Silver Dragon Saga, Episode 81
At that moment, sensing Majaron’s demonic energy in the distance, Hong Yuhwa spoke with a bright smile. But Heukhwa was beginning to grow anxious at that smile.
“Y-Your Highness!”
Majaron came running frantically, and just as he was about to report something, Hong Yuhwa spoke with a smile.
“Majaron.”
“Yes?”
“Hey, listen. Do you think Heukhwa cursed me out in his heart or not?”
Majaron, making a puzzled expression at the sudden question, answered.
“How would I know that? Ah, anyway, the report—”
“Hmm… I wasn’t going to hit you if you knew, but since you don’t, I have no choice but to hit you.”
“…….”
At Hong Yuhwa’s words, Majaron’s face stiffened completely. Lately, having suffered so much at the hands of the Silver Dragon Prince, Eun Jehwa, he had momentarily forgotten what kind of being their princess was. Now he remembered.
Their princess had an utterly nasty personality!
“Ah, I know.”
“Really? Then did he curse me out, or not?”
“Hahaha! He is Your Highness’s loyal knight. Surely he wouldn’t have cursed—”
“If he didn’t, you die. If he did, you live. Choose.”
Cutting off Majaron, Hong Yuhwa spoke with a bright smile.
“…….”
And at those words, not only Majaron’s face but Heukhwa’s face stiffened as well.
‘Comrade, please….’
Heukhwa looked at Majaron with desperate eyes. If Majaron said he had cursed her out, Heukhwa would clearly be beaten doubly for his earlier remarks as well. If Majaron just sacrificed himself, Heukhwa could survive.
Majaron fell silent at his fellow knight’s desperate gaze.
That was right! He would gladly offer his own body for his comrade!
“He cursed you out!”
As if he would sacrifice himself! Yes, exactly. Throwing a comrade away could be said to be a very desirable act for a demon.
“I knew it.”
Hong Yuhwa smiled even more brightly.
“…….”
And with that, Heukhwa’s face turned ashen.
“This is unfair.”
“Shut up and take it.”
Though he protested meekly, Hong Yuhwa merely puffed out her cheeks and raised her fist.
“Um, but….”
Just as Heukhwa was thinking that he had lived his life as a demon in vain and should quit being a knight, Majaron cautiously opened his mouth.
“What is it?”
Hong Yuhwa tilted her head at Majaron’s call.
“I have something to report.”
“Do it later. I’m busy.”
Seeing Hong Yuhwa, who considered beating Heukhwa before her eyes more urgent than a report, Majaron spoke.
“All forces of the Blood Cult seem to be heading toward where the Jeongsama Alliance is. Demons are at their vanguard.”
“……!”
Instantly, Hong Yuhwa’s eyes opened wide. Heukhwa’s face, which had been ashen until just now, stiffened completely as well.
“Is that true?”
“Yes. I’m afraid it will become an all-out war.”
“Ugh! So they’re making their move?”
For Hong Yuhwa, who had been planning to whittle away at the Blood Cult’s forces bit by bit using Jehwa and Seoryongseon, this was like being struck on the back of the head. She had never imagined they would strike first.
“Tch! Inform the others immediately! Tell Sister Johwi and Horan too. We’re going back!”
“Yes.”
Majaron nodded at Hong Yuhwa’s words.
‘Hooray! I won’t get hit!’
Just as Heukhwa inwardly cheered in triumph….
“Ah! Heukhwa, I’ll hit you later.”
Hong Yuhwa pushed Heukhwa back into an abyss of despair.
When jiangshi swarmed in and things were quite chaotic, Sawollin came to find Jehwa with a grin.
“You look like you’re in a good mood?”
“This sword is really amazing! If I pour a lot of ki into it, fire comes out!”
Sawollin began explaining about the sword with an excited expression.
“And it’s super sturdy! It’s totally like a legendary sword!”
“Is it that good?”
“Yeah!”
Sawollin smiled brightly and nodded.
Just then, Iseolhye briskly entered the room and shouted.
“Where is Hong Yuhwa? I want to say thank you!”
She too was smiling brightly, apparently quite pleased with the sword.
“She’s probably keeping an eye on the Blood Cult’s movements.”
“Hmm, well, I heard her subordinates found the Blood Cult’s main base and caused quite a commotion. Her intelligence network must be better than I thought if they can track the Blood Cult’s movements?”
As Sawollin spoke in admiration, Jehwa’s face twisted in horror.
“What? That girl’s subordinates caused a huge mess at the Blood Cult’s main base?”
“Yeah, why? Didn’t you know?”
Sawollin made a puzzled expression at Jehwa’s reaction.
“Has this wench gone mad trying to get herself killed!”
Right then, Hong Yuhwa arrived just in time.
“I’m here. Everyone’s gathered.”
Jehwa looked at Hong Yuhwa, who was sighing deeply with a worried expression, with murderous eyes.
“You.”
And when he called her with a cold voice, Hong Yuhwa tilted her head and looked at him.
“Hm?”
“Die!”
“Aaaack!”
There is no such thing as an eternal secret, and so Hong Yuhwa was beaten by Jehwa like a dog.
“Save me, save me, save me!”
