Kofi thanks to: Alilyana
Compared to the counter, the wooden box was significantly lower, so only Cheongyeon’s face was barely visible above it. Watching the other person, Muwon put on work gloves on himself. He sliced open the belly of a lobster with scissors and meticulously extracted the meat.
How could it be that he never got tired of lobsters, despite being eaten repeatedly? Cheongyeon’s mouth watered again at the sight of the plump meat. Muwon offered a piece of the white meat to him, who was sitting much lower than himself.
“Have some before you go. I don’t need to eat.”
“Trying to poison me?”
“The beggar in my stomach has been eating well recently and became rich, so I’m okay.”
Muwon laughed heartily at Cheongyeon’s stiff response. Always ready to pick a fight, but now he was laughing so openly. As his eyes curved with the laugh, his emotionless yellow eyes seemed to soften somewhat.
“You know what?”
Cheongyeon almost asked, “Now what?” but just shook his head instead.
“The richer you are, the more venomous you become.”
Cheongyeon hadn’t brought extra gloves, expecting to do the peeling himself. Still, he couldn’t ignore the lobster handed to him and reached out. Muwon wrapped the tail with a paper towel before offering it. Cheongyeon awkwardly expressed his thanks.
“Thank you for this food.”
“Eat it well and nicely.”
Cheongyeon frowned openly this time. Regardless, the lobster was innocent, so he quickly put the warm meat in his mouth and chewed. The dish from the Canal Inn with seasoning, butter, and cheese might have been tastier, but the freshly steamed lobster was also exceptional.
Muwon also bit into the meat he had roughly torn off, crunching on the shell as if it were nothing and swallowed without any trouble.
Eating with someone was rare for Cheongyeon, especially with Muwon, with whom they couldn’t exactly say they had a good relationship. Yet, they had already shared meals a few times, which felt quite unexpected.
“Why do you always wear flashy clothes?”
Cheongyeon regretted asking the question right after, worrying it might seem like he was too interested in him.
“Because it’s pretty.”
Fortunately, Muwon answered without putting much thought into it.
“The flowers are pretty, yes.”
“Not the flowers, me.”
Cheongyeon, seated on the low wooden box, looked up at Muwon, who was seemingly towering above the counter, with a weary gaze.
“So why are you looking for the Hwa clan?”
Cheongyeon was proud of how naturally he had asked the question. Muwon tilted his head slightly, the piercing hidden by his flamboyant face shimmering. Wondering if the question was too intrusive, Cheongyeon felt a lump in his throat, but fortunately, Muwon didn’t lose his smile.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“If I tell you my reason, will you reveal your true identity too?”
“Ktfgf’r cbatlcu ab gfnfji.”
“Ktfc vbc’a jrx.”
“Cgf sbe… ublcu ab xlii wf?”
“Po P kjr ublcu ab, sbe’v jigfjvs yf vfjv.”
“…”
Pa kjr j njilv qblca, ktlmt bcis wjvf Jtfbcusfbc wbgf meglber. Po cba ab xlii, atfc kts ibbx obg tlw? Dea rfcrlcu tf rtbeivc’a qgbyf oegatfg, Jtfbcusfbc xfqa rlifca.
“Then why do you live like a monk?”
Cheongyeon blinked, not expecting a question about his own lifestyle.
“What do you mean, living like a monk?”
Though Cheonghwa Town was home to various religions, Cheongyeon had never met or talked to anyone who practiced faith.
“Living with the same daily routines.”
“Doesn’t everyone have a somewhat routine life?”
At least, that was true for everyone Cheongyeon knew.
“What do you usually do for fun?”
“I rest in my room.”
“Just breathing?”
“I do various things.”
At most, gathering herbs or wild vegetables. It seemed Cheongyeon had a concept of resting but not of playing. It was unclear why such a bland person felt as provoking as the salty ocean water.
“You don’t drink, don’t meet friends, don’t have colleagues.”
Light-colored eyes turned towards Muwon. Even then, Cheongyeon’s lips moved busily, chewing away. Since he had eaten recently, Muwon felt full after just one. Meanwhile, Cheongyeon seemed to enjoy them immensely. So much for the beggar in his stomach being rich now, that was another blatant lie.
“I don’t like alcohol, and the person you saw earlier was a friend like an older brother to me, but it’s been a long time since we’ve been friends. As for colleagues… I don’t have any because I couldn’t join the Merchants’ Association.”
Muwon felt a stir below again at Cheongyeon’s straightforward answer, licking his lips.
“What did you do to my decoction?”
“I told you I don’t do such things.”
“Isn’t that why you couldn’t join the Merchants’ Association?”
“No? I just don’t qualify. You need to make at least 2,000 hwan in sales a month.”
Muwon stopped his action of preparing the lobster. It was ridiculous that he was peeling lobsters for this guy, whose monthly sales didn’t even reach 2,000 hwan. His income was less than the cost of ten lobsters. No wonder he devoured food whenever he had the chance.
