264. The moment of enlightenment
“Ohwa is such a place.”
Soho looks around Ohwa, the capital of the Han Empire, with his mouth open.
A young girl is on a trip to the city with her parents.
Maybe he liked it? Unyeop buys a large steamed dumpling from a nearby street vendor and gives it to Soho.
“Now, eat this.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Coming to Ohwa, Soho was in a somewhat confusing situation.
Originally, she should have hated Unyeop for killing the ancient dragon, but in reality, her Unyeop treated her too well.
She was so kind to Soho that it seemed like she had changed as a person, but she went beyond simply liking children.
Personally, I can only guess that there might be some story behind it.
Our relationship wasn’t deep enough to ask such a question.
“First, I plan to enter the imperial palace to report and handle some business. “If you go to the end, there’s an inn. If you put my name there, they’ll give you a room.”
“When do we leave again?”
“We will leave at dawn tomorrow. So, tour the city in moderation.”
Woonyeop hands Soho the dumplings and leaves. He must have been matching our pace, so when he moved alone, he quickly disappeared among the crowd.
“Let’s go to the inn first.”
“Yes, yes.”
Soho, who was looking at the dumplings in his hand with great interest, eventually took a big bite. The cow was so hot that steam rose from her mouth, but it was so delicious that a faint smile appeared on her lips.
He is a child who is born with a hard time hating people.
I arrived at the inn with that in mind.
I didn’t have any luggage, but Soho had quite a lot of luggage, so it took some time to unpack it.
“What do you want to eat for dinner?”
“Uh, um. “Can I take a look around?”
“As you wish.”
Anyway, I can only pretend to eat. Since I couldn’t really taste it, I naturally gave it up to Soho.
The city where we went for dinner.
Maybe because it is a big city, the bustle continues even as the sun goes down.
Bars will probably hang up lanterns to welcome customers even at night.
It wasn’t a bad street.
From Noble mtl dot com
“I think meat would be good!”
“Yes.”
I really felt like I was taking a child with me.
I followed Soho into a restaurant where meat was grilled on an open fire, and as I sat down, a thought occurred to me.
Aria and Eleanor came to mind.
Are the two of you getting along well?
Compared to Soho, they were both a bit older, but their behavior didn’t feel any different.
‘You probably aren’t doing anything for nothing.’
I thought that many people might be confused because I disappeared.
It would have been great if I could have left a letter, but unfortunately, I couldn’t have predicted this situation either.
Loveren Academy was still in session. Those two people who know me well would definitely be living a student-like life.
“What are you thinking?”
As the side dishes were being served, Soho looked at me blankly and asked.
Is my heart somewhere else even when I see it through her eyes?
“I just think about the kids I know.”
As he answered in a concise manner, the corners of Soho’s mouth slowly rose. Her little boy chuckled and asked if she thought she had found a weakness.
“You were thinking about someone you like, right?”
“That’s not true.”
Aria and Eleanor.
Both of them expressed interest in me, but……. In fact, the two were still very young.
Me and them, now 29 years old, and 18 years old. His Majesty King Orpheus told me that Eleanor was now of marriageable age.
Even though they were 11 years older than her, the feeling of seeing a small child was stronger than that of her lover.
When I answered calmly and started grilling the meat, Soho scratched his cheek and looked awkward.
I guess I didn’t expect it to be accepted so easily.
“Well, then is there someone you like?”
Why is the conversation suddenly moving in this direction? As I was not responding in any way, Soho snapped his hand and shouted excitedly.
“There you are! What kind of person are you? You are pretty? Age is? How tall are you? “How did you meet?”
This child may have forgotten what purpose he is following me around.
The child who was gritting his teeth to avenge the monsters had only traveled with him for a few days, and many issues were resolved.
“Just eat meat.”
Put the roughly cooked meat on the plate in front of you. Soho, who was eating a few pieces, made a strange expression.
“It’s not that it doesn’t taste good, but can you cook it a little less?”
“… ….”
“Maybe it will turn a little red? “It feels like I’m just putting it on a brazier.”
I’m afraid someone will say it’s not a monster. Soho is the most delicious place to eat barely cooked meat that can’t even be considered rare.
