Extra 10 (Final):
“So you’re awake.”
Baek Joo-won chuckled, seeing no trace of sleepiness in her eyes.
“Why were you pretending to be asleep?”
“I wasn’t pretending. I was asleep. I just woke up.”
“When did you wake up?”
Seo Jae-yi hesitated, her eyes darting around, before answering,
“…When Won-yeong screamed and fainted?”
So she had woken up sooner than he thought. He had assumed she would have heard their conversation with Kim Yoo-sung.
“Can I tell the Guild Leader… about our lives being linked?”
Baek Joo-won nodded.
She still had a slightly inaccurate understanding of their connection, but he had no intention of correcting her.
“Kim Yoo-sung isn’t the type to spread rumors. He’ll probably guard this secret with his life.”
“That’s true.”
Kim Yoo-sung, who cared so much about Seo Jae-yi’s safety, would definitely do that.
“And now that he knows, he won’t try to separate us, no matter what.”
“Ah, so that was your goal?”
“Of course. That’s the most important thing.”
Seo Jae-yi burst out laughing at his serious answer.
“I was actually a bit worried when you said our lives were linked.”
Baek Joo-won tilted his head.
“You’re not anymore?”
“No. I realized… you would probably follow me in death. So I feel… relieved.”
“Ah, you know me well. That’s right. I’ve lived long enough, and life would be too boring without you, so I’ll follow you.”
Baek Joo-won whispered, holding her close.
He sighed, her warmth, her scent, intoxicating him.
‘I shouldn’t tell her that she would live even if I died.’
He would do his best to stay alive, of course, as he wanted to be with her, but there was no guarantee in this world.
If she knew the truth, she would put herself in danger, leaving him in a safe place. So he would keep it a secret. Forever.
Perhaps she would follow him in death anyway… but that was her choice. He wouldn’t stop her.
He just wanted her to live, blissfully unaware of that truth.
It was selfish, but he couldn’t help it. He was a monster, and he couldn’t help but be possessive of his mate.
“…Seo Jae-yi.”
Baek Joo-won pulled back slightly and looked down at her.
“There’s something… I haven’t told you.”
“What is it?”
“…About your lifespan.”
“My lifespan?”
He explained slowly, seeing her puzzled expression.
Seo Jae-yi had become the Yeouiju. That meant she was no longer entirely human.
Having become the very essence of a dragon, she had surpassed the limitations of a human lifespan.
She would live on, even after all her loved ones were gone.
“…Is that true?”
“Yes.”
He couldn’t hide this from her; she had to know.
He intertwined his fingers with hers.
As if to prevent her from escaping.
“You also have my regenerative abilities, so you’re practically… immortal, unless your head and heart are destroyed simultaneously. And considering your abilities, even that is… unlikely.”
“…”
“You’ll live for hundreds of years. That can be… a heavy burden for a human.”
Humans were designed to live for about a century. Suddenly being granted centuries of life…
Most couldn’t handle it and went insane.
Forced to watch everyone they loved die.
Even Seo Jae-yi, despite her cheerful facade, wouldn’t be able to endure it easily.
“So… don’t… hold back.”
“What?”
Seo Jae-yi, who had been lost in thought, blinked at his sudden words.
Baek Joo-won, gazing at her, his expression filled with a love so profound, so absolute, confessed his true feelings.
“When the time comes… when you’re tired of living, when you can’t… endure it any longer… tell me. I’ll… help you.”
Her death would also be his.
But he wasn’t afraid. He would rather die with her than watch her suffer, her eyes filled with the weariness of a life too long.
She had already endured so much; it would be cruel to force her to suffer until the very end.
“I’m telling you this now so you won’t be shocked when you’re older. You need time to… prepare.”
And to prepare to say goodbye to everyone she loved.
Baek Joo-won looked at her, his face tense with anxiety.
He was prepared to help her, to find a way for her to die peacefully, if she couldn’t bear the thought of being alone, after her family, her friends, and her Guild members were gone.
But for now, he just wanted her to accept her extended lifespan.
He didn’t want her to reject it.
“Hmm…”
After a long, heavy silence, Seo Jae-yi sighed.
Baek Joo-won’s shoulders tensed.
“Hae-wi,” she said, and his heart pounded, hoping she wouldn’t reject it.
“I’m a bit… confused.”
“Confused about what?”
Seo Jae-yi tilted her head at his words, his voice unusually hesitant.
“Are you worried that I’ll get tired of living with you and just… die one day, without caring about your feelings?”
“…What?”
“So you’re saying… you’re begging me to stay with you, promising to do your best, so I won’t leave you alone?”
Baek Joo-won stared at her, dumbfounded by her… interpretation.
