“Young Master Namgung.”
Three years had passed, but their titles remained unchanged. Jin Geum-ryeon guided Namgung Eui to the table and seated him, and as Go Seong-cheon followed suit, Janghyo busily began preparing tea.
Ak Mujin stared at Namgung Eui for a long while before deigning to cast a glance at the man named Go Seong-cheon. This Go Seong-cheon was none other than the one who had fearlessly argued with the Martial Alliance members at the Tea House. He had wondered why a villager had such audacity, but it seemed he was affiliated with the Sandow Union.
Even after sitting down, Namgung Eui seemed concerned about the people present besides Jin Geum-ryeon, glancing back and forth between Cheong-aeng and Ak Mujin. Noticing this, Jin Geum-ryeon said, “Please speak comfortably. They are all close to me.”
“…We have communicated through intermediaries whenever there was trouble, but it has been a while since we met in person.”
Jin Geum-ryeon simply nodded in response. Janghyo served tea to Jin Geum-ryeon, Go Seong-cheon, and Namgung Eui, and after distributing tea to Ak Mujin through Cheong-aeng, he left the inner chamber. Ak Mujin accepted it and placed it on the side table for a moment.
Namgung Eui lowered his gaze as if looking at the teacup, then stared at Jin Geum-ryeon with somewhat hostile eyes. He opened his mouth calmly.
“After hearing about the incident at the Tea House, I interrogated several people and ended up here. But… this is unexpected. May I ask why the Evil Cult Lord is loitering near the Martial Alliance?”
As if expecting these words, Jin Geum-ryeon slightly raised the corner of his lips. A brief silence followed. Ak Mujin suddenly felt that the situation was not unfolding as he had hoped, as Namgung Eui’s attitude did not seem particularly friendly towards Jin Geum-ryeon.
Go Seong-cheon, assessing the situation, hesitated and spoke to Jin Geum-ryeon, “I apologize, Lord… There is a time and place for everything, but I rashly spoke out of turn.”
“It’s fine. I was the one who gave you such orders in the first place.”
Namgung Eui’s eyebrows twitched at those words. He spoke strongly, unable to hold back.
“I wondered why strange rumors have been circulating lately; it was all Young Master Jin’s scheme.”
“The Central Plains is filled with nothing but insults towards me, shouldn’t I have some form of defense?”
Jin Geum-ryeon said nonchalantly. Namgung Eui groaned softly and narrowed his brows. Ak Mujin, still pretending to be uninterested, repeatedly glanced at them while straining his ears.
“Are you really trying to start a war with this? Is that why you came out like this today?”
“I’m not planning on starting a war yet.”
“Then why…”
“I just have someone I want to mess with.”
Someone he wanted to mess with. Namgung Eui, already aware of who was at the Tea House, immediately knew it was So Seung-ji. He felt a bit sorry and muttered in response, “Brother So… just leave him alone. He’s in a difficult enough situation as it is, even if no one bothers him.”
“He didn’t consider my circumstances either, so why should I consider his?”
Namgung Eui flinched at the voice that seemed to bring up past events. Go Seong-cheon, still watching Jin Geum-ryeon’s expression, couldn’t even touch his teacup.
“Brother So also has his position. Back then, it was difficult for anyone to take Young Master Jin’s side. I thought Young Master Jin would understand that…”
“Back then, Brother So ultimately turned his sword against me.”
Ak Mujin was somewhat surprised to hear that So Seung-ji had even drawn his sword against Jin Geum-ryeon. However, his expression was not clearly visible due to the Human Skin Mask.
This situation was quite unexpected. Whatever happened back then, it seemed there was definitely room for them to be at odds. Ak Mujin continued to listen intently.
“Brother So is a close friend I’ve known since before I descended the mountain. I thought only Brother So would believe in me, but… even when the Martial Alliance Lord was using force against me, he pretended not to know.”
“……”
“In the end, you also drew your sword against me.”
Although there was no particular emotion in his voice, Namgung Eui smiled bitterly and took a sip of tea.
Ak Mujin remembered Jin Geum-ryeon saying that when he talked about the Martial Alliance, no one was on his side. Namgung Eui, also in the position of the Martial Alliance Lord’s son, could not dare to act differently, even if he had goodwill towards Jin Geum-ryeon.
