Archmage's Restaurant - Chapter 91: A Week in Korea (10)

“Hehehe.”

Rurin boldly jumped onto the bed. I decided to deal with the strange emotions in my heart after Rurin’s birthday.

That decision would not change. I closed my eyes and turned to my side, only to be met with an ambush—a sudden hair-pulling attack.

“Yayayayaya! That hurts!… Fine, let’s sleep. It’s night, night. You seem sleepy too.”

“Am I? I can’t tell. Huaaahm… Now that you mention it, I do feel sleepy.”

Rurin began rubbing her eyes. With each rub, her hair swayed in that unfairly mesmerizing way. Every time it did, my heart wavered.

I didn’t even know what kind of emotions were stirring inside me, but just watching her quietly sway her hair was enough to charm me, making my heart race faster.

Even the sight of her drowsiness held an undeniable allure. In fact, moments like this made her more distracting when she was still.

No.

I was losing my mind.

“Okay, okay. Come here. If you’re sleepy, you need to sleep.”

Having lost this round, I opted for another strategy. Surrendering was inevitable, so I sat up, tightly grasped the hands rubbing her eyes, and pulled her into my chest.

I decided to put her to sleep. That was my final solution. Rurin, who had been pulled into my arms, lifted her face in surprise, her eyes wide.

“Y-you?”

“What?”

“It’s just… it’s been so long since you hugged me like this…”

Rurin stammered unexpectedly, thrown off by my boldness. That reaction caught me off guard.

“Well, losing is losing. Can’t be helped.”

I started stroking Rurin’s hair, and the scent of shampoo tickled my nose.

This was dangerous. If I didn’t get her to sleep and into the other bed soon, I’d be up all night with my eyes wide open.

“You…”

“Hmm? I said sleep, Dragon.”

“There’s something I want to ask. Do you know how scared I was when that brat Nies hit you with his breath and you collapsed?”

“Ah, that time… You cried your eyes out.”

“Cried? Who cried? I didn’t cry.”

“No way. I clearly remember it.”

“That’s because you were out of it. No, wait—”

Rurin shook her head, frustrated.

“Even if I didn’t cry, it’s not like I couldn’t have. And anyway—”

“Huh?”

“I begged to die before you. I swore I’d never forgive you if you put yourself in danger like that again. Do you know how I felt back then? If you ever died, I would have gone first. I will never watch you die.”

At that, Rurin pulled away slightly and gazed deeply into my eyes. Her words touched me. Even if she couldn’t bear to watch me die, wishing to die first…

I shook my head, holding her gaze. My heart felt heavy, emotions swelling inside me.

“Really?”

When I asked again, Rurin nodded firmly. I brushed her hair away, unable to stop my words from spilling out.

“You know what?”

“What?”

“I feel the same way. I can’t bear the thought of seeing you die either. If you went first, I wouldn’t forgive it. If it came to that, I’d go before you.”

“No! That’s all wrong! You!”

“So if we have to die, let’s die together. We’ll hold each other and close our eyes together. Isn’t that better?”

Rurin stared at me, dumbfounded. Her hair swayed slightly as I kissed her forehead.

It was an impulsive act, born from a sudden burst of emotion. The moment I heard the little kiss sound, I realized what I’d done and pulled back in shock.

It wasn’t just a kiss on the forehead. Between me and Rurin, even a forehead kiss wasn’t trivial.

That tiny kiss could shatter the barrier between family and lovers, creating a seismic shift in our relationship.

Ah, what was I thinking? I slapped my own cheek hard and buried myself under the blanket.

“Okay, let’s sleep. If I manage to sleep for 24 hours straight, the bet is over.”

Trying to salvage what I could, I stuffed Rurin into my arms and pulled the blanket over us.

But no sooner had I done that than Rurin kicked off the blanket and got out of bed.

“You.”

“What now?”

“Can I use my breath?”

“What? Why on earth are you saying that now?”

I sat up, startled by the unexpected response.

“My heart feels like it’s going to burst! It’s so strange! If I don’t use my breath, I feel like I’ll die! Something’s wrong with me, you!”

“A dragon’s heart doesn’t burst that easily. And using your breath will only raise your blood pressure and make it worse.”

“You! You! My heart is pounding so hard! You, all of a sudden—! Waaah!”

Seeing Rurin in such distress, I scooped her up in a princess carry and placed her in the other bed.

“I know the solution to this. Stay away from me, lie down in your bed, and count Palenque. Trust me, it’ll work.”

Taking advantage of the moment, I quickly returned to my bed.

“No!”

Before I knew it, Rurin came right back, her eyes meeting mine. Her ears reddened, and she lowered her head.

