Kofi thanks to: Andy
Cheongyeon’s round eyes blinked slowly. Muwon was not expecting him to shake the spoon with excitement, but his expression was far from bright. There was no way he didn’t understand Muwon’s meaning, so the reason was obvious.
“What, are you worried I might strangle you again if things go wrong?”
“…”
The ensuing silence led Tae Muwon to fully face him by turning his chair around.
“You know what?”
Cheongyeon quietly shook his head.
“I tend to keep my word.”
Ever since the day he brought the lobsters, he had kept his promise of not visiting anymore. It was actually Cheongyeon boarding the Peira that led to their meeting again.
“Well, I wouldn’t trust me either.”
“…”
“Ah, just comfortably be my lover then or something. You can live an easy life compared to that in Cheonghwa Town, isn’t that right?”
“…”
Before, Cheongyeon would have retorted that he wasn’t Muwon’s lover, but now, he couldn’t bring himself to give any response. Muwon felt increasingly stuffy on the inside. Cheongyeon had become even more withdrawn, barely speaking. If things continued this way, he might not even eat the porridge, so Muwon stood up. Cheongyeon trembled again, causing the spoonful of rice porridge to spill onto the table.
“Get your stuff too.”
Cheongyeon didn’t affirm or deny, only lowering his gaze.
Then, fearing that not responding might give Muwon a reason to nitpick, he belatedly looked up. Unexpectedly, the man just walked out of the cafeteria. On his way out, he even warned that no one should enter the cafeteria until Cheongyeon had finished eating.
Cheongyeon couldn’t bring himself to eat again for a while after Muwon left. It wasn’t until the chef replaced the cold rice porridge with vegetable porridge that he continued his meal.
Even though he was strangling him one moment, now he was being told he wouldn’t be suspected anymore. If the plants in the dome had attacked Tae Muwon that day… Cheongyeon shuddered at the thought. Since he did not share his reason for searching for the Hwa clan, Cheongyeon’s thoughts drifted towards darker possibilities.
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.
“…One day he suddenly tried to sell me as a slave…”
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Moreover, if that was the reason, it would be normal to treat a presumed Hwa clan member kindly and appease them. If someone appeared as scary and rough like Tae Muwon, what kind of Hwa would reveal their identity?
“That’s why I’m a little rough after everything I’ve lived through.”
Maybe Tae Muwon’s only way to appease people was through torture and threats. He didn’t need to sweet-talk to get what he wanted. Whether it was taking over Cheonghwa Town or crushing pirates, it was all resolved with force.
That was the world Cheongyeon had known from birth until now. The strong took from the weak. And sometimes, those considered strong were robbed by someone stronger the next day.
It was a world akin to a food chain among beasts. Those at the apex had no need to be kind. If they did act nice, it was probably because they were just acting on a whim.
Cheongyeon looked down at the vegetable porridge given to him on Muwon’s whim. The amount of food that two people could eat had already been reduced by half. There were still about five days left to reach the 1st Continent. Cheongyeon continued to slowly finish the porridge, in the case that he might not get to eat again.
After eating the fresh Boksu flower, he had nearly fainted from pain, but since then, he hadn’t felt any significant abnormalities. However, one peculiar thing was that as he moved farther from Cheonghwa Town, the roots beneath Cheonghwa Mountain, which had beem becoming fainter, felt clearer than ever. The pollution had been cleansed, making him able to feel the state of the roots more keenly than before.
Plants generally grow upwards, but the ‘Cheonji flower,’ which supported the continent, grew horizontally.
The Cheonji flower was a plant that grew underground, not above it. It supported the continent by spreading its roots deep beneath the continent’s surface. Cheonghwa Town could sustain because Cheongyeon managed the Cheonji flower there.
Whether it was 9.6 or 0.4, Cheongyeon had no intention of dealing with Hwang Ran. Since he boarded the Peira, his only goal was to visit the flower shop on the 1st Continent to stock up on dried Boksu flowers as much as possible.
If he couldn’t get the flowers in the worst-case scenario, he’d have no choice but to infiltrate Peira again before a year passed. Considering that he didn’t have exceptional sneaking skills, it was a far-fetched fantasy. Therefore, he must buy as many Boksu flowers as possible this time.
He remembered the Boksu flower he ate. Why did the Boksu flower, which didn’t grow in Cheonghwa Town, grow in Peira’s botanical garden, and who was the owner of the tombstone…? The words on the tombstone were written in a language unknown to him.
It would be best if he could easily obtain Boksu flowers from Peira’s dome. If he got along with Tae Muwon, wouldn’t he be granted access to roam the dome…
That was indeed a crazy thought. He was a man who had ejaculated on Cheongyeon’s face. Dreaming of such an absurd assumption when he should avoid him at all costs.
After finishing the vegetable porridge, Cheongyeon thanked the chef and also grabbed a few crusty breads. Glancing at the bread left by Muwon, he felt strange. A person who could enjoy all sorts of delicacies had eaten the bread with his grubby handprints. Cheongyeon gave up trying to understand Muwon.
‘Who can understand the antics of a madman?’
As Cheongyeon was leaving the cafeteria, he saw Jupiter holding his backpack. He had hidden in the utility room under the cabin to avoid Muwon’s eyes for two days. Officially called a utility room, it was actually crammed with unused cleaning tools and old furniture. The amount of cobwebs was enormous, with white threads even on the end of the backpack.
“I’ll escort you.”
Jupiter greeted him politely. Since he was one of those who monitored Cheongyeon, he couldn’t feel at ease but nodded his head. He resolved to switch to another merchant ship on the return journey.
***
Cheongyeon had become reclusive again.
