"…"
Cheon Yeohwa, who managed to polish off two whole bags of chocolate, hummed happily as she returned to the lake.
I trailed after Cheon Yeohwa like a lost puppy.
"Why are we back here?"
"Why else? To retrieve the belongings I wasn't quite finished packing."
Leaving Cheon Yeohwa to gather her hidden things, I plopped down in a suitable spot.
Truthfully, I could have just handed over the chocolate and gone our separate ways. However, since Cheon Yeohwa was my matched partner, I needed to improve our relationship to collect the settlement rewards.
'Even if it weren't for the settlement rewards, who knows what kind of stunt this crazy app might pull if I left my matched partner, Cheon Yeohwa, behind.'
I shouldn't naively assume that the app will only reward my actions.
It might hand out penalties, too.
Of course, that wasn't the only reason.
First of all, Cheon Yeohwa is beautiful. As beautiful as Iris, if not more so.
It would be a lie to say I didn't have ulterior motives as a man.
'If only her personality wasn't so… peculiar, she'd be perfect.'
Of course, it would be wishful thinking if she refused to travel with me.
In this desolate world of martial arts, would any woman really agree to travel with a strange man she just met, even if he saved her from bandits?
'From the start, I have no idea why a maiden from the Demonic Cult is even here.'
I have a feeling that, like with Iris, there's a complicated story behind it.
The problem is, unlike with Iris, I can't use the dating consultant curriculum to find out what happened.
'She probably wouldn't answer even if I asked.'
It would be incredibly strange for her to tell me she's a maiden from the Demonic Cult when we literally just met.
'Should I just tell her I'm from another world?'
I told Iris without a second thought, but the more I think about it, the less wise that choice seems.
This is a one-sided match.
I matched for the sake of meeting women or getting stronger, but what about the other person?
Even Iris had no idea about the match.
That means the match was made without at least getting the other person's consent.
But where can I get the assurance that the other person is normal every time?
This app?
Even with my vague guess that my awakened ability is involved, the least trustworthy thing is this app.
I chalked up Iris's case to sheer luck, but I need to hide the fact that I'm from another world from now on.
I don't know what the other person will think when they hear that.
Just from seeing corpse artist and human anatomy on the survey, this app doesn't have any prejudice towards the other person's hobby.
"Did you pack everything?"
"Stop rushing me. For a lecher, you only know how to say things that make women dislike you."
"…"
Should I just ditch her, farm spiritual herbs here, and find another match?
I seriously considered it.
***
"Travel together?"
"Yeah, to the nearest city. What do you say? I'm currently lost."
I racked my brain, but couldn't come up with any reason to travel with Cheon Yeohwa.
So, for now, I decided to buy some time while searching for another way.
"Hmm…"
Cheon Yeohwa seemed lost in thought.
If she rejected this, too, stalking would be my only option, so I couldn't help but feel nervous.
"Fine. It's an obvious ploy, but I'll bite just this once."
"What…"
"Isn't it obvious? You can't do anything to me right now, so you plan to travel with me and bide your time, right?"
"…Should I really ravish you?"
"Hehe, don't even think about it."
The sword hanging at Cheon Yeohwa's waist glinted ominously.
It was in its sheath, but when did she draw it?
"I don't want to see blood in broad daylight."
"…You tried to kill me earlier."
Anyway, after agreeing to a few conditions, I was able to travel with Cheon Yeohwa to the nearest city.
First, I had to lead the way.
"Isn't it obvious? I know nothing about you. To prepare for any possible situation, it's only natural that I stand behind. Just tell me which direction to go."
Second, I had to answer her questions as truthfully as possible.
"What exactly was that you used against the bandits earlier? A martial art that shoots lightning? I've never heard of such a thing. It can't be black magic either… Is it divine art?"
"Magic."
"Magic…? What is that?"
"If you're curious, let me touch your chest once."
"You're acting like a lecher."
"If you call me a lecher, I have to respond in kind."
I refuse to bow down to a Demonic Cult maiden any further.
Third, I had to provide chocolate.
"You ate it all earlier."
