Chapter 75
“Uh, where are you going?”
It was Bang Gijin’s voice that caught Hyang-ah as she quickly left Yeonhongwon.
The two of them, being around the same age, had grown fairly close since Bang Gijin started coming to Yeonhongwon. Hyang-ah had taken good care of the hesitant Bang Gijin, which helped their bond.
He hurriedly followed behind her. When Hyang-ah didn’t answer, he asked again,
“I said, where are you going?”
“What business is it of yours?”
Without stopping her pace and holding her lunch box, Hyang-ah turned her face sharply toward him and shot back,
“Oh, I wasn’t saying you had to do anything.”
“Then?”
Hyang-ah’s tone grew increasingly sharp.
“Nothing! I’m just curious, that’s all!”
Bang Gijin’s voice rose slightly in response to her defiance.
“Hey… look at you.”
Hyang-ah stopped in her tracks, tilted her head, glared at Bang Gijin, and spoke.
“Ugh, I’m telling you, I’m not one of those warriors who just trains like you. When someone’s walking along busily, just assume they’re doing something, and leave it at that. Why do you have to ask every little detail?”
“Th-that’s…”
“Understand?”
Hyang-ah spoke coldly and, without waiting for an answer, resumed walking.
“Shim Hyang-ah!”
“Why are you calling me?!”
Bang Gijin shouted again, and Hyang-ah stopped in her tracks.
“Uh, I-I’ll carry it for you.”
Muttering hesitantly, Bang Gijin offered.
“It’s fine. It’s not heavy.”
“Still, I’ll carry it. I’m stronger than you, after all.”
“Ha? Then do as you wish.”
With a snort, Hyang-ah handed the lunch box over to Bang Gijin.
“A lunch box, huh? Where are you taking it?”
“To Subokgak. The lady and Sister Sogyo are there. The lady hasn’t been in a good mood these past few days. Maybe that’s why Wang Suksu packed something delicious to cheer her up.”
Perhaps because of carrying the box, Hyang-ah’s mood changed quickly, and she began to explain in detail.
“I see.”
Bang Gijin nodded and glanced at Hyang-ah walking beside him.
“What? Is something on my face?”
“Oh, no. Nothing at all.”
Bang Gijin, startled, blushed and hastened his steps.
“How silly.”
Hyang-ah snorted lightly, smiling, and quickened her pace to match his.
“How’s martial arts training? Manageable?”
“Uh… well, I guess.”
Even with Hyang-ah’s gentle question, Bang Gijin responded reluctantly.
“Why, any problem?”
“Phew. No, no problem.”
He shook his head and sighed.
“Come on, talk. Saying it might make you feel better.”
He considered opening up, but wasn’t sure how to start. It wasn’t something he could easily share, even with Master Geum Cheongsan.
“Well, how about you? What do you think of the lady?”
So he turned the question to Hyang-ah first.
“Our lady? Hmm. She’s wonderful. Truly lovable. I always feel concerned for her, too.”
“Concerned? Why?”
“Oh… you probably haven’t seen it. Our lady was very unwell not too long ago. Maybe that’s why? Even now, when she’s healthy, I still worry about her.”
“That makes sense.”
As Hyang-ah babbled on, Bang Gijin forgot his question and became engrossed in her story.
“Yes. On the day I first entered Yeonhongwon…”
“When was that?”
“…About four years ago.”
From the moment Hyang-ah remembered, she had no parents. Instead, she had a kind grandmother. Living near the Seol household, she had survived without going hungry thanks to their help. But one autumn day, as the cold winds began, her grandmother passed away.
At the age of eleven, Shim Hyang-ah became an orphan.
It must be hard to live alone. Why not come with me?
A woman who helped with the funeral and had come to the house where Hyang-ah lived alone asked.
Where are you going?
Hyang-ah had always been clever, quick to understand situations, and perceptive of people. She was naturally scared by this unusual question and became cautious.
To Seol’s estate. To Yeonhongwon.
Seol’s estate? That one over there?
Yes. That’s the place.
The word “Seol’s estate” reassured her. She had survived all this time thanks to Seol’s help.
What will I do there?
There’s a lonely lady. How about being her companion?
Her grandmother had always said she must repay the Seol household’s kindness.
Okay, I’ll do that.
Hyang-ah felt that if there was something she could do, if she could repay the kindness, she could do anything.
I’m your nanny, Shin Okgyeo.
