Episode 7
And finally, the sight that unfolded before Doyul’s eyes was…
“…I asked you to guide me to Yerin’s residence. Did you guide me properly?”
“Yes, I did.”
The servant answered, bowing his head slightly.
Doyul couldn’t hide his astonishment.
“Is this really… Yerin’s dwelling?”
If it had just been an old and shabby building, he wouldn’t have been so surprised.
He was well aware that Yerin was mistreated in her own household.
He could infer that her living conditions were not ideal.
But…
“It’s as if… it would collapse if you just flicked it with your finger.”
He never even thought that such a place would exist within Sachun Hall.
Even the North Ice Palace, which was suffering from food shortages, didn’t have a building as dilapidated as this.
The servant, who was observing Doyul’s reaction, cautiously spoke up.
“Um, if you want, we can go back now…”
“No, I will go in.”
Doyul, with his head slightly tilted, stepped into the building.
Creak, creak.
With each step he took on the creaking floor, an unpleasant sound echoed.
And in the corners where no one passed, dust piled up, covering everything in white.
“They don’t even bother cleaning this place.”
Unknowingly, Doyul thought of Yerin.
Even a healthy person would surely deteriorate if they stayed in a place like this for a long time.
Moreover, Yerin was much thinner and weaker than her age would suggest.
If she had been living in this building all along…
“Well, it’s like she endured through illness and survived.”
Deep wrinkles formed on Doyul’s forehead.
At the end of the long corridor, Doyul finally arrived in front of the room where Yerin resided.
The view inside the room was not much different from the rest of the building he had passed.
It was extremely old and worn out.
“Ahem, hmm.”
The servant coughed a few times to announce Doyul’s visit.
“The princess has arrived.”
Squeak-.
The door opened.
As soon as Yerin saw him, she quickly lowered her head.
“Princess, you’re here?”
“….”
Doyul remained silent.
Her appearance, hunched over and full of distress, made the viewer uncomfortable.
After a moment, Doyul sighed and spoke up.
“You don’t have to bow your head like that.”
“But…”
“Yerin, didn’t you have a wedding ceremony with me?”
Doyul, biting his lips, let out a deep sigh.
“So, I would prefer if you didn’t cower in front of me like that.”
“Yes, Princess.”
Even though she answered like that, Yerin still couldn’t look him in the eye.
Doyul felt even more down.
“Just a while ago, when we were together, she wasn’t this lifeless.”
He remembered Yerin’s bright eyes as she asked if he had taken off the wedding clothes.
But now, her expression was so lifeless.
Could it be that something happened while he wasn’t there? Some conflict or trouble…
For now, it would be better to separate Yerin from this trouble.
“Come with me.”
With that thought, Doyul approached Yerin.
“Oh, I will accompany the two of you to the reception hall.”
At that moment, the servant standing beside Yerin stepped forward with a smile.
“….”
Instantly, Yerin’s expression darkened.
As if she felt fear towards the servant.
“Who is this servant, exactly…”
Doyul’s face hardened.
One thing, it’s not proper to go to the princess’s quarters without the servant’s guidance.
But even if the servant offered to guide me, what could I do but accept?
At that moment, as the three of them headed towards the princess’s chamber.
Crash!
With a resounding sound, a hairpin fell from the servant’s sleeve onto the floor.
“What’s that?”
In an instant, Doyul’s eyes widened with a bluish light.
The hairpin, made of the finest sapphire and woven with gold thread, was something Doyul was familiar with.
Doyul grabbed the hairpin and glared at the servant.
“Why do you have this?”
“I, I…”
The air became heavy in an instant.
Clutching the hairpin tightly, Doyul questioned the servant again.
“This hairpin was a gift sent to the bride from the North Ice Palace.”
“What?!”
The shocked servant jumped up from their spot.
Doyul uttered each word deliberately.
“But why do you have this precious item instead of Yerin Sojo?”
“This, this hairpin!”
The terrified servant’s voice trembled.
“It was given to me by the young lady!”
“Yerin Sojo?”
