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Chapter 111: Oops. (2)

It was a hot summer day when something unexpected happened to Tang Soyeol.

As usual, she was practicing her secret martial arts, wiping away her sweat and sipping a bit of poison tea.

While training in Poison Technique was one reason, the main reason was that Tang Soyeol simply loved poison tea.

Just as she was savoring the distinct bitterness and the slight numbness on her tongue, her brother, Tang Juyeok, casually dropped a bombshell.

“Hey, Soyeol, have you heard the news?”

“What news?”

“Nangong Bi-ah is getting engaged.”

“•••What!?!”

Tang Soyeol exclaimed in shock. Seriously? How long has it even been since she last saw her sister, and now she’s suddenly engaged?

“What do you mean suddenly with an engagement…?”

“I was surprised too, but the news has spread like wildfire over here.”

Tang Juyeok explained that the underworld had been buzzing with gossip about the engagement of the Nangong Clan’s young lady.

Having heard the news, Tang Soyeol immediately started to worry.

‘…That foolish sister is getting engaged?’

Not only was she stunningly beautiful, but she also knew that Nangong Bi-ah’s martial arts level was quite high among the Late-Stage Talents.

The problem was that, despite her striking looks, Nangong Bi-ah had an incredibly clueless personality.

‘She didn’t get caught by some creep, did she?’

No matter how strange the situations at home were, she surely wouldn’t get engaged to someone unsavory from the Nangong Clan.

After a moment, Tang Soyeol asked, “Brother, which family is Bi-ah engaged to?”

“Well, they haven’t officially announced it yet, but…”

If Nangong Bi-ah really was engaged to a strange guy, Tang Soyeol thought she would definitely intervene to help. After all, she had once smoothly dealt with a previous engagement involving Namgung Cheonjun.

Tang Juyeok answered her question, “It’s the Mount Shan Clan.”

“… Huh?”

In disbelief, she repeated the words, thinking she must have misheard him.

Tang Juyeok continued, blissfully unaware of the confusion on his sister’s face. “You know him, right? The young Gu from before—Gu Jeolyub—is the one engaged to Bi-ah.”

“…?”

Tang Soyeol was struck by shock and ended up bedridden for three days.

By the fourth day, she finally managed to gather her thoughts.

‘Well, it wasn’t like we had known each other for long anyway, right?’

Although deeply shocked, Gu Jeolyub was indeed from a prestigious family! Tang Soyeol tried to rationalize her dizzying thoughts.

While fleetingly recalling the boy she had briefly been enamored with—someone she hadn’t even really talked to—she thought it should be easy to forget him.

On the fifth day, his eyes blurred in her memory.

How absurd that mere looks could cause her such distress, yet she endured it.

Time heals, they say. She would soon be okay.

By the sixth day, she hadn’t slept a wink.

On the seventh day, she started skipping meals due to a lack of appetite.

From that point on, Tang Soyeol slowly began to realize that she was in some deep trouble.

By the eighth day…

“… I thought you didn’t like him…”

She started to resent her sister inwardly. After all, she had firmly denied any feelings during their last conversation.

“That foolish sister seemed like a fox in disguise!”

With her increasing agitation, she flung her pillow, accidentally hitting Tang Juyeok as he passed by.

By the ninth day, Tang Soyeol realized it was becoming a serious issue.

Training was neglected, meals were skipped, and she was barely sleeping.

Tang Soyeol had to admit she was suffering from lovesickness.

It was silly to plummet this far over mere looks, but denying it wouldn’t solve anything.

Still, thoughts of the boy’s sharp gaze occasionally haunted her, almost obsessive at times.

Even before the engagement news, she had sometimes found herself daydreaming about him. After hearing about the engagement, it became unbearable.

“… What do I do?”

She needed to find a solution quickly.

By the tenth day, a solution emerged.

It was simpler than expected—if she missed him so much, she could just go see him!

That’s all there was to it! So why had she been overthinking things?

Finally, Tang Soyeol managed to eat a hearty meal after a long time.

… She was starting to think clearly again.

And so, on the tenth day, she sought out her father, the clan leader, and expressed her desire to visit the Gu Clan.

Of course, the clan leader was taken aback by her sudden request and refused at first.

But Tang Soyeol was proud of her skills in dodging questions and was determined not to back down.

Failing here would mean ruin for her. She couldn’t afford to retreat.

While she presented her reasons, the clan leader seemed equally firm in not budging, leading to a long back-and-forth.

In the end, after a fierce debate, Tang Soyeol triumphed.

With a naughty charm, she persuaded him with promises, such as taking a stroll by the lake, keeping the location of her secret stash of poison tea hidden from their mother, among other things.

She had to give up quite a bit, but Tang Soyeol felt satisfied. As long as she could see him, everything else was fine.

