SWNOVELXO Chapter 22
Episode 22: She Who Doesn’t Miss Mistakes (3)
[Baek Harin SIDE]
“Harinah?”
“You? You already came?”
This is bad.
I’m holding a very suspicious-looking box right now…
What should I do?
I got lost in thought and let my guard down.
“Yeah, the work was simpler than I thought. But what’s that you’re holding? I don’t think I saw that earlier.”
Fortunately, there’s probably nothing like drugs inside this, but still…!
It’s certain that there are things in there that could make me look strange.
I didn’t want him to find out my secret.
Not yet.
I was thinking that when suddenly it seemed like he was putting his hand on my box.
“Ah, ah. P-Please, don’t touch that.”
I moved the box away from him.
I even rotated my body to do so.
“What’s up with that?”
“This, this is just…”
“What?”
“T-This. It’s a, um… Ah! I got a gift for the staff here…”
It’s not a lie.
I didn’t lie at all.
“Hmm… By the way, did you check the contents of the ledger?”
I felt a bit scared at the thought that he might dig deeper into this.
So I hurriedly changed the subject.
“Oh. I just brought a comprehensive one.”
“Is that okay to bring?”
“Then what kind of ledger shouldn’t I bring?”
“I don’t know about the regular ledgers, but isn’t there that document file you shouldn’t bring…?”
“Is that so… But I doubt anyone would notice it’s missing.”
Why is that?
“Then it doesn’t matter. Shall we go on a date now?”
… That was not my concern.
What matters to me right now is a date with Shiwoo.
I was curious where he would lead me this time.
“I want to see your house.”
As soon as I heard those words, a shiver ran through my body.
I thought for a moment after hearing him.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity gifted to me by the heavens.
“Can I go to my house… well, it’s not mine, but to the place where I’m living?”
“Um… Is that okay?”
“Then let’s go to my house today.”
It’s over.
My thoughts changed.
The thought of not wanting him to find out my secret.
I felt that if I didn’t share this secret with him now, I might never have the chance to do so.
A secret I want to keep at all costs.
The secret I’d sell my soul to the devil to maintain.
This secret with Shiwoo.
I allowed Shiwoo to come to my house.
And imagining him following me obediently made me feel good, as if my lips were hooked on a fishing hook, gradually lifting up.
But I think the feeling of a syringe needle would feel even better than being hooked like that.
The sensation we share… I believe it will undoubtedly be a paradise I have never experienced before.
To have such experiences, I have to be determined and do so firmly.
Without any hesitation.
“Harinah?”
“Yes, you.”
“This is the association, right?”
Ah… He doesn’t know exactly where I live.
Because I never told him.
But that’s okay. He can get to know it from now on.
“I’m going to stop by my office for a bit first… You’ll come with me, right?”
“That’s fine.”
He’s already fallen into my trap.
At this point, there’s no escaping.
I pressed the ’50th floor’ button in the elevator.
“Wait, is your office on the 50th floor? Why is it so high?”
“I don’t know. The association president assigned me to be here.”
“Ah.. is the association president on the 51st floor?”
“No, the association president works on the 49th floor.”
“… Do you have connections to the underworld or something?”
His words made me flinch.
Could he have figured out my secret?
“Y-Yes?”
I felt really flustered but acted like I wasn’t at all.
I pretended to be completely calm.
“No, it’s just that you’re higher than the president. If that’s the case… are you actually the queen of the underworld or something?”
For him to guess this far already.
I’m not the queen of the underworld, but I definitely have many connections to it.
The underworld mentioned here probably refers to illegal activities… something like that.
It doesn’t seem like I mentioned the Gate out of nowhere.
“That’s just because I’m the only S-rank healer, so they gave me preferential treatment. It doesn’t mean anything significant. Don’t worry, I’m not the queen of the underworld or anything.”
I really have no choice.
I must make today the most thrilling memory for him.
Making someone feel at ease is the ultimate goal of a healer, isn’t it?
Maybe I’m not completely unrelated to the underworld after all?
