They cleared the objects off the table and made enough space for the bamboo slip. Of course, Yujo didn’t bring her bamboo shards, but she could clearly imagine them in her head as she filled in the missing parts of the bamboo slip.

She placed the bamboo shards in her memory onto the bamboo slip that he had given her.

“What a pity. What am I supposed to be looking at?”

“I thought you weren’t able to read the language of Paran in the first place.”

Yujo said as she raised her head. Yujo got her answer as the man angrily crossed his arms. Even if all the shards were in place, he wouldn’t be able to figure out the words written on them.

“Stop acting arrogant.”

“Hmph.”

“Also…”

Suddenly, he brought his face up close to hers.

“Just how old are you?”

“What?”

“Even if we don’t reveal our names to each other, from what I can tell, you’re obviously younger than me. Yet you continue to talk to me informally, and it’s getting annoying.”

Ah, that’s right. But still… Recalling what had happened at the ChiHwaRu, Yujo didn’t want to change her manner of speech now. No, actually, wasn’t he the one who talked down to her first?

“Then you should also speak formally to me.”

“Once you find out who I really am, you’ll regret it.”

She didn’t want to meet this independent official after today anyway.

Yujo stared at him coldly before turning her eyes back to the bamboo slip.

“You’re bothering me, so be quiet.”

“What did you say?”

“Hmph.”

“Ha, that’s rich.”

As the man was bristling with rage, Yujo raised her hand at him.

“Wait.”

I need to focus. Yujo dug through her memories and began to match the bamboo shards with the bamboo slip. She finally managed to match the shards around the symbol of the three-legged crow. Her heart began to race.

“I was right.”

“Why? What do you see?”

The surrounding names of the nine families of the northern province were slowly revealed. The victims who had burned to death were Lee, Baek, Yang, Geum, Myung, Seo, Moon, Hwan, and… She couldn’t tell what the ninth one was.

What is this? Woon(雲)? Seol(雪)? The character seemed similar to both, so it was confusing.

Yujo frowned.

“What is it? You can’t tell?”

At his teasing voice, Yujo glared at him. He merely grinned back at her. Yujo began to explain.

“This bamboo slip is an ancient Paran document. Paran was a divine land, so it revolved around a shrine and a priestess. In other words, the priestess acted as the queen.”

“I already knew that.”

“The bamboo slip contains the names of the nine families that protected the priestess, and it matches up with the victims, who were originally from the northern province.”

The man’s expression turned grave.

“Are you saying that there’s still a family that hasn’t been attacked by the Heukra?”

“There are nine families, so one family is left.”

“Where is it?”

“That’s the thing…”

Yujo sighed.

“You see, somebody shattered the bamboo slip, so I can’t tell if this is Woon or Seol.”

“Hmph, and you acted all high and mighty…”

“Oh my god! Who’s the one who destroyed such important evidence in the first place?”

The two of them faced each other as they growled.

Boom!

Suddenly, they heard something explode outside. Startled, Yujo walked over to see what the noise was. Her mouth widened in shock.

“Ah!”

Lights were shooting up in the black night sky. They looked like red flowers, blue birds, and blinding, white dragons. They appeared in one moment before disappearing without a trace.

“What is that?”

The man looked out the window next to her before looking down at her with a smile of disbelief.

“What… You don’t know what a firecracker is?”

“Firecracker?”

“Yeah, today is the lotus lantern festival, so they’re shooting firecrackers at the imperial palace.”

Yujo had never seen them before. Yeha didn’t have firecrackers like this. Seeing that she was staring at the sky in awe, the man opened the windows even further and extinguished some of the candles in the room.

“Is this really your first time seeing them?”

When his question finally registered into her head, Yujo did her best to wipe the awe off her face. However, countless fireworks shot across the sky, causing her mouth to open once again.

My goodness! They were so pretty!

She didn’t see how the teasing expression on his face gradually began to change. She looked so lovable as her innocent face glowed in surprise and joy as she watched the fireworks.

He watched for a while longer before he went back and extinguished the remaining candles. As soon as the room went completely dark, it really seemed as if the fireworks were blossoming in the sky.

“Is it really that amazing?”

At his question, Yujo grinned and gave him a slight nod.

“It’s amazing. I also want my brother to…”

Feeling that she’d said too much, she quickly closed her mouth. The man remained silent, so she wasn’t sure if he had heard her or not. Just as she turned her head to gaze at the exploding fireworks outside, he spoke.

“I also want to show it to my family.”

For some reason, his voice sounded a bit lonely.

“Why? Is your family far away?”

The man glanced at her and let out a faint laugh.

“They’re not far away, but I can’t see them often.”

Why not? Her eyes asked as she looked at him.

“Because… it’s better if I stay away from them.”

He had a bitter expression on his face as he answered her. It was better if he stayed away from them? What did that mean? Yujo turned her head and turned her eyes back onto the fireworks. The magnificent palace repeatedly shone underneath the lights of the fireworks before disappearing back into the darkness.

Yujo recalled Princess Muyeo. She had lost her mother and was married off at a young age. Even though she had found a home to settle into, Yujo couldn’t help but feel that she was still very lonely.

“No matter how splendid and grand your house is, if you don’t have any family to share your heart with, it’s going to be difficult.”

Yujo spoke as she stared at the flickering palace.

“I have one brother. My mother passed away shortly after giving birth to me, and my father passed away early as well. My brother had a lot of responsibilities on his shoulders. However, whenever he went somewhere, he never forgot to take me with him. Thanks to that, I learned to ride a horse at a young age and followed by brother everywhere he went.”

