been this kind of woman originally.
Na-eun noona’s soft and calm personality and tone were still the same.
“…Let’s just look at the flower quickly?”
“Yes, I wish you would.”
When I asked Yeon-woo, who kept throwing out blunt, venomous remarks, to proceed as gently as possible,
she seemed to want to get through this situation quickly, so she took a stance and held out the flower to me.
“I offer this flower, a dowry sent by my master, Kim Seo-hee, to the King.”
The flower blooming on Yeon-woo’s golden hair was a mixture of white, red, and blue,
three small, fragrant flowers like lavender that gave off a light purple color. I like it…
“…This is pretty too. Okay, you pass.”
“…Tch.”
After smelling the flower and enjoying the dense texture with my hands,
I sent Yeon-woo back as if chasing her away before she could say anything else.
Sometimes I feel like I understand the feelings of business owners who hire employees who are terrible at their jobs.
I never thought I would think, ‘It would be good to keep someone like that by my side and slowly mess with them.’
Anyway, let’s think about how to mess with her later.
Next up is Soo-ah’s flowerpot, the second woman I have no acquaintance with.
Short hair, long eyelashes, and a well-balanced body.
She had a healthy body that made me think she was a woman who exercised like Soo-ah.
She approached me with slender legs and bowed her head with dazed eyes.
“…Nice to, meet you… I am Yoo Ha-reum, the third flower to greet you…”
“……”
How should I say this… Na-eun noona was normal, and Yeon-woo was too unique,
but this woman named ‘Ha-reum’ was really unemotional and showed no individuality.
I felt like I was seeing Min-jung or Yu-ri, who had been modified into biological weapons.
No, she looked even more unemotional than that. What on earth did Soo-ah do…?
“…I am, a woman who used to go to the same swimming pool as… a man named ‘Hong Soo-ho’, who is the master’s younger brother…
The master told me to explain it like that… She said the King would be pleased…”
“….’Hong Soo-ho’?”
It wasn’t just me who flinched at that name. Chae-yoon, who had been standing still, also looked surprised.
Of course. Hong Soo-ho was Soo-ah’s younger brother and Chae-yoon’s lover when she was human.
The last I heard of him was that he was so shocked by the changed appearance of his sister and Chae-yoon
that he dropped out of school and was living like a 폐인 (hikikomori). I never thought I would hear that name here…
“…Keep talking.”
“…Yes… I met a man named Hong Soo-ho… at the neighborhood swimming pool for the first time,
and we quickly became friends because we were the same age. But one day, Soo-ho stopped coming to the swimming pool,
and I was worried, but I didn’t know his address, so I couldn’t go and find him. Then one day…”
Ha-reum, who was talking about herself, suddenly trembled,
and started to tremble in fear of something with a blank expression.
“Late at night, after finishing swimming and returning home, I met the master, who said she was Soo-ho’s sister.
The master lured me in with the words ‘Soo-ho wants to meet you’ and kidnapped and imprisoned me.
A strange seed was forcibly planted in my head, and I was soaked in strange drugs and pain.
In the end, my mind was completely shattered, and it was filled with new values and roles.
I am not human. I am the master’s flowerpot, a tool to bloom a flower to be offered to the King.”
Suddenly, Soo-ah’s appearance, soaked in the rain last night, came to my mind.
Then, the fact that Seo-hee and Chae-yoon came alone that night, leaving Soo-ah behind, was all…
“….Shall we look at the flower?”
I decided not to ask what she had been through. It didn’t seem like it would be good to know.
“Yes, I offer this flower, a dowry sent by my master, Hong Soo-ah, to the King.”
Ha-reum bowed her head with a dry expression and showed me the flower blooming on her head.
It was basically a white rose, but the black petals dyed in places also caught my eye.
A monochrome rose. It wasn’t flashy, but it exuded a sophisticated atmosphere.
“…Haha, I can’t believe Soo-ah bloomed something like this. You can go in now.”
“It was an honor to meet you.”
Ha-reum bowed to me and returned to her original position, kneeling down.
That Ha-reum woman is really pitiful, and Hong Soo-ho sunbae is also pitiful.
Anyone could tell that woman saw Hong Soo-ho as a man…
Could Soo-ah have known that and deliberately targeted Ha-reum? I don’t know, but…
Let’s focus on the ritual for now, the order is already the last turn.
