78.
At first, he couldn’t even curse properly, but now he was spewing out curses Jinhyeon had never heard before. It’s unclear where he learned them, but his progress was fast.
While cursing, the pillow Yu Jin had been pounding was now spilling out feathers and cotton. Then suddenly, Yu Jin fell silent. He stared blankly ahead, then curled up, hugging the torn pillow. His shoulders, looking particularly frail due to his posture, trembled.
‘Is he crying?’
Just as the bewildered Jinhyeon was about to step towards Yu Jin, he lifted his head. And in a low voice, he said,
“It can’t be helped.”
The resigned emotion in his voice made Jinhyeon clench his teeth involuntarily. Every glance, every word, every touch was filled with affection, yet Yu Jin’s surrender was too quick. Why was it so easy for him to give up?
‘What did I do wrong?’
He had confidently told Yu Jin he would wait for him, but at times like this, he wanted to take back those words. The deep patience he had maintained until now didn’t work in front of Yu Jin. Jinhyeon’s eyes grew cold as he looked at Yu Jin.
“Yu Jin.”
When his name was called, Yu Jin flinched and turned around. His expression twisted as if surprised, but that didn’t last long. Yu Jin greeted Jinhyeon with an awkward smile.
“You’re back? You must be tired, what brings you here?”
Jinhyeon’s chest felt tight, as if something was blocking it.
“…Am I someone who can only visit when there’s business?”
“No, that’s not it.”
His words were calm, but the difficulty in his eyes was apparent. Jinhyeon took a deep breath and strode towards Yu Jin.
“I said before that I wouldn’t ask about what you’re hiding right away.”
Yu Jin nodded slowly at Jinhyeon’s words.
“I’m sorry, I’m changing my words. I need to know right now.”
“…Know what?”
“What you’re hiding.”
Yu Jin’s eyes rolled. At the end of that gaze was the door leading outside. Think I’ll let you run away? Jinhyeon covered Yu Jin’s mouth and pressed down on his body before he could attempt anything.
“Mmph, mmph!”
He seemed to be struggling desperately, but it was no use against Jinhyeon.
“How can I get you to tell me what you’re hiding?”
There were many ways. He had learned several just from frequenting the back alleys. But he didn’t want to torture Yu Jin by tearing off his flesh. Even as he was thinking, Yu Jin was still trying to move his body.
“If you promise not to scream, I’ll remove my hand.”
At Jinhyeon’s words, Yu Jin’s head nodded.
“Why, why are you doing this? You said it was okay. You said to tell you later.”
“I did. But I’ve changed my mind.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re giving up on me too quickly.”
Yu Jin muttered a small curse.
“Sometimes people need to know when to give up.”
“That’s right. But why me?”
“I think you’re misunderstanding something.”
“Misunderstanding, you say.”
Jinhyeon smiled and turned Yu Jin’s body to face him.
“Look me straight in the eyes and tell me.”
Yu Jin looked straight into Jinhyeon’s eyes, but that didn’t last long. Soon, his eyes began to waver.
“Yu Jin.”
Jinhyeon whispered gently in a deliberately kind voice.
“No matter what you say, I won’t change. So tell me what you’re hiding.”
“…And if I don’t?”
“You’ll face a night beyond your imagination.”
“Are you going to torture me?”
Jinhyeon had no intention of torturing Yu Jin the way he was thinking, but he deliberately kept silent. It was to stimulate the timid rabbit that Yu Jin was, upon closer inspection. Yu Jin, who had been chewing on his lips, tried to move his body around, but when it didn’t budge, he relaxed.
“…You won’t believe me.”
“I’ll believe whatever you say. I swear on my life.”
People in this world put a lot on their oaths. They would stake their family name or treasures, and sometimes even their lives. It wasn’t a comprehensible behavior. Still, if saying that could put Yu Jin’s mind at ease, Jinhyeon was willing to do anything. Even after that, Yu Jin hesitated for a long time before speaking.
“Actually, I know the future.”
“I see.”
Jinhyeon had also considered this possibility when trying to guess what Yu Jin was hiding.
“I suppose I’m in that future too?”
“Yes.”
“What am I like?”
“Human trash.”
“What?”
“A man obsessed with women.”
After saying this, Yu Jin started to shed tears.
