HETLV 126🔐

Chapter 126 …

Time passed quickly.

She turned off her phone, cut herself off from the internet, lazed around at the hotel, and wandered wherever her feet took her, sightseeing here and there.

Only then did she realize how narrow her world had been—one where she’d assumed everyone went to work in the morning and came home in the evening.

Because she hadn’t seen it, she’d always been trapped inside a well.

The world went on indifferently even when she wasn’t working, and people with all kinds of professions were living busy lives.

‘Today makes a week, just like he said.’

Since she never knew when drowsiness might suddenly overwhelm her, she stayed in the hotel all day.

Even by evening, there was no sign of anything.

Of course, last time they had met when night was already close, but still.

“Nothing happened… right?”

Even when she deliberately closed her eyes on the bed, sleep wouldn’t come—maybe because she’d been sleeping too deeply these days.

She let out a long sigh and scratched her head.

Watching TV, ordering room service, taking a bath—there were limits to all of it.

Today, time crawled unbearably slowly.

“Isaac…”

The moment she placed his name on the tip of her tongue, her eyelids began to grow heavy as if on cue.

Clea’s eyes flew open in surprise, then slowly lowered again.

As she lightly surrendered her body to the oncoming tide of sleep, she was instantly swallowed by darkness, as if falling into a deep, bottomless abyss.

The sense that her vision had gone dark lasted only a moment.

Soon, as her view brightened again, she slowly opened her eyes.

“Hello, Clea.”

“…Isaac.”

She sprang up from her seat.

Her real name wasn’t actually Clea, but somehow the name Clea Rino had become far more familiar to her now than Hyunseong.

She knew her original name was hard for him to pronounce, but still.

“S-so… have you been well?”

“No. Without you, it wasn’t enjoyable. Every single day was so dull I thought I might die.”

Isaac said this as he swiftly pulled her into his arms and seated her on his lap.

He was sitting on a chair at a table that looked as though it had appeared out of nowhere in the pure white space.

She blinked once and let out a low laugh.

“After quitting my job, I couldn’t think of anything but you. I waited all day today, too.”

He had only told her it would be a week—never when or how they would meet again.

Isaac chuckled softly and lightly pressed his lips to hers.

Everything was already settled.

All that remained was for her to step onto the platform.

If she didn’t, he’d been prepared to force it—but fortunately, that didn’t seem necessary.

“Seems you came to the same conclusion. So, have you made up your mind?”

“Yeah. Since I wasn’t clinging to anything, it was actually easier.”

There was no one she liked, no one she loved.

No family she regretted leaving behind, no friends she couldn’t part with.

Even she found it strange how perfectly the conditions were aligned.

“You might not enjoy it. You’ll be going to a world that isn’t yours. The food might not suit you, and you may not fit in with the nobles.”

“You can live however you want.”

Isaac replied calmly.

There was nothing she had to do. There was only one thing he desired.

He gently bit down on the nape of her neck with his teeth.

“If you don’t want to do anything, then don’t. Just stay by my side. That’s the only thing you need to do.”

“…I’ll turn into a leech at this rate.”

“That’s fine. I have a lot of money—and I always will.”

He’d resolved matters quietly, things that could have been finished in mere months if he’d caused a stir, all because of her.

The mask he wore was for the sake of a safe place for her.

“So… will you come to my world?”

“…Yeah. I will.”

She nodded with a faint smile.

From the moment she’d thrown away everything she had, there had only been one choice left.

After submitting her resignation like that, where could she even find another job?

Isaac pulled her tightly into his arms. A faint curve formed on his lips.

“What do I need to do?”

“You and I will form a contract. You can’t come here without a medium. I need something to anchor your soul to my world.”

“…But why make a contract with Isaac and not the Demon King?”

“You don’t want to become a demon, do you?”

At Isaac’s words, she pressed her lips together.

That was true.

She wanted to stand beside him as a human—not become a demon.

