CH 6.1

Ahjin entered the room while curling up herself—as if she was dragged to the King of Hell. 

Hwawoon was in front of the dresser at that time, deep in thought. In Ahjin’s eyes, that appearance of his was just like waiting for the emperor, and that made her heart sink even more. First of all, Ahjin kneeled.

“Your Highness….”

“Ahjin? Why are you kneeling? Come on, get up.”

Only then did Hwawoon, who suddenly came to his senses, spoke in surprise, but Ahjin kept bowing her head before continuing.

“Your Highness… I was on my way back from meeting the eunuch from the Gyeongsa-bang…”

“Gyeongsa-bang?”

As Hwawoon’s voice clearly filled with tension in an instant, Ahjin closed her eyes tight while thinking, I knew it! 

Since it came like this, Ahjin continued her words without hesitating. 

“His Majesty said… he is worrying about Your Highness’ body, so for a while… he said not to show your nameplate…”

Ahjin lowered her head even more as she finished her words. Soon, something would fly, whether it would be an item or insult. Moreover, if she raised her head straight, and met Hwawoon’s eyes, no doubt his tantrum would get fiercer. 

Nevertheless, she wondered if it would be less painful since his memories hadn’t completely come back. When Ahjin was thinking that nonsense, Hwawoon’s voice was heard above her lowered head. 

“How come that is because he is worrying about my body?”

“….?”

“I’m sure that he is blaming me, since an innocent guard lost his life because I behaved badly…” 

“Yo-Your Highness! Why did you say something like that? You didn’t even do that on purpose…!”

Ahjin instinctively spoke up for Hwawoon, so she could stay alive, but Hwawoon only shook his head with a calm face. 

“I don’t think His Majesty thinks so.”

In fact, Hwawoon’s thought wasn’t different from the emperor’s. He couldn’t really know what he had thought before he fell to the pond since back then it wasn’t his body, but looking at the emperor’s gaze and treatment to him, he thought perhaps the emperor thought Yeon-bin fell into the pond to lure his attention. It was also hard for Hwawoon to assume that he didn’t fall to the pond with that thought.

Flustered since unlike her expectation, there was no anger, sadness, and regret in Hwawoon’s voice, Ahjin finally raised up her head. As if he was lost in thought, Hwawoon’s face looked relieved—exceeding calm, and she couldn’t understand anything anymore.

“Ahjin.”

While Ahjin was only blinking her eyes, staring vacantly, since she couldn’t understand what happened to her master, Hwawoon called her once again. To the voice that was still friendly and gentle, Ahjin answered, ‘yes…’—forgetting that she had to lower her head back.

“Are you that afraid because you thought I would be angry upon hearing that and vent to you?”

“N-no, Your Highness! Afraid? I am not, Your Highness….”

“Aren’t you trembling like you’re about to faint now?”

“Tha-that’s, Your Highness… This isn’t like that….”

What if this is only a simple whim? Or an act? Ahjin thought her master wouldn’t differ from a demon from hell, if this was only a trick to fathom her heart.  

Ahjin was someone who had been closely serving Hwawoon for a long time, the one who had encountered his true nature closer than anyone else. More than anyone else, she could see through Hwawoon’s plans and acts—reflecting on himself and pretending to have changed—so he would look good to the emperor.

But if he could make such Ahjin to get this confused; if he was like a different person to the point of making her wonder if he really had changed and could let out such a soft and kind voice; if her master was really able to hide himself that skillfully;

Then Yeon-bin was a terrifying person who couldn’t be comparable to what Ahjin had thought of him before. Now Ahjin even wondered whether she should hope for her master to come back to be a predictable evil-person, just like the past.

“That’s right. How can you believe a person has changed at once? I understand you.”

“Your Highness….”

“Time will solve it gradually, right? Since His Majesty won’t come for the time being, let’s get everyone to rest earlier today.”