As she recalled those times, Yujo’s lips stretched into a smile.

“I had just turned seven, but I had so much fun back then. My brother and I would sleep outside in the fields or in a cave. One time, we were even chased by wolves. There was also a time when it suddenly began to pour, and we were so soaked that we couldn’t get a wink of sleep that night. But we saw a lot of cool sights together.”

Countless stars strewn out across the night sky, the gleam in the horizon as the sun rose at the break of dawn, a newborn deer taking its first steps, and the birds flying high in the sky as they made their way south…

“Now that I think about it, I have so many happy memories.”

Immersed in her memories, Yujo suddenly returned to her senses. What was she doing? Why did she talk like this without thinking?

However, the man was staring back at her. His expression didn’t hold any of the lightness it held before. Instead, he merely gazed at her and spoke up in a lonely voice.

“How envious.”

What was this? Yujo suddenly felt the urge to hug him. He smiled lightheartedly down at her, but she knew he was merely putting on an act. Why did she talk about her brother like an idiot? Didn’t this man just say that even though he missed his family, he had to stay away from them?

“I’m sorry.”

Yujo lightly bit her lip as she spoke up.

“I was being silly.”

At her words, the man turned and looked down at her. He replied in an annoying voice.

“So you do know.”

“What?”

Haa. Like he said, he was obviously older than her, but he continued to act like a child. It didn’t make any sense. This wasn’t right. She suddenly became aware of the fact that they were the only ones in this room and tensed up.

“I think I need to head back now.”

The man turned around when he heard her words.

“Why? Do you need to go back to the man you were with?”

That’s right. She had completely forgotten about Jewol. He must be worried sick about her right now.

“That’s… Either way, I have to go.”

She hurriedly made her way across the room, but the man suddenly appeared in front of the door and blocked her exit. He crossed his arms and asked in an annoyed tone of voice.

“Anyways, just who was that guy you were with?”

Haa. That’s hilarious. Yujo looked at the man in disbelief.

“That’s none of your business.”

“What do you mean it’s none of my business? If you think about what’s going on between you and me, I can’t help but consider it my business.”

Yujo almost grasped the nape of her neck in shock.

“What’s going on between you and me?”

“Mm, haven’t we kissed?”

“Gah! That was just you being rude!”

“Hey, let’s get one thing straight. You’re the rude one who kissed me first.”

Ah! Seriously?!

“That was a tactic. I was using a tactic to escape an enemy! How can you not tell the difference?”

“Either way… What’s going on between you and that man?”

She felt that being with him was dangerous. For some odd reason, the vibe she got from him suddenly felt different from before. He almost gave off the energy of a dangerous bull. It put her on edge.

“Nothing, so move.”

“It was nothing, but he still touched your lips like that?”

“That’s because he’s my brother!”

Yujo’s cheeks were flushed. She didn’t know why she had to give him an explanation.

“Ah! The brother who raised you in place of your parents?”

Jewol wasn’t that brother, but she couldn’t tell him that right now. Yujo felt that she had to explain the current situation to this man.

“It looks like you’re misunderstanding something, but you and I are nothing. You’re just someone who has committed a wrong against me, and that’s all there is between us. We don’t even know each other’s names, so keep your distance!”

“Distance?”

“That’s right, distance!”

“Telling me this while using an informal manner of speech… It doesn’t seem very convincing.”

“Ha! That’s not something you should say either! You’re the one who hugged me and groped me.”

“But you approached me as a courtesan back then.”

Ah! How infuriating. She didn’t want to speak anymore.

“I understand now, so please move, my lord!”

Yujo spit out the words. The man began to laugh out loud. Yujo looked up at him in disbelief.

Why? What’s so funny?

I don’t know.

If Yujo had asked him that, he would have answered, ‘I don’t know.’

He really didn’t know. He didn’t know why he was laughing so happily.

If someone had seen him laugh like this, people would say that the Red King had finally lost his mind. It wasn’t a fake laugh that hid his sadness and anger. It wasn’t a laugh to deceive others.

He was just happy.

But thinking back, she was with another man this time. For some reason, he felt unreasonably angry and irritated. Where was this ridiculous feeling coming from?

Was that man truly her brother? Was it really nothing?

Bringing her to his secret room was a very dangerous thing to do. However, this place was the most secret location in YeonSung. All the people outside, including all the women, were his subordinates.

Didn’t he bring her here with wicked intentions?

If she found out, would she hate it?

Would she become embarrassed if he told her he wanted to see her again? Or would she kick him and run away like last time?

“How about this?”

When he spoke, the woman’s eyes widened. Her eyes were clear. It was so clear that it was almost as if they held the sky within them. Her eyes contained no lies, no fear, and no anxiety. He liked the way she looked at him so honestly.

If she were a man and not a woman, he still would have liked it.

“You’re right. We don’t know each other’s names.”

She stared at him suspiciously.

“So if one of us finds out the other’s name, we’ll start dating.”

“What?”

Her eyes widened in shock.

“If I figure out your name or if you figure out mine, let’s date.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

The woman immediately shook her head.

“Why? Ah! If you want to date me, you can just tell me your name.”

“Ha!”

She looked at him in disbelief.

“Stop speaking nonsense and move.”

“I won’t move until you agree with me.”

Thud! Garan suddenly felt an immense pain pulsing from his shin.

“How dare you!”

“How dare I what!”

Garan crouched down in pain. Yujo stuck out her tongue and quickly made her escape.