More than anything, serving a boss like the Demon King would probably give her stomach ulcers.

“Yeah… that’s true.”

“I’ll keep you by my side.”

“…If—just hypothetically—I end up breaking up with you, what happens to the contract?”

“The contract ends the moment you step onto the land of my world. It’s a brief, temporary contract. The Demon King said it would be nullified quickly.”

She nodded at Isaac’s explanation.

If it was a contract where neither side stood to lose, there was no real issue with proceeding.

Seeing her nod, Isaac smiled again.

“Then may I proceed?”

“Yeah.”

When she nodded, Isaac smiled.

He slowly rose, set her down on the floor, then bent at the waist and kissed her.

The kiss carried little sensation, but the faint warmth was unmistakable.

“You’ll return to your world. When the Demon King completes the formation, a magic circle will appear beneath your feet. Just stand on it.”

Isaac whispered softly into her ear.

His voice was sweet, gentle, as if gazing at something precious.

At the seductive tone, a smile formed on her lips.

“When I get there, I’ll be totally alone, won’t I?”

“Alone… what?”

“I mean, I look foreign. I’ll probably stand out.”

Isaac widened his eyes at her words, then smiled faintly.

He had listed her background as a minority from a distant island nation across the eastern sea, but prejudice like that would still exist.

“Don’t worry. The moment you stand by my side, no one will dare look at you that way.”

A chilling smile settled on Isaac’s lips.

Whoever it was—anyone who carelessly let her name pass their lips would not remain unharmed.

The moment she entered his world, every shield Clea Rino once had would disappear.

She would arrive with nothing but her body.

As Clea Rino, she’d possessed power—enough to handle things on her own.

But from now on, she would have nothing.

Which meant Isaac had no choice but to sharpen himself even more.

So her will to live would never break.

Draping a thick shawl of soft fur over her shoulders, he had no choice but to embed hidden thorns—ones visible only to the outside world.

“…Yeah. I hope so.”

Her voice clearly lacked conviction.

Without a word, Isaac stroked her back.

‘She doesn’t trust easily.’

Since she would have no one to rely on but him, Isaac had to protect her desperately.

“So you won’t lose the will to live.”

“The space will disappear soon. We’ll see each other again shortly.”

“Yeah. See you again.”

No sooner had they finished speaking than cracks began to form in the space once more.

Isaac gently brushed her cheek with his palm, then stepped back.

The space collapsed completely, and the world slowly faded away.

She slowly closed her eyes. Darkness returned.

The lightness of his body vanished in an instant, replaced by heaviness once more.

The sensation of a soul leaving and returning was still something he wasn’t used to.

Isaac slowly stood up.

“So? Is Clea coming?”

Eclipse asked hurriedly, as if he’d been waiting the whole time.

Judging by how frantic he looked, he’d clearly been pacing in place.

Isaac rubbed his head and nodded.

“Yeah.”

He turned his head to the side.

The Demon King sat on the sofa, leisurely stroking Pan’s hair as Pan knelt beside him.

After silently watching the visibly satisfied Demon King for a moment, Isaac spoke.

“You just need to carry out the contract, Demon King.”

“Of course.”

The Demon King stood up.

It had been a long time since he’d used magic on this scale.

Still, sacrificing the soul he’d secured would be enough to make up for any shortfall.

He lightly stomped the floor.

As a massive magic circle spread across the floor as if it had been waiting, Eclipse frowned.

Pan, who had been kneeling beneath the sofa, slowly rose as well.

“Contractor, once you drip your blood, the magic circle will activate. As I said before, this contract cannot be reversed.”

“I know.”

“Did she agree that she can never return?”

“I told her she couldn’t.”

There was only one chance anyway.

If crossing dimensions were that easy, countless people would have done it already.

Eclipse let out a slow sigh.

“Alright.”

Slice.

Isaac lightly cut his palm with a blade and answered as he let the blood drip onto the magic circle.

The circle instantly absorbed the falling blood and began to emit a red glow.