SDT 211
“Everyone else is busy kowtowing to the divine beasts, yet you call them disasters.”
The chick’s personality was indeed a disaster.
“The divine beasts’ power is immense. And since there are so many things in this world I can’t comprehend, I have no choice but to accept them as they are.”
“But you can’t accept it.”
“Accept what?”
“What happened to your homeland.”
“…….”
“You seem pretty upset that I brought that up.”
Tairok looked at me with a charming smile.
“You look lovely.”
I was genuinely annoyed, but it had no effect.
Instead, he grabbed my hand, which I had tried to pull away, and kissed the back of it. My face twisted as if I’d swallowed dirty dishwater. I’d probably never get used to that kind of affectionate gesture.
And yet, the problem was that when he smiled like that, I felt like I wouldn’t mind it forever. It didn’t feel bad to be vulnerable because I liked someone. While I was lost in thought, he misinterpreted my expression and asked:
“Do you hate it when I take an interest in your world?”
Hate it? Far from it. But I couldn’t deny it.
“I don’t really have anything to say. It’s not exactly a good situation.”
“There’s nothing you can do about it.”
“You never know.”
I’d let my true feelings slip before I realized it, and I stole a glance at him.
“I don’t mean I’m going to go back to my world.”
He smirked.
“You couldn’t go back anyway.”
Since the Eye of Hell had closed, it was true. But did he have to point it out so coldly?
“I know. I know there’s no way back.”
“Even if there were a way, it would be the same.”
When I couldn’t immediately retort, his smile widened.
“Do you want to go to your homeland?”
How could I possibly say yes when he asked with such a fierce glint in his eyes?
“Wherever you are is home to me.”
The most powerful man in Tubain was delighted by my sarcastic remark. His smile could shine so brightly.
At this rate, I felt like I wouldn’t be able to leave even if a highway straight to Earth suddenly appeared. It was a strange feeling to realize how deeply I’d fallen for Tairok.
“More importantly, do you really have time to be dallying with me like this?”
He was incredibly busy. Tairok had become the temporary Grand Duke of both Borhumi and Montaine, as their original rulers were gone.
The resurrected Grand Duke was handling Kun’s affairs, while Black Bear managed things for Sarne. Yet, everyone believed Tairok would soon ascend to the throne as Emperor.
He was reportedly flooded with requests. And yet, he had the leisure to drink tea with me or make moves on me.
“I have plenty of time.”
He lifted his teacup elegantly as he said something hard to believe. Plenty of time? Rick looked like he was about to die from overwork. He had even complained to me the moment we met:
‘People begging to meet Salvation come in like a tidal wave every day. And that’s not all, countless proposals requiring Salvation’s approval are piling up higher than a mountain. I’m being crushed to death by paperwork.’
He was exaggerating, but considering the symbolic importance of Salvation in Tubain, there had to be some truth to it.
So why wasn’t anyone making requests directly to me? When I asked Rick, he replied:
‘That’s because the Grand Duke is blocking them.’
Could it be that he was doing it on purpose because he knew I disliked it? While the thought was on my mind, I decided to ask him.
“So, you’re the one blocking all the paperwork meant for me?”
“Oh, that? It’s just that you aren’t ready to properly sign your name on the documents yet.”
Sign my name? That was an unexpected answer. What’s more, his eyes sparkled with a distinct glint as he grinned at me. He wasn’t just blocking tedious administrative tasks, then?
“Does signing a name require preparation?”
He just kept smiling.
“What is it? Is the name used on official documents different?”
“No difference at all.”
Then why was he smiling so slyly…?
“You just have to write your proper name correctly.”
“Do you think I’m some fool who doesn’t even know the Tubain script?”
“Of course not.”
He shook his head, then tried to place his hand on my waist. Naturally, my body reflexively dodged his touch.
No way. I might lose my reason if I let him touch me like that again.
Cold sweat broke out on my skin. Was I actually in heat?
***
“You might be.”
Doctor Kim acknowledged it nonchalantly. I had found her, as usual, in her cherished chili pepper greenhouse. She looked endearing with her straw hat and baggy trousers cinched at the ankles.
“But you said I took the medicine?!”
