Chapter – 20.
Let’s Buy Dessert…
Here stands a man, neatly seen through by his own daughter.
His name is Yang Won, the Emperor of Haewol Kingdom.
At first, it was simple curiosity.
Even if she was his own daughter, after Hwanyeongbi’s death, he hadn’t even glanced into Yeonyeong Palace. Thus, the Emperor had no interest in the existence of a princess running amok there as if she owned the place.
Ah, he only occasionally heard reports that she would arbitrarily climb trees.
He thought she was peculiar. That is, until he heard those words.
‘Oh dear. Our Father Emperor must have had a hard time.’
A tone dripping with pity, mechanical words flowing from an expressionless face, giving a feeling of pitying a subordinate as if looking down on them.
Even with a blade pressed against her throat, Amang didn’t even blink.
Why, exactly?
Why aren’t you afraid of me?
It was to find out why that he had humored this so-called ‘counseling’ session.
After all, everyone would fear the Emperor, revere him, or worship him.
Those who couldn’t had all faced the judgment of the sword.
Fragments flickering in the depths of his memory tormented the Emperor terribly every night.
Formless bodies, soundless screams—they surrounded him and whispered lowly.
Look at what you have done. Is this truly the act of one who wears a human mask?
His bedside was always damp. How long would these things repeat…?
“I’ll ask again. Did you investigate my background? Did you bribe my people?”
At that moment, Amang couldn’t take her eyes off the sand on the tray.
‘Wow. It really works.’
It was amazing.
No, this was even more than that.
It was an indescribable feeling.
‘Did I draw out the unconscious? That tyrant’s?’
This feeling was a first.
When she first aspired to major in psychology, she didn’t know she would achieve such results.
She thought simply memorizing theories thoroughly would solve everything, but those days were long past.
Now, Amang was newly appointed as the psychological counselor of this imperial palace.
“Amang.”
And thus, her new life here would surely be perfect.
It was a start distinctly different from her past, which was full of mistakes.
Her status as a precious princess, the tyrant’s youngest daughter. If she utilized these points actively!
“Amang!”
“Yes?”
“Can you not hear my words?”
Now she’s even ignoring him? Wrinkles slowly formed on the Emperor’s brow.
“Ah.”
Amang was silent for a moment.
How should she explain this?
Right, it started with the Sentence Completion Test.
She had early on discerned the Emperor’s characteristics and worked hard to draw out answers suited to him.
She laid traps to amplify feelings of tension or relief.
‘People get tense in new places.’
Especially if that place is not entirely new.
It was the same with the ‘Backroom Ghost Story’ that once shook the internet.
The moment one feels a familiar space is distorted in some strange way, the sense of fear amplifies.
‘It might be crude, but using that point was a good move.’
It was Amang’s foresight.
However, this alone wasn’t enough.
This trick was just the beginning.
_’The real game is this right here.”
Although it seemed like a meaningless plaything on the surface, the implied meaning was quite significant.
The tray, which seemed to mirror the client’s state and the contents of their unconscious.
“Your Majesty placed it here. That heart of yours.”
“Your jest is excessive.”
“It’s the truth.”
Had he only been deceived all his life?
“The moon here was used to shine upon all people, correct? Natural objects hide new meanings.”
“Meanings?”
“The moon that shines upon all people. That is precisely the Emperor.”
It was a symbol that appeared as commonly as rice in classical poetry. She had memorized it so much it would come out if poked.
“Next to it is a person surrounded by people. While they appear to receive the reverence of many on the outside, in reality, they do not.”
The Emperor’s finger twitched slightly. His expression was still calm.
“This signifies incompetence.”
“How dare you!”
“The person fallen next to it has their face buried in the dirt. They are in despair. The lake in the very center actually signifies vitality.”
However, near the lake, dead branches were already plentiful. As if to say this lake had lost its vitality long ago.
“The branches surrounding the lake are all dead.”
“!”
“It’s a lake whose life has already ended.”
“…Who told you about such things?”
That’s a trade secret, you know.
What kind of crazy possessee would babble, ‘Actually, I was a psychological counselor in a place like a previous life?’
That would be struggling to end one’s life quickly.
‘He seems quite startled.’
The Emperor was probably facing his own long-held unconscious for the first time.
‘Even doing just this much is quite an achievement.’
She could roughly see what the Emperor’s deficiencies or traumas were.
The stories of people raised in the imperial palace were all pretty similar anyway.
Even before being possessed, Amang consistently sought out those kinds of palace intrigue stories.
She used to watch them with interest while munching on popcorn.
In them, people with sordid and miserable pasts appeared like clockwork every couple of episodes.
Most were people wounded by power struggles.
The funny part was that the perpetrators who inflicted the wounds usually reigned from the peak of power.
‘The imperial palace is that kind of place.’
A place where people kill and are killed, where to survive, you push others into the abyss.
