Chapter 5

On the road to the Ink King’s Castle.

The sound of the carriage wheels echoed along the road.

Beneath the myeokri, Seoheon’s gaze quietly turned toward the carriage.

“Thanks to Your Highness, I was able to survive.”

He had expected resentment.

Everyone who encountered a monster usually turned pale and became overwhelmed with fear.

He thought she would blame him for bringing her to the Ink King’s Residence and believe that she would never have experienced such a thing if she had not come here.

Yet instead, she had thanked him.

Is she not afraid of monsters?

No.

He had seen it.

Her mud-covered hands had been trembling slightly.

The Soyohyang did not seem to have been hers, either.

Then who had put the Soyohyang there?

Unwanted questions continued to pile up.

This is why I did not want to take a Jae-in.

There was only one thing he wanted from a Jae-in.

To not become deeply involved with him.

He had no intention of becoming emotionally attached to someone connected to the Wei King, so he had intended to avoid forming any sort of relationship altogether.

Yet the woman inside the carriage kept intruding into his thoughts.

What is she planning?

His fingers tightened around the reins.

In the meantime, the capital of the Ink King’s domain, Hanzhou, came into view in the distance.

“Welcome back, Your Highness! You’ve worked hard on such a long journey!”

An elderly man wearing glasses was waiting to greet him with several servants.

“I was wondering how Your Highness would bring back your Jae-in. I’m relieved to see everything went well.”

He gave a wrinkled smile as he looked at the carriage following behind his master.

Seoheon quietly gestured toward him.

【Chief Steward No.】

Chief Steward No immediately understood and handed him a slate and brush.

Seoheon dipped the brush in water and wrote a short line.

Have someone investigate the background of that Jae-in.

Black characters appeared on the slate before soon disappearing in the wind.

“You will be staying here from now on, Jae-in.”

The place Chief Steward No guided her to was a small courtyard with a pond.

Black pillars and white lime-plastered walls.

The Ink King’s Palace, which had yet to be touched by the colors of spring, was bleak beyond description.

The Jin family, was it…?

A noblewoman raised delicately in the warm climate of the southern region would hardly find this scenery pleasant.

Chief Steward No had already prepared himself to hear complaints from the Jae-in.

But—

“The old pine tree is quite charming.”

Hmm?

Chief Steward No adjusted his glasses.

“R-Really? Yes, indeed! It’s over five hundred years old. When snow piles up on it, the sight is truly magnificent!”

“I imagine it is. I saw the scenery on the way here, and the snow-covered landscape was very beautiful.”

“Of course! And what’s piled up right now can hardly even be called snow. In the middle of winter, the snow piles all the way up to one’s head!”

Chief Steward No’s tense voice gradually became more animated.

“When our Lord was young, whenever it snowed, he would step through it just like a puppy with cold feet—Hmph! No, like a majestic wolf of the snowy mountains, with great dignity.”

So that was how it had been.

Even that quiet man had once been a child like that.

Soa looked happily at the wrinkles on Chief Steward No’s face as he reminisced and became certain.

For him, the Ink King’s Residence was his entire life.

Even in my previous life, he remained a loyal subject who stayed by His Highness’s side until the very end.

He was responsible for many of the affairs inside and outside the Ink King’s Residence, so there was nothing to lose by becoming close to him.

“Jin Jae-in, His Highness the Ink King wishes to see you for a moment.”

Following Chief Steward No, Soa was led to the Ink King’s private audience chamber.

When she entered, the masked man was sitting inside.

The audience chamber was so quiet that it seemed even dust might settle undisturbed.

There must have been something important he wanted to say, considering he had summoned her here personally instead of simply communicating through Chief Steward No.

“Please sit.”

A place had been prepared for communicating through writing.

Soa sat across from Seoheon.

On the desk were an inkstone filled with water, brushes, and other writing implements, all arranged neatly.

Then Seoheon handed her a document.

The characters were written with both strength and neatness.

Soa read Seoheon’s writing.

Although the wording was polite, his intentions were clear.

First. Do not ask anything about the curse.

Second. Do not complain about the harsh living conditions of the Ink King’s Residence.

Third. Leave the Residence at the age of twenty-three according to the regulations governing Jae-ins.

Soa’s gaze stopped at the final sentence.

It was a common regulation applied to Jae-ins.

A Jae-in who had not received the king’s favor by the age of twenty-three could leave the palace.

In other words, this clause was his declaration that he would have no interest whatsoever in Soa.

Seoheon knew how cruel his proposal was.

He was essentially telling her to give up any hope of becoming a consort.

Moreover, it was difficult for Jae-ins who left the palace at twenty-three to find a good marriage afterward.

So Seoheon secretly hoped she would refuse his conditions.

