Chapter : 6
W-What is this?
She had no idea someone had been enduring everything in silence!
“So what did you actually do besides splashing water on my face to wake me up?”
“…What did you say?”
“Did you nurse me? Or at least call a physician? You didn’t do anything, yet you’re acting like you’ve done something great…”
Yerin spoke with unmistakable sarcasm.
The maid let out a disbelieving scoff.
“Miss, are you talking back to me right now?”
Talking back?
Yerin’s mouth fell open.
Wow. Is that really something a servant should say to the young lady she serves?
“My, Miss. You’ve become quite full of yourself.”
The maid looked down at Yerin with eyes filled with mockery.
“Is it because you’re about to become the mistress of the North Sea Ice Palace? Is that why you’re acting so high and mighty?”
“Did you just say I’m acting high and mighty?”
“Yes, I did.”
The maid lifted her chin proudly.
“Isn’t it true? You know perfectly well that no one in this household wanted to serve you.”
“…You.”
“I’ve been your maid all this time, and now you’ve forgotten your place…”
What she said wasn’t entirely wrong.
There hadn’t been a single maid who wanted to serve Yerin, the young lady everyone looked down on.
But the real reason this maid had volunteered to attend her was…
Stealing.
She wanted to quietly make off with the few possessions Yerin owned.
In the original novel, Yerin had noticed the maid stealing her belongings, yet she stayed silent.
Because she knew that if even this maid abandoned her, she wouldn’t even be able to get a proper meal.
Seriously… why did Dang Yerin have to be the mistreated villainess?
She could bully the heroine all she wanted, but why couldn’t she stand up to her own family at least once?
Now I just feel sorry for her!
As frustration rose to the tip of her throat and Yerin cursed inwardly—
Wait.
Her eyes suddenly lit up.
Come to think of it, this maid was incredibly greedy if she was willing to steal from her own mistress…
“Do you know what people call me? They say I’m nothing more than a useless burden!”
“I’m sorry.”
“Hearing that, you should at least be grateful that I still stay by your side—…What?”
Caught completely off guard, the maid stared blankly at Yerin.
Yerin repeated herself slowly and clearly.
“I said I’m sorry for acting so arrogantly.”
“What did you just say…?”
“You’ve served me faithfully all this time, but I think I’ve only made your life harder.”
As she spoke, Yerin deliberately put on the most dejected expression she could manage.
The maid looked slightly uncomfortable.
After all, she couldn’t honestly claim she’d served Yerin faithfully, even if she lied through her teeth.
“You must have worked so hard because of my wedding…”
Hearing Yerin’s subdued voice, the maid immediately regained her shameless confidence.
“Well, at least you finally realize it.”
She even went so far as to point a finger at Yerin.
“If I quit being your maid, the one who’ll suffer isn’t me—it’s you.”
“…I know.”
Yes.
Because of that very fear, the original Dang Yerin had never been able to dismiss her.
And so the maid openly looked down on her young mistress.
But I…
Taking a deep breath, Yerin looked up at the maid with an innocent expression.
“Since I was wrong just now…”
Click.
She opened the lid of the mother-of-pearl jewelry box—the first beautiful jewelry box she had ever owned.
The dazzling wedding jewels inside glittered brilliantly.
I’m going to use that rotten greed of yours against you.
Gulp.
The maid swallowed hard.
Her eyes couldn’t leave the jewelry box.
Watching the greed gleaming in the maid’s eyes, Yerin picked up one of the ornaments.
“Th-That’s…”
“It’s the most valuable thing I own.”
It was an exquisite norigae, decorated with a large, high-quality lapis lazuli gemstone at its center and finished with luxurious golden silk knots.
Holding it in her palm as though tempting the maid, Yerin smiled faintly.
“I don’t have any money, but… would you like to have this instead?”
“M-Me? You’re giving this to me?”
The maid stared at the lapis lazuli norigae as though enchanted.
“May I really accept something this expensive?”
“Of course. You’ve done so much for me.”
Yerin nodded reassuringly.
“You’re my only maid. Giving you something like this is the least I can do.”
The instant she heard those words, the maid’s face lit up.
“H-Hmph! Well… considering everything I’ve done for you…!”
She snatched the ornament from Yerin’s hand and quickly tucked it into her sleeve.
Then she turned back to Yerin with a bright smile.
“Sit down. I still need to finish combing your hair.”
