The princess was crying like a child.
Standing right there, rubbing her eyes with her wrist.
"Hic... Thank you... Young Master So. For saving my sect sisters...
And for always... Huaa... I think I kept asking too much... Sob... But you never once refused... Never... Huaaah..."
The princess tried to convey her thanks with tearful eyes, but I couldn’t really understand what she was saying, and she couldn’t even finish her sentence.
Seemed like her emotions had completely overtaken her.
Because of her, her sect had fallen, some of her sisters had been maimed, and most of them had been dragged away by the Five Venoms Sect to be used as assassins—how could that not weigh on her?
Now that it had all been resolved, it was only natural her emotions would burst forth.
Tears streamed down from the princess’s large eyes like a faucet turned on full blast.
Rather than comforting her, wasn’t this the perfect time for a quip?
I chuckled lightly and said,
"So you did know you were asking too much..."
"Huh? Sniff."
"Ah, never mind."
For now, I let her cry to her heart’s content.
In moments like this, it’s better to let emotions out than to suppress them.
Not that I’m any expert in psychology, but isn’t it generally said that mental illness comes from bottling things up?
That’s what I heard, at least. Like with fire sickness or most mental afflictions.
Don’t know if it’s true.
Anyway, I was just letting her release the emotions she’d been holding in.
As the princess sobbed sorrowfully for quite some time, the surroundings slowly began to change in a strange way.
What the hell?
At first it had been the Bo-ta Temple, then it shifted to a dark, empty void that kept repeating.
But now, the environment was slowly beginning to change.
At first, a light appeared in the far distance.
From what seemed like the edge of the world, light bloomed and bathed the world in brightness.
And with that light, waves appeared.
Swaaah. Splash.
Waves crashed and rolled in, and as sand surged up from beneath our feet and settled us onto a shore, we found ourselves standing on a beach by a blue ocean.
The white sand stretched endlessly, and the rising sunlight on the horizon made the beach sparkle like it was studded with gems.
This was probably the princess’s true mental landscape.
Kind of refreshing, actually.
There’s a saying that people who love the sea are often those yearning for freedom from the routines of daily life.
Maybe the princess, too, wanted to escape the dull life of the imperial palace?
As I was thinking that, her voice came from beside me.
"But So-ryong, where is this? At first I thought it was inside my mind, but it feels too vivid... and you’re here too..."
Now that she’d calmed down, it seemed she was starting to wonder where exactly we were.
I turned my head and saw the princess looking at me—not as I expected, all puffy-eyed like a panda, but perfectly fine.
Probably because this was her inner world, her tears hadn’t made her eyes swell like they would in reality.
I picked up a shell from the sand and tossed it toward the waves as I replied.
"This is your mental landscape, Princess."
"My mental landscape? You can actually enter someone’s mind like this?"
"Normally, no. But I used a special technique of mine to enter your mind, which allowed your mental landscape to manifest. Something like that."
"Uh... That sounds complicated. But this place—it feels like somewhere I always dreamed of.
A beach with the morning sun rising... If only there were a sword here... Oh!?"
Just as she mentioned a sword and the waves rolled in and pulled back—
A single sword appeared, jutting out at a slant from the exposed sand.
The princess rushed over and gripped the sword with both hands, her voice bubbling with excitement as if she hadn’t been crying just moments ago.
"A real sword appeared! It fits perfectly in my hands!"
"Why don’t you try swinging it a few times?"
"Shall I?"
With the rising sun and sandy beach as her backdrop, the princess began to perform a sword dance.
She ran toward the incoming waves and then retreated, repeating the motion again and again.
She looked like a completely different person from when I first entered this place.
It was like she’d shed everything.
Yes, that was the real her.
Isn’t that how people are supposed to be?
On the outside, she was polite and composed, but take off the mask and she was clearly lively and full of energy.
After a good long while of swordplay, the princess collapsed beside me with a thud and said,
"Thank you so much, Young Master So. This grace, I—Yu Ji-ryeon—will never forget for the rest of my life. Not even after death. But... how do we get out of here? I think my master must be worried."
