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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Silverriver
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‘He saw me!’
The moment their eyes met, Ha-yeon froze. Ironically, this turned out to be a stroke of luck.
‘Who is that woman?’
If Ha-yeon had reacted immediately, the Sword Demon would have instantly perceived her as an enemy and attacked. He had just slaughtered the Thousand Tigers gang members, after all.
However, her awkward, flustered demeanor lowered his guard. Of course, it didn’t erase his suspicion entirely.
-Step. Step.
The Sword Demon slowly approached Ha-yeon. Crouched precariously behind the car, Ha-yeon’s mind raced.
A critical situation. She had to think fast.
What if she fought? She would lose, without a doubt. He had even injured Kwon Tae-ho. She stood no chance.
Run? Could she even outrun him? Ha-yeon’s physical abilities were below average, even for a trainee Enforcer. He would catch her easily.
“Uh…”
While she was agonizing over her options, the Sword Demon was already standing right in front of her.
“U-um… I, uh…”
“…Did the Thousand Tigers send you?”
“No! No, they didn’t! I’m not with them…!”
“Then why are you suspiciously watching me?”
“I-I’m not watching you!!”
Panicked, Ha-yeon stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence. Her awkward, harmless demeanor, however, was so unconvincing that it only deepened the Sword Demon’s suspicion.
Why was someone like this watching him, or rather, Feifei’s apartment?
‘…It would be wise to eliminate any potential threats.’
But the thought remained just that – a thought. She wasn’t a criminal, and he wasn’t a murderer. He only killed criminals. He couldn’t draw his sword on someone he didn’t know.
Normally, he would have turned and left.
-Shing.
But having just fought the Thousand Tigers Gang and an Enforcer, the Sword Demon was on high alert.
“Answer me while I’m still asking nicely. Who are you? Why are you watching me so suspiciously?”
“I-I’m…! That is… I’m…”
Various words flashed through Ha-yeon’s mind.
There was no time to think in this critical situation. She blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“F-f-f-friend!”
“Friend? Do you have a friend living here? What’s their name?”
“Feifei!”
“What?”
The Sword Demon’s eyes widened.
Oh well, I’ve already said it. Might as well go with it. Thinking this, Ha-yeon continued babbling.
“That is, um, my name is… uh… Lee Ha-yeon…! Feifei and I work at the same place…! But she was taken by the Thousand Tigers this morning… and I haven’t heard from her since, so I came to her apartment because I was worried-”
“What?! Feifei was taken?! What are you talking about?!”
“Huh?”
The Sword Demon’s reaction was more intense than she had anticipated. He grabbed her shoulders and yelled, making Ha-yeon hiccup in surprise.
But after a moment, she calmed down and a question arose in her mind.
“Y-you didn’t know…?”
The Sword Demon didn’t know about Feifei’s kidnapping?
That couldn’t be right.
Hadn’t Kwon Tae-ho said that the Sword Demon had sent his avatar to the Thousand Tigers’ headquarters?
Wasn’t it to rescue Feifei?
“Unbelievable… those criminal bastards… I suspected as much… to go that far against an innocent girl…!”
Kwon Tae-ho and his team had assumed the attack was a rescue attempt. But the reality was slightly different.
The Sword Demon had sent his avatar to the Thousand Tigers to eliminate any future threats.
To prevent them from retaliating against Feifei for the incident with the executive. He had gone there to nip any potential problems in the bud.
He had tried to wipe out the Thousand Tigers Gang for that reason alone.
What did this mean?
It meant that he hadn’t gone there to rescue her. He had gone there to preemptively eliminate a potential threat. To annihilate an entire organization because they might retaliate against Feifei…
It meant that Feifei was incredibly important to him.
“Unbelievable. When? When did this happen?! When did they take her?!”
“Um… this morning…”
“Damn it, and I didn’t even know…!”
The Sword Demon trembled with rage.
From his perspective, he had annihilated the Thousand Tigers, yet he had failed to protect Feifei.
If he had known about the kidnapping beforehand, he could have at least threatened a gang member to find out where she was. But he hadn’t known, so he had simply cut down anyone who stood in his way.
He wondered,
Where was Feifei now?
Was she still at the Thousand Tigers’ headquarters, now filled with corpses? Or was she being held somewhere else? How could he find her? Were there any Thousand Tigers gang members still alive? And even if there were, would they know where she was?
“Um…”
Looking at the distraught Sword Demon, trembling with a mix of rage and anguish, Ha-yeon felt a pang of sympathy.
He was a murderer, yes. But she couldn’t see him that way. She thought,
He looked like a father who had lost his beloved daughter, agonizing over her safety.
“My shoulders hurt… could you let go…?”
“Oh.”
The Sword Demon realized he was still gripping Ha-yeon’s shoulders tightly. He quickly released her, a look of embarrassment on his face, and apologized.
“I’m so sorry. I mistook you for someone else and threatened you. I sincerely apologize.”
