Chapter 17: The Price of a Camellia Petal

I-gyeol swept back his long, dark hair, black as night, as he struggled to calm himself. Asha could not understand. What was so important about that insignificant creature that the Winter King would become this furious?

He was wasting his strength on something that was nothing.

“Why are you getting so angry?”

“Isn’t he being insolent?”

‘How dare that little thing look at me with those narrowed eyes and talk back?’

I-gyeol’s brows furrowed, his anger refusing to subside.

“Then just kill him. You said he doesn’t even have a name.”

“What?”

“He stepped into the land of winter of his own accord, and Spring is lying unconscious. Who would say anything if you killed him?”

As Asha continued, I-gyeol stared at his servant in disbelief.

“How can you say ‘let’s kill him’ so easily?”

“…Pardon?”

Asha rubbed his ear as he looked at his king, who had once been infamous for his cruelty. He was genuinely confused, wondering if he had heard wrong.

“You heartless bastard. Hey, get up.”

I-gyeol clicked his tongue and turned his gaze toward Myeong, who was still crouching on the ground. Myeong awkwardly got to his feet, but he kept his head lowered, intimidated, unable even to look at I-gyeol.

“We cannot remain here forever. I will escort you to the Winter Castle.”

Asha stepped in between them. All the winter servants were waiting for I-gyeol. At present, the Winter Wolf was the only complete god among the seasons, and the spirits of winter were overflowing with pride because of it. Asha was proud of that fact as well.

‘My god, my winter.’

Perhaps he would rule over all four seasons in the future. Asha prayed for the radiant god of winter.

“That’s what we should do.”

I-gyeol also knew that this was no time to linger here. He could order a few of the stronger winter spirits to seal away his power in his stead.

But that little thing kept catching his eye.

A single spring spirit with barely any power was constantly disrupting the fierce winter.

“But that thing promised to find the camellia god for me.”

“Do you really need it from him right now? I can have another spirit retrieve it instead.”

“No. I said I want to receive it from him now.”

Asha pressed a hand to his forehead.

I-gyeol was starting his nonsense again. He had forgotten how impossible his king could be after just a little over a hundred years of sleep. He had even forgotten to include a prayer asking for I-gyeol’s personality to be fixed.

Asha swallowed a groan and looked at him.

“When will you go to the Winter Castle?”

“Soon.”

‘And when exactly is ‘soon’?’

Asha cursed the companions who had left him alone with this responsibility. He could already picture Gusa fooling around at the Winter Castle and Daha lying around in the Spring Palace.

‘Damn beast bastards. Not a shred of blood or compassion between them.’

Asha began cursing his fellow spirits, all of whom had been born from the snow just like him.

“You there, little spring spirit.”

“…Yes.”

“Go find the camellia quickly. Thanks to you, that will do.”

Asha kept his words brief, not wanting to take out his frustration on the little one.

The moment Asha finished speaking, Myeong kicked off the snow and ran.

I-gyeol bit his lip as he watched Myeong’s back retreat into the distance.

“He’s doing that on purpose, isn’t he? Just to make a show in front of me.”

“No.”

“He is. He was so happy to cling to my side before. Now he gets insolent just because I got angry at him once.”

‘He’s leaving without even saying goodbye?’

I-gyeol hurried after Myeong, while Asha stared at him in disbelief.

“…”

Watching the deranged Winter King chase after a spring spirit over some absurd excuse, Asha eventually gave up. He raised his head and let out a soft whistle toward the sky.

At his call, a white-feathered crane flew down and circled above Asha’s head.

“Send some winter spirits.”

‘As many as possible.’

Not wanting to suffer alone, Asha poured his earnest wish into the crane. Soon, accompanied by the clear sound of bells, the crane flapped its wings toward the western mountains and disappeared.

There was no way a single winter spirit could escort I-gyeol all the way to the Winter Castle.

“Hey.”

“…”

“Hey!”

‘Is he seriously ignoring me now?’

Unable to endure it any longer, I-gyeol grabbed Myeong by the scruff while he was absorbed in digging through the snow.