“Originally, it wasn’t me who bought you, but Roena. And you become deeply involved with Roena. And later, you even sleep with Lyunne.”
“Hmm.”
The strength left Jinhyeon’s hands that were holding Yu Jin. Then Yu Jin raised his fists and started hitting Jinhyeon.
“It’s not just Lyunne! Do you know how many women you’ll meet in the future? No, you playboy!”
Jinhyeon quietly let Yu Jin hit him. It didn’t hurt much anyway, and if this could relieve Yu Jin’s heart, it was fine.
“You bastard!”
After hitting him to his heart’s content, Jinhyeon tightly embraced the exhausted, crying Yu Jin.
“But things have changed, right? You said I would have been with Roena originally. But I’m not now, right?”
“That’s because I took Roena’s place. Now that Lyunne has appeared, you’ll stick to her.”
“Why would I?”
“Because it’s your fate.”
“No, absolutely not.”
Jinhyeon desperately denied it. He had many thoughts as he was making excuses for things he hadn’t even done, but he couldn’t help it.
“Really, you won’t?”
“I won’t. If you want, I can even write a contract. If I go to someone else, then…”
“Let’s cut off your penis.”
“…What?”
“Then I think I could feel at ease.”
It seemed he would have to stake his genitals in the contract to reassure Yu Jin. But he had no intention of going to anyone else anyway. Jinhyeon nodded.
“If you want, I’ll include that clause too.”
“You’ll really include it?”
“You said you wanted to, right?”
At this, Yu Jin, who had been nestled in his arms, wriggled and burrowed deeper into Jinhyeon’s embrace. It seemed he only gained trust after Jinhyeon staked his genitals. And after that, Yu Jin went on to tell many more stories. Most of them were about Jinhyeon, and it seemed he would become quite an extraordinary person later on. And in the process, he met a lot of women.
“It’s okay. I can achieve what I want without help from others. So don’t worry about me being unfaithful.”
When he said this, Yu Jin started crying again.
“Crybaby.”
As Jinhyeon wiped away his tears and spoke, Yu Jin bit his hand. His biting force must have been extraordinary, as teeth marks were clearly left on his hand. But that didn’t feel bad either. The two lay side by side and talked about many things. Just that alone made them happy with the rising feeling of fulfillment.
That is, until Yu Jin actually brought the contract the next day.
Haruna, who came as a witness, glared at the contract with a shocked expression.
“Are you really going to draw up a contract with these terms?”
Yu Jin nodded at Haruna’s question.
“And Jinhyeon agrees to this?”
“Yes.”
“Good heavens. I’ve never seen a contract like this in my life.”
Staking such an ugly thing. Yu Jin was peculiar for putting it in the contract, but Jinhyeon was also extraordinary for agreeing to it. To use this expensive contract for something like this. For a moment, she had such thoughts, but didn’t voice them. If it put Yu Jin’s mind at ease to stake Jinhyeon’s genitals, so be it. Haruna was on Yu Jin’s side.
Keith, who arrived late as a witness, also looked surprised at the contents of the contract.
“I can do it too.”
And he said something incomprehensible to Yu Jin. Haruna, who understood his meaning, immediately hit Keith’s back, and the contract proceeded smoothly. Now Jinhyeon’s genitals were no longer just his own.
Jinhyeon continued his lessons with Lyunne.
And in the meantime, the department store finally opened successfully. The first people to enter were Duchess Le Sang and her friends, whom Tulin had arranged in advance.
“It’s amazing.”
“It really is. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a large store before.”
The ladies chattered as they slowly examined the interior. And soon after, they discovered a strange device. The stairs were different from those in other buildings, and when they stepped on it, it moved on its own, taking them to the second floor.
“My goodness! I didn’t know magic could do this too. Stairs that move on their own!”
“More than that, there are several shops on the second floor too.”
Duchess Le Sang excellently fulfilled the role Tulin wanted. Starting with her, other nobles began to flock, and wealthy commoners were included as well. As people gathered like this, Duchess Le Sang was guided to another place.
“Thank you, Duchess.”
“It’s my pleasure.”
Tulin gave Duchess Le Sang VIP status at the department store in exchange for being the first to enter and set the mood. Yes, it was the department store VIP status of modern times.
