SMFC | Chapter 20

Lee Soo couldn’t bring himself to touch Yoo Haeon, merely tracing his face with his eyes lowered for a long while. He didn’t know why he felt so fondly about it, but whenever he saw Haeon, he wished that Haeon only wore the finest clothes, ate the best food, and saw the best things.

After a long silence, Lee Soo finally shook his hand away from tracing Haeon’s face. Just watching someone sleep so beautifully was making him feel tired too. It was only a moment before his eyes drooped as if he was about to fall asleep himself, and soon Lee Soo was asleep with his cheek pressed against the blanket.

After sleeping for a while, Haeon woke up to a strange scent coming from the blanket and opened his eyes with a sparkle. His long eyelashes fluttered and his pink eyes were revealed.

He wasn’t sure if it was perfume or an air freshener. But he blinked groggily, thinking the room was filled with a scent similar to Lee Soo’s distinct aroma.

Why does Lee Soo’s scent linger in my room? Even from the blankets… With his brain not functioning well due to sleepiness, Haeon eventually closed his eyes again and buried his face in the pillow.

He wasn’t sure how many hours he had slept, but he felt lighter and the ringing in his ears had completely disappeared. When he was about to dismiss it as his imagination, he suddenly heard Lee Soo’s whining.

It was too distinct to be just a dream, and startled, Haeon jumped up. Looking around quickly, he found Lee Soo sleeping on the floor, his knees on the ground and his cheek against the bed.

Wondering why Lee Soo was like this in his room, Haeon soon remembered this was actually Lee Soo’s room and let out a ridiculous laugh.

Turns out the host had lost his bed to the guest. Though Lee Soo had indeed laid him down, it was still something to feel sorry about.

Haeon frowned slightly and watched Lee Soo’s round head for a moment before he climbed out of bed. It seemed wrong to let the room’s owner keep sleeping on the floor now that he was awake.

Hesitating only briefly, Haeon eventually carefully lifted the sprawled Lee Soo from the floor. Worrying that his thin neck might snap back, Haeon cautiously supported it and held his breath until he had Lee Soo safely on the bed.

After laying him down and carefully arranging the blanket, he heard a sigh through the teeth. Surprised, he turned his head and saw it wasn’t a big deal, just Lee Soo babbling in his sleep.

“…He’s not a baby. What’s with the adult babbling like one.”

Although his words were reproachful, the touch of his hand on the cheek was tender. Lee Soo often babbled in his sleep, though it wasn’t particularly troublesome. If he heard babbling noises, Lee Soo would be mouthing words in his sleep.

Just as Haeon was getting used to Lee Soo’s babbling, he grimaced at something pale protruding next to him. Staring at it curiously, it soon took on a more opaque form, then transformed into the figure of a woman.

The woman, dressed in a black jeogori and a cerulean skirt, played with a swinging ornamental pendant as she approached Lee Soo. As she sat gracefully on the bed, the blanket under her didn’t move, prompting Haeon to ask.

“Ah, you. Young. You’re Young, right?”

[I am Mu. One of the spirits with Lee Soo, I have seen many lives and lovers.]

Mu replied with a tone lacking any warmth as she fiddled with her braided hair, smiling a smile that seemed more like a sneer. Remembering an old difficulty that was hard to call beautiful, Mu slightly closed her eyes.

Looking at Mu chuckling, Haeon soon focused on the burn scars visible on her body. Judging by the distribution, state, and location, it would be difficult to heal if he was unlucky. The clothes she wore were from a much earlier time… maybe the cause of death was the burns.

Mu, who had been quiet while Haeon examined her scars, opened one eye to look at him.

[Mu: Have you looked enough at the scars? Yes. You would easily guess that they caused the death.]

Mu spoke in a calm voice, stretching her painted lips into a long smile. Her touch over her wound was devoid of emotion. Asking her about her painful death seemed pointless, so Haeon just looked back at Lee Soo.

