Chapter 24

[24] “Oppa, Why Are You So Sexy?”

Sia started the video again.

It showed me chatting amicably with the villains, unaware that they were about to reveal their true colors. Then it showed Junhwi and me making small talk during a break.

There was nothing special about any of it to me, but these moments seemed incredibly precious to Sia.

[It’s fascinating to see the world through your eyes, Oppa.]

“Is it?”

Come to think of it, I’d probably find it pretty fascinating if Sia recorded videos like this and showed them to me.

Was it like sneaking a peek at someone’s diary?

[Yeah. And seeing what those scumbags who tried to kill you were like when they were still alive…]
“Seeing what?”

Had she changed her mind and decided she didn’t want to watch after all?

That might be for the best. I was just about to tell Sia she didn’t have to keep watching if it was too hard.

But—

[I’m sure of it now. This world is too dangerous for you, Oppa.]

What was she talking about now?

[Look at her. That Seo Yuseon woman keeps sneaking glances at you like she’s trying to seduce you.]

“She was just trying to let our guard down—”

To be honest, I hadn’t gotten the impression that Seo Yuseon was trying to seduce me.

But Sia seemed to see it differently.

[That’s a problem in itself. Anyway, that woman, and who knows how many others, might try to seduce you and do something to you. This won’t do.]

I’d noticed this from time to time, but since we reunited, Sia had become noticeably more worried and jealous than before.

She was reading that much into the actions of even a villain who’d tried to kill me.

Then again, after being apart for an unimaginably long time and finally finding each other again, I couldn’t exactly blame her.

At this rate, I might end up having to explain myself just because my hand brushed against a female employee’s at a shop.

Anyway…

“That’s why I told you the video wouldn’t be interesting.”

[It’s fine. I want to keep watching. I have to see it.]

Sia shook her head as if she couldn’t believe what I was saying, then focused on the video again.

Even when I had to suppress a yawn because I was getting bored, Sia never took her eyes off the screen.

How much time passed?

The video was approaching the moment when the villains made one last desperate attempt before dying—and spat out those vile words.

I paused the footage for a moment and spoke to Sia.

“Sia, can we stop here? There’s nothing good to see after this.”

[I still want to watch.]

“Even though it shows someone dying?”

[They’re scum, not people. It’s fine.]

“…”

I tried one last time to persuade her, but Sia didn’t seem inclined to change her mind.

[It’s okay. I really do want to see it.]

“…All right.”

There was no point in trying to stop her anymore.

I gave up and started the video again.

The scenes I’d been dreading began to play.

The villains’ unspeakable insults against Sia and me, followed by the moment I plunged my sword straight into their hearts.

So here it comes.

I sighed inwardly and carefully watched Sia’s reaction.

I’d been furious when I first heard the villains say those things. How much worse would it be for Sia?

But…

Sia didn’t look at all like someone watching something unpleasant.

If anything, there was so much excitement and spark in her eyes that I was the one who felt flustered.

…Why?

[Oppa.]

Whether or not I understood, Sia gazed at me with dreamy, excited eyes.

[Why are you so sexy?]

What on earth was sexy about that?

Even after her long video call with Minjun ended, Sia didn’t leave the screen.

Instead, she scooted closer and replayed the footage.

Perhaps she thought she hadn’t given him enough feedback and was replaying the fight to offer him more detailed advice.

That wasn’t it.

Perhaps she’d spotted something interesting in the idle chatter during the parts Minjun had called boring, and didn’t want to stop watching.

That wasn’t it, either.

The scene she wanted to see again was Minjun plunging his sword into the hearts of the villains who’d been spewing insults.

“Hehe. How can my Oppa be so sexy?”

Contrary to Minjun’s worries, the villains’ insults hadn’t really bothered her.

What had caught her attention was the way Minjun had dealt with them.

He’d stabbed them in the chest without hesitation, as if they weren’t worth listening to anymore.

And for the briefest moment, his sword aura had turned bloodred, as if it carried all his emotions.

“Maybe I’m the only one who doesn’t know how sexy he is.”

When she’d first called Minjun sexy while watching the video with him, he’d tilted his head without realizing it. He clearly had no idea what she found sexy about that moment.

But to Sia, Minjun seemed to be embarrassed by the very word.

He’d openly shown such a sexy side, then shuddered and shyly denied it when she said so.

She found that nerdy charm irresistible.

He was handsome and sexy, and on top of that, he had the unexpected appeal of a nerd.

The thought that her boyfriend was a man like a unicorn—someone who seemed to exist only in her imagination—sent a thrill through her.

“Still, this is a little disappointing.”

The wearable camera had been made in a hurry, and there were many things about it that left her wanting more.

