Mister Piercing-Eyes
Jang Hui-bin’s slender shoulders seemed to tremble ever so slightly.
As the King gently patted her back and murmured soft, soothing words, she buried her face once more into the crook of his neck.
How beautiful.
Watching the tender, tear-tinged scene play out like the finale of a historical drama, I struggled to catch my breath. Blowing gusts of wind through pursed lips for so long had left the world spinning around me.
Phew… I need to catch my breath before sneaking away.
I had burned through every ounce of stamina in this tiny body. Now that the mood was set, it was high time for the unpaid special-effects extra to bow out of the spotlight.
I drew in several slow, deliberate lungfuls of air until my thumping heart finally quieted down. But just as I brushed off the azalea petals clinging to my skirt and prepared to stand—
“Eep!”
My heart nearly leapt out of my throat, and I clamped both hands over my mouth to swallow a screech.
A man was standing mere paces away, watching me intently from barely five or six strides distance.
How on earth did he get this close without making a single sound?
Could he be… a martial arts master?
It was hardly an absurd guess. The man was dressed in the crisp attire of a royal warrior. Furthermore, the blade at his hip was no ordinary, utilitarian sword carried by rank-and-file guards; it was an exquisite, dazzlingly decorated longsword.
He must belong to the Naegeumwi or one of the capital garrisons. A high-ranking officer, by the looks of him.
Come to think of it, his presence was only natural. The sovereign of Joseon would never venture into the secluded depths of the Rear Garden without an escort.
Even so…
This mister looks extraordinarily formidable.
He appeared to be in his mid-to-late thirties, built with a lithe, corded frame that radiated coiled power. Above all, his gaze was remarkably intense. His eyes were wide, round, and piercing—the kind of eyes that could look downright terrifying if he ever decided to glare in earnest.
Mister Piercing-Eyes, just how long have you been standing there watching me?
The thought that he had witnessed me huffing and puffing with crimson cheeks, frantically blowing petals into the breeze, brought a sudden prickle of embarrassment. But I quickly threw back my shoulders. I had nothing to be ashamed of!
This had been a bloody, sweat-drenched campaign to reconcile the King and his consort. Compared to the utter humiliation of my cringe-worthy foot-acting before Prince Yeoning, this was a noble, sacred endeavor.
Right then.
Wink.
Mister Piercing-Eyes offered me a subtle grin.
It was not a smirk or a dismissive chuckle. His warm expression radiated deep approval, as if giving me an imaginary thumbs-up for a job brilliantly done.
Oh. So you wanted them to make up too, didn't you?
That explained why he had stood by without interfering despite my bizarre antics.
Wait… could this mister be from the Southerner faction?
It was a bit of a leap, but entirely plausible. A warrior aligned with Queen Inhyeon’s Westerners would never watch Sukjong and Hui-bin embrace with such heartfelt satisfaction.
At any rate, I was certain he wouldn't blow my cover.
I beamed back at him with my sweetest smile. Then, pointing discreetly in Hui-bin’s direction, I whispered in a voice barely louder than a rustling leaf:
“Please let her know I went on ahead.”
The officer gave a silent, solemn nod, his sharp eyes sweeping over me with keen interest.
“Goodbye, sir.”
Mouth moving without sound, I bowed and crept away, treading as softly as a mouse until I slipped out of the Ongnyucheon clearing.
Halfway down the slope, I paused and stole a glance back over my shoulder.
Beneath the brilliant canopy of autumn sunlight, two figures stood intertwined. The scarlet silk of the royal dragon robe and the pale jade curve of the noble skirt blended seamlessly together.
Your Majesty, Hui-bin-jaga… your third wheel takes her leave.
I silently wished that the bitter resentments of the past years would be washed away with the stream. I prayed that neither would turn their back on what lingered in their hearts.
Trust me, I know from past experience—life is far too short to waste.
May they hold fast to this fleeting warmth, without letting it slip through their fingers.
***
It was a grueling march.
From Changgyeonggung all the way into the deep, winding hills of Changdeokgung’s Secret Garden; hyperventilating over petals until I saw stars; and then trudging back through the palace gates all the way home to Chwiseondang…
Someone save me… my legs are falling off.
By the time I stumbled through the gates of Chwiseondang, I was thoroughly worn to a thread.
“Bong-bong! Good heavens, child, why do you look so gaunt and ragged? Where has Hui-bin-jaga gone?” Court Lady Han rushed forward, her voice laced with concern.
Pounding gently on my aching calves, I answered between pants, “The lady will be quite late, Ma’am.”
“Late? Whatever for?”
Standing on tiptoe, I leaned close to whisper into her ear, “She is in the Rear Garden right now. With His Majesty.”
“Oh my!”
Court Lady Han’s stern face broke into the widest, most radiant smile I had ever seen on her.
“So, um… my legs hurt terribly,” I wheedled, batting my eyelashes. “May I go rest for just a little while?”
“Of course, of course,” Court Lady Han bobbed her head readily. “There is still plenty of time before the Daeboreum Jwibulnori festivities begin. Go lie down in your room. Aren’t you famished?”
“A teensy bit hungry, yes.”
“Off you go, then. I shall have something sent over.” She patted my hair fondly, clearly delighted.
“Thank you, Court Lady Han!”
I gave a quick bow and turned toward my quarters. Just as I took a step, another figure crossed into the inner courtyard.
It was Yong-hee.
Her cheeks were flushed a deep crimson, and she was breathing heavily, as if she had just sprinted a great distance.
“Yong-hee,” Court Lady Han called out, her tone sharpening. “Where on earth have you been wandering off to without permission?”
“Ah, well… I was, um, out for a stroll…” Caught off guard, Yong-hee stammered, clearly panicked at running straight into the head court lady.