“Then it needs to be at least 24,000 won per year…”
Cheongyeon glanced at Muwon, obviously worried he might ask for his money back.
“What have you been eating to survive all this time?”
“Rice or bread. And ramyeon.”
Cheonghwa Town couldn’t grow rice or wheat, so these were imported from the 1st Continent. Peira often sailed to combat pirates, but they also traveled for trade with the 1st Continent.
Since Tae Cheonoh settled in Cheonghwa Town, there was Tae Cheonoh’s intention to protect merchant ships, and there was also the need to provide for the voracious Peira family. Hence, the general populace could also buy rice, wheat, and other foodstuffs cheaper than before.
“Why don’t you sell your body?”
He could have made some money that way. It was a taunt, but not a mistake, because he wanted to provoke him.
“You don’t sell your body either, Muwon-nim.”
Cheongyeon suddenly had fire in his eyes.
“You’ve heard it, I’m a manwhore.”
“The twin said that… but it’s not true. I know that much.”
“How long did you work at the pub?”
“About six months.”
A person who had worked in a pub that saw all kinds of people but seemed untouched by the world’s dirt, his act of innocence was too convincing.
“But since I run the apothecary, I couldn’t go every day, so I only worked at the pub once or twice a week. The day after working, I sometimes opened the shop late, but not because I was lazy. It was because of the alcohol.”
Even if it was six months, the actual work period was barely over a month. Before quitting, he had gone out daily, fearing suspicion from Muwon.
“So, you also lied about disliking alcohol.”
“I drank because of the sales. The customers bought it for me.”
Muwon couldn’t count how many times he was astonished. What kind of fool was this?
“Your shop’s going bankrupt, and you’re still poking your nose into others’ business, damn.”
“…”
Cheongyeon looked down. Their thick, long eyelashes cast shadows, hiding their pupils.
There was a reason why he was trying to look good. Cheongyeon mumbled something, but the words vanished before they could emerge as sound.
Muwon took off his ridiculous looking work gloves.
Muwon thought, this guy really did not know what the world was like, seeming like he did not properly learn anything through life. Had Cheongyeon even faced 1/100th, no, 1/1000th of what he had gone through? Cheongyeon had grown up orphaned, living in District E of Cheonghwa Town without moving once. He had spent considerable time alone, without friends or colleagues, having no chance to develop social skills.
So, it was true that Cheongyeon was innocent, but Muwon had doubted him repeatedly because of his own dirtiness.
The apothecary was the complete opposite of him. He would repay losses with losses and ensure revenge on his enemies, a different breed altogether.
Reflecting on his actions of bringing lobsters to the apothecary, Muwon admitted one thing: he was intrigued by the only person who proved his instincts wrong.
His intuition again whispered:
Getting involved with someone so incompatible would not end well.
And with that, Muwon stood up. Cheongyeon craned his neck to look up at him as he moved away from the counter and towards the exit, lifting himself off the wooden box.
Muwon abruptly said to the quietly standing Cheongyeon,
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
“I won’t come looking for you anymore.”
Muwon felt like it was a pathetic thing to say, even though he said it himself.
“…Why?”
Yet, that soft-hearted guy pulled him back in with his words.
“Who knows.”
He looked down, inspecting Cheongyeon, then straightened up.
“That bastard was right. I’m already tired of it.”
Cheongyeon, with a pale face, showed no signs of surprise or hurt. “Okay,” was all he said as he nodded. As Muwon was about to leave without a second thought, Cheongyeon called out, “Wait!”
“I took some clothes from the inn’s wardrobe without asking. I’ve cleaned them and will bring them out.”
Even though he wasn’t expecting anything, he felt a rush of air down his throat. There was so much good stuff out there, but this new guy was different and refreshing. Muwon just left the apothecary, leaving Cheongyeon inside. At the clinking sound, he felt him hurriedly come out holding his clothes.
Muwon lit a cigarette immediately outside. Lighting it with a Zippo lighter and taking a drag, some reason it tasted like shit. Glancing back at the apothecary, Cheongyeon stood there holding only the neatly folded shirt, not able to come out due to the other’s cold demeanor. It was an item he hadn’t even realized was missing, unnecessary to reclaim.
“…Fuck.”
Even as he took another drag, the cigarette still tasted like garbage.
Pr: Sasa
Lobsters are now associated w/ this couple for me 🏴☠️🦞🌱 Also, it’s fun seeing Muwon falling for Cheongyeon 🤭
Good luck staying away Muwon!
Only thing is without Muwon and peira people around Cheongyeon those who have developed weird grudges against or other interests in Cheongyeon will take this time to act if Muwon does stay away long enough that is.
I’m looking at boner tea man whose name I can’t think of atm, his strange Hyung Oh Jisam who doesn’t even deserve him calling him hyung and idk maybe even the ok bar boss might have a grudge…
This story is so good im hooked big time.