When Tang Do-gyeong obtained his realization, there was no evidence to pursue regarding what Black Cat had done to me. Above all, there was no reason.

There was nothing to prove that Black Cat had done anything to me.

However, after hearing about the Ban Honsan and the confession potion today, it seemed possible. They put me to sleep, figured out Tang Do-gyeong’s realization, and delivered it to him. Suddenly, it made sense that Tang Do-gyeong had achieved realization.

I did hear some information about the Ban Honsan and the confession potion today. But what does that blatantly flustered look from Black Cat mean?

Black Cat basically has a cheeky personality, pretending to be clueless, acting innocent, and even coming close and showing favor when they occasionally act strange.

But sweating profusely and stuttering like that were not like Black Cat at all.

“Hmmm…”

As I stared intently at Black Cat, they were already sweating buckets again.

“Honestly, just tell me.”

“N-no…It’s just…”

It seems like they did do something to me… But it must have been during Tang Do-gyeong’s time, right? However, right after the incident with Tang Do-gyeong occurred, Black Cat did show favor toward me while solving requests normally. Let’s assume that was an attempt to cover up what happened during the Tang Do-gyeong incident.

When is guilt at its highest? Of course, it’s right after the crime. But at that time, Black Cat casually brushed it off, and now they are panicking over just the word ‘confession potion’—that’s strange.

“Did you use the confession potion on me that day?”

Instead of measuring things here and there, I decided to get straight to the point.

“Ah…”

Black Cat let out a strange sound and tears started flowing down their jawline. It felt different from sweat. No, it was tears.

Tears were dripping from Black Cat’s delicate jawline.

So…are you crying now?

Suddenly? In this situation?

* *

Drip. Drip.

“T-this…”

Black Cat panicked and wiped their eyes. I couldn’t remember the last time I had cried. A pointless thought crossed my mind about the last time being when I was addicted to some contraceptive or other, messing up my metabolism.

“Hey, why are you crying?”

Ho Cheon-an was also completely caught off guard in this unexpected situation but calmly spoke out. He wanted to hand over a handkerchief to wipe the tears, but all he had in his arms were the wooden box containing the jade pendant and the gifts from Tang Clan and Vin.

Black Cat kept sniffing and rubbing their eyes, but the tears didn’t stop at all.

“Black Cat. Let’s talk.”

Ho Cheon-an looked at Black Cat with a complicated expression. He realized anew that he didn’t know anything about Black Cat. While it was understandable since Black Cat was hiding their true identity, Ho Cheon-an didn’t think that way.

‘I hadn’t cared either.’

Black Cat’s circumstances were very complicated. Ho Cheon-an was fully aware of that now. Even without hiding their face, men approached him endlessly, knowing how to recognize her.

Ho Cheon-an, too, was feeling Black Cat’s strange charm. That charm hinted that Black Cat’s life trajectory wouldn’t be smooth.

Nonetheless, Ho Cheon-an just went along with Black Cat without trying to learn more about her.

Ho Cheon-an thought of their relationship as a contract. He guessed there was a personal favor forming after the last incident, but…

‘Did you see me like this…?’

Black Cat, bewildered and crying, didn’t realize her feelings. Yet Ho Cheon-an understood the anxiety that Black Cat felt.

Fear.

Fear that they would be disliked by Ho Cheon-an and lose their relationship, which made the tears flow.

‘Is it a kid?’

Ho Cheon-an felt a chuckle escape him in this situation. It was definitely an action a child might do. They make a mistake, get caught, and start crying at the thought of being scolded…

But at the same time, he comprehended why Black Cat displayed this behavior.

In some ways, the Black Cat he experienced was more skillful than anyone else, yet in other aspects, oddly innocent and inexperienced.

Silently, Ho Cheon-an offered a cup of tea to Black Cat. Black Cat hesitated, glancing at Ho Cheon-an but began to sip the tea little by little. For a while, only the sound of Black Cat sniffing filled the air.

Watching this, Ho Cheon-an felt a tinge of sympathy. For Black Cat to cry and panic over something like this must be proof that she had never had a relationship turn sour with someone she cherished.

If this reaction is how she feels, then she probably hasn’t had anyone she treasured up until now.

Thinking that way, Ho Cheon-an wondered if pushing too hard would amount to cruelty.

“Have you calmed down?”

