Wang Seolha (1)
"Hmm... a girl, and she was peeping at you?"
"Yeah. Whenever I attacked, she'd just pull ice out of thin air. Never seen anything like it."
As soon as I returned, I told Nari everything that had happened. Her face twisted into a puzzled expression as she listened.
'Ah! The hair ornament!'
I hastily pulled out the ornament as well, and Nari's eyes went wide.
"Huh? This is Lady Wang Seolha's.... Why on earth—?"
"Wang Seolha? Who's that?"
It was a name I'd never heard before. Then again, it wasn't as if the Wang family had a monopoly on people with the surname Wang.
"She's the daughter of Pavilion Master Wang Yeomsu of the Vermilion Bird Pavilion, Sogaju-nim's uncle."
Wang Yeomsu's daughter?
Considering Wang Inho and Wang Yeomsu were cousins rather than brothers, it made sense I'd never heard of her.
"But why would Lady Seolha be peeping at you, Sogaju-nim?"
"Beats me. I thought maybe she liked me or something, so I asked her point blank. Apparently not."
For some reason, Nari made an expression of utter disbelief.
What? What did I do?
Anyway, now that I knew the culprit, all that remained was to go ask her why. Nari nodded at that.
"Whew. Honestly, I do feel relieved."
"I know. I was on pins and needles wondering if she was someone who meant you harm, Sogaju-nim."
Nari let out a long breath, her face noticeably lighter.
"Lady Wang Seolha is someone with a great deal of popularity and respect behind her. I'm sure it wasn't anything malicious."
"You think? Like what?"
"Hmm~ Guarding you, perhaps?"
"What kind of guard doesn't even know who they're guarding? And who'd put a girl on bodyguard duty?"
"Th-that was just an example. Why do you always have to pick at everything I say?"
"When have I ever picked at—"
Creak!
Huh? What now?
Suddenly the door burst open from outside. In strode one of the Black Tortoise Pavilion warriors assigned to guard me.
Ansong, was it? I'd noticed him before because he always stood guard without a single thread out of place. He'd even brought me yakgwa pastries when no one was looking.
But that was then and this was now. Guard or no guard, throwing the door open without warning was plain rude.
So, as the Young Lord of the Wang Clan, I decided it was my duty to straighten out the family's etiquette and loyalty, and I rebuked him with my most fearsome voice.
"You son of a—"
"My apologies, Sogaju-nim! It's an urgent matter— wait, what?"
How do I put this. Ansong's face shifted into an expression that clearly said, 'What on earth did I just hear?' Nari, on the other hand... looked exactly the same, as if this were a daily occurrence.
Hmm. Maybe I'd cut it too short? It stung a bit, but I figured I'd elaborate a little more politely.
"You motherfucking bastard?"
"Pardon?"
When Ansong just kept going "Pardon?", Nari, apparently fed up, cut in.
"Sogaju-nim asked why you're bursting through the door like a wild animal. And instead of explaining yourself, what exactly are you doing?"
"No, wait, how does that mean—"
"Kindly answer the question you were asked. Surely you aren't attempting to disrespect the Sogaju-nim?"
"I... I'll apologize first. Sogaju-nim. The matter was so urgent that I opened the door in haste. If punishment is due, I will accept it gladly."
Wow. This woman cracks jokes with me all day, but when it counts, she's got real presence.
While I was marveling at that, Ansong dropped to his knees, and I hurried to stop him.
"Never mind that. So what's got you in such a state?"
"Well... the Flag Bearer Corps is holding its enlistment ceremony, and it seems you will need to attend, Sogaju-nim."
"The Flag Bearer Corps?"
Barging in out of nowhere, and now it's about some Flag Bearer Corps?
When I echoed the word back, Nari kindly filled in the details for me.
"The Flag Bearer Corps is a unit that anyone bearing the Wang family name of the Wang Clan must pass through."
She added that enlistment came at thirteen and discharge at seventeen.
Insane. Forced enlistment.
I'd earned military merit in my past life and clawed my way up to county magistrate — recalling those days, I shook my head fiercely. Reborn into a new life, and I had to enlist again?
Granted, these were children, and royal blood at that, so it couldn't compare to the army of my past life — but my teeth still chattered all the same.
As I trembled and shivered in terror, Nari added one more little detail from the side.
"I hear Pavilion Master Wang Yeomsu has recently taken on the role of drill instructor there as well."
I felt like fainting on the spot.
One way or another, I ended up attending the enlistment ceremony. Ansong explained that the sudden summons was because, originally, I hadn't been scheduled to attend at all.
But Wang Inho had abruptly included me.
'What's this? Is he trying to raise my standing?'
Wang Inho never did anything without thought, and I could only guess this was meant to shore up my political position.
Lost in such thoughts as I made my way to the Grand Martial Training Ground, the recruits came into view — lined up and standing at attention, preparations complete.
It wasn't even my enlistment, yet tension gripped my whole body. And since I knew I'd be enlisting myself one day, my head began to spin.
"You've come."
"Yes, Father."
When I arrived at the Grand Martial Training Ground where the ceremony was to be held, Wang Inho sat in the seat of highest honor on the platform, with Cheok Hwaryeon at his right hand.
"The ceremony will begin shortly, so please take your seat."
At Cheok Hwaryeon's word, I sat down at Wang Inho's left. Below the platform, the children enlisting in the Flag Bearer Corps began to file in one by one.
They'd only just turned thirteen, so they were all small. But there was one thing that set them clearly apart from other kids their age.
'Why do these kids have such crisp, disciplined posture?'
Nervousness was written plainly on their faces, yet every single one of them marched with an identical, measured stride. Royal blood was royal blood, young as they were, I supposed.
