The Tough Guy Hides the Villainess - Chapter 152



152 – The Miracle Kiss

152 – The Miracle Kiss

Drawing out poison with one’s mouth was more dangerous than one might think.

If I had any wound inside my mouth, I could be poisoned myself.

Thankfully, the inside of my mouth was unharmed.

*Chwaaap, ptoo-.

Chwaaap-.*

And so, I drew out the poison from Seo Gaeul’s body several times, but Seo Gaeul, unable to endure even that short span of time, kept struggling and acting wildly.

“You perverted b*stard! Die!”

“Shhh─. I told you to be quiet! There are still monsters nearby!”

If we were to be discovered by the monsters roaming this underground parking garage, there would be no time to even treat the poison. Knowing that, Seo Gaeul finally clamped her mouth shut.

*Chwaap-ptoo-.*

How much poison had I extracted and spat out in that way?

The blue tinge that had stained Seo Gaeul’s face gradually began to fade, replaced with a rosy hue.

No, in a way, she was so flushed that her face was as red as a well-ripened autumn apple.

“This is all because of you, Ha Namjin. You were spacing out and almost got hit by the whip, and I got hurt trying to save you.”

I wasn’t spacing out, I was writing down «emotions,» you know.

But Seo Gaeul was right.

If Seo Gaeul hadn’t saved me, I would have been struck by that poison whip.

And if that had happened, it wouldn’t have been me who needed the poison drawn out, but Seo Gaeul.

Wait, what if I had been hit in a…sensitive area?

Would Seo Gaeul have sucked the poison out of *that* region with her mouth?

“Ha Namjin, you’re thinking about something pointless again, aren’t you.”

“No.”

Anyway, we were able to regain a moment of respite, for just a moment.

Though we couldn’t truly relax with those monsters rampaging through the cars like that.

At least it was time enough for two people to exchange some words.

“Ha Namjin, honestly, this is enough to repay all the times you saved me. We don’t owe each other anything anymore. Got it? And keep that kiss on my calf a secret from the others!”

“……”

“Answer.”

“Answer.”

“No, *answer* me.”

“Sure, whatever.”

Women, so finicky indeed.

“Hanamjin, ever since I met you, it’s always been like this. Wounded, sick, and only filled with irritating things. If you hadn’t abducted me, none of this would have happened.”

“I’ve said it countless times, but I only abducted you because you asked me to. And for the record, you owe me ‘Marlang-Marlang’ three times over. So you’re going to survive this somehow.”

“Marlang-Marlang… even that’s a joke. Do you even know what ‘Marlang-Marlang’ is?”

Marlang-Marlang.

I don’t know what that is!

But whenever I hear that word, for some reason, my head feels like a rat treading on an electric fence, frying my brains out, rendering me incapable of rational thought!

Even if I don’t know what it is, ‘Marlang-Marlang’ must be something truly spectacular.

“What Marlang-Marlang is, well…”

And then.

Seo Gaeul dropped a bombshell.

“Actually, I don’t know either.”

“What? How can that be?”

I felt the blood rush to my head.

Seo Gaeul, who promised to give me Marlang-Marlang, doesn’t even know what it is?

“It was before my mother passed away. Lying on her sickbed, she told me that if she got better, she’d give me ‘Marlang-Marlang.’ But in the end, she didn’t get better, so I never found out what it was.”

“What in the…?”

“Probably, even the future me wouldn’t know what it is.”

So that’s how it was.

In the end, Seo Gaeul used me, offering something she herself didn’t even understand.

What an unfair, tear-jerking situation this is?

And so, I clenched my fist, tears welling up!

A torrent-!

“Seo Ga-eul, you wicked girl! To deceive me so!”

A man’s tears-!

Seeing them, Seo Ga-eul seemed rather taken aback.

“…But perhaps? My father might know what ‘Mallaeng-mallaeng’ is. He lived with my mother for a long time, after all. Go ask him!”

Seo Do-cheol, that fellow, you mean.

The image of me going to him and asking, ‘What is this Mallaeng-mallaeng, you say?’ didn’t quite sit right.

Then, Seo Ga-eul added,

“Ultimately, Mallaeng-mallaeng, for me, is like a wish that can’t be fulfilled. The future me saying she’d give it to you is for a similar reason, I suppose. Knowing it’s a dream out of reach, she tossed out an empty promise.”

There’s logic in that.

But what does it matter, really?

“Even so, thanks to you, I’m still alive and kicking. That’s enough. I was already repaid that day, the very moment I met you.”

A man’s sincerity.

Something that even a girl as prickly and finicky as a fox brimming with autumn venom couldn’t twist.

At my unshakeable spirit, Seo Ga-eul shuddered, rubbing her shoulders with her hands.

“What are you saying? Don’t say such cheesy things, I already feel sick. It feels like what I ate this morning is about to come back up. I’m just going to sleep.”

Seo Ga-eul curled up in the back seat, as if deciding to catch some sleep.

The car fell silent.

Just the right atmosphere to get lost in thought, or so I reckoned, when Seo Ga-eul, who had loudly proclaimed she’d sleep, broke the silence first.

“So, just how *did* I send you back?”

“Well—.”

Truth be told, I was curious about that too.

Just what method had Seo Gaeul used to return me?

Lately, I’d begun to have a faint inkling of the answer.

“Perhaps, future you… maybe you used that blade to seize the concept of ‘Time’ that Gu Sejun possessed, then poured all that power into me.”

“You mean if we deal with Gu Sejun, you could send me back again? The situation could get better than this, right?”