【If you do not wish to accept, I will send you back to the Jin family at any time.】

He wanted Soa to reject the terms.

So that the relationship forcibly created between two unwilling people could be severed.

But—

“Very well.”

Soa raised her eyes after reading the document.

Seoheon’s fingertips trembled slightly.

“May I write down my conditions as well?”

It was an unexpectedly bold answer.

…Is she doing this for the Wei King after all?

For a moment, an unfamiliar expression appeared around Seoheon’s lips, but he soon handed Soa the brush.

【Write them down.】

Soa began writing beneath his conditions as though she had already thought of them.

Fourth. Guarantee my safety.

It was not a difficult condition.

After all, she was a Jae-in belonging to the Ink King’s Residence.

Although he had brought her here without any affection, she had no intention of abandoning even the minimum obligations expected of her.

Fifth. Allow me to leave the Residence freely.

Seoheon shook his head.

【This place is close to the Valley of Demons. I cannot guarantee your safety if you go out carelessly.】

After he wrote his words down, Soa spoke.

“Would it be acceptable if my safety were guaranteed?”

Seoheon thought for a moment before nodding.

If she wanted to go outside, he could simply assign people to accompany and watch over her.

When going out, obtain permission through Chief Steward No.

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Soa bowed her head slightly before moving the tip of the brush once more.

Sixth. Do not ask anything about me.

Seoheon’s brow furrowed.

“I will not pry into Your Highness’s curse or secrets either, so please do not pry into me.”

Soa quietly held the agreement out to Seoheon.

Is she saying that we should each draw a line around the other’s life?

Beneath the mask, his eyes narrowed.

【If you do anything that harms the Ink King’s Residence, I cannot simply stand by and watch.】

If she is acting as the Wei King’s spy…

As he wrote the warning, Soa bowed her head.

“I understand what you are concerned about.”

The warning was sufficient.

Other than that, he had no reason to reject her proposal.

I have already ordered an investigation into her background.

Chief Steward No glanced at Seoheon.

After thinking for a moment, Seoheon nodded.

【Very well.】

Seoheon willingly stamped the agreement with his official seal.

Beside it, Soa pressed her red thumbprint into the document.

There were no servants from the Jin family who accompanied her.

She had no maidservant close enough to follow her either.

The belongings she had brought were modest.

Soa sent everyone away and toured the palace alone.

Just then, a falcon soaring through the sky landed beside her.

【I went around the whole place, Soa. The little rats around here bowed their heads the moment they saw me.】

“You worked hard, Unjo.”

Soa gently stroked Unjo beneath the chin.

Unjo closed his eyes contentedly.

The first thing Soa had done after arriving here was to win over the small animals wandering around the palace.

【The animals around here are extremely weak to food.】

“Really? But you’re weak to food too.”

【What are you talking about?! When have I ever been weak to food…!】

Soa took a piece of meat from a small pouch and tossed it into the air.

Unjo immediately opened his beak and swallowed it.

See?

Soa let out a quiet laugh, and Unjo awkwardly swallowed the jerky.

【This is merely payment for my hard work.】

“Of course it is.”

【Anyway, I’m serious! Food is scarce around here, so if you give them something to eat, they’ll bring you just about anything.】

That made sense.

The harsher the land, the more easily animals tended to respond to human kindness.

They are better than people.

At least animals did not have ulterior motives.

Their desires were clear, and their reactions to what they received were honest.

“Thank you as always, Unjo.”

When Soa scratched his head again, Unjo puffed up his feathers proudly.

Just then—

“Why is everyone standing around like idiots?”

A gruff voice came from the direction of the military barracks’ storage area.

“But His Highness said to distribute the coal evenly among each barracks…”

“‘His Highness’? Ha! Are you saying that mute actually gave an order?”

The gruff voice snorted mockingly.

Who dares refer to the Ink King like that?

Soa hid beneath the eaves and tilted her head.

Behind the storage building—

Soldiers stood in a line before a heavily bearded general.

“No, according to the order that was issued the other day…”

“An order? Think carefully.”

The general roughly struck the soldier on the shoulder.

“Do you think that mute will save you in wartime? What can a man who doesn’t even have a mouth to shout a single order do on a battlefield? I’m the one holding your lives in my hands. Understand?”

“Yes, General Maeng!”

General Maeng.

Soa’s eyes slowly darkened.

So this is why the Ink King’s Residence was always unstable before my regression.

People who used Seoheon’s silence as an excuse to intercept and override their lord’s commands.

The reason Seogon was able to strike Seoheon down must have been because he had help and tacit approval from within.

“Unjo. We have something to do.”

【Phew. Soa, what would you do without me?!】

The proud Unjo spread his wings and took flight into the sky.