Camellia 155

With no one else to confide in, Seolyeong reluctantly made his way to Hwang Choseon. Choseon’s quarters were located near the Medical Hall, a privilege he’d earned after following Yuwon around like a lifeline when he first arrived at Yeonhusan.

Seolyeong called out his friend’s name with a voice laced in inner power.

“Hey, Hwang Choseon!”

His tone was as insolent as some back-alley thug’s. Choseon, who had dressed up nicely for a planned tea meeting with the physician, dropped his comb in alarm and stumbled outside. The voice had shaken the entire building. There was no way he could stay put after hearing that.

“You bastard! If you’re going to shout, keep it reasonable! I nearly lost my eardrums!”

“If it had been reasonable, you wouldn’t have come out.”

A fair point. Still dazed, Choseon shook his head to snap himself out of it. The half-buttoned robe slipped down his smooth shoulder. Seolyeong grimaced in disgust. Choseon raised his voice in protest, his face full of wounded pride.

“You’re the one who showed up unannounced. Why’re you glaring at me like I’m the rude one?”

“Our Hyeon might be getting married soon.”

“What kind of nonsense is that to drop in broad daylight? To what godforsaken bastard?!”

Since arriving at Yeonhu, Choseon had done his best to speak gently. But this time, overwhelmed by shock, he snapped back into his old, rough voice.

He stormed up, lifting Seolyeong’s chin as if daring him to repeat it. The camellia he knew wasn’t the type to joke about his sister’s marriage or make up stories for fun.

If Seolyeong was the one saying it, it was probably true.

Choseon’s face quickly twisted into something ferocious. Seolhyeon was like a little sister to him, too. At one point, he had seriously considered marrying her, dreaming of becoming real family to the blood fiend siblings.

She had rejected him like he was plague incarnate, but still, Hwang Choseon cared deeply for the Seol siblings.

Seolyeong answered with the air of someone equally fed up.

“Looks like it’s Murong Wi-hyung.”

“That old bastard doesn’t know his place, does he?”

Choseon was more outraged than Seolyeong himself.

After being cast out of the Murong clan in his youth, Choseon had come to loathe the Murong elites who had allowed illegitimate children’s danjeon to be destroyed. The only ones he had ever exempted from that hatred were the blood fiend siblings who’d endured alongside him. Seolyeong had kept that bond alive, even after Choseon left for Sacheon.

Choseon shouted in rage.

“What the hell does Hyeon lack that she has to end up with that ragged old man?! What’s so special about that wrinkled bastard, huh?! Sure, he’s handsome… and yeah, he’s rich… but personality-wise…! Fuck! Even if he’s a decent personality, he should’ve thought twice for her sake! That clan isn’t just any clan! It’s one of the great noble families! Aaaaagh!”

Realizing he’d just talked himself into a mental knot, Choseon let out a wail of frustration. Seolyeong quickly slapped a hand over his mouth. At this rate, every sect member working to restore Yurigung was going to come running.

“She said the wedding’s at the end of next month. So by then…”

“So by then, what?”

Choseon pulled Seolyeong’s hand off his mouth and asked. Seolyeong whispered with quiet resolve.

“I have to make Husband mine. Only then can I give my blessing to her marriage with peace of mind, and cause a scene at the ceremony with peace of mind.”

“…”

“You said you know how men think. So teach me your secrets. Please?”

The man who was the most beautiful in the world grabbed both of Choseon’s shoulders and begged.

“For days now, Husband’s been ignoring me. If this goes on, we’ll really end up strangers. He told me to find someone better and remarry. Damn it. I want to spend the rest of my life with him. What can I do to win back a man who’s turned his heart away?”

“That bastard isn’t a man, you lunatic…”

Choseon grabbed Seolyeong’s cheek with force, as if trying to snap him out of it.

“He’s not a man, he’s a monster. A bloodthirsty beast who’s killed tens of thousands of innocent martial artists.”

“They say the same about me in the martial world.”

“That’s just because they don’t know you!”

“Exactly. Just like you see my true nature, I see his. Just like you look at me differently, I can look at him differently.”

“…”

“I’m not saying he’s not a bad man. Just… that knowing all that still isn’t enough for me to stop feeling this way. That’s all. Understand that much, Mumyeong.”

“…Even if I understand now, you’re not going to bother explaining later, are you?”

“Haha. Just like I know you, you see right through me.”

Sometimes Seolyeong became so calm that it was hard to remember what his usual self was like. Staring straight into those eyes, Choseon felt an uneasy sense of déjà vu. The last time he saw that look was when Seolyeong had tracked him all the way to Sacheon after being cast out of his family.

The face that had whispered, ‘You’re not wrong, even if no one else believes it.’

Lost in memory for a moment, Choseon finally gave in.

“…Don’t come crying to me when you two end up fighting later, Murong boy.”

Handling men’s hearts was child’s play. While he was at it, Choseon even added in a few tricks that were sure to throw Sahyeol Amje off. It wasn’t that he wanted the two to be happy. Frankly, if things worked out, the idea of being best friends with a blood fiend’s happily married was depressing.

Murong boy’s taste was the real problem. Of all the men in the world, why pick the demonic sect leader?

Then again, Choseon couldn’t say much, he had fallen for a woman from the Samasa family. With that, he focused all his energy on preparing Seolyeong’s clothing. By the time he was done, his friend looked so dazzling that even Sahyeol Amje wouldn’t be able to resist him at a glance. Only then did Choseon finally smile.

Time was short, so Seolyeong decided to start with the most effective method Choseon had shared.

“If the man’s ignoring you completely, then you need to play hard-to-get. The art of push and pull. You think I got those stuck-up daoists panting like dogs by sitting still?”

The key, he said, was to subtly release seductive energy, just enough to tease, never quite giving in. An average person might have blushed just hearing it, but Seolyeong, fully armored in shamelessness, didn’t even flinch. It never occurred to him that Choseon might’ve suggested such ridiculous tactics just to mess with Sahyeol Amje.

As expected, Sahyeol Amje had run off again. When Seolyeong looked up at the window from the garden, the familiar silhouette always appeared. But by the time he reached the bedchamber, the man was already gone.

Normally, he would’ve ended the night cursing that man under his breath. But today, he wasn’t backing down. He threw himself onto the bed.

“Sigh… it smells sweet.”

The scent was so bittersweet it hurt. From now on, even if that man ran, he would sleep here. Smiling in satisfaction, Seolyeong undid his robes.

Given how sharp the Amje’s senses were, he was probably watching right now.

He slipped the top off his shoulders, baring collarbone and chest, then moved a hand toward his lower garments. He felt like a cheap street whore, but this was the great secret of Hwang Choseon, the famed Sacheon Flower. He had no choice but to trust it.

Preparing to pleasure himself, Seolyeong stared longingly at the ceiling. The dizzying geometric patterns seemed to blur into his thoughts.

A pale hand slid down the fabric. He’d been told not to strip outright. Tease the idea. Let the clothes linger. That was how you stirred curiosity and imagination.

It sounded plausible enough that Seolyeong bought it completely and began the act in earnest.

“Ah, Husband… this lowly wife yearns for your broad, warm arms…!”

Like a wild beast, the blood fiend began to writhe on the bed.

And from his perch above, hidden behind an impeccable concealment technique, Tang Yujae let out a dry laugh.