Chapter 5
“…What, you want me to leave right now?”
Lee Seon nodded as if it was no big deal.
“No need to leave immediately. The sun has already set, so you can leave in the morning.”
Tang Ha-ryeong bit her lip slightly.
Isn’t this the kind of moment where you should at least offer some polite words, even if you don’t mean them, like asking me to stay a little longer?
No. He’s not someone who follows common sense.
After all, no normal person would feed poison as a painkiller.
Sigh.
She sighed and brushed her hair back.
Her lips twitched as she turned her head slightly and mumbled.
“Thank you.”
“Out of nowhere?”
Lee Seon chuckled softly.
“Thank you for saving me.”
Though it was hard to see in the darkness, the tips of her ears seemed to turn a bit red.
“You’ve been through a lot too.”
Tang Ha-ryeong was startled by those words.
“Wait, you can say things like that?”
“…What did you think of me?”
Lee Seon grumbled with a sour expression.
Tang Ha-ryeong averted her eyes without saying anything.
A strange man, a monster, a mysterious figure…
She thought of all sorts of descriptions for Lee Seon.
She stole a glance at his profile as he gazed indifferently at the moon.
Whether he’s a strange man or a monster, she wasn’t sure.
But one thing was clear—he knew little of the world, not even the famous Tang Clan of Sichuan.
Yet he was skilled enough in medicine to immediately find a cure for the Tang Clan’s secret poison.
And he didn’t hesitate to help someone in danger.
If he were to step out into the world, he would surely shine.
“Why do you live here?”
Lee Seon turned to look at her at that question.
A faint smile flickered in his indifferent eyes.
“That’s a question for the owner of this place, not me.”
Tang Ha-ryeong recalled the layout of the house.
Now that she thought about it, there were several rooms inside.
It was too many for just one person.
But there was no sign of life, not enough for two people to live here either.
It was hard to imagine anyone else living here besides this boy.
“Where is the owner now?”
Lee Seon closed his mouth.
Tang Ha-ryeong swallowed nervously.
Ah, she’d made a mistake.
Of course, she should have realized that no one else was in this house except her and this boy.
And with that dark expression on his face…
Judging by how he kept mentioning an old man, it’s likely the person is already gone from this world.
“…Sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
Lee Seon tilted his head, puzzled.
“What are you sorry about?”
“I think I made you recall bad memories.”
Realizing what misunderstanding she had, Lee Seon let out a bitter laugh.
“That’s not it. The old man is still alive.”
“Huh?”
“He’s like the wind. He disappears without a word, and I don’t know where he is either. He could come back as early as tomorrow. He’s a grumpy old man with a terrible temper. Who knows what he’s up to now.”
“Did he take care of you?”
“The old man picked me up and raised me.”
So, that means he’s been living here since the massacre at Hyeokmun Mountain.
Even her father, the head of the Tang Clan, warned against going near Hyeokmun Mountain.
There are countless rumours about the mountain, but most people wouldn’t dare set foot there because of the deadly poison.
There must be a reason he’s living here.
But does that even matter?
He’s still the person who saved her life.
“By the way, how old are you?”
“…Why do you want to know all of a sudden?”
Lee Seon had the appearance of a boy.
Tang Ha-ryeong narrowed her eyes and pressed on.
“You look younger than me.”
Lee Seon, for once, showed a serious face.
“Judging people by appearances is foolish. I didn’t think the patient I saved would have such misguided thoughts.”
Tang Ha-ryeong’s brow twitched.
“You are younger than me, right?”
Lee Seon shook his head vigorously, trying to naturally change the subject.
But he was stopped by the hand that grabbed his sleeve.
“…Age doesn’t matter. What’s important is how mature someone is inside.”
Lee Seon skilfully dodged the question.
Tang Ha-ryeong scoffed as if she had never heard such nonsense before.
Unable to withstand her gaze, Lee Seon reluctantly answered.
“I’m probably about the same age as you.”
“How do you know my age?”
“…I’ll go get some alcohol.”
Lee Seon abruptly stood up.
He brought back a bottle from somewhere.
“Do you like alcohol?”
“If I had to choose, I’d say I don’t like it.”
Her days had always been filled with practicing her martial arts and handling poisons.