“Yes! I’ve faithfully served the young lady and she gave it to me as a token of gratitude!”
Then the servant quickly turned to Yerin.
“That, that’s right, isn’t it, young lady?!”
The servant’s gaze was pleading.
They were silently asking Yerin to confirm that I was telling the truth, to save them from my intense gaze.
And Yerin…
“She took the bait.”
She was struggling to suppress her lips that were trying to curl up on their own.
Yerin took a deep breath and put on a resigned expression as she faced the servant.
“…You really went too far.”
“Wha- What do you mean, young lady?”
“I know that you’ve been stealing my things all this time.”
What did you just say?
Sibi’s eyes widened.
“But the reason I’ve been tolerating it is because I trusted and relied on you like a mother.”
Yerin’s lips trembled, and her voice came out with a mix of sobs.
“So all your screaming and secretly pinching and hitting me…”
At the same time, Yerin lowered her gaze slightly, avoiding Sibi’s eyes.
To someone who didn’t know her true intentions, it was enough to be misunderstood as her being afraid of Sibi.
“…I’ve endured it all.”
Sibi’s face turned pale.
No, this girl must be crazy!
But Yerin’s continued lament was so desolate that it could melt even a stone heart.
“But even in this situation, where you’ve been caught red-handed stealing…”
Yerin continued, tightly closing her eyes.
“You’re trying to blame it all on me.”
“What, what is this…”
At this point, it couldn’t be unknown.
Sibi had a sense that she had fallen into a trap.
“What are you talking about, young lady?!”
Sibi shouted at Yerin in a fit of rage.
In response, Yerin flinched and took a step back.
Tears poured down from her large, frightened eyes.
“Did you just raise your voice at me?”
“No, wait. I mean…”
It was only after the fact that Sibi realized.
Sibi gritted her teeth and tried to persuade Yerin once again.
“You really gave it to me, young lady. Why are you doing this?”
“Why are you the one doing this to me?”
But Yerin met Sibi’s tear-filled eyes.
“No matter how young and foolish I may be, I wouldn’t give such a precious gift sent from the North Ice Palace to someone else, would I?”
At that moment, an angry voice interjected into their conversation.
“Is what Sojo said all true?”
“Princess!”
“She asked if what Yerin Sojo said is true. No, it’s not.”
Doyul shook her head.
His lips suddenly formed a smile as sharp as a blade.
“It must all be true.”
“…What?”
“Are you asking me as if I wouldn’t know?”
Doyul growled as he spoke.
“I have eyes and a brain that can make judgments.”
“Well, um…”
“It seems like you all think I’m a fool.”
Sibi rolled her eyes, unsure of what to do.
Yerin didn’t say anything, tears streaming down her face.
The constant flow of tears, dripping down her collar, completed Yerin’s desolate atmosphere.
But then.
“What on earth is going on here?”
A cold voice echoed.
A middle-aged man, who entered the room with confident steps, looked at Yerin and Doyul with a displeased expression.
He was none other than Dang Socheol, Yerin’s father and the current head of Sachendangmun.
He was also the one who proposed the disgraceful marriage alliance with the North Ice Palace.
“We agreed to the marriage alliance, so why haven’t you come yet?”
Dang Socheol narrowed his eyes.
“Are you causing trouble right after the wedding?”
The moment she received that fierce gaze, Yerin felt her whole body instinctively freeze.
“Ugh, my pride is hurt.”
Yerin bit her lip.
It seemed that the original Yerin from the original work was quite afraid of her father.
As soon as she stood in front of Dang Socheol, her whole body trembled like a mouse in front of a cat.
Then, a voice came to her rescue.
“Lord Dang.”
It was Doyul.
Dang Socheol turned to Doyul without hiding his displeasure.
“Princess, do you have something to say?”
“I apologize for interrupting, but this commotion is not Yerin Sojo’s fault.”
Doyul spoke calmly with a composed voice.
“Sibi had the gift sent from the North Ice Palace.”
“…What?”
Dang Socheol’s face twisted in an instant.