While he was quietly watching Lee Soo’s lips mutter, he was startled by a transparent finger caressing Lee Soo’s cheek. The woman touching him, while expressionless, seemed somewhat sad.

Haeon knew it was all their fault that Lee Soo was living on borrowed time. Not understanding her reaction, he clicked his tongue lightly. As Haeon clicked his tongue, Mu laughed hoarsely, suddenly appearing beside him.

Wearing silk socks and fine flower shoes, her small feet casually floated in the air. Standing a bit away from Haeon, Mu gestured towards him as if dancing in midair.

[Mu: Do you like Lee Soo?]

“Why ask something so obvious?”

Haeon watched the embroidered hem of her skirt sway before raising his eyes to meet Mu’s gleaming brown ones, puzzled by what she meant.

What’s certain is. Anything could be a turning point in his and Lee Soo’s lives, so Haeon silently waited for Mu to speak. Mu muttered something about his naivety and smiled coyly.

[Mu: If you like Lee Soo, trust him. The foundation of love starts with trust. Affection, favor, fondness, consideration. All of these must be built on trust. Otherwise… it would crumble as meaninglessly as a sandcastle washed away by the waves.]

Mu, chewing over a past only she and one man remembered, slightly raised her lips. Her skirt gently swelled and then settled. Suddenly sitting before Haeon, Mu looked at him with narrow eyes.

[Mu: Haeon, try to trust Lee Soo. I know it’s the hardest thing for you. But, loving someone isn’t new to you in this life.]

The moment you trust, the path will appear. I promise. So, trust me this time.

After dropping these meaningful words, Mu hugged her knees and hummed casually when she saw Haeon pondering her words. The loose song sounded strange yet familiar to Haeon, who watched Mu for a moment.

Holding her voluminous skirt and singing, Mu appeared oddly lonely. Wrapped in flower shoes, her currently lonely, twitching feet once touched the most precious things in this world as if holding and kissing someone dear. Mu lifted her chin.

There’s no second chance for love like Lee Soo and Haeon’s. Their love wasn’t even a proper chance to begin with; in this world, all love is almost like single-use. Mu breathed thinly several times as Haeon spoke.

“Mu, why are you helping me? I am definitely not a necromancer like Ryu Leesoo the Hunter, nor had I any dealings with spirits before meeting him.”

[Mu: Who knows. If it’s fate, you will naturally understand. There’s no need to know everything.]

Haeon felt no malice in her words, so he pressed his lips together, not bothering to retort. It was clear she wasn’t just here for idle banter since Lee Soo wasn’t even awake.

Knowing and being frustrated were two different things, so Haeon didn’t hide his annoyance and scrunched up his face.

[Mu: Such a grumpy face. The world isn’t that big, yet you seem to dislike so many things.]

Mu spoke without seeming to scold and smirked. Looking at her thin lips twisted up and the distinct burn marks beneath, Haeon just closed his eyes.

There was no rush for the dead; they had nothing to gain or lose. Being dead was just that.

As Haeon closed his eyes with a weary face, Mu clicked her tongue loudly and leaned on her chin.

[Mu: Lee Soo will probably grant your request.]

“Request… If it’s that request.”

[Mu: The reckless offer to give half your life force.]

“Did you say that so Mu could hear?”

Haeon widened his pink eyes in puzzlement. He couldn’t bring himself to give Mu such an impertinent look and instead glared at the innocent blanket. Mu chuckled at first but soon replied in a more relaxed tone.

[Mu: Who knows. That’s unknown.]

“How can you have so much to say yet say so little?”

[Mu: If a dead person had much to say to the living, that would be a funnier matter, wouldn’t it?]

Ah, this time her intent to vex was clear. Watching Mu’s dark-veined hand in front of him, Haeon inwardly sighed. He might have felt irritated, but thinking of her as already dead, he wasn’t angry.