Chapter 117
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Chapter 117
Beneath a dark burlap cloth, a sharp gaze fixed upon the procession of palanquins belonging to the Baekho Family.
His name was Dochul.
Two years prior, when Hyun Rabaek perished and the Underground Palace crumbled.
Dochul fled the Northern Lands faster than anyone else.
The rigid Dool served Hyun Rabaek as his lord, for it was he who had broken their seal, but Dochul did not.
Long ago, it was none other than the 'Ancient Evil' that had granted us ordinary beasts a peculiar power, transforming us into calamity beasts.
This was why the strength of calamity beasts was influenced by Evil.
Though Hyun Rabaek had awakened Evil and released our seal, a mere beast could never become our true master.
Above all, Hyun Rabaek's body was far too fragile.
Thus, Dochul, already burdened with discontent, sensed his death and departed the Northern Lands without so much as a backward glance.
The problem was that as Evil lost its strength, I too grew weaker alongside it.
Unable to locate Evil's whereabouts, I had been forced to hide like a vagrant beneath this burlap cloth.
Then, not long ago, I heard that Dool had also died, and my anxiety about when I might meet the same fate only deepened.
'Where on earth has my master gone?'
Dochul glared at the Baekho Family's procession, grinding his teeth.
Hondon and Gunggi had died while involved in matters concerning the Baekho Family.
Though I could not discern who had slain Hyun Rabaek and obscured my master's whereabouts, a strong suspicion arose that the Baekho Family was involved.
'I must find my master. But mere searching will not suffice. I need a body strong enough to receive my master.'
Yet there was no possibility that the body of an ordinary beast could ever receive my true master.
Even Hyun Rabaek, the leader of the Hyunmu Clan, had been unable to fully accept that power.
'If only I possessed the body of the Yellow Dragon....'
But how could I, weakened as I am, ever approach the Yellow Dragon?
As Dochul furrowed his brow in contemplation.
Hearing cheers from behind, he turned without thinking and discovered a procession of palanquins from the Jujak Family.
'Hmm? That is....'
Upon the tall palanquin sat a young girl with crimson hair, laughing as she waved a fan languidly.
Dochul's eyes narrowed.
'The cuckoo?'
* * *
Upon arriving at the Imperial Palace, Jeok Soya's party was guided by palace attendants to their assigned quarters.
Baek Ga Ya, who had arrived the day before, stood before them to greet them.
"Older Brother Ga Ya!"
"Softy."
Baek Ga Ya, now a young man of twenty, smiled softly and reached toward Jeok Soya's head, but then slightly furrowed his brow and paused.
"Hmm. Was it about this height?"
Baek Ga Ya tilted his head slightly, lowering his palm ever so subtly.
"No. I think it was about this height."
Then he murmured to himself again, raising his palm minutely.
"What are you doing?"
"It's your height. You were this tall before."
When Jeok Soya asked about his peculiar gesture, he brought his hand up to the level of her eyebrows and spoke.
"But you've already grown this much."
Baek Ga Ya spoke bluntly, observing how much Jeok Soya had grown in just two years.
"I told you not to grow so much. What am I supposed to do now that you've gotten this big, Softy? I can't call you baby Softy anymore."
"Huh? You're upset about that?"
At his absurd complaint, Jeok Soya burst into laughter.
"My older brother is so upset, but Softy just laughs. This won't do. I'll have to cry again."
"Oh my, you can't cry, older brother. You're the guest of honor at this banquet."
"I don't care. I'm going to cry. A lot, too. Just wait and see—I'll be recorded in the imperial historian's annals as a general who collapsed from exhaustion while shedding tears before His Majesty."
Baek Ga Ya spoke without changing his expression at all.
Though he was quite serious, Jeok Soya took it as a amusing jest from her eldest older brother, whom she hadn't seen in so long.
'Older brother Ga Ya always says such funny things.'
Jeok Soya, giggling softly with that thought, spoke to him in an exaggerated, self-important tone.
"Then I'll specially allow you alone to call me baby Softy. So please don't cry."
"What an honor, baby Softy."
Only then did Baek Ga Ya grin widely and ruffle Jeok Soya's hair.
"It's been a long time, older brother. I'm relieved to see you safe."
Baek Gahyun offered his greetings in a proper tone.
"I heard you cut down the enemy commander at the vanguard. You are the pride of the Baekho Family."
