As night fell, the mountain village air grew quite chilly.
Sharti walked alongside Ashu, who was strangely tinkering with something, and cooled her head in the cold wind.
‘Will he be alright?’
In the pitch-black night scenery, Ren naturally came to mind.
‘Surely he’s not sulking again?’
She hadn’t suggested a walk out of consideration for Ren, but having spent nights walking mountain paths together, she couldn’t help but worry.
Come to think of it, she had been with Ren the entire time coming here, which made her feel even more lonely now.
‘……I wonder if Ren feels the same?’
It wasn’t hard to imagine Ren waiting endlessly for her.
She thought Ren might be waiting for her with a sulky face when she returned. And this time, wouldn’t he whine asking her to hold his hand so he wouldn’t get upset?
Sharti let out a small laugh.
“You were so flustered earlier. I’m sorry, teacher.”
Ashu, who had been excited earlier, finally came to his senses and spoke up.
He couldn’t miss this precious opportunity to talk alone with Sharti.
“It’s just us now, so feel free to use your voice! Writing while walking could be dangerous, though of course I have good eyes and can read well, but……”
Ashu gathered his courage to try to close the distance between them.
Trying to make excuses without revealing his true intentions, Ashu’s words got tangled and he scratched his cheek in embarrassment.
Sharti held back a bitter smile, thinking it was typical of Ashu to be so considerate.
“Ah, I see……”
Ashu nodded dejectedly at the clear rejection.
He wanted to have a comfortable conversation with her, but this wasn’t something to be stubborn about.
If he couldn’t manage his expression after hearing Sharti’s voice, it would deeply hurt her.
Instead, Ashu changed the subject.
“We don’t have designated walking paths in our village, but if we go this way, there’s a small pond that looks quite pretty at night when the moon reflects on it. I’ll guide you there.”
Ashu confidently pointed to the right, trying to create an opportunity to score points.
Sharti stopped Ashu.
She was worried about Ren, whom she had left alone, making it difficult to leisurely enjoy a walk.
‘I should finish up quickly and go back.’
Unlike Ashu, Sharti had some things to prepare while taking a walk. For that, she needed Ashu’s help.
Sharti conveyed the purpose of the walk.
“What? An experiment?”
Sharti took out a mana stone from her bag along with a note.
The mana stone containing a two-week supply of mana for one person, worth 15 silver each, now had very little mana left.
There was a high possibility that the mana would be depleted on the way back.
‘If possible, this entire village could be no different from a mana charging station.’
Sharti rubbed the mana stone with a tense face.
The weight of the words ‘resources for rebellion’ began to sink in little by little.
On the other hand, Ashu looked puzzled, as if the experiment didn’t make sense to him.
“Um… So what should we do?”
The place Sharti pointed to was the center of the village.
Three stone towers, taller than the trees, stood there.
At first glance, the seemingly ordinary stone towers had guards stationed around them. Rather than guarding something dangerous, it seemed they were there to ensure the towers didn’t collapse.
“Ah, yes. I’ve heard they’ve been here since ancient times.”
As Sharti seriously examined the stone towers, Ashu wore a lonely smile.
But it was too early to be disappointed.
“You want to go closer to the stone towers, right?”
She had been hesitant to even think about it, as even the villagers were being kept away from the towers.
Still, it was worth agreeing to the walk, hoping to get help from Ashu, the village chief’s direct descendant.
When Sharti nodded vigorously, Ashu’s mood immediately improved.
“Let’s go that way without getting caught.”
And so, with Ashu’s help, Sharti safely examined the stone towers and shortly after, left the area around them with a pale face.
“T-Teacher, are you alright?”
Ashu supported Sharti as she staggered from dizziness.
Sitting down on a tree stump, Sharti suppressed the reflexive nausea.
‘……Now I understand why they blocked it off.’
As she got close enough to touch the stone towers, the purity of the mana was different.
Rather than feeling dense, it felt like something heavy and sticky was enveloping her body.
