539 – Eavesdropping (1)

“He, hey, who is this guy?”

Dan Ye-rin asked in a very bewildered voice at the sudden appearance of Seol-hwa.

That’s understandable. The problem is that our affair(?) was discovered, and it appeared without a sound.

The doors are closed, as are the windows. There is hardly any opening for anyone to come in.

But Seol-hwa came in confidently, without even making a sound.

I looked back and forth between the two women and then quietly approached Seolhwa.

“I’m sorry, but could you wait outside for a moment? It’s a sensitive topic.”

“I know this is a sensitive topic. Even if I didn’t want to hear it, I ended up hearing it all.”

“You’re not going to intervene, are you?”

It’s already a headache with the Demonic Cult at the forefront, and now Seolhwa is showing up too?

Then, there is a high possibility that the world will go astray. Besides, the person who will become the emperor in the future will have a headache.

In fact, the emperor is the head of the clan, and the elders of the Demonic Cult are likely to become the real powers. They are holding out with overwhelming force, far more powerful than the military.

“I can intervene if you wish.”

“No, it’s okay. Just a moment.”

Seol-hwa doesn’t seem to have any intention of going outside. Even if she did go outside, she would have nowhere to go.

Currently, Lize has gone to the Allied Forces, the force that negotiated with the Demonic Cult. It will probably be a fierce fight.

They did something they shouldn’t have done for their own independence. To be honest, I don’t know what will happen.

I had my own things to do. When I returned to Dan Ye-rin, she still had a puzzled expression on her face.

“First of all, who is that person······ Do you know who the leader of the Demonic Cult is?”

“I know. According to what I remember from the royal family, he was the great-grandson.”

Hyeon-son, that grandfather was a truly high-ranking person. That’s why he was able to talk to Seol-hwa so boldly.

At first glance, I thought he was just a smiling old man, but I never thought he would be known as a chief.

Even in Soul World, the Demonic Cult was more of an extra, as detailed information was not revealed.

Even at the very end, the Demonic Cult remained hidden in the mountains. It is unusual for them to come to the forefront like this.

“That person is higher than that. He is the one the Demonic Cult worships as a god.”

“······You worship me as a god?”

Dan Ye-rin looked at Seol-hwa with wide eyes at my explanation. Then, suddenly, she stopped.

Her eyes lost focus as if she was possessed by something. I grabbed her shoulder to find out why she was doing this.

“Yerin?”

“··· ···”

Dan Ye-rin didn’t come to her senses at all even when shaken. So I looked back, wondering if it was possible.

When I looked back, Seol-hwa was smiling with shining purple eyes. I’ll say it again, purple eyes shining.

It was clear that he had used some strange trick on Dan Ye-rin. I was about to tell her to stop right away when I saw that.

“Ugh······! Ugh······!”

I heard Dan Ye-rin’s startled voice. As soon as I heard that, I looked at her.

I don’t know what I saw, but in that short time, I was drenched in cold sweat. My eyes were shaking as if there was an earthquake.

“W, what on earth is that woman······?”

“··· ···”

“My lady. Who on earth have you brought?”

I wanted to answer, “A monster that is like a god,” but Seolhwa answered first.

“Didn’t you feel it too? Who the real woman is.”

“··· ···”

After that one answer, Dan Ye-rin didn’t ask for my identity anymore. Instead, she looked at me and demanded an explanation.

What on earth happened? And why did Seolhwa come here?

“What’s going on······”

There were so many things going on that it was hard to explain, but I did the best I could.

I tried not to mention anything that could be sensitive along the way, such as the fact that I am a companion to Seolhwa.

It’s not even confirmed yet, and the story is lenient on that part. Of course, it was Dan Ye-rin who was shocked.

“I thought you could take it easy no matter what happened. But this… This is just too confusing.”

“sorry.”

“There’s no need to be sorry. I’m satisfied with just you. Instead, I need to make a judgment on a grand scale.”

As expected, it’s Dan Ye-rin. She hates variables, but when variables actually come up, she takes them all into consideration.

“No. It wouldn’t be bad to just hit the emperor.”

“··· ···”

“It would be nice to spend some time in the forest with you in peace.”

The problem is that all the variables have exploded and Dan Ye-rin’s mentality has also exploded.

He tried to somehow deal with the Demonic Cult, but when he actually came face to face with Seolhwa, he realized how dangerous they were.

Until just a little while ago, he thought he couldn’t become an emperor because of realistic problems, but now it seems like he’s lost all motivation.

I tried hard to pick up her shattered mentality. If I give up here, the East will burn again.

“The story is different. You should have listened to the words of the person you liked in the first place. You wouldn’t blindly listen to everything just because it’s from the Demonic Cult.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“huh.”