"The rumors got it wrong. I didn't cut him down—I tore him apart."
Baek Ga Ya replied with a slight curl of his lips.
Jeok Soya, thinking this was another amusing joke from him, let out a small laugh beside him.
"Older brother Ga Ya?"
Unlike Baek Gahyun, who had exchanged letters with Baek Ga Ya from time to time, Baek Gayul found his eldest brother a bit unfamiliar after so many years.
"Gayul, is it? You've grown a lot, little tiger. Have you been guarding Baek Ho Palace well?"
"You look just like Father...!"
And it was remarkable. In his memory, his eldest brother had been a boy smaller than he was now, but the brother he met again had grown as large as Father.
"That's too harsh a comparison. Aren't I far more impressive than Father?"
Baek Ga Ya chuckled and ruffled Baek Gayul's hair.
Even that gesture resembled Father's, so Baek Gayul couldn't resist Baek Ga Ya's manner of treating him like a child.
"You've had a hard time, Ga Ya."
Sayeon approached and patted Baek Ga Ya's shoulder.
"Yes, Father."
Baek Ga Ya answered briefly and smiled.
A warm light settled in Sayeon's eyes as he gazed upon his now-grown son.
Having arrived a day early, the main banquet would begin tomorrow.
Until then, it was time to catch up with family members they hadn't seen in so long.
The Baekho Family members walked slowly toward the Palace Garden, sharing stories from the time apart.
Jjak Jjak followed behind them, chirping adorably.
* * *
Meanwhile, on the opposite side, before the pavilion prepared for the Jujak Family's guests.
Jeok San Yu, the eldest son of the Jujak Family with his crimson hair tied high in a single knot, stood waiting.
His gaze had grown more intense over the past two years.
'At last, the day I meet my family.'
Throughout all this time, he had not once met with his family.
It was not that he could not meet them, but that he chose not to.
After Hyun Rabaek's death two years ago, the tide of war had turned in their favor, and he could have easily obtained leave to visit Phoenix Territory.
While Baek Ga Ya had thrown himself into subjugating demons with eyes blazing, determined to return to Baek Ho Palace even a day sooner rather than waste time on meager leave, Jeok San Yu had stayed away from the estate for a different reason.
He feared returning to the estate without her.
The thought that the child who once smiled so brightly at him no longer existed in this world was too terrifying, too unbearable—and so he could not bring himself to return home.
But now the war had ended, and when he met his family who would arrive soon, he would have to accept that she was gone.
The weight of that truth pressed down upon him as he stood there with a bitter expression.
The sound of the Jujak Family's carriage arriving reached his ears.
Jeok San Yu wiped away the dark emotions that had surfaced on his face and greeted his family with a gentle smile.
"Welcome, Father. I trust you have been well."
"It has been a long time, San Yu."
"It is an honor to see you again, Older Brother."
Jeok Ahyun and Jeok Hwayou offered their greetings in turn.
"Hello, Older Brother. I'm Riri."
Riri, who had been clinging tightly to Jeok Ahyun's side, poked her head out and offered an adorable greeting.
"Ah. So this is the child...."
"This is Riri, Older Brother. The child I mentioned to you before through correspondence."
....
Jeok San Yu gazed quietly at Riri.
The child who was supposedly his true younger sister.
Riri possessed the crimson hair befitting a direct descendant of the Jujak Family.
Seeing Riri, he thought all the more of Jeok Soya.
Had she lived, his younger sister would have grown to be this size....
"Yes. It is good to meet you, Riri."
Yet Jeok San Yu suppressed his anguish and offered his greetings in his characteristically gentle voice, then turned his attention back to his father.
'Huh? That's it?'
Riri was taken aback.
Shouldn't he show a more passionate reaction upon seeing her?
'I'm the true daughter of the Jujak Family, and this is all the reaction I get?'
Jeok San Yu's demeanor was remarkably composed, but Riri was dissatisfied.
It was far too different from the reactions of the other Jujak Family members she had encountered thus far.
On the day she had crossed the threshold of the estate carrying the crimson feather.
Father had embraced her and shed tears, and Older Brother Hwayou had apologized to her in a pained voice with his head bowed.
Yet this eldest older brother, whom she was meeting for the first time today, had offered nothing more than a single greeting of welcome.
Riri was deeply displeased.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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