An Unintentional Blow
"Did you find the tea to your liking?" Yeongso forced a serene smile. "I only told my husband that my brother was coming, so he must have served the dark tea on purpose. I had mentioned to him that Brother Yeong-hyeok prefers deep, rich aromas."
"I see."
"Had I known you were coming as well, Young Master Seo, I would have prepared a light white tea instead."
She wanted to add that she didn't want rumors spreading that the Thousand Death Alliance neglected their guests. However, upon hearing her words, Jang-gyeong's eyes shifted. A moment too late, Yeongso wanted to bite her tongue.
He realized I still remember his preferences...!
Fortunately, they had almost reached Jang-gyeong's quarters. Yeongso knew how much of a help a high-ranking noble like Jang-gyeong would be when transporting the slaves from the annex. That was why she had chosen to believe what he said in the drawing room earlier—that he had heard the news while staying at his family's estate and came to the Thousand Death Alliance because he thought he could help.
Her former fiancé had just hinted at having other intentions, but Yeongso intended to accept only what she had heard in the drawing room.
"Young Master Seo, I apologize for the late greeting. Thank you so much for coming to help me. My husband may speak sharply, but he will ensure you have everything you need during your stay."
"Sister Yeongso."
"I know what you are worried about, Young Master Seo. But please, do not worry too much." Yeongso looked directly at Jang-gyeong as she continued. "My husband loves me."
Even though he had confessed to killing her seventeen times out of nineteen regressions.
"He even made a vow at the shrine of the Queen Mother of the West. For my sake, and to repay the heavens, he promised to spend the rest of his life doing good deeds."
A tiny grain of a lie was mixed in, but she hoped the Queen Mother would overlook that much.
"Do you actually believe those words, Sister?" A cold sneer, uncharacteristic of him, appeared on Jang-gyeong's face.
"Of course." Because Banya cannot break his promise. The moment he skips even a single day of doing good deeds, the Queen Mother's punishment will fall upon him, Yeongso added internally.
"I beg to differ." Jang-gyeong's eyes, so dark they almost looked blue, held a heavy light. "The Alliance Leader of the Thousand Death Alliance may not remember me, but I saw him once, four years ago. It was a brutally hot summer, and by his hands, two hundred and fifty orthodox disciples, twelve government soldiers, and fifty-five civilians were slaughtered."
It was the karma Banya had accumulated before meeting her. If she looked into it, there would be countless other instances like this. His notorious reputation had not been built overnight. Yeongso squeezed her eyes shut.
"By the time our side arrived, the slaughter was already over. Amidst the sickening stench of blood, the Alliance Leader was leisurely fanning himself with a blood-soaked fan as he departed."
Jang-gyeong said that the expression, completely devoid of any remorse, was still vivid in his mind.
"Sister Yeongso, such a man does not change. How can a human who validates his own existence through indiscriminate slaughter... ever reform?" Jang-gyeong laughed coldly. "For the sake of those he killed, he must never redeem himself. Only then will he safely plunge into the Eight Hot Hells after he dies."
Everyone wished for Hwa Banya to fall into hell. Even Banya himself. She recalled her husband, who had sneered coldly, saying, "In all the world, you are the only one praying to the heavens for my sake, Baekri Yeongso."
"Sister Yeongso, you said earlier that the Alliance Leader cherishes you."
"Yes."
"Then, how do you feel about your husband?" Yeongso quietly stared back at her former fiancé, whose eyes held a somewhat challenging glint, before she answered.
Banya furrowed his brow. "Are you certain, Heavenly Killing Star? Did she really say that?"
Ma Ryun nodded, his eyes looking as if he had lost a piece of his soul. A sharp reprimand to answer properly immediately flew his way.
" 'I like my husband too. We will never separate.' Did Baekri Yeongso really say those exact words?"
"Yes." Ma Ryun gave a brief reply and prepared to report the next part. However, Banya raised a hand to stop him, then covered his mouth with that same hand.
"She actually... said such a thing. And right in front of her former fiancé, who was practically dripping with lingering affection..."
Banya's words kept breaking off. Seeing this, Ma Ryun thought to himself, Just lower your hand and laugh comfortably. I've already seen it. The corners of your mouth were twitching before you even raised your hand.
Banya did not lower his hand for a long time after that. Ma Ryun could not understand why he had to stop reporting just because his master was smiling. Couldn't he just listen while smiling? It wasn't even a matter that required serious concentration.
"...Excuse me, but," Ma Ryun protested. "Alliance Leader, how long are you going to keep smiling?"
"When did I smile?"
"You've been doing it this whole time."
"I have not."
"Then why are you covering your mouth? If you have nothing to hide, lower your hand."
"Heavenly Killing Star." Banya lowered his hand and grinned openly. "You don't understand."
"...Understand what?"
"The real reason I'm smiling." Was it not because the Alliance Leader's wife had said she liked him, even if it was a lie? Ma Ryun stared at his master, his face still filled with incomprehension.
"Even if my wife still had lingering feelings for Seo Jang-gyeong, the moment he said those words, she would have realized they stand on completely different ground."
"Which words exactly...?"
"The part where he said I must never redeem myself, for the sake of those who died by my hands." Banya was laughing out loud now. His broad shoulders shook wildly. Laughing so hard he could barely breathe, Banya wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye.
"Seo Jang-gyeong... what a pitiful fellow." Just at the start of the report, Banya had looked ready to tear the man apart alive, so what was with this sudden change? Ma Ryun stopped questioning. It was safe to say he had given up on trying to understand.
"To say those words, of all people, to Baekri Yeongso, who assassinated her husband three years ago. Think about it, Heavenly Killing Star," Banya continued.
"I still don't know why my wife killed me. Just bringing it up makes her turn pale, looking as if she might faint at any moment. She seems terrified of me finding out the reason. That's why I haven't dug deep into it yet." Banya added that there must have been a grand reason for the kind, righteous, and compassionate flower of the Baekri Clan to resolve to commit murder.
"It probably had to do with some greater cause. There must have been something she wanted to stop or protect, even if it meant killing me." Thus, Yeongso had broken her lifelong principles and stained her hands with blood.
"But it seems it didn't go well."
"What didn't?"
"Who knows. Whatever it was. Since whatever she wanted to stop didn't turn out well... she must have guarded my shrine while bitterly regretting the murder."
"Baekri Yeongso..." Banya trailed off, recalling the expression Yeongso had made after learning the reason her husband, whom she had killed with her own hands, had returned. It was when the couple had shared the dream of the Queen Mother of the West.
"My wife... was relieved. It was an emotion that flickered across her face for only a split second, but I saw it."
His own anger and sense of betrayal, accumulated over twenty regressions without knowing the reason, were immense. Yet, he realized that his wife's suffering might also be unfathomably deep. For the first time, such a thought crossed his mind.
"Baekri Yeongso is a woman who believes that if I truly repent and become a good person, that in itself will be my punishment. Because she herself suffered after killing me. She must have wanted to undo it millions of times in her mind. So she assumes I would feel the same." How naive.
"My wife probably believed her entire life that she would never kill a person. Yet, she did. Regardless of the fact that I returned to life, the truth that Baekri Yeongso killed me remains unchanged. That must have been a massive shock to her system."
"...I understand your point now, Alliance Leader." Ma Ryun ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek. His attitude was somewhat casual, but his eyes were calm and settled. "In trying to insult you, Seo Jang-gyeong ended up spitting in the face of the woman he loves."
"Not just spit, that was a thick glob of phlegm." Banya burst into a hearty laugh again. "I'm actually glad Baekri Yeongso killed me now."