It was already the third day. Unlike before, he was seen a few times in the cafeteria but always took only bread.
When Tae Muwon visited room 107 on the previous day and the day before that, Cheongyeon only looked down at the floor the entire time.
Even after being offered 9.6, he showed no interest in the deal, and whenever he tried to approach him a little, he would shudder in fear. Muwon was flabbergasted. He could understand being scared because he had strangled him. But was that enough reason to be so terrified? Thanks to that, Muwon realized that Cheongyeon had been mustering quite the courage to stand up to him all this while.
His frustration was boiling over. Yesterday, he was about to grab Cheongyeon by the collar and scold him, who had his head down, telling him he’d really die if he didn’t show his face. He had always been wary of Muwon, but now he treated him like a disgusting giant squid.
Come to think of it, he hadn’t eaten the squid he liked since encountering the giant squid that fought with the sperm whale.
Jupiter made a fuss about Cheongyeon suddenly stopping buying squid, but it seemed he was the type to not look back once he turned around.
Muwon held a fishing rod, leaning against the railing with a cigarette in his mouth. The Peira was moving forward, so there was no way a fish would be caught on the hook of the fishing rod. It was just an inertial action.
“Hyung-nim, the apothecary just went to the cafeteria today and then left.”
Normally, Muwon wouldn’t be in a bad mood while on Peira. But recently, his temper was as unpredictable as the deep ocean. Facing him, who was hanging his fishing rod with his arms hanging over the railing, Jupiter continued his report.
“It seems he was looking for bread… and left because there was none.”
Muwon ordered bread to be removed from the menu after hearing Cheongyeon only quietly took bread from the cafeteria.
“Is bread his damn staple food?”
“It seemed he was too self-conscious to eat in the cafeteria.”
“Why?”
‘Why? It’s because of hyung-nim!’ Jupiter almost blurted out but swallowed instead. Normally, Muwon would’ve taken jokes, but now, he was just like a shark looking for a reason to pick a fight.
Splash! Suddenly, the calm Peira shook gently due to the sudden waves. Another massive wave surged, and a huge body emerged above the water surface.
It was a whale, large enough to shake the merchant ship that was following Peira. It surfaced from the water, spun its body once, and dived back into the ocean. The enormous friction caused a tall wave to form. It wasn’t uncommon to see orcas or dolphins, but it had been a very long time since a whale of that size was spotted. The sperm whale, with its large resonating chamber, resurfaced, releasing a cry as it broke through the water surface.
“I couldn’t catch any fish because of this damn guy.”
Muwon chuckled and casually left the fishing rod behind as he headed down to the cabin. Fortunately, the direction in which the sperm whale was heading matched that of Peira. Muwon descended to room 107 and flung the door open. For some reason, Cheongyeon had not locked the door after returning to the room.
As soon as he entered, he found him sitting on the bed, staring down at the floor.
“Hey.”
“… Yes.”
Despite responding, his head remained lowered. Muwon was about to tell him to go out and see the whale instead of staying in the cabin but then bit back his words.
“Shall we go whale watching?”
He recalled a previous occasion when he had used the excuse of watching whales to take him to the auction. Considering Cheongyeon was already scared of the giant squid, he wondered if there was a need to stir up those memories again.
Instead of speaking, Muwon abruptly picked Cheongyeon up.
“Ugh!” Startled, Cheongyeon’s trembling was palpable on his shoulders. The voice that pleaded “Please put me down, please put me down,” was insignificantly small. Cheongyeon’s body pressed against his shoulder, was warm and soft, igniting a tingling sensation at Muwon’s fingertips and toes. Muwon lightly slapped Cheongyeon’s struggling buttocks. The texture was so wonderful he wanted to squeeze it, and blood rushed down to his lower half.
“Hold on, damn. It’ll only take 10 seconds.”
“10 seconds is enough, right?”
It was a threat he had made before in response to Cheongyeon’s comment about needing to pack up the herbs laid out at the market. The situation of his own words coming back to bite him was damn hilarious. However, Muwon actually put Cheongyeon down near the railing in less than 10 seconds. Cheongyeon slumped down on the deck, wondering if he would tie him to the railing again.
With a whoosh! sound, a gigantic water fountain erupted right in front of them. As Cheongyeon looked on, bewildered, Muwon helped him up. At the same time, air and vapor again burst from the blowhole on the sperm whale’s head. The whale, having dived deep into the water, arched its massive body and leaped from the surface.
Cheongyeon, forgetting his fear, watched the living whale with his mouth agape. The overwhelming presence felt as if Cheonghwa Mountain was rising right before his eyes. The moment the sperm whale hit the water surface, droplets splashed onto Cheongyeon’s cheeks. The traces left by the sperm whale reached all the way up to the tall Peira ship. Eventually, the sperm whale submerged into the sea, advancing alongside Peira.
“Hey, even if you hate giant squids,”
Muwon’s piercings swayed carelessly, perhaps due to the swift movement or the sea breeze.
“You still don’t hate whales yet, do you?”
Seeing Cheongyeon dazed, he smirked triumphantly.
Yeah, u better coax cheongyeon right, muwon. That dude already been traumatized by u. Work hard – one mere whale is not enuff to make him smile again. U need at least 50.
RIGHT
En azından hatasının farkında
Aww yeah you better be nice now Mister Muwon!
And comfortably be your lover?! You have to make him comfortable first butthead! I know your momma was mean to you and you had to fend for yourself but you had brothers, Cheongyeon had a maternal figure and a mother but then was lonely later so Cheongyeon has had a rough life too! Muwon isn’t the only one who’s had it rough and he knows this already but act like he don’t sometimes. He treats people bad and uses that as an excuse as to why but it don’t work that way.