Chapter 1212: Scorched World

I emerged from underground.

Getting out wasn’t as difficult as getting in.

It was a prison with nothing in it anyway. All I had to do was leave, so I took the seal and stepped outside.

Screeeech-!

Hearing the door close, I ascended the stairs. The Steward stood there.

“Welcome.”

The Steward greeted me and lightly extended a hand. I already knew what it meant.

I handed him the seal in my hand.

As I placed the seal on his dry hand, I thought.

‘What is the Steward’s true identity?’

I should have asked about this too, but I couldn’t. That’s because the Ancestor disappeared the moment I left the room.

Was it only audible while underground?

‘Perhaps it only activates when you’re in that room.’

Seeing as how a voice I couldn’t hear even if I died was audible for so long, it seemed like there was some activating factor.

‘Hmm.’

It didn’t matter what it was.

“You’re back.”

“Yes. I’ve returned.”

I met Gu Seongyeol again. He faced me looking just as he did the first time.

“I handed the seal over to the Steward.”

“Right. Did you get what you wanted?”

“……No. I didn’t get what I wanted, but I did obtain something else.”

“I see.”

Gu Seongyeol seemed satisfied with that statement and didn’t ask further. It’s a question I have every time I see him.

‘Isn’t this a bit different from the stories?’

The things I’d heard about my grandfather over the years and the current Gu Seongyeol felt somewhat different. Someone once said that the previous head of the Gu family was a lunatic.

‘How should I put it? Rather than a lunatic…’

He seemed like a serious individual, resembling my father. Where on earth was the lunacy hidden within him? As I watched him with curiosity, standing in silence with Gu Seongyeol for a moment.

Thump.

He placed the letter he was holding down and looked at me.

“Well then. We should continue our conversation.”

“……”

I recalled what I heard before going underground. That he had said I absolutely had to grant his request.

Secretly swallowing dryly, I nodded.

“Yes. Please proceed.”

What kind of request could it possibly be? Judging by the word ‘absolutely,’ it must be something quite important. So, I waited, feeling tense.

“My request is straightforward.”

Gu Seongyeol said to me.

“……Yes?”

Hearing his words, I had to wear a dumbfounded expression. It was because the words were completely unexpected.

Even more so.

“……Who am I supposed to take?”

It was a request I strongly disliked. Very much so.

---

I left Gu Seongyeol’s quarters. There was no need for any further lengthy discussion. I couldn’t give a different answer. Because the condition was absolute, I had to comply.

So, I headed straight for another destination.

‘Tsk.’

I clicked my tongue inwardly.

‘Why did I even agree to this.’

I never expected to receive such a request. I thought he’d ask for something significant. Who knew he’d ask for something so bizarre? No, perhaps if he had asked for something difficult or arduous, it would have been easier. That wasn’t the case. The problem was that it felt like, ‘Why ask me for this?’ And not just that.

‘Why me?’

It was absurd that he asked me, of all people, instead of his own son. After all, why ask me instead of his own son? No matter how much I thought about it, it was an incomprehensible situation.

“What?”

The person standing before me couldn’t comprehend it either.

“What kind of bullshit did I just hear while eating?”

The woman, who had been devouring her food with gusto. Gu Seon looked at me and put down her chopsticks.

“What did you just say?”

“……”

Looking at her, I sighed and repeated myself.

“That we have to leave tomorrow.”

“Yes, it’s sad that our parting is so soon, but sending our sibling away isn’t difficult. But.”

Tap.

She picked up the chopsticks again and pointed the tip at me.

“……Why me?”

Hearing her question, I swept my hair back. It was strange for Gu Seon to ask, but it felt strange for me to say it too.

Right.

This was exactly what I intended to tell Gu Seon. Which was:

“Why do I have to go to Hanam with you?”

I meant to convey that I had to take Gu Seon to Hanam. To her repeated question, I answered, narrowing my brow.

“……Your father told me to.”

“My father?”

She wore an expression of disbelief. But I felt the same way. Gu Seongyeol had told me to leave for Hanam with Gu Seon.

‘And tomorrow, no less.’

He said to leave tomorrow, without any time to spare. That’s what he told me.

There’s no problem. Shanxi. I obtained everything I needed from the Gu family. I even got things I shouldn’t have and information I didn’t need, but the objective was achieved. After all, I completed the mission I received in Hanam without much difficulty.

‘The anomaly occurring at the front lines?’

I recorded it. The movements of the Demonic Cultists. All I had to do was write down the problems caused by them. So, leaving tomorrow is even welcome.

‘Because I have things to do back home too.’

