Chapter 9 …
To This Extent
After Woon Geum left, Wolryeong ordered dinner to be brought in. Having spent so long inside the space, she was ravenously hungry. She quickly finished two full bowls of rice and even cleared all the side dishes. Startled by her unusual appetite, her nanny watched her with wide eyes.
Wolryeong then had several plates of snacks prepared. She planned to take them into the space and eat later. Tonight, she intended to make time to decode the characters written on the envelopes as quickly as possible and plant the seeds.
Just as she finished eating and was about to enter the space, a commotion sounded from afar. She paused mid-step.
“A fight already? That’s strange… it’s still early…”
The noise outside grew louder.
“What’s going on?”
“Miss! Where have you been? It seems the Madam and Lady Jin are fighting!”
“Is that so? It’s none of our concern. Make sure the doors are secured and then retire.”
“Yes, Miss.”
Whatever was happening outside Cheonyeongeo, Wolryeong had no intention of getting involved. Even if So Myeongseol and Lady Jin fought, it was obvious neither side would try to drag her into it.
The lights in Cheonyeongeo were extinguished early, and the moment Wolryeong lay down, she entered the space.
She took out packets of seeds one by one, consulting a primer and marking each with symbols, carefully identifying them letter by letter. Before long, the room was filled with seeds.
“I’m getting a bit hungry… but I should finish this first.”
Once she focused on something, Bongryeong had the habit of immersing herself to the point of forgetting food and sleep. At the very back of the notebook she had found earlier in the living room were detailed instructions on how to cultivate each seed and their effects.
“Oh? There’s even something like this?”
After finishing her notes, Wolryeong neatly sorted the seeds by comparing them with the notebook.
The art of poison-making had many branches. Each substance differed in toxicity and function, and combining them required repeated experimentation. Originally, Bongryeong possessed comprehensive knowledge of 23rd-century medicine and poison-making techniques, but they had not aligned well with this world in Wolryeong’s body.
“…Still, it’s a relief I have the chance to experiment here. If I had realized how different things are outside, it could’ve ended badly.”
Every poisonous herb here was unfamiliar to her. But as the saying goes, understanding one principle reveals a hundred truths. Having already mastered 23rd-century toxicology, Bongryeong found it far from difficult. Moreover, as she alternated between reading and working, knowledge seeped into her mind almost unconsciously.
Then Wolryeong realized something—ever since drinking the water here, her memory seemed to have improved dramatically.
Bongryeong’s memory had originally been honed through a unique method, storing information systematically in a “memory palace.” But now, she no longer needed such techniques. After reading something just once, she could already recall those strange characters.
What she didn’t know was that the original owner of this body, Wolryeong, was also a natural genius with exceptional memory—an innate talent rather than one gained through training.
With the combined potential of two geniuses, the result was extraordinary. Now, without any effort, she could memorize everything she saw after just one glance.
Wolryeong was thrilled. The way new knowledge flowed into her without repetition filled her with such exhilaration that her entire body trembled.
Because of this, she failed to notice the faint glow emanating from the amber necklace around her neck.
The light seeped into her chest and was absorbed into her body, merging with her blood and flowing through her meridians. But Wolryeong, absorbed in learning, didn’t notice. The energy was too faint to detect.
Though she felt a vague sense of something unusual, she dismissed it. Instead, she focused on dividing the items into bundles, just as she used to when working as a top assassin.
After sorting everything efficiently, she carried the bundles outside and divided the field into sections, preparing for planting.
Even with such efficient methods, the sheer number of seeds was immense. After working for half a day, she had only managed to move about a third.
She went upstream, drank some water, and eased her hunger with snacks. But before she could take more than a few bites, the gold-plated necklace on her chest suddenly began to heat up.
Startled, Wolryeong tried to remove it, but it seemed to burrow into her body instead. Left with no choice, she tore it off and gripped it tightly in her hand.
In the process, a small cut formed on her palm, and blood began to flow. Instantly, the gold piece absorbed the blood.
‘What the—!’
Wolryeong cursed inwardly.