Namgung Eui sighed softly and said, “…Young Master Jin is the one who killed my father. As his son, I couldn’t just stand by… But as a final consideration for Young Master Jin, I didn’t chase after you, did I?”
“I know. I heard you received a lot of scolding from the Lord because of me.”
…Wait a minute.
Isn’t this that? A hate relationship? Hate? Love? Unrequited love? Right? That’s it! How else would Namgung Eui have defied his father and let Jin Geum-ryeon go?
Ak Mujin’s eyes lit up as if he had found a great clue, and his conviction only grew stronger as the story continued.
Ak Mujin’s mind began to race. The more he thought about it, the better the narrative between the two seemed. Thinking of Namgung Eui, who harbored feelings for Jin Geum-ryeon but was forced to push him away because of his affiliation and his relationship with his father, Ak Mujin felt his own heart ache.
So this is the taste.
Why didn’t he include a female lead like this? No, he even thought that it might have been better if Namgung Eui had been set up as a woman from the start. Therefore, he couldn’t help but buy this stock. The intense shock left by Mae-yeong’s fan art had prevented him from thinking about Namgung Eui at all, but they were rapidly emerging as a highly promising couple in Ak Mujin’s mind.
Indeed, the more adversity a relationship has, the sweeter the fruit! He was so excited that he didn’t even have time to recall that Namgung Eui’s position was not much different from what was covered in the original work.
Jin Geum-ryeon slowly shook his teacup, swirling the cooling tea. Then he slowly continued, “Still… before you told me who my parents’ enemy was, you should have considered my position at least once. How could you know what I would do?”
The meaningful voice pierced Namgung Eui’s ears. His face, realizing the meaning of those words, soon turned pale. Before he could say anything, Jin Geum-ryeon spoke first.
Ak Mujin now looked at them with a somewhat intrigued expression.
“Young Master Jin…!”
“Of course, nothing will happen for the time being. Unless your side provokes the Sandow Union first.”
“…The Martial Alliance owes nothing to the Sandow Union. If you continue like this, it won’t be good for the Sandow Union either!”
Eventually, Namgung Eui raised his voice as if he had heard unfair words. Jin Geum-ryeon simply smiled in response and poured the cold tea onto the table.
“Owe nothing? I have a very big debt. It’s like a special treat I’ve saved until the end.”
The dialogue is crazy.
Ak Mujin wished he had popcorn as he drank the bland tea instead.
Namgung Eui was speechless at the fluent words and could only clench his fists tightly. He lowered his eyes as if resigned and said, “Today… I didn’t come here formally as a member of the Martial Alliance. So please tell me that the Evil Cult Lord will never again wander around the Martial Alliance.”
Namgung Eui muttered in a voice filled with exhaustion, as if wanting to wrap up the situation. Jin Geum-ryeon simply smiled.
“I can’t guarantee that. It’s my benefactor’s hobby to travel the Jianghu.”
As he said that, he looked at Ak Mujin. Suddenly, the eyes of everyone in the inner chamber were fixed on Ak Mujin. Ak Mujin, who had been busy imagining a hopeful future where he connected Namgung Eui and Jin Geum-ryeon and then left this world, was flustered and straightened up slightly.
“Uh, um…”
He looked back and forth between Jin Geum-ryeon and Namgung Eui. If he left the vicinity of the Martial Alliance as he said, wouldn’t that mean he would no longer meet Namgung Eui? Ak Mujin thought for a moment.
“I haven’t been to Son of Heaven Mountain yet.”
It was an impulsive outburst. Namgung Eui’s eyebrows immediately shot up.
But what could he do? He had seen the potential, so it was inevitable that he would have lingering feelings. Ak Mujin’s situation, where he had to confirm whether it would be a success or a failure, had to be understood. It was a carefully made decision from a position where he could face another fierce storm.
“No. Please leave.”
“My benefactor wants to stay here a little longer.”
Jin Geum-ryeon naturally took over the conversation and looked at Namgung Eui. Namgung Eui’s face darkened as if suppressing his anger.