“Looking at your face makes it worse! Way worse! Breath! Breath!”

Acting completely out of character, she retreated to the other bed, pulling the blanket over herself.

This was the same girl who always demanded hugs first. Despite her love for physical affection, a single kiss on the forehead had thrown her into chaos. Even I was surprised.

Though my heart had treated her as a lover, I was more startled by how flustered I felt. I’d expected Rurin to demand more kisses.

But the opposite happened.

In hindsight, it made sense. The closest physical contact she knew was hugging. She’d never grown close to any other male before meeting me.

Thankfully, her inexperience gave me time to regain my composure. Slowly, I told myself. Until her birthday, I couldn’t afford another slip-up.

In the end, Rurin curled up in the other bed, squealing softly to herself. Taking this chance, I forced myself to sleep.

But no matter how hard I tried, sleep wouldn’t come easily.

As dawn broke, Rurin, in her usual habit, climbed into my bed, mumbling sleepily. With her clinging to me, sleep became even more impossible.

I spent the night wide awake.

—

The next afternoon.

Having only fallen asleep in the morning, I woke in the afternoon, feeling my mana almost fully restored.

“You know, if you kiss me again now, my reaction might be a little different. Last night, I was just too shocked. It feels unfair. Let’s do it again!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. That was an accident. An accident. And since you’ve slept beside me until now, the bet’s over!”

“No way! That wasn’t an accident!”

“It’s over! Let’s go!”

Rurin pouted, her lips jutting out in frustration. But it seemed she’d sorted through her emotions overnight. Still, I had no intention of repeating last night’s events anytime soon.

More importantly, tomorrow we’d be returning to the restaurant. That meant it was time to prepare to leave.

As the thought crossed my mind, I wondered if I should leave behind some kind of keepsake from this world.

Given the differences in technology, it seemed like a good idea to do something only possible here. My gaze landed on the large frame hanging on the hotel room wall.

I suddenly felt the urge to take a photo with Rurin—Something large, framed, and unique—something impossible to create in the other world.

Even though I told myself not to dwell on it, every thought seemed to revolve around creating memories with Rurin. Oh well, who cares? If I want to do it, I’ll just do it.

With that, we headed to a makeup studio. Before taking the photo, I wanted to have Rurin look her absolute best and capture her in the most beautiful moment possible.

“What’s this place?”

Rurin tilted her head, confused, as she looked around.

I shrugged and placed my hand on her shoulder. “Just sit still and let them work. They’ll make you look even more beautiful.”

“Beautiful? Ah! They’re messing with my hair. Is this that thing from your weird book?”

“Exactly.”

Rurin’s eyes sparkled as if she remembered something. She was likely referring to a magazine she’d flipped through while combing her hair by herself. She had tossed it aside with little interest at the time.

“Well, I’m already pretty, but if becoming prettier is possible, why not?”

She murmured some nonsense to herself and then gave me a glance. It occurred to me that I had never seen Rurin wearing makeup before, and that was only natural.

While nobles in her world did use some cosmetics, it wasn’t as advanced as modern makeup, nor was it considered essential.

Thus, Rurin had no experience with makeup, but now she obediently followed the designers inside, her eyes shining with excitement.

“Please take good care of her.”

“Of course! By the way, which company is she with? Is she debuting soon? Are you her manager?”

The studio’s owner bombarded me with questions, mistaking Rurin for an aspiring celebrity.

“Haha, just make her look pretty,” I replied vaguely, avoiding further explanations, and turned my attention to Rurin.

The makeup artists began their work. Bit by bit, Rurin’s face started to shine. When they finally moved on to her hair, the hair designer ran her hands through Rurin’s locks.

At that moment, Rurin’s expression darkened.

“Do not let a mere human touch me!”

With an enraged expression, Rurin shot to her feet, preparing to unleash her breath.

While she had tolerated them touching her face with brushes, the moment a human hand touched her hair, she lost it.

I dashed forward, trying to prevent a catastrophe.

“Ruuuriiiin!”

I grabbed the furious Rurin and shoved a wad of cash onto the counter before making a quick escape.

Come to think of it, I should have known better.

Rurin had always hated being touched by anyone other than me. Even back when my former companions tried to wake her up, she reacted the same way.

No matter how human she seemed at times, Rurin was still a dragon—a grand being with pride beyond human understanding.

After escaping the studio, I glanced over at Rurin, who was still fuming.

“You’ve read about this and even watched people do it before, so why did you blow up?”

“I don’t care. Looking pretty is fine, but letting a human touch me is unacceptable.”

Rurin proudly declared her stance, her long eyelashes catching my attention. The makeup was still intact, making her usual pure expression subtly sensual. It was like a blend of Serena and Rurin.

