Solo Leveling: Sung-Jin-Woo x Cha-Hae-In

I.Memories

To be honest, for 27 years, he was in the gap between the dimensions. He didn't feel anything but pure intent to kill his enemies. The Dragon Emperor's minions were a pain in the ass, and he cannot wait to finish the battle already. But... there are times when a certain person pops up in his mind that brings him back to reality, back to what was his reason for fighting these creatures and why he was there. And that makes him feel something else. Happiness? He doesn't know.

"Well, I won, right?"

Haein was waiting for his reply with an excited expression clearly etched on her face. Jinwoo stopped before her smile and issued a dignified order to his Shadow Soldiers.

'Shadows? Every one of you, close your eyes.'

[...][...]

While the soldiers were rightly feeling frustrated,.

Jinwoo slowly brought his lips closer and gently locked them with Haein's...

The white snowflakes continued to fall silently from the sky.

Haein tensed on the spot from the sudden kiss until she recovered from her shock a few seconds later, and she closed her eyes, savouring the kiss.

Jinwoo broke the kiss first, and he grinned widely at the woman, pulling her to him.

"Ha, you are one sneaky woman, aren't you?"

"Well, I... wait, you are the sneaky one! Kissing me suddenly. " Haein mumbled to him while trying to hide her blushing cheeks.

Jinwoo chuckled softly at the woman. 'Still so pure. Well, I can't help it. She won.' Smirking a bit, he made her look at him.

"I'll tell you everything now. Are you ready?"

"... yes, I am. I have been waiting for this for a long time, you know."

Haein was looking around for a place where they could talk; however, Jinwoo smiled a bit before placing his forehead against her, and he shared everything through his memories.

'My god..'

A short-haired woman was leisurely walking out of the gate. What caught his attention first was her big and clear eyes, adorning her makeup-free face. Her clear, white skin and perfect face were really eye-catching.

"Excuse me, but what are you doing here?"

Cha Haein... she's not normal... She was able to get on my back.

"Are you really a hunter?"

"From what I've heard, Hunter Cha is able to smell something from Hunters. It's apparently not a good smell."

He paused as he approached Cha Haein. His brows furrowed into a frown, and he felt a sinking sensation in his chest. 'Fuck, I didn't even notice! She's in way worse shape than I thought.'

Since the remaining life force is below 10%, The potion will not have any effect.

That winged ant had taken care to eliminate Cha Haein immediately because it had recognised that she was the only real threat among them.

But his joy and excitement were cut short. "Sung Jinwoo Hunter-nim... Hunter Cha Haein is..."

There was little hope left for the injured S-rank hunter. The situation was beyond dire. Jinwoo's face darkened as he heard what Baek Yoonho had to say.

"Can you turn off the camera for a moment?"

Cha Haein's eyes wandered around the room, unfocused, as she attempted to take in her surroundings. She took a deep breath and felt herself saturated with the scent of Sung Jinwoo. "Was Sung Jinwoo here?"

"Why are you willing to go through all of this? Surely you don't have to join my guild specifically?"

"Do you like me or something?"

"Yeah.. I think so."

"Then isn't there a better method than joining my guild?"

"Hey sis.. How does Oppa look to you? Like, as a man."

"Why did you run away after seeing me?"

"My car is... still in your parking lot."

"Can you free up some time so we can talk for a little while?"

"Your power, Sung hunter-nim..."

"Let me give you my number. In case you remember anything else, please, can you give me a call right away?"

"What is your relationship with Sung Jinwoo?"

"..A friend."

"To save Hunter Sung Jinwoo."

"What now? Where are you planning to go?"

"On a date."

"Miss Haein is the only friend I have."

"Hold on to me tight. We're going to fly now."

"I wanted to say thank you for everything. You've been helping me out all this time, so..."

'Indeed, this was enough for him.'

"There's something I want to show you."

"I thought that it'd be wonderful to share this night sky with someone else, you see."

"Can I... hold your hand?"

'As long as there is a reason for me to stay, even if it's just one, then...'

"There's someone I'd like to meet during the athletic meet, you see."

"Run without regrets. You only have one shot, right?"

"Excuse me, we... Have we met somewhere before?"

"The record for the preliminaries is about to take place; how about telling me the truth when I break that? Even if it's not right now."

Haein gasped. Memories flashed between her eyes, slowly making her remember everything that had happened from the past to the present. Jinwoo stared at her with a bit of worry in his eyes. 'Will it be too much for her? I forcefully gave her the memories.' Haein blinked and stared at Jinwoo for a long time before tears suddenly came out of her eyes.

[My liege! [Was it too much for her?]

Jinwoo started to panic and held Haein's shoulders. "Are you okay? Why are you crying?" Haein just continued to stare at him, and slowly she brought her hands up and cupped his cheeks.

"You... you had to endure it all this time? You were all alone. I'm sorry." She mumbled between her cries.

Jinwoo stared at her dumbfoundedly, but a few minutes later she started to smile. He pulled her in a tight embrace, stroking her back to calm her down.

"It's fine... I don't have any regrets."

Haein nodded and buried her face in his chest. She can't imagine the pain he felt from all these years of fighting those creatures all by himself just to go back to their world without anyone knowing about all of his sacrifices to save the world.

"Thank you for telling me..."

The Shadow Soldiers watching the scene from their leige's shadow rejoiced and expressed their happiness at their king's success. Jinwoo looked up at the night sky and smiled. Staying was really the best choice he made after all the challenges he faced. Perhaps, after everything, he really felt happy. He was sure of it.

To be continued...