People Belong in the Capital - 3
On my way to Ak I-yeon's room after receiving deer antler powder from Ak Wang, I spotted the female spirit deer curled up like a ball, fast asleep. No wonder things had been so quiet—she was just sleeping.
Where'd that one guy go?
I was about to pass by, but I stopped when I didn't see the male spirit deer, who should naturally be right there with her. Ever since the female appeared, the two had been inseparable, like a single unit. Of all places, they'd split up here where they couldn't afford to cause trouble—like a combiner robot separating in the worst spot possible. Unsettling. He wasn't off eating something weird or rampaging, was he? But it was still quiet, so he probably hadn't reverted to the monstrous thing from our Hengshan days.
...He'll be fine.
I quickly shook off the anxiety and headed back to Ak I-yeon's room. After I saved his life when he nearly died, he'd been pretty good about listening to me. He'd followed my orders strictly even at the Namgung household, so his reins couldn't have come loose now. Besides, the guy who'd cowered in front of Gi Gangwang wouldn't dare run wild in Ak Wang's residence. A spirit beast who couldn't handle one king causing chaos in the heart of another king and his elite guards? The odds were low.
That's what I thought—until I spotted him.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing there!"
The male spirit deer was lounging against the wall of the building where Ak I-yeon stayed, munching away.
- Kki-ing?
At my shout, he lifted his head from where he'd been shoving it into the ground. His mouth was stuffed full—he'd clearly been grazing on weeds.
"That's not for eating, you idiot! I told you to stay put—how'd you get all the way here?!"
- Kkii-iing!
I stormed over, grabbing for his antlers, but he shook his head innocently, letting out a pitiful cry. If you're gonna act wronged, at least spit out what's in your mouth first. Anyone could see he was wrecking someone else's garden greenery.
"I'm not starving you or anything—why're you—"
"Gaga?"
A window creaked open, and Ak I-yeon's voice floated out.
Oh, shit.
Her voice snapped me back to reality. I'd lost it thinking he'd pulled some Hengshan-level stunt, blowing the serious image I'd built up in front of her in one go.
"I-yeon, how's your body feeling?"
But I didn't falter—I opened my mouth smoothly. Panicking now would be amateur hour. I'd already been caught yelling my head off, so top-tier composure was out, but I could at least aim for mid-level pro.
"Yes, thanks to your concern, I'm perfectly fine."
Thankfully, she didn't seem inclined to call me out on the shouting. She flashed a bright smile and nodded.
"But Gaga, who's that with you?"
Then her gaze shifted to the male spirit deer still obliviously chewing weeds beside me. A perfectly natural reaction. I'd be curious too if my fiancée was brawling with a deer.
"A spirit beast I ran into by chance at Hengshan while wandering the Central Plains. He took a liking to me, so he's been with me ever since."
"Oh my. A spirit beast?"
- Kki-ing!
As if responding to her words, the deer cried out and rubbed his head against her hand.
"What a cute one. I heard spirit beasts avoid people."
Startled by his excessive affection, Ak I-yeon widened her eyes, then tentatively stroked his head with her other hand. He really was adorable when he stayed still. The problem was what happened when he didn't.
"Did he cause some trouble?"
"Well..."
I plucked a weed from the corner of his mouth and showed it to her.
"He seems to like your garden—enjoying it a bit too enthusiastically."
"A spirit beast favoring my garden? What an honor."
She chuckled softly and patted his head playfully. Good—she didn't seem mad. Ak Wang, with his sharp ears, must have caught the commotion between me and the deer, because he rushed over to Ak I-yeon's room too. Living as a Hwagyeong master sounded exhausting. Every little noise nearby drilled straight into your ears.
"Eating the grass?"
Ak Wang frowned at the deer once he heard the cause of the ruckus.
- Kkii-iing...
Under the gaze of a master on par with Gi Gangwang, the deer shrank behind me, trying to hide his body. Yeah, like that works when you're bigger than me. What, just hide your face and you're good?
"Perfect."
"Pardon?"
- Kki-ing?
His unexpected response left both me and the deer baffled. Perfect? Treating someone else's garden like a buffet?
"After I-yeon collapsed so badly, her dantian still hasn't fully recovered. Her excess qi has been leaking out, settling into the plants and animals around here... but you think those things would be normal?"
Ah.
