In Order to Prepare - 6
I stepped inside and took stock of the ingredients. As it happened, there was just enough on hand to make the dish Yohwan had taught me a while back.
I coated a large pot with oil, tossed in garlic, ginger, and a few other fiery spices, then added the clams I'd soaked earlier to purge them of sand. Once they had steamed through with a splash of wine, I gave them a taste—spicy and savory, with the wine seeping into every bite. A fine dish to go with drinks.
While that was going, I threw together a stir-fry of chives and meat as well, along with a simple dressed vegetable salad, and carried the whole spread out with me.
"Forgive the humble fare."
"Mmm. It looks delicious, doesn't it? And it smells wonderful."
"If it falls short, I'll make more."
"I doubt we'll run short. Though this clam dish hardly seems like something you'd sell at the inn."
"It isn't. Not the sort of dish worth selling at an inn, anyway—I learned it from Yohwan a while back just to have a snack for my drinks."
"Oh my. Then am I the first person ever to taste it?"
It was, in truth, the first time I'd ever served it to anyone. I nodded, and Hong Ryeon happily lifted a shell, plucked out the meat inside, and broke into a bright smile.
"The meat is so springy, and the flavor has soaked all the way through. It's delicious. You could sell this, you know?"
"Haha. Thank you for the kind words. Now—have a drink."
I poured wine into her cup. Unlike the harsh liquor favored by drinkers like Ha-no, this was a mild brew—just right for talking slowly over a long meal.
Her face faintly flushed, Hong Ryeon propped her chin on the arm she'd rested on the table and studied me.
"So? What was it you wanted to discuss?"
"The coming fight with the Unorthodox. Hmm... you're already aware, but the Iron Blood Dan may well be standing behind them."
"...They may."
Hong Ryeon, already briefed on the situation, straightened in her seat and fixed me with a grave look.
Our current strength amounted to the Hongseong Sect, the soldiers Cheon Il-hwa had placed at our disposal, and the government troops under the magistrate. Plus Gi Noya and Wi Yeol. That was the whole of it.
It was hardly a poor hand to play, but if we thought through our responses in advance, we could trim the losses down even further.
"All the more so where the Iron Blood Dan is concerned. The Hongseong Sect has already crossed blades with them once, after all."
"That's true."
"And they'll know the Hongseong Sect means to join the fight. They know full well that Hongseong and Seomhwachon are now bound together, for better or worse."
Assuming they weren't fools, that is. And the enemy was no fool. I could only wish they were.
"Attacking a village with a sitting magistrate in it is foolish to begin with, if you ask me. Honestly, I'd rather they just stayed away."
"Haha. As would I. In any case, that brings me to the matter at hand... I'd like the Hongseong Sect to be the ones to face the Iron Blood Dan."
"Hmm..."
Hong Ryeon folded her arms. Facing her closed eyes, I let out a long breath.
"If you're unwilling, then..."
"Huh? Oh, no—it isn't that I'm unwilling?"
"Ah. Is that so?"
So I'd worried over nothing.
"You're right that Seomhwachon has become something we can't sever ourselves from. And it's true that you and I—no, that we, rooted here in Seomhwachon, are no longer strangers to one another. Besides, the Hongseong Sect never runs from a fight when there's something worth protecting."
"Then what was that just now?"
"Ah—I was wondering how they might come at us. If they strike first through the Unorthodox, do we step forward to stop them ourselves? Or..."
"Don't worry yourself over that part. The other fronts will be held by Gi Noya, Wi Yeol, and the magistrate."
And there would be the soldiers Cheon Il-hwa sent as well.
By the time I had laid it out in no uncertain terms, Hong Ryeon had polished off the clams and flashed me a bright smile.
"Very well. We'll give it our all."
"That fight—may we join it too?"
The door burst open. Walking out from the direction of the private room came Chae Ryeon and Chae Jin.
The two heroines of the Chae family strode over without a trace of hesitation and dragged chairs up to where we sat.
"The Moon Lotus Pavilion?"
When Hong Ryeon looked over in bewilderment, Chae Ryeon squared her shoulders. "Is that a problem?"
"None that I can see. But this fight has nothing to do with the Moon Lotus Pavilion."
"What do you mean, nothing? Sis—you're going to fight too, aren't you?"
"Of course I am."
Chae Ryeon preened, as if to say see for yourself.
Hold on—this wasn't something to be so casual about, was it?
"And your price?"
"Who knows?"
I let out a short laugh at her easygoing smile.
Laughter bloomed freely after that, and we talked on, passing wine and food back and forth.
When a fair stretch of time had passed, Hong Ryeon—wistful that the evening was drawing to a close—smiled with her eyes and lightly took my hand.
"Well then, until next time. I do hope we have another evening like this."
"I'll host you properly again. By the way, isn't tomorrow your patrol? Last I heard, tomorrow's rounds are you and Jiyu."
"You keep track of all that?"
"This much is simply the basics, no?"
I said it as though it were nothing, and Hong Ryeon giggled and nodded. Then she slipped outside as naturally as breathing and melted into the darkness in an instant.
Well then. Shall I see to the rest of my work?
I returned to the inn to clear the table we'd used and tidy up the private room. Chae Jin had apparently gone up; only Chae Ryeon remained.
