Chapter 272

Ryu Hyerin wondered if he was drunk, but Bae Jaemin’s gibberish did not stop there. He continued to ramble nonsense in a desperate voice. “You and Seo Dawon are always at odds…There’s no future for you together. If you don’t give up on him, you’ll die. I bet Seo Dawon wouldn’t budge one inch even if you die right in front of him? So, just give up.”

“What on earth are you saying…”

“Also, Haah. That bastard…He’s gay.”

“…What?”

“I saw it! Through [Clairvoyance]! That bastard was with some guy…!” Bae Jaemin snapped his mouth shut, as if he had returned to his senses, when he saw Ryu Hyerin’s furrowed, bewildered brows. Simultaneously, a red flush of shame spread across his pale cheeks.

However, Bae Jaemin continued to stick to his bizarre claim until the end. “Haah…Enough. That’s enough, so…In any case, stop thinking about crazy things like jumping off a building for Seo Dawon. Understand?”

“……”

In her eyes, Bae Jaemin seemed like the crazy one, not herself.

Of course, because of her broken heart, she made an extreme resolution, but she wasn’t sure if she could really jump off the rooftop. Therefore, in Ryu Hyerin’s eyes, the only one with a mental problem seemed to be Bae Jaemin–the person who came crying over something that had yet to happen.

What’s more, he’s now claiming that a guy who used to switch girls every day a few months ago is somehow gay?

Ryu Hyerin thought she might have drunk some wrong reagent from Choi Kyung-sik. If not that, maybe she’s been drugged. Finally, she had enough; she kicked the Priest away.

“Knngh…!” Bae Jaemin, who had hung defenselessly to her body, was kicked away and collapsed onto the floor. His expression showed that he was unaware of what just happened; his distorted expression, staring at her foot, was such a spectacle.

It was as if…his crumpled face exuded a sense of extreme betrayal and indescribable disappointment; his eyes seemed to ask why she didn’t recognize his sincerity. After seeing that face, Ryu Hyerin realized that Bae Jaemin truly believed the nonsense he spouted.

“You’re totally crazy.” Ryu Hyerin looked at Bae Jaemin as if she were looking at a madman. He suppressed his anger and shut his eyes tight to hold back his temper.

He must have expected this reaction; he looked somewhat resigned. “Haah….” Bae Jaemin lowered his head to the floor and sighed deeply, wearied. However, he did not end there. He calmed down and continued, “A fear years ago, I happened to learn the [Clairvoyance] skill within a dungeon. However, learning more about it, this skill was half as good as I hoped. I don’t see the futures of any target I want at any time I want; it shows very brief flashes of the future at random times.”

Ryu Hyerin knew he was going to try and have a sincere conversation about his ability to see the future; she coldly made a sarcastic remark to get him to stop talking. “You should really go to the hospital.”

“…I saw you jump off the building as soon as the lease ends.” Bae Jaemin swept a hand across his face and took a deep breath. “If not for that, how would I have known and come all the way here.”

“……” Of course, that part tugged at her mind. Furthermore, Ryu Hyerin felt like today the Priest acted the most sincere–the most human–in all of their acquaintance.

However, common sense dictated that [Clairvoyance] was a skill used by high-ranking witches; the skill could also only be used by very few individuals. It was absurd to hear that he somehow learned the ability by obtaining a skill book.

Therefore, Ryu Hyerin speculated that, rather than actually having such an ability, Bae Jaemin was acting under a wrong delusion. Perhaps, like Murphy’s Law, things had gone the way he had foreseen several times, leading him to blame some mistaken skill for no reason at all.

So, she calmly asked again, “Then, show me another proof of your [Clairvoyance].”

“…Didn’t you hear what I just said? Even if I wanted to show you, my ability can’t be controlled.”

“Then, how am I supposed to believe you? Honestly, no, you’re real funny. Can you even call that a skill? Why do you believe that ability is real?”

Bae Jaemin looked blank at Ryu Hyerin’s continuous questions but soon shouted with a grim expression, “So, you think I’m lying?”

“Why are you getting frustrated at my disbelief? You’re the one who spouted this bullshit, first.” Dumbfounded, Ryu Hyerin stood up, still grasping Bae Jaemin’s arm. As soon as he stood up, she shook off his arm and shoved his shoulder.

