I Gave Up on Conquering the Heroines – Chapter 65

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Acting Mayor, let’s take a break now. The Cologne mayoral election is coming up soon anyway…”

“I need to properly organize the ongoing work and hand it over to the next mayor. I can’t just sloppily pass it on, saying it’s no longer my job.”

“As expected of you, Acting Mayor. Why don’t you consider running for mayor of Cologne?”

“I’ll think about it…”

When I awkwardly smiled, the secretary left the room.

Running for mayor.

It was a choice I had never even considered.

The acting mayor position, which I had taken on only to deal with the aftermath of Lawrence’s death.

I thought it had nothing to do with me once the election was over.

‘If I run, is it a sure win?’

It wasn’t unfounded confidence, but objectively, the probability of me winning was very high.

Because no candidate had properly prepared for this election, expecting Lawrence to be re-elected.

When he suddenly died, some candidates rushed to prepare and made reckless moves, but ended up shooting themselves in the foot.

Meanwhile, as the acting mayor, I had performed the mayoral duties even better than Lawrence.

I successfully completed the repair work on the huge sinkhole in the sewers that had formed when the dungeon collapsed.

The only flaw, if any, was that I was a woman.

But since I wasn’t a frivolous young lady who sucked the blood of her family, and was in the position of an acting countess leading a family, that flaw would be largely compensated.

If I ran, it was practically a sure win.

Anyone else wouldn’t have hesitated to run.

I had ambition for power too.

I had the desire to rise in the world.

‘Would he like it?’

But to me, Yoo-jin was the most important, more than anything else.

If I became the mayor of Cologne, I didn’t think Yoo-jin would like it.

Because once I officially became mayor, the responsibilities I had to bear would be much greater.

There would be frequent audits too.

Then I would have to disclose the payment history of my guaranteed checks.

People would also ask who this mysterious man was, spending large sums of money all over the continent.

He didn’t seem to want his name to be known.

I had a feeling that if people’s attention was drawn to him, he would disappear without a trace.

Even leaving me behind…

‘As expected, I can’t run.’

I made up my mind.

It really wouldn’t work.

The Briam family was already solid enough.

All the ongoing businesses were on track.

I didn’t think there was any need to take on the highly responsible position of mayor.

“I miss him…”

This is bad.

Thinking of him made me miss him again.

I had decided to focus only on work during work hours.

But I couldn’t help it.

“Hmm…”

I fiddled with Yoo-jin’s mana stone, made into a ring.

Small and unimpressive, but to me, it was more valuable than gold.

And my other hand slid down…

Bang!

“Ah? Eh? Huh?”

At that moment, the door suddenly opened.

The door that I had told them not to open without knocking…

I was about to raise my head to get angry.

“Long time no see, Cornelia. I was thinking of you… Oh, um.”

The person who appeared from outside the door was a completely unexpected one.

My eyes met Yoo-jin’s.

Yoo-jin looked at me for a moment, swallowed his next words, and said,

“You seem a bit busy.”

“Pardon…?”

“Sorry. I’ll come back in a bit.”

He closed the door again and retreated.

Only after seeing his bewildered face did I realize what I looked like right now.

Leaning on the desk with a flushed face.

Breathing roughly with my hand under the desk…

“Th-that’s not it!”

I shouted in surprise.

Telling a lie that wouldn’t be believed at all.

“What you just saw! It’s not what you think!”

“How do you know what I’m thinking?”

“You were thinking… strange things…”

“No? Really?”

“It, it really isn’t.”

“Hmm. Well. If you say so, then it must be.”

Yoo-jin sat down with a mischievous smile, along with a young blood ghoul.

It was annoying but at the same time, I was so happy that I couldn’t suppress my laughter.

“I’ve been learning tea ceremony lately. I’ll brew you a cup of matcha.”

“The Acting Mayor of Cologne personally brewing tea for me. How luxurious.”

“Don’t tease me…”

The entire time I turned my back to Yoo-jin and took out the teacups, I had a hard time calming my grinning lips.