Myeong’s light body was yanked upright as easily as pulling a radish from the ground. I-gyeol lifted him until they were face-to-face and studied his expression.

Myeong’s thin legs dangled helplessly in the air, swaying in the wind.

“Are you crying again?”

“…”

Myeong’s cheeks were already streaked with tears, glimmering in the sunlight.

Despite his harsh words, I-gyeol lowered Myeong back to the ground. Myeong collapsed limply where he stood.

There was something about the sight that made I-gyeol feel both sorry for him and irritated with him at the same time.

“Do you cry at every little thing?”

Despite grumbling, I-gyeol deliberately sat down beside Myeong and wiped the tears from his wet cheeks with his large, beautiful hand.

At the gentle touch, Myeong hesitated before quietly allowing his face to rest in I-gyeol’s palm.

“You should have behaved yourself.”

“I want to go to the Spring Palace.”

I-gyeol’s mood softened at the sight of Myeong’s docile behavior, and he spoke to him in a soothing tone.

The answer came immediately.

“I want to go back.”

I-gyeol restrained himself from pinching his cheek and abruptly withdrew his hand before standing.

“Search for the camellia until you die.”

“I can go and come back quickly!”

Myeong grabbed the hem of I-gyeol’s clothes and pleaded.

His heart ached with worry. No matter that he had already left Spring, it was still his source, his origin.

Myeong shed tears like little beads and rubbed his face against I-gyeol’s leg. Above them, the setting sun was slowly sinking over the mountains, struggling across the horizon like Myeong’s desperate heart.

I-gyeol let out a long sigh.

He did not like this.

He did not like the way Myeong’s eyes lit up whenever Spring was mentioned, the way he moved without thinking of anything else.

It was only natural for a seasonal spirit to serve his god. It was right and proper.

Yet, for some reason, I-gyeol hated seeing it.

“If you put even a single camellia petal in my hand by dawn, I’ll let you go.”

“…”

“But if you fail to bring one, you’re coming with me to the Winter Castle.”

Myeong had yet to pay the price for the ice flower, so I-gyeol had the right to demand anything from him.

Having set foot upon the northern land, Myeong’s life was rightfully I-gyeol’s.

“I’ll do it.”

Myeong smiled and nodded.

Asha, I-gyeol, and Myeong himself all knew that it was a wager Myeong could never win.

But none of them cared.

I-gyeol straightened the wrinkles in his robes. The fabric, stained by the sunset, seemed to burn red as it reflected the orange sky. Soon night and dawn would arrive again, dyeing I-gyeol’s robes black and blue.

Asha clicked his tongue as he watched the tiny Myeong.

‘So he really intends to take him to the Winter Castle. The little thing doesn’t even seem to have any power.’

I-gyeol began walking in search of pure ground where he could seal away his power again. Myeong dragged his feet, clearly unwilling to follow, but the moment I-gyeol glanced back at him, he hurried over and stayed close to his side.

Myeong knew very well that, for now, he needed to watch I-gyeol’s mood.

“Search near me.”

“Yes.”

Anxiety churned inside him, but Myeong had no choice but to nod.

‘Camellia. Camellia.’

Against the quiet background of Myeong whispering the word to himself, I-gyeol gathered his thoughts.

Autumn had been born.

But it was abnormal.

Spring, whose energy was at least similar to Autumn’s, had helped it come into being, only to collapse afterward.

‘Even after Spring poured out all that power, Autumn’s soul still hasn’t returned? Summer hasn’t shown any sign of being born either. Could this be another consequence of Summer’s curse?’

But that made little sense. As far as I-gyeol remembered, Summer and Autumn had gotten along well.

I-gyeol twirled a strand of his own hair around his finger.

“What about the human world?”

It was a world he had almost completely stopped paying attention to.

After that incident, the seasons had grown even more detached from humanity. Although they were supposed to watch over humans, they continually left the work to their spirits.

Besides, humans had managed quite well on their own. There was no need to interfere.

All they had to do was ensure that the world created by Mago did not collapse.

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