The priest soon adopted a hurt expression and lowered his head. Then, grinding out a curse through his grim lips, he said, “…You’ll regret this, Ryu Hyerin.”

“Feel free to contact me if your [Clairvoyance] or whatever shows up again. Let’s call it a day.”

“……”

In the end, Bae Jaemin exited her abode without looking back. After hearing the front door slam shut, Ryu Hyerin released a long sigh.

A few minutes later, she stared down at her hand–the one that grabbed at the Priest’s hair. He’s a nutcase that belongs in a mental hospital, but… his face as he desperately clung to her, afraid of her death, came to the forefront of her mind belatedly.

Simultaneously, she remembered the face of the man who was always unconditionally in her thoughts. So, Seo Dawon, even if she were to jump and die…Fine. Bae Jaemin was probably correct about that. He probably wouldn’t bat an eyelid at her.

‘No… Even if Seo Dawon were to love me, he wouldn’t rush in without a care in the world as Bae Jaemin did…’

She couldn’t really imagine the man losing his composure. At the same time, it was quite ridiculous to make this comparison. The person she wanted wouldn’t make space for her beside him; the one she didn’t want kneeled and begged.

Ryu Hyerin smiled dryly and went out, biting two cigarettes in her mouth, to her veranda to smoke. Then, after throwing the cigarette butts onto an ashtray at one side of the veranda, she picked up her cell phone. The dial tone had stopped–the other had hung up–a few times; but, as expected, he didn’t avoid her for long.

After going to voice message three more times, Bae Jaemin finally received her call. When he answered the phone, he began exploding out after a moment’s silence.

–You told me to piss off for today.

“I changed my mind. Let me listen to your insane explanation.”

–You…

“Your pride is all ruined today anyway. Don’t play hard to get and just come back. You probably didn’t go too far anyway, right?”

–……

Bae Jaemin rang her doorbell three hours later. Ryu Hyerin looked up at his swollen eyes through the gap created by her still-broken latch.

So, as soon as the front door opened, she grabbed him by the collar and impulsively kissed him. Bae Jaemin grabbed her shoulder as if he were about to push her away before staying still, unable to follow through. Just as she expected. Bae Jaemin clenched his fist before accepting the kiss like a stone buddha; then, he soon dragged her angrily into his embrace and bit her lips roughly.

Ryu Hyerin’s excitement cooled off a little, nauseated by the tongue that shoved down her throat, but endured–Bae Jaemin had his eyes closed and was working so hard after all.

He made a good decision to close his eyes; she could clearly see his swollen eyelids–the result of crying–which had still yet to subside though three hours had passed.

* * *

For the first time in a long while, Ryu Hyerin was able to sleep well without being visited by nightmares or tossing and turning. However, when she opened her eyes and saw Bae Jaemin’s tired form sleeping next to her, she was slightly hit with the reality of the situation.

‘I want to kill her…’

She was talking about herself from yesterday.

She couldn’t believe that this had happened because she felt sorry for the Priest…She blatantly stared at him; had she gone momentarily crazy? Yesterday’s events came to mind, one after another.

‘He’s not so bad in combat… Is the way he uses his body there different from how he moves in this situation?’ ¹

While thinking such rude thoughts, she, feeling a sudden weight on her shoulders (his arm), pressed on Bae Jaemin’s nose to wake him up.

Bae Jaemin shook his head around before, soon, opening his eyes. He stared at her blankly, with a weary face, before his ears turned red. Now that he had belatedly grasped the situation, he hurriedly threw off her hand. “My clothes…”

“I did that because I had a damnably heavy arm pressing down on me.”

“……” Bae Jaemin rushed–as if he had been burned–to lift the arm that had stifled her away. Ryu Hyerin wanted to point out the ridiculousness of his attitude but held back.

She went to the bathroom, stark naked, and washed at a leisurely pace. Perhaps he was waiting for her to take a shower; as soon as the water turned on, she heard a bump and a roll outside the bathroom. Ryu Hyerin held her breath before bursting into laughter.

“…What on earth?”

However, when she finished washing up, she couldn’t see the Priest. She had thought he had gone out to buy something to eat, but she soon found him lying prone in the living room.

When she saw the blood streaming from the Priest’s nose and mouth, all thoughts in her head vanished into a white void; she spread both hands out and deployed her skills.

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TL: “That bastard…He’s gay.”

Technically, Jaemin, he’s bi.