The Outcast Writer of a Martial Arts Visual Novel

Hwa-rin might die.

No matter how extraordinary she was, it might be impossible for her to suppress and refine the toxic energies of the Face-Eater Lord and the Thousand-Year Monkey into a single Poison Pellet. Her entire body could melt away into a puddle of venom.

“This may be your last chance to speak with her. Talk without regrets,” said the Pavilion Head, his face grim as he revealed the brutal truth.

After all the hardship it took to obtain the Poison Pellet of the ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) Face-Eater Lord, it could all be for nothing. A normal person would be drowning in despair. But I still had one move left to play.

If I want to save Hwa-rin, I have to kiss her.

No, not because she’s a princess cursed to sleep forever. And no, it’s not to break some spell turning her into a beast.

Hwa-rin’s body might not be able to withstand the poison of two sacred beasts. So isn’t the answer simply to find a way for her to endure it?

After racking my brain for a solution, I recalled the night I parted with So-hee.

One — according to Tianjizi, during the Seong Family incident, he said that your sincerity passed to me and awakened the Fate-Reverser’s aura. He said I wouldn’t be overwhelmed by bloodlust for a while.

That kiss meant to wake So-hee. Right. I already had a solution.

I succeeded in calming the Heavenly Killing Star’s bloodlust with a kiss.

Only I have the power in this world to save women cursed by tragedy.

It’s worth a try.

My Fate-Reverser ability had reshaped Hwa-rin’s body to endure poison. If I could temporarily boost that power with a kiss...

I asked the Pavilion Head again, needing to be sure.

“Even if she succeeds in creating the Poison Pellet, is it still possible that she could die because she can’t withstand the poison?”

“To create the Poison Pellet means all the toxic energy in her body is under her control. As long as she manages that, there should be no danger.”

So it’s only a matter of surviving until the Poison Pellet is formed.

That’s a challenge worth taking. I’ve already kissed fate goodbye once. Telling off a fate made by mere humans should be even easier.

But there was one massive problem.

“Would Hwa-rin even let me kiss her?”

Tang “The Impregnable Wall” Hwa-rin.

Did she have any romantic interest in me? That alone was a thorny issue. The fact that I even had to wonder if she was into me was exhausting.

Granted, I was confident she didn’t hate me. That much I could say for sure. There had to be some level of affection. But did she like me enough to willingly offer her lips if I asked for a kiss? That was another question entirely.

Living together, I had seen behavior that could easily be mistaken for romantic interest. But I also had to factor in her unique circumstances.

Hwa-rin had never really made proper friends, let alone had a boyfriend. Even between friends, there should be some kind of personal boundary—but I was her first friend, so she might not have that concept of space.

It should be fine... right?

I wasn’t confident, but I didn’t think I’d get rejected. Still, I couldn’t say for sure. Compared to this, standing before a martial arts master ready to kill me seemed easier.

“Also, how do I even kiss someone?”

Luckily, I had kissed two people in my life. Unfortunately, in both cases, they kissed me.

How the hell was I supposed to ask Hwa-rin for a kiss?

I had no time, and the kiss needed to happen. There wasn’t even time to create the mood. Not that I’d know how to set the mood even if I had the time.

“Let’s kiss.”

In the end, that was the line I came up with—a rookie’s straight pitch.

**********

I feel like I’m going to die.

That was the only thought Tang Hwa-rin had before she saw Kang Yun-ho again.

When she opened her eyes, it felt like being yanked out of a swamp. Even after regaining consciousness, her whole body felt as if it were caked in mud she couldn’t wash off—unpleasant, uncomfortable.

Still, it was a relief to feel that way.

She had lost control of the toxic yin and yang energies within her, and in the moment she thought it was all over, she lost consciousness. The fact that she woke up at all could only be called a miracle.

“You woke at the very last possible moment. If you don’t finish refining the Face-Eater Lord’s core into a Poison Pellet by today, you won’t survive. We’ll all give it our all to help.”

Of course, to extend the miracle, another miracle was needed.

It had already been difficult enough to withstand the Poison Pellet of the Thousand-Year Monkey—and now she had to handle the Face-Eater Lord’s poison too? Even though it was her own body, she couldn’t help but think: Is that really possible?

Maybe the Pavilion Head sensed her despair, because after his explanation, he shared something important.

“Kang Yun-ho put everything on the line for you. So you must live.”

The Medical Pavilion guards added their voices in turn.

“You should’ve heard what Young Master Kang said in front of the Elders. He staked his life.”

“It was like a knot in my chest finally unraveled.”

The Pavilion Head and guards took turns praising how much effort Yun-ho had put in for Tang Hwa-rin.

As she listened to their praise, the discomfort and despair from the poison coursing through her body began to dissipate—blown away by the next shock.

“When Young Master Kang said to the Pavilion Head, ‘I came because I want to protect my woman,’ it honestly felt like he was the real protagonist of Storm of the Tang Clan.”

...Huh?

Huuuh?

“...What did you just say?”

Hwa-rin blinked in shock, wondering if she’d misheard. But the guards, beaming, happily elaborated.

“In front of everyone, he gave up his right of succession just to save you. It was the kind of thing that made you believe that’s what love really looks like.”

