At the End of the Hidden Greenery - Chapter 146

They had to be cautious when moving in her weakened state. Even increasing speed could put a strain on the human body. So, it was a relief that they had descended to the ground.

Since it was late at night and traveling with Helka in this state would be difficult, the group decided to stop and rest by making a small fire.

‘I thought we’d be able to return faster.’

It was frustrating that this situation occurred when they were so far from home. While there was no real problem with communication, given how keen their hearing was, it was fortunate that they had a good translator along this time.

However, the situation was still quite tricky because of Helka’s current state. It was much more troublesome than the time when Jiwoo had lost her strength before.

She was even starting to feel a bit hungry.

Jiwoo looked down at the basket she was carrying. The white chestnuts inside looked incredibly tempting and delicious.

But those were meant to be cooked with her husbands later. She had been planning to figure out what kind of dishes she could make with chestnuts when she got back—maybe looking at a recipe book.

Tevon, who had been keeping an eye on Jiwoo’s condition, asked,

“Seo Jiwoo, are you hungry?”

Although Tevon spoke, the meaning came through another man.

Jiwoo nodded. When she lost her power like this, even the Imperial language, which she thought she knew well, became hard to speak. Of course, understanding it was just as difficult.

Usually, when Jiwoo gave off the slightest sign of hunger, they’d immediately go hunting or gather something. But now, Tevon seemed hesitant to leave his post for too long.

If Helka was in his right mind, he would have been able to take care of things while Tevon went off. But with Helka in his current state, Tevon was unsettled.

After hearing multiple reassurances from the other two men that they would keep watch, Tevon finally left for a short while.

Now, only the four of them were left.

Kiss, kiss.

“Helka, stop.”

“…”

…. It’s not working.

There was an awkward silence between the two strangers, and the sounds of Helka’s affectionate gestures were making it incredibly uncomfortable.

If it were Akarna, a simple kiss with Helka would have instantly improved his condition. But with Jiwoo in her current state, she knew it wouldn’t help much.

It was strange—since she was no longer Akarna, there was no reason for Helka to act this way, yet he still clung to her.

Feeling awkward, Jiwoo decided to break the silence.

“Well… we don’t have much to do right now, so how about we try coming up with some names?”

“Sounds good.”

“I’ve been waiting for this.”

The situation was new for them as well, and Jiwoo felt both grateful and guilty that they were following along so quietly without asking questions.

Also, she should have explained something earlier…

“Helka tends to get like this when he’s not feeling well. If I was Akarna, I could heal him quickly, but it’s a bit tricky right now.”

They smiled at Jiwoo’s explanation.

“Yes, we’re somewhat aware of that.”

“Really? How so?”

“Because we’ve had some awareness while near the trees.”

Jiwoo remembered that Helka had explained before. Originally, they were some kind of energy form that moved around the trees.

“Then, does that mean you are like siblings? Since you’re both born from the same tree?”

“It’s similar, but a little different. We have someone who woke us up, you see.”

“Ah…”

So, did Lofrel leave behind a son? No, considering Lofrel attitude, that doesn’t seem to be the case. So, what exactly is this concept?

Jiwoo struggled to understand since she had always known that only asexual reproduction was absolute, making it hard to fully grasp.

But did Lofrel foresee something like this happening?

Lofrel had woken them up, saying it would be better for Jiwoo, and now, they were indeed a great help.

Even though Helka had ended up in this state, Jiwoo was relieved that she could still communicate fluently. That was definitely a comfort.

However, the appearance was a bit puzzling. Was that their personal taste?

Jiwoo had never really thought about it or imagined such a look before, so it seemed strange to her.

Anyway, Jiwoo turned to the blond man first and said,

“I was thinking on the way here, how about naming you ‘Marron’?”

“Marron?”

“It means ‘chestnut’ in another language.”

“This chestnut?”

He pointed to the basket, and Jiwoo nodded.

As she carried it, she kept thinking about the chestnut desserts she had eaten in the past, and the name just came to her.

The man, now named Marron, tilted his head, looking a bit puzzled, as if asking why the name was in a foreign language.

“If I named you in the original language, it would sound a bit strange… And this way, it’s somewhat similar to the names of my current husbands.”

“Sounds fine.”

It was a relief that Marron was satisfied with the name. At this point, ‘chestnut’ wasn’t just any chestnut, it had become a gift from Ellandos.

Jiwoo then turned her attention to the silver-haired man.

“How about ‘Night’ for you?”

“Does that have a meaning too?”

“Well, it also means ‘night.'”

“Night?”

Night was a very basic word. But it seemed like, even though they knew foreign languages, they could only speak the one language they were familiar with. So, even simple foreign words seemed unfamiliar to them.

“This means the night.”

Jiwoo pointed to the sky, which had already grown dark.

This wasn’t something she just thought of. In fact, she had considered it when she first met them. The blue skin, like the sky at dawn, was mysterious and beautiful. In contrast, their light hair seemed like stardust scattered on top.

Once they understood the meanings of their names’ they smiled.

It was a short conversation, but Jiwoo felt her heart flutter. It was a conversation she never expected to have while living in this world.

“I’m glad if the sound of it is to your liking. Helka also said it would be good to connect it with what I’m experiencing.”

“Anything you name will be fine.”

Marron said politely.

“And, technically, we have no right to refuse, right?”

Night added with a playful tone, making Jiwoo laugh.

* * *

[T/N: Their naming actually has a deeper meaning in the Korean but it lose its nuances in English. So, both chestnut and night is ‘bam’ in Korean. They’re homonyms (like can, which could be can-could or watering-can). So both names were derived from ‘bam’.]