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Chapter 34
In one hand, I carried a handmade fishing rod for Geumdeok.
In the other, a silk bundle filled with dasik sweets.
And hidden inside my robe was the slingshot I’d secretly tucked away.
Both hands were heavy, but my heart felt reassured.
And so, brimming with confidence as I returned to Chwiseondang, the first thing that greeted me was…
Those are Sukjeong’s shoes?
But then what’s the other pair?
Two pairs of shoes sat neatly in front of Huibin’s chambers.
Beside the embroidered cloud-patterned shoes Sukjeong often wore was a plain, rough pair of leather shoes.
I grabbed Seolhyang just as she was passing by and asked,
“Lady Seolhyang, who came to visit?”
“Oh, little lady. She arrived all of a sudden without even sending word ahead. She brought some female physician with her.”
“A physician?”
“Mm. Her Ladyship has been suffering because of her phlegm illness, right? Apparently this person is very skilled at treating it.”
Seolhyang rubbed my head affectionately.
“Looks like you got tasty treats again? I have to head to the royal kitchen, so go rest in your room.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
A physician, huh.
It was possible Sukjeong had truly brought in a talented healer from outside the palace, but—
I don’t believe that for a second.
And my instincts, which had started screaming at me, were soon proven correct.
***
“Lady Huibin. This is the shamaness Orye, the one I mentioned.”
At Sukjeong’s words, Orye—unable to hide her nervousness—immediately prostrated herself.
“This lowly one greets Your Ladyship.”
The shaman’s voice trembled violently.
Though she served the gods, a mudang was still considered among the lowest of the low.
Not only had she entered the palace in such a status, but now she stood before Huibin herself.
After all, Huibin had once been queen of this nation.
“So you are the famed shaman. I’ve heard much about you from Sukjeong.”
“Your words are too gracious. This humble one hardly knows where to place herself, Your Ladyship.”
“I have something to ask. When I drew the Five Direction Flags before, the yellow flag appeared three times in succession. I am deeply curious about its meaning. Interpret the omen for me.”
“Th-that is…”
A chill ran down Orye’s spine.
Ever since the day Sukjeong had taken the Five Direction Flags to Chwiseondang, Orye’s spiritual sight had become blocked.
When reading the fortunes of others, she could still hear the answers of the gods as usual.
Only Huibin’s fortune was different.
The child god Orye served remained stubbornly silent.
“Why do you not answer?”
“Th-the gods do not respond. This itself is a strange occurrence, so this humble one intends to seek the answer here in Chwiseondang today.”
“The gods do not answer?”
Huibin glanced suspiciously at Sukjeong, clearly dissatisfied.
Startled by the sharp look, Sukjeong hurriedly spoke.
“The more powerful the shaman, the deeper their bond with the gods. If the gods remain silent, there must surely be a reason. Please do not worry, Your Ladyship. Since Orye has entered the palace today, she will certainly provide you with an answer.”
Huibin still looked unconvinced.
Quickly changing the subject, Sukjeong continued,
“This humble one has been rude enough not to ask after Your Ladyship’s well-being. Have you been in peace these days?”
“Peace, you say? There has been much turmoil, though there was also good fortune.”
“Good fortune?”
“His Majesty visited Chwiseondang.”
“Oh! Congratulations, Your Ladyship!”
Seeing her opportunity, Sukjeong brought up the matter from before.
“You have not forgotten, have you? The secret charm Orye prepared and I delivered to you. The talisman showed its power. That is why His Majesty—”
“Not at all.”
Huibin cut her off coldly.
“I never used that talisman. From the very day I placed it beneath my pillow, my dreams became so unsettling I could not endure it.”
“Y-Your Ladyship…”
“The reason His Majesty came was not because of some talisman. It was all thanks to our little Bokdeongi.”
“B-Bokdeongi…?”
The unexpected nickname made Sukjeong blink in confusion.
Smiling softly, Huibin answered,
“Yes. Bokdeongi. Little court maid Hwang Bongbong.”
“….”
The moment Bongbong’s name was spoken, Sukjeong’s face hardened coldly.
“What happened for you to call that child such a name? How could a mere child have brought His Majesty here?”
“That is a private matter. I see no reason to explain every trivial detail to you.”
As always, Huibin never tolerated Sukjeong crossing the line.
“But I must say this much. Ever since Bongbong entered Chwiseondang, miraculous things have happened one after another. I truly cannot help but feel that a bundle of fortune rolled into my home.”
At that moment, Sukjeong practically cried out.
“But Your Ladyship! That Hwang Bongbong child is no ordinary child!”
