Ch#17
Jeok I-geon was the superstar among the maids in the fortress.
To have an out-of-the-blue, one-night scandal with someone like him.
If Jeok Wi-baek already knew, it was safe to assume every single maid knew as well. In other words, I had just become public enemy number one.
Even if I denied it, who would actually believe me?
Circumstantially, it was true that I had spent the night at Geonyeonggak, so the odds were stacked heavily against me.
How on earth was I supposed to get through this crisis?
If I had known such a massive trial would follow my miraculous encounter, I would have been much more cautious.
Just thinking about facing the unnies at Jamigwan already made my head throb.
“Oho, the more I look at this little wench, the more refined she seems. In a few years, you’ll be quite the beauty. What do you say? Why don’t you come to my bedchamber tonight?”
This bastard needs to know when to stop with the sexual harassment. He keeps crossing the line.
As if I wasn’t already anxious enough, he had to go and make me even angrier.
If disgust had a physical form, it would undoubtedly be Jeok Wi-baek.
I already knew he was a womanizer, but this was truly the absolute worst.
But unfortunately, this was the Demonic Cult.
I didn’t have the guts to talk back to the Cult Leader’s eldest son.
Keeping my mouth shut and not offering a reply was the greatest courage I could muster.
“Your tongue is as filthy as ever, Brother.”
It was then that Jeok I-geon spoke up again. Having quietly glared at his brother for a while, he delivered a succession of venomous words.
“If you are so starved for a woman, go to a brothel. If you utter a single word that you are the son of the Heavenly Demon, there will be more than enough courtesans throwing themselves at you. So please, maintain some dignity in my quarters. It is so utterly repulsive that I feel like gouging my own ears out.”
“W-what? How dare you speak that way to your brother, who went out of his way to visit you?”
“I filtered my words as much as possible. One must speak like a human for me to treat it as speech.”
“Are you acting like this because you’re afraid I’ll take this wench away? You can’t even yield a mere maid to your own brother?”
“Do you covet my maid that much?”
Jeok I-geon glanced at me once, then abruptly asked his brother.
At this point, a sudden wave of anxiety washed over me.
Surely he isn’t going to tell me to serve him in bed, right?
The atmosphere between us was quite decent just a moment ago.
I’m really going to train hard in martial arts!
Unaware of—or perhaps simply ignoring—the fact that I was looking at him as if he were a bug, Jeok Wi-baek shouted at Jeok I-geon.
“Yes! Now that things have come to this, I refuse to back down!”
“Then try and take her.”
“What?”
“I said, try and take her from me if you can.”
“…Are you suggesting I challenge you to a duel?”
“Do you even have the capability to do so?”
A clear sneer played on the corners of Jeok I-geon’s eyes.
“You…!”
Jeok Wi-baek’s cheeks trembled with indignation.
He knew it too. Though he was born as the eldest son of the Heavenly Demon, rumors whispered that his martial arts skills were a step behind his younger brother, Jeok I-geon.
His constant attempts at poisoning were undoubtedly born from the inferiority complex that stemmed from this.
“You had better watch your mouth from now on. And preferably, do not bother visiting me again.”
First a blatant sneer, and now he was outright kicking him out.
I could see Jeok Wi-baek’s face flush red and blue with intense humiliation.
He looked as though his pride demanded he say something, but fearing that it might actually lead to a duel, he ultimately kept his mouth tightly shut and stormed out of Geonyeonggak.
“Thank you for helping me.”
If Jeok I-geon hadn’t stepped in, I would have suddenly ended up as Jeok Wi-baek’s woman.
Though I didn’t show it on the outside, I was actually quite terrified.
The fate of those at the bottom is so utterly unpredictable, which was exactly why I had tried so hard to keep my distance.
To be thrown into this situation with only two months left before my contract expired. No matter how much I thought about it, I was incredibly unlucky.
“I will clear up the misunderstanding from last night, Young Master. I am deeply sorry for causing you concern.”
My own mood was in the gutter, but right now, I was more worried about Jeok I-geon’s state of mind.
For the first time in his life, he had shown someone consideration, only to be saddled with an unwelcome stigma.
What if he got so enraged by this that he decided to kill me?
Given his temperament, he was more than capable of doing so, which meant I absolutely had to set the record straight by any means necessary.
“How dare he covet what is mine?”
But his response was somewhat strange.
“Training will resume tomorrow. I am going to practice, so go and do your work.”
The look he gave me was cold, but for some reason, he didn’t seem angry at me.
Above all, “what is mine”? What on earth did that mean?
Leaving me behind, utterly dumbfounded and stammering in shock, Jeok I-geon headed to the Training Grounds first.