"That's a lie."
"…Eat in moderation. You'll get fat."
"That's impossible. I've mastered several Immortal Maiden Arts. Thanks to them, I don't gain weight even if I eat more than necessary."
Wow, what is that?
That martial art reeks of money.
If sold to wealthy women, they'd come running with wads of cash.
"Ah, of course, there's a side effect of weakened sexual function if a man masters it, but how about it? I think it's a martial art truly necessary for you."
"For my face? Doesn't seem necessary."
"…You have a strong sense of self-love."
As the two chatted idly and walked through the forest, Cheon Yeohwa stared at Kang Hyunwoo, who was walking ahead, with a chilling gaze.
Her previous demeanor, where she couldn't hide her murderous intent like a third-rate assassin, was nowhere to be found.
Her perfectly refined killing intent was so quiet that Kang Hyunwoo, who was right next to her, couldn't feel it.
'What the hell is he?'
From the moment she met Kang Hyunwoo until now, Cheon Yeohwa had never let her guard down for a single moment.
Not even when she was trapped under the wreckage.
Not even when she was defenselessly packing her belongings by the lake.
If he were to try to take her life, she was prepared to pull out the hidden dagger in her bosom and stab him in the neck in an instant.
But thankfully, or perhaps not, Kang Hyunwoo had not shown any killing intent since meeting her.
Only when dealing with the bandits, perhaps?
That made it even harder to gauge his identity.
If he were an assassin under the First Young Master, he wouldn't have come alone like this. She thought he might be stalling for time to call his comrades, but he hadn't shown any signs of that so far.
Moreover, the chocolate he gave her wasn't poisoned or drugged with aphrodisiacs, but a truly ordinary… no, incredibly delicious treat.
Of course, she couldn't rule out the possibility that his earlier actions were a ploy to lower her guard, so she couldn't immediately dismiss her suspicions of him.
But as time went on, she increasingly doubted whether he was really an assassin sent by the First Young Master to assassinate her.
Currently, the Divine Cult was in a state of constant turmoil due to the succession competition.
Out of the five successors, she and the First Young Master were the most likely candidates.
But that was a thing of the past. Having lost most of her forces due to the First Young Master's schemes, she was no longer a candidate for the great Divine Cult's succession, but merely a loser.
Her once-supreme martial prowess was now only around first-rate after being poisoned.
Thanks to the Lunar Demon Art, she was resisting the poison, but even that was reaching its limit.
The deadly poison that had invaded her dantian was slowly eating away at her life.
Having lost her position as successor, her subordinates who followed her, and the martial arts she had trained her whole life, she was now wandering the unfamiliar Central Plains, fleeing from assassins who could come at any moment.
In that situation, Kang Hyunwoo's existence only complicated Cheon Yeohwa's mind even further.
It was as if he had fallen from the sky.
Even if her current level was only around first-rate, she could confidently say that she could sense the presence of someone at the peak of transcendence, at least during the moment she was bathing.
But he was standing in front of her since sometime.
As if he had been there all along.
It was an excellent stealth technique for an assassin, but if he was an assassin, why hadn't he attacked her and stood there blankly?
Moreover, his ability, whether it was a strange black magic or divine art, was also a problem.
If he were an assassin, he wouldn't have shown his hand to his assassination target.
That made it even more confusing.
She had lived a life where she couldn't trust anyone, so she couldn't trust him now.
It was easier to constantly doubt others than to trust them. It was more reassuring to think that others were waiting for a chance to stab her in the neck than to think they trusted and followed her.
The reason she allowed him to accompany her was that if he was an assassin, it was better to keep him by her side and observe him.
'I don't know exactly what magic is, but it can't be perfect. If I see even the slightest suspicious circumstance…'
Cheon Yeohwa quietly stroked the sword at her waist.
"So, what city are we going to?"
"…Xi'an."
***
Actually, I don't know everything about martial arts to the point where I know all the place names.
Even if she kindly tells me Xi'an, it's not much different for me than telling a foreigner to go to Pocheon!