Truth be told, she never seriously considered sabotaging the engagement.

Engagements between clans were just that.

As someone not directly involved, she realistically understood it wasn’t her place to interfere.

She just wanted to see him, even if it meant accepting defeat in the end.

Time moved on.

Accompanied by guards from Tang Clan, Tang Soyeol finally arrived at the Gu Clan. Although it had been a long journey, the clan leader had ensured it was a comfortable one.

The seasons had changed by then.

Summer had turned to autumn, and Tang Soyeol had lost a bit of her baby fat in the meantime.

Upon entering the Gu Clan, they were greeted by Elder Lee, who had come out to meet them with an invitation.

However, she couldn’t help but wonder why the clan leader wasn’t the one to greet them.

Normally, she would have been angry thinking it a rivalry among families, but at this moment, it really didn’t seem important.

While being guided to her guest quarters by Elder Lee, he asked, “How do you know our Jeolyub?”

His tone was almost childishly curious. Jeolyub? Were he and Elder Lee particularly close?

‘Clanspeople can be friendly too, I suppose.’

At this point, she still hadn’t thought too much about it.

“It just happened that I became acquainted with him…”

She couldn’t outright say she had fallen for him upon first sight.

Elder Lee nodded enthusiastically. “I see… I see!”

Soon enough, she was led to the guest quarters.

“Please rest here for a bit; the young master will be here shortly.”

“Yes, yes!”

The thought of him coming soon caused Tang Soyeol to tense up without realizing it.

What should she say upon seeing him? Start with a greeting? Should she ask how he had been? And how could she bring up the reason she came?

As countless thoughts raced through her mind, she sensed a presence outside the door.

Thump-!

Immediately, her pounding heart was hard to ignore.

Trying to cool her flushed cheeks, she clutched her face with cold hands.

Yet, the heat refused to dissipate.

‘W-What should I do?!’

Anticipating an awkward moment, her heart raced at the thought of seeing him again.

‘Is it Jeolyub…?’

Creak-! The door finally opened, and Tang Soyeol gathered her courage to greet him.

“Y-Young Master Gu, how have you been…?”

But the moment she laid eyes on the boy stepping through the doorway, her words caught in her throat.

The slightly shy boy who entered looked at her and asked, “I’m Gu Jeolyub. You said you wanted to see me…?”

“… Who are you?”

“Huh?”

“What?”

“U-uh…?”

Tang Soyeol realized suddenly that something had gone horribly wrong.

Oh no…

A bead of sweat trickled down her brow from her mixed feelings of regret and surprise.

Thinking back, she realized she had indeed called him by a different name on purpose to avoid being linked with Nangong Bi-ah.

‘Never thought it would come back to haunt me like this…’

Did he really think she, the Tang from Sichuan, would chase all the way to Mount Shan for him?

Even though he must have already known about their direct bloodline connections, her fleeting pride at that moment had caused her to spill those words.

“I… came to see you, but I’m startled by suddenly meeting a stranger.”

‘… This is awkward.’

Amid this mess, it seemed she had indeed met him when he was completely unprepared.

If only she had chosen a different name to go by…

Maybe something like Gu Jinjin would have sufficed…

[Look at you, still dazed and not thinking straight.]

“I’m sorry.”

In any case, she had to apologize first; after all, coming to the clan only to face this bizarre situation was indeed a bit much.

“… So I found out that you are coming back from Hwasan. And you had a different name too.”

Tang Soyeol explained how she had been a guest at the Gu Clan for ten long days without any knowledge of the situation.

“… May I ask why you did that?”

She inquired, but the only justification she could give was, “It’s because of your discomfort.”

Moreover, she couldn’t really explain the reason for her discomfort either.

“There was a bit of a matter back then…”

“Does your sister know?”

Sister? Did Tang Soyeol have a sister? She thought for a moment.

Could she possibly mean Nangong Bi-ah?

“Are you referring to Nangong Sojeo?”

“Yes, did Bi-ah know everything about the Gui name you are entitled to?”

… Yes.

It was likely that she told him about it when returning to and from Sichuan.

Tang Soyeol seemed to lose a bit of color at that moment, her expression bearing a hint of deep hurt.

“… So, do you know if everything’s okay?”

The knowledge that Nangong Bi-ah knew her name hit a nerve. The situation was turning stranger.

Shin Noya suddenly interjected, “What kind of guy could make all the girls across the country cling to him like this? Shouldn’t you be collecting the hair color sample first?!”

“Shin Noya,” she snapped back. “Please don’t say such absurd things. It’s just someone I hadn’t even talked to properly!”

There was no way Tang Soyeol would have any reason to develop feelings for him under those circumstances!

[Who knows, maybe he fell for your good looks?]

“… I don’t think that’s a statement you should make after just speaking ill of him.”

