Chapter 65

Instead of answering, Zaha asked,

“Do you know what Apryang is famous for?”

“…”

The body of the Tree Spirit, how the information was obtained… If it were about those things, then surely Seol Young could answer, but he didn’t know anything.

“You planned on going there without knowing it, then.”

Zaha shook his head, making Seol Young ask,

“Then I guess you know something about that place?”

“You can say that. Some of my ancestors served as officials in Apryang.”

“Aha.”

Seol Young was a bit impressed.

“Then can’t we just receive their protection?”

“Maybe? Well, that is the reason you shouldn’t act alone.”

“I understand.”

Seol Young said as he walked.

“Anyway, isn’t it quite right to go to Apryang? Even though it is in the center of the nation, it still has its own culture that is different, which means that even if the place is no longer in use, there will still be some traces of it.”

“And the Bakdalgol place.”

Zaha added.

“We can’t just pass off a place with that name. If a town had a name like that, then it is very likely that it has very old trees. And there are stories about a certain kind of tree called a birch tree, which according to legend is known to be a tree of Gods.”

As they were talking while walking, Seol Young stopped.

“Wait.”

“What?”

“We cannot keep moving like this.”

“Apryang isn’t too far from here. We can just walk.”

“The High Governor can do it, but I cannot. If I just leave like this, it’s like I left without asking for permission.”

“Huh?”

It was just then that Zaha remembered it.

If one was a member of the Hwarangs, they needed to inform the Governor before leaving. And they had to tell him the reason for leaving the capital, too.

So they headed for the palace.

“Come to think…”

Seol Young said.

“The Governor seems to be thinking that you are acting strange.”

“What?”

“I overheard it the last time, ‘The High Governor has become strange. It seems that he has completely changed as a person, he doesn’t go out at night or take a walk despite liking it so much before, and I tried to fix his clothes, but he got scared and tried to shake my hand…’”

“…”

Zaha was shocked.

“I figure out a lot. About Jin Rim.”

“You must have stood out because he watched you closely in the past…”

Seol Young lowered his voice.

“And because he is an honest person, he just thought of it as a strange thing and left it as it was. But if it were someone else, they would have doubted you right away.”

“…”

“It would be better if you acted normally.”

Having said that, they entered the palace.

But as soon as they entered the hall of the Hwarangs, they ran into an unexpected person.

“High Governor.”

A Hwarang, who was having a conversation with the Governor, rushed over.

He was tall and handsome, befitting a leader of a troop. A person who didn’t bother to hide the wildness in his eyes and had an arrogant look due to his overconfidence.

It was Seo Geom, the leader of the Blue Dragon True Troops.

“Seo Geom-rang.”

He received the bow with a calm attitude, like any superior.

“What is happening?”

“The Governor called for me, so I came.”

Seo Geom answered in a polite tone and raised his head. And by being polite, he looked at Seol Young, and his sharp eyes were scanning him.

“…”

Seol Young acted like he didn’t notice it, and there was silence between them.

Seol Young did summon spirits at Mt. Seondo in the past and took advantage of Seo Geom. And Seo Geom almost killed Seol Young with an arrow due to a misunderstanding in the past.

They had to put aside their feelings about the past since it wasn’t good for both of them, but the problem was that those events happened too recently.

And if they had met anywhere else, Seo Geom would never just stare and leave.

‘But here, he wouldn’t dare to try and pick a fight.’

Seol Young looked away.

Zaha was looking at the two alternately. He didn’t hide the excitement, but when he received Seol Young’s gaze, he straightened up.

“Is that so? I heard that the Governor called you, so it must be something important. Then you should continue your conversation.”

“No.”

Jin Rim came over.

“Welcome back. I was just talking about it with Seo Geom-rang. As you might know…”

He sighed as he looked out the window. And Seol Young also looked out to see what it was.

‘….?’

But he couldn’t see anything. There were no clouds in the clear, blue sky.

So he turned to Zaha, and he also knew nothing. But what was certain was that something serious was happening. That was why the Governor thought that Zaha was paying attention to the same problem.