Hong Yuhwa was being trampled by Jehwa, curled up and pleading as pathetically and desperately as she could. But Jehwa did not stop moving his feet and said,
“Hm? Am I your subordinate? Yeah, how does it feel getting hit by your subordinate? Hm? Good? Say something!”
“I won’t do it again! I won’t! Aack! Ack!”
Her struggling to avoid the pain looked all too desperate.
Sawollin and Iseolhye were trembling in a corner at the brutal sight.
“Ugh! Stop hitting me! There’s something important!”
Finally exploding from the beating, Hong Yuhwa shouted back.
“Keuk!”
But Jehwa merely stomped on Hong Yuhwa’s face with his sole.
“Who do you think you are, raising your voice? To your subordinate!”
“I’m raising my voice because you’re my subordinate!”
Having endured all she could, Hong Yuhwa finally exploded.
“Aack! So annoying! Did you think I’d keep letting you hit me! You damn Silver Dragon!”
“Do you really want to die? Say that again? What, damn Silver Dragon? Take this!”
“Hit me! Hit me! No, kill me! Go ahead and kill me! You bastard!”
Seeing Hong Yuhwa come on strong, Jehwa began stepping back with a bewildered face. He had treated her a bit more harshly than usual, and Hong Yuhwa had truly exploded.
When Hong Yuhwa exploded, she lost sight of everything just as much as Jehwa did. No, perhaps even more than Jehwa.
Suddenly, Hong Yuhwa grabbed the hair of Jehwa, who was stepping back.
“Aaaaack! Let go! Let go!”
“No!”
“Why you!”
“Aaaack!”
Jehwa began pulling Hong Yuhwa’s hair as well.
Then the two tumbled on the floor and even threw punches at each other.
What was this? Not even a proper dogfight—what were they doing?
Their fight continued until the successors of the Four Divine Beasts rushed in to stop them.
“Hiss! Hiss!”
“Huff! Huff!”
“Are you two children? Stop fighting.”
Yeom Johwi looked at Jehwa and Hong Yuhwa, held respectively by Jiugyeom and Seoryongseon, and let out a deep sigh.
What in the world was this? A demon and a dragon from another world were grabbing each other by the hair, rolling on the floor, brawling like children.
“I am a child!”
“Me too!”
At Yeom Johwi’s words, Jehwa and Hong Yuhwa snapped back.
Indeed, from the perspective of their races, the two of them were sufficiently young children.
“You two look like a married couple. Did you have a lovers’ quarrel?”
As Yeom Johwi said with an amused face while looking at the two who were going at each other fiercely, Hong Yuhwa—so furious at Jehwa that her eyes had rolled back—screamed.
“Who would call a scoundrel like this my husband!”
Normally, Hong Yuhwa would have latched onto Jehwa with joy, but this time she was truly angry.
She had done wrong, but she had begged and asked for forgiveness so much; yet Jehwa had kept hitting her until the end, trampling her pride. For Hong Yuhwa, who had been praised as a prodigy since childhood and had lived a privileged life, she had endured until now to a degree that was truly remarkable.
Because he was someone she liked, she had endured no matter how much he hit her or what he did, but even that had its limits!
“I absolutely hate that guy! Aaaaaack! So annoying!”
With her eyes returning to their original color from rage, Hong Yuhwa spat out her words with blazing eyes, and Jehwa made a bewildered expression.
“Hmph!”
At that, Hong Yuhwa snapped her head away with a snort, shook off her arms held by Seoryongseon, and went outside.
At Hong Yuhwa’s reaction, everyone in the room was bewildered.
“Y-Yuhwa… she must be really mad.”
Yeom Johwi laughed awkwardly, and Jiugyeom let go of Jehwa’s arm.
Jehwa’s face gradually grew gloomy.
He too liked Hong Yuhwa, who was good to him. Not romantically—he liked her for who she was.
But because he couldn’t give up his nature, if something annoyed him, he would resort to force like a child to get his way. Even so, Hong Yuhwa had simply smiled.
So Jehwa had thought it was okay to treat her like that. Because she always smiled at him.
She wouldn’t get angry and shout like Sawollin, nor was she scared like Iseolhye.
She would just smile gently.
Perhaps that made him act even more recklessly. This time too, thinking it would be fine, he had gone too far, and she had exploded in anger.
“Jehwa.”
Sawollin called out to the gloomy Jehwa.
“Hm?”
As Jehwa stared blankly at her, Sawollin spoke.
“This time you went too far. You were in the wrong.”
“Yeah….”
When Sawollin admonished him, Jehwa nodded weakly in reply. At that sight, everyone except Sawollin and Jiugyeom panicked.
“Gasp! I can’t believe it—Jehwa admitted his mistake!”
Led by Iseolhye….
“It’s a miracle!”
“Brother Jehwa, I’ve never seen him like this!”
“I thought he was a conscienceless guy who only cared about himself!”
Seoryongseon put on an amazed expression.
Normally, they would have each gotten hit for getting on Jehwa’s nerves, but right now Jehwa was too listless to hit them.
“Sigh….”
Sawollin gently stroked the listless Jehwa’s head once and smiled.