Chapter 73: Hunger and Mischief

“Hmm.”

Pacing back and forth on the terrace of the villa,

I gnawed at my slightly overgrown nails.

“If only Jinhyang could return safely,

I swear I’ll properly trim my nails,” I silently promised myself.

Just as I was making that vow—

“Aren’t you cold? What are you doing outside?”

Jinhyang’s voice called from behind me.

“Ah! Boss!”

My ears perked up, and my body instinctively turned toward the direction of her voice.

My heart surged with the desire to run to her immediately, but I managed to hold back.

She had just fought with Lee Taesung and might have gotten injured. I couldn’t risk aggravating any of her wounds with my recklessness.

‘She’s okay… right?’

I cautiously looked her up and down.

Thankfully, there were no visible injuries.

She didn’t even look particularly exhausted. Jinhyang seemed perfectly fine.

As soon as I confirmed that, my tail began wagging uncontrollably.

“Boss!”

I ran toward her, feeling lighter than ever.

It was almost like I had jumped five meters into the air.

Thud!

I hugged her tightly and showered her with every ounce of affection I could muster.

I rubbed my face and ears against her, inhaling her scent, my tail and legs wriggling with excitement.

Lick, lick.

Unable to resist the instinct bubbling inside me, I started licking her cheek enthusiastically.

It was the most genuine way I knew to express my gratitude and relief.

Jinhyang didn’t seem to mind. She didn’t push me away, allowing me to relish this moment.

But as I clung to her, a chilling scent reached my nose a distinct metallic tang.

The smell of blood.

Lee Taesung’s scent, thick and lingering.

“Boss… what about Lee Taesung?”

I swallowed nervously and looked up at her.

I had a feeling about what might have happened, but I needed to hear it from her.

“You won’t be seeing him again.”

“Ah…”

So, he’s dead.

I closed my eyes tightly and buried my face into her chest.

Despite everything Lee Taesung had done to ruin my life, his death didn’t bring me any sense of satisfaction.

Perhaps it was the selfish guilt of knowing that, in some way, I played a part in his demise.

“Let’s head inside.”

“Yes…”

I felt a sudden wave of exhaustion wash over me.

My body slumped, and I could only weakly lick her neck as she carried me into the villa.

“Did you come back, sis?”

Raxy Bora waved from the sofa.

Her face glowed warmly, illuminated by the fireplace.

“Yeah. What about the kids?”

“They went to sleep. Should I wake them?”

“No, let them rest. They must’ve been exhausted.”

Jinhyang replied, sitting down on the sofa with me still in her arms.

My body felt utterly limp, drained of all energy.

“Harang, what’s wrong? Why are you so out of it?”

Raxy Bora asked, her voice tinged with concern.

“I just feel… empty.”

“Empty?”

“Yeah. Raxy, what’s the meaning of life?”

“…What?”

Raxy Bora’s eyes widened at my sudden philosophical question.

Even Jinhyang seemed to freeze slightly, holding me as if the weight of my words had caught her off guard.

‘Did I say something wrong?’

I wasn’t sure, but it didn’t seem like it.

However, now wasn’t the time to dwell on such thoughts.

My mind was already overwhelmed with everything surrounding Lee Taesung.

“Sigh…”

The mighty Lee Taesung, who seemed destined to reign at the top forever, had fallen so abruptly.

Meanwhile, I, who had once lived a life at rock bottom, was slowly climbing upward.

‘What is life, really?’

As I pondered the meaning of it all, Jinhyang placed her hand gently on my stomach.

Rub, rub.

She stroked my belly in soothing, circular motions, and the knot in my chest began to loosen.

My limp tail even started wagging slightly.

At times like these, I found my body strangely fascinating.

Depending on where I was touched, my mood would shift entirely.

“Are you feeling very tired?”

“Yes…”

I could only nod in response to her question.

Though I wanted to pretend I was fine, I couldn’t muster the energy to act tough at the moment.

So, I decided to set my bravado aside, just this once.

“Get some rest. You’re just worn out.”

With those words, Jinhyang placed her hand over my eyes, as if urging me to sleep.

I fiddled with her slender fingers a few times before slowly closing my eyes.

She was right I needed sleep.

Crackle.

The sound of the fireplace filled the quiet room as Jinhyang cradled my sleeping form in her arms.

As she stared into the flickering flames, her thoughts drifted back to the past the first time she met me.

Back then, Jinhyang had been a middle schooler weaker than Lee Taesung.

Lee Taesung had approached her, trying to recruit her into his faction.

Naturally, Jinhyang refused. She wasn’t the type to bow down to anyone or be bound by anyone’s rules.

That rejection marked the beginning of Lee Taesung’s harassment.