My specially modified propofol satisfies people and makes them feel comfortable.
I’m just fulfilling my role as a healer.
– Ding~!
We arrived at my office on the 50th floor.
“You can get off now.”
“Um, I should get off now…”
I hurried to where my desk was and tossed the Styrofoam box under it.
Since Yang Secretary didn’t say a word about handling care items, it should be fine.
I quietly grabbed some spare medicine from my desk drawer.
When I first left the basement, I took two, but I used one on Assistant Kim.
I always feel better knowing I have a spare, so it’s important to pack one for emergencies.
To do things correctly without mistakes.
“Okay, let’s go to where I’m living now.”
I got up, dusted off my knees, and said.
Now that I’ve come this far, I can’t hesitate anymore.
This is the last chance, Shiwoo.
Don’t try to test me.
You can’t gather spilled water.
You need to make the right choice.
“Are we really going? I can’t wait.”
I pressed the button to go up.
If I pressed the button to go down, something irreparable might happen.
Then I would go down to the underground.
It would be crossing a river with no return.
Of course, if that’s with Shiwoo… I wouldn’t be scared.
We stepped back into the elevator.
Hiding my smile.
My smile right now isn’t like a fish hook lifting a corner of my mouth.
Such a smile could be called a third-rate smile.
More precisely, it could be described as a fish’s smile.
I could say it’s the smile of a fisherman who just caught a baited fish.
“Don’t be surprised.”
“Surprised by what?”
Is this the moment?
I pressed the 51st-floor button.
“Isn’t that the top floor?”
“…”
“…What?”
– Ding~!
I silently inserted my ID into the slot that appeared, and the elevator sounded ‘ding’.
– Baek Harin, welcome.
“… What is this?”
“I’m the only one who can go to the 51st floor.”
“…”
“Even the association president can’t enter.”
“That doesn’t make any sense…”
“It does. If I’m not here, no one can enter this space.”
“I meant, I said I wanted to go to your home?”
“This is my home. I’m currently in a special situation, trapped… I mean, relying on the association.”
It’s better not to say the word “trapped.”
We’re almost there.
My room doesn’t have special furniture or items.
… My room itself is special.
The association president said it was special the first time they gave me this room, so there must be something.
Since it doesn’t harm me, it’s okay.
“… You?”
I searched for Shiwoo.
Now that I’m ready, I can’t wait any longer.
“Ah! Y-You scared me.”
“Come here and sit.”
– Dring.
I felt like a mother scolding a somewhat immature child.
This feeling… isn’t unpleasant.
I pushed a chair close to the nearest wall.
And as he sat down silently, I attempted what I did in that isolated situation once again.
“Activating mental manipulation on subject, Han Shiwoo.”
“Do you know how much I’ve endured?”
“What? What are you talking about?”
… As I thought, my abilities don’t work on him.
Not even once have I missed or failed.
I’ve never made a mistake until now.
There’s definitely something different about Shiwoo.
I felt like if I didn’t capture him, I would surely regret it someday.
– Gulp.
“It seems this ability doesn’t work on you after all.”
I heard him swallow.
He seems nervous.
This can’t happen.
I need to make him feel at ease…. If not, I will lose my eligibility as a healer.
This time, I placed my hand over where Shiwoo’s heart is and used sensory sharing.
“Activating sensory sharing on subject, Han Shiwoo.”
My sensory sharing ability allows me to share sensations with someone within a 100-meter radius if I know the name of the subject I want to share with.
… And to share even deeper sensations, if I place my hand on the area that boasts the subject’s most vibrant life force, I can achieve even deeper connectivity.
That area consists of two characters.
Covert.
Deep.
And more vibrant than anything else.
Heart.
If I place my hand over the heart and use sensory sharing, I can feel his six senses.
This is the same when just used.
But the main course starts now.
Sensory sharing used like this.
It ends up sharing even the six sensations I feel with the subject.
Earlier, when I accidentally placed my hand on the heart and shared sensations at the Triangle Guild, I might’ve squeezed my palm as if injuring it with my nails, so it could’ve hurt a lot.
