I PICKED UP A CHILD IN A DUMPSTER-Chapter 96: The Red Mage.

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(Ryu Sarah — awake.)

Sarah slowly stirred.

At first, she didn’t move, her mind still foggy with sleep. The soft crackling of torches echoed faintly through the cavern while the cold morning air brushed lightly against her skin.

Groggily, she blinked her eyes open.

For a moment she just stared ahead, trying to remember where she was.

Then her gaze shifted.

And she saw him.

Si Hon.

He was still asleep.

Her arm was wrapped around him, her hand loosely gripping the fabric of his shirt. Her head rested comfortably against his arm, using it like a pillow.

"Oh."

Sarah froze.

Slowly— very slowly, she untangled herself from him, carefully sliding her arm away as if she were trying not to wake some dangerous creature.

Si Hon didn’t react.

He just kept sleeping peacefully.

A small line of drool had escaped from the corner of his mouth.

Sarah stared at it.

Then a quiet laugh slipped out.

"That’s... haha..."

She covered her mouth for a moment, trying not to laugh too loudly.

After a second, curiosity took over.

She leaned closer.

Her finger reached out and gently poked his cheek.

Poke.

"Why does it feel like..." she murmured quietly to herself.

She poked him again.

"I’m comfortable around you?"

Her brow furrowed slightly.

"We literally just met... like... last night..."

Si Hon stirred a little in his sleep but didn’t wake up.

Sarah leaned closer, resting her chin on her hand as she studied his face more carefully.

Up close, she noticed things she hadn’t before.

His eyelashes.

The faint scratch on his cheek.

The way his breathing rose and fell slowly.

Her eyes softened slightly.

"Woah... You’re actually handsome."

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

She tilted her head.

Then, almost without realizing it, she leaned in even closer.

Just a little more.

And a little more—

BANG!

The cavern door slammed open.

Sarah instantly snapped her head toward the entrance.

A woman stepped inside.

She wore a long crimson dress that flowed down to the stone floor, the color so deep it almost looked like fresh blood in the torchlight. Her hair was tied into a tight bun, and in one hand she held a tall mage’s staff carved with strange glowing symbols.

Her presence alone seemed to fill the room with tension.

Sarah’s expression changed instantly.

The calm, composed Munches King vanished in a second.

In her place was just a flustered girl waving both hands wildly in the air like she was trying to erase reality itself.

"M-misunderstanding!!" she blurted out, nearly tripping over her own words as her face rapidly turned red.

The woman who had just burst into the room, however, didn’t react with the seriousness one might expect from someone carrying a mage’s staff.

Instead, her eyes slowly drifted past Sarah.

Toward the bed.

Toward Si Hon.

Still sleeping.

Still drooling slightly.

Still completely unaware of the chaos forming around him.

The woman raised a hand to her mouth, her eyes widening with theatrical curiosity.

"Ara...?" she murmured.

Then her brows lifted even higher.

"Ara?"

Another step forward.

"Ara, Ara, Ara???"

Without another word, she casually walked back to the door and locked it behind her with a soft clang. Her staff was leaned gently against the stone wall like it was just another piece of furniture.

Then—

She ran.

With surprising speed, the woman dashed toward the bed and threw herself onto it with a dramatic plop, the mattress bouncing slightly from the impact.

"ああ,サラ!" she gasped dramatically, leaning her face dangerously close to Sarah’s. "この男は誰なの!?" she slowly pointed toward the man.

Sarah blinked.

"ಠ⁠_⁠ಠ Speak normally."

The woman paused.

Her expression shifted into a sheepish smile.

"(⁠.⁠ ⁠❛⁠ ⁠ᴗ⁠ ⁠❛⁠.⁠)... Oh. Sorry, sweety."

Without missing a second, she wrapped an arm around Sarah’s shoulders and pulled her closer like they were sharing some juicy secret. Then she extended her other hand and pointed directly at the sleeping Si Hon once again.

"Anyway," she whispered loudly, "who’s this guy~?"

Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully as she leaned closer to inspect him.

"Wait."

She tilted her head.

"He seems... familiar."

A pause.

Then she shrugged dramatically.

"But honestly I don’t care."

She poked Si Hon’s cheek.

Poke.

"He’s handsome."

Poke.

Another poke.

"Very handsome~"

Si Hon’s sleeping face twitched slightly, his brows knitting together in irritation as if his brain was trying to process the disturbance without fully waking up.

The woman gasped in delight.

"Woah!"

She clapped her hands together quietly.

"Look at that! Even his frown is pretty!"

She leaned even closer now, practically hovering over him with sparkling curiosity.

"Oh my god, Sarah..." she whispered dramatically. "I didn’t know you were into this type."

Her eyes flicked back toward Sarah with mischievous amusement.

"Wait."

A pause.

"Aren’t you nineteen?"

Another pause.

"Oh well. You’re old enough but, don’t we still have a mission?"

By this point Sarah’s face had reached a shade of red that could compete with lava.

"A-AUNTY HYUNA!!" she exploded.

In one swift movement she shoved the woman sideways.

Hyuna gave a small "Oof!" as she toppled onto the bed beside Si Hon, landing half sideways across the mattress.

Meanwhile Sarah stood there flustered beyond belief, frantically trying to explain while aggressively avoiding eye contact.

"It’s not like that!" she insisted, scratching her cheek awkwardly. "He just—"

She gestured vaguely toward the unconscious, uncomfortable Si Hon. "randomly entered my room!"

Another pause.

"And..."

Her voice dropped a little.

"I helped him."

Behind her, Hyuna had already propped her head up on one hand while lying next to the still-sleeping Si Hon.

She stared at him thoughtfully.

Then slowly...

Very slowly...

She reached over and poked his cheek again.

Poke.

"Mhm."

Another poke.

"Yep."

She nodded with great seriousness.

"Still handsome."

.

.

And!!! Cliffhanger!!! Yea fr, fr, now... S h a l l w e, m a k e I t m I s u n d e r s t andjng? O r... Damn sorry for this btw... I still have fever and tis been 3days.