Wandering Through Vol. 2 Chapter 43 - Escape

From that day on, Leegwang became exceedingly lenient toward Yiseo.

Though he still kept her close in his embrace, he would occasionally step away briefly if she asked for something. 

 

Every time, he would strip her completely and take her clothes with him, but the important thing was that he sometimes left Yiseo alone in the room.

 

Whenever she was left alone in the room, stripped bare, Yiseo would calmly and habitually search for the blanket to wrap around herself. 

 

The blanket they shared still carried his scent. 

 

Burying her face in it, she murmured,

“…After all, it is not I whom the god desires. I know I am the one you love most in this mortal world. I am…”

 

She knew how she must look—muttering to herself in an empty room like a madwoman. 

 

If there had been some mystical aura around her, one might have thought she was performing a shaman’s rites, but there was nothing of the sort.

 

Yet, even if she couldn’t sense the presence of the dragon god, Yiseo continued to whisper. 

 

Surely, he was listening.

“…Wouldn’t it be better for you as well? He is not a suitable vessel. If you won’t make a deal with me…”

 

Still wrapped in the blanket, she crawled to a corner of the room and picked up an earthenware bowl. 

 

It held dried dates and fruits as snacks, but Yiseo hurled it to the ground, shattering it. 

 

The loud crash scattered sharp ceramic fragments across the floor. She picked up one of the jagged pieces and pressed it against the base of her chin.

 

“I could die from something like this. I was born weak and useless. I’ve always lived thinking I might die any day, so I have no attachment to life. If you truly want me to live…”

 

A faint trace of blood appeared on her hand gripping the shard. Just as the fragment was about to pierce her skin—

The ceramic piece crumbled into tiny fragments and fell to the floor.

 

Yiseo stared blankly at the shattered pieces before slowly brushing the remaining dust from her hand. 

 

Then, lowering her eyes respectfully, she whispered,

“…Thank you.”

 

So, you do wish for my life after all. Ah, how deeply you must love me.

 

Whether sincere or mocking—or perhaps both—the thought flickered through her mind just as the closed door abruptly swung open.

“My lord, I accidentally—”

 

His usually languid expression hardened instantly. As he strode across the room toward her, Yiseo cried out in alarm,

“You mustn’t step on the floor!”

 

But Leegwang paid no attention to the shattered porcelain fragments on the floor, stepping over them without hesitation. He immediately lifted Yiseo and placed her on the shelf attached to the wall. 

 

Pushing aside the blanket wrapped around her body, he scanned her form with his eyes.

 

He even touched here and there, inspecting her body, and only after confirming there were no wounds except for faint scratches on her fingers did he finally exhale. 

 

Letting out a long breath, he buried his face in her shoulder.

 

“You scared me…”

 

Caught off guard by his intense reaction, Yiseo hesitated before making an excuse.

“I was bored, so I tried to eat something and dropped it. I didn’t know you’d be this startled.”

 

That was a lie. 

 

She had thought he didn’t care much if she got hurt, given how fiercely he had gnawed at her body until she bled. 

 

Though he hadn’t bitten her in days, the scars from his teeth still remained on her shoulders.

 

If he truly cared about her body, shouldn’t he have restrained himself from shamelessly forcing that thick flesh between her legs into her small frame in the first place?

 

Or was that his idea of restraint?

 

As Yiseo stroked the back of his neck and pondered, she suddenly caught a whiff of a metallic scent and lowered her head—only to freeze in horror.

 

Whatever he had stepped on wrong, blood was now seeping onto the floor.

 

“A d-doctor…”

 

At Yiseo’s shocked muttering, he lifted his head and looked down at his foot, frowning. Then, even more shockingly, he picked her up—with that injured foot.

 

Unable to struggle for fear of worsening his wound, Yiseo stiffened as he stubbornly wrapped her tightly in the blanket again and carried her outside, seating her on the wooden porch.

 

Ban, who had been standing in the yard with a tray, saw Yiseo’s pale face and cried out in alarm.

“My lady, are you alright?!”

 

Of course, Yiseo was fine. What wasn’t fine was his foot, now drenched in blood. 

 

Without even a moment to greet Ban properly after so long, Yiseo spoke urgently.

“Quick, call a doctor. Please?”

