TKEP 13

Chapter 13

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It was the kind of café with such a good location and atmosphere that it was strange there were no customers.

Parents who had just dropped off their kids at school, office workers stepping out for a short break, or people out for a walk who might wander in by chance—any of them could have been here. And yet, the place was empty, so naturally one might think—

‘Did he rent the entire café…? Has he been watching too many dramas?’

It felt like a bit of a waste of money, but since it seemed like Seo-jun had put in effort for their date, Yeon didn’t feel displeased. The corners of her lips were just about to curl upward—

“I didn’t rent it. This place just doesn’t get customers in the morning.”

The thrill shattered instantly.

Yeon stuck out her lower lip, then tucked it back in when Seo-jun gave a small chuckle at the sight.

“The owner roasts their own beans and hand-drips the coffee here. If you tell me the flavor or aroma you like, I’ll pick the beans for you.”

“A taste that clears away a stifling feeling. Like dongchimi.”

“Understood.”

Even when she teased him, Seo-jun was unfazed.

It started to bother her—she felt like she was the only one running around putting in the effort here.

‘Even if it’s a contractual relationship, we’re still dating and getting married—shouldn’t he be a bit more affectionate?’

Just a few days ago, he’d said they should make it feel real, asking her suggestive questions that made an innocent woman blush.

Yeon glared at Seo-jun’s broad back, which was as refreshing to look at as a cool breeze.

He was leaning slightly against the café bar, chatting with the owner like they knew each other well.

A moment later, he returned holding a small plate of handmade chocolates.

“You like chocolate, right? This is over 75% cacao.”

“How did you know?”

“I did some studying.”

“Not bad for cramming.”

Yeon picked up a piece with her fingers and popped it into her mouth.

Seeing her so unguarded, Seo-jun smiled and offered her a handkerchief.

Yeon accepted it naturally, wiped her fingers, and then tucked it into her bag.

“I don’t like cramming.”

“Oh? Then are you saying you’ve been interested in me for a long time?”

Seo-jun shrugged.

The “studying” had just been a joke—“cramming” wasn’t the right word either.

It was more like information about her had seeped into him over time, like clothes getting wet in a drizzle.

She was a sort of celebrity the press loved to follow, and they never stopped talking about her because she brought in views.

Seo-jun had never deliberately sought her out, but whenever news about her came up, his ears would perk up.

And the things he learned stuck with him.

“I’ll wash this one and the one you gave me before, and keep them at Nakseonjae.”

“Most people would say they’ll return it.”

“Well, you’re going to be living at Nakseonjae anyway.”

“Ah…”

Seo-jun paused.

“What? You don’t like Nakseonjae? Well, too bad. If we were to set up a bridal room in another hall, we’d have to renovate, and that would delay the wedding. I want to get married quickly.”

Her voice was loud enough to be like shouting to the whole neighborhood, ‘I’m marrying this man!’

Anyone overhearing might think she was desperate to marry him out of sheer love.

“That’s right. You want to get married quickly.”

Repeating her words, the tips of Seo-jun’s ears turned red.

‘Is he hot?’

Yeon looked for curtains, but at the sunlit window, there were none.

Just then, their iced coffee arrived.

The owner recognized Yeon as a princess but merely nodded in greeting without making a fuss.

This was the first time she had been treated this way, and it made her feel more at ease.

Noticing her smile, Seo-jun said,

“I didn’t rent the café, but I did ask the owner for a favor—not to cause a stir. I heard you sometimes wish no one would recognize you.”

“How do you know that? I’ve never said that in an interview.”

“A long time ago, someone told me.”

Seeing his expression flicker briefly, Yeon guessed the person he was talking about was Ji-young.

The way he remembered even small things melted away the quiet resentment that had been building in her.

At the same time, she became curious about what conversations Ji-young and Seo-jun had shared.

‘I wonder what she said about me.’

When Yeon had lived with Ji-young, she had been young—thirteen years old.

‘She probably didn’t say only nice things…’

With her unusual birth and peculiar family makeup, the young Yeon who dreamed big had been far from an easy child.

Still, she felt certain Ji-young hadn’t spoken ill of her.

After all, Ji-young had only ever spoken well of Seo-jun too.

Of course, maybe that was because he was perfect—but that was something to figure out later.

“Try the coffee. It’s not dongchimi, but I think you’ll like it.”

He sounded confident.

Yeon took a cautious sip and blinked in surprise—it was exactly to her taste.

Pleasantly tangy, with a nutty note.

And…

She inhaled deeply.

“It has a coconut scent.”

“Good nose.”

“I’m good at a lot of things. By the way, you know you have to submit your medical exam records, right? If there’s anything that needs to be altered, tell me in advance. Same for other areas.”

