The Young Consort Wants to Live Quietly

Chapter 32

***

I finally fully acknowledged that they indeed cherished me quite a bit.

It might be an exaggeration to say it’s like the love parents have for their children, but it’s akin to the fondness one has for a cute niece or nephew.

And that was a rather good thing. The fact that Mirinae and Garam cherished me meant that the attempts on my life, prompted by the Empress’s affection, had significantly decreased.

‘But I wish they’d come by less often.’

No matter what, they were individuals with whom I couldn’t completely let down my guard and share my innermost thoughts, so some awkwardness was inevitable.

It would be nice if they only showed their fondness superficially.

Just yesterday, after a leisurely stroll and laughter in the Flower Spirit Palace’s garden with Mirinae, I was quite tired.

However, as if life adheres to the principle of equivalent exchange, today was remarkably peaceful.

‘Now that I think about it, there was talk of preparing for a festival.’

What was it called again? Ah, right, Arun.

Arun, the festival marking the beginning of summer in the Kingdom of Seora, celebrates the opening of the heavens, or in other words, the founding of the nation.

Starting with the Emperor’s offerings to the dragon, the festival spans three days and nights of celebrations and is one of the three major events, alongside Yeongchun, which gives thanks for the harvest, and Eunjeong, which prays for a bountiful year before sowing seeds.

From tax reductions and the release of prisoners with minor offenses to welcoming foreign delegates, there’s a lot to prepare for, making it a busy time.

‘The beginning of summer… around the end of June, then.’

Of course, I was leisurely pondering such thoughts amidst all the commotion. What could they possibly ask of an eight-year-old? Unless they asked me to deliberately make a mistake, but Arun wasn’t an event light enough for such tricks to work. It was a festival bearing the name of the first Emperor and the surname of the royal family; it couldn’t be prepared haphazardly.

The Floral Virtue Palace, where no visitors came, was quiet. Back in the now comfortable room, I sprawled out on the bed.

“Yawn.”

The sunlight was warm, and the air cool. The wind blowing in through the slightly open window carried the last fragrances of spring. I felt sleepy again, even though I had just woken up from a nap.

But sleeping more would surely bore Gowun to tears. I reached for the table, crunching on the ice floating in the juice Heesa had brought me.

I liked chewing on ice. I just enjoyed the tastelessness of it. However, Seoyeon strictly limited my consumption of ice, claiming it would cause stomach aches and damage my teeth.

I was quite disappointed about that, but with Seoyeon gone to help with work, Heesa would quickly give in and hand me some ice if I just looked a little sullen.

Eating too many sweets and rotting one’s teeth is worse than eating ice, I suppose. I crunched the remaining ice in my mouth and quietly observed Gowun, who was picking at the sweets in front of him.

Like most shadow guards, Gowun had hardly ever encountered sweet, salty, or spicy foods. So, even a little bit of stimulating food would make him open his eyes wide in surprise.

Perhaps it’s because he’s still a child, but Gowun seemed to particularly enjoy sweets. Pretending not to, he would sneakily eat one or two of the snacks I pushed towards him, pretending to be unaware.

At first, he didn’t believe me when I said I didn’t like sweets, but after realizing I truly didn’t reach for the snacks much, he would eat them comfortably, bit by bit, which was quite cute, but…

‘My teeth will last longer than Gowun’s at this rate.’

The plate of sweets Heesa had happily filled was now empty. I wondered if his tongue wasn’t sore from all the sweetness. There wasn’t anything as sticky and sweet as caramel or chocolate like in Korea, but I was still worried. It seemed unlikely that we could get proper dental treatment here.

Gowun, who had been munching away, felt my gaze and looked up. As soon as our eyes met, his clear blue-gray eyes widened in surprise. Startled and stiff at my puzzled look, Gowun held the sweet in his hand, not knowing what to do.

“…My apologies.”

Caught between not wanting to put down or eat what he was holding, Gowun awkwardly offered an apology, which made me flinch and wave my hands in response.

