Chapter 93
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 93
So-ya opened her eyes in an unfamiliar place.
‘Where am I?’
No, it was a place that felt both strange and familiar at the same time.
‘Ah, right. This place is...’
Just then, she heard someone’s presence.
So-ya’s eyes widened as she instinctively looked up.
‘That person is...’
A man approached her. His platinum-blonde hair cascaded down smoothly.
“How is your body?”
So-ya blinked at the low, resonating voice.
‘My body? Why would my body...’
The moment she became aware of it, a surge of pain rushed over her.
“Ugh...”
With a faint groan, crimson blood trickled through her teeth.
‘Ack? Blood?’
“Bi...!”
She felt the man cry out in agony as he pulled her into a tight embrace.
‘Huh?’
The man rested his head heavily on her shoulder. His large frame, wrapped around her, was trembling slightly.
‘Is he crying...?’
So-ya tilted her head, staring blankly at the man’s heaving chest.
Then, her mouth opened of its own accord.
“...Your Highness, my wish... was... this spring...”
‘Eh? What am I saying?’
So-ya strained to listen, but she couldn't make out the words clearly. It was because she struggled to even force out those few short syllables, pausing and gasping for breath between them.
“Yes. I promise.”
The man whispered as if he were about to weep, holding her so tightly it felt like her bones might break.
“I give you my word. I will keep that promise, no matter what.”
How strange.
“So, please, get well soon, my...”
Why does my heart ache so much at the sound of his voice, which sounds like he’s crying?
As So-ya was dazed, dwelling on that thought...
Suddenly, her eyes snapped open.
‘...!’
It felt like she had been dreaming just a moment ago, but the second she woke up, she couldn't remember a thing. However, her body felt incredibly refreshed, as if she had just had a deep, restful sleep.
‘Wait?’
The events from before she fell asleep suddenly came back to her.
‘Why am I in bed?’
She had definitely been waiting for her brothers to come find her...
“So-ya!”
“Cotton Ball!”
At that moment, Ga-hyeon and Ga-yul, who had been anxiously waiting by the bedside for her to wake up, rushed forward and pulled her into a hug.
“Whoa!”
So-ya managed to wriggle out from between her brothers as they both pounced on her at once.
“How do you feel, So-ya? Is anything hurting or uncomfortable?”
“No, not at all.”
Ga-hyeon breathed a sigh of relief at So-ya’s spirited response.
“That’s a relief, truly. It almost turned into a disaster.”
“Exactly, Cotton Ball! That Blue Shark bastard swapped your Sea Bead. If we hadn't found you...”
Ga-yul shook his head violently, shuddering as if he didn't even want to think about it.
“But you brothers found me, didn't you?”
“It wasn't us,” Ga-hyeon answered in a calm voice. “Seol-yo found you.”
“Seol-yo did?”
At those words, So-ya poked her head out, looking for Seol-yo. However, Seol-yo, who would usually be stuck right by her side along with her brothers, was nowhere to be seen.
“Huh?”
Looking around, So-ya finally spotted Seol-yo huddled in a corner with his back turned.
“Seol-yo!”
At So-ya’s call, Seol-yo’s back flinched.
“Seol-yo, what’s wrong?”
But Seol-yo did not turn around despite her call.
“Seol-yo?”
When she called him again, Seol-yo slowly turned his head. The rims of his eyes were stained red.
“Huh? Seol-yo, are you crying?”
Seol-yo, whose large eyes were brimming with tears, burst into a sob the moment his eyes met So-ya’s.
“S-Seol-yo?”
So-ya was flustered as fat tears began to roll down Seol-yo’s face like heavy raindrops.
“Hic, ugh, waaaah. I... I failed to protect you.”
Seol-yo wailed, rubbing his eyes with his sleeves.
“What?”
“I said I was the one who protects you. I’m supposed to protect you. But I...”
“N-no! You did protect me! See? I’m perfectly fine!”
So-ya raised both arms high to show that she was unharmed. At that sight, Seol-yo’s sobbing gradually began to subside.
‘Phew. Seol-yo doesn't look like it, but he really is a crybaby.’
So-ya smiled softly as she looked at her kind-hearted, tearful friend.
Having stopped crying before she knew it, Seol-yo clung to the edge of So-ya’s bed and looked up at her.
“Are you really okay now?”
“Yes, yes, Seol-yo. I’m perfectly fine. Thank you for finding me.”
So-ya gave the sniffling Seol-yo a bright smile and then turned to Ga-hyeon to ask, “What happened to the Blue Shark Clan?”
“The Clan Head was taken away for the crimes of stealing a Divine Object and threatening the life of a distinguished guest.”
“Then, did you get the Blue Dragon Painted Halberd back?”
“Yes.”
“Wow, what a relief!” So-ya’s face brightened.
“But the Young Lord escaped. The one who swapped your Sea Bead for a fake.”
“It’s okay. I think I know where he went,” So-ya said confidently.
However, Ga-hyeon’s expression darkened as he looked at her.
“So-ya. Did you do that on purpose, knowing the Blue Shark Clan was plotting something dangerous?”
