When Seol Jihu regained his consciousness, he realized he was comfortable.

The burning sensation over his entire body and the rampaging pain tearing up his insides had vanished without a trace.

Everything was silent.

Suddenly, he realized that it was because he was held by someone that made him so comfortable.

Even in a semi-conscious state, he could feel the thighs supporting his neck.

And there was a fragrant smell.

The warm scent of flesh caressed his nose.

Seol Jihu sniffed and instinctively snuggled into the fragrant comfort.

When he felt something soft against his cheeks, he chose to bury his face in it.

A small smile bloomed at the corner of his mouth as a soft, squishy sensation enveloped his face.

He knew he was acting like a spoiled child.

Nevertheless, Seol Jihu didn’t want to separate from the warmth he felt after a long time.

One of the hardest things about training alone was loneliness.

Climbing a mountain day and night with no one to talk to or lean on was more lonely than he’d expected.

With every step he took, his longing for Jang Maldong’s scoldings kept growing.

He missed the voices of his comrades and the way they filled the air.

In the end, he just wanted to talk to someone, anyone.

Put simply, he missed people.

And so, like a spoiled child, Seol Jihu continued to snuggle into the warmth.

He didn’t want to miss the scent of another human being.

He felt so good that if this was a dream, he never wanted to wake up.

‘…Hmm?’

Just as his consciousness was about to slip, Seol Jihu’s eyes suddenly twitched.

He felt a hand brushing his forehead.

At first, he thought he was mistaken. But then the hand began to rumple his hair gently.

‘It wasn’t a dream…?’

Seol Jihu slowly opened his eyes.

He saw a pale face and black hair melting into the night sky.

His vision was blurred and he had trouble recognizing the...