Becoming an official consort of the imperial family wasn’t as simple as she’d expected.

She had to prove her life in paperwork.

From basic residency and family registers to degree certificates, military service records, criminal background checks, tax payment certificates, real estate contracts, debt confirmations—the pile of required documents was enormous.

One of them was a full medical exam report.

In a way, becoming a royal consort was like becoming a high-ranking civil servant.

She’d thought a standard government employment health check would suffice, but no—they required a full hospital work-up from at least a secondary hospital, including detailed test results.

When Seo-jun had first seen the list, he’d been speechless.

It was as if the palace intended to examine him down to the cellular level.

“Are you saying you’re worried about my health? You can tell just by looking at me. Do I look sick to you?”

He gave a short laugh, as if he’d heard something ridiculous.

Yeon rested her chin on her hand and scanned him from head to toe.

“Well, I’ve only seen the outside. I haven’t seen the inside, have I?”

Seo-jun tilted his head slightly.

From the moment they first met, he’d noticed—Yeon’s provocations were skilled.

If it had been another man, not someone who’d known her since she was young, he might have been so tempted he’d start unbuttoning his shirt to show her everything.

But to Seo-jun, her teasing was merely cute.

“Leave the inside to the X-ray. Should we do a CT too?”

Since he met her banter with literal replies, it killed the fun.

Yeon straightened her back and just drank her coffee.

The cool drink calmed her mind, and suddenly she remembered something.

“You told your family, right? That you’re marrying me? What did they say?”

She wondered if his two days of silence had been because his family locked him up in opposition to the marriage.

Curious about the reason for his silence, she asked.

Seo-jun avoided her eyes and sipped his coffee.

“You were locked up for opposing the marriage, weren’t you?”

“No.”

“You didn’t get your head shaved either… Did they hit you?”

“Sounds like the Crown Prince is living in the Joseon era, not the Princess. Who shaves heads these days for opposing a marriage? And as you can see, I’m perfectly fine.”

He ran his hand through his thick hair.

“Then why no contact for two days?”

“I was busy getting permission for the marriage.”

As she had suspected, Seo-jun’s father had immediately objected to his sudden announcement.

Beside him, his mother kept her lips pressed shut.

It wasn’t just that she wasn’t allowed to speak in their family—Seo-jun knew from her eyes alone.

His mother would ultimately follow his father’s will.

She had lived her whole life that way.

“He said he doesn’t like me? Why?”

Kang Bae-shim’s reason for opposing the marriage was simple and outdated:

“A man should never marry into a marriage where he has to bow.”

He wasn’t worried about his son being mistreated in the palace—he simply didn’t want to bow to his daughter-in-law.

A man filled to the bone with a sense of superiority, who only knew how to look down on others, would find it impossible to bend to anyone.

‘That could be fun.’

Seo-jun could almost picture his father grimacing as he bowed to Yeon.

That image made him want to see this marriage happen even more.

“Never mind. I don’t want to hear the reason—it’ll just make me angry. More importantly, how did you convince him?”

Her bright voice brought him out of his thoughts.

“I told you, right? Either create a situation where they absolutely can’t oppose, or persuade them.”

“And how did you persuade him?”

“Why do you assume I succeeded in persuading him? Persuasion takes a lot of time and effort. I don’t like wasting either.”

He never gave her a straight answer.

In the end, the thirsty one had to dig the well.

“Tell me, so I can use it for reference.”

Her voice was almost pleading.

Seo-jun tapped his lips thoughtfully, then finally replied.

“Blackmail. Find a weakness they absolutely can’t have revealed, and use it.”

His expression was surprisingly fresh as he admitted to blackmailing his father.

It was Yeon who struggled to keep her face straight.

Seo-jun reached over to pat her hand on the table—as if to say, don’t be too shocked yet.

“Didn’t you say His Majesty was against me?”

At some point, the café was empty except for them. The owner had quietly given them the space.

Seo-jun leaned forward, scanning the area even though no one else was around, and lowered his voice.

“Want me to give you a weapon?”

Yeon instantly knew what “weapon” meant.

A weakness of Emperor I-beom.

Her curiosity flared, but she held it back.

Surely he wasn’t offering proof of some scandal about the Crown Prince—that wouldn’t work, since the Emperor already knew about it.

A secret known to its owner couldn’t be used as a weapon.

She narrowed her eyes and studied him.

The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed that Seo-jun would even have something that could corner the Emperor.

And even if he did, it was suspicious that he’d offer it to her so readily—especially when they’d agreed each would handle their own family’s opposition.

‘Is he joking? Or is he fishing to see if I know the Emperor’s weakness?’

She looked up into his eyes.

The moment their gazes met, her shoulders gave a slight jolt.

 

The smooth, pebble-like eyes now carried the glint of a cold predator.