Chapter 263: Daoist Yin-Yang Manual[R-18] (93)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 263: Daoist Yin-Yang Manual[R-18] (93)
Before the sun had completely set, the party arrived at the edge of a village and decided to rent out a quiet inn for the night.
Ju Yeon-hwa and Hong Seo-rin were guided to the best room on the second floor.
As soon as the door closed, Hong Seo-rin quickly scanned the room.
It was modest but clean. Through the window, the sunset was slowly fading, giving way to darkness.
She gathered energy at her fingertips and silently swiped it through the air.
The energy spread out, enveloping the room and creating a barrier to prevent any sound or presence from leaking outside.
“Princess, are you truly planning to go all the way to Qinghai?”
At Hong Seo-rin’s low question, Ju Yeon-hwa, who was sitting by the window and stroking her silver hair, answered quietly.
“I have to. I have a goal, I can’t just stop in the middle of the journey.”
“But Your Highness is well aware that the situation in Qinghai is far from ordinary, is she not?”
“Guardian Commander, you know what the Imperial Palace is like right now, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Father is deeply engrossed in some strange religion, and my other brothers are keeping each other in check over the succession, even hiring assassins. The only one I can trust… is my runaway brother, Cheong-un.”
Hong Seo-rin let out a heavy sigh and knelt.
“Princess, that is all the more reason to be cautious. Those who wish you harm are already lying in wait everywhere.”
Ju Yeon-hwa gazed at the crimson-stained sky beyond the window and smiled softly.
“That’s why I have you. Seo-rin, I trust you.”
Meeting that resolute gaze, Hong Seo-rin fell silent for a moment before letting out a short breath and speaking again.
“By the way… that man, Jin Seo-yun, is still suspicious. He claims to be a rogue, but his skill…”
“Did he say he was a Hwagyeong master as well?”
“That is correct.”
“He looked to be my age. Could he have undergone a metamorphosis? Like General Hyun Mu-yeong?”
“He did not appear to be old.”
“Then he is all the more remarkable.”
“And all the more suspicious. A Hwagyeong master wandering as a rogue… It’s possible he approached you with ill intent.”
But Ju Yeon-hwa shook her head.
“From what I could see, I didn’t sense any malice from him.”
“You must not let your guard down. If anyone finds out that Your Highness has embarked on such a dangerous journey—”
“Seo-rin.”
Ju Yeon-hwa slowly turned to look at her.
“We slipped away without telling anyone. Besides, if he is not a wicked man, wouldn’t it be beneficial to win him over to our side?”
She walked toward Hong Seo-rin and added, “To bring down the cunning individuals throwing the Imperial Palace into chaos, we need power.”
Hong Seo-rin silently met her gaze. A moment of silence passed before she slowly bowed her head.
“……I will follow your will, Princess. However, I will not lower my guard.”
“Of course.”
Ju Yeon-hwa smiled gently.
*
For several days, I stayed by the carriage Cheon Yeon-hwa was riding in, serving as her conversation partner.
From morning to night, she would talk to me whenever she had a chance. Her mouth never rested, to the point where I wondered, ‘Where does she get all that energy?’
“Young Master Jin, have you ever experienced something like this?”
“So, when you were learning martial arts, what method…?”
“Ah, I talked about that with my family when I was young…”
Endless curiosity, sparkling eyes she made no effort to hide, and the corners of her mouth that lifted slightly whenever she smiled. Honestly, if she weren’t such a beauty, I might have smacked her on the head by now.
The only reason I’m putting up with this is because she’s… pretty.
And next to her, always sticking to her like a shadow, was the red-haired guard, Hong Seo-rin. If I so much as got closer to Cheon Yeon-hwa than a certain distance, she would glare at me, looking ready to instinctively draw her sword.
She didn’t have to say a word; her eyes said it all.
‘Take one more step. I’ll snap your neck.’
…I was getting used to her growling at me like a dog.
The relationship between the two resembled that of a loyal dog serving its master.
Of course, if I could have my way with them, I’d put a leash on both the master and her loyal dog and drag them around.
Damn, she’s fucking hot.
Perhaps because I hadn’t touched a woman in days, my whole body was starting to itch with desire.
“Young Master Jin, are you listening?”
Cheon Yeon-hwa’s voice broke my train of thought. She was looking at me with eyes full of curiosity.
“My apologies. I was lost in thought for a moment.”
“It’s alright. I’ll ask again. How did you become a rogue, Young Master Jin?”
I couldn’t tell her the truth, so I decided to make something up.
“A rogue, you ask…”
I turned my gaze far away, to the edge of the fields. The sun was slowly setting.
The orange sunset bled into red, and its light cast a glow on her face.
“I was the son of a rather well-known family.”
She listened to my story in silence.
“And I fell in love. That’s where the tragedy began.”
Walking beside the carriage, I let out a long sigh. Cheon Yeon-hwa leaned against the carriage window, her eyes sparkling as she waited for the story.
