NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 135
Chapter 135: Women’s Fortune
The footsteps of So Geom-hu, who left the Banquet Hall where Yongbong Jiyeon was held, were headed towards the garden.
Since all the Post-Stimulation Indicators were busy networking over drinks in the Banquet Hall, there was no one in the well-decorated garden.
Only So Geom-hu was there alone. The realization made her stop in her tracks.
Her face flushed bright red.
Namgung Cheong.
The eldest son of the Namgung Family. A reckless man who loved the arts as much as he wielded a sword. He was handsome, but So Geom-hu couldn’t bring herself to like such a lascivious and flamboyant man. In fact, she found him repulsive.
That’s why she used Lee Cheol-soo. She didn’t genuinely like him, but publicly, it was known that she had affections for him. So she used him to drive Namgung Cheong away.
For a selfish reason that was purely for herself, she used Lee Cheol-soo.
That thought troubled her. However, Lee Cheol-soo had complied with her request without hesitation, and even when Namgung Cheong talked about his feelings for her, he didn’t refute it at all. He also won the martial arts contest stunningly.
‘······Why······?’
One year ago. A different sight from the time at the competition when he rejected her confession. Even though it was solely for her own selfish desires, Lee Cheol-soo’s uncomplaining cooperation was······
Completely different from the brash man she had thought him to be until now.
Guilt gnawed at her conscience. Guilt over using someone for her own selfish desires.
So Geom-hu therefore posed a question to Lee Cheol-soo after the martial arts contest. Why had he stepped forward for her? Why had he gone that far for a woman trying to use him?
“······I knew from the start······,” he said.
He claimed he knew her intention of clinging to him to avoid bonding with his master from the beginning. Yet, as a man of honor, he helped her despite the plight he found himself in, regardless of his own feelings.
Lee Cheol-soo said that.
‘Isn’t he a real fool?’
A fool. To help someone he dislikes when they’re in trouble—it was an unrealistic plot twist one would expect from storybook heroes. Ignoring grudges and assisting someone was simply unheard of.
······But if he were that kind of fool······ maybe he wasn’t so bad.
So Geom-hu’s face turned red again. Her heart rate sharply increased.
Even earlier, it had pounded like it was broken. That’s why she ran out of the Banquet Hall. She was afraid he might see her embarrassing face if she stayed any longer.
That was worse than death.
“······Ugh······. W-what do you want me to do if you say that······?”
Lee Cheol-soo’s face kept flickering in front of her. Like a gisaeng (Korean courtesan), she thought he looked too feminine for a man.
But he wasn’t bad. After all, hadn’t she decided to marry him for her master’s sake? Plus, she had told him to quit acting. So, what if she······
So Geom-hu was startled by that thought. It was ridiculous. There was no way. She still couldn’t trust Lee Cheol-soo.
She couldn’t let herself fall for him so easily.
“······I can tell you’re looking. It’s obvious. The master probably seduced you in this way too······. You’re just a bad man······.”
Yes, this was deception. A deception that had surely captured her master’s attention and heart.
She couldn’t let herself be fooled.
So Geom-hu denied her own heart like that.
But unlike her reason, her heart kept racing like it was broken.
*
At the sudden comment from Sahyeong, all eyes turned towards her.
Dressed as a woman, Sahyeong possessed overwhelming beauty, almost transcending the realm of power, comparable to the most beautiful in the world, Jeoksawol.
In fact, even in his original male form, he was handsome enough to be called one of the world’s best men. Of course, he didn’t have the superman-esque presence of a big, rugged man like my personal ideal, Henry Cavill.
If anything, Sahyeong resembled a fragile and androgynous pretty boy. But his beauty transcended all styles.
Among the likes of Song Ok, Ban An, and Alain Delon, he could be discussed as one of the best-looking men in history; that was Sahyeong.
The unparalleled beauty Sahyeong was dressed as a woman. Of course, it was only natural he would rival Jeoksawol. An extremely rare beauty among mortals. So from the moment he entered Yongbong Jiyeon up till now, everyone’s attention was entirely focused on Sahyeong.
But then…
To talk about my possession at that moment?
“What did the defeated So Jo-je say just now?”
“······It seems she said the Gongdong Alliance has the most beautiful things in the world.”
“Oh my······. To say she has seen those things means······ that the two of them are secretly having affection for each other every night?”
“Come on now. Besides that, what other reason could a woman have to talk about a man’s possession?”
“I had my suspicions since So Jo-je was closely attached to the Gongdong Alliance from when she entered the Banquet Hall, but to think it was true······.”
“Why would a peerless beauty like So Jo-je be interested in a guy like the Gongdong Alliance…”
“Women truly are something else! What could a flawed, effeminate guy offer······?”
“······That possession must be quite special!”
Murmuring spread around from those nearby.
It’s natural for women to gossip when discussing a man’s private parts in public, even in modern times.
Let alone in this medieval, Confucian-dominated world.
In fact, the surrounding Post-Stimulation Indicators had already tacitly accepted that Sahyeong and I were intimately involved with each other.
But, what?
An effeminate guy? A big, muscular man like me?!
Hearing ‘effeminate guy’ triggered memories of the horrible past life.
That time when a gay warrior from Geum-uiwi babbled nonsense about wanting to spend a night together because I looked pretty.
Later, having become a connection of Dongchang’s father-in-law, I sent that guy to hell, but the memories from that time were still vivid.
Damn it.
I pushed aside the resurfacing trauma while sending Sahyeong a telepathic message.
[Why all of a sudden? And when exactly did you see my possession?]
No way.
Was it that day shortly after joining the Gongdong Sect? I remember standing with it up while preparing breakfast. Could he still remember that moment?
