When Seolhwa, who had been away from the clan for four years, returned to the Namgoong Clan, it had not been long before she requested a private audience with Namgoong Mucheon.

“What matter is so grave that you would even raise a sound barrier?”

Though puzzled, he layered his own barrier atop hers to fortify it. He knew well—if Seolhwa took such precautions, then what she wished to say was of utmost importance.

Grateful for the earnest way Namgoong Mucheon listened, Seolhwa opened her mouth.

“What I am about to tell you may be hard to believe. But it is the truth, and to me, it is reality.”

“I believe you.”

Before she could continue, Namgoong Mucheon showed his trust.

“So, do not hesitate. If a grandfather cannot believe his granddaughter’s words, then whose words could he believe?”

“...Thank you.”

“Speak freely.”

After taking a short breath, Seolhwa began to tell her story.

It made her tremble even more than when she had spoken to Imoogi. She was afraid.

What would Grandfather think?

If she told him she had annihilated the Namgoong Clan, what expression would he show?

If she confessed that she had killed her own father with her own hand, what reaction would he have?

The further she recounted the story of her previous life, the harder it became to lift her gaze.

The vile acts she herself had committed filled her with shame and guilt, making it unbearable to look him in the eye.

And yet—she had no desire to hide her past.

What deeds she had committed, what consequences had followed.

How she had met her death.

How pitiful her life had been.

She wanted to lay it all bare.

“When I came to the main house, it was because I knew I was of the Namgoong bloodline. My memory of Grandfather’s residence came from my previous life, when I burned the clan down. And so...”

Seolhwa’s lips trembled violently.

Her voice shook so much she had to stop for a moment.

“...that is how I... returned to life.”

With that, Seolhwa’s confession ended.

She closed her mouth, and Namgoong Mucheon fell silent.

A pause, no—a long silence settled between them.

At last, Namgoong Mucheon’s low voice broke the suffocating stillness.

“What am I to... do with you?”

Seolhwa flinched.

“Whatever...punishment...”

“Seolhwa...”

“....”

Her eyes wavered. Slowly, she raised them to meet his.

His voice trembled no less than hers. But it was not with anger.

She looked upon his contorted face.

He lifted his hand and cupped her cheek.

“How much you must have suffered...”

“....”

“How much it must have hurt...”

“....”

“How heavy a burden you must have borne alone...”

Hot tears streamed down Seolhwa’s cheeks.

“Grand...father...”

“Those who lack the memories would not feel torment. But you, unable to erase those memories, must have endured the pain alone.”

Facing again the family she had slain with her own hands, she had lived with an unshakable guilt only she remembered.

“Why only now do you tell me this? Why...”

“Hhhuuh...”

At last, Seolhwa’s tears broke loose.

She flung herself into Namgoong Mucheon’s arms and sobbed.

“Grandfather...”

Like a child seeking comfort, she cried and cried in that vast embrace—an embrace like the heavens themselves, safe and boundless.

“Well done to come back. Thank you for enduring all the hardship to return. Thank you truly for not abandoning the main house...”

Namgoong Mucheon held and soothed her until she wept herself empty.

He murmured apologies and thanks again and again, easing her anguish.

When her emotions had calmed, they sat facing each other once more.

Namgoong Mucheon asked,

“Then what is it you sought to tell me? There must be a reason you chose now to reveal what you have long concealed.”

Sniffling, Seolhwa drew something from her bosom and held it out.

It was a packet of medicine.

“What medicine is this?”

“Poison. For now.”

Sniff.

Wiping her tears, Seolhwa spoke with solemnity.

“If nothing changes, Grandfather, you will soon die.”

“At this time, I die?”

Seolhwa nodded.

“They poison you. A poison that hardens the blood channels. It was developed by them, so it is not easily noticed, nor can it be detoxified.”

“Then this must be the poison herb that neutralizes it.”

“It is the best I could prepare.”

To save him, she would have to make him ingest poison herbs.

She could not simply ask him to eat them without reason—so she had chosen to reveal her secret.

“After taking the poison herb, if your nails turn black, you must take the antidote. If they do not, then that proves...”

“...that I have been poisoned.”

“...Yes.”

He would have to take poison into his own body each day.

Without trust in Seolhwa, such a thing was impossible.

“Understood. I shall do so.”

Namgoong Mucheon accepted her words without hesitation.

From that day forward, he swallowed the poison herb each day.

****

A long time later, after Seolhwa’s return from Shaolin.

Namgoong Mucheon summoned her.

“My nails have ceased to change color.”

“...!”

“It was not even two days after you departed for Shaolin. I think they must have aimed for the moment you were absent.”

Seolhwa clenched her fist.

As much as she watched them, so too did they watch her.

