The Hated Male Concubine

Jamun was not wrong. Although they were legitimately chosen under the order of the emperor, the guards from the low class, such as Seocheon and Jamun, were fundamentally treated differently in the palace. Of course, the emperor was paying special attention to the possibility that those who were picked by his own hands would be bullied because of their status. Therefore, there were no courtiers who openly abused them or treated them like animals, but that did not mean that there were very few unfair things they had to go through. 

Moreover, this was a concubine’s place, not some other place. In other words, a space where the guards, who were men, should be extra careful. Until now, it was like an abandoned palace, so it was true that people were less careful here, but now that the emperor’s perception of Jeongan Palace had changed, they had to be more careful. 

However, Seocheon did not listen to Jamun. 

“Still, it’s weird. I’ll be right back.” 

Seocheon, who ignored the call from behind, moved into the courtyard, hushing his footsteps. Maybe he just needed an excuse. Seocheon, who could not resolve the subtle discomfort he felt when he met Yeonbin last time, wanted to get a clue about anything and somehow run into him once more. 

As he went deeper inside, Seocheon was convinced that his intuition was not wrong. Someone was definitely moving that far ahead. Who’s there at this late hour? Seocheon passed by a large tree that was blocking his view and held his breath, pretending not to know the expectations that were rising. There, he saw it.

Yeon Hwawoon, the owner of Jeongan Palace, was wielding his sword with a very slow and clumsy gesture under the moonlight. 

***

“If my master saw me, he’d be too stunned to scold me.” 

Hwawoon laughed in dismay as he realized that his body wasn’t moving the way he wanted it to. It was clear that Yeon Hwawoon’s body was not only ridiculously weak but also had no athletic ability at all. Hwawoon, who had spent the past few days training his swordsmanship —or rather, exercising as it was embarrassing to call it training— whenever he had a spare moment, had to feel his hopes of one day being able to move with a sword as freely as before shattered. 

Don’t the children of high-ranking families usually learn swordsmanship? Or did he not have the time to learn because he was weak from a very young age? He could understand if he thought it that way, but he felt frustrated because he had no idea how long it would take for him to be able to swing his sword freely. 

He came out with a sword while everyone was asleep because his mind was complicated, but when he tried to swing the sword, he felt even more complicated. Looking at his thin arms poorly shaking in the air, Hwawoon quickly sheathed his sword and took a deep breath, realigning his posture and breathing. He didn’t move much, but he was out of breath. He was about to burst into self-mocking laughter, but suddenly he felt someone approaching him.

“Who…”

Hwawoon’s voice as he was about to ask who was instantly halted. Seocheon was the one who slowly appeared through the shade of the moonlit night. 

“How… How could…”

Seocheon approached Hwawoon, mumbling with a blank face as if he had lost his mind. As a guard, it was naturally against the law. However, Seocheon had no time to think about the law now. On the tip of his tongue, which was unable to form the right words, was a name that shouldn’t be called now. All this happened because of Yeon Hwawoon. 

Seocheon, who entered the courtyard in the name of patrol, found Yeonbin wielding a sword there. At first, he thought he was practicing martial arts at this late time, but he could see that his movement was far from swordsmanship by watching a little bit. He looked as if he was practicing with the step, but the movement was so slow and clumsy that no matter how much he tried to judge it positively, it was like just moving around with a sword. 

Shortly after Seocheon watched him, Yeonbin stopped his poor movements, sheathed the sword he had stretched out, and arranged his posture. 

Right at that moment, Seocheon felt the shock of his heart being squeezed by someone’s hand.

People who have been wielding a sword for a long time will develop their own personalized stances and habits, even when performing the same technique. In particular, the movement of retrieving the sword after training and adjusting the posture was a moment where each person’s habit was reflected intact. And now, Seocheon saw Hawoon’s way of recovering the sword, the unique habit of Hawoon that he had seen countless times in their sparring times. From Yeonbin, Yeon Hwawoon, who made Hawoon die, not from anyone else. 

