Chapter 130 – 130 – Return and Inauguration
Committing suicide to someone who has just returned from this world to the next. Even though the first step between you and me was made in a difficult way, isn’t that too much?
I turned my head while lying down and observed Hwa-ryeon, swallowing my saliva. In this situation, it would have been obvious to me that it was a good idea for me to do. Hwa-ryeon, who was sitting awkwardly on the silk cushion, pouted and shook her head.
“Rest assured, I have been freed from the spell. Edin’s clones died, their tough lives torn to pieces.”
“It’s strange to ask because it’s so obvious, but I’m asking just to be sure. Was it brainwashing after all?”
“What is a demon lord? He is the king of all monsters. If you are exposed to a curse and become a demon, you will not be able to easily shake off its rule like other monsters. Your way of thinking will gradually change closer to that of the demon, and your body will become that of the demon. “It moves as it pleases. From the moment Edin appeared and tried to steal my identity in earnest until today, the pain I experienced over the past few days was truly terrible.”
Hwa-ryeon placed her hand on the wooden frame next to her. And as I fumbled for the empty groove, I flinched.
Judging by the habitual hand gestures and the shape of the groove, it seemed that there was probably a cigarette pipe hanging there.
I put away the cigarette pipe. The implication is clear. Hwa-ryeon’s twitching eyes showed the typical irritation of someone who had decided to quit smoking.
“It seemed like the curse had been encroaching on my body much longer than I thought, at least for several months. At some point, the scent of the beginning of the year started to feel strange, so I thought I might have a third child, but it turned out that the enemies inside had done something unexpected. “I was doing it.”
“In the smell of burning tobacco leaves, Mr. Gokju’s political enemies have hidden something.”
“There is a blind spot that only occurs in races with strong five senses. When one’s senses are disturbed by a painfully strong scent, one misses stimuli that even less sensitive races would notice. And he thinks there is no way he could have missed something like that.”
Hwa-ryeon nodded at my guess. Then he paused for about two breaths and nodded again.
“But the medicine you brought worked quickly. It took several months for small-minded people who didn’t even dare to attack the enemy to conspire with the enemy, but thanks to you, their dark intentions were crushed in a matter of days. You brought the medicine on time. “It saved the lives of countless people, including me.”
Actually, I almost died.
“So, Hyanghwagok also did his best for you. Of course, the biggest reason you regained your energy was thanks to a healer named Monica, but we also tried our best by injecting sap and giving you elixirs.”
“Thank you. And I’m glad, Gokju.”
“I express my gratitude for your hard work. You saved our world from future war. Excluding the first porter who accompanied the first cooperative corps in the past, it can be said that no porter has left such a big mark on this world. Do.”
I feel like the situation I am involved in is getting bigger and bigger.
But the thrill of receiving praise from a big name is even greater. Yes, I am a class A porter.
“Thank you for the undeserved praise, Gokju.”
“It’s hard to forgive you for spouting nonsense to my face.”
I’m grateful, but it looks like the fever hasn’t cooled down yet.
As a mother, there is nothing you can do. In fact, getting hit by a spear might have had a higher chance of survival than getting hit by Eshen’s mother.
“The scandal did not leak beyond the walls. Morgan, who was acting in unison, manipulated the direction of the sound. I don’t know how to explain this…”
“You mean the daughter of a great pirate? Yes, I heard after everything was over. They said she was a mix of a mermaid who bewitches and kills people.”
Morgan seems to have done his job well. Considering that Gokju is still keeping me alive.
You really can’t ruin Eshen and Gokju’s honor that much. That would also be a major political incident that would be difficult to resolve. Therefore, the bullshit that Eshen, the princess of Hwanhwagok, was treated like a scum-like pillar only echoed in the building of Kangmaenggak, where the battle of the King of Tigers took place.
To the people outside the wall, our response would have only seemed like a strange grumbling expression. It’s only thanks to Morgan, who can change the flow of sound at will.
I’ll be proud. He wanted to use the abilities of his Siren blood and show off, but he seemed worried because there was nothing worth doing.
“The scandal you inflated to provoke me clearly did not reach ears that should not have heard. Most Tigris do not even know that you are Eshen’s lover.”
“I’m really glad. I was worried about it and felt uncomfortable.”
“But I heard it. The elders also heard it. Of course, treason had to be punished, but we couldn’t keep it alive just to silence it. We fed it to the pigs.”