Seemed like her heart had fully opened up, so I figured it was time to bring up the important part.
The Beast-Heart Mind Art.
"Hmm. Getting out is easy, but before that, there’s something I need to tell you."
"What is it?"
She sat up, facing me, curious about what I had to say.
"You were in a very critical state, Princess. You might have died within three days."
"I-I was!?"
"Yes. So I had to, how should I say this... use a slightly risky method."
"Risky? Then... am I going to die? Is this all just something to ease my regrets before death?"
"Ah, no no. That’d be terrible."
She’d thought she was dying and widened her eyes, but when I told her she wasn’t, she visibly relaxed.
I’d thought she might be trying to surrender herself to inner demons, but that wasn’t it.
I shook my head and continued explaining about the Beast-Heart Mind Art.
"They say the only way to awaken someone trapped in inner demons is through willpower—something only the Immortal of Medicine or the Immortal of Herbs can accomplish. But since you weren’t regaining consciousness, I had to enter your mind to awaken your will using a special technique. Originally, it’s something used not on people but on beasts by the Beast Palace."
"B-Beasts?"
"Ah, nothing weird about it. It’s just that the Beast Palace has only ever used it on animals. But there is a side effect."
"Side effect? What do you mean by that?"
"How should I put it... Oh! You know how even good medicine can become poison if you take too much?"
"Then... does that mean I’ve been poisoned!?"
"Ah, no, no. That’s not it. How do I explain this..."
Explaining it was incredibly difficult.
If I said the price for saving her life was that she became bound to me, I’d sound like some sort of villain. I needed a softer way to put it, but couldn’t think of one.
And the word ‘side effect’ just didn’t seem to register with her.
Isn’t there some nicer way to say it? Ugh, forget it. I’ll just say it plainly.
She already saw me as someone like her, and I’d saved both her life and her sect. She’d understand, I was sure of it.
I carefully chose my words.
"So, originally this technique is used to bond with beasts... and when it takes effect, you have to stay friendly with me... for life."
"Stay friendly with you... for life?"
"Yes."
At that, the princess responded casually.
"What, I thought it was something dangerous. But we’re already close, aren’t we? No big deal. And if I get to stay close with you for life, that’s actually better. I was going to ask for that myself.
You're my friend now, So-ryong. You saved my sect, my sisters, and my life. You're a friend I wouldn't trade for anything, not even my own life."
"Ahaha... I-I see?"
Maybe I’d worried for nothing.
Her reaction was basically: “we’re already close, so what’s the big deal?”
Since things were going well, I figured I’d tell her the upside too.
"Also, no matter how far apart we are, we’ll be able to talk to each other through our hearts. Isn’t that great?"
"Talk through our hearts?"
"Yes."
She looked surprised as expected.
But then came an unexpected question.
"So... does Hwa-eun know about this?"
With a suddenly stiff face, the princess asked if Hwa-eun was aware.
Gun Hye-rin had been absolutely thrilled, so why this reaction?
I stumbled over my words as I replied.
"Of course. H-Hwa-eun gave me permission."
"Hwa-eun gave you permission?"
The princess looked genuinely doubtful.
"I mean... if you and I can talk heart-to-heart, that’s practically like being mentally connected... I really don’t think Hwa-eun would approve of that."
Then it hit me—she thought we’d be secretly whispering in each other’s minds like some kind of lovers.
This is the Confucian era, after all.
A woman having secret, intimate exchanges with a taken man in her mind? The princess’s moral compass couldn’t handle that.
I quickly waved both hands and explained.
"Ah no, it’s not like that! Hwa-eun’s also connected. You’ll be able to talk to her too—heart-to-heart. There's one more person connected. The three of us can all stay close together."
"Really? I’ve always wanted real friends... This is perfect! I get to be friends with you, and with Hwa-eun too—this is the best!"
Now the princess was beaming with joy.
In a way, she and Gun Hye-rin were very much alike.
Surrounded by people of lower status, they hadn’t been able to make real friends.
So the idea of having a secret channel for heart-to-heart talk? She seemed thrilled.
