By Zephyria 
Ak Mujin entered the inner chamber, concealing his unease. He bowed to Seo Moon-gwang and the musician, intending to sit at the lowest seat, but Seo Moon-gwang quickly rose and personally led Ak Mujin to sit beside him, even pouring him a cup of tea that had been warmed beforehand. Ak Mujin blinked, bewildered.
“Last time you came, you said you couldn’t drink alcohol because of work. So I thought tea would be alright and prepared it.”
With a clink, the teacup was placed before Ak Mujin. The tea smelled fragrant, as if freshly brewed. Ak Mujin had hesitated for a long time after arriving at the Drunken Dream Pavilion before finally coming here. He couldn’t imagine how much effort Seo Moon-gwang had put in to present this small cup to Ak Mujin. Warming the cup when it cooled, brewing it again. And again when it cooled. How many times had he repeated that bothersome process?
“I’ve made you worry too much. I apologize for being late.”
“I come to the Drunken Dream Pavilion to see you, so it’s only natural that I worry about you. I’ve called a busy person, so it’s only natural that the one who called waits.”
His gentle voice spoke as if the long wait hadn’t stirred any emotions. Ak Mujin felt a little sorry that Seo Moon-gwang had gone to such lengths.
“Master Gokju warmed the cup several times because he wanted to serve Cho-jin warm tea,” the musician playing the zither confirmed with a smile, adding insult to injury.
Despite this meticulous consideration, Ak Mujin didn’t want to get close to Seo Moon-gwang if possible. Based on Mae-yeong’s testimony and past experiences, the reason Seo Moon-gwang was being so kind was obvious.
From their few meetings, Ak Mujin didn’t think Seo Moon-gwang knew his true identity. However, he couldn’t figure out why he was so hung up on ‘Cho-jin’. Mae-yeong said Seo Moon-gwang was crazy about Yin Person, but frankly, Ak Mujin’s appearance with the human skin mask on wasn’t particularly appealing, even if his Yin Person identity was revealed.
“How busy can I be compared to Master Gokju, the owner of Illusion Valley? I’m sorry that you keep calling on such an insignificant person.”
Ak Mujin subtly mentioned Illusion Valley, indirectly asking, ‘Aren’t you going home?’ He was tired of having his hopes of not coming again after this time crushed. Seo Moon-gwang chuckled softly.
“I have a capable agent, so I don’t have to worry about that. More than that, insignificant? Then what does that make me, who comes to see you so often that the doorstep is wearing thin?”
As he said that, Seo Moon-gwang leaned slightly forward and casually propped himself up with his hand on the floor. His eyes were a little red, as if he had drunk some alcohol before Ak Mujin arrived in the guest room.
So he was aware of it. It was already a known rumor in the Sound chamber, but he didn’t seem to care about other people’s opinions, freely summoning Cho-jin. Ak Mujin looked down at the teacup and asked Seo Moon-gwang cautiously.
“Ahem… How long do you plan to stay in Anhui?”
“Didn’t I say? I smell the scent of an old lover from you. So I can’t easily return.”
At that answer, Ak Mujin stared at Seo Moon-gwang for a moment, then cautiously sniffed his sleeve, wondering if his scent had been openly revealed. Seo Moon-gwang laughed.
“I wasn’t talking about a ‘scent’ that you can actually smell. I…”
Then he leaned forward and reached out his hand. Just as Ak Mujin’s cheek was about to be covered by Seo Moon-gwang’s large palm, Ak Mujin quickly leaned back. Seo Moon-gwang withdrew his hand awkwardly and said in a gloomy voice.
“Yes… That person has been dead for a long time… I vowed to let it all go now… But why does seeing you make me miss that person so much?”
As he muttered to himself, Ak Mujin felt like screaming, knowing instantly who he meant by ‘that person’.
It seemed Seo Moon-gwang hadn’t forgotten Ak Mujin. Frankly, they had only met by chance at the wharf, so he couldn’t understand why he was suffering like this for so long. Ak Mujin’s chest tightened so much that he wanted to slap him and tell him to come to his senses.
“Every time I return after meeting you, I think,” Seo Moon-gwang muttered again.
“What kind of face is under this human skin mask?”
Ak Mujin’s heart sank at that murmur.
The human skin mask that Cheong-aeng had obtained was made with great care and was so elaborate that it was difficult to notice it was a human skin mask. However, Seo Moon-gwang, who had been watching Ak Mujin too often and too closely, had finally noticed. Ak Mujin tried to manage his expression to hide his embarrassment, but it wasn’t easy. He unconsciously lowered his head to hide his face and muttered.
“Ah, it’s very ugly.”
