Chapter 196

“I’m not really sorry but I can’t help but feel a bit sorry for you.”

As Qing savored the bitter aftertaste of the alcohol, he turned to leave, thinking he should gather Gongson Yo-ye and head back to their lodgings.

“Sister Gagaga!”

“Oh! Is that Hyang?”

A little thing suddenly jumped out and threw itself at Qing, wrapping its arms around him; the sensation of the child’s head pressing against his belly felt oddly comforting.

Though it wasn’t visible, he felt it.

Since Qing couldn’t see her, it was the same for the child.

“Huh? I can’t see Sister Gagaga…”

“Hyang, sometimes when you get too close, things disappear. Can you take a step back to see?”

As Je-gal Hyang stepped back, the child’s face popped into view.

“Our Hyang looks even prettier today! Did you put on makeup? If you didn’t want to wear it, you could have just said so instead of wiping it on your uniform.”

“Oh!”

“Oh no, it smudged!”

In Central Plain, makeup discussions inevitably led to Seossi, the legendary beauty known throughout the ages.

Seossi’s frown had hardened into the city walls of the Central Plains, a bizarre contradiction that made her heartbroken expression oddly charming.

She created the look of a woman who had cried, with a pale face and subtly reddened eyes.

Eyebrows and lips, however, were entirely up to the makeup artist’s whims.

Some would draw the beginning of the eyebrows towards the forehead to create a frowning shape, while the lips were painted a bright red in the middle, resembling cherries.

Hyang’s eyes were significantly reddened, clearly revealing that someone had drawn a line just around her uniform’s belly area.

The white powder probably came as a bonus.

Laughing brightly at how flustered Hyang looked after Qing’s blunder, the child raised her arms and said:

“Sister Gagaga, hug me!”

“Ah, aren’t you just adorable!”

Qing scooped the child up and surveyed the area.

Hyang wouldn’t be alone here; oh, there she comes.

“Sister, I’m sorry. Hyang has a special attachment to you. She kept making a fuss about wanting to see you, and look at this. Hyang, you shouldn’t act so spoiled in front of your sister.”

“No, no. It’s fine. Actually, I wanted to see Hyang earlier. Hm? When did I want to see her? Well, anyway, it’s important that you’re here, isn’t it?”

“Exactly!”

“But seriously, what on earth is all this chaos?”

“Indeed. What on earth is going on?”

Though it wasn’t something the person involved should say.

It wasn’t part of Qing’s plan; he had simply gotten caught up in the drinking game on the seventh floor.

“Sister, I really want to eat a peach.”

“You’re really acting like a little brat now, aren’t you? If you weren’t cute, I’d seriously think about it. Shall we go look for a peach?”

Since the dining table on the first floor had been cleared, they’d have to go upstairs to find peaches.

As Qing climbed the stairs, another beauty from the seventh floor brushed past him without even looking his way.

The difference this time was that there were two Je-gal siblings attached to him.

“Who was that beauty that just passed by? She seemed pretty. Hmm. Pretty.”

“Are you talking about Bing Seolhwa or Seoliri?”

“Ah, I can’t just call her all four names, can I?”

“Sticking them together might make it ‘ice cold’ or ‘frozen ice’, but it just doesn’t sound right though. She’s been staying with the Martial Alliance as a guest for around five years now.”

“Hmm. Is there a way to get closer to her?”

“Even if you’re a sister with the charm of a dog, it would likely be hard for you to become friends with Seolhwa. She hasn’t interacted with anyone for five years and prefers solitude.”

“Oh, really? There are such people. But Je-gal, you know, a dog is a man’s best friend. And a dog also bites people. Am I really expected to act like a dog? This is getting ridiculous.”

“Haha. Sister, your arms aren’t exactly free either, are they? If you won’t mess around now, when will you?”

At that, Je-gal Lee-hyun, who had been sharply poked in the tailbone, started bouncing around while rubbing his butt.

He stood a head taller than Qing, bouncing around as if shaking the stairs with each jump.

This sight made Je-gal Hyang burst into laughter.

Qing folded his long legs at the knees and stood on the stairs again, saying:

“If you plan on sealing me up, bring two more Hyangs to hang off my legs; then we can really say I’d been sealed.”

“Oh, there’s no cuter child in the world than Hyang!”

“Well, that makes sealing useless then.”

“How is it that no matter how I kick, I’m always hitting the delicate parts? No matter how tough I am, kicking the bones would hurt!”

“But isn’t your butt full of muscle? You’re the only one suffering from a kick.”

“That’s, um, muscle. Right. About what you said earlier. Is there a place at the National Affairs Training Hall…?”

Just then, as they reached the top of the stairs, someone recognized them, cutting off Lee-hyun’s sentence.

“Oh! Who do we have here? The honorable winner of the drinking competition! Haha, it’s a pleasure to see you!”

“Oh, Brother Jo.”

“Oh, so Young Lady already knows me? Yes, I’m Brother Jo, Jo Hak-che.”

He was the great-grandson of the Leader of the Martial Alliance, a successor of the Black Dragon Clan, and known among the Tianmu Clan members as the ‘crazy boy obsessed with women’.

Qing felt a bit shocked for a moment.