"You’ll probably be able to start talking the moment you wake up from this mental space. Let’s head out now."
"Okay! I can’t wait! Talking with the heart—that sounds so exciting!"
To the princess, who nodded with pure excitement on her face, I said,
"To leave this mental space, either I have to kiss the back of your hand, or you have to kiss mine. Which would you prefer?"
At that, the princess blinked and gave me a look like she couldn’t believe what she just heard.
"Are you really sure Hwa-eun approved this?"
"...Huh?"
"I mean, if you have feelings for me, then even if this is all fake and we were just married for appearances, I’ll devote myself to you for life, in gratitude. I’ll ask Hwa-eun for permission.
You saved me, my sect, my sisters, and even my master. Offering myself to you—what hardship could that possibly be?
But... doing it secretly... that just feels... wrong to Hwa-eun..."
What the hell did the princess think I was?
This was outrageous.
And this damn technique—why does it have to be like this!?
***
"Mmgh..."
As I opened my eyes, I felt a rare stiffness in my body.
Had I been inside her mental landscape for that long?
Beside me, Gun Hye-rin’s voice came immediately.
"Master! You’ve awakened!?"
"Urgh... Gun Hye-rin, how long was I out?"
"About a day and a half."
A day and a half—surprisingly reasonable.
My cultivation must have risen again if the time passed so quickly.
Normally, with the amount of time I spent with the princess, at least two full weeks would’ve passed.
I asked about the princess’s condition.
"And the princess?"
"She woke up quite a while ago. She’s right beside you."
"So-ryong, I woke up earlier."
I turned toward the voice and saw the princess looking a bit haggard.
She didn’t look nearly as healthy as she did inside the mental world.
Probably because for the past few days she’d only been fed water by the disciples of the Bo-ta Temple.
"Are you feeling alright?"
"I just had some rice porridge. Nothing hurts."
"That’s a relief."
"Thank you again, So-ryong."
Now that the princess was awake and had even eaten porridge, I figured it was time to tell her about what was happening outside—and to ask her a few things, too.
Wait for me, Myeolsegumwaha. So-ryong is on his way!
But just as I was about to speak, the princess’s voice came first.
"Your Highness."
"Um... So-ryong."
"You first."
I couldn’t speak before the princess, so I let her go ahead—and with a hardened expression, she said,
"I’m sorry, but I have one more request. Will you hear it?"
"A request?"
"Yes."
"What kind?"
"Please help me take the head of the traitor."
Ah, right. There was still one more bastard left to deal with.
***
"Haah... Haaah..."
"Hnngh..."
"Khrrrk..."
Even from far away, I could hear the sounds of moaning and sex echoing from the chambers.
All the bastards from the Five Venoms Sect outside had been slaughtered, but the woman inside—and Seo Bin-ak, who I once called hyung—seemed blissfully unaware.
Since he wasn’t a martial artist, and Gun Hye-rin had handled everything so quietly, he hadn’t noticed a thing.
"What shall we do?"
Just moments ago, she’d killed one of the Five Venoms guards and picked up a sword.
The princess lifted the blade absently, looked at its edge, and then swung.
Ssschlick.
Crash!
"Kyaaaah!"
"W-what was that!?"
"Eek!"
The chamber door flew off its hinges even from that distance.
Three women in half-thrown-on robes bolted out of the room.
Apparently, ever since his heart condition was fixed through the Five Venoms, he’d gone completely off the leash.
Damn. Really went all ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) out, huh.
Then I heard Seo Bin-ak’s voice from inside.
"Hey! Is anyone out there!? What the hell is going on—HUH!?"
He burst out of the room and looked around.
Seeing the corpses of the Five Venoms men, he froze—and then locked eyes with the princess.
His expression said he couldn’t believe she had escaped.
"Wh-what!? Your Highness, I—uh—this isn’t—"
Ssschlick!
He tried to make excuses, but the princess’s sword was faster.
Seo Bin-ak’s head tumbled off his shoulders and landed sideways at her feet.
Thud.
Thus ended the life of the traitorous coward who betrayed his lord.