But then he asks me right away again if I haven’t forgotten.
“So! “Where is your favorite person?”
“Whoa.”
“I am somewhat of an expert in this area. Tell me please!”
What does the little boy say he knows?
But Soho seemed to have no intention of letting go.
Funny enough, because she was a girl who was not important to me, I was able to reveal the most important thing to her.
“I have a woman in my heart. But she’s not sure she can call it love.”
“Wow! And! And!”
You may say it is absurd, but it is.
Several women made my heart flutter.
But I can’t take them all, and I’m not qualified to do so.
“I’m looking for my own answer.”
“Wow!”
Soho keeps making a fuss about what’s so exciting about it. While listening to the story, I can’t even give a proper answer and just respond.
“…… “Just eat meat.”
No matter how much a monster he is, he is still a kid. What did I hope for when I said this?
Is it because he was in the position of Kim Shin-woo, not Deius, that he became lighter?
I started grilling meat again.
“But. “Then it means that you are in a strange relationship with many people.”
Soho didn’t seem to have any intention of ending this story.
“Do they all know?”
“…… Yes.”
I answered without realizing it.
It was an answer that I really hated even after saying it. Isn’t there a big difference between playing with the hearts of several women and what I’m doing now?
The moment when I was trying to face the feeling of self-destruction instead of avoiding it.
“That’s amazing.”
It wasn’t some kind of sarcasm.
Maybe it’s because it’s a monster, or maybe it’s different from Griffin’s emotions.
She looks at me with pure admiration.
“Awesome?”
“Yes, it means that there are people who like you so much that they even put aside their pride as a woman.”
“… ….”
“Given your personality, if I confessed that I liked you, you would have all rejected it, right? Or, like you said to me, you can just pass it off as not knowing how you feel yet.”
It has a fairly sharp tip. I nodded silently.
“But since everyone said they would wait, you must be worried like this, right?”
I felt like I was seeing some kind of fortune teller. The child, who was clearly a small girl just a moment ago, has now become an expert in this field.
“How about not breaking it at all? “You just accept everything!”
It was like sweet candy. The kind of thing you’ve thought about but shouldn’t dream about.
“You can’t do that.”
My body is ultimately one.
Sayings like loving everyone equally are just lip service.
Even if we accepted everyone in that way, even if it was peaceful at first, eventually there would be a rift at some point.
“Really?”
After putting meat in her mouth, Soho suddenly returns to her original mood and blurts out a word.
“Then it must hurt a lot when you break it.”
“… ….”
“Both you and the person who breaks.”
It was a meaningful statement.
After thinking for a moment, I glance at Soho. The story became quite heavy, but that was something I had to worry about personally.
Another question arises.
“Soho.”
It was about her.
I know that Soho is not an ordinary youkai. Unlike other youkai, it eats and lives a normal life.
But when I see this now.
“You probably…” ….”
“Oh, please don’t tease me.”
She tried to tell him about her identity, but Soho gently raised his hand to indicate her refusal. She tried to correct, but she said it anyway and it didn’t make much of a difference.
I remained silent and only grilled the meat.
* * *
On top of the collapsed castle wall, illuminated by the moonlight in the night sky.
A man standing alone.
The dull blonde hair slicked back was long enough to reach his shoulders.
The muscles tightly built into the body were writhing as if they were alive and breathing.
From the hair to the appearance.
This was a man who reminded me of a huge lion.
Kiluk.
A hawk flying towards him.
The hawk that had landed in front of him had something tied to its leg.
The man unties it and takes it out.
A letter sent by Unyeop contains scales, the weakest point left behind by the ancient dragon.
Without even reading the letter, the man bites it roughly.
The man chewed with his sharp fangs and eventually swallowed the traces of an ancient dragon.
“Huh.”
With a heavy breathing sound, a faint light burns and disappears within the man’s body.
He growls as if he wants to unleash the enormous power building up in his body, but he struggles to hold it back.
The leaves are coming soon.
It’s not long before it’s time to set off for Griffin’s North Wedden Mountains.
The man’s name is Lanhardt.
He was the leader of hunters and a mercenary called the Lion of the Principality of Balestan.
Also.
He was a vampire who lusted after people and monsters.