‘An ordinary person like me wouldn’t last half a day there.’
Sharti checked the mana stone in her hand with a pale face. The stone was emitting a faint heat, making it unnecessary to check further.
There was no need for high-speed charging.
After taking several deep breaths, Sharti carefully put the mana stone back in her bag.
‘To think even ordinary stones could become mana stones to this extent.’
Being natural mana-infused stones, they would be of much higher quality than the mana stones that mages carry around.
‘I guess that marquis family is truly frightening and powerful.’
The Bridend Marquis family.
When she heard the news that Bireta had failed in her assassination attempt, the power of the Newton noble family didn’t seem real, but now Sharti shuddered as it finally sank in.
“Teacher, shall we head back now and end our walk?”
Ashu tried to take off his outer garment, but Sharti waved her hand.
His clothes were too thin for her to wear.
She needed some time to organize her thoughts while getting some fresh air.
‘If I go back looking like this, I’ll only worry Ren.’
She was already concerned that, unlike at first, she seemed to be showing more and more unreliable sides to Ren. She wanted to be careful about appearing weak only in front of him, as if it were natural.
“Alright!”
Ashu’s face brightened at the words that they wouldn’t be returning immediately.
Sharti glanced at Ashu from the corner of her eye.
‘I wonder if he has something to say?’
Come to think of it, Ashu must have been frustrated too.
An unknown illness and people with conflicting opinions. The despair endured through worry and anxiety, and the desperation of seeking an outside doctor, prepared for rejection.
Having overcome all that and finally holding hope today, he would need someone to talk to.
‘I should listen.’
Though she couldn’t offer a satisfying consultation, she could at least listen to what he had to say.
As it was too chilly to keep sitting, Sharti stood up.
The dizziness and nausea had subsided, so she continued the walk with Ashu.
“By the way, I never imagined that the reason people collapsed was mana poisoning. You said that there seems to be a huge mana deposit buried in the land where this village was built, right?”
Ashu carefully spoke up, gauging the atmosphere.
“I don’t know much about mana, but my father said this. From now on, we shouldn’t close our doors to protect the village, but open them to protect this land.”
“Yes. But you’ve helped us, teacher. And other people who will help us will come too, so it’s not as hopeless as before.”
Ashu smiled faintly and looked up at the sky.
Though it was a pitch-black night sky without a single star visible, the eyes behind his glasses were shining brighter than ever.
“However, I’ve often been told that I’m timid and naive about the ways of the world, so I’m not very reliable. I wonder if someone like me can be of help.”
His subdued voice sounded very timid and lacking in confidence.
Sharti immediately shook her head in disagreement.
“Oh, oh… Me?”
Ashu looked back and forth between the note and Sharti with a surprised expression.
Ashu’s cheeks, already red from the cold wind, flushed even warmer.
“I’m happy that you say so, teacher.”
Fidgeting with the note in his hand, Ashu rubbed his cheeks vigorously.
Ashu’s mood seemed to have improved considerably as he soon broke into a big smile. Seeing Ashu genuinely happy from the praise and encouragement, Sharti felt pleased as well.
‘So Birena’s emphasized ideal type actually exists.’
The bespectacled man that Birena had emphasized as her ideal type was right in front of her.
Sharti nodded to herself as she discreetly examined Ashu from head to toe.
‘Tall and slim, with an innocent-looking smile.’
Isn’t he exactly Birena’s ideal type?
While Sharti was lost in her oblivious thoughts, Ashu decided to muster up his courage once more.
“Actually, I’m not popular with women, and I’ve been told many times that I’m not manly enough……”
Not popular?
Sharti shook her hands vigorously in denial.
Having not yet experienced the wider world or met many people, his self-evaluation must be limited.
Sharti encouraged Ashu, thinking of Birena.
Ashu’s face turned pink.
“Do you really think so…?”
When Sharti nodded, Ashu smiled brightly.
Finally, with newfound hope, Ashu’s eyes sparkled.