As I mused on that, Cheok Hwaryeon's gaze landed squarely on me. It was the look that said, 'If only you were half like them....' I did my utmost to pretend not to notice and kept my eyes on the children below.
Chak! Chak!
In the blink of an eye, the children closed ranks and came to a halt in perfect formation. Then one of them — a girl with white hair — stepped up onto the platform.
I was wondering who that pretty girl was when Wang Inho, seated beside me, spoke quietly.
"The top enlistee. You'll be seeing a great deal of her from now on."
"Me? Why?"
"Because she's exceptional."
Was she the kind of talent I'd need as I built my position as the future head of the clan?
Thinking that, I cast my senses toward her, meaning to gauge her skill. But something felt off.
'What is this? I can sense a familiar energy from her.'
It was an aura I'd felt many times before. Just as I tried to place the memory, she dropped to one knee and bowed her head deeply.
Her white hair gave her an air of profound mystery, and I found myself staring at her for a moment, entranced — which was when I noticed one more strange thing.
One of her hair ornaments was missing.
Wait. Don't tell me—
"I am called Wang Seolha."
It WAS her!
After the ceremony, I summoned the stalker — that is, Wang Seolha — to the rear garden. The maids squealed every time they passed and caught sight of us, but I had no spare attention for that. I was in the mood to go squealing and sprinting through the whole estate myself, after all.
We walked perhaps half the length of the garden, and then — without either of us deciding who'd go first — we both stopped at the same moment. We'd both felt that here, we could talk freely.
"So.... why were you stalking me?"
I spoke first. It was irritating, yes, but I was genuinely curious about the reason. Last time I'd seen her, she'd had ordinary black hair. Today, it was white.
Which meant that every time she'd been peeping at me, she'd dyed her hair black so she wouldn't be recognized. The realization sent a chill down my spine. I wanted to ask what she'd been hoping to get out of it.
But Wang Seolha didn't so much as acknowledge the question. Instead, she unleashed her own.
"My hair ornament. Give it back."
She said it out of nowhere, eyes narrowed into an axe-blade glare.
Seriously. If you're going to speak formally, commit to it — what's with doing it only halfway?
'Unbelievable.'
So being pretty means you get to do whatever you want?
I swallowed the rising fury and asked again.
"I said, why were you stalking me?"
"Hand over the ornament."
Ugh. Maybe I just shouldn't hold back.
I could endure three murders' worth of grievance for a single endurance.
I resolved to bear it one more time — and from then on, throw caution to the wind and come out swinging.
"Your hair ornament, you mean? This one?"
I pulled one of Wang Seolha's hair ornaments from my pocket. The lotus-shaped golden ornament was beautiful enough to make any woman covet it.
"Give it back?"
She said it while staring at me with genuinely, sincerely, bottomlessly rude eyes. I compared Wang Seolha's glare with Nari's — and my decision was made.
Nope. Screw it, I'm not holding back.
"Not giving it back."
"....."
"Why should I? You spent a month peeping at me and then dropped it. You think I'm some sucker? I'm supposed to hand it over without even an apology?"
Having held it in this long, the words came pouring out of me like an archer loosing rapid-fire arrows.
"Why were you watching me in the first place? Did you want to steal the Royal Guard arts? If so, you'd better wake up from that dream."
"S-steal the Royal Guard arts?!"
Wang Seolha had been sulking this whole time, but the moment the Royal Guard arts came up, she panicked outright. Then she shot back immediately, in a tone begging me not to misunderstand.
"I know perfectly well the Royal Guard arts aren't something you can steal just by watching! And I never had any intention of stealing them! So please, kindly refrain from spreading slander!"
The way she shouted her denial, she looked almost frightened.
As I wondered what had her so spooked, I soon found myself nodding along. The Royal Guard arts were the Wang Clan's secret family martial art. Normally, anyone of the clan could learn the family arts unless they were of a collateral branch — but the Wang Clan was a special case.
The family was simply so enormous that everyone outside the Patriarch's direct line was, effectively, collateral. So Wang Yeomsu's household had their own separate martial arts, in effect.
And when I'd pressed her about stealing the Royal Guard arts, from Wang Seolha's perspective it must have felt like being accused of betraying her own kin.
"Fine. So it wasn't about the Royal Guard arts."
"Of course not!"
"Then why were you watching me? Could it be you actually like m—"
"That is not it."
I'd just thrown it out there as a guess. Did she really have to shoot it down that emphatically?
"I heard it from Father. That your talent surpasses mine."
Good eye on the father's part. The daughter may be a lost cause, but the father seems like a genuinely fine man.
"Well, obviously I'm better than you. Talent-wise, I'm probably the best even if you searched all of the Central Plains."
"You're awfully full of yourself. But I've never once believed that, which is why I was observing you — to see just what your talent is really like."
"And who are you to do that?"
At my question, Wang Seolha squared her shoulders as if proud of herself, and declared:
"The greatest prodigy of the Wang Clan. That would be me."
"Doesn't it embarrass you, saying that about yourself...?"
"Why should it? This is the Wang Clan we're talking about. A den of geniuses and prodigies, with no common talent to be found. A place where, once in a while, a true genius like me pops up — that's the Wang Clan, isn't it? You of all people should understand, Sogaju-nim, what the word 'greatest' means in a place like that."
Oh, I understand all right. What I don't understand is why you'd say it out loud yourself.
I let out a single sigh and waved my hand. It was a signal for her to get lost already.
"Wait. You still have to give it back."
"Grovel, and maybe I'll think about it."
"I'm sorry. There. Done, right?"
"Yeah. That'll do."
And then I pretended to deliberate for a moment before opening my mouth.
"I thought it over, and I've reached a conclusion."
"?"
Not giving it back, bitch.