Right away, Hwa-eun’s shocked voice rang out.
"What? Something serious? What happened?"
Before my operation began.
I’d heard that the higher-ups of the Martial Alliance and elders from the Beast Palace were gathering to await the outcome, so the response came immediately—it seemed she had been waiting for a report and was startled by what I’d said.
A sharp follow-up question came quickly after.
"W-Wait, don’t tell me—the princess died or something!?"
Sensing the gravity of the situation, Hwa-eun brought up the princess.
Because when it came to a crisis over here, it could only be something involving the princess.
I decided to share the hopeful part first.
Whether her current state was truly better than death, I didn’t know—but at the ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) very least, the princess wasn’t dead.
For now.
"No. The princess isn’t dead, but..."
Then came Hwa-eun’s relieved voice, followed by another question.
『 "Phew... You scared me. As long as the princess is safe, everything else... But still, what’s the big deal then?
You wouldn’t say it’s serious just because someone got hurt. Did a lot of the Bo-ta Temple disciples die? Or maybe the sect leader?
Don’t worry too much, So-ryong. It’s not your fault. It’s sad, sure, but even if several Bo-ta disciples died, it happened while helping them, so they won’t blame you for it.
If they hadn’t been rescued, they would’ve just been dragged off by the Five Venoms Sect and endlessly humiliated.
If the sect leader really did die, that’d be serious. But... doesn’t the temple have anyone else to succeed her besides the princess?"』
To Hwa-eun, a serious situation during the rescue operation meant the possibility that many Bo-ta disciples had died, or that the sect leader had passed away.
She wouldn’t even think of something as wild as the princess being afflicted by a heart demon.
But if that were the case, I wouldn’t have even brought it up as a “serious matter” in the first place.
That’s the thing with hostage rescue operations.
Even a slight misstep can lead to the hostages dying en masse.
There were countless airplane hijackings during the Cold War, and many special operations units launched rescue missions—but cases where all the hostages were saved unharmed were rare.
There was even a time when the Russian special forces killed all the hostages.
So although I carried out this operation with spirit beasts, I never believed I could get everyone out safely without a scratch.
Even with someone like Gun Hye-rin, a spiritual master of the Flower Realm and expert in martial arts, by my side—if someone nearby decided to suddenly swing a sword or throw poison, you couldn’t predict what might happen.
But this... This wasn’t anything I had ever imagined.
It wasn’t even something I’d considered a possibility.
Now, I had to tell Hwa-eun the truth.
"N-No, it’s not that..."
"Not that?"
"The princess has fallen into Heart Demon. She’s trapped in a heart demon and hasn’t been able to wake up."
"...?"
A brief silence.
Then came a hurried outburst.
"Н-Heart Demon!? What do you mean, a heart demon!? What the hell happened!? Explain properly!"
Was she just shouting out of pure shock?
As I watched the woman massaging the princess’s hands and feet, I began to explain.
"Remember Hyehwa—the Bo-ta disciple I told you I met a few days ago?"
"Yes, Hyehwa. The one you said was really strong?"
『 "Yes. The princess secretly helped her escape, which enraged the Five Venoms bastards.
Apparently, they used that as an excuse to cripple three Bo-ta disciples by crushing their left hands.
The princess couldn’t bear the sight of it—and that’s when she fell into Heart Demon. She’s not able to regain consciousness."』
"W-Wait a moment!"
She must’ve been relaying the situation to the Martial Alliance higher-ups or others nearby, because shortly after, instructions were passed down.
"So-ryong, both Euisun and Yakseon Grandfathers are here. Just do exactly as they say."
The instructions from the famed medical sages—Euisun and Yakseon—were being relayed through Hwa-eun.
The top experts in this world’s medicine were stepping in, apparently.
A kind of remote diagnosis, I guess?
"Understood."
"First, they want you to check the pupils."
"Got it. One moment."
I was just about to ask the woman who was wiping the princess’s forehead and massaging her limbs if I could examine her condition more closely—
When suddenly, from behind me, I heard a voice I’d only heard once before.
"Ji-ryeon!"
I turned my head and saw the sect leader of Bo-ta Temple—the temple master—rushing in with two Bo-ta disciples and Yeondu.
The two disciples had their hands completely wrapped in cloth.
It seemed those two were the ones who’d had their hands crushed while with the princess.
The temple master, perhaps still unable to release her meridians, had beads of sweat glistening on her forehead.
"Is this truly real?"
Upon seeing the princess’s condition, the temple master wore a stunned expression.
A disciple from Bo-ta Temple who had been with the princess fell to her knees and began sobbing uncontrollably.
