Side Story Chapter 115 - Endless Eighth (1)

Sunlight beamed between the partially closed curtains.

“Mrmmm...”

Oh Kang-Woo had yet to recover from fatigue because he was up all night consoling the heartbroken Cha Yeon-Joo. He pulled up the blanket to escape the sunlight and dug deeper into the soft bed to get some more sleep.

Slam!

“HM! KANG-WOOOOOOOOOO!!! GET UP!!”

The room door violently swung open, and Echidna’s screeching voice echoed in Kang-Woo’s ear. She charged toward the bed and jumped, dropping on top of Kang-Woo.

Bash!

“Kurgh!!” Kang-Woo grunted as he was bent forward from the force on his stomach. “Urgh... What? What is it?”

“Hehehe!” Echidna giggled from on Kang-Woo’s stomach. She shook Kang-Woo’s shoulders and shouted, “Tomorrow!! They’ll finally be here tomorrow!!”

Kang-Woo rubbed his eyes and stood up to see a massively excited Echidna.

“What’ll be here tomorrow?”

“The clothes I ordered last time!!”

“Clothes?” Kang-Woo tilted his head in confusion. “What clothes?”

“You know, back when Seol-Ah, Yeon-Joo, and I went shopping! The clothes I ordered from back then are coming tomorrow!”

“Oh...” Come to think of it, Kang-Woo remembered Echidna saying something about custom orders. “That took a while.”

“Hm! All four of them are handmade orders, after all!” Echidna snorted loudly and proudly placed her hands on her waist.

“Four?”

Kang-Woo wondered if there was a need for all four of them to be custom orders.

“Hehe, They’re not just mine. They’re for me, Yeon-Joo, Seol-Ah, and Lilith!”

“Oh, I see.”

He could understand why if that were the case.

“What kind of clothes did you order?”

They were likely special, considering how excited she was.

“Hehe.” Echidna smiled and her eyes shone. “Who knows~? What do you think they are~? It’s something you would love a lot~!”

“What is it?”

Kang-Woo was even more curious because of how Echidna was putting off her answer.

“Guess!” she shouted.

“Mmm... I can’t think of anything.”

Kang-Woo thought about the kind of clothes he liked.

‘The office lady look and the leather pants were both amazing.’

He also loved the swimsuits he had seen back at the hotel in Singapore.’

‘I legit almost fainted.’

He felt like he was getting bricked up just thinking about Lilith’s slingshot bikini.

“Is it swimsuits again?”

“Bzzt!” Echidna clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Are erotic clothes all you like?”

“I mean, what kind of man doesn’t?”

Kang-Woo was quite old, but he still had the body of a healthy young man with tons of libido. He would always welcome daring attire as long as they were those of his lovers.

“They’re not erotic clothes! Guess again!”

“Mmm... then is it something like cosplay?”

It was possible since Echidna was into anime.

‘We even went to a maid cafe when we were in Japan together.’

It was more embarrassing and awkward for him at the time than fun, but it would be a different story if his lovers were in such a getup at home instead of in public.

‘Echidna wore a maid outfit that time.’

Kang-Woo was already smiling lecherously from imagining Han Seol-Ah, Lilith, and Yeon-Joo wearing maid outfits. It would certainly be embarrassing to wear in public, but it didn’t matter.

‘They’re gonna be wearing it at home, after all.’

Kang-Woo chuckled lasciviously.

‘Man, that sounds great.’

He felt like he wouldn’t mind his heart stopping if Seol-Ah called him Master in a maid outfit like Echidna had.

“Bzzt! Wrong again!”

“Hmm,” Kang-Woo groaned as Echidna shook her head again. “What is it?”

He felt like he was going insane from curiosity.

“Hehehe! The clothes I ordered are... Ta-dah! These!!”

Echidna put forward the tablet she had been hiding behind her back and showed Kang-Woo the clothes on the display.

“Oh...” he expressed the moment he saw the clothes.

