Pearls Before the Phoenix
Ha-yeon's hand flicked upward, the earring pinched between her boxy, crab-like fingers. Namgung Ryeon's eyes snapped after it like a cat spotting prey. When she waggled the earring left and right, the other girl's head followed in perfect sync. After a few repetitions, Namgung Ryeon seemed to snap out of it. Her face flushed crimson for a moment before she exploded.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"Doing what? I was just adjusting the angle of the light so I could properly appreciate the earring's colors."
"Y-you—!"
"What."
Namgung Ryeon clamped her mouth shut. She couldn't exactly argue back when even she didn't understand why she'd reacted that way. Something sparkly and pretty had simply caught her eye and held her spellbound. Only after several rounds of the game had she realized Ha-yeon was teasing her, but confronting it now felt too embarrassing. To accuse Ha-yeon of playing with her, she'd have to admit that her own gaze had been completely captivated by those pearl earrings—and that was something Namgung Ryeon could never accept. The sulking came from her refusal to acknowledge that she'd been distracted by mere jewelry instead of a blade.
Ha-yeon chuckled and held the earrings up to the light from various angles.
"Heh. They are pretty, though. Unusual glasswork. The gems and glass inside are catching the light and scattering color across the pearl like paint, huh."
The technique was quite distinctive, with real aesthetic sense. A renowned artisan must have poured considerable effort into each piece. The refracted rainbow hues splashed across the white pearl like rippling coral—beautiful enough to make anyone stare.
"That said, while they'll definitely draw eyes, they're so flashy that unless the wearer is exceptionally stunning, people will notice the earrings more than the woman wearing them."
The only real downside was how overwhelmingly beautiful they were. At this level of brilliance, unless the woman herself shone just as brightly, the old saying about casting pearls before swine would inevitably come up. In short, these were accessories that demanded a face worthy of them.
After muttering this, Ha-yeon noticed everyone in the room had turned to stare at her. Not just the slave and Namgung Ryeon—the two little girls who had been playing with the gold ornaments also widened their eyes in shock.
"What."
"No way, my lord. I didn't know you had such refined tastes."
"Fucking slave. Are you mocking me again these days? Got a problem with me?"
Oh-ryeong and Yuk-ryeong spoke up at the same time, defending their "husband."
"But our husband doesn't..."
"...care about that kind of thing, right?"
Who was Ha-yeon, after all? A woman who was absurdly beautiful yet completely uninterested in adornment. She wore a plain black robe over a loosely fitted white inner garment, knew nothing about makeup that every other woman seemed to practice, and after a minimal morning wash, she'd sit around drinking early liquor without any further effort. Even her naturally soft hair only looked somewhat maintained thanks to raw talent rather than care—whenever it grew past her eyebrows, she'd simply hack it off with sword qi because it was annoying. What kind of aesthetic sense could such a person possibly have?
Given all this, no one had ever imagined she possessed any artistic appreciation. Even Namgung Ryeon, who constantly harped about martial artists and femininity, couldn't bring herself to abandon her long hair and instead tied it in a ponytail while enjoying light, natural makeup. How much worse must it be for Ha-yeon?
If her looks weren't so overwhelmingly celestial, she wouldn't have even drawn Namgung Ryeon's initial complaints. She was the type of woman you wanted to tell to put in some effort, yet her sheer natural beauty made it impossible to criticize. If she lived like this with that face, women would line up begging to swap bodies with her. But people were mistaken about one thing.
Ha-yeon looked at everyone with a pitying expression.
"Listen up, kids."
"Yes, husband."
"Yes, my lord."
Then Yong Cheong, the twins, and Namgung Ryeon all gaped in shock as if witnessing a miracle.
"It's not that I don't know how to adorn myself. I just choose not to."
She had eyes too. Even though her body had become female, she understood how to enhance this face and figure to make them even more beautiful. She knew what a man should wear to look dashing and what a woman should do to appear lovely. She simply chose not to act on that knowledge.
With a nonchalant expression, Ha-yeon hooked the pair of ornate earrings onto her own ears. Normally, their flashiness would have seemed gaudy, but this time it was different.
"It's not that I don't know how to show proper respect. I just choose not to."
Against her pearl-white nape and skin, the earrings' presence seemed subdued. Their usual brilliance was softened by her ebony hair, glowing gently like constellations added to a night sky of black velvet and milky starlight. The earrings had become mere supporting stars to illuminate a beauty that was itself a masterpiece. Just as no single constellation could outshine the night sky, the once-overwhelmingly flashy pair now humbly fulfilled their role as adornments. Their stubborn brilliance had surrendered before even greater beauty.
