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Chapter 41
When I followed the butterfly, a beautiful garden appeared.
I stopped in my tracks and widened my eyes.
‘This place is…’
I knew where this was.
“The Sahwa Garden!”
Sahwa Garden (四和園) was a vast garden within the Tang family estate, where a small amount of medicinal and poisonous herbs were also cultivated.
To be exact, it was closer to a field than a garden.
Since the phrase “cultivating fields” didn’t sound elegant for a martial family, they simply called it a garden instead.
In any case, Sahwa Garden was an important place within the Tang clan.
It was also responsible for managing Cheondok Forest, the poisonous forest owned by the Tang family.
That was why entry to the garden was strictly controlled.
Of course, I could enter now if I wanted to…
But still, it didn’t feel right to go in without permission.
Besides, I had already wandered far too far from my quarters without saying a word.
‘I should go back quickly.’
If I didn’t return soon, Father would worry.
Maybe the servants were already searching for me by now.
Just as I was about to turn back with some regret—
“Oh my?”
Someone caught hold of me.
Startled, I looked up.
“Ah?”
“It’s Bia.”
Tang Soyong, dressed in layers of crimson and green outer robes, smiled brightly.
“Aunt?”
“What brings you here… Oh my!”
Her eyes widened when she spotted the butterfly fluttering nearby.
She reached out with a radiant smile.
“It’s a Dokinjup (Poison-Scaled Butterfly), isn’t it? Why are these little ones all the way out here?”
“Aunt, do you know these butterflies?”
“Of course. They’re raised here in Sahwa Garden. They rarely ever leave this place though…”
Tang Soyong pulled out a silk pouch from her sleeve.
When she opened it with practiced hands, the butterflies fluttered into the pouch as if enchanted.
Tying the pouch’s opening securely, she turned back to me.
“You must’ve followed them here, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I was resting when these butterflies started fluttering around me.”
“Perhaps they came to fetch you — just like your Manhyeolsa did.”
She smiled brightly.
By now, it seemed to be accepted throughout the Tang family that I wasn’t just immune to poison like the Manhyeolsa, but possessed an even rarer constitution — that of the Poison Spirit Body (독령지체).
“Since you’ve come all this way, shall I show you around Sahwa Garden?”
“Would that be all right?”
“Of course. I’ll show you where the Dokinjup are raised. I’ll let your father know myself.”
When she gestured, a maid working in the garden hurried over.
“Go tell Jinhyeon that I’ll be keeping Bia with me for a while.”
My aunt glanced at me and added,
“Tell him not to worry — she seems perfectly healthy.”
“Yes, Lady Vice Master.”
The maid rushed off, and my aunt held out her hand to me.
“Shall I hold your hand?”
“Huh? Oh—yes!”
After a moment of hesitation, I gently took her hand.
It was the first time I’d ever held a woman’s hand, aside from the maids.
Her hand wasn’t perfectly soft, but it smelled lovely.
‘Is she wearing a sachet?’
That question was soon answered — because once I stepped into Sahwa Garden, I smelled the same fragrance.
‘So it’s the scent of the garden.’
A sweet fragrance filled the air everywhere.
I remembered Father once saying that anything poisonous was often beautiful, alluring, and fragrant.
‘He was right — it really is fragrant.’
Sahwa Garden was vast, filled with a dazzling variety of herbs.
Servants and maids, their hands and clothes smeared with dirt, bustled about busily, spreading the fragrance even more.
They carried bundles of plants, watered them, and moved things from one place to another.
My aunt softly wrapped her arm around my shoulders as we watched.
“It’s not usually this busy here.”
“Why is it so busy today?”
“Once a month, they reorganize all the herbs and record everything in the ledgers.”
“Oh, so that’s today!”
“That’s right.”
She replied lightly and led me deeper into the garden.
Following her, I soon saw a small greenhouse.
“The Dokinjup are in here.”
Holding the silk pouch, Tang Soyong opened the door.
I carefully stepped inside.
The greenhouse wasn’t very large, but its ceiling was high, so it didn’t feel cramped.
“They’re raised here. They’re a delicate and sensitive species, so access is restricted.”
I turned to look around the interior of the greenhouse.
But the butterflies that had followed me earlier were nowhere to be seen.
“Aunt, I don’t see a single one.”
“That’s because the Dokinjup are nocturnal.”
It was midday, and the sun was high.
Even though little sunlight reached inside, they still seemed to sense the time.
“So I can’t see them right now?”
“There’s a way to call them out.”
Tang Soyong untied the string of the silk pouch in her hand.
As it opened, the three Dokinjup that had followed me began to flutter into the air.
The greenhouse was dim like dusk, so the faint glow of their wings was clearly visible.
“Dokinjup live in clusters. Once a few wake up…”
Whoosh—
A faint breeze brushed my cheek.
Then dozens of butterflies rose into the air, their wings glowing softly.
In an instant, the entire greenhouse filled with light as they fluttered up toward the high ceiling.
The three that had followed me joined them naturally.
“So that’s why the ceiling is so high…”
“Exactly.”
My aunt gently squeezed my shoulder.
“The Dokinjup carry a deadly venom, but they actually have many natural enemies — that’s why there aren’t many left.”
“Because they’re easy to spot even in the dark?”
“Yes. Their wings are covered in poisonous scales that glow faintly in the dark, which makes them beautiful but also easy targets.”
When she held out her hand, one of the butterflies landed on her finger.
“That’s why beauty can be a weakness sometimes.”
I watched its wings flutter, then carefully extended my own hand.
At once—
Flutter.
Two Dokinjup perched gently on my finger, folding and unfolding their wings.
Their shimmering scales quivered faintly.
“They landed on me too!”
“You really must have a special constitution.”
My aunt bent down and softly clasped my hand, and more butterflies began to gather around us, landing on both our hands.
“My hand has a special nectar on it — the Dokinjup love it.”
“Oh, so that’s why they gathered!”
“Yes. But you didn’t use any nectar, and still they came to you…”
She slowly released my hand.
Yet the butterflies didn’t leave — they sat calmly on my fingers.
There were nearly ten of them.
As their glowing wings fluttered together, they looked almost like a bouquet of living flowers.
“It must be because of your rare constitution.”
“Wow…”
I could feel their potent venom clearly.
It was my first time sensing such concentrated poison from a living creature — it was fascinating.
That must be why entry to the greenhouse was so strictly limited.
Ordinary people probably couldn’t withstand this venom.
To remain unharmed among these butterflies, one likely had to be of the Tang family’s direct bloodline.
“With permission from Sahwa Garden, the Dokinjup can even be used as weapons.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You can keep them in a silk pouch like this and release them when needed.”
She showed me the inside of the pouch — a faint transparent substance was smeared there.
“It’s coated with nectar that attracts the Dokinjup, so they’ll fly right into it when called.”
And just as she said, the butterflies began fluttering back into the pouch.
She smiled as she tied it shut and tucked it into her sleeve.
“They’re not as versatile as the Manhyeolsa, but used at the right time, they make an exceptional weapon.”
Then she glanced at me.
“If you’d like, I could give you this pouch and nectar.”
I blinked, caught off guard.
“M–Me? You’d give it to me?”
She nodded with a smile.
“Yes. How about joining the Sahwa Garden?”
The Master of Sahwa Garden oversaw even the Cheondok Forest’s management.
Thus, the Garden Master and her deputy wielded considerable authority.
Even working in the Sahwa Garden came with prestige.
The servants there were treated better than most — on par with the apothecary staff, maybe even higher.
But still—
“Ah, I think that would be a little difficult…”
I said shyly, twisting my body with an awkward smile.
