Chapter: 619
I had to frown when I heard that.
Why are you pretty? What kind of ridiculous comment is that?
“You clearly said you’re wearing a mask because of the burns…!”
Ah.
Only after hearing Yuri’s words did I realize.
Namgung Bi-ah seemed to be wearing a mask.
‘Well, she kept that one in check.’
Before Namgung Bi-ah left for the North Sea, she had given the strongest warning.
I don’t know what the people there are like.
‘I told you to cover your face since your looks could be a problem.’
In any world, beauty is easy prey.
When you think of it, Namgung Bi-ah’s looks were beyond treasure level.
That’s why I advised her to cover up as much as possible.
Thankfully, it seemed she followed that advice well.
“Ah.”
Hearing the critique, Namgung Bi-ah nodded slightly, as if she understood what Yuri said, and said:
“That’s a lie.”
“…Huh?”
Yuri’s face froze at the confession delivered so casually.
“Are you saying it’s a lie…?”
“Yeah. Lie. Sorry.”
Even the apology was delivered matter-of-factly.
Although the situation was somewhat comical.
“…Get up first. We need to move.”
I couldn’t just stand there watching; so I decided to get up quickly.
I moved my body and grabbed Namgung Bi-ah.
“Ah…?”
Before Namgung Bi-ah could react, I hugged her with both arms.
“…”
“…I’m picking you up because it looks hard for you to move. Even if you don’t want to, just stay there…”
“I don’t mind it.”
“Oh, okay.”
Her firm response made me feel a bit awkward.
“No… you previously said you wouldn’t lift anything dirty…”
I ignored the incredulous remarks from behind me.
I gathered my energy and sent it toward Yuri.
Whoosh-!
“Huh.”
The energy wrapped around Yuri’s body and lifted her into the air.
It was possible because her body had returned to its original state.
I needed to get to the hideout quickly. I checked the direction while simultaneously asking Yuri.
“I have something to ask you before we leave.”
“Yeah?”
“Your brother, who supposedly got involved in treason. He said his name is Yooseon.”
“…What?”
Yuri’s expression changed oddly upon hearing the question.
It looked like she had heard something strange.
From her reaction, is he the firstborn?
Given that there’s a high chance the firstborn was involved in treason, it adds up.
“Information about that guy…”
“Just a moment…”
“Huh?”
“Did you just say Yooseon?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
I heard it loud and clear.
Yooseon, he said his name was Yooseon.
I had given a definitive answer, but Yuri’s expression became increasingly distorted.
“Is something off… didn’t you realize?”
“What?”
What do you mean?
Is she implying I misheard something?
“Honestly, if you heard it as that name, I think you misheard it.”
“No, I heard it clearly. He specifically said Yooseon…”
“Yooseon isn’t one of your brother’s names.”
“Huh?”
This time, I frowned at Yuri’s response.
What do you mean he’s not one of the brothers? What does that even mean?
As I struggled to grasp her explanation.
“The name is…”
Yuri said.
“That name belongs to the First Princess of the Ice Palace, my older sister.”
Something completely unexpected just slipped out.
The underground of the Ice Palace.
Blood relatives. Among them, a space only the ruler of the North Sea can enter.
Yooseon was walking along that path.
Thud-thud.
One step.
Thud-thud.
Another two steps.
With every step, subtle changes occurred.
Her body was shrinking noticeably.
The lines of her physique were becoming more refined.
A young man with a cold demeanor gradually transformed into a stunning woman.
She bore a resemblance to Yuri but with distinct differences.
“Today was truly a day of great harvest.”
Continuing to walk, Yooseon spoke to the person behind her.
Even her voice had changed. Now it possessed the alluring tone of a woman.
“No way. Your foolishness isn’t just similar to mine; I didn’t think you’d be pureblood. How surprising.”
The person behind Yooseon replied with a smile.
Woohyuk bit his lip.
“…That guy isn’t my type.”
Woohyuk desperately tried to refute that.
Haha.
Yooseon merely burst into laughter at those words.