[True, I didn’t mean it harshly, but still, it was worth considering.]

Geez…

She could tell he was being snarky again.

In the midst of this short exchange, she turned back to Tang Soyeol, slowly looking into her eyes as the color in one started to swirl with a hint of green.

The most perfect martial artist known in the history of the Sichuan Tang Gate, she had significantly low martial arts levels compared to those born in the era of other prodigies, yet the woman had shown overwhelming power in broad-spectrum killing.

The figure of a master who had poisoned thousands of demons had returned to youth, casually sipping tea in the room.

“Tang Sojeo… can I ask why you came to see me?”

Her question seemingly rekindled Tang Soyeol’s spirit momentarily.

With a snap!

Suddenly, she slapped her own cheeks hard with both hands.

What the…?

“Everything’s okay… It’s unexpected, but that’s good! You can do this, Soyeol! It couldn’t be worse than this!”

In an odd twist, she began speaking her thoughts aloud. What the heck? This was slightly terrifying, and she instinctively stepped back.

[Looks like this girl isn’t in her right mind either.]

‘What if she’s also haunted by a ghost like me?’

[A ghost… do you think they are beautiful?]

“Shin Noya?”

[… It’s just a joke, please don’t take it so seriously.]

Not that she felt it was all just joking around.

After rubbing her cheeks for a long moment and muttering to herself, Tang Soyeol pulled something out from under her robes.

It was a letter tied with a sky-blue ribbon. As soon as Tang Soyeol recognized what it was, she knew it had to be an official document.

Since it would be one of those invitations often sent from the clans to the sects, especially during the era of Late-Stage Talents, she surmised it had been sent to her.

However, she guessed Tang Soyeol hadn’t traveled all the way from Sichuan just to show her that.

Gingerly holding the letter, she inquired, “Do you know that the Martial Alliance is hosting the Dragon Meeting soon?”

“I’m aware.”

Yes, it was an invitation for the Dragon Meeting that was about to take place. Since these kinds of events happened once a year, there was still plenty of time left.

‘I wonder if I received an invitation as well?’

She might have, but since she never even attended until she was named the Lesser Clan Leader in her previous life, she wasn’t sure.

Taking a deep breath, Tang Soyeol began to voice her wish.

“… I wanted to attend the Dragon Meeting with you, so I came all this way to ask you.”

“Um…?”

For a moment, Tang Soyeol struggled to grasp the meaning behind her words.

“Tang Sojeo.”

“Yes.”

“You traveled all the way from Sichuan to Mount Shan just to ask me to go with you?”

“Yes…”

“… Just to ask?”

The Dragon Meeting was held in Hanam, and while it wasn’t too far from Mount Shan, it really didn’t require her to come all this way just to get an invitation.

But here was Tang Soyeol, here in this early season, insisting on traveling to Gu Clan to invite her.

While thinking about her red cheeks and how she kept averted her gaze, a thought struck her that Shin Noya mentioned earlier.

‘Could it be…?’

Was there a chance she really had feelings for her? If so, why?

No matter how she turned the situation over in her mind, there didn’t seem to be any grounds for it in either this life or the last.

In the end, after exploring her swirling questions, she had to ask.

“Tang Sojeo.”

“Yes, yes!”

“Or rather, do you… like me…?”

Just as she was about to ask, a sudden sound came from the door opening.

Startled, she turned around.

There, unexpectedly, was Nangong Bi-ah standing in the doorway.

“… What are you doing here…?”

Before she could finish her question, the cold expression on Nangong Bi-ah’s face silenced her instinctively.

Nangong Bi-ah quietly stared at Tang Soyeol, then shifted her gaze to her and calmly said, “… Can you step outside for a moment…?”

“Step outside? But I’m still in the middle of a conversation!”

“Please.”

Her tone was firm. Even if she was saying this, it was still something Tang Soyeol should have a say in.

At that moment, Tan Soyeol’s eyes widened in surprise as she precariously glanced back at Nangong Bi-ah.

“Young Master, my business is done, so it’s alright. I need to talk with my sister anyway…”

The fact that that was the end of her true purpose left Tang Soyeol even more surprised.

“Please… do think about my suggestion seriously.”

“Uh, yes, I’ll take that under consideration.”

If she lingered any longer, it felt like a storm was about to break.

They seemed to be close despite the strange situation, but what on earth was going on?

[Young one, in situations like this, the best option is to shut up and slip out to save your life…!]

Following Shin Noya’s advice, Tang Soyeol simply walked past Nangong Bi-ah and closed the door behind her.

Then, she quickly patted her shoulders as if it could relieve her harsh tension.

Despite the early cold air of autumn creeping in, she felt chilled to the core.

“What’s going on… Why does it feel so cold?”

This was now perplexing since her Poison Technique usually left her unaffected by such chills.

 

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