Surviving in such a place was no easy task.
Poisoning, envy, jealousy, hatred, ostracism… that was about all that came to mind.
‘Shall we stop here for today?’
She had many questions, but if she pushed further, she didn’t know what kind of harm might befall her.
Even if he was separated from his weapons and guards, her opponent was a tyrant.
If she asked this and that without reading the mood, she might only make things worse.
_’I could die before even fulfilling the bet’s required number of sessions.”
She didn’t want that!
And most importantly, Amang wasn’t proficient in interpretation.
Naturally. It’s only been a week since she started this job!
‘Doing just this much is already a lot.’
Practicing speaking based on the meanings and symbols she learned indirectly was quite tough.
She didn’t know what the correct answer was, but once she spat it out, it probably had some meaning, right?
Seeing how the Emperor reacted, it seemed about half of it hit the mark.
“It’s a secret!”
The image of Amang, who was counseling so seriously just moments ago, had vanished without a trace.
Amang cupped her cheeks with her palms and winked one eye.
Anyone else seeing it would have thought it was the cute, charming aegyo of a child.
‘Ah, I think I’m going to be sick.’
If only what was inside wasn’t a twenty-four-year-old adult.
And the Emperor fumbled at his waist where his sword usually was.
If he hadn’t left his sword behind, he would have pointed it at Amang’s neck right then.
“Father Emperor!”
“I told you not to do that.”
What kind of person is this!
Still, it was fortunate.
‘At least I don’t have to act cute to win his favor.’
Phew.
Amang breathed a sigh of relief.
But thanks to letting her guard down for a moment, the atmosphere had improved greatly.
The silence that had filled Yeonyeong Palace just earlier was now lively.
‘Now’s the time!’
It was time for her secret weapon to appear.
“Nan! Now!”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
A secret conversation ensued, and Nan moved swiftly.
The tray on the table disappeared.
In its place were five appetizing tanghulu skewers.
“What is this?”
“It’s tanghulu.”
“No, I know that. Why did you prepare this?”
What’s with this guy?
He gave her the hint to prepare it, and now he acts like this?
“Didn’t Your Majesty say so?”
“I did?”
“You said it’s popular for daughters to treat their fathers to sweet foods. So, this subject prepared some as well.”
“Is that so?”
“It will be very sweet.”
It’s fruit coated in sugar, after all.
“Hmm, really? You remembered that, did you?”
Why is his reaction like this?
It wasn’t exactly a good reaction, but it wasn’t the bland response she wanted.
She thought he might at least say something like ‘well done’.
‘Just what did you expect?’
Let’s not forget. That guy beheads people if he’s in a bad mood.
“It was just a passing remark, yet you kept it in mind and even made this for me. It seems the Princess holds quite favorable feelings towards me.”
“Pardon?”
“Is that not the case?”
What is this crazy guy saying?
Thanks to that, Amang became the daughter who loved the Emperor so much that she even made dessert for him.
‘Would it be okay to kill him?’
She could endure other things, but this she absolutely couldn’t stand!
Look at those smirking lips! This was a challenge and a deception aimed at the Princess.
Amang struggled to suppress her rising anger.
“Of course.”
She forced the corners of her mouth up awkwardly, like a smiling emoji, making her eyes curve into half-moons.
‘When I grow up, I’ll overthrow the Emperor first.’
Amang was making a formidable resolution.
“Good. Since the Princess made it, I should at least taste it.”
“Will you have some?”
Since the misunderstanding already happened, let’s just go with it.
Amang kindly picked up a skewer and brought it close to the Emperor’s lips.
‘Just eat it already.’
She hoped he would take a bite before her arm fell off.
The Emperor, who had been staring intently at the tanghulu brought before his lips, opened his mouth.
“Why should I eat this? It seems you don’t remember. I said I would just keep it for display.”
“If you don’t eat it now, bugs will gather.”
“What if it’s poisoned or something?”
Then don’t eat it, you picky bastard!
If he were her younger brother, she would have smacked the back of his head, but right now, Amang was the Emperor’s daughter.
If she got swept up by her emotions, her head might fly off.
“What a pity. I made it with all my heart.”
“Wipe that expression off your face.”
“Yes.”
If you’re done with your business, I wish you’d just leave.
But even while grumbling, the Emperor showed no intention of leaving.
No, doesn’t this guy have any concubines to play with?
‘Is he a eunuch, perhaps?’
Is that why he has no interest in women or something.
“The color is pretty.”
“It’s coated in sugar.”
“You can’t even take a compliment.”
“Since Your Majesty won’t eat it anyway! They say you enjoy sweets twice: once with your eyes and once with your mouth!”
“Is that so?”
The Emperor slowly approached Amang.
His glossy lips touched the tanghulu.
Those eyes, the pupils flickering red, looked up at Amang…
