The current time was 8:30 PM. As he had said, even if Eunha returned now, today’s schedule was ruined. But recording was not the issue now.
Both Maestro and Trickster. Lately, big shots had been gathering around his senior.
This was not a mere coincidence. Something unseen was moving slowly but surely. Xiwoo had not yet grasped what it was. Even now.
‘Wolves need you, not that woman.’
“…….”
Xiwoo, who had gotten into the car, started it a bit roughly.
Gyehoon knew about Eunha’s existence. Although he had acted nonchalant in front of Gyehoon, he had actually been anxious.
‘Raise your head. You don’t need to bow. Not to me, nor to the public.’
‘I am grateful to you in many ways.’
‘Without you, it would have been really hard.’
……Senior.
Strength seeped into the hands holding the steering wheel.
For Xiwoo, she was the key. The key to get out of this tiresome prison.
But was that all?
Xiwoo realized that the look in his eyes, reflected in the room mirror, was strangely wavering. And he soon looked down, pretending he hadn’t seen anything.
He just thought so for now. As she faithfully fulfilled her contract with him, protecting her was his minimum duty and responsibility. Taking care of those who threatened her safety or interfered with their contract was his role.
Whether the opponent was his father, another Sclass hunter, or even the head of the state.
The headlight was dazzling in the dark underground parking lot. Xiwoo turned the steering wheel without hesitation.
He must find her quickly.
‘Find her and….’
Ask her about the responsibility for ditching the recording? No, ask her why she disappeared all of a sudden? No, that’s next. Just for now, whether she was safe. That was all he wanted to know.
Whether that was part of the contract or not, there was no time to think about that now.
(This is a time divider.)
“That’s all I have to convey.”
The eyes hidden beneath the long eyelashes were revealed.
Deep violet eyes, shining as if soaked in wine. As beautiful as ever, taking one’s breath away.
“Are you listening, Yuhwan?”
“Ah, yes.”
Yuhwan, the Immortal Lord and South Korea’s third Sclass hunter, sneakily looked away, pretending to check the time.
“I get it. Bring the item that the Unknown Gate boss drops?”
“Yes. It drops rare items at a higher rate compared to normal Gates. It’s essential for research, so make sure to bring it.”
“Will do.”
Yuhwan nodded his head vigorously, telling her not to worry.
“…….”
“…….”
A brief silence followed.
“Aren’t you leaving?”
“Huh?”
“Don’t you have to go now? The kids are waiting.”
“……Hmm.”
Yuhwan, who gulped down the remaining tea in one gulp, hesitated to get up, as if reluctant.
Peek, Yuhwan glanced at the woman sitting across from him.
Dr. Plant, Geumrojae.
She looked unbelievably young for someone nearing fifty, appearing only in her early to midthirties.
“Why?”
“Oh, no.”
Yuhwan hurriedly averted his gaze, fanning himself with embarrassment. Whether his reaction was funny or not, she let out a coo, a ticklish laugh. Drawn by the sound of her laughter, Yuhwan secretly looked at her again.
Elegantly twisted purple hair. Every time she blinked her purple eyes with a slightly languid expression, he was even deluded that a rich wine scent was felt in her eyes.
But Yuhwan’s admiration for Rose was not merely because of her beautiful appearance.
A gentle ruler who united healers, who had been tied to noncombat lines for a long time, under the name “Rose.” She, Rose, was the very person who raised the rights and values of healers in modern Korea.
‘It’s not an exaggeration to say that every healing hunter active in Korea is her beneficiary.’
Not only that. Unlike other guilds busy with their own affairs, “Rose,” led by her, regularly volunteered and rescued gate victims.
It seemed so, and she had been preparing for the upcoming disaster as an unknown gate researcher for several years now.
How could one not admire her? Her wisdom and benevolence were different in dimension, even when compared to the same Sclass hunters.
‘So even the spirit of the wolf is wary of her.’
Then there was only one thing Yuhwan had to do. It was to protect and assist her.
“Twenty people, including your guild’s third in command, have been deployed, and they’re struggling for three days.”
“They’re not such kids. Seems like the recent training intensity was weak.”
As Yuhwan muttered seriously, Rose shook her head with a bored face.
“There’s no way. The training is so tough that ordinary people couldn’t endure even a day. People watching are all worried.”
“No need to worry. The ‘ordinary people’ you talk about are not in our Immortal.”
Yuhwan, having said that, slowly rose from his seat. He hadn’t realized while sitting, but standing up, it was felt that he was a tall man over 190cm.
Yuhwan thickly wrapped the bandage he had laid on the table around his wrist and back of the hand. It was a substitute for a wrist guard.
“Give it here.”
Rose, whose main job was a healing hunter, skillfully wrapped the bandage.
Yuhwan’s ears were red as he glanced down at her. Afraid that someone might find out, he unnecessarily cleared his throat and changed the subject.
“…Hmm. Normally, I wouldn’t even need to step in. Is the unknown gate really that great?”
“Yes. It’s great.”
Rose answered firmly without need for thought. Yuhwan looked at her with a speechless face. She, wrapping the bandage with familiar hands, continued to speak.
“The unknown gate is different from ordinary gates. You won’t know since you haven’t experienced it yet.”
Now, it’s done. After tying the bandage knot, Rose lightly tapped the back of his hand.
“Listen well, Yuhwan. No matter who you are, you must never be careless.”
“……”
“It will be best to abandon the common sense you have, at least during this mission.”
A brief silence lingered, but it soon disappeared in Yuhwan’s hearty laughter.
“That’s exciting.”
Yuhwan was confident. It was not an unfounded confidence.
‘Great Sage’ Yuhwan.
With an unparalleled polished martial art and an extreme physical training, he was the strongest among physical enhancement type combat hunters.
He had the confidence and strength to win any barehanded fight, no matter who the opponent was.
‘There’s no way anything will happen.’
Even if something did happen, he could smash it with bare fists. Nothing could block his way.
─However, her words had some truth to them.
That day in Busan, Yuhwan experiences something he had never experienced before.
That too, outside of the unknown gate.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
