After the hunting tournament ended, Lee-Jae received word that the King was on his way back.
Rather than inquiring about his well-being from others, she went outside herself. She could gain far more information about his condition just by seeing him than anyone else could describe.
The moment she saw him walking from afar, she smiled faintly.
Lee-Jae understood—this was simply his destiny.
Even so, she felt a sense of relief knowing he was safe.
Roderick, noticing her smiling at him as though deeply moved, felt a bit self-conscious.
Scratching the corner of his brow, he asked,
“Have you been well?”
“Yes.”
“I thought we agreed that when someone asks about your well-being, you should respond in kind?”
Lee-Jae chuckled softly. She hadn’t needed to ask; she could already tell he was doing fine.
However, she also noticed a certain dullness in his energy. He was tired.
“Did you manage to get any sleep while you were there?”
In response, Roderick pulled a prayer bead bracelet from his coat.
“I spent the whole night wide awake, guarding this thing, worried someone might steal your prized possession.”
What a strange way to say that he didn’t sleep well.
But Lee-Jae, feeling as though a missing piece of herself had been returned, beamed and slipped the bracelet onto her right wrist.
Seeing her expression brighten even more than before, Roderick raised an eyebrow.
“You look happier to see that bracelet than me.”
“Your Majesty, consider who gave it to me.”
“Ah, so you admit you’re happier to see the bracelet, huh? No denying it?”
“….”
“What? Is it true?”
“….”
“Can you believe this? My wife manages to wound me like this after I’ve been away for a week?”
When Lee-Jae didn’t answer and simply chuckled, Roderick couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.
She really is like a fox.
“Your Majesty.”
“Yeah? What is it?”
“Did you win?”
“No, it was a disaster.”
While Roderick had entered the tournament in name only, his “wings”—Jade—had secured victory for him.
In truth, it was a more honorable result, but Roderick chose to downplay it. He was curious about his wife’s reaction.
Lee-Jae smiled softly.
“That’s alright, Your Majesty.”
No one else might realize it, but in truth, you won this time. The vengeful spirit couldn’t harm you.
Still, Roderick grumbled.
“What’s alright about it? I only caught one animal and made a fool of myself.”
“That’s not true.”
“….”
“Your Majesty’s life… isn’t something so fragile as to be ruined by something like that.”
She was going to drive him crazy again.
Roderick instinctively reached up to rub his face, only to remember his hands were dirty and stopped mid-motion. Instead, he extended a hand toward Jade.
Jade handed him an elegant cloth pouch, from which Roderick carefully pulled out a squirrel. The wild creature sat calmly in his palm, as if recognizing the person who had saved it.
But the moment Lee-Jae saw it, she recoiled in shock.
“Ah! What is that?”
“A squirrel. Don’t tell me you’ve never seen one before?”
Lee-Jae waved her hands in protest, her expression turning serious.
“You can’t just bring a wild animal like that here! A sudden change in environment could kill it. And once it’s been handled by humans, it might never be able to return to the wild!”
The group of scruffy-looking individuals, still bearing the signs of a week-long outdoor excursion, collectively shrank back. They’d expected the Queen to react with something like, Wow, what’s this? But instead, her response was shockingly practical.
Roderick replied with a hint of indifference, “It would’ve died if I hadn’t brought it.”
“Why?”
“I found it caught in a trap as we were packing up. I treated it and brought it along.”
“So, you saved it, Your Majesty?”
“Yeah.”
“Really? Why?”
Lee-Jae found it hard to understand why someone would go hunting only to save and bring back an animal. Was it because the squirrel seemed cute?
“Just for you to see it.”
After a moment’s consideration, Lee-Jae burst into a small laugh.
“Oh, for your wife—trying to earn… extra credit, huh?”
She swallowed the rest of her words but couldn’t help letting her laughter spill out.
Roderick, noticing this, lifted a finger to tap her round forehead but stopped short, remembering his dirty hands. He put them back down instead.
With a newfound curiosity, Lee-Jae leaned in closer to inspect the squirrel. Seeing this, Roderick extended his hand towards her a little more, as if to give her a better view.
The King had only brought the squirrel because he thought of her and hoped it might bring her some joy. But Lee-Jae wasn’t like other people. Her perspective was always a little different.
“Little squirrel, you were fated to die but met a benefactor instead. You better make the most of it now.”
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
Just as hunting couldn’t alter the king’s grand fortune, saving a life like this wouldn’t affect the overall course of his destiny either.
Still, Lee-Jae remarked,
“Your Majesty, that was a kind thing you did.”
“Not really.”
“No, it was a good deed.”
At this, Roderick’s expression darkened slightly. Being praised for doing well, instead of being thanked, felt oddly off. It was as if she were treating him in some peculiar way.
