I Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 738

The campfire burned endlessly, and occasionally the sound of firewood snapping with a crack! crack! could be heard.

There were three people near the campfire, but none of them easily opened their mouths.

"Ehehehe..."

Let me correct myself. Except for the one lost in dreamland, no one could open their mouth.

And of course, what Yoo So-wol had just done to me was problematic in many ways.

To put it nicely, she had shown consideration without even realizing it; to put it badly, it was suggestive.

From the perspective of the conservative people of the Central Plains, the scope of ’suggestiveness’ was quite broad. Even Yoo So-wol’s action fell within that scope.

And in the Central Plains, the only ones who could engage in suggestive acts were lovers who had promised their futures to each other, or married couples.

At least, that was what I knew. Having seen it a few times in the Gallery, I couldn’t help but remember.

"..."

"..."

Perhaps Yoo So-wol knew this too, as she didn’t say anything. To be precise, she couldn’t.

When I glanced at her, she couldn’t bring herself to look at my face and only stared at the campfire.

Whether it was because of the campfire or not, the fact that her cheeks looked exceptionally red was definitely not an illusion.

"...Heavenly Demon-nim?"

Seueuk—

When I called her quietly, Yoo So-wol reacted. But her reaction was somewhat strange.

Instead of turning her body toward me, she turned in the opposite direction. Thanks to that, her face became even less visible.

It was clear she was suppressing her embarrassment. If I kept talking to her, she would only avoid me more.

"Cough! Cough!"

Whether the timing was good or bad, Ash, who was sleeping soundly, coughed heavily.

A dark lump of blood welled up from her mouth, looking quite serious.

Startled, I accessed the Gallery and contacted Bbareumbo. I asked if he could spare a bottle of Elixir.

Fortunately, Bbareumbo received the message immediately and handed over an Elixir to me.

[Wild Grylls: By the way, what happened to Elia, who was captured by the octopus? You rescued her, right?]

[Wild Bbareumbo: (Photo of Elia eating delicious-looking parboiled octopus)]

[Wild Grylls: Uh... right. Good job.]

It seemed the incident that occurred at our place had also ended well.

After checking the Elixir I received from Bbareumbo, I poured it straight into Ash’s mouth.

Normally, making a sleeping person drink liquid is a dangerous act, but right now, there was no choice.

The blood welling up from her mouth was a clear sign of danger.

Ggoolgfeok— ggoolgfeok—

Even while asleep, Ash began to swallow the Elixir. When the Elixir was about half empty, I quietly pulled it away.

Since she had said her constitution accumulated mana just by breathing, her condition would improve after a good sleep.

’I should drink some too.’

Ash was one thing, but I had also suffered quite a bit of damage.

Thanks to my sturdy body and unique recovery ability, I would heal on my own even if I did nothing, but still, one could never be too sure.

Soon, just as I was about to slowly bring the bottle to my mouth to drink the rest of the Elixir—

Tak—

A fair, slender hand grabbed my wrist. The remaining Elixir sloshed heavily inside the bottle.

With a bewildered heart, I looked at the person who grabbed my wrist—namely, Yoo So-wol.

She was the one who, just moments ago, had turned half her back to me.

"...Heavenly Demon-nim?"

Even when I called her quietly, Yoo So-wol silently stared straight ahead. She wasn’t even looking at me.

What did she want? After a brief moment of thought, she slid her hand up my wrist and grabbed my hand.

Subsequently, she quietly took the Elixir. It was a movement as fluid as flowing water.

After taking the Elixir, she silently wiped the opening of the bottle ’squeak-squeak’ with her clothes.

’I can hear the sound...?’

The reason I emphasized the onomatopoeia was because the sound could actually be heard. It meant she was putting force into it.

"Drink."

"Ah, yes..."

Yoo So-wol wiped the bottle opening clean and handed it back to me. Her gaze was still fixed straight ahead, not on me.

With a lukewarm feeling, I carefully drank the Elixir. A refreshing taste accompanied a cooling sensation inside my body.

After drinking all the Elixir, I planned not to throw away the empty bottle but to recycle it later.

"...Gwigong."

Just as an awkward silence was about to settle again, Yoo So-wol quietly called me.

Her posture of having half her back turned to me remained, but her gaze was stealing side-glances at me.

"Yes. Heavenly Demon-nim."

"Earlier, did you not call the Sword Saint ’Ash’?"

"That’s right. We decided to speak casually with each other."

"I see."

Yoo So-wol nodded with a complex expression. A face that seemed to hesitate over something.

Honestly, it would be strange not to notice here. That she wanted to become closer to me.