“Your Highness… How, how could you…” 

He couldn’t even think about how it was a grave sin to approach the emperor’s concubine at this late time. Seocheon was simply appalled. Was it a coincidence? By all accounts, Yeonbin moved like a man who had never learned to wield a sword in his life. He didn’t look like a man who had learned swordsmanship for a long time. For such a person. Was it a coincidence that such a person moved in the same way as Hawoon always did out of the hundreds and thousands of postures? His ears buzzed as if he had been swept away by a huge typhoon. 

Rumors that caused a stir in the entire palace that Yeonbin had changed were hovering around Seocheon during that typhoon. The unreliable rumors that he became a very gentle person. Yeonbin’s handkerchief wrapped around a court lady’s injured hand and Hawoon’s handkerchief, which was still in Seocheon’s arms. The eyes that were suspiciously surprised at him, and the oddly familiar senses he felt at that time. It all felt like all of those stabbing him in the lungs with no room to breathe. 

Hwawoon was startled as well. No matter how late it was, there were always people in the palace who did not fall asleep. So, he did think that he could be caught right away by someone even if he came out secretly, but he never thought it would be Seocheon. Furthermore, Seocheon’s current state was not simply a reaction to unexpectedly running into one of the concubines. 

He seemed so surprised to see Hwawoon, and at the same time, he seemed to be afraid of something. Hwawoon and Seocheon couldn’t say anything, spending an eternity-like time, and the one who broke the breathtaking silence between the two was So Jeong, who came running screaming, 

“Your Highness! Why are you here at this dawn!” 

“Ah… So Jeong…” 

However, So Jeong’s surprised expression turned cold as soon as he found Seocheon standing in front of Hwawoon. So Jeong said to Seocheon, blocking Hwawoon with his body. 

“Why are you here at this hour? It’s not even the time for patrol right now.” 

“I, I… I heard…”

So Jeong’s gaze sharply scanned Seocheon’s face. Seocheon’s inability to speak seemed so suspicious to everyone. In addition, this was a concubine’s place. Even though he was a guard protecting Jeongan Palace, it was never a place for him to go around freely. So Jeong turned around and opened his mouth, looking at Hwawoon. 

“Your Highness, are you all right? Did that person behave rudely to you?”

Hwawoon, who had been blinking in a daze until then, was so surprised by So Jeong’s question that he came to his senses. 

“No, no. It’s not like that.”

“It would be a great crime if that person thoughtlessly wandered around Jeongan Palace. Should I tie him up?”

So Jeong looked so fierce as though he had never been intimidated in front of Hwawoon. Hwawoon shook his head and continued to talk.

“No, it’s not that… I… I called him.”

“… Did you?” 

“Yes. I called him to ask about something. Don’t worry about it.” 

His heart beat as if it was going to explode when he tried to gloss it over. He was already out of breath because he had moved too much a while ago, but because of the following surprise and confusion, he was even out of breath regardless of his will. Hwawoon hurriedly waved his hand toward Seocheon, who was still standing in a daze. 

“It’s enough, so go ahead.” 

Fortunately, Seocheon also must have come to his senses a little, and he, still looking awkward, fell on one knee. 

“… Yes, Your Highness. I will take my leave now.” 

Seocheon’s voice was still shaking suspiciously. So Jeong, who felt that something was wrong, tried to stop Seocheon from leaving, but Hwawoon’s hand grabbed So Jeong’s hem a little faster than that. So Jeong, who turned his head, was horrified to see Hwawoon’s face being completely pale, and hurriedly supported him. 

“Your Highness!” 

“I’m, I’m okay… I’m just… I’m just a little out of breath. Let’s go inside…” 

So Jeong, who was not yet used to Yeon Hwawoon’s weak body, began to shout loudly at Jeongan Palace.

“Miss Ahjin! Miss Ahjin!” 

Hwawoon was worried about So Jeong’s shout would wake Ahjin, who lacked sleep, but the important thing now was to make So Jeong forget the behavior Seocheon showed a while ago, so Hwawoon just gasped weakly and leaned into So Jeong’s arms. 

It was an unexpected mess late at night.