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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Chapter 94
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"How strange. Is it because they're both girls? Not bad, actually."
"Hey, let's take her too. Once we get to the main building, we can just hand her over to the cleaning or laundry crew, right?"
"Right, they seemed short-handed over there too."
The pirates, having discussed among themselves, came to a conclusion and addressed Seolhwa.
"Hey, you. From today on, you're the youngest on this boat. This guy will tell you what to do. Especially,"
The hooded pirate pointed at Hwarin.
Hwarin flinched in surprise, shrinking her shoulders.
"You, there. Don't let her cry. If I hear a child crying on this boat, I'll throw them straight to the fish."
"...Yes."
The pirates chuckled and exited the storage room again.
The moment the storage room door slammed shut, Yugang let out a deep sigh.
"What on earth were you think—"
He was about to ask, but Seolhwa's attention was entirely focused on Hwarin.
Seolhwa brushed the dirt and dust from Hwarin's clothes and spoke calmly.
"You heard them, right? If you cry, I'm going straight to the fish."
Yugang, who was standing nearby, gaped.
"What are you saying to a child who's already scared stiff!"
He quickly rushed over and separated Seolhwa and Hwarin.
Then, with delicate and careful hands, he straightened Hwarin's crumpled clothes and personally wiped away the child's tear-filled eyes and runny nose.
"Oh, good girl—don't cry, it's okay, it's okay. Everything will be fine. Oh! Look at this! When did this get stuck here! You naughty piece of straw!"
Hwarin, who had been on the verge of tears moments ago, laughed brightly at Yugang's playfulness, as if she had never been upset.
Seolhwa's expression grew strange as she watched him soothe the child so naturally.
Though they had met less than half a *shijin* ago, Yugang and Hwarin already seemed like inseparable siblings.
'Looks like she won't be thrown into the sea either.'
Whether she had forgotten being kidnapped or not, Seolhwa leaned against a pillar and sat down, watching the child burst into giggles.
"?"
There was something in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw it was the hair ornament she had intended to give Hwarin for her birthday.
Seolhwa looked down at the ornament for a moment, then approached Hwarin, who was playing with Yugang.
"...?"
Hwarin looked up at Seolhwa. Hwarin's lips parted slightly, then closed.
'They said I shouldn't call out...'
Seolhwa sat down in front of Hwarin.
Then she gently placed something in Hwarin's hand. It was a cute rabbit-shaped hair ornament.
"I was originally going to give this to you for your birthday."
Hwarin blinked her round eyes.
"I'll definitely protect you. When we get home, let's buy some clothes that match this hair ornament."
Seolhwa smiled gently and stroked Hwarin's head.
'So she won't be scared. So she won't be afraid. So she won't cry.'
"Good girl."
She had worried Yugang might scold her, but he didn't say a word.
'That's a relief.'
Seolhwa felt a little awkward under Hwarin's dazzling, almost overwhelming gaze.
Hwarin's lips kept twitching, as if she wanted to say something.
"You can call me 'Unnie'."
Hwarin's expression instantly brightened. Then she threw her arms around Seolhwa.
"Thank you, Unnie."
Hwarin's voice was very small and thin.
"I'm not scared at all because I have Unnie."
She was such a tiny, tiny child that Seolhwa didn't know what to do.
She saw Yugang saying something from nearby.
'Pat, pat. Pat, pat.'
Following his gestures and mouth movements, Seolhwa awkwardly patted Hwarin.
It was the first time she had ever held a child in her arms throughout her previous life, and the embrace was warm and ticklish.
'No matter what it takes...'
I have to protect Hwarin. So she doesn't get hurt, so she isn't wounded.
So she doesn't suffer the same fate as me.
Patting the warm, small child, Seolhwa made a vow.
* * *
That night, after Hwarin had fallen asleep.
Seolhwa and Yugang went out onto the deck.
From the cabins, sounds of revelry and boisterous laughter could be heard, as if a drinking party was underway, and several pirates were maintaining the ship.
Following Yugang, Seolhwa wiped down the items on deck, occasionally looking up at the sky, which had grown dark.
The ship, which had departed from the river leading to Chao Lake, was now heading south, towards the Yangtze River.
'Even if it's the Namgung, catching up to a pirate ship won't be easy.'
No matter how fast or sturdy the Namgung's ships were, they couldn't match the pirates' speed on the water.