Considering how often her interference had disrupted the Blood Demon Cult’s plans, it was no surprise. The more vigilant they became, the harder it would be to obstruct their great enterprise.

‘Before it grows harder.’

“We must strike first.”

Not merely defend against what was to come, but launch a true counterattack.

If possible, before the Blood Demon Cult could rise, they had to strike at its power.

‘If we turn their attempt to kill Grandfather against them...’

A sudden idea flashed in Seolhwa’s mind.

Unconsciously, she looked at Namgoong Mucheon, then quickly turned away.

Sensing something, Namgoong Mucheon asked,

“Have you conceived a stratagem?”

“....”

“Speak it.”

Seolhwa bit her lip hard.

“Hurry.”

Only when urged again did she hesitate, then whisper,

“It is a method that deceives many people.”

“If deceiving many can save all, then so be it.”

“It may stain the clan’s name.”

“The Namgoong name does not fall so easily.”

“They may laugh at us. Perhaps even...”

“Seolhwa.”

Namgoong Mucheon laid his hand over hers.

“A child as astute as you must have weighed every risk. If you still speak of it, then it must be worth it.”

Seolhwa pressed her lips tight.

Indeed, if this plan succeeded, it would not only strike back but also serve as a vital card to rally the orthodox martial world.

The cost was high, but the gain would be higher still.

And yet...

“Grandfather...”

She regretted opening her mouth.

Closing her eyes, she forced the words out.

“Grandfather... you will be in danger.”

A brief silence.

Then, without fail, Namgoong Mucheon’s resolute answer came.

“Is not a martial man’s life but a fleeting thing?”

So began the scheme to turn the Blood Demon Cult’s plot upon itself and unmask the spies.

Not only to catch the high official who sought Namgoong Mucheon’s life, but to root out the spy who had slipped poison into his tea leaves.

Since none knew the spy’s identity, the operation was carried out in utmost secrecy. Only five within the main house knew the truth under Seolhwa’s lead.

Namgoong Mugang, Namgoong Cheongun, Seop Mugwang, Namgoong Hyeok, and Chor Yeon of the Medicine Hall.

“This medicine stops the heart for a time. As short as a day, as long as three. Beyond that, Grandfather would be in true danger.”

“Let it be three days.”

He had to make everyone believe he was truly dead.

Especially the Blood Demon Cult spy within Namgoong.

‘Mangwol or the Fourth Blood Lord will come.’

In her previous life, after Namgoong Mucheon’s death, they had made his corpse into a Jiangshi.

One of the two corpse-handlers would surely be drawn into the trap.

But both were cautious and suspicious—so they had to create a situation even they would accept.

“Take this, Grandfather.”

“This ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) is... the Great Restoration Pill, is it not?”

“Use it when you recover. The Immortal Physician will aid you in revival.”

“The Immortal Physician’s aid will suffice. Keep it, you—”

“I... I cannot be at ease otherwise...”

If his stopped heart failed to return, Namgoong Mucheon would truly die.

Though the Immortal Physician’s help made the chance slim, even the smallest chance filled her with dread.

So she forced the Great Restoration Pill into his hand.

If she did not, she felt she could not endure.

With the excuse of visiting Surochae, Seolhwa left the clan.

In that time, Mucheon’s death was staged. When she returned, his body was cold.

Seeing him with her own eyes—so lifeless—made it near impossible to keep calm.

Her mind knew he was not dead, but she could not stop the dark thoughts.

What if something had gone wrong?

What if Grandfather never woke?

What if he had truly died?

For the first time in her life, Seolhwa felt the unbearable pain and emptiness of losing one she loved. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The day before the funeral procession.

After secretly moving Namgoong Mucheon’s body, until she heard from the Immortal Physician that he had awakened safely, Seolhwa endured a hellish time.

“To catch the likes of you alone...”

Srrrng—

Seolhwa’s sword touched Mangwol’s nape.

Her blade trembled ever so slightly.

“Hehh... And why should that be my fault? Is it not because the Young Union Lord has regained her emotions?”

Without emotions, she would not have known sorrow.

“Why cling so desperately to such suffering? Is that why you returned to the Namgoong Clan? Such useless emotions...”

“It is natural to feel emotions.”

“....”

“Because I am human.”

To grieve loss is only possible because one knows love.

Because one knows what is precious, one feels sorrow at its absence.

“To know neither pain nor emotion—that is for the Jiangshi you control.”

Her sword pressed deeper into Mangwol’s neck.

Crimson blood welled along the blade, sliding down its edge.

“I am human. One who can love and be loved. One who therefore can also feel sorrow.”

A tear slipped from Seolhwa’s eye.

“I am no longer a tool to be wielded by the likes of you.”