DN24

Chapter 24

A Person One Could Never Like

“Y-Your Majesty! P-please, give that back to me!”

The palace maid who had followed Gyeom inside had gone pale. It seemed he had snatched away the medicinal tea prepared for Danseol without saying a word.

“Did you put something suspicious in this tea?”
“N-no, never!”
“Then stop being a nuisance and leave.”

At his icy command, the maid flattened herself to the floor and fled from the room as if chased.

“Your Majesty, what brings you here at this late hour?”
“Do I need a reason to come see my woman?”

Danseol froze at the words she could never have imagined hearing. Whenever he drew near without warning, she found herself utterly disoriented.

“But it seems there’s an intruder here.”

His cold gaze fell on Gyeonji. Startled by that piercing look, Gyeonji’s shoulders flinched involuntarily.

“What trick is the Empress plotting?”
“A trick, Your Majesty? I would never dare!”
“Then why would she send someone she treasures like her own shadow?”
“It is a misunderstanding!”

Tears welled in Gyeonji’s eyes as she pleaded her innocence. The sight might have been pitiful, but to Gyeom, it was nothing but repulsive.

“Go back to the Empress,” he said coldly.
“If she wishes to keep her seat as Empress, she had better not so much as touch a single hair on Lady Dan’s head.”

In front of a mere concubine, Gyeom had openly belittled the Empress. Even if his relationship with Yi-Ihwa was poor, the imperial court still had laws and hierarchy that were never to be broken. Yet Gyeom, who knew this better than anyone, had completely disregarded it—for this one woman.

“His Majesty’s favor runs deeper than I imagined.”

Hearing it firsthand was one thing, but witnessing it directly left no doubt. The Emperor truly cherished this woman, while he looked down on her own mistress without hesitation. Gyeonji’s fists trembled with helpless fury as the painful truth sank in.

“Do you truly wish to die so soon?”
“I-I shall take my leave, Your Majesty.”

With a respectful bow, Gyeonji withdrew.

The door shut with a firm thud. Now, only Danseol and Gyeom remained.

“Why did you do that?”

Once prying eyes were gone, Danseol confronted him.

“Do what?”
“Why did you drive Gyeonji out like that?”

She knew Gyeonji would report today’s events to Yi-Ihwa without fail.

She’ll never leave me alone.

Yi-Ihwa had once forced her to drink poison simply because she had sat at Gyeom’s bedside. Such a woman would never let this go.

“Even when I help, you complain.”

His dismissive response made Danseol bite her lips hard. Once again, she was reminded—this man had no ability to empathize with or consider others. And they called him a wise ruler? What nonsense.

“I only say this because it didn’t help.”
“Drink.”

He set the cup of tea in front of her with a sharp tap. After all that, he simply told her to drink as though nothing had happened. Gyeom was infuriating in that way.

“If you dislike it, leave it. But I hear Physician Tae added herbs you need….”

Danseol grabbed the cup and drained it in one gulp before he even finished speaking.

In such a hurry, are you?

Her uncharacteristically flustered manner drew a faint smile from him. Indeed, it was precisely such moments that had first caught his interest.

“Since the delivery is complete, I’ll be going now.”

Rising without hesitation, he seemed to think his task done. Danseol blinked in surprise. The Emperor himself had acted as nothing more than a messenger.

“…What are you thinking?”

Surely, there had been easier ways to pass along Seo-rang’s request.

“Isn’t it natural for a husband to help his wife?”

The mocking lilt in his tone made her lips tighten.

“So, do your best, my lady.”

With a smile lingering on his lips, Gyeom left Chiwoljeon.

“What kind of man is he….”

Danseol bit down on her lips, fists clenched. Enemy or not, she thought—this was a man she could never like.

After Gyeom’s visit, Danseol continued drinking the medicinal tea faithfully. When her usual cycle failed to come on the expected date, she finally breathed easier.

At last… a weight lifted.

Nearly a month passed, and still she had no monthly bleeding. Even Gyeonji began to believe she was truly pregnant. Surprisingly, Yi-Ihwa remained quiet.

Perhaps Gyeom’s warning had worked.

“Go tell the Empress this—if she wishes to keep her seat, she must not touch Lady Dan, not even a single hair.”

Danseol herself had been shocked when he’d said it. After all, standing against Yi-Ihwa, who wielded the powerful support of her family, meant taking a considerable risk. And yet, he had done so—for her.

Just what game are you playing, Your Majesty…?

The more she thought, the less she understood. She had expected him to use her as a tool once she became his consort, but so far, instead of using her, he had protected her. The contradiction unsettled her deeply.

“Where are you going?”
“Just to clear my head for a while.”

When Danseol stepped out of Chiwoljeon, Gyeonji hurried to follow. Quickening her pace, Danseol widened the distance deliberately.

And then—

That man… General Cheon Taesu?

She froze when she spotted him conversing with someone nearby. What held her still, however, were the words drifting toward her.

“Aren’t you overexerting yourself? You’ve only just returned from conquering Seolhwa Kingdom.”
“Ha! I’m a soldier—sitting idle is more of a torment.”
“Truly worthy of a great general. A small border state like Seolhwa must have been nothing before you.”

At the mention of her homeland, anger flared inside her. To belittle the kingdom that held all her precious memories—it was unbearable.

“It was more pitiful than I expected.”
“Haha, of course! After commanding the mighty forces of Hwangseon, those rabble must have seemed laughable.”

Danseol clenched her fists tightly.

Seolhwa didn’t lose because we were rabble.

Yes, their national power couldn’t compare to Hwangseon’s, but Seolhwa had endured for generations thanks to its strong military and the harsh terrain of the north. Hwangseon had struggled to subdue them. The war dragged on for two full years, exhausting both sides. But Hwangseon had allies sending constant reinforcements, while Seolhwa stood alone.

Her father, Seolhwa’s king, had surrendered at last—not out of weakness, but to spare his people from endless suffering. And yet, Hwangseon betrayed that surrender, launching a sudden attack and slaughtering both her parents without mercy.

“Still, Seolhwa had at least one worthy opponent.”
“Oh? Who?”
“Baek Danho, the crown prince of Seolhwa….”

Her brother’s name struck her like a blow.

She remembered his resolute vow:

“Your Highness, I will save Seolhwa, no matter the cost.”

That had been the last time she saw him. Afterward, news trickled in only sporadically before ceasing altogether. Since then, she had lived in constant fear—unsure if he was dead or alive.

She strained to hear more.

“And what became of him?”
“We crossed blades until exhaustion took him. Then he fell from the cliff.”**

“…Ah—!”

The words tore a gasp from her. Too late, she covered her mouth, but the sound had already betrayed her.

“Who goes there!”

Cheon Taesu thrust aside the branches where she hid. Startled, Danseol stumbled backward, her sleeve catching on a twig, until she fell to the ground.

Even seeing her plainly, the general only looked down, arms crossed, his gaze cold and hard.