At The End Of The Hidden Greenery - Chapter 49

Chapter 49 – A Series of Proposals

“They suddenly disappeared.”

Late at night, Tevon returned from patrolling the forest.

It was late at night when Seo Jiwoo fell into a deep sleep. The men who had slept with Seo Jiwoo at least once gathered together.

There was a reason why there was a condition attached to them, which is that they had a history of being chosen by Jiwoo for at least one-night. In other words, those who were likely to be accepted even if they propose.

Callandein, who was the third, spoke nervously.

“They suddenly disappeared. Did they run away?”

“I caught him and broke his shoulder blades, but I missed him.”

Tevon clicked his tongue, finding it a waste. Enciertes frowned very distastefully.

“Why didn’t you kill it?”

“Do you think that I didn’t want to kill it?”

Tevon clenched his teeth. There was no one who had the murderous intent as strong as Tevon in this place.

From the moment Tevon saw the crown prince, from the moment he saw Seo Jiwoo’s pale expression staring at him, he wanted to tear that man apart.

But he could barely hold it in because of the trembling hands that grabbed his clothes.

The best he could do was to leave the spot somehow quickly. And that day, he dropped Seo Jiwoo in the village and went back. He searched the forest, but couldn’t find them.

After wandering around the forest for a few days, Tevon found traces of the carriage accident Seo Jiwoo was said to have suffered. Soldiers were stationed not far from there, and he found the prince there.

He knew he could kill the crown prince right away. Tevon managed to injure him, but he wasn’t an opponent to deal with alone. In the end, he failed and returned and looked for an opportunity, but they had already disappeared without a trace.

“I don’t think he’s an easy guy. He has enough physical prowess.”

“He may be the prince of the empire, but had also built a lot of achievements, so he shouldn’t be taken lightly.”

Lanceil quietly agreed.

“By the way, he’s not even completely out of the way. He’s clearly aiming for this place.”

It was a hunter’s intuition like nothing else. The crown prince was also someone who had done quite a bit of human hunting while roaming the battlefield. Judging from the look in his eyes as he gazed at Seo Jiwoo, he was not a person who would easily give up and back down.

“I want to kill him and leave if I can.”

“Huu….”

However, to confront the crown prince, they would have to either track down and catch him. But the risk was too high for that. In his mind, taking Seo Jiwoo and leaving for El Ragneil without encountering each other was a way to lower the risk in many ways.

In order to do that, they had to get Seo Jiwoo’s approval as soon as possible, or at least a strong impression. But these guys just keep seducing her?

“Anyway, why haven’t you made any progress?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Everyone in the room paused for a while.

The reason Tevon only focused on patrolling for a few days was because he believed in these guys. It wasn’t that Tevon didn’t want to seduce Seo Jiwoo. But Tevon somehow got behind in the order.

It was from when Lanceil first brought her. He was interested in seeing Seo Jiwoo trembling like an acorn in an unfamiliar place. He was surprised to learn that it wasn’t Lanceil who rescued her, but Seo Jiwoo saved him and healed him back to life.

She was to get rid of Helka’s miasma, but after learning that Helka had spent the night with Seo Jiwoo, he thought that Helka was like a thief. He was really happy when he was chosen on the night of the banquet… but that was taken away by Callan again.

There was no good harvest even when he coaxed Lanceil to go to Enci’s lab to see Seo Jiwoo.

He could only put his face properly in front of Seo Jiwoo, but in the end, the man of misfortune who was not chosen as a bed partner was Tevon.

So, since they were the ones who succeeded in seducing her at least once, they could entrust the marriage proposal. Tevon spent a few days chasing down the crown prince.

But when he asked if these guys had succeeded in seducing her, they said they ‘don’t know’. HIs stomach was turning upside down.

“She’s too burdened. Seo Jiwoo seems to be skeptical about the system of marriage itself…”

Tevon frowned.

“No, but I told you to seduce her somehow.”

The four men exchanged glances among themselves. In fact, on the first day, they were determined and tried to seduce her by selling themselves.

However, Seo Jiwoo, who seemed to be hurt by the feeling of love itself, made them hesitate.