Speak of the devil…

“Here you go. A cup for the little guest too.”

“…I, I don’t like it.”

“Huh?”

“She’s afraid of running water.”

Just as I was about to pour water into the cup, the pale-skinned girl sobbed and snuggled into his arms.

She seemed a bit more blunt before.

Had she gotten closer to Yoo-jin in the meantime?

“Why are you sitting here?”

“The chair on the opposite side is a bit uncomfortable.”

“Aren’t they the same chairs?”

“They’re different.”

Plop.

After pouring all the water into the cups, I sat next to Yoo-jin.

I secretly moved closer, so we were touching thighs.

This warmth.

This voice.

This trembling.

Just sitting next to Yoo-jin, I felt like my stress was relieved and my mind and body were stabilized.

Ah.

The stabilization of my mind and body might be wrong.

My heartbeat kept getting stronger…

“I missed you. Actually, I was just thinking that I missed you, and you appeared right on time.”

“What an amazing coincidence.”

In fact, it wasn’t a coincidence at all.

I spent more than half of the day thinking about Yoo-jin.

Excluding sleeping time, he had to appear when I was thinking about him.

Still… It was more romantic and better to think of it as a coincidence.

Even though I looked like this, I did focus only on work during work hours.

“The checks you gave me. I’ve already used them all.”

“Yes, yes. I confirmed that all 5 checks were used. They were all properly paid, so you don’t need to worry.”

“So this time, I want to ask for about 20 more.”

“I’ll generously prepare 30 for you.”

“Thanks, Cornelia.”

“Hehe…”

Rub, rub.

I leaned on Yoo-jin’s shoulder and rubbed my head.

Then Yoo-jin put his arm around my neck and stroked my head.

It felt good.

It felt so good to be enveloped by Yoo-jin’s large hand.

It was like I’d become Yoo-jin’s…

“Right. I have a gift.”

“A gift?”

“Thanks to you, I was able to travel around without worrying about money. Here you go.”

“This is…?”

Click.

A gem emitting a brilliant light was revealed from inside a luxurious box.

No, is this a mana stone…?

My eyes widened involuntarily at its beautiful color.

It wasn’t the combat-assisting magic tool that Yoo-jin usually wore on his sword or ring.

It was definitely a mana stone for decoration or engagement.

“What is this for?”

“I stopped by Elvenguard. I picked it up on my way back from there.”

“Don’t joke around. Are you serious?”

“I’m serious.”

I was at a loss for words at Yoo-jin’s sincere face.

I had always thought about wanting to become Yoo-jin’s special person.

I waited and waited for him endlessly.

But in a corner of my heart, I sensed it.

The extremely low possibility of this feeling being reciprocated…

So I changed my strategy.

Rather than actively trying to win Yoo-jin over, I decided to become the woman Yoo-jin would seek out at the very end.

‘A proposal…?’

But I never thought that day would be today.

An expensive mana stone from Elvenguard.

Not a cheap, eye-catching mana stone used for fake proposals, but a genuine luxury item.

His intention was clear.

His way of proposing to a high-ranking noble woman.

It was cliché, but that made it even more meaningful.

“Ah…”

I was so happy that I couldn’t speak properly.

I felt like tears would pour out at any moment.

As I sobbed, Yoo-jin smiled and wiped my eyes.

“Uh. Actually…”

“You don’t like it?”

“I like it! I like it so much! I’m so happy that…”

“You like it so much that it brings tears to your eyes. If you sell it, you’ll probably get a lot of money.”

“Pardon?”

But the moment Yoo-jin continued, I realized I had misunderstood something.

“You want me to sell this?”

“Yeah. Use it to support the management of your family.”

“…”

Ah.

I understood.

I figured out the whole story.

Yoo-jin wasn’t a nobleman.

So there was no way he would know the customs of noble marriages.

He didn’t know the meaning of giving such an expensive mana stone to a woman in the first place.

Once I realized that, my strength drained away.

I felt foolish for getting excited, even if it was just for a moment.

‘Well…’

There was no way Yoo-jin would get married.