One obvious flaw was the limited point of view.

The camera was attached to Minjun’s chest, so she could only see things from his chest-level perspective.

If she could’ve seen Minjun from a third-person view…

I could’ve seen the expression on his face.

The expression he’d worn when he finished off the three villains.

She’d prepared the camera to see another side of Minjun, one she couldn’t see when he was inside a gate. But now that she’d seen the footage, it had more shortcomings than she’d expected.

A drone could’ve filmed him, for example.

Ah!

Why didn’t I think of that?

She’d been focused on other things and hadn’t thought that far ahead.

A camera drone…

If she improved it, she could observe Minjun in greater detail and from more angles.

If she’d made something like that from the start, she could’ve seen the expression he’d worn back then—and every expression and gesture he made, for that matter.

But there was no point regretting it now.

She’d use a drone from the next gate onward.

For now, she had to make do with what she had.

Sia replayed that section in slow motion.

She couldn’t see it clearly, but Minjun’s face had to be visible somewhere, even if only faintly.

Perhaps…

In someone’s eyes.

Maybe Minjun’s reflection had been caught in another person’s pupils.

To find it, Sia zoomed in on the villains’ eyes one by one, checking for his reflection.

She might not be able to make out every detail of his expression through someone else’s pupils, but even that would be something.

And at last—

“I found it…!”

Sia spotted Minjun reflected in an eye.

She found his image in the eyes of Seo Yuseon, the villain who’d been facing him directly, and zoomed in on it.

The image was a little blurry, but she could make out Minjun holding his sword.

Can I enlarge it more?

Sia swallowed and zoomed in as far as the footage would allow.

Unfortunately, Minjun’s outline only grew blurrier.

She still couldn’t make out his expression.

Should I give up?

The thought crossed her mind, but she quickly shook her head.

Hadn’t she spent two thousand years studying a single spell—dimensional travel—without ever giving up?

If technology had reached its limits, it was time to rely on magic.

Sia brought every bit of knowledge she’d accumulated over 2,500 years to bear, determined to sharpen Minjun’s blurry reflection in Seo Yuseon’s eye.

Magic seemed like it should make things easy, but the video was a product of both magic and modern technology. It wasn’t a simple task.

But that was only from a human perspective.

As a dragon, she managed to enhance and clarify the image in just ten minutes.

With a nervous heart, Sia examined Minjun’s reflection.

“Ah…”

His eyes were wide as he glared at the villains.

His lips trembled with barely restrained anger.

There was no mistaking the profound fury rippling across Minjun’s face in the reflection.

It was the furious anger of a man whose beloved had been insulted by vile creatures who didn’t deserve to draw breath.

Feeling Minjun’s emotions as if they were her own, Sia covered her mouth and couldn’t take her eyes off his image for a long while.

Her heart began pounding harder and harder, beyond her control. Her face flushed redder than the sun with an excitement she could barely contain.

More than anything, Sia wanted to rush to Minjun and bury herself in his warm embrace.

She wanted to feel his body heat and tell him everything she’d been feeling.

But she knew very well that she couldn’t do that right now.

I wish I had something more.

Her calls with Minjun, the photos they’d taken together, and now this video of him.

At first, she’d thought those would be enough to get her through a whole week. But she was starting to reach her limit.

Maybe it was how much she missed Minjun, but for some reason, her hands had started trembling.

“This won’t do.”

She didn’t want a video call. She wanted to feel his warmth and smell his scent in person.

She needed to find a way.

A way to feel as if Minjun were beside her, even when he wasn’t.

After that incident, I took Rokan’s advice and stopped taking part in gate raids.

I’d asked Rokan if I could at least train, but he shook his head. He said we had to be careful about even the slightest possibility of something going wrong.

So, forced to take a break, I spent several hours a day talking with Sia.

We chatted as usual, but I also took the opportunity to ask her to tell me all sorts of things about dragons and their culture.

I thought understanding dragons more deeply might help me wield their power.

Time passed.

At last, the day came when I was supposed to meet Sia.

I finished getting ready and checked the time. There were about ten minutes left until our meeting.

While I waited, I checked one last time to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything.

Today, I was going to visit Sia’s lair.

Since I was visiting her new home, I figured I should bring a housewarming gift. The day before, I’d asked Sia to tell me anything she wanted.

But instead of asking for an ordinary housewarming gift, like a pack of toilet paper, she’d named things I never would’ve expected.

I’d thought I knew Sia pretty well after dating her for so long. Lately, though, I couldn’t figure out what was going through her head.

Why on earth does she want the old clothes I used to wear?

And not new clothes, or things I’d only worn a few times. She wanted clothes I’d worn for years, until they were practically threadbare.

…What was she planning to do with them?