A chilly wind sent snowflakes spinning through the air. The boy stared at the icicles hanging from the edge of the eaves.
It felt like only yesterday the world had been blanketed in spring blossoms, but before he knew it, winter had fully settled in.
“Steward. Any letters?”
“None, Heir Apparent.”
Disappointnt spread across the # Nоvеlight # boy’s face at the answer.
“From Sichuan... it takes a long ti, doesn’t it?”
“Even if we send a swift ssenger hawk, it will take five days and nights, Heir Apparent. If we use a carrier pigeon, it will take far longer.”
The boy nodded, then fidgeted with his wrist as if trying to soothe his impatience.
The boy with a red knotted cord tied around his wrist—completely out of place against jade-green silk—was Namgung Hwi.
She’s later than I thought.
Muttering to himself, Namgung Hwi recalled the letter he’d agonized over last spring.
When she said she was still learning to write, he’d picked only the simplest characters—rewriting it so many tis he’d lost count.
When would her reply co? Should I wait longer, until she can write a proper letter?
Had she grown taller? She wasn’t sick anywhere, right?
Did she like the hairpin? I said I’d bring her sothing even prettier and more precious... should I have asked what kind of jewelry she liked?
He had questions piling up faster than he could answer them.
“Our Hwi. Are you waiting for a letter again today?”
“Lan, Older Sister.”
Startled out of his thoughts, Namgung Hwi jerked his head up.
His sister was looking down at him with a face full of mischief.
“Just what kind of young lady is she, to make my Hwi this restless? Even I want to et her once.”
“You’ll like her too.”
At Namgung Hwi’s confident answer, Namgung Lan burst into giggles.
“Oh my. Oh my. Our Hwi has grown up. I’ll have to tell them to pay extra attention to next year’s gathering. That young lady will co to Hefei too, won’t she? Right?”
Namgung Lan was right.
The girl was a rising talent personally taught by the Poison King—so she would absolutely attend the gathering of the Five Great Clans.
When spring ca, he’d be able to see her face again.
And if no letter arrived even by then... he could sulk a little, then ask for his answer face-to-face.
So until then, he should find a splendid hairpin that would suit her perfectly—
“Haha. What were you thinking about to make your face go red? Now go to the Clan Head’s Hall. Father is looking for you.”
“Yes, Older Sister.”
Namgung Hwi composed his expression at her teasing tone and rose to his feet.
But his stiff face didn’t last long. The mont he rembered the girl—fresh as spring peach blossoms—his lips curled into a smile.
‘Haha, I’m kidding, Heir Apparent.’
‘You’ll do great, Heir Apparent.’
‘And you can’t complain even if I’m late.’
Her gentle voice shimred at his ear. With his eyes smiling, Namgung Hwi headed off in a bright mood.
*****
Ti flowed like water, and winter ca again.
Maybe because I’d been eating well, I’d grown a lot.
Tang Un had asured at five feet four inches, which ant I’d shot up well over ten centiters in a single year.
The one happiest about my growth was Tang Jung.
“You’re shooting up like bean sprouts—good to see. If you grow just one more inch, it’ll be perfect.”
Tang Jung looked deeply satisfied as he ruffled my hair.
He was up on his toes.
We’d started to have such a height difference that he had to rise onto tiptoe just to reach my head.
After sizing up the length of my arms and legs, he spoke with clear regret.
“Still... you won’t fit snugly in my arms like you used to.”
He looked a little sulky. I quickly bent my knees and dove right into his arms.
“Co on. I can do it like this.”
When I put on a sweet act, Tang Jung snorted with a quiet laugh. With affectionate eyes, he straightened my collar and sleeves.
“You’ve gathered a decent amount of internal energy too. Those eyes—so dark and fierce—like a winter viper full of venom. I like it.”
...Is that a complint? Why does it sound like an insult?
Just like he said, my irises had shifted to a deep blue-black. The exact sa color as Tang Jung’s.
Over the past two seasons, I’d also inherited most of Tang Jung’s martial arts and dicine.
‘All right. Now you need to practice stitching human skin too. Human hide isn’t like animal hide—its tackiness is different, so it’s a little tricky. Co here. Start by stitching Grandfather’s arm.’
‘What? All of a sudden— Kyaaah! Grandfather! What are you doing?! How can you cut living flesh?!’
It had been such a disaster I wanted to forget it ever happened, but the results were undeniable.
Whenever a patient ca into the dical Hall needing sutures, Tang Juhee would co tearing around looking for .
And because of that, I’d gotten harder to shock. I could shove my hand straight into a jar full of bugs, grab snakes and venomous spiders with my bare hands...
Things that would’ve been unthinkable for half a year ago, I now did without batting an eye.
They said when it actually hits you, you sohow manage—and it was true.
“My child. You’ll catch a cold. If you’re done cleaning up, let’s go inside.”
“Yes.”
I couldn’t help grinning at Tang Jung—after rolling around in the snow with like a kid, he was now acting as if none of it happened, wrapping up in a fur coat.
“Your hands aren’t cold?”
“They’re cold.”
“What a baby.”
“It’s not being a baby. My hidden weapons are tal, so they’re frozen solid. My hands are freezing, Grandfather.”
“Then I’ll have to see if there’s leather I can use to make gloves. My granddaughter’s hands can’t be cold.”