He finally understood why the clothes took so much time to make and why Echidna was acting so proud.

“Wedding... dresses?”

“Hm! Hm! That’s right! They’re wedding dresses!!!”

“...”

Kang-Woo’s expression froze. Seeing the four wedding dresses reminded him that he had been postponing the ceremony with excuses that they were too busy to hold one.

‘Marriage, huh?’

He was, of course, planning on holding a wedding ceremony with all of his lovers when the time came. However...

“I don’t think now is the time.”

It couldn’t help but sound like an excuse, but it was burdening in many ways to hold a ceremony now. It wouldn’t be too late to hold one after the matters with Akart were over.

“Hm, hm! I’m not saying we should hold one right away!”

“Then why did you order the dresses?”

“Not a wedding ceremony, but an engagement ceremony! Let’s just hold a simple one with just us!!”

“Oh...”

Kang-Woo’s eyes widened as if he were struck by lightning. Sparks ran throughout his body just from thinking about his lovers in wedding dresses. An inexplicable wave of happiness shook him.

‘An engagement ceremony, huh?’

Considering their daily life, they were practically married already. The four of them were living and sleeping under the same roof. Kang-Woo had also been calling Yeon-Joo, Lilith, and Seol-Ah his wives lately.

‘But...’

It felt different now, as if the final piece was added to a puzzle he had thought was complete. He was so happy that he could scream as he jumped up and down.

‘Finally.’

Kang-Woo would have official wives at last.

“Pfft! Hahahahahaha!!!” He burst into laughter for some reason. The joy burning his mind blank was making him stomp his feet. “Marriage!! I’M GETTING MARRIED—!!!”

He screamed at the top of his lungs, unable to suppress his boiling impulse, to the point that his voice echoed throughout the house. The corners of his mouth were not dropping no matter what he did.

‘I’m finally getting married.’

Kang-Woo recalled the day he fell into Hell and the ten millennia of struggles flashed before his eyes. He could have never known such a day would come for him.

He nodded without hesitation and said, “Yeah, okay. Let’s have an engagement ceremony.”

Just one thought about marriage made Kang-Woo feel stupid for putting it off all this time.

“Hm! Hm! Okay!! Then let’s all hold one tomorrow!!”

“Oh, but not you, Echidna.”

“Wh-What?! Wh-Why not?!!”

Echidna became teary-eyed in shock. Kang-Woo smiled and patted her head.

“We said we’d think about it once you became a mature dragon, didn’t we?”

“Hm!! There’s nothing to think about!! I’m gonna marry you too!!”

“But the current you can’t be the one to decide that.”

Kang-Woo knew how Echidna felt about him, but she was not yet mentally mature enough to be sure about her future. Most of all, he did not yet see her as a woman. Accepting her as his bride in such a situation was out of the question.

“Ngh... I bought my own too.”

Echidna lowered her head with tears in her eyes. Kang-Woo was swept with guilt as he saw her in dejection.

“You’ll get to wear it later. Just not now.”

“Hmph! You say that now, but what’s stopping you from changing your mind later?”

“That won’t happen,” Kang-Woo guaranteed.

“Really...?”

“Yeah.”

If Echidna’s feelings for him did not change even after she became a mature dragon, he was planning on accepting her feelings.

“Hm! Hm! Promise! No takebacks, okay?!” Echidna shouted as she raised her pinky finger.

Kang-Woo smirked and interlocked his pinky finger with hers.

“Though it might be your feelings that change down the road,” Kang-Woo remarked.

Children commonly said they would marry someone when they grew up without a thought. Such promises were bound to be forgotten as they grew older.

“Hm! I sometimes feel like you think I’m an actual child! I’m way~ older than Seol-Ah, you know?!”

“Oh.”

Come to think of it, Echidna was over five hundred years old. She physically looked no older than a middle schooler so Kang-Woo always thought her mental age was also that of one.