As soon as I raised my voice, she glared at me. Now that I looked at it, that was the same expression she used to wear when she was tormenting me as a child. She warned me in a low voice.
“Keep it down. My babies are sensitive.”
Her babies. The chili peppers. There was no telling just how frail and sensitive these peppers were. If the sunlight was a bit too strong, they’d scorch and die; if there was a bit too much water, they’d turn to mush and rot.
And was that all? Even the slightest gust of wind could knock them over. There was a reason Doctor Kim had abandoned everything else to devote herself entirely to chili pepper farming.
“And I told you before. The original owner of this body is the embodiment of lust. He was the type whose libido, which usually gets suppressed by medication, actually flares up even more intensely. It’s nothing new.”
It is new to me.
“Why the look on your face? Has it gotten worse?”
“Um, yeah.”
She tilted her head.
“If you can feel it that strongly, that means you’ve been doing it all over the place with Tairok, right?”
“…….”
Her eyebrows twitched at my silence. Then, she gave a stern warning.
“Absolutely not in my chili greenhouse.”
“Oh, come on. Do you think I’m crazy enough to do it here?”
“Lu is the embodiment of lust; he’d shake his hips even in the fires of hell. Don’t underestimate that body.”
I didn’t even feel like laughing at Lu’s past reputation anymore. I closed my eyes and pressed a hand to my forehead.
Is it really heat?
“Get checked by my healers before you go. You’ve taken the medication, so it shouldn’t be actual heat. There’s only one other possibility, but… nah, you haven’t even had the wedding yet.”
“What does the wedding have to do with it?”
“That’s when the oath is made.”
Ah, that oath. That was the very thing I’d swallowed my pride and bowed my head to Tairok for, begging him to marry me…
Hmm? Why do I feel uneasy?
‘Mo, is there anything I missed regarding the oath and what happened with Tairok?’
[Not during the time I was active.]
If Mo said so, there probably wasn’t anything major to worry about.
“When a couple shares true love and takes the oath, their souls become bound together.”
Bound?
Doctor Kim suddenly lowered her voice.
“They say the mere sight of each other is enough to trigger arousal.”
……Ah.
“They’re a depraved lot. Don’t you think?”
“Oh, well.”
As I trailed off, Doctor Kim’s eyes flashed.
“You don’t agree? Has the promiscuity of Tubain started to feel natural to you?”
“What are you talking about? You have no idea how hard I’m trying to keep my head on straight.”
“Why bother?”
“Huh?”
Dumbfounded, I turned to look at her, but she was calmly surveying the greenhouse.
“Just live however you feel drawn to. This isn’t the place we used to call home; even if you rose to the pinnacle of Tubain depravity, no one would judge you.”
“Who said I was afraid of judgment?”
“Then?”
“……I’m afraid that if I change, I might forget my homeland.”
Doctor Kim remained silent for a moment. She gazed at the greenhouse before muttering,
“How could you ever forget?”
Her dry words made my heart ache. Like her, I stared blankly at the crops growing inside the greenhouse.
No one dared to say platitudes like “It’ll work out” or “Everything will be fine.” Even a single positive word felt like a sin. After all, we were living such comfortable lives.
“I wish there were a way to get news.”
Doctor Kim’s eyes suddenly lit up.
“Did the divine beasts mention a way?”
“Huh? No.”
As I shook my head, her expression turned gloomy again.
“I’m sorry. I was just saying it on a whim.”
“I thought perhaps the divine beasts had told you something, seeing as they’re so fond of you.”
When I heard that for the second time, I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Ha, the divine beasts liking me? Absolutely not.”
If anything, it was the opposite. They torment me. I launched into a detailed complaint, recounting the history of what I’d endured.
“Just because we can communicate, does that give them the right to make my life so miserable?”
“People don’t act like that just because they can talk to someone. You must be someone they feel comfortable around.”
“It’s not ‘comfortable’, it’s that they think I’m a pushover.”
I quickly corrected the phrasing, but Doctor Kim persisted with her absurd argument.
“Call it what you will. But people generally don’t want to say a single word to someone they dislike.”
“Even if they liked me as much as they like their contractor, nothing would change. They aren’t exactly going to save my world.”
“What about a being even stronger than the divine beasts?”
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