It's understandable for a foreigner to know famous cities like Seoul or Busan, but wouldn't it be strange if they knew all the other city names in the provinces?
"Where's Xi'an?"
"…Are you serious?"
"Yeah."
What, why? I mean, a person can not know something, right? Looking at me with a face that says, 'What's wrong with this guy?' is a bit much.
I want to confiscate her chocolate.
"Xi'an is the capital of Shaanxi province and one of the largest cities in the Central Plains."
"Shaanxi? Isn't that where the Mount Hua Sect and the Zhongnan Sect are?"
"That's right."
The Nine Great Sects, a group consisting of nine sects and one association that appears in most martial arts stories, claiming, 'We're super strong and have a lot of influence. But we're also nice.'
The Mount Hua Sect and the Zhongnan Sect are Taoist sects that belong to it.
'So the capital of Shaanxi province was Xi'an?'
But something feels strange.
Then were the bandits who appeared earlier trying to rob people near the capital?
Aren't they afraid of the government troops?
I told Cheon Yeohwa my doubts.
"It takes about two days to get to Xi'an on foot. And the government troops? For the government troops to patrol outside the capital, the government troops in your homeland must have been quite diligent."
It takes about two days to walk there, and the government troops are only interested in the security inside the capital, not the security outside the capital.
"Of course, if bandits become too rampant and even large merchant guilds complain, they'll step in then. That's why bandits don't target guilds that are too large. In the first place, those kinds of guilds have skilled escort agencies attached to them."
"Thanks for the explanation."
As a reward, I tossed her a piece of chocolate. Seeing her happily unwrap it and eat it, I'm now quite used to it.
She's kind of like a cat.
"But why are you going to Xi'an?"
What I wanted was to travel to the nearest city, not to go to Xi'an.
No matter how close Xi'an is, there's no need to go to a place that's not your destination.
Especially if it takes two days.
"Why are you curious about that?"
Startled by the cold voice that changed as soon as I asked, completely different from when she was eating chocolate.
"No reason."
"Don't forget. We're only temporarily traveling together until Xi'an."
Because she came out so firmly, I thought about the girls in high school.
'Was I too clingy…?'
Aside from Iris, I've never had a proper conversation with girls my age, so I don't know how to respond in these situations, so I could only quietly walk a little further away.
'Ah, right. Iris was 500 years old?'
But excluding her age, she seemed younger than me overall, so I didn't think of her as 500 years old.
Her face, her voice, her body.
'I suddenly miss Iris.'
I felt like a newlywed couple who suddenly separated after spending only one night together.
No, we didn't even spend the first night properly.
A sudden shrine appeared, the emergence of the World Tree, and dungeon exploration.
Honestly, with my current stamina, I feel like I could go five times in a row, but I only did it once. Just thinking about that makes me so upset that I want to pour cow dung on the World Tree as fertilizer.
Of course, Iris would foam at the mouth and collapse if I did that, so I couldn't actually do it.
Anyway, Cheon Yeohwa and I continued to walk through the forest without much conversation after that.
Just thinking about her cold reaction earlier made me a little reluctant to talk to her first.
I repeated giving her directions and walking, and the sun was gradually setting.
The forest gets dark early at night, and it was true.
'Wasn't that the mountain?'
That wasn't important right now.
"The sun will be setting soon, what are you going to do?"
Without even looking, I knew we had to camp out, and if we didn't find a place and start a fire soon, we'd wake up covered in morning dew.
"This way."
Cheon Yeohwa, who told me to lead the way, suddenly threw out a word and quickly walked somewhere.
Her speed was unusual.
'Is that a martial art too?'
Her speed itself seemed ordinary, but she moved through the trees, grass, and unorganized paths as if she were walking on a well-paved trail.
Now I understood how Cheon Yeohwa was able to catch up to me during the day.
No matter how fast I am, there are sections where my speed slows down as I avoid trees and pass through grass.
But Cheon Yeohwa didn't have those sections.
Honestly, I wanted to learn it if I could. There are martial arts on Earth too, but it's not easy to learn them just because you want to.