“What do you mean she is no ordinary child?”
“Her energy is sinister, she is cunning beyond her years, and she behaves as though possessed by spirits—”
“Sukjeong!”
Huibin’s voice thundered with fury.
“How dare you! Bongbong is a child I cherish, and above all she belongs to Chwiseondang. How dare you slander a child with such words!”
“Y-Your Ladyship!”
“Sinister? Cunning? Possessed by ghosts? By what authority do you utter such wicked nonsense—!”
Sukjeong threw herself flat onto the floor.
“Your Ladyship! Why will you not understand this humble one’s loyalty? That child is truly suspicious. I dared not speak of it before, but I witnessed her ghost-like behavior with my own two eyes!”
“I do not wish to hear it! Will you continue this insolence?”
“J-just once! Only once, I beg you. Please bring the child before Orye. Her true nature will surely reveal itself.”
“What?”
“Your Ladyship, please… if only for the sake of the bond between us, if only for the suffering of my husband, your servant’s elder…”
In the end, she even invoked the name of Huibin’s brother, Jang Huijae.
Staring coldly at Sukjeong, Huibin said,
“I cannot understand this. What could a mere four-year-old child possibly have done to warrant such madness?”
Then she called toward the outside.
“Head Court Lady Han, are you there?”
“Yes, Your Ladyship.”
“Go and bring Bongbong here.”
“Yes, I obey.”
The careful sound of footsteps faded away.
Even then, Huibin continued glaring at Sukjeong with burning anger before speaking again.
“As you wished, I have ordered Bongbong brought here.”
“Yes, Your Ladyship. I am deeply grateful. I shall certainly reveal that child’s true identity—”
Huibin cut her off sharply.
“I have granted your request, so you must prove your accusations.”
“Prove… them?”
“Yes. Prove this ‘true nature’ you speak of.”
“…”
Sukjeong timidly raised her head.
Meeting Huibin’s fierce gaze, she trembled.
“She belongs to my residence. Which means she is my person. If you cannot prove the slander you have spread about that child…”
Huibin lowered her voice in warning.
“Then you, too, shall pay dearly for wagging that tongue of yours.”
***
“Oh, Bongbong. So you were here after all.”
Those were Head Court Lady Han’s words when she spotted me standing in the courtyard.
“Lady Huibin summons you. Come to her chambers.”
“Right now?”
“Yes. Hurry along.”
No matter how things turned out, a confrontation with Sukjeong was inevitable.
That was precisely why I had remained in the courtyard instead of returning to my room.
But I had never expected a meeting like this.
Huibin, Sukjeong, and the mysterious visitor Sukjeong claimed was a physician.
To think I would walk straight into the middle of those three.
Filled with curiosity, I followed Court Lady Han to Huibin’s chambers.
“Lady Huibin. I have brought little court maid Hwang.”
“Let her enter.”
The paper doors slid open to either side.
I seized the brief moment to quickly scan the room.
Huibin smiling warmly at me.
Sukjeong glaring sharply in my direction.
And beside Sukjeong, a woman with her head lowered…
She’s definitely not a physician.
The moment I saw her, I became certain. That same powerful instinct struck again.
Most importantly, if she were truly a physician, she should have been carrying medicine pouches or acupuncture tools.
Huibin herself certainly didn’t look like a patient either.
At that moment, Sukjeong jabbed the woman beside her.
“That’s the child. That child is Hwang-ga. Hurry and examine her, Orye.”
…Orye.
The shaman recorded in history alongside Sukjeong as one of the masterminds behind the “Curse Against Queen Inhyeon Incident.”
The very mudang said to have performed rituals praying for the queen’s death, using dolls and animal corpses for curses.
At Sukjeong’s prompting, Orye’s long, slanted eyes turned toward me.
Our gazes met directly.
Orye had an unsettling face.
Her faint, nearly vanished eyebrows and strangely gleaming eyes gave her an eerie appearance.
Honestly, she was terrifying.
But I refused to back down.
No matter how powerful a shaman she might be, no matter if she could sense things beyond human perception, no matter how wicked she was—
I will never retreat, and I will win this fight against you.
Because I have to survive.
Then it happened.
…What?
Orye, who had been staring fixedly at me, suddenly began trembling violently as though seized by convulsions.
Her pupils expanded into terrifying pools of black.
Watching this, Huibin clapped a hand over her mouth in shock.
As though caught in some invisible force, Orye’s body shook uncontrollably.
Then suddenly she screamed at the top of her lungs—
“Gods!”