‘Is this thing turning into some kind of demon? It cut my skin and drank my blood on its own!’
At that moment, she noticed a strange change in the gold piece. Bringing it closer, she saw the absorbed blood move along the phoenix pattern inside it, eventually gathering in one feather of the phoenix’s wing. That feather slowly turned a faint crimson.
When she opened her palm again, the wound had completely disappeared, leaving her skin smooth. However, she had clearly lost quite a bit of blood. Feeling dizzy, she collapsed and lost consciousness.
While Wolryeong lay in deep sleep, the seeds she had moved began to resonate faintly with the light from the gold piece, emitting a soft glow. The entire space gradually brightened before slowly dimming again.
Ten days passed inside the space, while only one day passed outside.
When Wolryeong woke up, she moved all the seeds to the field. Only after dividing them according to their types and properties did she leave the space.
It felt as though centuries had passed.
She lifted the bed curtains, put on her shoes, and called for Byukra. She was starving and about to ask for a large meal, but before she could speak, Byukra leaned in and whispered excitedly:
“Miss, there was a huge commotion at Geumsuwon last night. Lady Woon Geum smashed Lady Seoui’s head. Lady Jin had a major argument with the Madam, and even the Master was injured!”
Wolryeong blinked.
What kind of chaos was this?
As she ate breakfast to recover her strength, she listened to the story unfold. The fresh morning air here was far cleaner than that of the 23rd century. Taking deep breaths, she felt her lungs expand and her body gradually recover.
To her, it felt like watching a morning drama.
The situation itself was simple. Lady Jin had accused Shim Onseo that Shim Woon Geum had bullied her younger sister and pushed her into a pond. The frail Shim Seoui had developed a fever afterward, and Lady Jin pleaded for justice.
Naturally, So Myeongseol refused to stay silent. A fierce argument broke out. Normally, Lady Jin wouldn’t dare oppose her, but this time she was emboldened by her alliance with Wolryeong. Neither side yielded, each defending their own child.
So Myeongseol remained sharp and domineering, while Lady Jin played the role of the oppressed, tearfully appealing for sympathy.
As for the head of the household, Shim Onseo, he was a man who blindly sided with whoever appeared weaker. Mistaking his pity for masculinity, he supported Lady Jin and harshly scolded Woon Geum.
But the real problem was Woon Geum herself.
Unable to control her temper, she slapped the feverish Shim Seoui across the face. Her pale cheek instantly turned red and swollen.
Enraged, Shim Onseo launched into a lecture about family discipline. But So Myeongseol, a veteran of household intrigue, summoned the servants and conducted a cross-examination, escalating the conflict.
When her scheme risked exposure, Lady Jin resorted to acting like a wronged concubine, crying pitifully while embracing her daughter to win Shim Onseo’s sympathy.
Seeing the tide turn, So Myeongseol unleashed her ultimate move—the “weeping beauty” tactic—crying out, “My precious daughter!” as she clutched Woon Geum and burst into tears.
The indecisive Shim Onseo wavered once again.
Then Lady Jin countered with her own “dizzy beauty” act, pretending to faint—only to crash into So Myeongseol. The argument quickly turned physical, and in the chaos, Shim Onseo, who tried to intervene, ended up with scratches on his face.
The commotion lasted until dawn. By the end, everyone was battered and disheveled. Already under pressure from Prince Chungshin, Shim Onseo flew into a rage. In the end, both So Myeongseol and Lady Jin were confined for a month.
Wolryeong couldn’t help but admire it.
Lady Jin’s combat ability is impressive… far beyond my expectations.
But this situation worked in her favor. With both women confined, she now had the perfect opportunity to recover and plant all her crops without interference. Only afterward would she deal with matters like marriage.
Using her poor health as an excuse, Wolryeong stayed in her room all day. Aside from meals, she spent all her time inside the space.
Cultivating medicinal herbs was tedious and meticulous work. Some seeds only needed to be scattered, others had to be buried at specific depths depending on the type. Many required watering.
While half a month passed in the outside world, five months passed inside the space.