“Bi-oh-gun. You are indeed special.”
“…”
“Because I know this. You let me off the hook for lying to me. You know that, right?”
It felt like I couldn’t breathe.
Woohyuk suddenly became overwhelmed by that sensation.
Yooseon stopped walking.
“You see the thing is? If that’s not the case…”
Then she turned her head to face Woohyuk.
Smiling knowingly, Yooseon’s gaze twinkled with mischief beneath her half-closed eyes.
“I’d wager you wouldn’t have let it slide if I had lied to you.”
“…”
The reference to the White Fox.
Woohyuk frowned at the mention of Namgung Bi-ah.
Yooseon spoke after observing his expression.
“I won’t bother you with trivial questions like why you did that.”
Her voice held more laughter than anger.
“I knew from the very start that you would end up this way.”
“…!”
Woohyuk’s eyes widened at Yooseon’s assertion.
“…What…?”
You knew this would come to pass?
Those words made waves in Woohyuk’s heart.
“…What do you mean? Didn’t you decidedly order me to kill the White Fox!”
“That’s correct. But I never expected it would turn out like this,”
His eyes wavered.
“This is all the more interesting. I was curious if you would behave as I predicted. If you would genuinely follow my commands.”
Woohyuk’s clenched fists shook at those words from Yooseon.
“Really? You thought that you could act without my knowledge?”
Yooseon smiled even wider, relishing in Woohyuk’s actions.
“Right now, there is no one in the North Sea who can evade my sight.”
In this underground space.
She had overcome the curse and merged with it.
Having shed her filthy vessel, she had become something great.
The current North Sea was no different from herself.
That’s why.
“I know you tried to save your master. I also know you tried to protect Baek Yeo-woo.”
Whether it was for goodwill or out of concern for Namgung Bi-ah.
Yooseon was aware of it all.
Simply put, she was enjoying watching those events unfold.
Upon hearing those words, Woohyuk muttered.
“…What exactly…”
He asked in a voice filled with exhaustion.
“What on Earth do you want from me?”
What does this woman want from me to be acting like this?
“What do I want? A lot.”
No matter what Woohyuk assumed, Yooseon probably had even greater expectations from him.
“You are more important than you realize.”
Not just important.
You are incredibly valuable.
An essential existence for the future that Yooseon envisioned.
“Not just you… White Fox too…”
Thanks to her good fortune, there was another piece that rolled in.
Moreover, not just any old kind, but a pure-blooded being had emerged, hadn’t it?
This was a chance.
Gather three pieces.
An opportunity to raise her value by consuming purebloods.
At that moment.
“Princess…”
Suddenly admitting it aloud.
Woohyuk’s tone sharpened at her title.
“Bi-oh-gun. I was clear about this.”
A chilling breeze wrapped around him, one that felt new and foreboding.
Crackle!
Frost formed across the walls.
“Don’t refer to me as that. I specifically asked you not to.”
“…”
“I’m being incredibly generous to you.”
After all, he had spared the life of his beloved sister, who he wanted to tear apart right in front of him.
Didn’t he display such great mercy to spare her?
In that context.
“Isn’t it reasonable to oblige a ‘request’ of this caliber?”
Woohyuk desperately tried to divert his gaze from the chilling atmosphere.
He couldn’t grasp it.
Everything else sailed smoothly, but why was this particular part so intense?
Although it made no sense to him.
“…I’m sorry, Yooseon.”
Woohyuk had no alternative.
“Hmm.”
Upon hearing that, Yooseon smiled as if satisfied and resumed her walking.
Down they went once more to reach an entrance.
A thick, enormous iron door.
In front of it, Yooseon extended her hand.
Then…
Whooooosh-!!
A tremendous vibration rippled from the iron door.
Squeak!
The door opened on its own, as if someone had pushed it gently.
From the slowly parting seam, whooosh-! a blast of icy chill erupted.
Inside was…
A space as pure and white as freshly fallen snow.
And large enough,
It could easily hold the entirety of the North Sea Ice Palace.
