Lady of YeonSung (Lisrene)

Chapter 4

"Did you already know about this?"

That night, Joohyun returned home and demanded an answer from Jewol.

"What are you talking about?"

Jewol took off his spectacles as he asked back.

"About the things people are saying about the Heukra!"

Jewol finally understood what Joohyun was talking about and let out a sigh.

"I knew."

"You knew? Did you just tell me that you knew? Why didn't you tell me such an important detail before now?"

"I tried to tell you. But we needed to get through the wedding ceremony first, and I wanted to give you some time to adjust to your life here."

"I don't need time to adjust. You should have told me from the very beginning!"

"Joohyun! I mean, Irene."

Jewol burst out of his seat and grabbed Joohyun's arm. His grip tightened as he spoke in a strained voice.

"What difference would it have made if I told you? Would you have rejected this offer for a peace treaty if you knew?"

Joohyun looked straight at him. He was right. Would it have made any difference? It would only have answered one of the many questions she had buried in her heart. Now she knew why the Silver Nation's Crown Prince wanted to catch the Heukra!

"Is the Heukra truly the vengeful spirit of the killed guibin?"

Guibin Nok. This woman was famous, even in Yeha. The northern province of the Silver Nation shared a border with the northern part of Yeha, so the rumors spread quickly.

Guibin Nok was from the northern province, and she was also the fifth wife of the emperor. In the inner court, which was filled with mostly daughters, she managed to give birth to the second prince, the Red King. Therefore she was promoted to the status of guibin.

Her downfall and death was also widely known in Yeha.

But that woman was dead. Seven years had already passed since her death. And yet everyone was saying that the Heukra was the vengeful spirit of Guibin Nok.

This was because the mysterious woman who had appeared near the killed victims had been wearing the waistband of the guibin.

In the Silver Nation, a woman's waistband was an important indicator of her status. The waistbands of the imperial family were distinctive and couldn't be worn by anyone else. Especially those worn by the empress or a concubine. If one wore it without much thought, it could be punishable by death.

But that woman was wearing the guibin's waistband?

This was the strangest piece of information.

Whether the Heukra was human or a spirit, the people were once again speaking about the guibin. Additionally, Joohyun couldn't ignore the fact that this was connected to the Red King.

People made things up and told stories. They believed lies were the truth. The guibin who had been the Red King's mother. The guibin who had died a tragic death. She had come back from the dead and was burning people to death. What else would the people think?

They'd definitely believe this was the curse of the Heukra as well as the guibin's curse.

"Is that why the Crown Prince is so desperate to know the identity of the Heukra?"

At Joohyun's question, Jewol let out a quiet sigh and returned to his desk to organize it.

"Yes."

"Ha."