Chapter 18
Unlike the relieved Jung-woon, Yuseol struggled as she was dragged away. Resisting again, she was eventually overpowered and forced into a palanquin. The servants swarmed around her, shouting that a miracle had happened. But to her, it felt like a curse. Because now she knew the warmth Geon had shared with her.
She swallowed her tears the entire way home. Cleaner, more beautiful clothes and a warm bed welcomed her back.
Yet, she lay awake with an empty heart. Days passed like that.
Then, one day, as she roused from a fitful sleep, she saw the shadow of a large dog by the door.
Barefoot, she rushed outside—and there was Geon, the gray wolfhound, passing along the wall. That was real fate. Something she could neither defy nor choose. And so, her bond with Geon began anew.
Geon was different from other dogs. Not just in his human-like size and majestic silver-gray fur, but in his temperament—he wasn’t friendly like other dogs.
He disliked people, growling when they approached, and only allowed Yuseol near him. Even then, he often got annoyed and walked away after being petted a few times.
Moreover, he was fiercely independent, sometimes disappearing for over a fortnight before returning. If confined for too long, he would destroy anything in his way to escape.
Now, the thought that even her offer to leave with him might be rejected made Yuseol impatient.
“Please, I beg you to return that dog to me. If I ever regain my honor, I’ll repay your kindness with all my devotion. I swear it on my name.”
She truly meant it. But he showed no reaction, utterly unmoved.
“Repay my kindness, you say… How intriguing.”
…Did he have no intention of returning Geon at all?
Yuseol, who had maintained her composure until now, nervously wet her dry lips.
He looked down at her. Just as she thought he might be savoring her unease, a low voice cut through the silence.
“If you’re going to repay me, do it now.”
His indifferent gaze turned slow and sticky, like a snake’s. She could almost guess how he behaved when alone with a woman.
Time stretched on. Under his piercing stare, Yuseol felt like she was being devoured at his leisure.
For a moment, her breath caught. She wanted to respond nonchalantly, but words failed her, and her lips trembled.
“But right now, I have nothing to….”
Her flustered state seemed to amuse him. Watching her struggle, he finally spoke in a low voice.
“What a shame.”
As he turned to leave, Yuseol stepped forward to block his path. She didn’t know when she’d see him again—even if she didn’t get an answer, she had too many questions.
“W-Wait, there’s more I need to say.”
She had always believed every person’s actions had a reason. But this man’s intentions were utterly inscrutable.
Looking back, his words and actions were so erratic they only confused her. Taking away a dog as dear as family, then saying he’d return it if she remembered him…? Appearing outside her bedroom door at dawn, dropping a norigae, then claiming to be the man who saved her at Museolwon’s entrance…?
Gathering her tangled thoughts, Yuseol spoke calmly.
“Last night at dawn, I saw a man’s shadow outside my door. And this morning, I found a pink norigae.”
The ever-present wind suddenly stilled, leaving an eerie silence. In the picturesque scenery, a distant camellia bloom fell with a soft rustle.
In the suffocating quiet, Yuseol felt dizzy but refused to look away from Mu-yeong’s face.
As always, he showed no sign of panic—only calm. Yet, under the rising moonlight, his eyes darkened as if hiding secrets. She felt herself being drawn into that abyss.
Her dazed voice trembled.
“I know that norigae is yours. Tell me why you came to my room.”
He studied her face the entire time, as if enjoying the shifting emotions—defiance, worry, unease—that played across it.
But it lasted only a moment. Casually crossing his arms, he regarded her with arrogant composure.
Grief swelled in Yuseol’s chest, but she suppressed it. If she couldn’t learn more about Geon, she at least wanted to know why the norigae had been left outside her door.
“Did you have a reason for coming to my room?”
As if teasing her, he touched his chin and smirked shamelessly.
“The view was nice.”
“…….”
“You just happened to be in the place I was admiring.”
His expression suggested that was all there was to it. His flawlessly cool face radiated sincerity, but his eyes shimmered darkly, stirring confusion.
Yuseol’s tightly pressed lips parted slightly in disbelief.
Then, a mist rolled in from the river, veiling her vision in white.
When the wind picked up again, the mist gradually cleared from her eyes.
Only an empty downhill path remained.
The end of their encounter.
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