Seo Gaeul’s conjecture had its own logic, but I could only shake my head.

“Honestly, even if I went back to the past one more time, I’m not confident I could do any better than this.”

A man had to be able to acknowledge his mistakes, his failures, and his weaknesses.

Overcoming it – that’s what that was.

In this iteration, I’d done the very best I could.

And this was the result.

Just like I’d said, there was no guarantee that going back to the past again would lead to anything better than this.

But Seo Gaeul, as if dissatisfied with something, pouted her lips and abruptly turned over—*whump*.

*Snooore—.*

Soon, the steady rhythm of her breath reached my ears, telling me she had drifted off.

# # #

I felt someone’s hand caressing my head.

Reminded me of the time I got a perfect score on a test for the first time in school and got praise from Mom, huh.

I opened my eyes to find Seo Gaeul straddling my lap in the passenger seat.

It was astonishing that I felt no weight at all, despite her being perched there.

“Hanamjin, even after meeting the Crimson King, you didn’t readily covet his power. A world that should have faced utter ruin is only facing ‘a little’ ruin, thanks to you. I knew you would manage it.”

Seeing the relaxed smile spread across Seo Gaeul’s face, I grasped the situation in an instant.

The girl before me was Seo Gaeul from the future.

The one who sent me to the past.

The lingering thought within the blade must have sprung out again.

Perfect timing, actually.

“Hey, you said you didn’t know what ‘squishy-squishy’ was, right?”

“That’s right. Truthfully, I don’t know what it is either.”

“What a swindler!”

“But you enjoyed it, didn’t you? And there’s no time to be dwelling on such trivial matters. We need to escape this place. My body is still affected by the poison, so it’s best to get treated quickly.”

What was that?

I thought I’d sucked it all out, but apparently some poison remained in her system.

The future Seo Gaeul spoke.

“I’ll open the way; just follow me.”

*Sreung*-.

Seo Gaeul drew her blade and headed upward.

Towards the place with the black pond.

As if sensing our approach, the black pond, like a hornet’s nest spewing out a swarm of furious wasps, began to *kwul-teong-* regurgitate masses of writhing black fiends.

Of course, the future Seo Gaeul would cleave through the monsters with a grace that made the title ‘Veteran’ feel insufficient.

Her movements, devoid of any excess, were beautiful, like a dance.

“This body, it’s been adequately trained. Good condition too. Hanamjin, thanks to your diligent training, the work has become easier. This should suffice as a test to see just how far I can push myself.”

The future Seo Gaeul pointed her blade at the Whip Queen crawling out of the black mire.

Yet, contrary to her bold words, she returned her weapon to its scabbard at her hip.

*Seogeong-!*

At that very instant, the sound of something being severed echoed, and the Whip Queen’s body split in two.

Then, the black mire, with a soul-wrenching scream– *Kkwaeeeeeeeeeeek!*– vanished entirely.

Just what had transpired?

Thanks to the «Emotion» I possessed, I could grasp, albeit vaguely, what had just occurred.

“To cut without cutting. Swordsmanship utilizing the power of «Miracle».”

It was nothing short of miraculous.

On par with the absurdity of feeling full without having eaten a bite.

Indeed, if such an attack were possible, it wouldn’t be strange for Seo Gaeul to be called the leader among the «Supernovas» of that ruined world.

“To fight and win against Gu Sejun, who holds the concept of «Time», I had to use this much skill. But, as expected, this body of mine isn’t quite ready for this level of technique. Hooo…”

After that, Seo Gaeul cleaved through the wreckage, clearing a path to the upper floor.

We returned outside the department store through the «Door» that Teacher Kogae had opened.

I informed everyone of what had just happened.

“We’ve eliminated the black mire. The department store won’t be overrun by monsters anymore. You are free to use the supplies inside.”

The department store reclaimed.

It was, without a doubt, a monumental achievement for the upstanding citizens.

“Supplies will increase!”

“I was dying because the toilet paper ran out! I only had sandpaper left!”

“Nghaaak! If it had been just one day sooner…!!!”

Seo Gaeul nudged my side, *thuk-*

“Seeing people happy is always enjoyable. Ha Namjin, take a good look at this sight. It’s a scenery only those called heroes can enjoy. Seo Gaeul is acknowledging you, Ha Namjin, as a hero.”

Acknowledged by the hero I’d always admired.

A profoundly glorious tale.

Only, Ppangdaengi was furious.

“Seo Gaeul! Who are you to decide whether to acknowledge Ha Namjjin or not! Ha Namjjin is far greater than you! Greater than anyone here!”

Ppangdaengi probably didn’t know that this one was the future Seo Gaeul.

So the embarrassment was all mine.

Frankly, even now, it felt like future Seo Gaeul’s accomplishments were still greater than mine.

Though who knew what would happen if time continued to pass.

Soon, future Seo Gaeul chuckled softly.

“Really? That’s truly impressive. In that case, I suppose I should give a reward. I can’t give ‘Mollang Mollang,’ but I do have a recompense I can offer. For example, something like this.”

Seo Gaeul approached me.

And then, with both hands behind her back, she leaned forward, extending only her upper body, and pressed her lips to mine, the sound of people gasping around me ringing particularly loudly in my ears.

In front of the crowd gathered to celebrate the reclamation of the department store, Seo Gaeul had publicly kissed me.

Soon, fluttering back like a Bluebird *poreureu-* to create some distance, Seo Gaeul spoke in front of everyone who was dumbfounded.

“We kissed, so today marks our Day One. I like you now, and you’ve liked me from the start, so there’s no problem at all, is there?”