“Oh, no… it’s okay… You were just worried about Feifei… I don’t mind…!”
Ha-yeon forced a cheerful smile and subtly stepped back.
Good, I managed to fool him. Now I just need to get out of here and report to Enforcer Kwon that the Sword Demon is at Feifei’s apartment.
“Huh?”
But then, she heard a gasp from afar.
“Mister!”
Both Ha-yeon and the Sword Demon turned their heads at the sound.
“F-Feifei…?”
“Feifei!”
Down the alley, Feifei was running toward them, waving. Her bruised arms and legs were bandaged, suggesting she had been to a hospital.
“Feifei! You’re safe! I’m so glad. I heard the Thousand Tigers kidnapped you…”
“Huh? How did you…?”
Feifei’s surprise was short-lived. Her eyes widened as she spotted Ha-yeon standing next to the Sword Demon.
“You’re-”
“Huh!”
I’m screwed.
The conclusion was immediate. There was no need to think it over.
I’m completely screwed. Thinking this, Ha-yeon acted on instinct, her body moving before her mind could catch up.
“Feifei! I’m so glad you’re safe!”
“Huh?”
Before Feifei could react, Ha-yeon embraced her tightly. Feifei winced in pain from her injuries. Ha-yeon quickly released her and apologized.
“Oh, I’m sorry! You’re hurt! Those Thousand Tigers bastards… I’m so glad you’re okay. You have no idea how worried I was when I heard you were kidnapped!”
Ha-yeon poured out a torrent of lies.
“What? I… what are you…?”
Of course, Feifei, who hadn’t been informed of this improvised plan, was completely lost.
But Ha-yeon’s nerve carried her through.
“Hey, we agreed to drop the formalities! We’re coworkers, we should be friendly. You haven’t forgotten already, have you?”
“Huh?”
Feifei’s eyes twitched.
The woman from the Enforcer’s office, whom she had met just a few hours ago, was suddenly acting like her best friend. She tried to figure out what was going on, her gaze shifting to the Sword Demon standing beside her.
‘Could it be…?’
Feifei looked back at Ha-yeon, who was sweating profusely, a desperate, pleading smile plastered on her face. Then, she understood.
‘She wants me to play along. To fool him.’
Her first thought was, Why should I? The Sword Demon was her benefactor. Why should she help deceive him?
“…….”
But then, Kwon Tae-ho’s words echoed in her mind.
The Sword Demon was a murderer. He had killed countless people.
‘If I reveal her identity here… he might kill her…’
Feifei wanted to believe that he would never do that.
But at the same time, what the Enforcers had said didn’t seem like a lie. The Sword Demon was capable of killing without hesitation.
But helping deceive him here meant betraying her benefactor…
“Feifei, what’s wrong? Is she lying?”
Sensing something amiss in Feifei’s reaction, the Sword Demon placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
…Was I wrong?
Resigned, Ha-yeon prepared to run. But then, Feifei looked at the Sword Demon and smiled.
“No, she’s my friend. We work at the same place and became close.”
After much deliberation, Feifei had decided to play along.
If the Sword Demon was her benefactor, then so was Ha-yeon. She didn’t want to cause her any harm.
“Thank you for your concern. But I’m okay. The Enforcers came and rescued me. I’m not seriously injured.”
She also made sure to mention that Kwon Tae-ho and his team had rescued her.
This way, even if Ha-yeon’s identity was revealed, the Sword Demon wouldn’t immediately attack her.
“…I…”
‘Thank you, Feifei…! You saved me…!!’
Lee Ha-yeon almost shed tears at Feifei’s consideration. Leaving the still-suspicious Sword Demon behind, she took a step back and said,
“W-well, now that I’ve seen you’re safe, I should get going. Get some rest, and I’ll see you tomorrow, Feifei!”
Good, that was natural.
Ha-yeon smiled brightly and turned to leave. Once she was far enough away, she would contact Kwon Tae-ho and report the Sword Demon’s location.
But then.
“Since you’re here, why don’t we have dinner together?”
“Huh?”
Feifei had no intention of letting her go so easily.
‘If I let her go now, she’ll contact that Enforcer immediately…’
She had cooperated with Ha-yeon’s lie out of concern for her safety, but she couldn’t let them arrest the Sword Demon.
After some thought, Feifei decided to invite Ha-yeon to her apartment and try to persuade her.
She judged Ha-yeon to be a softhearted person, someone she could sway with words.
“Oh? No, that would be too much trouble…”
“Come on, let’s eat together.”
Ha-yeon, desperate to leave, tried to decline, but Feifei held her hands tightly, refusing to let go.
-Gulp.
To Ha-yeon, it felt like a threat – If you try to run, I’ll reveal your identity.
A question popped into Ha-yeon’s mind. She had just cooperated with her lie, so why was she suddenly trying to hold her back?
She couldn’t figure it out. But one thing was certain.
“…O-okay! Sure! Let’s eat together!”
She had no choice.
And so, the three of them went up to Feifei’s apartment.
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