“Master! Senior sister couldn’t bear what happened to our hands... Sob...”
“Ji-ryeon, no. You must not—this cannot be...”
It seemed the temple master had just learned what had happened to the princess and had rushed here, only now witnessing it firsthand. She approached the princess, took her hand, and stared down with an expression of disbelief.
“Is the Bo-ta line truly ending with me? How can I face our predecessors after death if this is how it ends...”
She seemed to think that now that the princess had ended up like this, the emperor’s wrath would be unavoidable. I stepped forward and greeted her, needing to examine the princess.
“Excuse me, it's been a while. Sword Queen.”
The temple master turned her head and looked at me.
She gave me a grateful expression and began to speak—then tilted her head curiously.
“You must be So-ryong, the son-in-law of the Sacheon Tang Clan who saved us? Thank you. I won’t forget this kindness even in death. But—‘been a while’?”
‘Ah. Crap. You idiot.’
I had said “been a while” because I remembered seeing her before—but that time I’d been crossdressing.
To me it was a second meeting, but to her, this was the first.
I quickly gave a sheepish smile and corrected myself.
“Ah, th-that came out wrong. This is our first time meeting. I’m So-ryong of the Sacheon Tang Clan.”
『 “I see. I am Yeonhwa, the Eleventh Sword Queen of the Sword Pavilion, Bo-ta Temple of South Sea. I thank you for your life-saving grace.
But now that things have turned out this way, you should leave here at once. The fog is providing cover for now, but top-tier warriors under the emperor may be watching this area. I fear that our benefactor might suffer harm.
I swear, I will never forget this debt—not even in death.”』
As expected from someone considered the matriarch of our Buddhist community—her character was noble and refined.
She thanked me sincerely and urged me to escape while I still could.
If someone began suspecting that the princess ended up like this because of my rescue operation, it would be dangerous. That was why she told me to run.
Even amid this chaos, she thought of me too.
Deeply moved, I asked her,
“May I examine the princess for a moment?”
“You? Ji-ryeon?”
The Sword Queen tilted her head, unsure of how to respond to my request.
Since the princess was not only royalty but also a woman, I figured I should invoke a name to justify it.
“Actually, I’ve been taught medicine by Euisun and Yakseon. I thought maybe I could help.”
“Is that true!?”
“Yes.”
Honestly, it wasn’t a lie.
I had learned a bit of medicine—mostly veterinary knowledge helpful for caring for my spirit beasts and children.
The Sword Queen immediately stepped aside.
“Namo Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva. Has the Buddha not forsaken our Bo-ta Temple after all? Please—do what you can!”
I approached the princess and began checking her pupils, just as Hwa-eun had instructed earlier.
“Hwa-eun, what exactly do I need to look for in her pupils?”
“Ah, check the color of the irises, please.”
I gently lifted the princess’s eyelids and checked her eyes.
They were lifeless, the focus completely gone.
The whites were slightly bloodshot, but the areas around the irises had turned gray.
Both eyes were the same.
“Um... The edges of the whites are red, and the areas around the pupils have turned gray.”
“Which is more prominent—the gray or the red?”
“The gray. Uh, it looks like the gray is starting to spread into the red. It’s moving kind of like a ripple?”
After relaying that, a moment later, Hwa-eun’s voice came back sounding grave.
“Ah...”
“What is it?”
“They say it’s serious.”
“R-Really?”
『 “Yes. According to Euisun-grandfather, a Heart Demon usually manifests in many forms—rage-induced frenzy, paralyzing fear, and so on. If the eyes turn red, it means they’re consumed by wrath. That leads to becoming a berserker, killing without restraint.
But if the person succumbs to despair, the eyes turn gray. Losing consciousness on top of that is rare, he says.
However, gray is the worst. First, the person collapses and cannot regain consciousness. Then the breathing gradually slows... and eventually... they stop breathing altogether...”』
This is bad.
This was practically a death sentence.
Then the Sword Queen’s voice asked from beside me,
“What do you think? Can she be healed?”
She asked with a tense expression, clearly desperate.
Just then, Hwa-eun’s voice returned to my mind, bright with hope.
“So-ryong! They said there’s a way to heal her!”
“Oh! Really!? What’s the method!?”
Since the answer was that there was a way, I immediately asked Hwa-eun for the method while responding to the Sword Queen.
“I think... there may be a way.”
“Is that so!? Amitabha. Amitabha.”
“That’s wonderful, Master!”
“Thank goodness!”
But then came an odd pause.
“Th-the method is... um...”
“What is it, Hwa-eun?”
“...”
A long silence followed.
***
The Beast Palace had been struck with a sudden chill.