What exactly is this supposed to mean?
Meanwhile, Lee-Jae casually reached out toward her husband, who could very well end up being one of her future ‘patients.’ Startled, Roderick quickly pulled his hand back.
“Don’t. If it gets scared, it might bite.”
But Lee-Jae reached out again, and to everyone’s surprise, the squirrel neither chattered nor showed any signs of being wary of her.
It must have been because the pure energy she exuded closely resembled the natural energy of the mountains.
The squirrel climbed atop Lee-Jae’s head, then scurried back down to her shoulder. Watching the small creature settle there, Roderick commented,
“Looks like it finds you short, too. It climbed all the way to the top in no time.”
“I’ve only been saying nice things to you, Your Majesty. Why are you picking a fight again?”
“I’m not. It’s just cute.”
“The squirrel?”
No, you.
Roderick didn’t reply, instead glancing away momentarily.
Noticing his unusual behavior, Lee-Jae gave him a quick side-eye before stepping towards the lakeside. She intended to release the squirrel onto a nearby tree.
Once the squirrel was set free, Lee-Jae summoned her attendants to discuss the food containers and provisions. Meanwhile, Roderick remained standing with his knights, waiting for her to return. He wanted to spend just a little more time talking with her.
But as Lee-Jae made her way back with a sense of relief, something caught her eye. Something sinister.
A dark, oppressive energy she hadn’t noticed earlier was creeping toward Roderick. It was the tongue-flickering spirit of a snake spirit.
Lee-Jae began trembling from head to toe. She took a roundabout path, keeping her distance, before asking Roderick hesitantly,
“By any chance… Did you kill a snake?”
“How’d you know that?”
Roderick glanced around, puzzled. He couldn’t fathom who might have shared such grim details with the Queen.
But Lee-Jae stepped back, staring at the ground with an expression of pure disgust. Her face was twisted with revulsion.
“Your Majesty, when you’re hunting, there’s all sorts of things you encounter, I understand that, but—”
“…but snakes shouldn’t be killed,” she interjected firmly.
“It tried to bite my horse,” Roderick explained.
He wasn’t even sure why he felt compelled to defend himself, but something about Lee-Jae’s pale face made him elaborate further.
Still, her complexion didn’t improve.
Snakes were creatures with deep grudges. The saying that a snake’s head can move even after it’s been severed is a testament to how long it lingers in death. Unlike other malevolent spirits, they remember the one who killed them. And the spirit before her now? It wasn’t just any snake—it was a spiritual being.
But the real reason Lee-Jae looked so ashen wasn’t the snake’s resentment. She just found snakes utterly revolting. Memories of encountering them while foraging for herbs were all equally horrifying.
“Your Majesty.”
“Mm?”
“I’m sorry to say this, but… could someone else not have handled it?”
“…?”
Even if others can kill them, you’re someone who absolutely shouldn’t, Your Majesty.
The knights accompanying them grew solemn. Only the King had noticed the situation and acted, which should have been commendable.
Roderick was silent for a moment before responding,
“Hailey, the situation didn’t allow for that kind of luxury.”
“….”
“…Or what, were you expecting me to walk all the way back to the castle on foot?”
“Your Majesty.”
“Yeah?”
“I hate to say this, but… couldn’t you have just walked back?”
Roderick laughed in disbelief.
“Then I suppose I’d have arrived in about four days. Telling a King to walk back—Hailey, your words are charmingly absurd.”
“I’m sorry.”
Lee-Jae understood the situation perfectly well.
From that point on, she began glaring intently at the snake spirit, determined to overcome her visceral aversion. But no matter how hard she tried, it was too much to bear. She eventually cupped her face in her hands.
Western snakes… were really big.
Roderick, still mindful of the dirt on his hands, gently nudged her wrist with his fingers to pull her hands away.
“What, should I go back now? Then you can wait here for a week while I run back and forth.”
“….”
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“….”
“Hailey. What do you want me to do?”
Lee-Jae shook her head, trying to respond calmly. But her emotions soon reached a boiling point.
“I don’t know, Your Majesty. But… snakes are just so disgusting! Ugh, I really can’t stand them!”
With that, she bolted indoors as if fleeing the scene, leaving Roderick dumbfounded and laughing in disbelief.
He had witnessed her intense disgust from the depths of her soul, and it hit him harder than he expected.
“Did she just say she hated it? The snake? Or me?”
“….”
“I can’t be the only one who’s killed a snake. Why am I the only one getting this reaction?”
“Maybe it’s because she’s particularly fond of Your Majesty,” Jade ventured, offering a rare attempt at comfort.
“I did everything she asked, and now I’m getting scolded for it.”
Even with Jade’s efforts to console him, Roderick wasn’t so easily mollified.