“Then, perhaps… could I know your ideal type, I mean, your criteria, the options you chose earlier?”
“……?”
Sharti tilted her head. Not because she didn’t understand.
The options the village women had asked about were intended to narrow down Sharti’s ideal type criteria.
She was just puzzled why Ashu would be curious about such options.
“I, I want to learn and try to become someone who can be liked in various aspects!”
Ashu added, as if making an excuse.
His entire face had turned bright red, having finally come close to achieving his goal. Overwhelmed by Ashu’s enthusiasm, Sharti nodded reflexively.
‘Well, I suppose he already knows the criteria of the village women.’
Sharti obediently wrote a note.
Ashu, who had been waiting with an excited heart, received the note.
“……?”
Despite the short phrase, it held a comprehensive meaning.
Ashu blinked blankly.
So perhaps that’s why first impressions are important.
They say people unconsciously feel and think many things from others’ first impressions, so the more intense it is, the more memorable it will be.
“Ah……”
Ashu, reading the subsequent notes, soon smiled brightly.
Then he carefully folded the notes and held them tightly with both hands.
“Yes, that’s right. Then I’ll try to become a good person.”
“……”
His pure-hearted sincerity was clearly conveyed.
The unique atmosphere given off by a positive and brightly cheerful person was felt.
At that moment, the image of Ren lowering his head while comparing himself to Ashu’s flower suddenly flickered in her mind.
‘It might be the difference in wholeness.’
Ashu was different from Ren in many ways.
How did Ren, living a distorted life due to lost memories, see Ashu? What kind of feelings and emotions did he have seeing Ashu, who was healthy and strong in both body and mind?
‘……So that’s why he said it was jealousy.’
Sharti sighed softly at this belated realization.
“Teacher?”
As a cold wind blew, Sharti came to her senses.
Because her expression was hidden by her hood, Ashu was unaware of Sharti’s thoughts.
Sharti stared at Ashu for a while, then her lips moved slightly.
“……It’s nothing.”
“Pardon?”
Ashu flinched at the sudden terribly hoarse voice.
Sharti continued speaking, a bit dazedly and weakly.
“Actually, I’d prefer someone with many shortcomings.”
I hope they’re a good person. That wasn’t a lie.
Isn’t that the most common and basic condition for people to feel attracted to others?
But for Sharti, who was not ordinary and somewhat twisted, there had to be other conditions.
“Someone who doesn’t make me feel shabby about myself, I’d like that kind of person.”
Sharti smiled at the unglamorous truth that had suddenly come out.
While revealing herself as the owner of an unhealthy mind, she smiled.
While acknowledging her dull and low-quality nature that she had been unconsciously avoiding, she smiled.
And she felt sad.
‘Who would like someone like me?’
Living while hiding this shabby and twisted, broken self.
Her exposed, ugly heart ached in the cold wind.
Sharti bit her lip hard and lowered her head deeply.
“Teacher……?”
As the bewildered Ashu was about to take a step forward, Sharti turned her body and left the place as if fleeing. Her figure disappearing into the darkness signaled the end of the long walk.
__________
Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up! (Female-dominant)
Short intro:
What she can’t stand the most is the streets full of effeminate men, especially that so-called top beauty whom she avoids at all costs.
Shen Yaoxing looks at Jiang Mingyue, who keeps approaching her with coy shyness.
Shen Yaoxing: Bro, don’t be like this, I’m really about to throw up!
She fears nothing in heaven or earth, except for him getting close to her.
*
At first he thought she was just using the trick of feigning indifference to attract his attention. Later, he learned that she truly despised him.
This dealt a heavy blow to Jiang Mingyue, and he vowed to make her, like everyone else, fall at his feet in worship!
***
Synopsis:
Before transmigrating, Shen Yaoxing only wanted to find a reliable man to spend her life with. Who knew that after transmigrating, she would become a reliable woman herself…
A forced misandrist, highly skilled, and reliable female lead
vs.
An initially aloof and arrogant, later morbid, obsessed male lead
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