[······It’s a secret. Plus, I dislike when others ignore my master.]
Sahyeong sent me a telepathic message, looking pouty.
What a ridiculously cute expression for a man. No, even if you’re saying you dislike being ignored, do you forget you’re dressed as a woman right now?
At that moment when I was about to send another telepathic message to Sahyeong—
“······How do you know? Well······ me and the girl······”
Swoosh.
Sahyeong approached me and linked his arm with mine.
With a seductive smile, Sahyeong said.
“······Because we promised each other a future.”
Sahyeong blushed shyly while looking at me. A promise of a future? I felt my bafflement soar to the heavens at Sahyeong’s words.
The absurd reality was that it wasn’t completely a lie.
After all, Sahyeong would be a future geomseong and the Gongdong Sect Leader, and I was a disciple of the Gongdong Sect. So, in a way, it was like we had promised each other a future.
But that was that.
What would others think if we said such things here? Swoosh. Sahyeong clung to me tightly, his chest pressed against my arm. The fresh scent of wildflowers brushed past my nose.
My head spun. Is he really a man?
Just as doubts that had been lurking in my mind began to grow larger.
“Well, then······. Hmm······. I see. I’ll leave this story at that.”
Namgung Cheong took a step back, looking flustered. He seemed confused by Sahyeong’s bizarre aura. He approached me and whispered in my ear.
“To think the senior So Geom-hu even stole the heart of the peerless beauty So Jo-je. You truly are this brother! Hahahahahahahahaha!”
He laughed heartily.
I had no idea what delusions he was having. What was I supposed to do after stealing someone’s heart?
As I felt incredulous at Namgung Cheong’s words,
“Hmph! Whose heart did you say you stole the future with?! Let go of me!”
Seomun Cheong-ha exclaimed, pulling Sahyeong’s arm from mine. She looked at Sahyeong with a flushed face and continued.
“And you, So Jo-je! Don’t you dare speak such shameless things! Do you understand?! Also, this young master has just heard for the first time that So Jo-je has promised a future with him! After all, you two met for the first time only today!”
Flushing red, Seomun Cheong-ha chastised Sahyeong with an unexpected logical tone.
There was nothing incorrect about Seomun Cheong-ha’s words. Just as she said, while Sahyeong might know, So Geom-hu and I had only just met today.
Pointing out that flaw made Sahyeong blush. With his lips quivering, he looked at Seomun Cheong-ha and said.
“······Seomun So-je is correct. Me and······ this young master met for the first time today. However······.”
Sahyeong took a step forward. His overwhelming beauty lit up the Yongbong Jiyeon. With a pure yet sultry voice, Sahyeong looked at Seomun Cheong-ha and said.
“······Young Master Yu has······ chosen me to be his spouse.”
No.
Is he really going to expose my name here?
I felt flabbergasted at Sahyeong’s words. Young Master Yu was me, right? Sahyeong is Jeoksawol? Seomun Cheong-ha, who had no way of knowing this, turned pale with shock.
“W-what did you say?! Y-you an effeminate guy said that?!”
“That’s right. Today’s Cheongdam Meeting banquet was agreed upon to attend with this young master.”
Swoosh.
Sahyeong hooked his arm back with mine, smiling seductively again. No, is this really the Sahyeong I know?
He had transformed completely after changing his identity. I hadn’t seen such a sight in either this life or the last; it was shocking.
How could this man, of all people, cause me such astonishment? Not even the Sahyeong I once knew could do such a thing.
“What do you think? If it’s this much······ can I be by this young master’s side now?”
Sahyeong winked. It was an utterly natural demeanor from a woman that I could hardly believe he was still a man.
Is he even really a man?
“······W-who says so! I-I, your official companion, have yet to acknowledge you! No way! Young Master! You aren’t really planning to just overlook all of this because she’s a pretty face, right?!”
Seomun Cheong-ha yelled at me.
Sure, she might be pretty, but that was just it.
But Sahyeong’s official gender remained male. It was out of the question for me to fall for a man. I released my arm from Sahyeong’s hold and said.
“So Jo-je and I have only just met today. Regardless of Sahyeong’s recommendation, marrying is a significant matter, so I think it’s too early to make a decision.”
Of course, I couldn’t reveal that Sahyeong was actually a man, so I had to phrase it delicately.
At my words, Sahyeong’s face cast a slight shadow.
“······I knew it would be like this.”
In contrast, Seomun Cheong-ha wore a triumphant expression.
“No matter what this young master says, I will not give up on him.”
Sahyeong seriously looked at me and said. Is this really all an act? It didn’t seem like an act at all······.
If Sahyeong wasn’t acting, then that would be a problem in its own way. Yes, it had to be an act. For the sake of my mental health, let’s just think of it as acting for now.
“Hahahaha. This brother has quite the luck with women! Just like you, Namgung Mo, my esteemed brother!”
Namgung Cheong babbled nonsensically from the side.
Luck with women? What kind of nonsense······.
As I clicked my tongue internally while sipping from my tea cup filled with cold tea,
“Congratulations on your victory in the martial arts contest. This young master.”
Swoosh.
Someone appeared before me. A young man from a prestigious family, more beautiful than any woman, resembling Sahyeong’s original form.
Mo Yong-ui.
“Congratulations on your victory.”
He greeted me and sent a telepathic message.
[Don’t forget the Cheongdam Meeting banquet tonight, okay? Teehee. The previous Lady Gu is also looking forward to meeting this young master.]
Upon hearing the telepathic message from the Mo Yong master, I smiled.
Finally, the main topic was about to come up.