Chapter 10: Rumors and Scars

I gave a polite nod to the heads of the Five Great Clans and the other officials before preparing to leave.

Then a thoroughly unwelcome voice called after me.

“Strategist, you’re dressed rather finely for this early in the morning.

Where are you hurrying off to?”

I didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

It was Hwangbo Min, the young head of the Hwangbo Clan.

When I glanced over, I found him standing beside me, dressed from head to toe like a peacock displaying its feathers.

He certainly was diligent.

To attend the state council, he would have had to rise before dawn.

Judging by how meticulously groomed he looked, he had probably spent the entire morning ordering his attendants about.

Looking at the healthy sheen on his face, I answered flatly.

“You look quite handsome yourself, Clan Head.”

“I knew it.

I thought the same thing.

So you see it too?”

Without missing a beat, Hwangbo Min produced a palm-sized bronze mirror from his sleeve.

He carefully inspected every angle of his face before nodding in satisfaction.

“With a face like this, it’s no wonder women lose their senses over me.”

“Certainly.

Men, women, young, old—I imagine they’ll all be chasing after you.”

I replied without enthusiasm as I continued walking.

Two years ago, the previous head of the Hwangbo Clan had retired, saying he wished to spend the remainder of his life in his hometown.

The position had then passed to his second son, Hwangbo Min.

According to him, he had escaped the dull countryside because he refused to waste his youth among endless fields.

Whether that was true was another matter.

There was no telling what lay behind that easygoing smile.

A man young enough not to have grown a beard had surpassed his elder brother to inherit the clan.

Behind the playful exterior was undoubtedly a man of considerable ambition.

If Hwangbo Min truly intended to lead a rebellion, what advantages would he gain?

How many troops could the Hwangbo Clan muster?

“…Men and women alike?

Does that include you as well?”

“Hm?

Ah, my apologies.

I wasn’t listening.

What did you say?”

His voice broke my train of thought.

Only then did I realize I had become so absorbed in my own suspicions that I had nearly forgotten he was beside me.

Meeting my eyes, Hwangbo Min smiled knowingly.

He tucked away his mirror, folded his arms, then leaned closer.

Before I could react, he took a slow breath through his nose as though catching my scent.

Then he smiled brightly.

“You’ve used quite a bit of powder.

The pleasant fragrance does an admirable job of hiding something rather unsightly.”

“…Ah.”

I instinctively reached toward my chin before stopping myself.

The powder would smudge.

A few days earlier, when I had struck my chin against the floor at the Red Demon’s estate, it had left an ugly bruise.

Unable to appear before the Emperor looking like that, I had concealed it with cosmetic powder borrowed from the palace women.

Apparently, it had failed to fool Hwangbo Min’s sharp nose.

Uncomfortable that he’d noticed, I stepped back and continued walking.

Naturally, he followed.

“Why the hurry?

The scent suits you well.

There’s no need to be embarrassed.”

“You seem quite knowledgeable about cosmetics.”

“What can I do?

I’ve always had exceptional taste.

Beautiful things naturally catch my eye.”

With a graceful smile, Hwangbo Min opened an ornate folding fan decorated with colorful feathers and hid the lower half of his face.

His smug expression was irritating enough that I quickened my pace in hopes of leaving him behind.

He merely walked faster as well.

Apparently unwilling to let the matter go, he examined my concealed bruise with the enthusiasm of a child discovering a new toy.

“Get into a brawl last night?

Judging by how much powder you’ve used, it must look rather terrible underneath.

You certainly ran into someone vicious.

Or was it several against one?”

“Yes.

I suppose I was the vicious one.

Several men decided to attack me together.”

“I thought as much.

Your temper has never exactly been gentle.

You should really try living more kindly.

Look at me.

With my impeccable character and generous nature, everyone wants to be my friend.

People are always inviting me out for drinks.”

“I should buy those people a drink myself.

Anyone capable of flattering you this successfully must have worked exceptionally hard.”