Even when she did drink, it was either at clan events or with guests from outside.
Did alcohol ever taste good?
For Tang Ha-ryeong, alcohol wasn’t much different from poison.
Handling poison was second nature to her, but it wasn’t something she liked.
“What about you?”
“I’m trying to learn to like it.”
In other words, he didn’t like it either.
Tang Ha-ryeong shot a crooked look at Lee Seon.
Lee Seon turned his gaze to the night sky.
“On good days, you drink good alcohol.”
Tang Ha-ryeong showed interest in the drink.
“Did you brew it yourself?”
“It’s made with poisonous herbs from this place, but I neutralized the poison using a special method before brewing it.”
Lee Seon opened the bottle and sniffed the contents.
The strong smell made him wrinkle his nose and frown.
Judging by the smell, it seemed to have aged well.
He looked around for something to pour the drink into, then casually wiped out the teacup he had just used for tea.
If the old man saw this, he’d probably be shocked.
‘Do you know how precious that is?!’
Lee Seon could easily imagine him shouting and throwing a fit.
‘You should never handle food carelessly.’
It was a phrase the old man repeated countless times.
Considering how sensitive the old man was about alcohol, it was no surprise.
But Lee Seon thought a little differently.
‘As long as it goes down your throat, it’s all the same. Right?’
He didn’t care much as long as it wasn’t utterly terrible.
Besides, in this mountain, there wasn’t much to eat in the first place to be picky about taste.
After filling the cup to the brim, Lee Seon held out the bottle.
“Do you want to drink?”
Now that he had opened the bottle, there was no turning back.
No matter how much the old man might throw a tantrum, what could he do once the alcohol was already drunk?
If he didn’t want that, he shouldn’t have left the house unattended.
“This is rare stuff. You couldn’t buy this with a fortune out there.”
Lee Seon repeated the words the old man always used to say.
Tang Ha-ryeong also caught a whiff of the alcohol scent in the air.
Just as expected, the scent was incredibly strong.
“I’m drinking.”
Lee Seon downed the cup in one go.
As the liquid burned down his throat like fire, his vision momentarily blurred.
The moment he swallowed, he grabbed his neck, coughing violently, making Tang Ha-ryeong’s face light up with amusement.
“You’re terrible at drinking, aren’t you?”
“…This is really strong stuff.”
He answered curtly, as if to say she wouldn’t fare any better.
Tang Ha-ryeong smiled wordlessly.
Then she reached out her hand, beckoning with her finger.
Oh, really?
Lee Seon’s eyebrow twitched.
He wasn’t someone who had drunk much alcohol.
But he knew well enough that this drink wasn’t something to be taken lightly.
Even the old man, who loved wandering the world, would turn beet red and pass out after just one bottle of this.
‘She must think she’s confident, but it won’t be that easy.’
Lee Seon handed her the prepared cup and poured the drink.
The cup filled to the point of overflowing.
“Isn’t that too much?”
Tang Ha-ryeong pointed out, but Lee Seon feigned ignorance.
“Not sure. The person who taught me how to drink never said that.”
“Is that so?”
Tang Ha-ryeong chuckled, seeing through his obvious intention.
Normally, it’s customary not to fill a cup to the brim when pouring a drink.
But pouring it like this…
“If it’s too much, pour some out. You don’t have to force yourself to drink.”
Though he said that, his intense gaze made it clear that wasting the drink was not an option.
“That’s fine.”
Tang Ha-ryeong locked eyes with him defiantly.
She slowly tilted the cup and filled her mouth with the drink.
Gulp. Gulp.
Her throat moved slightly as the alcohol went down smoothly.
Lee Seon’s expression stiffened as he watched her.
After downing the drink in one go, she exhaled and smiled slyly, as if to provoke him.
“Not bad.”
Her attitude made Lee Seon’s lips twitch.
She held out the empty cup in front of him.
The cup was completely empty, showing its bottom clearly.
Meanwhile, there was still a little left in Lee Seon’s own cup.
He discreetly tried to hide his cup.
“…You can drink, huh?”
“I said I don’t like drinking, not that I can’t.”
Provoked, Lee Seon filled his cup again.
Not to be outdone, Tang Ha-ryeong poured another drink for herself.
It was a summer night.
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