SWS CH 24

Chapter 24

One hour earlier, in the annex kitchen.

“Still, I’m really curious. In a way, this is the young master’s long-awaited first scandal. All our young masters have lived avoiding women, after all.”

The kitchen was still buzzing with endless speculation about me.

I hadn’t intended to deceive anyone, but now it felt awkward to suddenly say, ‘I’m that woman.’

So I focused harder on making dessert, hoping to escape quickly.

Shhhaa—!

I brushed lukewarm syrup over freshly fried dough.

As the sweet scent spread, the chatter stopped and everyone gathered around. Hatsen asked with interest,

“Isn’t that the maple syrup I gave you earlier?”

“Yes. I simmered it with cinnamon.”

“You added cinnamon… You mixed the powdered one into the dough earlier, and now into the syrup too.”

“Ta-da. It’s finished. Yakgwa.”

I proudly held up the flower-shaped yakgwa.

“Yakga? Another food I’ve never heard of. A pastry fried in oil and coated in syrup…”

“Normally, you soak it in syrup for a whole day, but since we didn’t have time, I simplified it.”

Instead of soaking, I made the dough sweeter and brushed syrup on top.

I used cinnamon instead of cassia, maple syrup instead of grain syrup, and butter instead of sesame oil.

The result was a unique yakgwa aroma filling the kitchen.

“The flower shape is nice, but it’s quite rough. And the color is just brown, like regular bread.”

Hatsen didn’t seem impressed.

This was a fantasy world overflowing with flashy, colorful desserts.

But taste mattered more.

“I think it looks delicious. You can see how crispy the outside is, and the syrup gives it a nice shine.”

May, who had quietly watched, spoke up.

“Right! It looks better than madeleines!”

“Same! A fried snack like this sounds amazing!”

The other maids nodded in agreement.

“I made enough for all of you. Once the syrup sets a bit, eat them. I made extras for the other maids too.”

Since I was already making them, I filled an entire small basket. This was where my former mother-in-law’s training really paid off.

“What?! In that short time?!”

Hatsen’s eyes widened when he saw the pile behind him.

“I’m quick with my hands.”

“That’s not the point! You used all the flour I gave you for her dessert!”

“There was plenty. It’s better if everyone eats together. I’m sure she’d prefer that too.”

“What nonsense—!”

I popped a yakgwa into Hatsen’s mouth mid-scolding. The intense sweetness hit his tongue, and the deep crease in his brow slowly smoothed out.

As expected.

While he stood dazed, I quickly wrapped a few yakgwa in a clean cloth.

“I’ll head out now. I have something to do.”

“Where are you taking that?!”

“You seem worried, Chef, so I thought I’d deliver it to her myself!”

With that, I slipped out of the kitchen carrying the yakgwa.

Afraid Hatsen might chase me, I quickly changed clothes again in the laundry room.

‘Listening to them talk about me right in front of me is torture.’

My identity would be exposed eventually, but until then, I wanted to move around comfortably.

“Halara, this really is a dangerous thing.”

Junel fluttered over as I walked, holding a syrup-dripping yakgwa.

“Good, right? It’s a snack I liked. Easy to make and delicious.”

“I’ve never tasted anything like this in a thousand years.”

With syrup smeared all over his mouth, Junel looked like he’d found paradise.

“Junel, is it really okay for us to be this relaxed?”

The fall of the family wasn’t truly my problem, but still… was it right to just watch?

“I’ve decided. I’ll live here with you for the rest of my life, in Bloodymary where sword aura overflows!”

Was that a proposal?

It was comforting, but—

“Leave out the ‘rest of my life’ part.”

“Why? Because the room is small? You chose a small one yourself.”

“No. I have no intention of living with a man for life. I’m going to stay a shining solo.”

Marriage was just temporary protection for me.

“You don’t like Docep Bloodymary, then. He looks like a loafer, but he’s not really like that… Tsk. He was born unlucky.”

I knew that too. Pre-awakening Docep was lonely and pitiful. Part of me wanted him to be able to protect his family properly.

But—

“Didn’t you see how he toyed with me earlier?”

“He wasn’t toying with you. He likes you, and since you didn’t return his feelings, he got sulky.”

“What nonsense. Why would he like me?”

“You’re pretty. Kind. And a good cook.”

Fair enough.

“And you spent a hot night together!”

“Please stop bringing that up!”

Junel burst out laughing and fluttered away.

“Honestly, looks-wise, he’s the best of the three, isn’t he?”

He kept praising Docep.

The brothers were similar, but appearance-wise, Docep was clearly number one.

He was the protagonist, after all.

“A man isn’t just about his face.”

“So you agree with me. In the end, it’s strength that matters. If only he were good at swordsmanship, he wouldn’t fall behind.”

“At least strong enough to protect me.”

But honestly, to protect me, you’d need to be the emperor.

Someone capable of sheltering an already extinct race.

Living with me would only be a burden to Docep.

The reason I liked the novel was because I envied Docep’s freedom.

Traveling the world, finding companions, laughing and crying together.

It was perfect vicarious satisfaction for my suffocating married life.

Now that I was here, I wanted to live like that too.

“We should go see him.”

Junel tugged on my arm.

“Did you think of a solution? Like a way for him to overcome his constitution?”

“There is a method… but it’s beyond my power.”

So close.

“You said there were hidden famous swords in this family. Wouldn’t that help?”

“The opposite. An amateur who can’t even handle their own body will be dominated by a famous sword. In the end, they sell their soul to it.”

Tsk. I’d planned to secretly give him one.

“Then how are we supposed to save the family?”

“First, let’s go see Docep. Who knows? If we observe him carefully, we might find something.”

“Really?”

I eyed Junel skeptically.

“His mana is weak, so it’s hard to tell, but anyway, the second young master is over there!”

Junel fluttered ahead.

I decided to follow, even if it meant trusting him blindly.

After walking along the outer path lined with castle walls, the family banner finally came into view.

The shield crest protecting Bloodymary.

“He’s in the Third Division.”

“The Third Knight Order?”

I’d seen it in the novel.

The Third Division trained apprentice knights who entered the family.

And the knight named Moldorf there was once captain of the First Division, a comrade who fought alongside the current duke before he took his title.

“Docep is here?”

That was unexpected.

Docep met Moldorf after the family’s destruction.

Or could it even be called a meeting?

After screaming over his mother’s corpse, once Docep barely regained his senses and began arranging his family’s bodies, he found Moldorf in the training ground, dead while standing after taking dozens of sword blows.

“The face of the master he met again after ten years was unrecognizable, drenched in blood.”
— The Disgraced Swordsman Returns, Chapter 1

And it was here that he took his first companion, an apprentice knight who survived by hiding among the corpses.

In a way, this place marked the beginning of the epic tale.

So it was surprising that Docep had returned here after ten years.

But that wasn’t all.

Clack—! Clack—!

In the middle of the training ground, Docep was exchanging blows with a bearded knight.