At the End of the Hidden Greenery - Chapter 208

16. The Pond You Can’t Leave Unless You Do It

In an instant, Jiwoo was pulled into the water while struggling in panic. But every time she tried to get out, the thick, sticky water clung to her and seemed to pull her back in.

She quickly realized it was nearly impossible to escape from this slippery water.

“Why is the water like this?”  

“Kuh…”  

Arven, unable to look at her, spoke quietly.  

“I… I bought it from the alchemist here… you see…”  

“…”  

“He said since we’re married, we can use it for that… he added something extra to the bath salts…”  

Arven’s usually concise speech was dragging on now, as if he wasn’t sure how to explain.  

“So, you’re saying I can’t get out of here?”  

“You can get out. You can.”  

“How?”  

Lanset clicked his tongue in frustration.  

“They said if you get along better, you can get out.”  

“Wait, what… does this water read your mind?”  

“Not… your mind.”  

At this point, Jiwoo thought she understood what the ‘getting along better’ condition meant.  

“I think… it has to do with, well, mixing bodily fluids…”  

“…”

She wanted to argue with the alchemist or whoever created this, but she couldn’t even get out of the water.  

So, in short, it meant the pond wouldn’t let her out unless they had s*x.

“Do people here normally use this?”  

“N, no…”  

There was a reason why Arven called it ‘this.’ It wasn’t just a regular bath salt.  

Jiwoo had been trying to move in the water for a while, but now, the usual splashing sounds had stopped.  

It was no wonder. This wasn’t just water anymore after the bath salts had been added.  

It felt like she was submerged in a viscous, syrup-like substance. It felt dense and heavy, like honey, yet strangely smooth in some parts, like water. And it felt alive. Every time Jiwoo moved her body, it seemed to respond, almost like the water itself was alive.  

It felt as if transparent tendrils, like delicate tentacles, were brushing against her skin, sending strange warmth spreading throughout her body. It was as if her entire body was being caressed by this liquid.

The longer Jiwoo stayed submerged, the more her face grew flushed.  

“Well, I did ask for a scent you like when it was made…”  

“…You asked for it to be made?”  

Jiwoo had assumed this was just something the beach group used, but it turned out it was customized.  

She had noticed a faint scent in the water earlier, which seemed to match her preferences perfectly.  

It smelled like moss, and also like fresh morning air. The scent from the steam reminded her of some wildflower, whose exact name she didn’t know, but it also had a subtle hint of rose.  

Given the scent, she could see why she’d lowered her guard and gotten into the water.  

“What exactly is in this…?”  

“…If you go to the center, the scent is so strong that just inhaling a handful would make you dizzy.”  

Arven said this while glancing at Jiwoo nervously.

“The alchemist added a little bit of the essence of a bloodthirsty plant. Of course, all the harmful components were removed.”  

“A bloodthirsty plant?”  

Arven quickly explained.

“But… just to be sure, I decided to test it first, and this happened.”  

Arven’s ears drooped completely, and he seemed at a loss for what to do. His face was so red, it looked like he might cry at any moment.  

“I’m sorry.”  

“N, no… it’s not that I’m complaining about you buying this.”  

At least, the scent and texture of it made it an item that could easily set a se*ual mood.  

“So, did the alchemist who made this have any romantic experience?”  

“…”  

Arven had a look of realization but quickly sealed his lips.  

Lanset clicked his tongue from the side.  

“You got scammed.”  

“Ugh…”  

Arven, clearly struck by the point, lost his words.  

“When you said ‘improve the relationship,’ did you think we weren’t getting along?”  

“He probably thought the others would keep making advances…”  

“Ah…”  

So, in other words, it was more about making sure the other guys didn’t get ideas, like trying to prevent any jealousy.  

“I thought since they kept giving you attention, maybe you liked them, and I couldn’t just lose to that…”  

Arven lowered his head slightly.  

“Well, I can do well with crafts too.”  

…It must have really bothered him.  

Jiwoo sighed a little as she spoke.

“It’s not that I liked them. I was just looking at something interesting in front of me…”  

“What about us?”  

They immediately asked back.  

Arven, who had been rather meek and defensive up until now, was suddenly all bright-eyed.  

So, the conclusion was that just giving a glance to someone from the beach group had led to this situation.  

“You guys aren’t just interesting, you’re great.”  

Like how Jiwoo admired the beautiful scenery of El Ragneil. It was something incomparable to anything else.  

But in truth, because they were like flowers, this group had the tendency to get jealous of beautiful things. Sometimes, it was difficult to adjust to.  

“It’s just like I was just looking at a talking flower because it was fascinating.”  

“…Was it really like that?”  

“Well, if that’s the case…”  

However Lanset and Arven seemed to feel most relieved by that answer.  

Due to the cultural differences Jiwoo had often been told she struggled with metaphors, even when learning the local language. So, she had received many comments about her expressions being too direct.  

So, actually, she hadn’t had many experiences with successfully using metaphors like this. In this case, though, it was the person who made the metaphor who didn’t quite understand it.  

‘Did I just make a metaphor that could be understood by accident?’  

There might even be a real talking flower somewhere in El Ragneil.  

“And those people… even though they seem that way, they’ve never been in a relationship, right? You guys are married to me… Do you think there’s a comparison? Even if they give advice or teach, isn’t that something you should be the one doing?”