Yoo Gyeong pondered over the events of last night for an entire day.
Just imagining that a wolf might take away her little brother, whom she wouldn’t even feel pain over putting in her eye, made her blood boil…
“What exactly are you doing?!”
“I-I apologize, Your Majesty!”
“Look at Samayeom! For over fifteen years, these pests have been gnawing at the Huang Nation, and yet you couldn’t even eradicate those bandits who have been running wild for seventy years!”
“I-I apologize, Your Majesty!”
“Is that all? In the process, not a single royal guard was harmed, and countless fortunes were recovered and brought back to the center, and meanwhile, what have you done?!”
“I-I apologize, Your Majesty!”
“And you lot are planning the budget with the gold that Samayeom has provided?! Without being able to come to a single opinion, what are you doing?!”
“I-I apologize, Your Majesty!”
After passionately reviewing the state affairs while suppressing her bubbling frustration, Yoo Gyeong felt her head clear up. Indeed, people must work. Feeling satisfied after venting, she recalled last night.
‘That was a waste of precious time.’
She had pressed Hyeok Gi-rin too hard yesterday and wasted valuable time igniting unnecessary hatred for a fictional brother-in-law instead of enjoying the time they could chat after twelve long years.
‘I recklessly wasted invaluable time.’
Living as a princess in the palace was possible, but there were things one couldn’t do while cross-dressing as a martial artist—and marriage was one of them.
However, she had been too hasty. Marriage was a significant decision that could shape a person’s life. It wasn’t something one could resolve as quickly as roasting beans in a flash. Even if Hyeok Gi-rin had someone he liked, what could be done during his time in the palace?
‘To win Yuya’s heart through marriage, I could have left the imperial city—it wasn’t too late. Yesterday, I missed what I needed to do.’
Blinded by stimulating facts, she couldn’t see the forest. The elements that could make Hyeok Gi-rin willing to return to the imperial family weren’t solely in marriage. Instead, she needed to make the palace feel closer to him than the martial world, turning it into a more enjoyable space.
Yoo Gyeong nodded in satisfaction.
Yes, this was the correct strategy.
Yoo Gyeong recalled her childhood and the memories she wanted to share with Hyeok Gi-rin. Each one was a heartfelt story, precious memories that brought a lump to her throat.
“Hahaha.”
Yes, this is right. Yoo Gyeong burst into laughter.
She felt her mind clear up.
Hyeok Gi-rin looked happy enough as a martial artist, yet he also felt distant, making her want to grasp him desperately. But was this truly the right attitude for an older brother?
As an older brother, her duty was to ensure Hyeok Gi-rin lived a happy life as best as she could.
While Hyeok Gi-rin remained in this imperial palace, she should strive to make sure they could always share a laugh together. The joy of being with family. She needed to show Hyeok Gi-rin the pleasure of living in the palace.
Thus, she decided to erase all useless thoughts from her mind and focus solely on spending joyful time with Hyeok Gi-rin.
With a gentle smile while sipping tea, Yoo Gyeong then heard,
“I have found someone dear to Princess Yuya.”
Her face stiffened at the report from a court lady in the palace.
—
“Haaa.”
In the room where all the court ladies were dismissed, Hyeok Gi-rin sighed and rested his chin on his hand.
‘Enchanting resistance…’
Hyeok Gi-rin fiddled with the Sun Armor atop his head. It was one of the treasures of the imperial family, literally an object imbued with yang energy. It emitted qi like the sun, making a person appear reliable and masculine.
Naturally, as humans, they would exude a certain amount of qi, with men radiating yang and women emitting yin. Wearing the Sun Armor, even a woman would give off an impression akin to a man.
After gathering Ho Cheon-an, Black Cat, and Miss Yeo Il-ye, he went to Samayeom’s place for a drinking party. When he woke up from getting drunk, he learned that Samayeom had noticed that Black Cat and Ho Cheon-an were a cross-dressing woman.
At the time, he thought maybe it was just a particularly sharp individual.
It wasn’t until he heard from the Jeomchang Faction that Ho Cheon-an had a physique with enchanting resistance that he realized he had been uncovered as a cross-dressing woman from the beginning… but ultimately, nothing changed.
‘Cross-dressing… I always left a room for being found out.’
At Hyeok Gi-rin’s level, it was possible to completely change his skeletal structure. Yet maintaining his original body shape was for a reason.
‘Hyeok Gi-rin as a cross-dressing woman? Nonsense!’ The goal was not a flawless disguise.
Rather, it was to barely manage a disguise where one might say, ‘Hmm… I suppose that is conceivable…’
It wasn’t that women martial artists were forbidden; the reason for cross-dressing stemmed from the need to preserve the legitimacy of succession to the throne and to inhibit the movements of the pro-Yuya factions, which at that time still wielded considerable influence.
If Hyeok Gi-rin had not become a cross-dressing martial artist… He bitterly smiled at the assumption. If not, he wouldn’t even still be in the Jeomchang Faction up till now.
The central factions supporting Hyeok Gi-rin back then were quite powerful. They would have stopped at nothing to forcibly return him to the imperial palace, leading to countless sacrifices and incidents in the process. In the worst-case scenario, the nation could have been divided and plunged into civil war.