 

Ban set the tray down and dashed away.

 

Naturally, Yiseo didn’t get to see him being treated. Because he had no intention of letting others see her wrapped in a blanket, she had to go into the next room.

 

It was chaotic—clearing the room, calling the doctor—and by the time the fragments were removed from his foot, wrapped in clean cloth, and he brought her back inside, it was already late at night.

 

“I’m really fine. It doesn’t hurt at all.”

At his soothing words, Yiseo simply stared at him without a reply. He seemed to enjoy comforting her.

“There’s no need to worry.”

But she instinctively knew that if Yiseo truly weren’t worried about him, the atmosphere in this room wouldn’t be so peaceful. 

 

Yiseo let out a long sigh and buried her face in his chest.

“Please don’t do that again in the future.”

At Yiseo’s plea, he replied, “If you were more careful, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“I’m not hurt at all.”

“Then is this not a wound, but a painting?”

He pressed his lips to the faint, shallow scratch left on Yiseo’s finger. She was speechless. 

 

What was the big deal about a scratch that would disappear by tomorrow?

“It’s just a graze. Unlike you, my lord.”

“Then let’s say I’m injured in a similar way to you.”

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

He seemed to somewhat enjoy holding Yiseo in his arms as she retorted in disbelief. 

 

Spouting ridiculous words, he nitpicked at her comebacks and kept pressing kisses on her.

 

Their meaningless chatter soon led to their lips meeting and tongues tangling for no reason. 

 

This repeated several times. 

 

His eyes held the contentment of a well-fed beast, satisfied with these trivial moments.

 

After declaring he wouldn’t move and telling her to do it herself, he ended up busy gripping Yiseo’s waist as she groaned, lifting her hips. 

 

Yiseo wondered why she had to do such exhausting work when he could’ve just slept quietly if he wasn’t going to push himself in the first place.

 

“Since I can’t wander outside like this, I have to find ways to enjoy myself indoors.”

For days, using his injured foot as an excuse, he had pestered Yiseo to ride him or lie on her stomach, demanding all sorts of embarrassing positions. When he even insisted on wanting to taste her below and asked her to sit on his face, Yiseo finally snapped and scolded him—to which he responded with those words.

 

Yiseo argued back, 

 

“You didn’t go outside even when your foot was fine, my lord.”

Why was he talking as if he used to come and go freely when his foot was unharmed? He never left in the first place.

“And even indoors, you need rest to recover. Repeating energy-draining activities is worse than going outside. Just lie down quietly.”

“Then help me lie down quietly, won’t you?”

 

Of course, no matter what Yiseo said, he stubbornly pulled her waist into his embrace. Yiseo let out a sigh and resignedly leaned into his arms.  

 

If not for his constant pestering day and night, the days were somewhat peaceful. 

 

Though he never left Yiseo’s side, he had begun to tolerate Ban serving meals when they were together—solely because he agreed to her request not to move things around, as she worried about his feet.  

 

However, on days when Ban dared to exchange even a word or two while serving or clearing the table, the hands holding Yiseo inevitably grew rougher.  

 

Outwardly, at least, their peaceful daily life continued.  

 

💫

 

Before Yiseo’s eyes, neatly folded new clothes cascaded to the floor with a rustle.  

 

“My lord…?”  

 

Confused by Leegwang suddenly upending a chest of perfectly good clothes in front of her, Yiseo called out to him with a puzzled expression.  

 

Having been brought here with nothing but the clothes on her back, Yiseo naturally owned no garments of her own. 

 

Everything she wore had been given by Leegwang, and having lived so long without the luxury of personal preferences, she simply wore whatever he provided.  

 

No matter the color or style, when had she ever had the chance to wear so many finely tailored, unworn silk robes?  

 

That morning, he had brought a chest of clothes, saying he would dress her in something new—only to suddenly overturn it before her eyes. His behavior was baffling.  

 

“Since when have you been exchanging letters?”  

 

A cold question fell upon her. 

 

It was that chilling tone she hadn’t heard in a long time.  

 

For a moment, Yiseo couldn’t comprehend what he was asking. Since arriving here, she had never received anything like a letter.  

 

In her bewildered gaze, she spotted a crumpled piece of paper among the fallen garments scattered on the floor.