Chapter 92
The Second Lady sent Namgung Ryu-cheong away and apologized to me.
"I showed you such an unsightly side of myself. I know it's meaningless to say now, but I truly never imagined things would turn out like this."
Biting her lip, the Second Lady continued slowly.
"This morning, Madam Jang showed up unannounced, bringing Jang Cheol and Jang O with her."
She explained that Madam Jang had probably come to apologize to me before the matter escalated further—before it reached the ears of the Jang Clan head.
"It's the Jang Clan head's family affair, but Jang Cheol isn't particularly favored by his own father."
It matched what I'd heard from the Suxiangmun people before coming here. It seemed Jang Cheol's cold treatment from his birth father was a well-known fact around these parts.
Somehow... it feels a bit familiar.
Jang Cheol, neglected by the Jang Clan head.
Me, neglected by Grandpa Baek Ri-paehyeok.
I'm neglected by my grandfather, and he's neglected by his father... Ha, and we're both villainous side characters, aren't we?
What a coincidence. My chest tightened; I couldn't help but understand Jang Cheol's feelings all too well.
"As you saw, Madam Jang isn't in good health—she can barely step outside her home... "
The Second Lady's face darkened slightly as she traced the edge of the table, pitying Madam Jang's plight.
"She came all this way without notice just to apologize. How could I refuse her?"
There was nothing to fault in the Second Lady's actions. I wasn't a member of the Namgung Clan. I was merely a guest staying there. The Namgung Clan couldn't unilaterally block one guest from meeting another—especially when that guest had come to apologize.
"On top of that, Ryu-cheong had wronged Jang Cheol..."
The Second Lady's voice trailed off.
I quickly asked, "What did Ryu-cheong do to Jang Cheol?"
Hesitating, she finally spoke as if she had no choice.
"Jang Cheol stayed at the Namgung Clan for a time. During that stay, he sparred with Ryu-cheong, and..."
Her gaze fell to the table as she paused, then continued.
"Ryu-cheong beat him one-sidedly and broke his arm."
I blinked in surprise. The Second Lady looked embarrassed and ashamed.
No wonder... When I ran into Namgung Ryu-cheong in the market, Jang Cheol was the only one who reacted so strangely.
The other kids had heard tales of how great Young Master Namgung was but had never seen his skills firsthand. So their reactions were along the lines of, You're impressive and all, but whatever—befitting their brash age. But Jang Cheol alone had looked utterly terrified.
Now I knew why. He'd been thrashed by Namgung Ryu-cheong and had his arm broken!
A kid already twisted inside—that was the perfect trigger for harboring resentment and turning into a villain who constantly tripped up Namgung Ryu-cheong.
The Second Lady said cautiously, "For Jang Cheol's honor, I'd appreciate it if you kept this a secret."
"Of course."
She smiled faintly and went on. "Jang Cheol wasn't this bad before. The shock from sparring with Ryu-cheong must have been huge... Afterward, he started hanging out with even worse kids."
"...Isn't it hard to blame that on Ryu-cheong?"
It might have been a trigger, but in the end, he'd chosen to soothe his wounded pride by bullying and belittling other kids. Take Seo Ha-ryeong, for instance—she hadn't had her arm broken, but she'd turned the emotional scars from Namgung Ryu-cheong's harsh words into fuel for her training, punching wooden dummies and vowing to grow strong enough for revenge.
And from my perspective, having been called trash myself, it boiled down to Why should I care?
They say there's no grave without an excuse. Maybe that's the line between villains and heroes.
"You're right. It's not Ryu-cheong's fault. But... I can't help worrying about it anyway."
The Second Lady wore a bitter expression.
"Haah, I'm sorry for dragging you into something that has nothing to do with you. I promise nothing like this will happen again."
With Jang Cheol causing such a scene this time, the Namgung Clan could block Madam Jang from seeing me without the Jang Clan having grounds to complain.
The Second Lady apologized repeatedly.
"I'm truly sorry. Ryu-cheong's words weren't wrong, either."
"I'm really fine."
Honestly, Jang Cheol's apology hadn't meant much to me. Why bother building grudges with a villain? I'd planned to accept it graciously and move on.
But then Namgung Ryu-cheong had to fire off that career-ending social blunder.
Wait, doesn't Namgung Ryu-cheong go around accumulating grudges like that? Won't he get stabbed someday?
The worry was fleeting; I quickly realized the truth.
Right, with his skills, he won't get hit easily. Who's worrying about whom here?