And after thinking for a while, Zaha gave up and said,

“Right. Even if you didn’t say it, I was planning on bringing up this topic. I couldn’t get the thought out of my head for the past few days.”

“Right.”

Zaha’s response was vague, but Governor accepted it without any questions.

“You must be worried that this year’s farming will be ruined.”

And only after that did Seol Young realize.

‘Ah, I see…’

There has been no rain these past few days.

He was so focused on resolving the immediate crises that he had no time to care about other things. But this was a serious incident.

It was time for the barley harvest to be over, and rice farming was in full swing. During this time, if there was no rain, crops would be ruined. And naturally, the people’s anxiety would rise.

Rumors could circulate that the King wasn’t doing anything to resolve this issue.

Jin Rim spoke in a serious tone,

“There is a limit to bringing water from surrounding areas, and rumors are circulating. According to the people, there is a reason why it isn’t raining here. It is said that a vicious witch has settled in the Lake near Mount Danseok.”

“A witch?”

“Yes. People say that it hasn’t rained because the sky is angry because the witch is doing a lot of nasty things, so we did some investigation and found out that there is indeed a witch there.”

Mount Danseok was a high mountain range located outside the western border of the city, and the Hwarangs went there to train.

In the first place, it was given that name because it was believed that a rock was split in two with a single swing of a sword.

Jin Rim continued,

“So I called Seo Geom-rang to talk about it. We decided to select a few brave Hwarangs and send them there right away.”

“Yes, good.”

Zaha nodded as he praised him.

“I knew that I didn’t have to step out and that you could handle this on your own. Then I can leave in peace.”

“Uh?”

Jin Rim was shocked.

“Where are you going?”

He was surprised by this. He was surprised that he said he was leaving, and he thought that he might go somewhere else.

“Because of me.”

Seol Young quickly said.

“Regardless of what the Great Heavenly Pavilion said, we plan on going to the old lands of Apryang. The High Governor said he will follow me until…”

“Aha.”

Jin Rim understood it just then.

“Then? Did something unusual happen?”

“No. I don’t think something has happened yet.”

Seol Young shook his head.

“As far as I know, there were no signs. I am just trying to get ahead and do some research.”

“I see…”

Jin Rim trusted Seol Young, so he accepted it right away.

“I get it. When are you leaving?”

“Right now, if possible.”

“In that case, it is better to start with the Blue Dragon Troops. They are heading the same way.”

Hearing that, Seo Geom’s expression changed slightly.

“Seo Reom-rang, who are you sending?”

At the Governor’s question, he immediately said,

“I will go.”

He was going? This made Seol Young confused.

Didn’t the Governor tell him to select a few Hwarangs? Then why was he going alone? Even the Governor seemed a bit surprised.

“Don’t you have work you need to do for your troops?”

“No.”

Seo Geom shook his head.

“So I will take a few people and accompany the High Governor even until the mountain if needed.”

“You don’t need to do that.”

Zaha flatly refused.

But Seo Geom was being stubborn.

“Please let me do it. It has been quite a while since you returned to the capital, but I haven’t gotten the chance to talk to you or be close to you. I would like to take this chance and go with you all the way. I will start preparing for it.”

With that, he left as fast as lightning, and it looked like he would follow Zaha until his death.

“I think it’s because Seo Geom-rang hasn’t been able to see the High Governor for so long, so he said that.”

Jin Rim added.

The atmosphere was now awkward, and refusing him any further would make him look bad.

“Right. Let him do whatever he wants. It’s not that difficult.”

Zaha casually responded.

And so, their purpose for going to the Hwarangs’ hall was over, and they left.

When they reached an empty place, both of them stopped walking and had strange looks on their faces.

“Why was Seo Geom-rang acting like that?”

“Strange. It was my first time seeing him that stubborn.”

Seol Young fell into deep thought.

He couldn’t figure out his purpose.

‘But I’m sure he has some plan up his sleeve.’