“The inner kitchen is in complete chaos with the holiday preparations! Hurry along and help them at once.”
“Y-yes, Ma’am.”
Yong-hee shot a fleeting, darting glance in my direction before scuttling away.
Where did she just run off to?
I hadn’t forgotten about her. She had simply been pushed down my mental priority list while I orchestrated the King’s romantic reunion. Three whole days had passed since I delivered my ultimatum, during which Yong-hee had kept entirely to her quarters, claiming she was bedridden with a terrible cold.
She’s definitely up to something…
My body screamed for rest, but my mind was already racing. Right on cue, a soft, familiar voice drifted in through the paper door.
“Bong-bong, I brought you some sweet rice!”
It was Bok-hee. I scrambled up and pulled the sliding door open.
She stepped inside carrying a small wooden tray laden with glossy brown yakbap, a chilled bowl of sikhye, and neatly peeled raw chestnuts.
“Bok-hee Hamanim.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s eat together.”
“R-really? Shall we?”
We sat cross-legged across from each other, happily nibbling on the treats while Bok-hee chattered away like a little songbird.
“Guess what? Early this morning, the Crown Prince looked right at me and nodded in greeting!”
“Wow, Unnie, you must have been over the moon!”
I casually dropped the formal honorifics and called her ‘Unnie.’ Rather than taking offense, Bok-hee’s round face lit up with delight.
“I know! My heart was beating so hard I thought it would burst right out of my chest.”
I watched her fawn over him with a slight pang of modern moral confusion. The Crown Prince was barely thirteen, and technically already had a Crown Princess… was it really fine for a ten-year-old maid to crush on a married boy?
Well, let’s chalk it up to the eccentricities of the Joseon era.
Studying her innocent, guileless expression, I decided it was time to settle the matter once and for all. Namely, the looming shadow of Suk-bin Choe.
“Unnie.”
“Hmm?”
“From now on, don’t listen to anything Suk-bin-jaga tells you to do.”
Bok-hee blinked, startled. “Huh…?”
“I thought about it really hard,” I said, leaning in with an earnest, solemn face. “You know what the Crown Prince always says, right?”
“The Crown Prince? What does he say?”
“He told me that deceiving people and betraying your own family are the two absolute worst crimes in the whole wide world.”
“Oh…”
Of course, His Royal Highness had never uttered any such thing. But as expected, using the word ‘Crown Prince’ on Bok-hee was like handing down a divine commandment carved in stone.
“So, Unnie, promise me. Be loyal to Hui-bin-jaga from now on, and never visit Suk-bin-jaga again.”
To my surprise, Bok-hee nodded vigorously without a shred of hesitation.
“I will. I never wanted to do it in the first place… I just got swept along before I knew what was happening. Every single day, I was terrified…” Bok-hee reached out and squeezed my hand tightly. “Ever since you and I became friends, Yong-hee won’t even look at me. In fact, I bumped into her right outside your door earlier, and she just walked past me like I was invisible.”
I froze. Yong-hee was lurking outside my quarters?
Her assigned room was near the Naesojubang. There was no earthly reason for her daily path to cross anywhere near my doorstep.
Could she have been running an errand since it’s Daeboreum?
Assuming innocent business made far more sense than baseless paranoia. Still, a prickly chill ran down the nape of my neck.
“Oh, right! Bok-hee Unnie, let me show you the doll the Crown Prince gave me.”
I crossed the room and unlatched my wooden bandaji chest, reaching inside to lift out my cherished Barbie doll.
“My goodness!” Bok-hee gasped, her eyes turning round as saucers. “She is so pretty! Are her clothes real silk?”
“Yup. And she has a name, too.”
“What is it?”
“Barbie.”
“Bab? Like… cooked rice?”
…Did everyone in this palace view me as a bottomless glutton?
“Not bab! Bar-bie! A Barbie doll!”
“Right, right… It’s a very delicious—I mean, cute name.”
Bok-hee was truly hopeless at lying, but she was fundamentally sweet-natured. I had worried for a brief second that flaunting the Crown Prince’s gift might spark jealousy in a fellow young maid. Yet here she was, simply munching happily on a chestnut while admiring the doll without a drop of malice.
Smiling, I opened the chest again to tuck Barbie safely away on her perch.
“Wait…”
My fingers paused.
The contents of the chest—piles of out-of-season clothes and miscellaneous trinkets—looked subtly disturbed. The neat folds were rumpled, the corners shifted. Perhaps Seol-hyang had looked inside to fetch a rag, but an uneasy intuition spurred me to plunge my hands all the way to the very bottom.
I swept my palms across the smooth wood.
…It’s not here?
The item I had buried beneath the deepest layers of spare clothing.
Boom-boomi.
My monstrous, ill-fated curse doll had vanished without a trace.
Feigning exhaustion, I quickly ushered Bok-hee out of the room. The second the door slid shut, I dropped to my knees and tore the wardrobe apart, dumping every single piece of fabric onto the floor.
Nothing.
Boom-boomi was gone.
A name flashed in my mind like a stroke of lightning.
Yong-hee…?
Bok-hee’s words rang in my ears: I bumped into her right outside your door earlier…
And then came the memory of Yong-hee entering the courtyard, breathless and flushed red, stammering excuses to Court Lady Han.
Could she really be the culprit?
Even if she is… it’s only a suspicion. I have no concrete proof.
The true horror wasn’t simply that someone had stolen it. The real question was far more terrifying.
What does she intend to do with it?
I thought that was the danger I had to brace for. But I was wrong.
The true catastrophe was looming from an entirely different direction.
Before the full moon of Daeboreum could even set, a monstrous tempest was about to descend upon the palace.