Even while pretending otherwise, she had consistently shown her affection, so how could I not know?

Furthermore, that affection was clearly romantic interest.

"Heavenly Demon-nim."

"Speak."

"Should we also speak casually when we’re alone?"

So I asked straightforwardly. Let’s not use titles that feel distant.

Instead of being formal with ’Heavenly Demon’ or ’Gwigong,’ let’s speak comfortably with each other.

"W-w-what on earth are you saying...!"Visit nоvelping.com for the full chapter.

Yoo So-wol’s reaction to my proposal was quite a sight.

A black cat startled into jumping high. That exact expression fit perfectly.

Although she didn’t actually jump, it was true that her body flinched violently.

Since I had roughly expected this reaction as well, I chuckled and spoke.

"If it’s awkward, we can just keep it as is. I just wanted to get closer."

"Ugh..."

"Ah. Does saying this sound strange? How do I express this in Central Plains language?"

I hoped we could take steps to get to know each other. I struggled to express this sentiment.

Since even to me, what I just said sounded like a confession of sorts.

"Th-there is no need to think of something else. Did I not tell you before? You may call me Nangja."

While I was pondering, Yoo So-wol spoke up in a hurried voice.

Both her expression and tone showed she was in a real rush. Her usual solemn appearance had vanished without a trace.

Anyway, hearing the title ’Nangja,’ I nodded as if remembering it belatedly.

There was something mentioned half-jokingly in the Gallery. That normally, when addressing a familiar woman, one calls her ’Nangja.’

But since it was too old-fashioned and could cause misunderstandings, it needed to be corrected.

"I heard that title is too old-fashioned. Or could I just call you Sojeo?"

"Y-you would be the only one to call me Sojeo, Gwigong."

Yoo So-wol said so, tucking her hair behind her ear. Her embarrassment was palpable.

Still, Sojeo was much better than Nangja, so it would be better to call her that from now on.

"Then... So-wol Sojeo?"

"N-no...! You should call me Yoo Sojeo, not like that...!"

"Ah. I see. Yoo Sojeo. I’ll call you Yoo Sojeo when we’re alone."

"..."

Yoo So-wol didn’t say anything more. She just kept her mouth shut tightly and stared ahead.

I could see that her face was flushed so red that even the light of the campfire couldn’t mask it.

A faint laugh escaped me at her reaction, but at the same time, I grew curious.

Just who was I that she would react to this extent?

It wasn’t just Yoo So-wol; the other women weren’t much different.

"Ehehe... where are you going, my husband..."

Look at Ash, who was talking in her sleep right now. Wasn’t she looking for me even in her dreams?

I scratched my head in awkwardness, then turned my head to look at Yoo So-wol.

Perhaps she had many thoughts about me calling her Sojeo, as she didn’t say anything.

Just as I thought we would spend the time like this, she opened her mouth, as if she had organized her thoughts.

"...Daehyeop."

"Yes?"

"From now on, I shall also call you Daehyeop."

A voice indicating she had made a grand decision. I blinked at the title ’Daehyeop.’

There was a post in the Gallery summarizing Central Plains titles. It said women call men Sohyeop, Daehyeop, or Confucius.

Confucius was usually for the sons of famous sects, while Sohyeop and Daehyeop were common.

Among them, Daehyeop was an honorific given to elderly or universally recognized heroes.

Since I fit neither, Sohyeop was better than Daehyeop.

"Isn’t Sohyeop better than Daehyeop?"

"Do you truly think so? If you are called Sohyeop, then no other person could be called by any honorific."

"Um..."

That was actually true. Being humble here would be deception.

Since it was after I had defeated Ash, who had fought with all her might. I couldn’t refute Yoo So-wol’s words.

"If Daehyeop is burdensome, there is another title. It is fitting as a title just for the two of us."

"What is it?"

"Sanggong."

"...?"

I tilted my head at the title Sanggong. It was a title I had heard somewhere, but I couldn’t remember it well.

One thing was certain: it was a title used only between ’close relations.’

While I could converse in the Central Plains language to some extent, I didn’t know such difficult titles well, so it was ambiguous.

Since I could look it up slowly later, I accepted for now.

"Yes. Well... you can call me whatever you like."

"Th-then... Sanggong?"

"Yes. Yoo Sojeo?"

"..."

In the end, unable to hold out, Yoo So-wol buried her face between her knees.

Since she looked like a black cat hiding in a box, I could only smile.

Anyway, now that we had settled our titles, all that was left was to wait for Ash to wake up.

I wanted to carry her myself, but that would likely cause a lot of gossip.