Then came the smile she rarely showed. With the corners of her lips slightly raised and her hair neatly swept back, combined with her usual slouched posture now refined into something demure, the person sitting there was... someone else entirely.
"Waaah!"
"Heek!"
Oh-ryeong and Yuk-ryeong clung to each other, faces flushed. After all, women liked pretty women too. Those who felt jealousy or resentment toward beautiful women simply hadn't encountered true beauty. When faced with genuine, breathtaking beauty, one felt an almost magical certainty that no amount of criticism could diminish it. If instinct couldn't win, it screamed to join instead. Beauty that transcended gender was simply on another level.
"What are you two doing, my little ones?"
"Hehe. Eheh, husband."
"Why don't you do this normally?"
The twins circled Ha-yeon in a daze before settling on either side of her. Seeing her refined profile from the side made them gasp again.
"Waaah!"
"Husband, you're really pretty!"
"Hey now, you cheeky little things. Suddenly throwing compliments around? That won't get you anything extra."
"You'd be even prettier if you just kept your mouth shut!"
"That's right! Close your mouth!"
"...Kids?"
Children were pure. Just... far too pure. Her feelings were hurt. Hmph. So even her little ones had been completely won over by appearances... She'd raised tiger cubs.
"Aigoo."
She ruffled the twins' hair messily. Only then did she notice the slave and Namgung Ryeon. Both looked equally stunned. Among them, Yong Cheong stared at Ha-yeon for a moment before stepping forward.
"My lord."
"Pretty, right? I get startled every time I look in the mirror too. Even more so when bathing."
"If you know how to observe proper etiquette, why have you never done so until now?"
"Because I don't feel like it."
"Still, it's fortunate you don't seem to have any violent aversion to adornment. From now on, when we visit important elders, I'll have to ask Oh-ryeong and Yuk-ryeong to prepare your clothes and makeup."
"Slave?"
"Knowing how to show respect yet choosing not to is both a discourtesy and deception toward your elders and those around you. Let us strive to become righteous martial artists who are beautiful both inside and out."
"You fucking bastard."
At those words, Oh-ryeong and Yuk-ryeong sparkled with excitement and pressed closer. Oh-ryeong had picked up some makeup skills and fashion sense during her time in the brothel, and Yuk-ryeong, though young, wasn't entirely without an eye for such things. Now that they had the finest canvas to work with, both girls raised their hands in celebration.
"Yahoo!"
"From now on, we'll take care of you, husband!"
Ha-yeon's expression soured instantly. That damned slave had no sense of his place, yet somehow possessed enough cunning to exploit her weakness for the twins. Furious, she swung her fist at him. Yong Cheong, well-accustomed to being hit, tilted his head back, but the precisely timed honey-fist still connected squarely with the crown of his head. Not even knowing what had struck him, the slave clutched his head and wailed.
"Aaaagh! My looord!"
If one considered Yong Cheong's usual gentle demeanor, the power behind that punch was easy to imagine. Seeing this, Namgung Ryeon finally snapped out of her trance.
"Hah!"
She clutched at her racing heart. Then she lowered her head in resignation. Shame washed over her for having coveted the earrings. Yes, getting distracted by mere earrings showed a lack of mental discipline. She couldn't possibly pull off wearing them the way Ha-yeon did anyway. A pinch of jealousy followed. Hmph! So in the end, you're just a woman putting on airs, not some lofty martial artist! Yet even as these thoughts swirled, Ha-yeon's violently beautiful appearance dominated her mind. It was the typical symptom of a teenage girl whose hormones had thoroughly scrambled her emotions and brain. Of course, letting such thoughts show in one's attitude was still wrong.
"Tch. Hmph."
Just as Namgung Ryeon kept her head bowed, worried her appearance might be compared unfavorably, something was held out beneath her. A hand so pale and beautiful it almost felt insulting. Resting on it was the pair of pearl earrings.
When Namgung Ryeon looked up in confusion, she found Ha-yeon back to her usual slouched posture and expression.
"What's this."
"A gift."
"Why?"
"Well, you didn't tell the family head everything about me. Consider it a reward for being a good kid who at least kept some conscience."
Namgung Ryeon had told her father everything necessary. However, regarding information about Ha-yeon—specifically her martial arts and strength—she had carefully adjusted her words to avoid raising excessive suspicion. That had been Ha-yeon's request.