It was only natural, as these were people who lived on the water and had built their strength around that very advantage.
'As long as they're traveling by water, it'll take time to acquire a ship. If this continues...'
If they were on land, a day or two would be enough for the pursuit, but since they were traveling by water, it would take several times longer.
No, it would be fortunate just to not lose their trail.
Seolhwa pulled an iron pellet from her pocket, imbued it with *qi*, and flicked it with her finger.
The iron pellet flew swiftly, snapped a distant branch hanging over the water, and lodged itself in the broken crevice.
For now, it was the only way she could leave a trace.
'They should be able to find it.'
"Maknae! What are you doing just standing there? I told you to wipe here like this!"
Yugang, who had approached without her noticing, vigorously scrubbed the railing in front of Seolhwa with a rag.
For a while now, he had been nagging her verbally, yet he kept doing Seolhwa's work for her.
Even in the storage room, he had babbled on, trying to keep the child entertained until she fell asleep, and now it seemed he was trying to look after Seolhwa's mood too.
Instead of answering, Seolhwa snatched the rag from his hand and began wiping the ship's railing.
Yugang momentarily flustered, letting out a soft "Uh..." before fetching a mop from somewhere and cleaning the floor around her.
- Escape before we reach the main compound.
Seolhwa's telepathic message echoed in Yugang's mind.
The mop, which had been moving with soft *swish, swish* sounds, abruptly stopped. Then, with a cheerful smile, he started moving the mop again.
- I was about to say that myself.
- I'm stronger than you. Did you forget?
- I'm better at looking after kids than you are. Didn't you see?
- What does that have to do with anything?
- What if I escape alone and the big brothers throw you into the river?
- If they throw me, I'll just escape...
- Not you. Hwarin. What if Hwarin is left alone? No matter how strong you are, you can't manage it by yourself.
This time, Seolhwa's hands stopped.
If Yugang left, could she properly comfort young Hwarin? She wasn't sure.
- It seems Hwarin relies on me more than her own family. Right?
- ...
- See? How could I leave my younger siblings behind when I'm so worried about them?
Yugang grinned, patted Seolhwa's stiff shoulder, and went elsewhere.
There was no room for rebuttal. She had clearly told him to leave. Yet, she found herself not even considering a scenario where Yugang wasn't there.
'...To think I said such empty words.'
She let out a wry laugh at her own duplicity.
It was as if she was relying on Yugang.
'It must be because of the memories from my previous life.'
Seolhwa idly watched Yugang, who was chatting amicably with the pirates on the other side of the deck.
The back of a man overlapped with his own.
The back of the man who had silently climbed the mountain, carrying the corpses of his martial brothers on his back.
* * *
They arrived at the Surochae two days later, at the start of the *Osi* (11 AM to 12 PM).
Seolhwa's expression darkened as she watched the Surochae gradually draw closer in the distance.
'The Gwiyoungchae.'
Of all places, it had to be the Gwiyoungchae.
The Gwiyoungchae had someone connected to the Sixth Blood Lord, one of the Blood Sect's Six Blood Lords.
That person was Maeng Deungho, known as the Black Slaughter Ghost, who was called the Sixth Blood Lord's dog.
She didn't know much about the identities of the Six Blood Lords, but she had some information about the Sixth Blood Lord.
After all, the Sixth Blood Lord was the most widely known among the Six Blood Lords.
'The Chief of the Eighteen Water Strongholds of the Yangtze River.'
The Blood Sect had declared the entire Yangtze River Surochae as their territory at the same time as their expansion, so it was impossible not to know.
And the one the Sixth Blood Lord used as his personal pawn was none other than the current Chief of the Gwiyoungchae, Maeng Deungho.
The problem was.
'I don't know what the situation is like in the Surochae right now.'
She didn't know if the Sixth Blood Lord had already seized the position of Chief of the Surochae, or if Maeng Deungho was still being used as the Sixth Blood Lord's pawn.
Only one thing was certain right now.
'At this time, the Surochae targeting the Namgung was indeed because of me.'
The only difference from her previous life was that she had returned to the Namgung, and yet the Surochae, connected to the Sixth Blood Lord, had kidnapped a child from the Namgung.
She didn't know why they had kidnapped Hwarin instead of her...
'They're after me.'
That much was clear.