Holding the warm hand of her nanny, she crossed the winter gate of Yeonhongwon. And there she met a beautiful child: Woon-yeong.
“Actually, she was such a pretty child, I thought she was a fairy from the heavens.”
“The lady?”
“Yes. But she was a little mischievous too.”
Hyang-ah acted as her companion but was closer to a playmate for Woon-yeong. She just had to stay by her side.
“Mischievous?”
“Yes. Usually like a fairy, but when she was sick, she got irritable. Well, that’s all in the past now.”
“An irritable lady… I can’t imagine that.”
It was only after Woon-yeong left her seat that Bang Gijin, coming to Yeonhongwon for the first time, spoke.
“Still, sometimes I miss those times.”
“You miss her being mischievous?”
“Yes. It’s a little strange, but I do. You know, like when a younger sibling grows up fast, it feels a bit sad.”
“You think of her like a younger sibling?”
“Sort of. Back then, even if she was mischievous, she was cute. These days, she doesn’t show that side at all. Makes me a bit sad, you know.”
“She really is like a younger sibling, huh.”
“Haha. Maybe? Yeah, kind of like that.”
Even when Woon-yeong was sick or acting difficult, Hyang-ah had never disliked her. She only felt concern and affection.
If she really had a younger sibling, would it feel like this? Hyang-ah wondered a little.
Hyang-ah loved Yeonhongwon. She liked Woon-yeong, and the nannies and Sogyo, of course.
“And you?”
“I… uh. Master said I had talent in martial arts.”
Perhaps because of Hyang-ah’s honesty, Bang Gijin also spoke naturally.
“Oh? Really?”
“Yes. Master is a great martial artist, but he even said I was better than him.”
“Wow, Bang Gijin, I didn’t think that of you. Impressive.”
“Ahem. But lately, I don’t have confidence.”
“Why?”
“Well…”
He wanted to say it was because of Woon-yeong’s talent, which he found so endearing, but he kept silent.
Master Geum Cheongsan had warned him never to reveal Woon-yeong’s martial arts abilities.
Lately, what troubled Bang Gijin most was Woon-yeong’s talent.
Master Geum had certainly said that Bang Gijin’s abilities were extraordinary. He had always believed that too.
But everything is relative. Next to someone exceedingly talented, anyone feels small.
He knew he shouldn’t feel that way, yet watching Woon-yeong improve day by day, his confidence waned.
“Really? Then what? Why’d you stop talking?”
Hyang-ah asked again, but he couldn’t answer. Even without Master’s warning, he wouldn’t have revealed his insecurities.
“Ah… well, lately I just lack confidence.”
“Ah? Really? Well, that happens. How can someone have confidence all the time?”
“Maybe…”
“Exactly. And you’re still young, right?”
“Hey, you’re the same age.”
“Oh? You act so childish that you feel like a younger sibling.”
Bang Gijin raised his voice, frustrated, but Hyang-ah only snorted.
“Without a younger sibling… what younger sibling?”
“Hmm. But, you know, does it have to be talent? Do you have to be good?”
Hyang-ah spoke casually.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“You. You said you lacked confidence. Master said you had talent, but you feel upset that you’re not good enough, right?”
“Y-yes.”
Summarized without the details, it sounded like a childish worry, and Bang Gijin felt embarrassed.
“So, what about it?”
“What?”
“So what if you don’t have talent? You like swords, don’t you?”
“Y-You… how do you know that?”
“If you didn’t like it, why would you train all day?”
Hyang-ah saw him as a training fanatic. She had even heard Master Geum Cheongsan worry that he trained too much.
“I see…”
“Exactly. You like it, so you want to be good. That’s why you get ambitious. Without ambition, you can’t grow.”
“Wow… You sound like an adult right now.”
Bang Gijin nodded in admiration.
Having ambition is necessary for growth. It was a common saying, but exactly what Bang Gijin needed.
It didn’t solve his worries, but somehow, it made him feel at ease. It wasn’t jealousy over Woon-yeong’s talent, but a drive to improve.
“Hehe. So you understand this lady’s meaning.”
But when she called him “this lady,” Bang Gijin’s face crumpled.
“Oh. I might learn martial arts too.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes. The lady suggested it. And… um. You should train hard in martial arts.”
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“Just do as she says. She wants you to succeed.”
Hyang-ah swallowed the thought that this was so he could go to the Martial Arts Academy with Woon-yeong. For now, it was a secret.
Hyang-ah and Bang Gijin bickered all the way as they entered Subokgak.
