Chapter 20
Soya was out in the garden, picking pretty pebbles.
It had all started when San-ho, having heard that Soya had promised to make talismans for Yeon-jeong and Jeokyeong, begged her to make one for herself too.
“Don’t worry, Lady San-ho. I’ll make a talisman for you too! I want to make lots and lots of talismans to protect everyone!”
When Soya clenched her small fists determinedly and said that, San-ho chuckled and made a suggestion.
“Then, miss, how about we play a game of finding the prettiest pebble?”
“A game of finding the prettiest pebble?”
“Yes, the one who finds the prettiest pebble wins. How about the winner gets all the pebbles from the other two as well?”
“……!”
The word “game” made her cheeks flush pink just like they had during yesterday’s ball game, and her heart began to thump excitedly.
Picking pebbles while wandering the garden felt like the most fun and thrilling game in the world.
‘And if I win, I get all the pretty pebbles!’
A competitive spirit welled up in her, as instinctive as a child’s.
“Th-then let’s start right away! I’ll go over there!”
Soya shouted, her cheeks bright red.
Yeon-jeong and San-ho burst into laughter at the sight of her obvious excitement.
And so the game began.
‘If I find the prettiest pebble, it’ll make three pretty pebbles including Lady Yeon-jeong’s and Lady San-ho’s. Then I can make three talismans.’
Soya peered intently at the pebble she’d just picked up from the grass with a very serious expression.
’One end seems a little pointy.’
It looked round and smooth at a glance, but it fell a bit short of being the “prettiest pebble.”
Above all, a pointy end might hurt the person receiving it as a gift.
Just then, the sound of neat footsteps approached.
Soya turned her head absentmindedly and spotted Gahyeon walking toward her from the opposite direction.
“Ah……!”
Soya jumped to her feet, still clutching the pebble in her hand.
“Hello, Young Master.”
Gahyeon paused for a moment, then smiled softly and greeted her in return.
“Hello, Soya. You’re playing in the garden.”
“Yes. Um, by any chance, last night……”
Had the younger Young Master felt the talisman’s effects like Sa-eon had?
It was just as Soya was about to ask about the talisman in a voice full of eager anticipation.
“But Soya, you left a weird pebble in my room last night. Why’d you play such a prank?”
Gahyeon gently cut her off and asked.
“Oh, that wasn’t just any pebble……!”
“Picking up trash from the garden and sneaking it in. Pranks like that are a bit troublesome. It’s inconsiderate to the servants who come to clean the room, too.”
At those words, Soya hesitated and glanced up at Gahyeon’s face.
His elegantly curved eyes were definitely smiling warmly, but they felt a little cold.
“And from now on, don’t come into my room without permission. It makes me uncomfortable. You’re not one of Baekho Palace’s people, after all.”
Gahyeon let out a soft sigh and said it in a kind voice. It was affectionate, yet scolding.
Soya’s eyes, which had been sparkling with anticipation just moments ago, drooped dejectedly.
Of course, Soya hadn’t gone into Gahyeon’s room on her own.
She had gone with Yeon-jeong to deliver the talisman to Ho Jeokah, who had been in the hallway.
But Ho Jeokah had suggested that placing it right by the Young Master’s bedside might be better, so she and Yeon-jeong had cautiously gone in and set it down before leaving.
Still, without the room’s owner’s permission, Soya thought he had a point.
‘But it wasn’t trash, it was a talisman…… It must have looked that way in the precious Young Master’s eyes.’
It hurt a little, but Soya apologized calmly.
“I’m sorry, Young Master.”
“……”
Gahyeon’s mouth shut tight.
He knew from Ho Jeokah that Soya hadn’t intruded on her own.
Even so, he had deliberately said it to draw a line.
I can’t accept you staying here.
You can never be one of Baekho Palace.
So if you have any sense, leave Baekho Palace quickly.
But Soya didn’t protest or make excuses, not even showing a hint of hurt feelings—she just apologized.
For some reason, a heavy weight settled on Gahyeon’s chest, like a rock had been placed there.
Then his gaze drifted to Soya’s fingertips.
She was gripping a tiny, round pebble just like the one he’d seen—tight in her hand.
The moment he saw the dirt smudged on her palms from picking pebbles, his mood soured, and Gahyeon hurriedly left the spot.
But even after returning to his room, he couldn’t stop thinking about those pale pink eyes that had been full of anticipation drooping down.
It was that same child who had barged into his room without permission and left that useless thing, who had presumptuously taken over the Western End Room.
‘Why do I have to feel so frustrated and sorry?’
It irritated him.
It was probably because of those drooping eyes.
Those large pale pink eyes that kept nagging at his mind.
Maybe he should have just said what she wanted to hear.
That thanks to her talisman, he’d slept soundly.
If he’d said that, would those round eyes have sparkled instead of drooping?
‘She probably didn’t realize I don’t like her, right?’
He’d deliberately hinted that she wasn’t Baekho Palace’s people and drawn a line, but now he started worrying that she might have caught on to his intentions.
Unable to stay still, Gahyeon paced around the room in circles before coming to a sudden stop. He walked over to the jar where trash was collected.
The servants hadn’t cleared it yet, and it was half full.
Gahyeon lifted it up and turned it upside down.
Clatter.
A single pebble tumbled out amid the spilling debris.
Gahyeon quickly picked it up and brushed off the dirty dust clinging to it with his hand.
It was something he, who was so fastidious he bordered on obsessive about cleanliness, would never normally do.
‘To ward off ghosts, that spot would be good.’
Gahyeon placed Soya’s pebble on the bedside table.
Seeing it finally in its proper place made his mood improve considerably.
Gahyeon gazed at the pebble with a satisfied expression, then suddenly hardened his face.
‘But if I leave it here, she won’t know.’
Glancing around for a moment, Gahyeon walked to the window and opened it. Then he set the pebble on the windowsill.
So that everyone passing through the garden could see it.
Because the cotton ball liked the garden.
* * *
Meanwhile, after Gahyeon had left.
Soya felt sorry, realizing that what she’d meant to protect him from ghosts had ended up being a nuisance instead.
‘He seemed really upset because of me.’
And yet he hadn’t gotten angry, but spoke to her so kindly.
‘The younger Young Master really is a gentle person.’
Soya, who was used to people getting mad at her, truly thought so as she gazed absently at the pebble in her hand.
It seemed like she needed to make a talisman for the younger Young Master with something better than a pebble like this.
‘But I don’t have anything better than pebbles, so what should I do?’
The things in her room belonged to the Patriarch, not her. The clothes she was wearing now and the norigae were the same.
She thought she couldn’t touch them carelessly, since she didn’t know when this “temporary” stay at Baekho Palace would end.
Then she suddenly thought of the cloth doll she’d received as a gift that morning.
It was the best thing Soya owned.
‘But that’s from Sa-eon……’
Soya fidgeted with her fingers, lost in thought.
‘Giving Sa-eon’s gift to the Young Master would be ignoring Sa-eon’s feelings, so no. But I don’t have anything good besides that……’
Soya didn’t realize it, but fidgeting with her fingers was her habit when she was deep in serious thought.
Just then, she spotted a palanquin passing in the distance.
‘Huh?’
Soya’s head naturally turned that way.
A young lady about Soya’s age stepped down from the palanquin that had stopped in front of the main building.
‘Who is that?’
Soya tilted her head, watching the girl descend from the palanquin.
