At the End of the Hidden Greenery - Chapter 218
Actually, Jiwoo hadn’t really talked much about those kinds of things.
“I… tend not to forget concepts I first encountered here. Like the wedding night, and the scents I get from you all…”
The humans Jiwoo was familiar with didn’t have plant-like scents. And here, each person had their own unique fragrance. Sometimes, when she asked what kind of scent it was, she’d hear the names of unfamiliar flowers and she remembered them all.
So she knew whose scent was whose, how it changed in taste when their lips met, and what meanings their names carried.
Looking back on her experiences here, the scents and their names always stayed in her mind.
“I even know who did what first, in what order.”
“You know that…?”
Kaman looked puzzled, but Jiwoo found it strange that he thought she wouldn’t know.
“I don’t want to talk about Caranazion, but it was a place I was somewhat familiar with. Here, though, it’s like starting with a blank slate.”
“A blank slate…”
So, does that mean he could color her as he wished?
As Kaman’s mind ran wild with strange ideas after hearing that phrase, Jiwoo casually asked.
“Do you think I have no possessiveness?”
“…What?”
“I’ve hardly ever truly owned anything.”
After crossing dimensions, she was left with nothing but her body.
Although she had gained status at the temple, that was essentially a rank lent from the empire.
Healing people or purifying land, those weren’t her achievements but things God had done through her.
But here, things were different.
“You all are mine. So … I can’t forget anything. Maybe these experiences aren’t a big deal to you, but for me, everything’s new and unfamiliar. It’s my first time at the sea. My first time walking the beach. Everything I experience is my first time with you.”
Knowing she truly had something for the first time made even the smallest details impossible to forget.
“What the names mean, what the scents are like… it’s only natural I can’t forget those.”
Jiwoo mimicked the beach group and lightly poked the iliac crest between Kaman’s mostly bare upper and lower body.
“Kaman, even the mole here.”
“…!”
Startled by Jiwoo’s gesture, Kaman flinched, and Jiwoo laughed playfully.
“Why? You watched me all the time but didn’t know I was watching back?”
“No… Solmih wouldn’t know either.”
Of course, he wouldn’t…
Kaman’s eyes sparkled as if urging her to say more.
“Um, Kaman. You were born when forsythia blooms in spring, so you’re Kaman. Your eyes are as pretty as spring, so I was drawn to them. I called you without knowing it was a bet. I smelled your scent for the first time on our wedding night…”
On the way back to the beach, Kaman seemed eager to hear more of that kind of talk.
Since he liked it so much, Jiwoo said it lightly, knowing there was no reason not to.
“And originally, you treated me politely, but starting from that rainy night of our wedding, you subtly switched to a more casual speech. You even took the seat beside me that was supposed to be Enci’s.”
“Ah… let’s just pretend we didn’t hear that.”
“You’d better not do that again.”
“Why? You don’t like it?”
“Enci whined about it, so I kissed him to calm him down.”
“That…!”
Kaman and Jiwoo walked back, sharing this silly yet unique story.
***
After spending a few days there as if enjoying a vacation, Jiwoo and her group began preparing to return home.
“Why leave so soon? Why not stay longer?”
Petar and some others who had exchanged a few words with them came to see them off.
“This time, we ventured too far. We also plan to return before spring.”
“I see.”
Petar accepted this matter-of-factly without pressing further.
“Come visit us again sometime.”
“Is it really okay to visit?”
“Of course. Actually, you’re more than welcome to come and set up another household here.”
Petar then gestured behind him.
A few people stood there, holding some last gifts for the farewell.
“Of course, if our beach mongrels became a sight for sore eyes.”
Both he and the others said that without hesitation and gave Jiwoo a lighthearted smile.
Jiwoo stared at them for a moment and said,
“Why don’t you try being sincere instead?”
“Sincere?”
“Stop teasing and messing around.”
“Hmm…”
There was a reason why Jiwoo’s husbands disliked those guys pestering her.
Their attitude was too casual.
But if they approached seriously, the husbands would have disliked that even more.
One reason Jiwoo quite liked Petar was that his playful teasing seemed more straightforward.
Even when he teased, he didn’t cross the line, and though his words sounded a bit blunt, his hospitality and generosity were clear.
If, like her group had worried, he had seriously asked her to stay or accept him, that would have been more uncomfortable.
Kaman and the others disliked the subtle yet obvious advances, but Jiwoo found those easier to handle. It was better to just ignore and move on.
When she refused Asillion, it had been somewhat burdensome, and her first business trip with Marron and Night was an unpleasant experience.
Here, too, they spoke about buying themselves or claiming to be a good choice, but it was neither burdensome nor unpleasant.
Jiwoo understood they meant well and wanted to please her.
“…So, if I wasn’t teasing, you might have accepted?”
Petar tilted his head at the suggestion to be sincere.
“No, it’s not that. I’m already married. Couldn’t another female manifestation come instead of me?”
“…”
Petar’s expression turned as baffled as if he’d just heard that one plus one equals three.
Usually speaking in short bursts, Petar found himself at a rare loss for words.
“…That won’t happen.”
Then, almost muttering to himself with a dry laugh, he added.
“Ha…another female…”