Yu-ri and her flowerpot, Woo-ri, slowly stretched out and stood up, approaching me.
“…It is an honor to meet you. I am the fourth to greet you…”
“That’s enough, skip it and show me the flower. I know you two the best.”
“Ah, ahaha… You’re too much! We also have something prepared!”
Woo-ri, who was smiling and pretending to be annoyed, and Yu-ri, who looked confident.
I was wondering who Yu-ri would choose as a flowerpot, but she chose her friend Woo-ri as a flowerpot.
Well, I know their relationship well enough without having to hear an explanation, so let’s move on quickly…
“After seeing you guys, I can make a decision, right? I’ve decided, so let’s move on quickly.”
“…Yes? Ah, yes… I offer this flower, a dowry sent by my master, Lee Yu-ri, to the King.”
Woo-ri, who was startled and flustered by the words that I had already decided, bowed her head to me.
The flower blooming on her head was a chrysanthemum with a slightly pinkish hue.
I touched the flower, which had a mysterious atmosphere like any other flower, and…
“…Then, Your Majesty. Now that all the flowers have bloomed, please choose…”
I passed Woo-ri, who was bowing to me and asking me to choose, and approached the four women with their eyes covered.
So now I just have to choose the woman I like as my partner?
“Do I have to choose only one?”
“…Yes, that is the rule.”
“…I see.”
I immediately reached out and plucked the flower from Na-eun noona’s head.
Then, I arranged Chae-yoon’s right hair and decorated it with a white flower.
“…O, Oppa…!♡”
Chae-yoon, who was stroking the flower decorated on her head, took off the cloth covering her eyes,
ran to me with tears in her eyes, and I hugged her and spun her around for a while.
“…Thank you, from now on… you will be my King…♡”
“…Yeah, but wait a moment.”
“Yes? What do you mean…”
I gently pushed Chae-yoon away and approached Seo-hee, who was bowing her head bitterly.
“…Hey, Kim Seo-hee. What happens now?”
“Ah, well… now you’re our king, and Chae-yoon is your partner… Congratulations…”
“No, not that. What happens now?”
I plucked the flower from Yeon-woo’s head, who was kneeling and looking at Woo-ri, and decorated Seo-hee’s hair.
“…Huh? Wait, you can’t do this…!”
Seo-hee took off her eye patch and tried to stop me in a flustered manner,
but I gently kissed her forehead and approached Soo-ah.
“…You take that off too.”
“M, Master?”
I decorated Soo-ah’s hair with a rose, who was also flustered,
and decorated Yu-ri’s hair with a pink chrysanthemum.
“Huh? What happens now?”
“…N, no… I mean, you can’t do this? Even if you do this, Chae-yoon, who received the first flower…”
“No, I didn’t choose Chae-yoon. I chose ‘Iria’, all of you.”
“….Huh?” “Yes?” “Father, what does that…” “…Huh?”
The four partners were looking at me with different reactions.
Everyone looked much brighter and more beautiful than usual with flowers decorated in their hair.
“…You guys probably know it too, right? You are originally beings derived from one woman.
One being born from the ‘King’ who created you, and the body of Iria, who was the King’s lover.
So you guys were originally ‘Iria’, and you were one, but divided beings.
That means I didn’t choose several people, but you guys, who were Iria, I chose ‘one’.”
“…That’s too much of a stretch…”
“What if it’s a stretch? I want to do it. Who set those rules in the first place?
The previous creators? Tell them to suck it. I’m a creator now too. Tell them to do it themselves if they don’t like it.”
Everyone was just staring at me blankly, still feeling dazed by this situation,
and I approached them and gathered everyone’s hands on top of mine and stroked them.
“…I’m thinking of getting the same rings for everyone, anyone have any complaints?”
“…No… Hehe…”
Chae-yoon, who had been staring blankly with her eyes wide open for a moment, smiled first.
And Seo-hee, as if relieved, started to shed tears,
and Soo-ah was surprised by Seo-hee’s appearance and was comforting her.
Yu-ri was scoffing as if she couldn’t help it, but…
They were all originally one. Beings born from the division of ‘Iria’.
Everyone is my woman, my lover, and my partner for life.