A space like this exists underground?
Woohyuk gazed at the area with wide eyes, filled with astonishment.
At that moment.
“Congratulations.”
Yooseon proclaimed to Woohyuk.
“This is likely the first time someone who is neither a princess nor a blood relative has set foot here.”
“…”
“How does it feel?”
Yooseon gestured softly toward the front.
In the center of the immense space, something floated in midair.
It was a small chunk of ice, relative to the vastness around it, but certainly no small piece overall.
What could that be?
The moment Woohyuk began to wonder.
“What do you think of seeing Bingjeong (Ice Spirit)?”
“…!”
Woohyuk swallowed hard at Yooseon’s words.
Bingjeong.
The most precious artifact esteemed and revered by the North Sea Ice Palace.
A thing the blood relatives regarded with a sense of dread akin to a curse.
Is that ‘it,’ the Bingjeong?
It shone brilliantly and chilled the air. That was his initial impression of It.
Yet now, all he could conjure were questions.
“…Why are you showing me this?”
“Hmm.”
In response to Woohyuk’s question, Yooseon calmly moved towards the Bingjeong.
“Because I simply wanted to show you. Isn’t it intriguing?”
That ice dome against the backdrop of the North Sea.
“It’s also snowing year-round on this land.”
On top of that.
“Using blood relatives as collateral. That’s the secret to maintaining my life.”
“What on Earth…!”
“Would you like to learn a particularly amusing fact?”
Woohyuk was taken aback for a moment by the shocking statement he’d just heard.
As Yooseon drew closer to Bingjeong, she posed a question to Woohyuk.
“Bi-oh-gun, what do you think this is?”
She pointed at the iceberg.
“…Are you referring to the ice?”
“Exactly.”
A block of ice.
The long-standing treasure of the Ice Palace.
That was what Woohyuk saw in Bingjeong.
From her previous remark, it was unmistakably unusual.
But Yooseon communicated to Woohyuk that it was much more than that.
“It’s an ‘egg.’”
“…?”
An egg?
“The egg that was left by the Dragon Emperor. An egg that’s not far from hatching.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I deem this fate.”
She laughed—a hysterical laugh.
Yooseon continued her mirth.
“It’s amusing how all these pieces gathered just as hatching time approaches. How a pureblood appeared before me.”
She giggled. Even without a reason, she laughed heartily.
“I’ve been ‘chosen.’ It’s all fate.”
“…”
An unidentifiable madness surrounded her words.
As Woohyuk stared at Yooseon, he swallowed hard.
“I have the sense that every bit of this is compelling me to walk my chosen path without hesitation.”
She reminisced about the pureblood dragon she had encountered earlier.
Pureblood.
Not a being attempting to transcend by blooming seeds left behind by the Dragon Emperor like herself.
Dragons that break their own barriers and ascend to the skies.
Their value was unique, preordained to hover above mere dragons.
A being worthy of becoming the Dragon Emperor.
That is pureblood.
Surely, he’d heard that absolutely no such beings existed in this realm, but how had one suddenly emerged?
[Let go.]
Remembering the words he’d once uttered, Yooseon felt a shiver of delight within.
Born with the power to dominate, it came naturally.
Even without fully awakening her powers, that simple expression made Yooseon pause for an instant.
A dragon that had completed its evolution but had yet to find its form, incapable of blossoming.
Let alone, a pureblood capable of reigning.
She longed for it.
Yooseon found herself wanting him.
But she released him instead of devouring him now.
It felt too soon to consume him right then.
‘When in a stronger, more certain state.’
Not battered or broken.
In complete condition, it would be crushed and devoured.
Thus, she intended to dismantle every qualification and condition the pureblood possessed.
Then, she might comprehend.
Not him.
That she, herself, was deserving of the title.
Therefore, she would absorb every piece.
Also coveting the one to be born from the iceberg right in front of her.
‘And so.’
Ascend and ascend again.
Soaring into the higher skies and uncovering the North Sea’s spring.
That was.
Yooseon’s goal.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.