Tang Jung chuckled at my whining, then rubbed my stiff, frozen fingers while blowing warm breath over them. As he stroked the calluses on my palms, he muttered.
“You’ve got the foundation now, so you need real combat experience... but you’ve never left the Tang estate, so I worry. Sohae—would you like to spar once with boys from other clans?”
“Spar?”
“Yes. If you go out into the martial world, you’ll et far more sword-and-saber types than people who throw needles. You should at least know what it feels like.”
“Sure. But... with who?”
“I sent Peng Rak a letter, telling him to bring children around your age. This year’s banquet is being held by the Namgung Clan, isn’t it? I’ll go with you—let’s head to Anhui. It’s ti you saw the world a little.”
I nodded.
Co to think of it, Namgung Hwi had said sothing like that too. The next gathering of the Five Great Clans would be hosted by the Namgung Clan.
“Go in and rest. Once you warm up, don’t forget to practice fist techniques with Deokju.”
“Yes, Grandfather. You should go inside too!”
After assigning howork, Tang Jung waved his hand and turned away.
Once I was sure he was gone, I sprinted into my bedroom and hugged the heated bed-warming jar Songji had prepared.
“Ugh... so warm.”
“It’s really cold today. Oh my—Young Lady, your hands are bright red from the cold!”
“I didn’t think about my hidden weapons being tal... I should’ve stopped ssing around and made gloves.”
Back in early autumn, Deokju had suggested making gloves.
I didn’t have to worry about poison seeping in, and I’d thought it would be a pain to take them on and off, so I refused... but now I finally understood why she’d recomnded it.
Deokju had known my hands would freeze.
“Should I call a seamstress, even now?”
At Songji’s question, Deokju shook her head.
“A martial artist’s gloves are made from leather treated with dicine. Even a trace of poison can’t be allowed to soak in. It’s a difficult material to handle—no seamstress would even be able to stick a needle into it.”
“But still...”
“You don’t need to worry. The Elder said he would look for leather, so he’ll probably make them himself soon.”
“Hahaha. Deokju—look at you. You can read him like a book now.”
I burst out laughing at Deokju’s flat statent.
It seed she’d fully grasped what kind of person Grandfather was.
Rolling around on the bed, I chewed on Tang Jung’s words.
If he was coming with to the gathering of the Five Great Clans, that ant he was going to introduce as his disciple in the gathering of the great families.
I can’t embarrass Grandfather. I’m a little worried about whether I can do well.
Still... maybe it was a good thing I had at least one familiar face there. I never thought I’d et him again.
When I thought of Namgung Hwi, flirting and showing off while claiming he knew a place with amazing salted-fish dishes, my lips curled up on their own.
Had he grown taller too? I’d grown nearly a handspan—maybe he’d grown even more.
But as I tried to picture Namgung Hwi with an extra handspan of height, my heart dropped hard.
The letter.
I was only now rembering the letter he’d handed the day he left.
Right—his letter! Where did I put the hairpin?!
I’d told myself I’d read it later, then the Elder Council happened and this and that... and I completely forgot. I shot upright on the bed.
“Songji. Have you seen a hairpin and so paper wrapped in silk? About this big.”
“No? There was sothing like that? Gyeonga, have you seen it?”
Gyeonga shook her head side-to-side, like she didn’t know either.
I tore through the bedroom in a panic, but the silk bundle he’d given was nowhere to be found.
This is bad. I think I lost it.
Namgung Hwi’s face flashed through my mind—him repeatedly telling it was fine even if it took over a year, but I had to reply.
...He’s going to be really hurt that I didn’t send anything back. I’ll have to apologize when I see him.
Smacking my lips, I swept my hair back.
“More importantly—have you seen Cane? That little brat’s been gone all day. I haven’t seen him once.”
At my question, Gyeonga pulled out paper and a lump of charcoal from her chest and scribbled quickly.
[Miss Juhee took him.]
“What? Why did he follow her? Don’t tell he’s going to co back drunk again.”
[She said she’s going to feed him a new poison she made.]
“I should go get him. Thanks for telling .”
At my thanks, Gyeonga bead.
Now Gyeonga could write pretty well.
Not only could she write most of what she wanted to say, her handwriting was better than mine.
She was even teaching Songji the basics of reading—at this rate, I was the one who’d have to learn from Gyeonga.
Of course, Songji hated it.
“What would I even use reading for? The more you learn, the more tired you get—what else is there?”
[So you can help Young Lady.]
“Fine. Fine. Stop nagging.”
Even while snapping, she still obediently copied the letters. At this rate, Songji might be able to write letters herself in a few years.
“Deokju. Let’s go get Cane.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
I set down the lukewarm bed-warming jar and slowly pushed myself up.
But as I bent to put on my shoes, I felt an unfamiliar presence outside.
A trespasser—soone who’d entered my annex without my permission—made my brow knit on its own.
“Who is it?”
“It seems like a warrior from the Clan Head’s Hall.”
Deokju whispered.
I opened the door with my face already hardened, and a warrior I’d never seen before stood there.
When he saw , he bowed his head.
“The Clan Head requests you, Young Lady.”
“...The Clan Head?”
I stared at him, my eyes narrowing.
Tang Muheok had sent for .
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