They confidently asked Tevon to let them take care of it, but in fact, they hadn’t even looked back at the decision of marriage for several days after the first day.

“I can’t approach her hastily.”

Lanceil looked down as if he was not confident in himself.

“I’ve been watching Seo Jiwoo for a few days… It’s easier to suggest that she treat Elandos. But if we approach hastily, we might not even be able to do it.”

No one denied Callan’s words.

Helkainis, who had been silent until now, spoke quietly.

“I’ll try.”

“Old Man. Living a long time is really useless. You guys are all the same.

THe men turned their heads, pretending otherwise. Helkainis, who was crossing his arms, tilted his head expressionlessly.

“…If I had seen her first, I would have handled it neatly. Are you blaming me for going wild like a thunderbolt?”
That actually was the case. If Tevon had been a little more cautious, he should have led a small group of elites and immediately rushed at the crown prince stationed in the forest.

Even if he returned to the village and only took Helkainis, he would be able to destroy them and then focus on seducing Jiwoo as if nothing had happened.

But Tevon was younger than any of them, his emotions took precedence over experience.

For those who lost Elandos, their desire to seduce Seo Jiwoo was in line with their desire to survive.

The impulsive emotions were so intense from time to time.

“…Then I’ll seduce her too!”

Finally, Tevon exclaimed angrily. They couldn’t endure it any longer.

Jiwoo was treated very hospitably for a few days.

When she opens her eyes, she is in a soft bed, a meal that gives off a savory smell is prepared, and when she goes out after eating, everyone smiles and welcomes her even if she just meets their faces.

There were always people who offered flowers as a gift, and even when she was sitting still, they gave her a snack.

She received many offers to come to their house to play.

Perhaps they knew that Jiwoo was shy, so they even backed off immediately if Jiwoo hesitated a little.

In fact, when Jiwoo accepted the help of four particularly familiar people here, she realized that her heart was wavering. If someone touches her here, she will collapse.

So Jiwoo had been nervous for several days in the atmosphere of this village. It seemed like it would be difficult for her to honestly refuse when someone asked her to get married again.

But they hadn’t said anything about getting married since that night.

The gentle attitude, the meticulousness of taking care of her, and the feeling of gratitude for saving Elandos’ branch were the same.

They just stopped begging her to get married.

Were they trying to make it less burdensome? Had they changed their mind?

Or, was it all finished after just one twig of Ellandos had been cured?

They didn’t ask for anything. Just as Jiwoo, exhausted to the limit, wanted, they just let her rest in peace.

So her leg healed quickly. Now that she could walk alone, she had more things to think about. As her thoughts increased, her mind became anxious.

One day, while doing so, Enciertes suddenly came by herself.

“Do you want a drink?”

“Oh, yes. Thank you.”

Receiving an invitation from Enci, Jiwoo recalled that she used to like alcohol quite a bit.

Jiwoo, who was served alcohol in his lab, was quite impressed with the taste of alcohol that wet her tongue.

“How is it?”

“Ah… I’ve had it. It’s a drink made in Cadian of the Karbauude Empire. It takes at least fifty years to get it to this taste.”

Although the Akarna was forbidden alcohol in the temple, she occasionally took what the crown prince offered her.

She remembered it because it was such a precious drink.

Come to think of it, she hadn’t thought of the crown prince at all for several days.

She was nervous about when they would ask her to get married again, so she couldn’t afford to have the thoughts about the crown prince in her head.

“That’s not it. But it’s half right.”

“What do you mean?”

“I made it.”

Enci smiled and shook the flask in his laboratory.

“It’s the same ingredients. It takes less than thirty minutes for me to make.”

“But there are people who think tradition is important.”

Enciertes laughed and sneered.

“It takes a long and cumbersome time to maintain something like tradition. The ingredients and taste are the same anyway, so why does it matter?”

“Well… yes. I think so too.”

“We have the same values.”

“Ah, it seems like it…right?”

Jiwoo took a sip of the drink without thinking.

“Then will you marry me?”

“Ph-hrmgh!” Jiwoo choked.

—