Chapter 46
“But the Namgung clan has not forgotten the favor we received from the Golden-robed Saintess, regardless of who she healed.”
“……”
“That’s probably why everyone likes Lady Baek so much.”
Namgung Jin gave a faint smile, as if trying to lift the heavy mood.
“That’s why I didn’t really doubt your identity from the start. The fact that you possess abilities similar to the Golden-robed Saintess already earned my trust.”
“…So that’s why you weren’t surprised when I turned back into the Thousand-year Snow Ginseng?”
“You may already know this, but in the martial world, there are often things that defy common sense. People thought dead come back to life, and an old woman may suddenly turn young overnight. Even if you were to transform into something other than the Thousand-year Snow Ginseng, no one would find it strange.”
“Sir Namgung…”
“I just know you’re a good person. I believe what matters most is one’s essence.”
Namgung Jin gazed steadily at Sosoh.
Every time their eyes met, he was reminded of how luminous hers were.
He seemed like a man incapable of feeling inferiority. If he ever met someone stronger, he would simply acknowledge it and work harder on himself.
A gentle smile curved on that upright man’s lips — even his flawless smile seemed filled with pure sincerity.
“That’s why I want to protect you, Lady Baek… and why I can’t help but be drawn to you.”
Sir, when you smile like that and say such things, others might misunderstand, you know? They might think you’re in love with me.
Sosoh didn’t say it aloud — she simply smiled back.
She wanted to keep looking at that calm, comforting smile just a bit longer.
Ever since Namgung Hyuk’s senseless death, Namgung Jin had been pretending to be fine, but his mood had been as dark as a summer storm cloud.
Even the death of a pet one’s raised brings sorrow.
How much heavier must it be to lose one’s own kin — no matter how wrong he had been?
Sosoh, too, had once faced the loss of people she cherished. She knew how suffocating that grief could be.
It would take time, but she hoped he would overcome it soon — and one day, look at her with a face free of that shadow.
Just then, Jegal Haesu spoke up.
“I’m kind at heart too, you know. Don’t you want to protect me as well?”
He smiled with those narrow eyes, folding them prettily into crescents.
It was a dazzling smile — but Namgung Jin didn’t seem to see it that way.
His expression, once serene, instantly stiffened.
“The core of your being is… questionable.”
He frowned as if he had just swallowed something unpleasant.
“Oh? Did you just question my essence?”
“If it weren’t for Lady Baek, I would never be traveling with you.”
“The feeling’s mutual, I assure you.”
…These young masters can’t go five minutes without bickering.
Sosoh was growing quite used to their constant sparring.
That was when the carriage suddenly screeched to a halt.
Neighhh!
The horses cried out, and Sosoh’s body pitched forward.
“Miss!”
Had Jegal Haesu not caught her by the shoulder, her face would’ve met the carriage floor.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes, thank you. But why did the carriage stop so suddenly?”
“I’ll go check.”
Namgung Jin’s entire aura shifted — the playful energy gone, replaced by razor alertness.
He was ready to fight if danger awaited outside.
The moment he stepped down, he scanned the surroundings. Perhaps bandits had tried to ambush them.
But there was no hostile presence nearby.
‘So, not an attack. That’s good.’
He turned to the coachman, who was trying to calm the startled horses.
“What happened?”
“S-sorry, Young Master! A child suddenly jumped out from the bushes — I had to stop the carriage immediately.”
“A child?”
Sure enough, a little boy lay sprawled before the horses.
Namgung Jin quickly approached and helped the boy to his feet.
He looked about eight years old — and strangely, his eyes were closed, as if he were blind.
“Are you all right? Did you get hurt?”
Thankfully, he seemed unharmed — just a bit dusty.
As Namgung Jin brushed the dirt off the boy’s clothes, he noticed a familiar emblem embroidered on the fabric.
‘A disciple’s robe from the Wudang Sect.’
They had traveled from Anhui all the way into the borders of Hubei — home of the Wudang Sect.
Running into one of Wudang’s novice trainees here wasn’t all that strange.
“Can you not speak?”
What was strange was that the boy hadn’t said a single word.
Blind and mute — and wandering alone through a mountain forest?
“Are there any monks or masters traveling with you?”
The boy shook his head.
At least he could hear.
“Sir Namgung! Is everything okay? Nothing dangerous, right?”
Sosoh called out through the half-open carriage door.
“It seems a child almost got hit by the carriage.”
“A child? Out here, in the woods?”
Seeing there was no danger, Sosoh stepped out of the carriage.
“Yes. He appears to be affiliated with Wudang.”
It was a peculiar situation.
They were deep in a secluded mountain area — not a place where one would expect to find a child alone.
Namgung Jin questioned him again.
“Who are you?”
Silence.
“Where are your parents?”
The boy shook his head again — as if to say I don’t have any, or maybe I don’t know.
“What are you doing in this forest?”
He only tilted his head slightly, looking confused — as though wanting to answer but unable to speak.
Sosoh, watching them, spoke softly.
“What should we do? It’s getting dark… we can’t just leave him here.”
Namgung Jin glanced between the darkening sky and the innocent-looking child.
‘Still… bringing him along feels risky.’
As if sensing his hesitation, the boy’s face suddenly crumpled.
He silently began to sob, clutching at Namgung Jin’s robe.
Hic… hic…
The small, trembling hands and tearful face made it impossible to turn away.
Though it was suspicious, abandoning him alone in the mountains at night wasn’t an option.
“…Let’s take him with us for now.”
Once inside the carriage, the boy — who had just been crying moments ago — smiled brightly and nestled himself right beside Sosoh.
He didn’t even glance at Namgung Jin, who had actually saved him.
Instead, he kept inching closer to Sosoh, little by little.
Sosoh looked down at him — dirty from his fall, yet somehow…
‘So cute.’
He was adorably cute. His soft, round cheeks looked irresistibly biteable.
She couldn’t help wondering how warm and small his little hands must feel.
At the same time, her heart ached that such a lovely child was both blind and mute.
If she had the chance, she wanted to try healing him.
But before that, she had to confirm one thing — whether he should be returned to Wudang.
By coincidence, their party was already heading there, so it might work out naturally.
Sosoh gently brushed the boy’s messy hair and asked softly,
“Shall I take you back to Wudang?”
The boy instantly shook his head — hard.