“In front of Lord Tang and the Elders, he declared you were his woman...”

She hadn’t misheard.

My woman? In front of everyone, he called her my woman? Kang Yun-ho?! That Kang Yun-ho?

Tang Hwa-rin’s face began to flush deep red.

“That idiot... what the hell did he just do...”

Her words were a curse, but she couldn’t stop smiling.

“Blocking someone else’s marriage path like that...”

Now I’ll have to marry you, won’t I? Tang Hwa-rin squirmed, fidgeting with her fingers in embarrassment.

I feel like I’m going to die.

He called me his woman in front of people. I’m going to die of embarrassment.

He said I was his woman. I’m going to die of happiness.

I really might die—but the joy I feel now makes even death seem trivial.

The Medical Pavilion guards smiled quietly as they watched Tang Hwa-rin grumble to herself.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

---------

Soon, Yun-ho would walk in.

Behind the door, Tang Hwa-rin could already hear the voice she’d been wanting to hear:

“I came because I want to protect my woman.”

What the hell. Seriously. That was so cool.

Hwa-rin kept replaying the image of tall, proud Kang Yun-ho confidently declaring in front of everyone that she was his woman.

“No way... This is too much for my heart.”

What would Yun-ho do once he came in?

Would he just wrap her in his arms and go, “Hwa-rin. You’re mine. You’re my woman.”?

Even imagining the possibility made it impossible for Tang Hwa-rin to stop smiling.

It was embarrassing. But she didn’t want to stop imagining it. What should she do if Yun-ho looked at her with those warm, loving eyes? Hwa-rin sank deep into thought.

“After everything I went through emotionally... I can’t just say yes right away. Right. I should act a little reserved... No, wait. What if he gets scared off and runs again? No, but still... Wouldn’t I look too easy? No, but still... Ughhhhhh.”

Her head was a mess. She couldn’t stop smiling. She couldn’t contain the joy.

But she still wanted to see Yun-ho’s face.

She needed to compose herself before meeting him.

So Tang Hwa-rin decided to chant the martial verses of the Poisoned Ones taught by the Tang Clan masters—purely for expression control.

Then Yun-ho entered the room, and Hwa-rin cracked her eyes open just enough so he wouldn’t notice.

“It’s been a while, and that’s where your eyes go?”

She was tempted to say something, but held back, and instead confidently straightened her posture.

If you want to look, go ahead.

The waterfall of luxurious silk cascading down her robe only plunged more steeply toward the ground.

Kang Yun-ho tried to suppress a breath of admiration, but since Hwa-rin had all her attention locked onto him, there was no way she’d miss it.

With his gaze and awe washing over her, Hwa-rin’s confidence soared.

“I want to hear Yun-ho’s confession.”

Soon, she would have to swallow the Poison Pellet of the Face-Eater Lord that Yun-ho had prepared for her.

She had no way of knowing what would happen next.

Hwa-rin firmed her resolve, thinking of the uncertain future ahead.

I’ll open my eyes calmly and start with a complaint about a bad dream.

Then I’ll hear Yun-ho’s confession.

---------

“I want to kiss you.”

That was not the confession Tang Hwa-rin had been expecting.

What the hell had Yun-ho just said? Hwa-rin turned the phrase over and over in her head, trying desperately to make sense of it.

Who?

Kang Yun-ho.

What?

A kiss.

Just what kind of situation was this?

This wasn’t what she’d envisioned at all.

She had expected him to say “You’re my woman,”

then she would pretend to push him away like, “Who said I was yours?”

Then, if he tried to back off even a little, she’d cling to him.

“Wait... is this really Yun-ho?”

No, it was. She’d pinched his cheek just now. That was definitely Yun-ho’s skin.

But his sudden, unexpected line had short-circuited her brain so much that she started entertaining even more absurd thoughts.

“Yun-ho... this is way too sudden.”

They should’ve exchanged heartfelt emotions, built some affection, shared meals, held hands, whispered secrets in secluded corners...

Wait. We did all that, didn’t we?

They even lived in the same house.

In the same room, no less.

Tang Hwa-rin suddenly realized that the only “final stage” left... was the kiss.

“Hwa-rin...”

As she was tangled in thought, Yun-ho’s face started closing in.

He’s doing it? He’s really doing it?!

“W-w-wait!”

Her voice trembled wildly as she shoved Yun-ho’s approaching face away with both hands.

She should’ve been dragging his face closer with both hands, not pushing it away—yet the more she resisted, the deeper her regret grew.

Even if it felt like she was kicking away a golden opportunity, she couldn’t help it.

“...Sorry.”

Kang Yun-ho’s face darkened in shame, clearly thinking he’d been rejected.

“N-no! It’s not like that!”

Tang Hwa-rin panicked, needing to set the record straight.

“Then what is it?”

“I want to hear it first.”

She stared at Yun-ho, who still looked confused, and thought to herself.

“Yun-ho. Answer me.”

“...Huh?”

Even if they were going to kiss, she had to hear it first.

This wasn’t something she could skip.

“What... do you think of me?”

She wanted to hear Yun-ho’s confession.