’It wouldn’t look good to return with a body covered in wounds.’

Since I had fed her the Elixir, the major wounds should be mostly healed.

As for washing, she could wash in the river near the mountain if necessary.

Of course, she would need to wash with warm water to cleanly remove the blood and dirt.

Washing in the river was merely a temporary measure to cover it up; it would be better to go down and wash.

"...Sanggong."Enjoying the story? Read on at nove​lping.com.

"Yes?"

"..."

Yoo So-wol called me. When I turned my head to look at her, her reaction was strange.

She stole a glance at me, then buried her head in her knees again.

’Is it hard for her to call me by that title?’

Since she usually spoke down to me as the Heavenly Demon, it was understandable that addressing me as an equal was difficult.

After that, I waited while endlessly adding firewood to keep the campfire from going out.

Perhaps because she had drunk the Elixir, Ash regained consciousness around dawn, after the night had passed.

"Ugh... my head..."

"Are you awake?"

"Kwek!"

Chwa-a-ak!

Instead of answering my question, Ash vomited a bowl—no, several bowls—of blood.

It was pitch-black, dead blood, and the amount was so massive that a puddle formed on the ground.

While I was startled by this and wondered if I should give her more Elixir, Ash wiped the blood from her mouth and spoke.

"Phew. That feels refreshing. My stomach was feeling nauseous, but vomiting made it better."

"...Are you sure you’re okay?"

"Haven’t you had this happen a lot too? Vomiting black blood whenever your insides are injured."

"...Not really?"

I rarely had such experiences. Come to think of it, although I had suffered external injuries often, I had rarely suffered internal ones.

Ash also looked puzzled at my expression for a moment, but then shrugged her shoulders and casually let it go.

More importantly, there was someone who caught her eye. It was Yoo So-wol, who had waited with me until dawn.

"By the way... why are you here?"

"Is there any reason why I should not be here?"

The embarrassed Yoo So-wol from dawn was gone. Only the solemn Heavenly Demon remained.

Yoo So-wol snorted as if Ash’s provocation was absurd, and carefully approached my side.

Although she didn’t make direct contact, just coming close to my side must have required great courage.

"Didn’t they say it’s rude to watch someone else’s duel?"

"What I witnessed was not a duel, but a life-and-death battle."

"Well... that’s true too. So, what do you think?"

"You fell short of Sang... no, Eun-gong’s martial prowess."

"I have no choice but to admit it."

Ash nodded and admitted it. There was not a shred of resentment on her face.

She simply accepted her defeat humbly. I scratched my cheek in embarrassment.

To be honest, her proficiency in ’technique’ itself was several levels above mine. Although I had acquired techniques by gaining various memories, it was true that I still lacked a lot.

Furthermore, even the techniques I knew were closer to the ability to handle ’weapons’ easily, rather than single-mindedly digging into swordsmanship like her.

Nevertheless, I had overwhelmed Ash by creating numerous variables, including my physical weight class.

Ash herself had brushed it off, saying that’s what a real fight is, but she still had her pride.

"Then, since you’ve admitted it..."

But who was Ash?

Was she not a woman of integrity who had declared, both in reality and in the Gallery, that she would marry the man who defeated her?

Since a man who met that conviction had appeared right before her, only one thing remained.

"You’ll announce our relationship, right?"

Ash said so and affectionately linked her arm with mine.

The soft sensation of a woman’s body was felt for a moment, but that wasn’t the end.

Jjok!

A soft, tender sensation was momentarily felt on my cheek before vanishing.

But the moist sensation remained vividly, enough to make my mind reel.

As if her actions alone weren’t dizzying enough, the words that came out of her mouth were—

"You think so too, right? You said it wasn’t bad when you kissed me earlier."

"Uh..."

"A man doesn’t go back on his word, right? Besides, I’ve been saying it consistently."

It went beyond making my mind reel and left me completely dazed.

And Yoo So-wol, who watched this,

"..."

Just stared blankly at the two of us with an expressionless face.

’Please, say something instead...!’

That made it even scarier.

Around the time that strange standoff had continued for a bit, Yoo So-wol’s expression changed.

A resolute expression, as if she had made a decision. Soon, she approached me and—

Seueuk—

Just as Ash had done, she linked her arm with mine.

Although it wasn’t as close as Ash, this alone must have required immense courage.

"..."

Of course, perhaps she was still embarrassed, as Yoo So-wol turned her head away without meeting my eyes.

Her face was flushed so red that it felt like red water would drip if I pressed it with a finger.

Yoo So-wol on my right arm, Ash on my left arm.

’...This is suffocating.’

I couldn’t say a single word.