And it was no wonder—everyone had been hopeful that once So-ryong rescued the princess and returned, things would gradually be set right. But then the impossible news came.
That the princess had fallen into a Heart Demon.
"What do you mean, daughter-in-law? The princess fell into a Heart Demon?"
"A Heart Demon? The princess?"
"A Heart Demon!? Madam, what on earth do you mean?"
"P-Please wait just a moment. I’m asking So-ryong right now."
Once Hwa-eun finished relaying what she had learned from So-ryong, everyone let out a lament.
『 "Apparently, because the princess helped one of the disciples escape in secret, she enraged the Five Venoms Sect. They used that as an excuse to cripple three Bo-ta Temple disciples by destroying their left hands.
The princess couldn’t bear the sight of it—and so she fell into a Heart Demon. She hasn’t regained consciousness since."』
“Good heavens.”
“What is this...”
“How could something like this happen...”
Then, Euisun and Yakseon checked the princess’s condition through So-ryong. But after hearing the symptoms relayed by Hwa-eun, their explanation led to a wave of despair.
『 "This... this will be difficult. If the gray is spreading, then the Heart Demon has rooted itself in despair. That means the princess’s spirit may be far more delicate than we thought.
She’ll remain unconscious, her breathing will gradually slow, and in the end... her heart will stop. She’ll die."』
"I-Is that truly the case, Elder Euisun?"
"Yes."
But just then—
A loud noise came from the window.
—Bwooooooom.
With the great fluttering of wings, Hwa-eun stepped over to the window and spoke softly:
[Mother, I’m sorry. The conversation’s running a little long. Could you wait just a bit more?]
Since So-ryong wasn’t available, Hwa-eun had been keeping the Gwaemyeonghoja Mama company, promising to fly together once the meeting was over.
At that moment—
Euisun and Yakseon looked at each other. As if they’d both remembered something at the same time, they exclaimed in unison:
"That’s it! There might be a way to save the princess!"
"Yes! That method... it just might work!"
"Oh—there’s a way?"
"There’s a way to save the princess?"
As everyone turned to them in anticipation, Euisun and Yakseon nodded.
『 "Heart Demons are said to be incurable—but that’s not always the case.
There was a case where a man became a bloodthirsty killer, shutting off all sense and reason—but his wife brought him back with the strength of her own life.
In the end, the only way to overcome a Heart Demon is to awaken the afflicted’s willpower from within.
But if the person is unconscious like this... honestly, there’s nothing to be done.
Their eyes and ears are closed to the world.
However... if someone could enter their mind and awaken that will directly, the princess might come back to herself."』
"Enter her mind and awaken her will? Is that even possible...?"
"That tiger cub—he had lost all will to live not long ago. But So-ryong brought him back. By entering his mind and awakening that spark. The Beast Palace Lord will know. So-ryong said it himself—it’s one of the Beast Palace’s techniques."
"Y-You don’t mean!? Beast Heart Technique?"
The Beast Palace Lord’s eyes widened at the mention of it.
Even Hwa-eun looked briefly startled by what the two had said.
"D-Daughter-in-law."
"Father."
The two looked at each other, unable to say anything. And then Euisun and Yakseon continued:
"If the princess dies like this, the emperor’s wrath will sweep across all of Murim. Tell So-ryong to try using that method."
"Tell him to hurry. If her pupils are rippling with ashen gray, she won’t last three days."
The Beast Palace Lord knew full well what role the Beast Heart Technique played.
He had read every report from Seolpyo, who had observed So-ryong’s use of it over the past year.
It was true. If one entered the spiritual domain, the princess might be saved.
But to use the Beast Heart Technique on the princess?
That meant forming a beast-like bond with her—like taming a creature.
It meant the princess would be bound entirely to So-ryong, which made the Beast Palace Lord understandably conflicted.
That was why, as Euisun and Yakseon spoke, sweat poured down his face. But Hwa-eun carefully offered a suggestion.
『 "Father. For now, let’s focus on saving her... and worry about the rest later.
It’s better to become a hero than a traitor, right...?" 』
The Beast Palace Lord remained extremely serious, but Hwa-eun had already accepted it—thinking of it as simply gaining one more companion, just like with Gun Hye-rin.
She got along well with Gun Hye-rin, after all.
And more importantly, if Gun Hye-rin’s identity as a demonic cultist were ever discovered, it could lead to a disaster. But if the princess were with them, there was a safeguard.
If the princess became her shield, what martial artist would dare touch them?
In that sense, this was the perfect way for them to support each other.
They could save the princess—and make So-ryong’s position even safer.