A muffled chuckle escaped from behind his fan.

We had walked some distance when another set of footsteps joined us.

Hwangbo Min immediately brightened.

“Oh, General Jeok.”

Unlike him, my entire body stiffened the instant I heard who had approached.

My feet felt heavy.

My pace slowed.

Hwangbo Min casually placed a hand on my shoulder.

“Now listen to this.

Our strategist apparently beat down five or six men all by himself.”

“Take your hand off him.”

“Hm?

What?”

The Red Demon’s voice carried enough menace that Hwangbo Min immediately transformed his familiar gesture into a theatrical act of brushing dust from my shoulder.

“Oh dear!

There was some dust here.

Really now, you ought to take better care of yourself.

Walking around covered in dust like this.”

After dramatically dusting off my shoulder, he withdrew his hand as though nothing unusual had happened.

I forced myself to keep looking straight ahead.

Still, every one of my senses remained fixed on the man walking behind us.

Hwangbo Min, whose curiosity about other people’s affairs knew no limits, brought up another piece of gossip.

“General Jeok.

Just what did you do to Choweol?”

Choweol?

The name sounded vaguely familiar.

Thinking she might somehow be connected to the conspiracy I feared, I slowed my pace.

Oblivious, Hwangbo Min cheerfully continued.

“What on earth happened?

That lovely girl has stopped eating and taken to her bed.

Her madam finally snapped and dragged her outside, saying they’d might as well jump into a well together.

She was crying in the middle of the marketplace for everyone to see.

I saw Choweol myself a few days ago.

She’s become half the person she used to be.”

At those words, I remembered the courtesan I had seen leaving through the rear gate of the Red Demon’s estate.

Her madam had called her Choweol.

I had known he favored a certain courtesan.

Only now did I finally connect the name with the face.

“Everyone says you’ve taken Choweol as your principal wife.

They’re saying she won’t receive guests anymore.”

“I never did.”

“No?

Then what about Choweol?”

His tone made it sound as though she had simply been abandoned.

Without realizing it, I glanced back.

Hwangbo Min showed no fear whatsoever.

He stepped even closer to the Red Demon and continued speaking.

“Do you know how many men have been eyeing Choweol simply because they wanted to be associated with you?

If you walk away now, how is that poor girl supposed to deal with all the trouble they’ll cause?”

At first I thought he was making far too much fuss over a single courtesan.

Then I considered it more carefully.

She was powerless.

If the Red Demon had become involved in her life only to discard her on a whim, she would inevitably suffer for it.

The more Hwangbo Min spoke, the worse it sounded.

“What kind of whim is this?

You kept her from seeing any other patrons, and now you suddenly throw her aside?

Have you forgotten the man whose arm you nearly cut off just for grabbing her wrist?

What happens if he comes back to harass her?”

From the story Hwangbo Min told, the Red Demon sounded utterly reprehensible.

If he had monopolized her and driven everyone else away, then abandoning her now was the height of irresponsibility.

Already inclined to think poorly of him, I found myself siding with Choweol despite having seen her only once.

“He’s right.

If General Jeok cared enough to draw his sword for her, then perhaps he should have married her.”

“Exactly!

You should have seen how possessive he was.

Strategist, even you would have been surprised.”

“They must have seemed like a perfect match.”

“Haha!

Well, General Jeok fell for her the moment he laid eyes on her.

Do you know how they first met?

Choweol boldly insisted on treating his wounds despite—”

His cheerful storytelling ended abruptly.

A cold voice, sharp as a blade, cut straight through his words.

“Why would I keep two of the same thing?”

“…Hm?

The same?

General Jeok, what do you mean by that?”

The air froze.

My body turned cold.

All three of us stopped walking.

I forced myself to turn around.

The Red Demon was staring directly at me.

The boredom he’d shown during the council meeting had vanished.

Only naked contempt and killing intent remained in his eyes.

A faint breeze brushed across the bruise on my chin before drifting toward him.

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