But I don’t feel sorry at all.
Because that’s ‘punishment’.
“Isn’t this the heart?… I can feel a strong life force.”
“Wait a second…!”
Ah. Shiwoo brushed my hand away and stood up.
“What are you doing?”
“… You, do you know that?”
But it was already too late.
“What the hell are you trying to say?!”
“The scent of your strong body odor… drives me insane.”
We have already begun sharing deeper sensations, haven’t we?
“What kind of crazy talk is that?”
“If we have physical contact, we can share even deeper sensations.”
– Whooooosh…
A deep and hard-to-break aura of sensory sharing enveloped us.
From now on, it’s the true realm of pleasure.
In his sight, that damn vixen was no longer visible.
Did a ghost stick to him without him knowing?
No, he knew.
He was talking to that ghost, after all.
Right in front of me.
Now that it’s gone, my feelings began to rise positively.
If sensory sharing is mutual like this, there are things I want to do.
To convey the sensation of my breast to Shiwoo’s hand.
Wouldn’t it be a luxury to feel it without actually touching?
… Let’s consider such wishful thinking later.
I pulled a syringe out of my pocket.
That syringe was filled with propofol, contrasting my dark inner feelings and sweet milk.
“Is that… propofol?”
Oh? Did he know?
Or was he someone knowledgeable in medicine?
I guess there are things I don’t know.
“Wait… are you planning to use that on me?… I could suffocate and die!”
Haa… Is he being cute right now?
I’m a little sad that I can’t see straight at this moment.
Because all I can see in my mind is my own image.
“Hehe… If you can’t breathe… I’ll even perform artificial respiration for you… But…”
I won’t perform artificial respiration.
Because…
“But?”
“Don’t worry. This is a specially modified propofol.”
During the anesthesia, you’ll still be able to breathe, okay?
And this injection contains not just fat but also carbohydrates and proteins, so even if you slept for three days like Yeona, it wouldn’t be a problem.
It’s a nutritional injection in many ways.
It just hasn’t been legally approved yet.
Now. I don’t want to delay any longer.
Shall we start wrapping things up?
I held the syringe in reverse.
Just like when I first used propofol.
I didn’t insert it into the vein in my neck.
That one hurts a bit.
I inserted the needle into the vein on my forearm.
“… Huh?”
You, too.
Into the swamp of pleasure, just like me…
“Ugh… Hah… Ha…”
“Oh… it feels amazing…”
My body began to tremble with pleasure.
At least that’s how it looked to Shiwoo.
“Ugh…”
It has begun.
An irresistible, powerful addiction.
“What… what is this…”
“Enjoy this moment.”
“How does it feel, like entering a dream?”
His vision is gradually darkening.
I pulled the syringe from his forearm and threw it down with all my might.
“What does my milk injection taste like…?”
I embraced him with the last of my strength as he fell.
I’m not immune to propofol either…
He held me tightly.
This is a bond formed through the drug.
In turn, I embraced him back just as tightly.
So we couldn’t escape and flee.
I buried my face in his chest.
‘What… it’s obvious that even if I tried to escape, I would only get a few steps before collapsing.’
We slowly moved to the bed.
In fact, I pulled him into the bed first.
Seeing me move, Shiwoo seemed to recognize my intent and walked over to the bed without any resistance, as if we were waltzing together.
“Have sweet dreams.”
“Ha…”
“Let’s collapse together…”
– Thud.
Soon his vision turned completely dark.
When I use sensory sharing, even if he’s anesthetized, there’s no sense to share, except for vision.
But now that’s gone too.
I should feel sad about that.
But thinking of venturing to the other side of dreams with him only brought me joy.
Shiwoo.
You made a mistake.
Who would willingly walk into the tiger’s den?
I never let go of prey that I’ve laid my sights on.
I will take full advantage of your mistake.
Let’s be together forever.
Forever.
As long as the world allows us.
Happier than anyone else in this world.
As long as time doesn’t separate us, we cannot fall apart.
Good night.
My Shiwoo.