“More than now?”
“More than now.”
But for some reason, the more Ak Mujin hurried his answer in embarrassment, the more Seo Moon-gwang felt interested and smiled, leaning forward. When his nose was close enough to touch Ak Mujin’s nose, the faint smell of alcohol hit him strongly. He seemed quite sober, so he hadn’t noticed, but judging from the smell of alcohol on his clothes, he must have drunk quite a bit.
Ak Mujin turned his head sharply and blurted out anything to change the subject.
“Shall I call more musicians? Zither music is better when listened to with Golden saber music.”
Then, as if he had just realized there was a musician in the inner chamber, Seo Moon-gwang blinked and looked at the musician. The woman who had been playing the zither smiled.
Seo Moon-gwang said.
“Bu-yong.”
“Yes?”
“Would you excuse us? I’ll call you again next time.”
“Ah…”
It was an unexpected remark for both Ak Mujin and Bu-yong. Bu-yong stopped playing the zither and glanced back and forth between Ak Mujin and Seo Moon-gwang for a moment, then finally got up from her seat. Ak Mujin desperately shook his head, but she moved smoothly, carrying her zither.
“No, didn’t you come to listen to music? Bu-yong!”
“Call me if you need anything.”
In the end, Bu-yong left, leaving only Ak Mujin and Seo Moon-gwang in the inner chamber. A red light started flashing wildly in Ak Mujin’s head.
“I must be bothering you by calling you so often, right?”
“……!”
“What can I do to see you more often? What can I do to make you come with me? If I pay you a fortune, would you do it?”
“…Seo Gokju. People are not things to be bought and sold.”
Ak Mujin felt sorry for Bong-myeong, who had to continue managing the Drunken Dream Pavilion, but he couldn’t take it anymore. He already knew that Seo Moon-gwang wasn’t the type to respond to such directness, but he thought he should make his refusal clear.
“I can’t replace your lover, and I won’t go with you. So I hope you’ll stop coming to the Drunken Dream Pavilion…”
At that blunt answer, Seo Moon-gwang looked surprised for a moment, then smiled bitterly.
“Why…”
But as if that remark had triggered something, Seo Moon-gwang’s eyes turned red, and he suddenly pounced on Ak Mujin and pinned him down. Ak Mujin instinctively tried to resist, but just before his body fell backward, he saw Seo Moon-gwang’s tears and his body went limp for a moment.
“Why can’t you understand my heart!”
“Yes…?”
“I saw him on the way here. It’s an urgent situation. If he meets you… he will definitely try to take what’s mine again…!”
Ak Mujin couldn’t understand what he was talking about because Seo Moon-gwang was rambling so incoherently. Ak Mujin frowned and looked more closely at Seo Moon-gwang’s face, and he reached out and stroked Ak Mujin’s cheek.
“Yes, it was all his fault. Losing that person to the Demon Cult group that suddenly appeared… and ultimately losing that person.”
Was he talking about Jin Geum-ryeon when he said ‘him’? Had Jin Geum-ryeon finally come to Anhui? But he couldn’t easily believe it because Seo Moon-gwang was rambling like a madman. Besides, Seo Moon-gwang was trying to forcibly take off Ak Mujin’s outer garment, so Ak Mujin was desperately holding onto his collar and trying to stop him. He could block it to some extent if he used Martial Arts, but that would immediately reveal that he was using Demon Art. It wouldn’t be good for Seo Moon-gwang to find out.
“Seo Gokju…! Please come to your senses! I’ll call someone if you keep doing this!”
“I won’t let it be taken this time.”
It seemed Seo Moon-gwang couldn’t hear anything. In the end, when Ak Mujin’s clothes were torn by force, he shouted after hesitating.
“I… I already have someone I’ve imprinted on!”
As soon as those words were finished, Seo Moon-gwang’s movements stopped abruptly.
Did it… work? Ak Mujin watched Seo Moon-gwang, still clutching his clothes with trembling hands. A shadow fell over Seo Moon-gwang’s face as he stared at him silently for a while.
“…That can’t be.”
His hand grabbed Ak Mujin’s face without hesitation and began to pull it roughly. At the same time, he tried to take something out of his arms.
“Does that person love even this ugly face? Huh?”
“Seo, Seo Gokju!”
Just as his identity was about to be revealed, Ak Mujin, after much deliberation, grabbed the hand holding his face and stirred up his Inner Force, but Seo Moon-gwang was a little faster. With a tearing sound, the human skin mask tore and fell off his skin.
At that moment, the door burst open, and Seo Moon-gwang’s eyes widened and shook as he saw the face revealed under the mask.
“…You.”