'…They say there's chocolate that's supplied to the royal family, should I try to seduce her with that?'
Even if nothing else works, if I give her expensive desserts, she might teach me martial arts.
The place we arrived at following Cheon Yeohwa was under a large tree.
"We'll spend the night here tonight."
It definitely looked like we wouldn't get wet even if it rained, and there was enough space in the forest to start a fire.
"Have you ever camped out before? Just looking at the clothes you're wearing, you seem like a very wealthy young lady."
"Of course."
Cheon Yeohwa skillfully began to prepare for sleep, starting to clean up the surroundings.
"Go and get some dry firewood. Even if it's gotten a lot warmer, it will be cold in the morning."
"Do I have to?"
I took out a small brazier and stones from my inventory.
"…Is that also magic?"
I felt good seeing Cheon Yeohwa surprised by me taking things out of thin air.
"Similar."
After setting up the brazier in a suitable place, I took out a small pebble from my inventory.
This is a special stone called a fossil that comes from volcanoes. The effect varies depending on the size, but if it's this size, the fire won't go out for up to 12 hours the moment it's lit. I bought several at home to give to Iris next time I meet her.
When I threw a small fireball into the brazier with the fossil inside, a fairly large flame soared up.
"How about it?"
As I grinned and looked at Cheon Yeohwa, she immediately averted her eyes as if she didn't like something.
"…If you only pursue convenience, people will become lazy."
"It's better than wasting energy on unnecessary things."
I approached Cheon Yeohwa, who was still tidying up her sleeping area, opened my inventory, and took out a tent this time.
It was a one-person tent from Mountain Spot, which is called the most expensive brand in camping gear.
The temperature and humidity are automatically controlled, and it's made of a material that can't be torn by the claws of a wild bear.
It also had the advantages of pest control, cleanliness maintenance, and a mattress as comfortable as a hotel bed.
"Wh, what is that?"
"Tent."
The moment Cheon Yeohwa saw what was called a tent, she couldn't take her eyes off it as if she were possessed.
It's been half a year since she was pushed out of the succession competition and came to the unfamiliar Central Plains, and she's never been able to sleep comfortably for a single moment.
She always had to sleep lightly in fear that an assassin would come, whether she was outdoors or in an inn.
Especially the outdoors was the worst.
Having been raised as a princess of the royal family, her camping life was as miserable as words could not describe.
She still couldn't forget the day she had to camp out for the first time. All she had on the floor were a few large leaves that she had hurriedly obtained. Even those were barely obtained without being wet, but the moment she lay down on them, Cheon Yeohwa realized.
Even if you stack leaves on top of each other, it doesn't change the fact that your back hurts.
And that's not all? The bugs that constantly touched her here and there made the already uncomfortable sleep and the light sleep to watch out for assassins even more terrible.
Moreover, she always had to groan and get up with a backache after sleeping on the dirt floor.
But this tent was different.
Whether it was some kind of magic, the interior was warm and pleasant. And the soft and smooth cloth on the floor had something that made her want to cry for no reason.
Above all.
'There's no way someone who casts this kind of magic is an assassin under the First Young Master.'
Of course, nothing was clear about his identity, but there was no way someone like that would be under the First Young Master.
If rumors spread that there was someone with this kind of ability, the cult leader would have personally stepped up and tried to recruit him.
'There were several opportunities to take my life. The fact that he hasn't shown even a single sign means that my life isn't his goal right now.'
She would normally scold herself for being complacent.
But she had no choice but to do so now.
Due to the fatigue that had accumulated from camping for the past month and the poison that was slowly eating away at her dantian, Cheon Yeohwa had difficulty making normal judgments.
For her, the existence of this tent and the speculation about Kang Hyunwoo's identity were nothing short of an opportunity to take a comfortable and sweet sleep without worrying about assassins or camping, at least for today.
However, there was one problem that blocked her surging desires.
"…But this thing called a tent. Do you only have one by any chance?"
"I only have one?"
A silence flowed between the two at that moment.
"Yield it."
"Why should I?"
"…"
Cheon Yeohwa, full brain operation.