Thinking back, hadn’t he seen this guy wearing that same mask before? Should he cover his mouth?

But those worries were unnecessary.

Hak-che’s flower thief mask appeared filthy, covered in dirt and grime that would hardly show outside when yawning.

But now it was all clean.

Even Pang Dae-san would wonder if that was the original color. How could one even mention the national treasure’s mask needed to be presented to the princess?

“I think you might be mistaken. I actually lost the drinking competition.”

“Who would think that? Instead, I was truly impressed by your generosity. As they say, a woman’s heart is more important than anything else!”

Qing’s eyebrows twitched.

This guy, what’s with him?

“I’ve heard that Brother Jo has quite the reputation with the ladies. If you don’t mind me asking, are there any women you are currently dating?”

“Indeed. This Jo Hak-che is still a single man waiting for his soulmate. But asking that means…”

“It’s nothing serious. It just looks that way.”

His chuckles echoed through the air.

It came from right behind Jo Hak-che.

“Brother, if you speak like that, you’ll be insulted! Where in the world is a fool like you who praises a woman?”

“Oh? Is that inappropriate?”

“Why? You think if you call them ugly, it’s a compliment? Ah, I apologize. I didn’t mean to hurt Young Lady Seomun’s feelings…”

“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind that sort of thing.”

After all, if you said someone was ugly, it would scratch their heart.

Qing knew she was a beauty who surprised herself when looking in the mirror, so she could just laugh off any mention of being ugly.

“It’s Jo Young-young. I was just on the seventh floor for the past couple of days and, having seen the way you spoke, I decided to admire you. Is that okay?”

“Well, that would be your choice, wouldn’t it?”

This made Jo Young-young’s expression light up.

Actually, to say a woman admired you usually meant she wanted to join your group. Similar phrases might be wanting to call you sister because you’re so pretty or maybe wanting to do her makeup—anything that conveyed a desire to stick around.

But Qing had no way of knowing that.

“Admiration? Of course, I have my flaws, but I haven’t really shown you much of myself these past two days.”

“No! I get told that I have a bit of a loose tongue. It’s just that the men from the Black Dragon River need to be criticized a bit to understand what they’re saying. That’s no excuse, it’s the truth. Women on our side are like this.”

“That’s true. Sister, the women of Black Dragon River are famous for being strong-willed in Central Plain—”

“Je-gal, stop talking. If the men of Black Dragon River are like Brother Jo, then it’s understandable. So?”

“Seeing you take gentle approach proves that foul language isn’t necessary to achieve good results. The way you speak is so charming and always makes me feel surprised and amazed!”

Je-gal Lee-hyun overly exaggerated his agreement.

Qing chuckled softly and said:

“My master has taken great care of me. Hm. Well, if you only stay at the Divine Maiden Sect for a single season, you might end up like this. If you’re really eager to learn, you should tell my master—”

“Ah! Please, no!”

“If you truly mean that.”

Qing smiled satisfyingly as if preemptively mourning.

Because training with her master was bound to lead to pain.

She shouldn’t be the only one suffering from this good thing.

While lost in her thoughts, someone else approached.

“Young Lady Seomun! Are you alright? You seemed to have overindulged in alcohol. Please drink this Seokcheong.”

“Oh dear, but my hands are tied right now.”

This time it was Gongson Cheon-il, Gongson Yo-ye’s little brother, who felt somewhat burdensome.

At that, Jo Hak-che’s gentle gaze instantly morphed into that of a wild beast.

Ah, so that’s how it is.

If there were only women in their group, he regarded every man like an enemy.

Cheon-il always spoke syrupy sweet, while Hak-che would grind his teeth, often jumping into the fray with predictable lines, only to end up getting scolded by Jo Young-young.

With Cheon-il’s high level of skill in wooing women, he was practically untouchable.

“Sister Gagaga, I want a peach…”

“Ah, right. I forgot because of everyone here. Let’s go look for peaches together. Now, where could those peaches be?”

“Where could the peaches be?”

Je-gal Hyang chimed in, mimicking Qing’s humming.

Why was she so cute? It was unbelievable.

As they played with Je-gal Hyang, three men followed behind them.

What on earth was this scene?

Comments about how beautiful her voice was, how lovely her hands looked, how enchanting she was while playing with the child—didn’t Brother Jo say everything was beautiful?

Qing decided to avoid Bro Jo whenever he saw him, given that everything about her was ‘beautiful’ except her face.

In contrast, dealing with the aftermath of the hangover remained to be seen, and while searching for peaches, he skewered one and handed it to Je-gal Hyang.

Though it was annoying, Cheon-il’s little brother was actually more helpful than his burdensome tendencies.

Ultimately, unable to stand it any longer, Qing invited Je-gal Hyang to play at Muchen Pavilion, promising to meet again later.

The clueless Gongson Yo-ye was hoisted onto a carriage by her brother, who promised to take good care of her.

“Please take good care of my sister. She’s stubborn and set in her ways, but I can’t complain about her, sigh.”

Oh, that foolish little brother, with a sigh hidden in his mumbling, was caught by Qing’s keen hearing.

Still, despite his words, his eyes revealed concern as he looked after his sister.

At that, Qing let out a small laugh.

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