He was someone who hated being tied down somewhere.

If his goal was my wealth, he was already enjoying it sufficiently without getting married right now.

There was absolutely no reason for him to want to marry me right away.

Moreover, Yoo-jin’s work probably wasn’t finished yet.

Judging from the usage of the checks, he had been traveling all over the southern continent.

As a demon hunter, he would have to travel around the world without a moment’s rest.

“I… like it…”

But suppressing all those feelings, killing the feeling of disappointment, I smiled at Yoo-jin.

Finding consolation in the fact that Yoo-jin was considerate of me.

At least it wasn’t that he didn’t care about me at all.

“So what did you do in Elvenguard?”

“This is confidential. I don’t know if I should tell you.”

“I’ll keep it quiet. You know I can keep a secret.”

“I know. You’ve kept it a secret until now that Lawrence was a demon’s minion. Let’s see. Where should I start…”

Before I knew it, work was put on the back burner.

I leaned on Yoo-jin’s shoulder and listened to his long story.

He probably couldn’t tell me everything, as there were parts he omitted here and there…

But Yoo-jin’s story was still interesting.

Yoo-jin’s unique nonchalance was evident in his story.

He briefly and concisely mentioned his own achievements, but emphasized others’ greatness to the fullest, yet I could roughly sense how much he had accomplished.

“Ah…”

Time passed.

Noticing the setting sun, I became gloomy.

It was almost time for Yoo-jin to leave.

“The sun seems to be setting soon.”

“Indeed.”

At some point, I was leaning on Yoo-jin’s chest as if embracing him.

I wished this moment could last forever.

I wished Yoo-jin wouldn’t leave.

I wished he wouldn’t go to dangerous places.

I wished he wouldn’t meet other women.

I wished he would live with me here forever.

‘That won’t happen…’

But I had long given up on such futile hopes.

Because there was no way Yoo-jin would choose me.

The reason was clear and fatal.

‘Yoo-jin will think my body has been defiled by Lawrence…’

This would be the biggest reason Yoo-jin wouldn’t accept me.

It was useless to say otherwise.

Sometimes the truth sounded more false than lies.

How convincing would it sound to say that I had preserved my virginity during the months I was married to and held captive by such a violent man?

If it were me, I probably wouldn’t believe it either.

There would be many younger and purer women by Yoo-jin’s side.

There was no reason for him to choose me over other women.

It was a bitter reality, but there was nothing I could do about it.

“Ah! It’s almost the last train! We should get up now, shouldn’t we?”

“I should get going. But I feel like I only talked about myself. Did anything happen with you?”

“Nothing… much happened to me…”

I forcibly mustered my strength and pushed his back, telling him to go.

But Yoo-jin approached me again and tidied my messy hair.

Leaving me with lingering feelings…

“Wasn’t it hard?”

“I’m, I’m fine.”

“Really? The workload seems no joke.”

“It’s a bit… a bit hard…”

It was hard because of you.

I missed you so much that it felt like I was dying.

My heart ached every day.

But I couldn’t say that much, afraid it would burden Yoo-jin.

“Hang in there. You’re doing well. I’ve received a lot of help thanks to you, Cornelia.”

“Hoo…”

Squeeeze.

My whole body heated up at Yoo-jin’s rough hug.

It wasn’t a soft and loving hug given to a lover, but for now, this was enough.

My fatigue was completely gone.

My stress melted away and I felt good.

I enjoyed the pressure of being crushed by Yoo-jin’s fierce arm strength for a long time.

Gradually, Yoo-jin’s arm strength loosened.

As my lifted heels came down, our eyes met.

Yoo-jin’s gaze was so warm.

“Nothing special happened in Cologne?”

“No. Everything is going well. The sewer construction is finished. Two days ago, when the Saintess visited, there was a commotion…”

“What? The Saintess came here?”

“…”

But at that moment, bewilderment was evident in Yoo-jin’s voice.

His face turned pale.

I immediately realized.

This man.

He must have an unusual relationship with the Saintess.

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