That such events did not occur was all thanks to Hyeok Gi-rin being a cross-dressing woman and a martial artist.
The truth that Princess Yuya had actually become a martial artist and was practicing martial arts! On top of that, she was engaging in bizarre acts by cross-dressing and living as a man!
Becoming a martial artist. Officially becoming a disciple of the Jeomchang Faction. Cross-dressing. All of these were critical flaws in legitimacy, and the moment this fact became public, the factions supporting Princess Yuya would be finished.
So, they had to quietly return Princess Yuya to the imperial palace, and even attempts to do so could only mobilize minimal forces to avoid any rumors.
While Yoo Gyeong actively obstructed Princess Yuya’s faction in the center, the Jeomchang Faction provided the physical resistance.
‘If… I had not chosen the life of a cross-dressing martial artist.’
Countless blood would have been shed. And when that blood was shed, deciding the victors and losers, either Yoo Chan or Hyeok Gi-rin would find themselves in a position where they had to shoulder the sins of that blood.
That situation was averted. Yoo Gyeong smoothly strengthened the imperial authority, established a family, and bore children to solidify the successor. Hyeok Gi-rin, as a disciple of the Jeomchang Faction, tended to his masters and left the imperial palace to carve out a new life.
It truly was an ideal outcome. Hyeok Gi-rin thought that if he were given the chance to return to the past and choose again, he would still choose the life of a cross-dressing martial artist over that of a princess.
‘Still…’
Yet, some regret lingered.
If he had stood before Ho Cheon-an adorned in beautiful garments, with makeup on, adorned with golden and jeweled accessories…
Could he have heard different words instead of just the friendly ones?
Could he have left an impression in Ho Cheon-an’s mind as something more special?
“What am I lamenting over now?”
Hyeok Gi-rin rubbed his cheek, trying to muster his spirits. Soon, his older brother would arrive. It was a precious opportunity that would last no longer than a couple of weeks. He didn’t want to show up with a long face and worry his older brother.
At just the right moment, a knock echoed through the door, and a court lady announced Yoo Gyeong’s arrival.
“Hehe, has my older brother arrived?”
“Yes, Yuya. Have you been well today?”
“Yes. It’s been a bit stifling, but… I can manage.”
“Haha. You’ve been full of energy since you were young. I remember you would sneak out whenever the court ladies lost track of you.”
“Is that so… I think I mostly remember playing in the garden.”
Hyeok Gi-rin smiled, reminiscing about Yoo Gyeong’s tales of memories. Despite the age difference, he found it fascinating to hear memories that Yoo Gyeong could recall but he could not.
“Hahaha.”
“Hohoho!”
The two of them laughed and chatted about their childhood memories. Initially, Hyeok Gi-rin had been conscious of Yoo Gyeong, but soon he became genuinely joyful, and laughter came naturally.
The characteristic of reminiscence was that one could lose track of time while engrossed in it.
As Yoo Gyeong recounted various stories, she rose with a wistful expression.
“Whew. It’s already late. We should return before dawn.”
“Oh dear, have I taken up too much of my older brother’s time?”
Hyeok Gi-rin wore a worried expression. Being a peak expert, he could endure the day with just a bit of qi cultivation. However, Yoo Gyeong had not mastered martial arts at all. Spending her days running state affairs and then visiting him like this would certainly take a toll on her.
“Haha, this is nothing. Just a short nap when I get back should be fine.”
“…Please don’t overdo it.”
With a smiling face, Yoo Gyeong exited Hyeok Gi-rin’s room, contemplating.
‘You’ve never been able to hide your expressions well since childhood.’
Although their smiles were similar, there was a significant difference in liveliness. Because of that, Yoo Gyeong immediately realized upon meeting Hyeok Gi-rin that he was secretly heartbroken due to his feelings for someone and being pinned down by their friendship.
“Hehehe.”
What is this guy doing, stabbing a nail into the heart of his little brother, whom he wouldn’t even feel pain over putting in his eye?
It was a completely natural result. It wouldn’t make sense to harbor feelings for someone thinking they were a man, and even if one believed they were a cross-dressing woman, finding a charm in a girl who constantly dressed as a man was, realistically, quite difficult.
Hyeok Gi-rin’s current appearance, where he was so busy hiding rather than emphasizing his femininity, lacked any charm.
Yet… so what?
The moment she confirmed that Hyeok Gi-rin’s heart was wounded, her rational judgment toward Ho Cheon-an died.
The eunuchs bowed deeply, watching Yoo Gyeong maintain her smiling face. Though Hyeok Gi-rin wouldn’t know, the eunuchs were aware. Having lived long as an emperor, Yoo Gyeong always smiled steadily, regardless of the flow of emotions.
Returning from an inspection, she didn’t need to manage her expression, yet Yoo Gyeong retained her smiling face. The eunuchs sensed that Yoo Gyeong had unsettling thoughts in her head and was habitually smiling to conceal them.
“Get me detailed information on that guy right now.”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Somewhere in the midst of night and dawn, the Huang Nation’s intelligence agency began to stir.
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