“Mm. Thank you.”
Apparently delighted by the bribe, the maid’s hands were noticeably gentler than before as she combed Yerin’s hair.
Yerin quietly sank into thought.
Only one person occupied her mind.
Hyun Doyul.
The boy who had become her husband.
Earlier, Doyul had asked her—
“Are you hurt anywhere? Are you feeling unwell?”
He had already known she was being abused in the Sichuan Tang Clan when he asked that question.
She could still vividly remember the faint tremble in his eyes when he saw the bruises covering her wrists beneath her sleeves.
Maybe… he pitied me, at least a little.
And just like the protagonist of the novel, Doyul possessed a strong sense of justice.
Which meant…
The more pitiful I appear, the more likely Doyul is to sympathize with me.
That was why she had deliberately given the lapis lazuli norigae to the maid.
After all, it had been part of the wedding gifts sent from the North Sea Ice Palace.
Just then—
“The Palace Lord has arrived.”
A voice announced from outside the door.
Good.
From here on, she had to play her part perfectly.
Suppressing her nervousness, Yerin carefully stood up.
Creaaak.
The door opened.
Having washed and changed into fresh clothes, Doyul stood before her in neat attire.
And Yerin…
“Palace Lord, you’ve come.”
She lowered her head deeply, wearing the most timid, downtrodden expression she could muster.
Doyul looked down at her with a complicated expression.
“You don’t need to bow your head like that.”
“…But…”
“Miss Yerin, you are the woman who married me.”
Biting his lip slightly, Doyul let out a quiet sigh before continuing.
“So… I hope you won’t shrink back like that whenever you’re with me.”
“Yes, Palace Lord.”
Outwardly, Yerin nodded sadly.
Inwardly, however, she felt a little annoyed.
You just said I’m the woman you married… so why are you still calling me ‘Miss Yerin’?
Well, now wasn’t the time to argue about something like that.
Yerin quickly calculated her next move.
Still, things seemed to be going smoothly.
At least so far, she had successfully earned Doyul’s sympathy.
“Let’s go.”
“Ah, I’ll guide both of you to the Clan Head.”
Yerin’s maid stepped forward to lead the way.
Following behind her, Yerin quietly watched the maid’s fluttering sleeve.
Remote Object Manipulation.
A martial technique that allowed one to move objects through internal energy alone.
Normally, it was a profound ability only masters of extraordinary cultivation could perform.
Which meant…
With Dang Yerin’s body, which had never learned martial arts, attempting it should have been impossible.
I still can’t believe the daughter of the Tang Clan never learned any martial arts…
But only for a moment.
Yerin’s eyes gleamed.
Such a limitation meant nothing to her.
Who am I? I’m Baek Seolryeon, the Divine Ice Sword.
Even with the tiny trace of internal energy that every person naturally possessed, she could accomplish what she needed.
Besides…
She wasn’t trying to do anything spectacular.
She only intended to shake the sleeve where the maid had hidden the ornament.
I can do this.
Swallowing nervously, Yerin began circulating her internal energy.
The maid’s sleeve fluttered gently.
Clang!
The norigae finally slipped free and fell onto the floor.
Doyul glanced down instinctively.
His expression froze instantly.
“…This.”
He bent over and picked up the ornament.
After carefully examining the lapis lazuli and the golden knotwork, his voice turned ice-cold.
“Why do you have this?”
A little earlier…
As Doyul was on his way to bring Yerin, he was already in a terrible mood.
“Palace Lord, you really don’t need to personally escort Miss Yerin.”
“…”
“She has her own maid. I don’t understand why you’d trouble yourself with something like this…”
The maid following closely behind him had been repeating the same words over and over like a parrot.
Finally, Doyul stopped and turned around with a frown.
“Why have you been saying that this whole time?”
“P-Pardon?”
The maid’s eyes widened.
Doyul spoke slowly and firmly.
“Yesterday, Miss Yerin and I were married, and we shared the ceremonial wine.”
“Th-That’s true, but…”
“That means we are husband and wife, does it not?”
Despite his young age, Doyul’s voice was unwavering.
“As her husband, cherishing my wife is only natural. That is how I was raised.”
“P-Palace Lord…”
“So do not question my decision to go and bring Miss Yerin any further.”
With that declaration, Doyul resumed walking.
The maid could only follow behind him with an awkward expression.