“There was a prestigious family that held a long-standing grudge against my Jin family. They were called the Baekmun family…”
“And…?”
“It was a feud passed down through generations. But…”
I paused for a moment to gauge her reaction. Cheon Yeon-hwa’s eyes were filled with curiosity.
“When I turned sixteen, there was a martial arts tournament where the young people of our two families gathered. That’s where I met her.”
“Don’t tell me…! The young lady of the Baekmun family…”
“That’s right. She was the youngest daughter of the Baekmun family.”
As if completely drawn into the story, Cheon Yeon-hwa’s eyes shone.
“Was it love at first sight?”
“Yes. I was as captivated by her beauty as I was by her swordsmanship.”
“So? What happened?”
I gave a lonely smile.
“We continued to meet in secret, defying the opposition of our families… But eventually, we were discovered.”
Even Hong Seo-rin pricked up her ears and began to listen intently to my story.
“Both families were furious. Her father, especially… he confined her to an annex.”
“Oh my, how cruel!”
“I desperately searched for her. I eventually found her, but…”
I lowered my head.
“It was already too late. Her father had already promised her in marriage to another family.”
“So what did you do?”
I answered with a determined expression.
“I decided to run away with her. We decided to fight against our fate.”
Cheon Yeon-hwa’s eyes widened.
“Did you succeed?”
I shook my head.
“On the very night we planned to escape, we unfortunately ran into a sword unit led by the second son of the Baekmun family. And…”
I paused, looking at the distant mountains with sad eyes.
“…She was struck by a sword right in front of me. I failed to protect her.”
Cheon Yeon-hwa covered her mouth with her hand.
“Did she… pass away?”
“No. She survived… but she was gravely injured, and in the process, I ended up killing the son of the Baekmun family.”
Cheon Yeon-hwa’s eyes widened in shock.
“After that, I became a rogue. And she… had to leave with her family. Our love ended just like that.”
As if I were telling a true story, I finished my tale with genuine sorrow.
“Having lost my family and my love, I was left to wander like this.”
Cheon Yeon-hwa stared at me for a while without a word. I could see her eyes growing moist.
“That’s… a truly sad story.”
“Life is…”
I gave a bitter smile.
“Sometimes it just flows in directions we don’t want it to.”
I just saw Hong Seo-rin sniffle, a tear trickling from her eye. It seemed she had a more sentimental side than I thought.
“Losing someone you love must be the most painful thing in the world.”
“If I may ask, Lady Cheon, why have you embarked on this perilous journey?”
I changed the subject.
Cheon Yeon-hwa was silent for a moment. Her expression clouded over.
“I, too… am searching for someone precious.”
“Someone you love?”
“No. Someone I want to trust.”
She smiled, but it was a rather lonely smile.
Silence followed for a while. I glanced at Cheon Yeon-hwa and thought to myself.
No matter how I look at her, she’s no ordinary woman.
Her noble aura, her elegant way of speaking, and the master, Hong Seo-rin, who always followed her like a shadow.
She must be royalty.
There was no other explanation for someone who had a Hwagyeong master as a bodyguard. But her identity wasn’t what mattered. The real issue was how I was going to fuck these two women.
Forcing myself on them is impossible because of Hong Seo-rin. Seducing them slowly… will take too long…
If I could just make physical contact once, I could easily condition them with my sexual arts.
The problem was that I couldn’t even create an excuse to do so.
Hong Seo-rin.
She stuck to Cheon Yeon-hwa’s side like a shadow, suspiciously monitoring my every move.
She was so sharp that she’d notice with a sideways glance if I even casually looked at Cheon Yeon-hwa one too many times.
Damn perceptive bitch…
The moment I tried to use my sexual arts, she would sense the subtle flow of my qi and react immediately. As long as a woman like that was by her side, I couldn’t act rashly.
This isn’t going to be easy.
But that just made me more motivated.
*
After the sun had completely set, our party arrived in a small village. The inn was shabby, but it was good enough for one night.
Cheon Yeon-hwa and Hong Seo-rin were shown to the best room, and I was assigned the room across from theirs.
“Young Master Jin, thank you for the pleasant conversation today.”
Cheon Yeon-hwa smiled before entering her room.
“The pleasure was all mine.”
Hong Seo-rin glanced at me, then approached with an awkward expression.
“Ahem… After hearing your story earlier, I feel I may have been too rude to you.”
That was unexpected. I hadn’t anticipated such a reaction from the story I’d embellished earlier.
I gave a slight smile and nodded.
“Please don’t worry about it. In fact… I found your attitude admirable.”
“……?”
“Those who have something to protect should not let their guard down easily. That’s only natural.”
Hong Seo-rin stared at me for a moment.
“Perhaps you’re a better man than I thought…”
She muttered under her breath before following Cheon Yeon-hwa into the room.
I closed my door a moment later and entered my room. When I opened the window, a cool night breeze swept in, caressing my face.
For a moment, I looked up at the dark sky and chuckled.
If I play my cards right, I might just be able to fuck Hong Seo-rin first.