Chapter 164: [164] Shivers

The party ended up lasting well past 12 AM the next morning, after which the players began to leave.

Ark and Soo-jin were standing in front of a convertible sports car with crystal clear red lights, a curvy body that made it look like a panther mid-leap, and a spoiler that peaked from the back, before bending in an L-shape backwards.

Judging by its colour—black with white streaks—it was not hard to tell who owned the car. But currently, Hisako was in the driver’s seat, while Great sat in the passenger’s side.

Isabella and Satella were seated at the back.

"Drive safely." Soo-jin waved at her siblings before stepping away from the vehicle.

"Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?" Hisako asked, "It’s already pretty late, you know?"

"She’s right, Miss Soo-jin." Isabella looked worried. "Will you be okay driving back alone?"

Soo-jin shook her head. "You guys don’t need to worry about me. I’m going to stay back with Ark, there are a lot of things we have to..."

She paused briefly.

"Discuss."

???

Ark nearly gasped. ’Why did she pause at that exact moment?’

Was she really that dense when it came to things like this? Or was she doing it on purpose?

Great’s teeth were clenched so hard that his jaw muscles and veins pulsed by the side of his face.

"Ohoho. I see." Hisako’s eyes darted between the two of them. "Well, you love birds, have fun."

"Y-you have the wrong idea, that is not—" Ark tried to explain, but Hisako cut him off.

"Mhehe. I know." She bounced her brows.

"Actually." Great grabbed the door handle. "I think I’ll stay back, I have a lot of things to discuss... about the guild... and stuff."

He reached for the door handle, but Hisako grabbed his hand and pulled it back, just before she stepped on the gas.

"Wait!!!!" Ark could hear Great scream as the car zoomed off, the engine roaring like thunder in the distance.

Soo-jin smiled. "Shall we?"

"Shall we what?" Ark frowned. She had not even told him they would be staying back until they got outside.

"Just follow me, I’ll show you..." she said, already walking forward. Ark stared at her back for a few seconds, wondering if it was a bad idea, before hurrying to catch up to her.

Soo-jin ended up leading him back to the association’s arena. She slipped out a key from her inventory and opened the door.

The moment the door swung open, countless lights came on, washing the room in a bright glow. The signs of Ark’s earlier duel were still very much present.

The blood and debris had been cleaned off, but the patches of missing earth and the scorch marks would take a little more time to fix.

Ark eyed the room skeptically.

"Before you think I’m doing anything illegal, I got permission from Tristan to be here."

He shrugged. "I didn’t say anything."

"Your eyes told me enough."

They walked onto the stage and Soo-jin began trying to tie her hair up in a bun. "I’m assuming you know why we are here?" She raised her head to ask.

Ark smiled, and then Mountain appeared behind him, stamping his large shield into the floor.

Once again, his shield split apart, and multiple swords began to slowly rotate around him. Ark stared at the weapons. There was a jian, a rapier, a longsword, a Sabre and a katana.

"You want to see how strong I have become, don’t you?" Ark asked in an amused tone.

Soo-jin smirked, her hands still working on her hair. "You know me too well."

"Wasn’t my battle with Cain enough of a demonstration?" He had fought twice in one night alone, it should have been enough for her to make a reasonable evaluation.

Soo-jin shook her head. "Why use second hand information? When I can personally feel your sword push against me?"

"..."

"Uhum..." Ark cleared his throat and picked the Katana. His scythe would have to sit back for now, the weapon was something he only brought out during the most serious situations, and death often followed it.

Ark waited a few more seconds, then frowned. "What are you doing?"

She had been playing with her hair for a good five minutes now. How long did it take to tie up hair?

Soo-jin finally gave up with a sigh, allowing her hair to fall, some of the strands covering part of her face.

"Help me."

Ark sighed then tossed his sword back at Mountain. The weapon flew into the air, just before it was pulled back to join the rest, as though drawn by some sort of magnetic field.

"Don’t you know how to tie up your own hair?" Ark asked as he got behind her. He was about to begin, when a nice scent, like that of lavender, slowly drifted into his nose.

He paused, for a brief second, then continued, his hand moving underneath the cotton white strands. They were just by her neck, so when he held them, he exposed parts of her flawless skin that had been hiding underneath it.

There were finger-shaped spots all over the skin, marks left by her earlier struggles.

Strangely—Ark drew his thumb above the skin, his fingers inches away from it—he felt like touching it, rubbing his hands over it.

"Having so much hair is—" Soo-jin suddenly spoke, shifting her head slightly and causing his thumb to rest over his skin.

It felt as though lightning had coursed through his body, and Ark was sure Soo-jin felt the same thing, because both of them grew still. Silent.

Ark swallowed, cautioning his racing heart that he could not explain.

He had done this a thousand times, Cracker was not exactly the most lady-like person, and Bronya was too busy to bother with her hair.

So why did this feel different?

The texture of her hair beneath his fingers, like soft clouds thinned out to strand, the sound of her ragged breath that she desperately tried to hide...

Ark ran his finger over her skin, slowly.

A few seconds passed between them.

"Does it hurt?"

More time went by.

"No."

Ark went to work, pulling her hair back, piling it atop each other. He did not rush, he took his time, perfecting it.

"You seem to be very good at this..." Soo-jin managed to say after a short while.

"Mmhm..." Ark hummed in response. "I’ve had a lot of practice."

"Hehhh..." she joked softly. "Have you done this with other girls?"

"Sisters." Ark laughed. "I have sisters."

"Fair enough."

He stretched his hand in front of her, and Soo-jin took the hair tie out from beneath her fangs, and placed it on his hand.

Their skin touched. Yet another reaction.

But Ark had a job to do. He wrapped the tie around her hair, keeping it upright, before taking a few steps back to admire his handwork.

"Done."

Soo-jin glanced over her shoulder, her red eyes gleaming with something he couldn’t understand, and her cheeks flushed ever so slightly, a sight that would likely keep him awake for days after this.

"How do I look~?"