"I said you could do whatever, or not, but I didn't expect you to actually keep it."
"Hmph... What do you take me for? You think I'd like earrings like these?"
"You seemed to."
"...Besides, someone like me wearing them would just get called pearls before swine anyway. I'm... not as pretty as you. And I don't even want to be pretty."
This coming from someone who already had natural pink rouge enhancing her seemingly unadorned complexion. Did Namgung Ryeon really think she wouldn't notice? A swordmaster couldn't possibly miss makeup. Pretending otherwise while wearing properly coordinated clothes wasn't good for her. Suppressing one's desires never was.
"Really? Then I'll keep them."
"..."
"I'll just strip off the glass and sell the gems and pearls for drinking money."
"Are you insane?! Selling something this precious?! And dismantling it?!"
Namgung Ryeon snatched the earrings away in a panic, then immediately turned red.
"I-I mean! If you sold them as-is, you'd get a much better price...! That's why I said that!"
"Oh dear. Where did the earrings go?"
"?"
"Oh no, slave. I must have dropped the earrings while playing with them. Isn't that right?"
From the corner, Yong Cheong—who had been rubbing his head—gave Ha-yeon a look that clearly said "what nonsense is this?" Ha-yeon internally cursed his lack of tact and raised her hand to smack his useless head, at which point survival instinct finally kicked in. The slave quickly assessed the situation and nodded vigorously.
"Indeed. Small accessories like earrings are easily lost."
"Oh dear! I should have taken better care of them. Well, I've already finished all the liquor today anyway!"
"Huh? Husband, those earrings are in that lady's hand—mmph!"
"Yuk-ryeong. Quiet."
Oh-ryeong had quicker wits than the slave. Impressed, Ha-yeon patted her head.
"Aigoo. What a shame. Well, nothing to be done. Whoever picks them up will just have to make good use of them."
"My lord is correct. Lost items belong to whoever finds them."
"Right. Someone prettier than me will probably wear them well."
With that, Ha-yeon sidled over and draped an arm around Namgung Ryeon's shoulders. Then she winked at the flustered girl.
"Whenever you work up the courage, you have to show me first if you wear them, okay?"
"Eeeh?!"
"Heh. Just talking to myself. Still, I think those lost earrings would suit you best, Namgung."
Ha-yeon withdrew and returned to her original spot, patting Oh-ryeong's head while rummaging through the next box. But the atmosphere had shifted slightly from before.
Namgung Ryeon stared silently at the earrings resting on her palm. They had seemed more brilliant and beautiful than anything in the world when she first saw them, yet now that feeling was gone. Perhaps because she had witnessed a beauty that made even such exquisite earrings seem ordinary by comparison. Her grip tightened around them. Then, without a word, she carefully tucked them into her pocket.
'She called it a gift. After going out of her way to consider my feelings like that... it would be even ruder not to accept them.'
Making that excuse to herself, her gaze remained fixed on Ha-yeon. Someone who had approached her despite their disastrous first meeting. Someone stronger, more beautiful, and capable of both concession and consideration. The favorability that had plummeted when dealing with Namgung Jeong now rose sharply.
'...She might be a good person.'
People really were that simple. The Sword Phoenix of the Namgung Clan, who had once dismissed femininity in martial artists, had been captivated by a mere woman rather than a sword. She was still lying to herself that she merely wanted to treat her benefactor as a friend, but her true feelings were different.
'She's stronger and more beautiful than me, yet she acknowledged me. How kind.'
The lonely heart that had been starved of affection due to her innate lack of social grace and education had been humbled by someone who was essentially her superior in every way. And it was Ha-yeon who had approached the socially awkward, sword-obsessed shut-in otaku that was Namgung Ryeon with the playful, approachable warmth of a kindhearted gyaru. Namgung Ryeon nodded to herself as she thought of Ha-yeon.
'I hate to admit it, but the title of Sword Phoenix suits this person more than me... No, since I don't want the Sword Blossom anyway, she can have it.'
At some point, her internal address had shifted to "big sister." Wanting to become closer to this person, Namgung Ryeon silently watched Ha-yeon. Yong Cheong noticed her gaze and shook his head. His eyes seemed to say it wasn't too late to back out before getting hurt, but Namgung Ryeon simply glared back as if asking what he was looking at. Gender might differ slightly, but otaku who built walls against the world were weak to kind and pretty gyaru types. The murim was no exception.