If You Claim the Fallen Heiress - Chapter 60

Yuseol, who had been about to flee, gathered strength in her body to overcome her frightened trembling. She was no longer the Crown Princess-to-be, had nothing to protect, and even her life was in danger. Whatever happened to her now wouldn’t it be better than being offered as a sacrifice later?

Her brazen question echoed through the wooden floor.

“So is the person called Sahwa inside there?”

As if destroying the reason he had been maintaining, he narrowed his brow. Soon he bit his lower lip intently and pulled at Yuseol’s jacket ties. When the white knots came undone without resistance, her delicate breathing stopped.

He answered briefly as if giving her a reward for not running away.

“Yes, there is.”

“Is Geon also inside there?”

“No.”

The shadows of the two people swayed slightly apart from the wall. As he narrowed the distance, Yuseol’s back touched the wall. The moment startled Yuseol tried to avoid him, his two hands pressed against the wall, trapping her. Sharp intensity appeared in the black eyes that looked up at him.

“Just where is Geon right now?!”

Mu-yeong grasped her chin and lifted it to make her raise her head. Their gazes roughly intertwined again.

With a face that said he could no longer endure it, he pressed his lips to hers without warning. The black hair that had been swept to one side naturally tilted down toward her.

With an annoyed expression, he swept back his hair again and tilted his head at an angle. His pointed Adam’s apple moved up and down dangerously.

She, who had been blocking his neck with her hand, was startled and pressed against his collarbone area, pushing him away urgently.

“Ah, mmph! Ugh, mm.”

Mu-yeong pursued Yuseol’s lips without the slightest wavering, gently lingering. Her two startled hands pressed against the wall and struggled to grab onto anything to gain strength. Crack, rip. The wallpaper caught by her delicate fingertips tore away helplessly.

Taking a long breath, she urgently pulled at Mu-yeong’s sleeve. The man’s rough breathing and scent entering through her opened senses made her feel like going crazy. He was invading as if coveting more, swallowing her uncontrollably bursting breath like a predator.

At this rate, really….

Then their lips parted slightly. Yuseol turned her head toward the wall and covered her lips with her sleeve.

Haa, haa.

Violent breathing echoed in the space. His low sound settled over Yuseol’s fast and fragile breathing.

Yuseol’s jeogori, which had only had its ties undone, now had its front panels wide open. Mu-yeong’s gaze, which had been yearning there, looked into her eyes.

“Sahwa, you see. Wasn’t a person.”

It was the topic Yuseol had been most interested in. While she widened her eyes, the bedroom door opened.

Mu-yeong began calmly driving her into the bedroom while bringing up the story she had been curious about. His bite marks colored her dizzyingly exposed white shoulders.

“It was a white camellia tree.”

She became distant without feeling the unfamiliar sensations that began to sweep over her body. It seemed like she could see an old tree with white flowers in full bloom before her eyes. She had long been dreaming of the wolf-dog Geon napping beneath it.

While stepping backward like that, hot and soft sensations covered her nape. The sensations didn’t stop there and gradually moved downward.

She had a vacant, entranced look in her eyes. She felt dreamy as if thick fog had settled in her head.

At that moment, the sound of someone running could be heard from far away. Soon a black shadow appeared at the quarters’ door and a servant’s voice rang out.

“Are you inside?! Something terrible has happened! People in court robes are now proceeding in a procession to the entrance of Museolwon. It’s dark so I can’t be certain, but it seems like His Majesty’s palanquin is also visible.”

In the bedroom that became quiet in an instant, Mu-yeong’s sharp eyes flashed. Yuseol, who had only been breathing roughly in confusion, had a blank face.

***

“It seems like Lord Mu-yeong’s bedroom would be the safest for now.”

Not long after, Myoyeon came running with a half-asleep face. Yuseol pondered places to hide with Myoyeon.

The first place mentioned was a nearby cave, and next was a private house near the mountain peak. However, they were places that could be searched if one put their mind to it, so they couldn’t move rashly.

After deep consideration, Myoyeon judged that Mu-yeong’s space was the safest, and Yuseol eventually hid on the second floor of the inner house. It was a study with soldiers guarding in front of the door, and it was a space with a bedroom attached next to it.

Yuseol stood by the window of the study and asked.

“Um… but I’m curious why Lord Mu-yeong’s space is the safest in Museolwon.”

Myoyeon rubbed his eyes with his dry hands where knuckles were visible. Then he adjusted his gat and faced Yuseol.

“Lord Mu-yeong’s study has many books of great historical value. For that reason, soldiers are always on guard, and there’s an emergency staircase next to the bedroom, making it easy to escape.”

Even so, it didn’t seem like they could stop the footsteps of Kim Seon, who was the king. Yuseol looked around the study with worry and asked.

“I’m worried that an order to open the study might be issued.”

“His Majesty would find it difficult to command arbitrarily. Since Lord Mu-yeong is an old friend of the head of the house, the royal family would also be cautious.”

“But….”

No matter how old a friend he was, he only looked to be in his early twenties….

Yuseol, who had been puzzled, belatedly understood. Myoyeon’s words, who knew this place well, must be right. Moreover, because he had long connections with the head of the house, he would have been able to enter and leave the royal palace from before. She briefly recalled that day when everything had been mysterious.

“…It’s a good night.”

“…….”

“I came to see, just because.”

The sun was already rising. Due to the king’s unexpected procession, the dawn at Museolwon was extremely chaotic.