I remembered Hwa-ryeon saying she would feed me pig rice.
The burning yellow eyes in the dark room are unusual. I suddenly feel dizzy.
“···Perhaps, Lord Gok. Perhaps, I will deal with it in that way too…”
“There are two things I want to correct. I don’t plan on feeding meat to the pigs for the time being. It will make the meat taste bad.”
“···Fortunately, the?”
“And don’t keep calling me Gokju. The person coming in now is Gokju.”
“Yes?”
I was taken aback for a moment, but soon the sound of pounding footsteps came, hitting the wooden floor.
The eastern-style sliding door opened hard as if trying to escape from the door frame. Hwa-ryeon gave a fierce look as if warning her to open and close it gently.
She didn’t even pretend to see her mother. She just glares at me with tears in her fierce eyes.
“Where did you go…”
“I’m back.”
“Come back now.”
Her normally healthy shoulders are folded and trembling.
The urge to hug came over me.
I groaned and took my arm out of the blanket. Then, I traced the area between my shoulder and pectoral muscle that had been pierced by the spear. The window of light had disappeared.
If that was the case, there was no need to hesitate, so I kicked off the blanket and stood up. But in an instant, Eshen grabbed both my cheeks tightly and laid me down.
The mere fact that the patient moved made him grind his teeth as if he was in tears, so there was nothing he could do. I was so scared that I raised my hands and lied down cooperatively, and Eshen slowly covered me with the blanket again. Perhaps because they thought that alone would not be effective in keeping me warm, they even rolled me over and wrapped me in a blanket.
And then he got on top of her and hugged her tightly. Wow.
“It’s warm.”
“Yes, it’s warm. Damn you. If you think my arms are warm, don’t go far.”
“And I’m suffocating…”
“I’m going crazy with embarrassment. Are you not paying attention to your mother who told you that you would wake up soon?”
Eshen, startled, moved his silence followed away from my body. And he hesitated, avoiding Hwa-ryeon’s gaze.
“Well, were you there?”
“Well, then isn’t there any?”
The way she was imitating Eshen’s embarrassment as if scoffing, was so similar that it made me think she was both her mother and her daughter.
Hwa-ryeon looked at the two of us in turn, feeling uncomfortable about the situation, then touched her forehead and sighed.
“I can’t survive. Order, Gokju.”
“To?”
“I told you to give me an order. If it’s uncomfortable for this mother to be in the same room, aren’t you now the person who can decide where to move her with just one word?”
“Ah.”
Eshen blinked and spoke after a moment.
“Well, uh.”
“What is it, Gokju?”
“If I’m being honest, she might offend her mother a bit, but when she was younger, she often fantasized about me falling flat on her face while my mother called me Gokju.”
Oh my god. If it were my daughter, she would have been blown away as soon as she said something like that.
It’s not something I should say, since I’ve been saying crazy things like pampering someone else’s precious daughter.
“But when things really turn out like this, it’s really awkward. Can’t we just pretend it never happened? Honestly, Mom’s uncomfortable too.”
“Are you going to make the Tiger King’s Battle as if it never happened? Are you going to turn the mother’s stomach twice?”
“···Aww, this is difficult. Well, I’d like to ask you to do it mother-to-daughter now.”
“Don’t ask for permission, do it.”
“If it’s okay with Mom, can she just get out of the way for a moment?”
If you think about the expression Eshen made whenever he complained about his hometown or family, the expression he is making now seems quite good. The warmth and awkwardness that suggests an improved relationship emerges on the faces of her mother and daughter, who seem to have been filled with only bloodshed.
So even when Hwa-ryeon left the room in disgust, the atmosphere was not cold.
“Well, let’s have dinner together!”
Eshen shouted into her mother’s back as she walked away. Hualien did not turn around, but she responded in a much softer voice.
“Before the sun sets, think of an order worthy of Gokju. The entire Hyanghwagok is watching and waiting for you! If you think of it, I will even prepare a table for you!”
Meanwhile, I absentmindedly admired Eshen’s side face for a moment.
Her red, watery eyes and her slimmer chin after a few days of hard work are very beautiful. It also suits me that my hair has grown a lot longer and has become closer to medium-length hair.
That’s how different it is from usual. Regardless of whether he wins the battle of the Tiger King and becomes Gokju or not, he is my Eshen. Suddenly I feel very scared.
I left him behind and went to the underworld.
