Camellia 21

Seolyeong and Choseon, who had been competing to see who could feed the boy meat first, finally ended their fight in a draw.

After that, a pointless argument continued.

“Isn’t Master way prettier?”

“Oh, please. Look at the men around here. They’re all staring at me, not you. That proves I’m way prettier, doesn’t it, sweetie?”

Now they were making a fuss asking the boy to pick which of them was prettier.

Tang Yujae simply watched the two of them bicker away without responding.

They really were strange people. Getting so worked up just to win a child’s approval, pointing fingers with red faces, then turning around and clinking glasses as if nothing happened, like animals fighting over territory one moment and friends the next.

Their behavior was hard for Tang Yujae to understand.

They didn’t seem to be lovers, so what exactly was their relationship?

After finishing the verbal sparring with Choseon, Seolyeong moved from the Duun Inn to the Yukrim Inn. As the barkers had promised, it was an inn as grand as a palace. With that appearance, anyone with money would be tempted to step in just out of curiosity.

The five-story main building had two-story annexes on either side. There were even eight separate villas for important guests. Being in Sacheon, famous for its gourmet culture, the place was often filled with traveling guests, so the owners had expanded the facilities even at a loss.

Seolyeong rented one of the private villas with its own garden and immediately flung open the windows.

The garden was filled with exotic flowers, and the scent they gave off was unusual. It didn’t waft gently, but came sharply, like a poisoned needle, yet the intensity made it captivating.

Seolyeong beckoned the boy over.

“There are so many flowers I’ve never seen before. Naturally, none surpass my beauty, but they’re still worth a look.”

Even now, he didn’t forget to praise himself.

Instead of looking at the garden Seolyeong mentioned, Yujae scanned the bedroom. A wide bed was draped with crimson curtains that were just sheer enough to blur the view inside.

The bedding was a deeper blood-red than the curtains. Gold powder was lightly scattered over the blanket, and decorative paper cuttings clung to the ceiling, making the room’s purpose easy to guess.

Red paper phoenixes, weren’t they symbols of love? This must’ve been a honeymoon suite for wealthy couples.

The south-facing villa, complete with a bathhouse, tea room, and formal dining room, felt like a living landscape painting. The ink wash flowed along the walls with no visible start or end, connecting mountains, fogs where immortals might dwell, and drifting clouds.

The wool carpet was so thick and soft it felt like walking on clouds. With that texture, like nine rugs layered together. It would be no issue to lie down and make love right there on the floor instead of on the bed.

Seolyeong walked over with a steady pace and waved his hand in front of Yujae’s face.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t tell me you’ve fallen asleep standing up?”

Yangcheonju’s effects last half a day. That meant Tang Yujae would soon return to his original body.

It was about time to decide, stay here and reveal his identity to his bride, or disappear without a word.

Each had its merits.

If he chose to stay, he might as well take the bride, since they had the room already. If he chose to leave, he could return to the sect and be rid of this ridiculous face.

But for some reason, Tang Yujae hesitated.

“…Your skin is still cold.”

A warm palm gently cupped Yujae’s cheek.

Seolyeong clicked his tongue, he pressed down on the boy’s frail shoulders, easing him to the floor, then dropped down beside him. The mat was so soft it absorbed the impact.

Tang Yujae watched the bride’s actions with dark eyes.

“Have you heard the saying that the soles of the feet are a microcosm of the body?”

Seolyeong asked as he removed the boy’s leather shoes. His pale feet settled on Seolyeong’s firm thigh.

“Just massaging the soles regularly can prevent serious illness. But if they’re cold, you need to soak them in warm water first. Still, fetching bathwater would take time, so I thought I’d substitute.”

The cold feet slid between Seolyeong’s robe. It wasn’t something Yujae had done intentionally, it was Seolyeong who made it happen.

The bare soles pressed firmly against his stomach. Blood fiends had abnormally high body temperatures. That burning heat spread up Yujae’s skin.

Seolyeong had expected rejection, but the boy quietly let it happen, and Seolyeong’s eyes curved with a smile.

“You seem to enjoy your master’s touch? There’s still plenty more I’ve yet to show you, so look forward to it.”

He moved on to massaging the boy’s ankles and the tops of his feet. Seolyeong felt satisfied as he worked the tense areas. The stagnant Qi in the weak meridians began to clear, thanks to the delicate control of his internal energy.

No matter how good pressure points were for health, you couldn’t see such a result just by pressing a few times.

Seolyeong felt the gaze on his face, he paused and looked up.

The boy had his arms stretched out behind him for support, sitting at ease as he asked,

“Are little boys your type?”

Seolyeong froze. He even forgot how to breathe. Like a fish gasping for air, only his lips moved.

The sole pressed against his firm abs slid downward toward his navel.

To Tang Yujae, the frozen bride was just amusing.

“If not, how else do you explain all this meddling?”

Seolyeong quickly grabbed the foot, stopping it from going any lower, and barely managed to speak.

“…Let’s stop the jokes here.”

“Oh? So you want it to be a joke.”

“If it’s not, I’ll have no choice but to discipline you. Scold you and correct you. But today, I don’t want to do that.”

He didn’t want to lose his temper over a crude joke. Seolyeong recited the character for ‘patience’ thirty times. Forcing himself to stay calm, he continued gently,

“This is our first outing together as master and disciple. We shouldn’t ruin it over a few unpleasant jokes. Your temperature’s risen quite a bit. I’ll check your meridians now. Let me know if it hurts. It’s been a while since I handled a child’s feet, so I might be clumsy with the pressure. Besides… your body is awfully frail.”

“Quit pretending and just touch where you want.”

Seolyeong flinched as he pressed Yongcheon, Taebaek, and Gongsun points, some of the most well-known pressure spots, with just the right strength.

Damn it. He couldn’t take it anymore.

The boy was deliberately saying absurd things to mess with him, and Seolyeong couldn’t understand why.

What part of him made it look like he was some degenerate lusting after a child?

Just as he was about to snap back, he suddenly shifted thoughts.

“…Has someone ever tried to touch you? Or… has someone actually touched you before?”

“……”

“Did I… dig into a wound of yours?”

If he had experienced that, then of course he’d be wary.

Seolyeong carefully lowered the foot he was holding.

After all, the boy was from the Demonic Sect. Could anyone there, who lacked even the barest sense of conscience or morality, have ever treated a powerless child as an equal?

He couldn’t be sure. Seolyeong frowned and bit his lower lip. With a look of shame, he murmured,

“Your master was careless. I forgot that, as another man, I should have asked for your consent first. I shouldn’t have touched you without permission… Ha. But I swear on my life. I wasn’t testing boundaries with the intent to do anything I shouldn’t. I just…”

The boy laughed faintly and cut him off.

“How long are you planning to keep this up?”

Every word that came out of Seolyeong’s mouth grated on Tang Yujae. Like a splinter stuck under the nail, impossible to ignore.

That’s what Seolyeong was to him, a constant thorn.

So the boy’s next words came out sharp.

“How long do you plan to keep pretending you’re human? How much longer do I have to put up with your fake pity?”

The sweet, clear voice of a child drove the nail in deeper.

“You don’t even understand that kind of feeling, do you?”

“……”

“You’re a blood fiend. No matter how you change your eye color with reverse use, your nature doesn’t change.”

Blood fiends couldn’t think like humans. No matter how hard they tried, it was simply impossible. That was an undeniable truth.

They were born flawed. That’s what being a blood fiend meant.

Which meant the mad bride here was just desperately pretending to be human.

Then who exactly… was he trying to imitate?