He had thought it was a bit strange. So-ya, who had gone to reject the Blue Shark Young Lord’s proposal, had suddenly changed her mind and accepted his offer. And So-ya, who had trained at the White Tiger Clan for the past three years, had allowed her Sea Bead to be swapped far too easily. Then, she had vanished without a trace.
If the Blue Shark Clan had truly swapped the Sea Bead to harm her, they should have sent So-ya back to Cheonghae Palace unharmed. Their goal wasn't simply to hurt So-ya, but to break the bond between her mother and the White Tiger Clan.
“I had no choice. This was the fastest and best way. And I knew you brothers would find me.”
So-ya explained herself, her scheme having been seen through by Ga-hyeon in an instant.
“But a variable occurred. The scent of the sea was so strong that neither I nor Yul could find you.”
Ga-hyeon’s stiff expression showed no signs of softening.
“And in the future, variables like this can happen anytime, in any number of ways.”
“Then are you saying I should have ignored it even after finding a way to help Mother?”
“It’s not that.” Ga-hyeon said, firmly taking So-ya’s hand. “I’m saying we should do it together from now on, So-ya. Don't try to solve everything by yourself.”
“...?”
“We’re family. I’m your brother.”
“...!”
So-ya’s eyes belatedly widened.
“I was so worried after you disappeared like that, So-ya,” Ga-hyeon explained in a calm voice. “If you had told us in advance, we could have found a safer and better way together. At the very least, if we had known where you were hiding, things wouldn't have escalated to such a dangerous situation like yesterday.”
“Ah...”
So-ya let out a short exclamation at his words.
‘That’s true. Why did I try to solve it alone?’
She had vaguely thought she had to handle it with her own strength. It wasn't that she didn't trust her brothers. It was just... she felt that awakening the Blue Dragon and recovering the Painted Halberd for that purpose were missions she had to carry on her own shoulders.
Even though she knew her brothers, who cherished her dearly, would worry if she suddenly disappeared, she had intentionally used that fact to resolve the matter. Of course, she had planned it thinking they would find her immediately, but as her brother said, if she had shared her plan beforehand, they could have dealt with the sudden variable without panic.
‘I thought wrong. I thought that was the best way, but it wasn't. The truly best way is...’
So-ya thought as she looked at the back of Ga-hyeon’s hand, which was firmly clasping hers.
‘To do it together with the people who believe in me.’
Thinking back, a wave of guilt for making them worry washed over her.
“I’m sorry. I was short-sighted, Brother.” So-ya apologized, her eyebrows drooping. “I won't try to solve things alone from now on.”
“Thank you, So-ya. For understanding how I feel.”
At So-ya’s apology, Ga-hyeon affectionately stroked her hair.
So-ya, smiling brightly between her brothers, suddenly spoke up as if something had just occurred to her.
“On that note, about that Blue Shark Young Lord... He’s probably, by now...”
“Hmm, I see.”
Ga-hyeon fell into thought for a moment at So-ya’s story, and then his eyes crinkled into a smile as if he had hit upon a good idea.
*
The festival had been briefly suspended that day to search for the missing Young Lady of the White Tiger Clan. However, after the incident was resolved, Cheong-ha announced that the interrupted Dragon God Festival would be held on an even larger and grander scale.
And so, on the final day of the extended festival...
So-ya went with her brothers to watch the finals of the Martial Arts Tournament and the "Song of Purumir," a ritual ceremony of the Dragon God Festival.
When Cheong-ha brandished the Blue Dragon Painted Halberd before the massive Altar of the Dragon God, the withered plants of the Eastern Land regained their vitality and bloomed green once more.
Among the cheering crowds, So-ya clapped more enthusiastically than anyone.
“You’re so cool, Mother!”
So-ya’s shout was buried under the cheers of the people, but Cheong-ha smiled toward her direction as if she had heard it. At that, a rosy flush bloomed on So-ya’s face.
As they enjoyed the festival and the sky began to darken...
“I think it’s time. Shall we head out?”
“Yes, Brother!”
At Ga-hyeon’s suggestion, So-ya’s group boarded a small boat to watch the Falling Flower Fireworks.
And beneath the very sea where the fireworks were scheduled...
The escaped Blue Shark Young Lord and his followers were hiding under the surface, waiting for the fireworks to begin. They planned to launch a surprise attack on the festival-goers the moment the sparks began to fall.
‘Now that even Father has been captured and things have gone so wrong, I must rescue him even if it means taking civilians hostage.’
Soon, sparks began to fall over the sea from the Falling Flower Sticks suspended on long ropes.
Ah-han and the soldiers of the Blue Shark Clan leaped out from the water.
Splash—!
With a violent sound of rushing water, Ah-han emerged and jumped onto a small boat. However...
‘Huh?’
The boat was empty.
Flustered, Ah-han looked around and jumped onto another nearby boat. But that one was also an empty boat with no one on board.
“How can this be...”
It was as he was muttering in bewilderment.
“We meet again, Lord Ah-han.”
Turning his head at the voice coming from behind him, he saw So-ya sitting alone on a boat, greeting him with a bright smile.