As I was laughing out loud because I was happy without realizing it, Eshen heard the sound and turned around with his eyes narrowed.
And he grabs my cheek.
“Are you laughing?”
“It looks like it’s not coming out. It’s fun just to look at it.”
“Do you remember what you did?”
“Uh, why are you so angry? That you said you would consider having me as your boyfriend? That you asked me to lend you money?”
“The bloody-sized spear that was stuck in your shoulder just yesterday. Do you remember why you got hit?”
“Uh, wasn’t it thrown by a bald guy? Is there another culprit?”
“You really don’t remember. Oh, right. You might not remember. You could show off in front of me and not remember. Right?”
“Hey. Thank you for your concern, but you need to tell me why you’re angry so I-“
“Between the spear’s trajectory and you, there was this Isilun guy.”
“Huh?”
“While Isilun was scared and frozen, she held out her backpack as a shield and covered Isilun with her body.”
I opened my mouth and looked at Eshen. Eshen’s eyes did not waver.
It doesn’t seem like he’s lying. But I really don’t remember either.
“That’s kinda cool, huh?”
“What, you bastard? Are you cool? Your heart got weaker and stopped. You really died!”
“But at least he died after trying something. I thought he went away without being able to do anything, like a rabbit being chased in a nobleman’s hunting ground.”
“Are you happier than being alive?”
It had only been a few minutes since he had laid me down, but Eshen grabbed my cheek and pulled me to force me up. And when I pretended to die, he slammed my forehead with his own.
Although it wasn’t very powerful, the unexpected blow made me a little dizzy. While I shook my head and felt dizzy, Eshen held my collar tightly.
No. Since he was wrapped in a blanket, it would be more accurate to say that he grabbed the blanket.
Either way, I first signaled surrender with my eyes.
“Just do something stupid right before my eyes. Leave me alone and go as far as you want.”
“Sorry.”
“I’m going to chase the underworld and kill it.”
“I won’t do that again.”
I wonder if the parts of my brain that handle fear have died from the shock. Eshen can’t bear to bite me, so he just looks cute biting the blanket and fussing.
The breath that grits my teeth is so close that it tickles my uvula, and the pants that reveal my thighs are tightly pressed to my belly button, which honestly makes me feel a little dizzy.
Plus, I just woke up…
Eshen rolls his eyes. I shrugged and then winced in pain.
“In the middle of this? You shed so much blood?”
“I guess there’s still some blood left to send there.”
“Won’t you? Are you going to take care of yourself?”
“I won’t do that. I’ll take care of myself. I guess I thought I was strong after walking around with you. I won’t be rude from now on, Lord Eshen.”
At the mention of Lord Gok, Eshen’s gaze became more cruel for a moment. And soon it was bent with a smile.
“Then just lie down. I will take care of it. This is Gokju’s order.”
Strictly speaking, I am not Tigris, so there is absolutely no need to obey, but after hearing that they will take care of it, I feel like I want to cooperate.
I groaned and placed my half-corpse body on the pavement. Meanwhile, Eshen quietly opened the door, looked around, closed the door again, and wriggled under my feet.
Eshen’s head and shoulders were squeezed into the blanket that had been rolled up like a sleeping bag. However, the reason why it was so hot inside was not just because the body heat of two people was trapped in a cotton ball.
Some parts of me were trapped in a smaller space. I was feeling light-hearted, treating Eshen’s actions as cute, but a little while later I covered my mouth and let out an unintentional groan.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one whose learning increased. I was attacked from an area I had never even thought of.
“Ah, Al…!”
Pleading only backfired. Eshen muttered in response, keeping what he had rolled with his tongue in his mouth.
I don’t know what the sound is, but it seems like the vibrations are transmitted right through it to the spinal cord.
Eshen smiled contentedly as I started tearing at the blanket. And I kept doing what I was doing.
The critically ill patient’s spine was bent like a bow.
“Monica asked me to give it a try last time. I guess I’m talented.”
“Eck, ugh, ugh.”
A sound like the Eshen I sent comes from my throat. Damn it.
“Hmm. That’s a Gokju-like order.”
Eshen, the clear winner, pulled his head out, wiped his mouth and smiled triumphantly. Leaving me under the blanket, trembling in shame, resentment, and lingering pain. Indeed, it was the attitude of Hwaseonggokju, the beast of beasts.
“Shall we hold a festival?”
