Feeling awkward, Gun stepped back and cleared his throat.
“Cough……! The rice cakes will get cold.”
Where had the man who questioned the problem with cold rice cakes gone?
“That’s right!”
Regaining her composure, Yeon-woo hurriedly opened the box.
Inside, beautifully colored honey rice cakes revealed their appetizing appearance.
A sparkle appeared in Yeon-woo’s eyes.
“I never knew rice cakes could be so beautiful.”
“Please have some.”
“Yes, you too, my Lord.”
Both picked up a neatly shaped rice cake.
Placing it in their mouths, the sweet scent of honey filled their palates.
Was it the sweetness of the rice cakes, the enchanting scenery, or perhaps the presence of someone with whom to share these pleasures?
The sweet aroma of honey seemed to permeate the air around Yeon-woo and Gun.
Soon, the box was empty.
Having tidied up, the two stood at the edge of the Sohwieon exit, facing their parting.
For Yeon-woo, it had been a fulfilling day – receiving new clothes, enjoying delicious rice cakes, and visiting her favorite Sohwieon.
Her mood had lifted from the depths since leaving home, feeling light-hearted as if walking on clouds after meeting Gun.
The time spent with Gun alone seemed to make her leave worthwhile.
Gun had intended to escort her home, but Yeon-woo firmly refused, so he decided to withdraw at this point.
As the time to part approached, a sense of regret washed over Gun.
He didn’t want to part with her like this.
But lacking a valid reason to keep her, he simply let the moment pass.
“Then, take care on your way home.”
“Yes, you too, my Lord.”
Yeon-woo bowed to Gun and turned to go her own way.
As her figure receded from his view, Gun’s feeling of regret grew stronger.
Having never spent time alone with a woman before, he was unsure how to express this sense of loss.
Gun watched Yeon-woo’s retreating figure, imprinting it in his memory, then finally let go of his lingering feelings into the air.
Just as he was about to walk away, he remembered something he had forgotten.
Gun had kept a special item, treasured in anticipation of meeting Yeon-woo again someday.
Since she couldn’t have gone far by now, he hurried in the direction she had disappeared, hoping to catch up with her.
Gun quickly followed the path Yeon-woo had taken, but soon, his hastened steps came to an abrupt halt.
There, in the middle of the path Yeon-woo had taken, lay one of her shoes, abandoned and alone.
“……?”
It was unusual to find just one shoe of a woman in the middle of the road.
But the strangeness didn’t end there.
Gun bent down to closely inspect the area around the fallen shoe.
The earth was disturbed, and there were several impressions of footprints – a scene that suggested a struggle.
While the footprints leading from Sohwieon were Yeon-woo’s, others clearly were not.
Starting from where the shoe lay, there were several larger footprints intermingled.
These weren’t just one or two; they were a series of footprints leading from another direction, not from Sohwieon.
Gun meticulously scanned the footprints, interpreting the signs.
“Several men approached. Not just one. Four?”
The disordered footprints led down a small alley, suggesting there had been some scuffle.
The irregular pattern of the footprints indicated a struggle had taken place.
Considering that several men had approached a single woman, Gun’s eyes flashed dangerously at the thought of their possible intent.
His instinct screamed at him.
She was in danger.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