“Hm! Anyway, you’d better marry me once I become a mature dragon, got it?”

“Okay.”

Kang-Woo patted Echidna’s head as her eyes sparkled.

***

Evening arrived.

“Kang-Woo~ dinner’s ready~”

“Okay.”

Kang-Woo came out of his room. Yeon-Joo, Lilith, and Echidna were already sitting at the dining table.

[On today’s news, the Hanwoori Guild has successfully cleared the S-rank Gate that appeared in Daejeon. However, Players Oh Jeong-Hyun and Kim Chun-Bong, the two cornerstones of the guild, have passed away in the process...]

The news sounded from the TV in the living room. Kang-Woo took the remote and turned off the TV.

“Come on, lemme watch some news,” said Yeon-Joo as she frowned.

“I have something more important to share than the news.”

Kang-Woo smiled as he sat down at the table.

“Something important? What is it?”

“The wedding dresses Echidna ordered are coming tomorrow, so...”

He brought up the engagement ceremony discussion he had with Echidna in the morning.

“Wh-Wh-Wh-What?!” stuttered Yeon-Joo as her face reddened. “Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-Wh-What the hell are you talking about all of a sudden?!!”

“Why? You don’t want to?”

“N-No!! I’m not saying that!! I-I mean... hurghasdjfnbajadhfbhb.”

Yeon-Joo buried her face between her knees and yelled incomprehensibly.

“Fufu. An engagement ceremony with the king... it’s a little unexpected, but I’m looking forward to it.”

Lilith smiled and seductively licked her lips. Unlike her calm demeanor, her hair was surging into the air and squirming uncontrollably.

“Engagement... with Kang-Woo... ceremony...”

Seol-Ah was staring blankly into the air as she mumbled

engagement ceremony

repeatedly. Tears then began to form around her eyes.

“Huh? D-Darling?”

“Oh... I’m sorry. Wh-Why am I being like this?”

Seol-Ah wiped her tears but they kept flowing, even more than before.

“Darling...”

“Sniff! I-I’m happy, but... I’m so happy that... my t-tears aren’t stopping.”

Kang-Woo gently hugged the crying Seol-Ah and smiled faintly.

“Kang-Woo...”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

Kang-Woo nodded and kissed Seol-Ah.

“Alright, all of you make time for tomorrow.”

“Okay! I’ll clear the whole day!!”

“Urgh... I have guild work, but... well, I-I guess I have no choice.”

“Hoho. I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

The three women smiled in excitement.

***

‘An engagement ceremony, huh?’

Kang-Woo and the others finished their dinner, filled with expectation. The three women had Kang-Woo participate in the planning for tomorrow until far past midnight and finally went to bed.

‘I wonder what I should give each of them as gifts?’

he wondered as he took out his smartphone.

‘November 9th.’

Kang-Woo smiled faintly as he checked the date, which had already changed to the date of their engagement ceremony, on his smartphone. November 9th had been no different from any other date to him.

‘But not anymore.’

He had a feeling he would remember the engagement ceremony for the rest of his life.

***

Sunlight beamed between the partially closed curtains.

“What a wonderful morning!”

Kang-Woo sprang up from the bed. His three lovers had likely already woken up since they were not with him.

“Hehehehe!! Today’s the day I become a groom!!!”

Although it was just an engagement ceremony, he decided to just think of it as his wedding day since they would never get a divorce. He burst into laughter in excitement for today.

Slam!

“HM! KANG-WOOOOOOOOOO!!! GET UP!!”

“Whoa, there.”

The room door violently swung open. Echidna charged into the room and jumped on Kang-Woo.

“Hehehe!!” Echidna giggled in his arms.

Kang-Woo patted her head and asked, “Come to think of it, when will the clothes arr—”

“Tomorrow!! They’ll finally be here tomorrow!!”

‘Huh?’

“What’ll be here tomorrow?” Kang-Woo asked.

“The clothes I ordered last time!!”

“...”

‘What?’