Chapter 14
“Hmph. So that’s what happened. What shameless scoundrels.”
Upon hearing Chief Steward Wi’s report, Seol Wonpyeong was first furious, then deeply disheartened. The events were too dreadful to fully process, so he simply shut his eyes tightly.
Seol Jadan, who sat beside him, was barely holding back his own rage.
“So, why wasn’t this matter reported until now?”
At Seol Wonpyeong’s question, Chief Steward Wi took a deep breath before responding.
“Lady Unyeong strictly ordered everyone to keep quiet. She didn’t want the adults to know she couldn’t manage even something like this.”
“She said that, did she? Why… Why would she… Hah, goodness.”
It was a serious matter that Seol Dopung had hit Unyeong. If that had been all, it could have ended with a warning for Seol Jacheong and punishment for Seol Dopung.
But the real problem lay in the rumors spread by Seol Yohong and Seol Dopung.
They weren’t just childish gossip. They were far too malicious to be dismissed as naive chatter.
Claiming they had only repeated what they heard from adults? That didn’t hold water either.
“I must have favored Jacheong too much.”
He had little talent, but as the child left behind by his sibling, he had been cherished.
In a family where children were rare, Seol Wonpyeong worried about his son who had to lead the clan alone.
Though cousins, they shared blood. He had hoped Jacheong would support his son.
“Listen well.”
“Yes, Lord.”
“From this moment, I hereby revoke all direct-line privileges previously granted to Seol Jacheong by order of the Clan Master’s Decree.”
Seol Wonpyeong exuded a fierce and overwhelming presence.
“Seol Jacheong and his family are to move their residence to the outer compound. Jacheong is to withdraw from any affairs of the Seol Express Guild and undergo a period of reflection.”
“As you command.”
“Also, all privileges given to his wife Jin Sook-ok and his children Seol Yohong and Seol Dopung are to be revoked. They are to remain in seclusion and await judgment.”
“As you command.”
“Thoroughly investigate those who spread malicious rumors about Lady Sa, the official wife of the Young Clan Head. Any involved will be severely punished under the clan’s law.”
“Yes, Lord.”
After bowing deeply, Chief Steward Wi left.
In the hall of the Clan Master, Seol Wonpyeong and Seol Jadan sat in silence for a long time. Finally, Seol Jadan broke the stillness.
“This was my failure.”
“Yes. And mine as well.”
“Please punish me, too.”
“That, I cannot do.”
“But, Clan Head—”
“I do not have the authority to do so. The one who will decide… is Unyeong. You and I must live seeking her forgiveness.”
“…Yes, I will.”
Seol Jadan bowed his head and bit his lip. Blood welled from his clenched palm, but the pain in his hand was nothing compared to the anguish tearing through his heart.
“What will you do now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Didn’t Unyeong say she wanted to learn martial arts?”
“I will let her.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. If it’s something she truly wants, I want to support her. I’ll teach her myself.”
“That cannot be.”
“Why not?”
“To learn our clan’s techniques is to take on its burdens. I don’t wish to weigh her down.”
Seol Jadan nodded solemnly at Seol Wonpyeong’s voice, heavy with regret, and stood from his seat.
Now alone in the hall, Seol Wonpyeong recalled what Unyeong had said:
— Grandpa, I want to become strong. So that next time, if someone hits me, I won’t fall down… I want to be someone who can fight back. That’s why… I want to learn martial arts.
She had spoken each word clearly, with conviction. It was a reason he had never expected.
Some walk only the path set before them. Others blaze a new trail with will and determination.
Seol Wonpyeong had walked the path laid out for him. He never questioned it and simply followed.
He hadn’t even questioned passing the same path down to his children.
But Unyeong was different. She chose her own path with her own will. And people with such resolve become strong.
Seol Wonpyeong wanted to be someone who could at least clear a few pebbles from that path.
“Yes, go your own way. This grandfather will help you. That will be my atonement.”
“Miss, are you asleep?”
Hyang-ah softly whispered as she gently opened the door to the inner chamber.
At the sound of her voice, Unyeong opened her eyes wide and sat up.
“No, I’m awake.”
“I figured as much. Hehe.”
“Well, go on then. Tell me.”
“Oh, my lady, give me a moment to catch my breath first.”