I have things to do in Hanam. So, going is genuinely good, but…

“Right, the master of this place told me to take you.”

Why did I have to take Gu Seon?

“Why me? Why me, the younger sibling? Instead of my older brother? Why?”

“I don’t know either. What can I do if I’m told to?”

“Do you do everything you’re told? I didn’t think you had that kind of gentle personality, sibling. Why are you acting so cute now? Just be yourself. It feels off.”

“I have my own circumstances too.”

Do you think I want to take someone like this? I don’t want to force you to come like this…

‘Ah.’

As I was thinking, something occurred to me.

‘That’s right.’

Isn’t there no need to force her to come? If she said she didn’t want to go and couldn’t be taken, that seemed fine too.

I nodded. I found a way.

Yes, that would work. She doesn’t want to go, so I can’t take her. That’s all I had to say.

“No, well, if you don’t want to go, you don’t have to. Then I’ll speak to the Master nicely.”

“What are you talking about? Who said I didn’t want to go?”

“……What?”

At Gu Seon’s words, my face contorted. What was this supposed to mean now?

“Weren’t you reluctant to go?”

“I never said I didn’t want to go! I was just questioning why I, the sibling, was being taken.”

“……”

“Hanam? Sounds great. I’ve been feeling stiff anyway. It’ll be my first time going out in years. You said tomorrow? I need to start preparing right away.”

“…….”

“What’s the rush? Think about it carefully. You’re not well, why try to go? Just stay home quietly. Going out will just be a pain in the ass.”

“Not well? What are you talking about? I’m practically dying from stiffness because I can’t go out. I’ll prepare and leave by tomorrow, okay? Let’s do our best, together.”

“……”

Damn it.

Gu Seon, however, just grinned as if pleased. I had misunderstood. I assumed she would obviously not want to go.

‘Thinking about it now…’

Of course not. She seemed to love going out more than anyone else in the world. I just hadn’t realized it for a moment. Should I say I was ignoring it?

“……So. You’re going?”

“You said let’s go. Aren’t we going?”

“……Yeah. Right, we have to go.”

Ah. This is going to be quite exhausting.

It was the moment Gu Seon’s trip to Hanam was decided.

---

I stepped outside with a weary heart. Despite moving so quickly, it didn’t feel like much time had passed. I moved, holding back a sigh. In my weary state, my steps led me to my final destination: the place where a certain individual resided.

Hyun Soyeon.

I came to meet her. More precisely.

‘Namgung Bi-ah.’

Namgung Bi-ah, who I believed to be inside her. I wanted to check on her condition. Ever since I learned Namgung Bi-ah was with Hyun Soyeon, I had tried to see her often. My weary state. Perhaps because I felt that way, I found myself seeking her out more.

However.

‘Hmm?’

Inside the quarters, I saw someone other than Hyun Soyeon.

‘Who’s that guy?’

It was Namgung Jin. I saw him with Hyun Soyeon.

“It doesn’t seem like a problem?”

“It is a problem. How could it not be?”

“……That’s because you-“

Something felt unusual. A serious atmosphere seemed apparent. What were they saying? The moment I tilted my head.

“Ah.”

“……”

The two people, realizing my presence, faltered. I failed to mask my presence. Since I’d been discovered, I had to give an awkward smile.

“Should I come back later? It seems I should.”

“……”

At my words, Namgung Jin narrowed his eyes and said to Hyun Soyeon.

“Let’s talk later.”

“……Yes. Please do.”

After a brief exchange, Namgung Jin passed right by me. What was that? His face, already lacking manners, looked even sharper than usual.

After Namgung Jin disappeared.

“You’re here? We see each other quite often these days.”

Hyun Soyeon said nonchalantly.

“We might end up falling for each other at this rate. Are you perhaps interested in me-“

“What did Namgung Jin say?”

I lightly ignored her nonsense and asked Hyun Soyeon. She pouted. It seemed she pouted because I didn’t play along with her nonsense.

“He didn’t say much.”

“Really? Then that’s fine.”

As I accepted her answer and moved on, Hyun Soyeon frowned instead.

“……It looked like he said quite a lot to anyone watching, so why are you just letting it go?”

“I didn’t want to ask since he seemed unwilling to talk.”

She said it wasn’t much. So I tried to move on, but she apparently didn’t like that.

“Still, out of courtesy, you should ask twice.”

“……”

What was that supposed to mean? It was absurd, but since she seemed to expect it, I asked.

“……What happened?”

I asked, dripping with annoyance. To my question.

“Ah, he said he wanted to break off the engagement. Using our relationship as the excuse.”

“……”

She delivered a rather shocking statement.