She sat alone, poking at the leftover food with her chopsticks, and I walked over with a smile. "If that isn't enough, I can bring out more."
"Mmm. No, thank you. I was planning to finish off what's left with one last drink and head up."
Chae Ryeon, chewing on the long strip of scallion left on her plate, smiled brightly. I refilled her cup with what remained of the wine and took a seat across from her.
"I'd like to finish that conversation from earlier. What do you want in return for this?"
Chae Ryeon's eyes curved prettily. I could tell that what lay behind those crescent-moon eyes in that lovely face was no malice.
"Hehe. What do you think I want?"
I turned over what Chae Ryeon could possibly want most right now.
That would be... the successor's seat of Moon Lotus Pavilion, of course.
"Did Lady Chae tell you? That she'd step aside from the succession in return for your help here?"
"And if she did?"
"Then I would have to refuse the Moon Lotus Pavilion's participation."
That much, no matter what, I could not allow.
I said it flatly, and Chae Ryeon burst into a radiant smile, looking thoroughly delighted.
"Ahahaha. I knew it. Don't worry—it's nothing like that. This has nothing to do with my sister. Just my own personal curiosity, and a chance to take the measure of these so-called Iron Blood Dan. And lastly..."
She cast a subtle glance toward Mount Hongseong beyond the window.
"The Hongseong Sect."
Her returning gaze pinned me where I sat.
"The abilities of the innkeeper who supports that Hongseong Sect, and the potential of Seomhwachon. I simply want to witness the strength of it all with my own two eyes."
Chae Ryeon slowly laid her hands on the table and tilted her head with an adorable little smile.
"The Hongseong Sect has long been our Moon Lotus Pavilion's great rival. How could I possibly pass up a chance to scout a rival's strength from right beside them? And besides..."
Tipping the last of her wine into her mouth in one smooth motion, she rose from her seat and put on that foxlike smile of hers. "All the more so when the tiger has grown wings."
What—that was all? Truly impressive. Bold, challenging, and endlessly curious.
I smiled at her and nodded.
"Ah—of course, we'll fight our very hardest. I want to show the world that our Moon Lotus Pavilion is second to none. Not even to the Hongseong Sect."
"If that's the case, then no amount of thanks to your pavilion could ever be enough. My gratitude for joining this fight."
"Oh my? You're not even going to try to hide it?"
"What is there to hide?"
I picked up the empty plates and headed for the kitchen as I spoke. "It will come to be known sooner or later anyway."
How many hills were still left for me—for us—to climb? There was no hiding it, try as I might.
By the time I finished cleaning up, Chae Ryeon had gone up as well, and the inn stood empty. I locked the doors alone and made for my room.
Perhaps because the night had already gone pitch black—the moonlight spilling in through the window alone made the documents hard to read.
I lit a few lamps and spread out my papers. I was quietly working through the evening's tasks, balancing the day's earnings and the like, when I heard a knock at the door.
"Come in."
"Working again?"
"There are a few things I need to go over. But why aren't you asleep?"
It was Chae Jin. Changed into comfortable clothes, she shuffled up to me with a hesitant air and dipped her head slightly.
"Did... Ryeon happen to be rude at all?"
"Not in the slightest, so don't you worry."
"Haah. What a relief. You see, most people who meet Ryeon show one of two reactions. The first is admiration. The second is irritation. But you, Innkeeper, seem to be neither."
"The world has room for all kinds, doesn't it?"
"Hehe. Is that so?"
"Ah. And one more thing."
I pointed at Chae Jin's head. She flinched and whipped a hand up to cover her hair, but I had already seen everything.
"You've changed your hairpin. Is that a keepsake from your mother?"
"Uh... yes. You noticed at a single glance. How does it look?"
"It suits you well."
"...That's a relief."
I gave a nod to Chae Jin and her bashful smile.
"And there is something I'd like to thank you for."
"Hm? What would that be?"
To her puzzled look, I gestured at the seat across from me. This was a talk that demanded proper courtesy—she would take the chair, and I could hardly deliver it sitting down.
Chae Jin settled quietly at the table in my room and looked at me. Meeting the lamplight reflected in her black eyes, I spoke my heart.
"Thank you."
"Huh?"
"When you said earlier that you'd stand with us as though it were the most natural thing in the world—I cannot tell you how much weight that lifted from my chest."
They say praise can make even a whale dance—and gratitude, however often it is expressed, is never enough.
As I had told Chae Ryeon, this fight belonged to the Hongseong Sect and Seomhwachon.
In other words, if Chae Jin had no wish to fight, all she had to do was walk away. And yet she had offered to stand with us in our battle.
More than that—a battle in which the Hongseong Sect, Moon Lotus Pavilion's own rival, would take part—and she had asked for nothing in return, as if it went without saying.
"Oh... n-no. That's just... it's only what I ought to do..."
"It is not. The contract between you and me covers my training and my protection. Nothing in it binds you to a war over Seomhwachon."
"...Well, yes, but still."
"It feels as though all I ever do is owe you debts."
I rose from my seat and bowed low. Chae Jin hurriedly caught me by the arms and pulled me back upright, and I smiled at her.
What is received must be repaid—that much was simply proper.
I held Chae Jin's gaze as I said it. She stared back at me, eyes wide and blank for a long moment—then broke into a delighted grin.