I wasn’t hinting at anything!

“No, it’s okay. Eat!”

“For me to dare eat my lady’s portion…”

“I have this. If I want more, I can have it. It’s okay!”

As I waved the juice I was holding and shouted that, Gowun finally put the sweet he was holding into his mouth. Seeing him lower his gaze quietly, somehow looking forlorn, I got up from my spot and went over to wipe his mouth.

“I was worried eating too much might rot your teeth. It’s not because it’s too precious to eat.”

Gowun, who had been staring at me intently, nodded at my words. Smiling slightly at his gentle face, I then yawned widely.

“Are you tired?”

“…Sort of.”

I answered Gowun’s question, rubbing my eyes. Ah. Why am I so tired?

It wasn’t just today; I had been feeling this way off and on for a while now. Just when I thought it was getting better, it has worsened recently.

I wondered if it was because of the nights spent discussing with Gowun, but still, I went to bed before 10 o’clock.

Even considering that children need to sleep a lot, sleeping for 12 hours a day including naps and still feeling sleepy seems too much.

It’s not like I’m running around like other kids. Did I do something at night that I don’t remember…

“Oh my, my lady! If you’re sleepy, you should sleep!”

As I yawned again, Heesa exclaimed dramatically. She approached as if she was about to lift me up and put me to bed right then and there, making me step back hesitantly.

Heesa really… acted quickly and was strong.

Just a while ago, when I bumped my forehead on an open window, she almost tore off the window before I barely stopped her. When Seoyeon was around, she was somewhat controlled…

“I’m not going to sleep. Didn’t I just wake up?”

“You can sleep more! Here, I’ll sing you a lullaby! Where is that music box that came as a gift…”

“Even if I were to sleep, I have no intention of listening to your lullaby.”

I firmly told Heesa, who was busily moving to find the music box. Turning her head towards me, her face was visibly disappointed.

“Don’t do it…”

I didn’t understand why she was so eager to sing me a lullaby, but for some reason, my palace maids particularly enjoyed it.

It seemed she wanted to seize the opportunity now that the other maids were away, but I had no intention of listening to such childish things again, especially not now when Heesa was the only one around.

“If I sleep now, you surely won’t wake me up, will you?”

“How could I possibly disobey my lady’s command! I, Heesa, would uphold it even if the sky were falling!”

Heesa spoke with pride, raising three fingers. Was she swearing by the heaven, the earth, and herself, or was it a vow upon her family to the gods? I couldn’t remember exactly, but I knew it was supposed to be a very strong vow.

But, Heesa, you should remember that you’ve used that three-finger promise too often.

“I don’t believe it.”

“My lady…”

As I turned my gaze away from the disheartened Heesa, Gowun gently tugged at the hem of my sleeve. Turning my attention to him, Gowun was scribbling something in the small notebook he always carried, using a tiny brush. This was the method he chose since I found it difficult to learn sign language quickly.

His hand paused while writing, then he crossed out two lines, wrote something again, and crossed out another two lines. His lips were tightly pressed together, indicating he was struggling quite a bit, so I sneakily peeked into his notebook.

[You said there was a secret ■■]

The blacked-out parts showed traces of several letters.

Garden, flower garden? The endings were unclear, with remnants like ‘습니다’ (is/am/are), ‘지 않습니까’ (don’t you agree?), etc.

“Secret garden?”

I roughly understood and asked, to which Gowun nodded with a slightly embarrassed face.

Secret garden… It does exist. I’m not sure if it’s appropriate to call it a secret garden, though.

A small clearing in the back garden of Floral West Palace. A place surrounded on all sides, basked in sunlight.

“It exists, but why?”

At my words, Gowun extended the notebook he had been writing in.

[You said you would take me there.]

I suddenly widened my eyes.

Me?

“…When?”

At my question, Gowun hesitated. After pondering for a moment, he wrote his answer in the notebook and handed it back.

[Last night.]

Last night I said that?