Even long after he left, I remained in the room, racking my brain, but I couldn’t understand the meaning behind his words at all.
I guess I’ve become quite a useful human being to Jeok I-geon.
That was the absolute limit of my deduction.
“Ugh, enough distracting thoughts! Let’s go get lunch!”
What Jeok I-geon had ordered me to do was to focus solely on preparing his meals.
My goal was to preserve my life until the day of my retirement. To do that, I had to follow orders.
What should I bring him for lunch?
Since he said breakfast was terrible, I had to pay extra attention.
Just because Jeok I-geon was acting favorably toward me right now didn’t mean I could let my guard down.
How many characters had fallen to ruin over a single mistake?
I will absolutely escape this hell safely.
What kind of food would be simple, easy to eat, and delicious?
As I turned my steps toward Jamigwan, my head was filled with nothing but menus for Jeok I-geon.
It didn’t take very long for me to realize that this was a mistake.
“Seol-ha! What happened last night? Did you really sleep at Geonyeonggak?”
Led by So-ok, a swarm of maids rushed toward me.
What an absolute idiot I was.
This was the very thing I had worried about most when I heard about the scandal, yet I had completely forgotten about it, distracted by brainstorming the menu.
“Did the Second Young Master truly choose you as his woman?”
“No, but how?”
“Why you of all people?”
“You might have a pretty face, but you’re not exactly the most beautiful woman in the world!”
“Why does it have to be you, Seol-ha?!”
Resentful words poured out without pause.
While there was a hint of envy, the vast majority of their gazes were filled with jealousy and spite.
I had to play my cards right here.
If I couldn’t come up with a plausible excuse that everyone would believe, the rest of my life as a maid would never be smooth sailing.
Especially since Jamigwan was where Jeok I-geon’s meals were prepared.
If I wanted to keep receiving their help, I had to prove my innocence.
“Oh my goodness, no! What would the Second Young Master want with a mere maid like me? It’s all a misunderstanding!”
“A misunderstanding?”
“Yes! The truth got distorted. I really never imagined the Jamigwan unnies would believe such a thing!”
“What truth got distorted?”
“The fact that I stayed up all night at Geonyeonggak.”
“What! So you really did sleep at Geonyeonggak!”
“I just said I stayed up all night, I didn’t say I slept there.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?”
“Why did you stay up all night, then?”
“Oh, I don’t know if I should say…”
I deliberately trailed off, acting as though I were in an incredibly awkward position.
At this, they grew frustrated and began to press me from all sides.
“What is it that you can’t say?”
“Are you just trying to find a way out of this crisis?”
“If your conscience is clear, tell us the real reason!”
Of course, I couldn’t tell them the real reason.
Pretending to hesitate as if deep in thought, I finally whispered.
“Actually… the Second Young Master was a bit unwell.”
“What? The Second Young Master was sick?”
“Yes. I greeted him before leaving work, but there was no response. Usually, he’s so kind and always tells me I did a good job before I leave.”
“Right. The Second Young Master is definitely the type to do that.”
“So I thought it was strange and peeked inside, only to find him burning up with a fever!”
“Gasp! A fever?”
“As healthy as he is?”
“They say healthy people are the ones who fall terribly ill once in a while. Startled, I hurriedly brought the Divine Physician, and I stayed by his side all night to assist him. As you know, I’m the only maid at Geonyeonggak at that hour.”
Driven into a corner, lies slipped past my lips with absolute ease.
I didn’t know why the Divine Physician had suddenly popped into my head, but now that I had said it, it sounded like a highly plausible excuse.
The confidence that absolutely no one here would dare go to the Divine Physician to verify the truth also played a part.
“I only nursed him through the night and caught a bit of sleep in the side room afterward, so I’m honestly flabbergasted by how such rumors started. How could someone like me ever be a match for the Second Young Master!”
“How is the Second Young Master now?”
“He made a full recovery in just one day. He’s currently training hard at the Training Grounds.”
“Is that true? Not a single lie?”
Most of them had bought it, but I could feel a few still looking at me with lingering suspicion.
In times like this, a decisive blow was needed.
“Please believe me. I don’t have even a shred of desire to get involved with high-ranking nobles. And as a matter of fact—I haven’t told anyone this yet—but I actually have someone I like.”
“What? You have a lover?”
“Yes. He was just accepted into the Blood Shadow Squad. If you really doubt me, I can introduce you to him.”
Yang So-baek, I’m sorry. Dragging you into my lie the moment you joined the squad.
But what are friends for? Helping each other out in times of need.
And just like that, my male friend and childhood best friend, Yang So-baek, was transformed into my lover.