How had she even…?
‘Well, she’s not entirely wrong…’
She was worried about her extended lifespan, but it also stemmed from her desire to be with him, to stay with him.
Baek Joo-won chuckled, realizing her true intentions.
“You truly… know me too well.”
“No one knows you better than I do.”
“You’re right.”
He sighed, amused and touched by her perceptiveness, and pulled her close, his embrace tighter than before, as if pouring all his emotions into the gesture.
“Why are you worrying about that already?”
Seo Jae-yi, unfazed by the intensity of his emotions, wrapped her arms around him and patted his back.
“Even if my family and friends… pass away, I’ll still have you and Logi. So I won’t be lonely. And if I can’t… bear it, I’ll tell you. I don’t lie, you know? I always say what’s on my mind.”
“…Yes, I know.”
“So don’t worry, Hae-wi. Perhaps it’s because I’m human, but… living happily in the present is more important to me than worrying about the future. With you.”
Every word she spoke was like a feather, tickling his heart.
That was… happiness. Baek Joo-won knew it.
She was the only one in the world who could make him feel this way.
“I’m happy because of you. So please, stay with me. I’ll do my best.”
“Good. Do your best. Do your best to stay by my side, always.”
Baek Joo-won laughed, his heart overflowing with affection at her sweet words.
She made him happy, she made him cry, she made him laugh. He could only feel these emotions with her.
She made his life… vibrant.
“I love you, Jae-yi.”
He confessed, his voice thick with emotion, and kissed her deeply.
She wasn’t afraid of his possessiveness, his almost desperate need for her, as he devoured her lips. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer.
It wasn’t a kiss of lust, but of love, a maelstrom of emotions pouring into the touch. Their mingled breaths were a silent confession, their hearts connected, their feelings unspoken yet understood.
“Me too.”
She smiled brightly, her reply whispered between kisses.
It was unspoken, yet understood, but words, still, were precious.
Baek Joo-won, unable to resist, kissed her again, his lips claiming hers.
His breath, warm against her cheek, his body heat seeping through her clothes.
His pupils dilated, and his fangs lengthened, his body burning with need.
He had to fight to suppress the transformation, his horns and scales threatening to emerge. He couldn’t lose control, not here, not when they weren’t alone in their forest dungeon.
“I finally get to take this off.”
Baek Joo-won, pulling back slightly, looked down at Seo Jae-yi, her suit rumpled beneath him.
She looked incredibly… alluring in the formal attire he had chosen for her at Jeong Hoon’s tailor shop. The thought of her fiery nature, her toned body, constrained within that prim suit, was arousing.
“You like it that much? Your hands are shaking.”
Seo Jae-yi chuckled, seeing his trembling fingers fumbling with the buttons of her suit.
She arched her back slightly, offering herself to him.
“I waited patiently, all buttoned up and proper, just for you. It’s all yours. You can… undo everything.”
“You’re killing me.”
Baek Joo-won groaned, his voice husky with desire, at her teasing words.
She knew him too well.
Seo Jae-yi smiled, satisfied, as he kissed her again, his passion unrestrained.
He didn’t need to worry about such trivial things.
Her lifespan? That she might live for hundreds of years?
What did it matter?
He thought he was the only one with a possessive streak, but Seo Jae-yi was just as… fixated.
She had never truly possessed anything before; he was the first, the only one she considered truly hers.
So she didn’t want to let him go.
Decades, centuries, an eternity with him… how could she possibly refuse?
She was overjoyed at the prospect of spending such a long time with him.
She wouldn’t ever be lonely, as long as he continued to love her this fiercely.
Baek Joo-won was hers.
Forever.
Six months later.
The sentences for former President Kim Joon-pil and former Prime Minister Jang Woo-seok were finalized.
Their appeals had been rejected, the evidence against them too overwhelming.
Kim Joon-pil was sentenced to 35 years in prison, and Jang Woo-seok to 42.
They might be pardoned or have their sentences reduced and be released early.
But Seo Jae-yi didn’t care. If they didn’t die in prison, she could always have them transferred to Baek Joo-won’s dungeon, to the maze where Park Jung-soo was waiting.
Honestly, she hoped they would be pardoned and released early.
“The weather’s nice.”
Seo Jae-yi, finally free from the “insects” that had been plaguing her life, left the courthouse, her face bright with a newfound lightness.
The sunlight felt warm and welcoming.
She looked up at the beautiful, golden sunlight and then stepped out, into the light.
She would walk this path, free from shadows and darkness, with her monster, her lover, her flower-like guide, by her side.
To My Flower-Like S-Class Guide <Extra Story: The End>