At the time, Jinhyang was no match for him and had no real means of resistance.

Despite her stubborn personality, she refused to back down.

Even her parents had turned a blind eye to Lee Taesung’s threats, leaving her to fend for herself.

The only one who reached out to help her was Harang.

Though it embarrassed Jinhyang to admit, it was because of Harang that she gained the time she needed.

Harang had diverted half of Lee Taesung’s wrath, giving Jinhyang the chance to grow stronger while avoiding his notice.

She had always planned to repay Harang after defeating Lee Taesung and securing safety.

But before she could execute that plan, her instincts always tuned to Harang sounded a grave warning.

Alarmed, Jinhyang had rushed to Harang with excuses, but nothing had seemed amiss.

Even so, she decided it would be best to keep Harang by her side.

It was then that Harang’s body began to change.

‘That was… quite the shock.’

Without so much as a word of permission, Harang had turned into a woman.

At first, Jinhyang had been annoyed, enough to tease and bother her out of sheer irritation.

But as time went on, Jinhyang had no choice but to admit Harang wasn’t so bad as a woman.

Though her personality regressing to a childlike state had been a bit harder to accept.

“Sigh…”

Jinhyang let out a long breath and gently pinched Harang’s cheek.

‘I wonder if this little rascal has any idea what she’s been through or the lengths I’ve gone to for her.’

But it didn’t matter if Harang was unaware.

That’s why Jinhyang had endured everything until now.

Yawn.

When I opened my eyes, I found Jinhyang sleeping beside me.

Usually, she’d wake up the moment she sensed my movements,

but for some reason, she stayed asleep today.

‘She must be tired.’

After all, yesterday had been tough for her too.

And I had fallen asleep first, leaving her to handle everything.

‘Guess I’ll sleep a little more until she wakes up.’

That was my plan until my stomach growled loudly.

Grrr.

There was no way I could sleep with that racket.

‘Now that I think about it, all I had yesterday was that one deep-sea fish.’

While it was big, it hadn’t been nearly enough to sustain me for an entire day.

‘What should I do?’

Under normal circumstances, I’d have bought a snack.

But in the middle of this deep forest, that wasn’t an option.

Nor could I cook anything, since I didn’t know my way around the villa.

“Ugh…”

The hunger was making it hard to think clearly.

I was so hungry that even the thought of eating dreadful broccoli didn’t seem so bad.

That’s when my gaze fell on Jinhyang’s chest.

…

For reasons I couldn’t quite explain,

I had a strange urge that pressing on it might yield something delicious.

Guided by pure instinct, my hand began to reach out toward her chest,

but I clenched my fists tightly instead.

‘No. Absolutely not.’

There was no excuse for such a thought it would be outright harassment.

Sure, I’d occasionally had accidental contact with her chest in the past,

but this would be an entirely different matter.

‘No way. Never.’

I shook my head so hard it made me dizzy.

I bit my lip until it hurt, trying to suppress the urge.

The problem was that my instincts were overpowering my reason.

My clenched fists trembled violently.

“I’m so hungry…”

What happened next wasn’t entirely within my control.

I had to press something to get food out.

But not her chest. My final line of defense was her stomach.

Climbing onto Jinhyang’s outstretched legs,

I sat down on her thighs and placed my hands on her stomach.

Press, press.

Even though I had never done this before, my instincts told me there was a method to it.

Left hand, then right. Left hand, then right.

It had to be done in a steady rhythm. Only then would something tasty come out something delicious.

Press, press.

As I continued pressing on her stomach, I suddenly felt her gaze from above.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m hungry.”

I replied without stopping, massaging her stomach with my palms.

“…Why are you pressing on my stomach?”

“Because if I press, food should come out.”

“Food? Not milk or anything?”

“No, food. Like rice.”

Her expression tightened as she frowned at my response, but she didn’t push me away.

She simply watched in silence for a while, as if observing some rare phenomenon.

After a moment, she stood up.

Since I was sitting on her thighs, her movement brought my face close to hers.

“You were pressing my stomach because you were hungry?”

“Yes! Pressing should make something tasty come out… but it’s not working.”

I wasn’t sure why, but I was certain food should appear if I kept pressing.

My instincts were adamant about it.

“…Don’t tell me…”

“Don’t tell you what?”

Jinhyang muttered to herself, covering her mouth as if something had dawned on her.

But she didn’t explain.

Instead, she pinched my cheek mischievously, stretching it out.

“Do you want something to eat?”

Still pinching my cheek, she asked the question.

In this moment, it felt like the tension from yesterday had completely dissipated, replaced by our usual dynamic.

“Yes! I want milk!”

I grinned widely, blurting out the first thing that came to mind.

For some reason, I was craving creamy, rich milk.