“Fine, fine. Come sit.”
Hyang-ah perched on a chair beside the bed, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Unyeong.
Unyeong’s eyes sparkled too as she gazed back, which made Hyang-ah smile before she began to speak.
“The Deputy Guild Master and his whole family were just kicked out to the outer compound!”
“Wow, really?”
“Yes! I’m serious! Lord Clan Master himself issued the order. That thing… the Clan Master’s Decree? That’s what it’s called, right?”
“Yeah, that’s it. The Clan Master’s Decree. It’s the highest command in the family.”
“He stripped them of their status as direct-line members. Told them to relocate and reflect on their actions. Oh! You should’ve seen their rotten faces as they walked out of the inner compound… You really missed something!”
“Well, I don’t need to see it myself. You’re telling me everything, Hyang-ah.”
“Exactly! I’m your eyes and ears, my lady. Hehe!”
Excited, Hyang-ah animatedly described how Seol Jacheong’s family was kicked out. Unyeong listened, nodding along.
‘The important part is getting Grandpa to distance himself from Uncle.’
While part of the reason she escalated things was because of Seol Yohong and Seol Dopung, the main goal was to make her grandfather wary of Seol Jacheong.
Jacheong was narrow-minded and petty. In Unyeong’s eyes, he also harbored an inferiority complex toward Seol Jadan.
‘Well, my father was just too exceptional…’
After Seol Wonpyeong’s death, when the clan was in turmoil, Jacheong openly challenged Seol Jadan’s authority.
He interfered constantly, questioning the Clan Head’s capability.
Even while Unyeong was bedridden, she had heard the rumors that Jacheong might become the new Clan Master.
‘Ridiculous. He doesn’t even understand what it means to lead the Seol Clan…’
She remembered it clearly.
Just a few days before the massacre, Seol Yohong had visited her, boasting that she was going to visit her maternal family.
A marriage alliance was being discussed with the scholarly family of Muhan, and this visit was supposedly pre-wedding formalities. She even teased Unyeong for not having maternal relatives to visit.
Jacheong’s entire family had gone to Muhan and didn’t return to the clan estate until after the day of the bloodbath.
In other words, they had miraculously survived—far too miraculously.
‘If someone is that lucky, it can mean something dangerous. Like they knew the massacre was going to happen…’
Unyeong placed Seol Jacheong on her list of people to keep under close watch—starting from the mysterious death of Seol Wonpyeong.
Jacheong’s ambition for the Seol Clan. His resentment toward Seol Jadan. If someone from a group as treacherous as Cheongung had approached a man like that…
Having survived the martial world, Unyeong fundamentally did not trust people. She had seen too much, experienced too many betrayals.
The battlefield was the perfect place to become disillusioned with humanity.
She had seen a respected elder turn out to be a Cheongung spy, and comrades killing each other without hesitation for survival.
When suspicious signs appeared, you had to stay alert.
‘Even if Uncle was tricked by those Cheongung bastards, he wouldn’t have survived. No way those people left any witnesses alive…’
She couldn’t punish Seol Jacheong with only the circumstantial evidence she alone remembered.
So this time, she had to make sure he could never betray her. He wouldn’t even dare to think about it.
‘If Grandpa survives and the Seol Clan becomes the strongest under heaven… then someone like Uncle wouldn’t even dare dream of becoming Clan Master. And I’ll make sure Father’s standing is unshakable—no matter what storms come.’
Unyeong strengthened her resolve once again.
‘I’ll let the past lie for now. But I won’t lower my guard. Even with this much pressure, if he betrays us again—’
Then Seol Jacheong would learn.
He would witness the fury of the Sword Demon, said to be scarier than the King of Flames.
Unyeong clenched her molars tightly.
“Ah, my lady?”
“Huh? What did you say?”
“Your face just now… was terrifying!”
“Really? I was just… worried about Uncle’s family.”
Unyeong smiled sheepishly, trying to change the subject.
But Hyang-ah’s face said: “Are you kidding me?”
It was exactly that look.
Unyeong scratched her cheek, a bit embarrassed.
‘Maybe her real talent is expressing everything through her face.’
Well, credit where it’s due.
Yes, what Unyeong said… was absolute nonsense.