Well, no point in insisting on doing her hair now.

“Still, you can’t just use your breath in places like that. What were you thinking?”

“Breath doesn’t use mana, so it’s fine.”

Rurin said this matter-of-factly, leaving me speechless. I ran a hand through my hair, messed up from all the rushing, and sighed. She leaned against me as if nothing had happened.

“Forget it. Let’s just go take the photo.”

Since she didn’t want anyone else touching her, there was no point in pushing it further. Besides, she looked perfect enough for the photo. We headed to the photography studio.

“By the way, Rurin, do you know what a photo is?”

“A photo?”

“Yes.”

“Nope.”

Of course. That was a foolish question on my part. Photography didn’t exist in her world.

“Listen, it’s like a painting, but it captures everything exactly as it is in real life. We’re going to take a photo together to remember this moment, so just stay by my side, okay?”

“As long as I’m with you, I don’t mind.”

Rurin nodded confidently.

“Though, I’d rather talk more about what you said earlier, I’ll hold off for now.” She grinned mischievously.

At last, the photo shoot began. I wrapped an arm around Rurin’s shoulder as the photographer took the first picture. It felt too ordinary.

“Ah, wait a second!”

“Yes? Would you like to change the pose?”

“Yes.”

After thinking for a moment, I lifted Rurin into a princess carry.

“Take the picture now, quickly!”

“Got it, got it. You two must be newlyweds! Haha.”

The photographer chuckled as she snapped the picture, clearly mistaking us for a couple taking wedding photos. It wasn’t an unreasonable assumption.

Realizing this might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, we took several more shots in various poses before finally wrapping up and collecting the photos.

“How do you like it, Rurin?”

“Whoa! What is this? The person in the picture looks exactly like you!”

“Right? I’m thinking of putting it in a frame and hanging it in the lair.”

“Wow, you’re saying something nice for once. Hehe.”

Rurin seemed genuinely pleased, staring at the photo with a captivated expression. She hugged it tightly to her chest, delighted.

The idea of taking the photo turned out to be a great success.

—

Another day passed. As expected, my mana had almost completely recovered. That meant our time here was coming to an end.

On the day my mana was fully restored, I went shopping. I bought things like a bed and other items with advanced craftsmanship impossible to find in the other world.

Finally, it was time to use the summoning magic.

*Guuuuuuung!*

The black hole that had brought us here appeared once more. I threw the bed, the large frame, and other items into the vortex.

In theory, the other side of the black hole was connected to the restaurant in the other world. After tossing everything inside, I grabbed Rurin’s hand.

“Let’s go.”

Rurin nodded, gripping my hand firmly. We locked eyes and jumped into the black hole together.

A sharp headache and darkness gnawed at my consciousness, and I blacked out completely. If teleportation disorients people, dimensional travel outright knocks them unconscious.

Last time, I even had a bizarre dream.

—

When I opened my eyes, we were back at the restaurant—the one I’d longed to return to. The bed we’d brought had crashed into a table, shattering it. In the chaos, Elena stared at me in shock.

“El!”

“Elena?”

Next to her stood Serena, who exclaimed matter-of-factly, “See? I told you he’d come back safe and sound. He wouldn’t just disappear.”

“El!”

Elena cautiously grabbed my arm. Rurin tilted her head at the elf.

“What’s wrong, elf?”

“Oh, nothing! I was just worried since you disappeared so suddenly…”

“Ah, I see. It was kind of a unique situation…”

“Well, as long as you’re safe…”

Elena slowly nodded, relief washing over her face. Meanwhile, Serena stood nearby, making a curious noise as she noticed Rurin holding the framed photo.

“What’s that in your hands?”

“Oh, this? It’s a photo!”

Proudly, Rurin held up the frame toward Serena.

“What’s a photo?”

Frowning, Serena snatched the frame and ran off with it, prompting Rurin to chase after her.

“Kyaaa! You crazy redhead! Give that back! That’s mine and El’s treasure!”

Rurin’s voice faded as she ran off after Serena, leaving Elena to awkwardly step away from me.

“S-sorry, I was just really happy…”

“Are you okay?” I asked, noticing something off about her.

Elena smiled softly. “When you disappeared, I came to the restaurant every day. I was worried. Next time, please tell me if you’re going somewhere…”

“Alright. If I can, I’ll let you know. This is my and Rurin’s home, after all.”

“Good… That’s all I need.”

With a firm nod, Elena began tidying up the wrecked restaurant.

Though I still felt something strange, I had no time to dwell on it. Rurin and Serena were causing chaos, and dealing with those two dragons came first.