It clicked. Qi infusing plants and animals was part of how spirit beasts were born, but this was human qi filtered through a damaged dantian—leaking forcibly from qi deviation aftermath. In extreme terms, it was like plants and animals grown on poison instead of medicine.
"I'd been periodically clearing the garden because of it, but I never expected something to eat them without a care."
"Must be because he's a spirit beast."
Sensing he wasn't in trouble, the deer poked his head out from behind me, and I stroked it.
Now it made sense why he'd wandered into someone else's garden to munch weeds—he was drawn to the qi-infused plants. To a spirit beast like him, it must've been a gourmet feast.
"True enough. Spirit beasts are qi incarnate themselves—human-leaked qi wouldn't faze them."
Ak Wang eyed the deer with satisfaction.
"I'll cut my compensation short, so feed him nothing but the garden grass for a while."
"It's fine. He's eating what he likes—how could I accept payment for that?"
"Take it before I tell you to eat it too."
I nodded meekly at the bizarre threat. Vegan life vs. getting paid? Easy choice.
Life at Ak Wang's residence was blissfully peaceful. I'd regale Ak I-yeon with tales from my Central Plains wanderings, feed the two deer their garden grass, share drinks with the bored Jo Wi-cheo a few times.
This is the life.
The sheer tranquility made me grin. People really do belong in the capital. I was soaking up more peace and happiness than I deserved—stuff I'd never felt while doggedly patrolling the provinces. That old saying, "People should go to Seoul," wasn't wrong. Sure, I was crashing at my in-laws instead of home, but thinking of myself as the beloved grandson-in-law eased my mind. Plus, this was my only shot at cozy time with Ak I-yeon.
But as the days dragged on, unease crept into a corner of my heart.
...How much longer can I rest?
The empire that unified the Central Plains carried a curse like destiny itself. To manage its vast lands and teeming population, it squeezed bureaucrats to the brink of death. No amount of recruiting talent via exams or special appointments could overcome it. Population growth outpaced talent acquisition—what could you do? All I could hope was that Ak Wang's shield held a bit longer, and the emperor wouldn't say, "The Left Vice Inspector General seems rested enough—time to head back, no?"
"Gaga, what are you thinking so deeply about?"
"About living under the same roof as you, I-yeon."
This was sincere. How happy would I be if I could stay with her like this, without shuttling between provinces?
Sensing my honesty, Ak I-yeon flushed, pulling the blanket up to her nose and looking away.
"Must be a trendy line among the common folk. I've only known the world through books... I can't keep up with fads."
"Trend? Only the lucky bastard engaged to someone like you could say that."
At my escalated tease, her blanket climbed past her nose to her eyes. Her pure reaction made the prank worthwhile. Conversations flowed best with the right reactions, after all.
"...I'm grateful you consider meeting me a stroke of fortune."
But Ak I-yeon wasn't just good at reactions. She lacked dating experience from martial training as a kid and bed rest lately, but her wits and quick thinking matched or exceeded mine.
"With no letters from you all this time, I thought you hated me."
"No, that's not—"
I shut my mouth, caught in her unassailable logic. She was right. I was the unparalleled trash who'd barely sent a single letter to his ailing fiancée...
"Hee-hee, just kidding. If you truly hated me, our engagement wouldn't have lasted."
She gave a wry smile and fiddled with my hand.
"Truth be told, I was the one who resented you... for a while."
"I-yeon, I told you that was just youthful folly. I don't hold it against you, so don't worry."
I shook my head firmly at her bringing up the past.
It was true—she'd once balked at our engagement, obsessed with martial arts, and disliked me not as a pure warrior but a hybrid civil-martial type. Bluntly, a mongrel neither fish nor fowl. But that was ancient history. A teenage-phase thing from when she was young.
Everyone has black history from puberty.
What mattered was the Ak I-yeon now, not then. If she regretted the past, reflected on it, and could smile at the present—what was the problem?
"So don't say that. From now on, I'll send new letters before the carrier pigeons even arrive here."
"Hee-hee, just hearing that makes my heart flutter."
She said that, but her face stayed shadowed, like she was still blaming herself for the past. Damn Dochalwon. If I worked in the capital instead of the boonies, I could comfort her every day.
This is all those parakho bastards' fault.
If they hadn't been screwing around everywhere, I wouldn't have to roam the provinces. God, I hoped the world filled up with decent murim folk instead of parakho scum.