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Chapter 24
Under the pressure of I-shin’s words and attitude, the things that came out of Yeongwon’s mouth had long since stopped passing through her head.
And the moment she spoke them, an inexplicable silence fell.
Only then did Yeongwon realize what she had said; her face flushed uncontrollably red.
It was then—
“Miss! I brought the lantern! Look!”
From the far end of the narrow path, a bright lantern bobbed and swayed in the darkness.
Following the wavering light, Sorae came running, her hair flying.
Yeongwon gave Sorae a quick glance and looked forward again.
But the spot where I-shin had been standing just moments before was now completely empty.
“Miss! You don’t have to worry about finding the way back to the Guest Reception Hall anymore. This servant took a closer look at the route.”
Nodding at Sorae beside her, Yeongwon kept her eyes on the inner yard of Yeongyeongdang.
In the desolate main quarters—so barren they rivaled a haunted house, with not a single servant or even an ant in sight—she saw a dim lamp glowing.
Without realizing it, Yeongwon recalled how the people of the Geom clan treated I-shin.
They disliked him, despised him, ignored him, and avoided him like a plague.
I-shin was the head of the Geom clan—no exaggeration to say he was what held this marketplace together.
And yet, for the clan head to live in such a barren courtyard, where not even a blade of grass grew properly, made no sense.
She had lingered in front of Yeongyeongdang for a long time today.
Yet she hadn’t seen a single maid doing chores in the yard, nor any food being brought from the inner kitchen.
Though he was the master of this place, he seemed utterly isolated.
Why?
Led by Sorae’s hand back toward the Guest Reception Hall, Yeongwon turned at the end of the path to look back at I-shin’s Yeongyeongdang.
—
Everyone dies eventually.
—
That unburdened attitude—as if he had not a speck of regret left for life—caught at the edge of her heart and weighed down her steps.
“Miss, is that ‘Curse of the Dreaming Soul’ really a thing?”
Leaving only her undergarment and underskirt on, Yeongwon looked at Sorae pouring hot water into the bath.
“Have there really been people here who died after being afflicted by that curse?”
Hanging her clothes on the wooden rack at the side of the bathhouse, Yeongwon stepped closer to Sorae.
After setting the empty bucket down beside the tub, Sorae rolled her eyes as if mulling over what the curse was, then added,
“I don’t know who made that curse, but it sounds awfully sinister.”
“Sinister?”
“Of course it is. Out of all the curses there could be, why make someone dream of the most horrible and terrifying thing in their life? And then they say the dream drains their blood until they die.”
Pouting, Sorae shook her head as if it were truly vile.
She dipped her hand into the tub to test the temperature, nodded in satisfaction, and said,
“Miss, please get in.”
Wearing only her underskirt, Yeongwon took Sorae’s hand and stepped into the bath.
When Yeongwon curled up and sat down in the tub, Sorae immediately soaked a white cloth and wiped her shoulders.
But for some reason, Sorae’s hands soon slowed.
It was because the multicolored bruises scattered across Yeongwon’s arms and shoulders—from last night’s stone-throwing fight with the night spirits—caught her eye.
“Miss, does it hurt?”
“I’m fine. It’ll heal with time.”
If Yeongwon were still the precious jewel of the Ha family, such injuries would have been unthinkable.
Sorae knew that many things could no longer be the same as before.
Swallowing a heavy sigh, she changed the subject again.
“The person who made that curse must have been a very, very old elder of the Geom clan, right? Why would they make something like that?”
“Why are you so curious?”
“Of course I’m curious. You always say, Miss, that if you know your enemy and know yourself, you’ll always win. We have to know what it is and where it came from so you can avoid being forced to marry that pretty clan head, don’t we?”
With her eyes lowered, Yeongwon idly stirred the rippling water with her hand and let out a faint smile.
A pretty clan head, she said.
The words laid bare Sorae’s simple, innocent nature.
“Do you dislike the idea of me marrying that pretty clan head?” Yeongwon asked teasingly.
Sorae frowned as if thinking hard, then sighed.
“Of course, that clan head is astonishingly handsome and would suit you well, Miss. But I don’t like the idea of you marrying because you have no choice. That isn’t your dream.”
“…Dream?”
Yeongwon echoed, taken aback.
“Have you forgotten? What you said when I once asked what kind of partner you wanted.”
“…Did we ever talk about that?”
Lowering her eyes bitterly, Yeongwon reflected.
After what happened to her parents and the Daesang Merchant Guild, her only goal had been survival.
All her thoughts were consumed with staying alive, clearing her parents’ unjust name, and rebuilding the guild.
“Do you remember the Junior Seventh-Rank Clerk who visited your residence on your fifteenth birthday? His family’s son saw you by chance, took a liking to you, and came to ask whether you were already betrothed.”
“A Junior Seventh-Rank Clerk…?”
Yeongwon furrowed her brow at the faint memory.
“You heard about it in the women’s quarters and got anxious that the master might decide on the marriage without asking your opinion, so you ran all the way to the front yard.”
“Ah…!”
At Sorae’s words, the memory came back.
Yeongwon had burst in on her father as he chatted with the clerk and cried out—
—
Father! If you approve a marriage without even asking me, I will never marry! I don’t even know what kind of person that young master is, and I cannot entrust my entire life to someone who judges others by looks alone!
—
Though Yeongwon was famed for being gentle, warm, and intelligent, with her parents’ tacit indulgence she had always had strong opinions and a stubborn streak.
—
I will find someone I can cherish and love, just as you cherish Mother, and live together for a hundred years!
—
She had shouted so loudly that the clerk—just rejected in marriage talks—praised her, saying that despite her delicate appearance, the young lady was bold and spirited.
“You were so impressive then, Miss. I really hope you marry someone you can cherish and love, just like the master and madam.”
Someone she could cherish and love?
With her eyes lowered, Yeongwon lifted the corners of her lips faintly.
Sorae’s words brought to mind her parents, whose relationship had been so loving, and the thought that she would never see them again weighed on her chest like water-soaked cotton.
“Miss?”
“Who knows? I might come to love that pretty clan head.”
At Yeongwon’s joking remark, Sorae shook her head seriously.
“No way. Even if he’s handsome, his killing intent is too strong. I don’t know much, but when I stand in front of him, every hair on my body stands on end. Someone with such fierce killing intent doesn’t suit you, Miss.”
She nodded firmly, confident in her judgment.
Even if Sorae’s skills were only those of a novice, she had learned martial arts from the guards who protected the Ha family’s merchant guild.
So perhaps she sensed some current that Yeongwon could not.
“Huh? What is this…?”
“Why? What’s wrong?”
Sorae, who had been chatting lightly, suddenly stopped.
Turning to the side, she rubbed Yeongwon’s arm, then stared fixedly at her chest with a puzzled expression.
“Miss, there’s something strange here.”
“What is it?”
“It’s like….”
Following Sorae’s gaze, Yeongwon looked down.
Her underskirt, soaked through, did not fully conceal her jade-white skin.
On her left breast, slightly raised, was a tattoo that hadn’t been there before—right where it touched her beating heart.
Startled, Yeongwon tugged her underskirt down a little to fully reveal it.
“It really looks like… this is…?”
Sorae tilted her head this way and that, then suddenly opened her eyes wide.
“Miss, this looks just like a jade token! The ink-black jade token the master left behind! The betrothal jade token!”
At those unexpected words, Yeongwon raised her eyebrows in shock.