I continued carefully, "Young Master Namgung wasn't wrong, but... still, with both families' faces to consider, how could he cut it off so bluntly?"
Something in my words must have struck a nerve. The Second Lady suddenly bit her lip with a surge of emotion, her eyes reddening.
What? What's this? Is the Second Lady about to cry?
No way—how many people am I making cry today?
Thankfully, unlike Seo Ha-ryeong, the far more mature Second Lady didn't shed tears. She composed herself and said, as if excusing herself, "I lost control there. At my age, I sometimes can't help it."
"Ha, your age?"
My reaction must have come off as too incredulous. Seeing her look at me slightly surprised, I hurriedly racked my brain.
"But... if you went out with me, people would mistake you for my older sister."
I even tilted my head as if genuinely puzzled.
"Oh my, you sweet thing. Haha."
Covering her mouth, the Second Lady burst into a radiant laugh. It chased away all traces of her earlier gloom, and I felt a swell of pride at my flattery.
It wasn't entirely a lie, after all. She was so young and beautiful that no one would guess she'd borne children.
Looking at her made me nod in understanding at Namgung Ryu-cheong's striking looks. It wasn't just protagonist buffs—with a mother this beautiful, subpar features on the child would have been a grave sin.
"How wonderful it would be to have a daughter like you..."
"I've always thought I'd love to have a mother like you!"
"Then would you come to me?"
"...Pardon?"
The Second Lady burst into laughter again, like silver beads rolling.
With lingering mirth in her voice, she continued, "There's a temple called Cheonam Temple where I often go to make offerings. It's close by, the path is easy, and the scenery is lovely."
"Cheonam Temple? I've heard of it! The one with the beautiful peach blossoms?"
"Yes. Unfortunately, it's not peach blossom season... but would you come with me anyway?"
"I'd love to! Oh, will Young Master Namgung come too?"
"I was going to invite him along, but..."
The Second Lady trailed off, raising the corner of her eye.
"Never mind. That hopeless boy. He'd probably just say he's off to train anyway. Let's go just the two of us."
After some idle chatter, the Second Lady went to see Madam Jang, and I left the room as well.
As I passed through the inner courtyard on my way out of her quarters, an urgent voice stopped me.
"Miss Baek Ri-yeon!"
"...Second Young Master Jang?"
Jang O stood between the pillars of the corridor leading to the guest rooms.
I knew the guest rooms were that way because I'd seen Madam Jang heading there, supported by her maid.
"Is Madam Jang all right?"
"Huh? Oh... she'll be fine, I suppose."
She'll be fine, I suppose?
His reaction was oddly detached. There wasn't a trace of concern.
Jang O asked more pressingly, as if that were the real urgency.
"Did you happen to see Young Master Namgung?"
"No idea."
"Weren't you with him?"
"I was just with the Second Lady. Young Master Namgung left first."
"Ah... got it."
Jang O turned away as if that settled everything.
...What was that about?
I tilted my head, watching him hurry off. Then I shook it off and started walking again—only to realize something.
"Tch, which way is out?"
Coming in, I'd been too busy with Namgung Ryu-cheong tagging along to pay attention to my surroundings.
Well... I'll just head out and ask someone if I run into them.
Luckily—either good fortune or my memory serving me—I found the way out of the annex right away.
As I moved to descend the stairs, something caught my eye: a faint glow from beyond the wall where the corridor bent left, in the opposite direction from my path.
I no longer needed help, so I could just leave—but I descended the stairs indifferently, then suddenly stopped, turned back, and climbed up again.
Focusing my golden eyes on the glow.
That's Namgung Ryu-cheong? Wasn't he off to train? Why is he still here?
Then I noticed the person standing opposite him: a boy about Namgung Ryu-cheong's age, trained in martial arts.
One of the kids here—Jang Cheol? Or Jang O?
Their builds and inner energy levels were similar, so even my golden eyes couldn't distinguish them.
Ah, must be Jang O.
If it were Jang Cheol, they wouldn't be having such a calm conversation—they'd be throwing punches by now.
He'd been looking for Namgung Ryu-cheong earlier and had found him somehow.
What to do? I was a little curious about why he'd sought him out, and part of me wanted to eavesdrop.
Then Jang O's voice carried over.
"Well, that's one reason, but..."
Normally, when someone trails off like that, you press them to finish: But what? or So?
Namgung Ryu-cheong...
"If you're done talking, move."
"Huh?"
"I said move."
His tone was as rude as ever, manners apparently swallowed for breakfast.