Black Cat silently nodded. Ho Cheon-an immediately threw a direct question.

“So tell me about that day.”

Black Cat flinched as if hit by a whip, but Ho Cheon-an held a steady gaze at Black Cat. Feeling sympathy was one thing, but if there had been a mistake, a proper scolding was required. Maybe he read those intentions in Ho Cheon-an’s eyes because Black Cat gripped the empty teacup tightly and opened her mouth.

Black Cat spoke in a trembling voice about that day. How she incapacitated Ho Cheon-an with a sleep needle while he was trying to grab the doorknob. Then she lured Tang Do-gyeong with the enchanted jade and the precious gem. After that, she silenced Tang Do-gyeong and conveyed the realization to him.

“Umm.”

Ho Cheon-an scratched the back of his neck. So that’s how it was. Hearing that he had been hit with a confession needle made Ho Cheon-an feel stiff at the nape of his neck.

But there were several points that needed to be clarified before that.

“So you became a Sacheon Outcast just to confirm I’d have a realization from the beginning?”

“Um… I was curious about that. The name Ho Cheon-an seemed significant, and the fact that Miss Yeo Il-ye suddenly rose to Peak Stage was too. Honestly, I didn’t have a concrete reason to sneak in here to verify directly…”

“So you ultimately sent someone to check?”

“Well, since I’m the leader, I suppose I could just say I went on my own.”

Black Cat, in a state of panic, rambled off things Ho Cheon-an hadn’t even asked about.

“I also buried the information that senior gave realization to Miss Yeo Il-ye as much as possible. The rumors have been altered multiple times, so those who learn this info likely assume it’s just a coincidence in the Martial Arts World. There was also a request for information about you from the Hwang Gold Clan, but I cut that off too…”

“Hmm… alright.”

Ho Cheon-an still found many parts hard to understand.

“So on the day you gave realization to Tang Do-gyeong… You must have been certain that I could grant realization then. Why did you just leave me alone after that?”

“Because…I just liked being with you.”

The moment Black Cat blurted out those words, she felt her face flush. Seeing the suddenly shaky gaze of Ho Cheon-an, Black Cat spoke as if entranced.

“Up until that time. In other words, it’s just that… I wanted to keep our relationship as it was. I wanted to solve incidents together as Sacheon Outcasts and be by your side. You also hid from me that you could give realization…So, it was because I thought…if you discovered that I knew your secret, we wouldn’t be together anymore.”

“You hid it so skillfully. Why did you show such weakness today?”

“I don’t know. It just… when the Poison Doctor mentioned the confession needle and Ban Honsan today, I got anxious and agitated… and started sweating.”

“Phew…”

Ho Cheon-an leaned back, sagging in his chair as he leaned his nape against the backrest, staring at the ceiling.

‘What is this? What the hell is going on right now?’

He had effectively received a confession. Completely unexpected, Ho Cheon-an’s mouth went dry. He swallowed a dry gulp and tossed the question.

“Did you find out that I can grant realization?”

“Well, even if we assume that Ho Senior really knows everyone’s realizations, I had no intention of gaining anything from that. It’s beyond my capabilities. I approached you just to satisfy my personal curiosity.”

No matter how much Wolbok-dang is the world’s best information organization, they couldn’t handle the realization Ho Cheon-an possessed. If it were just dropping realizations unnoticed, that would be another case, but when one starts using granting realizations as a means of power or profit, some form of publicity becomes necessary.

The act of publicity itself inherently carries the risk of exposure to unspecified individuals.

There was a high possibility that such events couldn’t be managed just by the Wolbok-dang organization.

Of course, that was a rational reason, and Black Cat murmured with sincerity in a voice small as a mosquito.

“More than that, what matters now is Ho Senior himself…”

Ho Cheon-an pretended not to hear Black Cat’s murmurs and continued with the conversation.

“So in the end, that day, you played me to give realization to Tang Do-gyeong. Is that right?”

“…Yes.”

Black Cat silently affirmed without saying anything more. Ho Cheon-an felt a complex array of emotions from that response. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the threads were gradually tangling.

‘I still can’t understand.’

After hearing various explanations from Black Cat, he still couldn’t grasp why she approached him, what she wanted, and how she ended up being so completely taken by him.

“Let’s have a conversation.”

Thus, Ho Cheon-an had no choice but to say this.

“Tell me about yourself.”