I furrowed my brows. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t remember. When did I ever mention that place to Gowun, a place I had almost forgotten myself?

It didn’t seem like Gowun to play a prank, and more importantly, there was no way he could have known about it.

Perhaps I had muttered something in my sleep. Regardless, it was embarrassing now since we couldn’t go back there.

“We can’t go there anymore since it’s no longer my palace. Sorry.”

Gowun quietly nodded his head at my words. I was relieved that he didn’t seem too upset, but Heesa, having heard our conversation, looked puzzled.

“It is still your palace, my lady.”

“…What?”

“Floral West Palace is still your palace. It’s just that you now have more palaces!”

At her buoyant words, I was at a loss for words. Despite the disbelief apparent on my face, Heesa happily prattled on.

“Of course, since my lady isn’t residing in that palace now, it’s being used for other purposes. But you are still the owner of the palace! Oh, if you dislike it, I’ll tell them to leave right away!”

“Oh, no, it’s fine.”

I hastily stopped Heesa, who seemed ready to dash off to Floral West Palace at any moment. A consort with two palaces.

Though it was surprising, according to Heesa, it seemed they were using it as lodging for the palace staff.

Since Floral West Palace was on the smaller side, that made sense. Anyway, being able to go there was all that mattered. I got up, and Heesa quickly prepared for us to leave.

Before long, Gowun and I set off for Floral West Palace. Flower Virtue Palace and Floral West Palace were as close as their names suggested, and we arrived after a short walk. I smiled softly at the sight of the palace gate, which I hadn’t seen in a long time.

Unlike when I was there, the palace was filled with bustling noises. Judging by the sound of metal, it seemed like blacksmiths or royal guards were present.

…Surely a sword won’t fly at me as soon as I open the door?

Thinking this, I opened the door and was met with a scene not much different from what I expected.

It turned out to be the latter; the place was filled with royal guards. The beautifully decorated trees in the garden were all intact, seemingly untouched by the training occurring around them.

As I slowly entered, people began to notice me one by one. One of them, surprised, came over to me, knelt down, and met my gaze.

“You shouldn’t be here. Over there, outside, there’s a flower tree where you can play. Oh, have you lost your parents?”

I was a bit taken aback by his words. Perhaps because of my plain clothes, he seemed unaware of my status.

Still, I couldn’t just be sent away, so I was about to reveal my identity when a man who glanced at me hesitated for a moment. I turned around, seeing Gowun looking unusually angry for the first time.

…Why is he so angry?

“Are you perhaps Consort Cho?”

It was then that the man’s cautious voice reached me.

As I turned towards him, intending to ask Gowun something, I met the man’s eyes, which sparkled peculiarly.

I simply nodded. It would have been odd to deny it after he recognized me.

I’m not sure what gave me away…

As soon as I spoke, the man jumped to his feet. He brought his hand to his mouth and let out a strange whistle, and in that moment, the figures standing around vanished like straw in the wind.

Simultaneously, warriors sprang from somewhere and surrounded me in the blink of an eye.

Without showing hostility but resembling a group of large bears, they each uttered a phrase.

“It’s Consort Cho.”

“The real Consort Cho.”

“It’s Consort Cho’s party.”

What, what’s this?

I stepped back in surprise, and then Gowun positioned himself in front of me.

The men, who had crowded around like a pack of bears, flinched. But then smiles spread across their faces.

Right. It must look amusing. Gowun, though taller than me, wouldn’t look much different to the adults.

But, well… Let’s leave the consequences of their mistake to them.

With Gowun in front, the lingering sense of unease faded away. Now, these men couldn’t suddenly strike me down.

At first, because they were hidden, even disguising themselves as royal guards, I thought they were shadows trying to conceal their identity.

However, if that were the case, Gowun wouldn’t have been unafraid of them. Gowun, who had suffered at the hands of his own kind, wouldn’t be undisturbed in front of his assailants.

Could there be another secret force within the palace aside from the shadows…?