Dan Ye-rin looked back and forth between me and Seol-hwa after hearing my firm answer. Her expression seemed to be deepening in thought.

Then he took a deep breath, nodded, and said the best he could.

“For now, it would be best not to reveal the existence of that person. I’ll have to mention it when negotiating with the Demonic Cult.”

“What if the Demonic Cult threatens with the story?”

“If you wish, I can warn you.”

This time, Seolhwa answered on his behalf. It was a rather unusual answer, saying that she would warn him herself.

For Dan Ye-rin, this cannot be anything but a very good card. In addition, it can reveal her personal friendship with Seol-hwa.

At the same time, I had a question. I wondered if this was not only for me but also for Dan Ye-rin.

“Why? You are the one worshipped by the Demonic Cult?”

“The origin of the establishment of the Demonic Cult was to protect the outcasts. And the outcasts are the ones oppressing them? How ridiculous.”

“··· ···”

“If you do such a thing, I will warn you that you are making fun of my wife.”

Is that warning really just an ordinary warning? It looks like one of the limbs is not going to be okay.

No. Maybe we could execute one person as an example. The story has that kind of power.

Anyway, don’t worry about Seolhwa or Cheonma, all that’s left is to predict what will happen next.

“Negotiations will take place tomorrow or the day after. My uncle will come to me before then.”

“Can I stay by your side then?”

“Okay. First, I should tell you that you mercilessly defeated the dragon.”

We have established a plan step by step. There are two variables that can be considered double variables.

First, the Demonic Cult. The Demonic Cult has already reached a point where it is inseparable from the East.

Of course, since Lize has stepped forward, it may be difficult to exert direct influence, but in any case, she has entered the Heavenly Kingdom.

Moreover, there is also an aspect of low reliability because the negotiations themselves were conducted by the Allied Powers and not the Hwan Empire.

“What I’m most worried about is the Matra Empire.”

“Have you ever met Karas?”

“I’m meeting with the Matra Empire forces outside the sky right now. They said they were special personnel and went out.”

The second and possibly biggest variable is the Matra Empire and Karas.

I don’t know if they had foreseen all of this, but Karas and the Matra Empire began to interfere in internal affairs in earnest.

The justification is so clear that not doing it would be foolish. The Matra Empire will try to take advantage of this opportunity to gain certain profits.

The problem is that we have no idea how far the benefits extend. There is too little information.

“But one thing is certain. That human, Karas, wants you, Shivar.”

“Who? Me?”

“Yes. To be honest, from the perspective of those in power, they are the ones they desire the most.”

Dan Ye-rin told me everything that happened between Karas. I nodded after hearing her story.

I’ve known for a long time that Karasu has been eyeing me.

Because in his eyes, I would seem like a capable person. Not just in terms of brute force, but especially in terms of potential.

‘He’s stronger than the general, has excellent linguistic skills, and has infiltration abilities. He’s definitely someone I can’t help but want.’

The type that is most reliable if you are an ally, and the type that is most avoided if you are an enemy.

I think you would want to avoid turning someone like me into an enemy.

Just by its existence, there are so many variables to consider. I’ve felt this way before.

“I’m not going to Karas. Don’t worry.”

“That’s fortunate. Still, you’d better be careful, you never know what that greedy madman might do.”

“Should we go and check it out ourselves?”

“what?”

Go and check for yourself. Dan Ye-rin’s eyes widened at the unexpected answer.

But soon he realized my abilities and asked quietly with a serious face.

“······Are you okay? It’s daytime now.”

“It’s okay. I figured out the structure.”

“If you think it’s dangerous, get out right away. You can get clothes or something through Lee Yeon-ju.”

“huh.”

It’s been a while since I’ve used force, but it’s been infiltrated. But it’s good enough.

As long as I don’t make myself known, no one will be able to notice my presence.

At that moment, I was trying to hurry up and proceed with the next plan.

“My lady. Can I ask you something I’m curious about?”

Seolhwa, who was listening to our conversation, asked me a question.

Even though it was a busy time, I gladly accepted the question because it was a question from a certain perspective.

Then, Seolhwa stared at Dan Yerin and then asked me a question.

“The one you just mentioned. Are you a woman?”

“Woman······? No. It’s a man.”

I guess it’s natural to think that way since everyone I meet is a woman.

But who is Seolhwa? She is something more than that, something far removed from the criminal’s way of thinking.

As soon as Seolhwa heard that Karasu was a man, she tilted her head and expressed her doubts.

“Do you like guys too?”

“······yes?”

“I wonder about your beauty. What kind of being are you that makes me fall for you?”

“··· ···”

Is that person’s mouth also full of confusion?