TVBC 07

Chapter 7

A large blanket completely covered the child’s body.

Her body was so small that a single blanket was enough to cover her completely.

Ju Jeokseo wrapped the child tightly so that no cold wind could get inside, then stood up.

“L-Lord.”

Jo Yeong looked at the small, white-haired girl and asked in a bewildered voice.

“Are you taking that child with you?”

At his question, the man’s gaze turned toward the small child.

And after a moment,

he lifted his chin and answered.

“Yes.”

“But, she is wearing clothes from the Imperial Palace…”

Jo Yeong hesitated.

Ju Jeokseo knew what Jo Yeong was trying to say.

There were already rumors that the Emperor had almost gone mad because his favorite concubine had not woken up. Taking away a girl wearing Imperial clothing…

‘This could become the cause of trouble for Namto in the future.’

But.

How could he pretend not to see her?

‘I want to live…’

How could he ignore a young child desperately begging to live?

The child was so small that she could have been only five years old at most.

Her hands and feet were frozen, and her thin limbs were so frail that they looked as if they could snap at any moment.

Moreover, she seemed to have been abandoned here for quite some time. If they delayed any longer, she would certainly die.

Fortunately, her tiny heart was still beating.

But even that heartbeat could stop at any moment.

And besides…

‘White hair…’

Ju Jeokseo carefully touched the child’s pure white hair.

The white strands slipped softly over his thick fingers like snowflakes.

And that hair reminded him so much of…

‘Brother!’

Someone.

Because of that,

Ju Jeokseo could not bring himself to leave this child behind.

If he had found a dead child, it would have been different.

But he could not kill a child who was still alive.

Besides, hadn’t he seen it the moment their eyes met?

The flame of life burning inside those round eyes.

The tiny hand that tightly grasped his sleeve, as if telling him that she was still alive.

“I know what you are trying to say.”

“My lord…”

“But that crazy Emperor abandoned this child on my land. So now, she belongs to me.”

Ju Jeokseo gently slipped the warming stone he carried into the girl’s arms and whispered.

“I only picked up something that was abandoned on my land.”

No one could claim ownership over something they had thrown away.

Especially when they had abandoned it in someone else’s territory.

Even the foolish Emperor should understand such a simple rule of the world.

The warming stone he gave the girl was made from a Vermilion Bird feather. As long as someone carried it, it felt as warm as sitting beside a fire.

A soft red glow from the warming stone illuminated the area near the child’s chest.

Seeing the careful way Ju Jeokseo placed the stone inside the girl’s clothes, Jo Yeong realized that he had already made up his mind and nodded.

“That’s right. Surely, he won’t make an issue over something he abandoned.”

Jo Yeong hurriedly added,

“Besides, the Emperor probably doesn’t think this child is still alive.”

After saying that, Jo Yeong threw a Vermilion Bird feather onto the snow.

In an instant, a huge flame rose.

Whoosh!

The flames melted away every trace of the place where the child had been lying, then soon disappeared.

“Ugh, it’s cold. Let’s go, my lord. Goodness, with snow falling like this, how cold must this little one have been?”

He hurriedly prepared to leave, fussing around like a bird with its tail on fire.

“This child is lucky.”

“Yes, she is lucky.”

But was the one who had been lucky really this little child?

Or was it himself?

Unable to be certain, Ju Jeokseo simply answered and climbed onto the horse while holding the child in his arms.

Neigh!

The horse stamped its front hooves and gave a loud cry before running across the snow again, following the path they had come from.

On the back of the horse running as fast as the wind,

the child, who was experiencing warmth for the first time in her life, shifted slightly.

Baeksa was dreaming.

“You stole it! You took it!”

In the dream, Yeoryun glared at Baeksa with a furious expression and shouted.

Yeoryun was violently shaking an empty silk pouch.

The moment Baeksa saw the silk pouch, she immediately understood what was happening.

When Baeksa was five years old,

a hair ornament that Yeoryun treasured had disappeared.

It was a very beautiful ornament decorated with pink gemstones.

It was true that Baeksa had thought it was pretty, but she swore that she had never touched that hair ornament.

However, Yeoryun accused the girl of being the culprit simply because she had called Baeksa into her room the previous day.

“That was given to me by Father! It is not something someone like you can have!”

Baeksa’s eyes trembled helplessly in the face of Yeoryun’s anger.

“N-No.”

Baeksa shook her head while trembling.

“No, Sister. I really didn’t take it.”

“Liar! You lowly thing! How dare a snake like you covet someone else’s belongings?”

But instead of calming down, Yeoryun became even more furious and raged.

Then she stepped on and beat Baeksa, who had transformed into a small snake, without mercy.

Unable to run away, Baeksa simply curled her body up as much as possible.

That was the greatest defense the child could manage.

It had been the same back then.

And it was the same now.

There was still nothing Baeksa could do.

Even when the hair ornament was found in the corner of Yeoryun’s bed.

Even when her bruised body hurt and tears filled her eyes.

There was nothing Baeksa could do.

She had returned to the past, but that was all.

Baeksa no longer expected anything to change or become different.

If someone hit or stepped on her, the girl would simply curl herself up again.

And she would desperately wait for that time to pass.

As Baeksa curled up and tightly shut her eyes, Yeoryun’s voice slowly became faint and distant.

Soon, she would not be able to hear it at all.

Would she be able to feel at peace after that?

Just as she had once wished.

Without pain.

Without sadness.

Baeksa trembled as she thought that.

And finally, the moment Yeoryun’s voice completely disappeared—

“Gasp!”

Baeksa suddenly woke up, her face covered in cold sweat.

‘I-It was a dream…’

She had dreamed of Yeoryun.

But her entire body ached as if Yeoryun had really beaten her.

‘It hurts…’

She could not tell whether her body hurt or her heart hurt.

Baeksa instinctively curled herself up, but the moment she realized that the place where she was lying was unfamiliar, her body trembled.

“W-Where is this…?”

Where was this place?

Baeksa carefully searched through her memories.

Then the memories of the time she had been abandoned in Namto slowly came back to her.

The memory of being forced to walk through the snow by soldiers carrying spears and swords.

And the memory of the carriage leaving her behind, followed by the memory of herself collapsing alone in that place.

Then—

“I met someone… Ah!”

She had met someone from the Vermilion Bird Clan.

At the last moment, she remembered a pair of red eyes looking down at her.

And she also remembered someone placing something warm and round into her arms.

In truth, at the time, she had thought that was also a dream.

After all, there was no reason for anyone to come to such a harsh place.

And there was even less reason for anyone to save her.

But…

Baeksa gently touched the thick, warm cotton blanket covering her.

The blanket was filled with soft cotton. It was so warm and comfortable that simply touching it felt good.

It was different from the blankets she had used in the Imperial Palace.

There were no worn-out parts, nor were there any dirty stains.

‘Did that person… save me?’

And had that person covered her with this blanket and laid her down in this warm room?

Baeksa held the cotton blanket tightly, looking as if she did not know what to do.

She did not know if she was allowed to use such a clean and warm blanket.

When that thought reached her mind, Baeksa suddenly felt embarrassed for being covered by the blanket.

The girl hurriedly pushed the blanket away and tried to get up so she could sit on the bare floor where there was no blanket.

Just then—

Clack. Rattle.

The door opened with the sound of wood fitting against wood, and a stranger entered the room.

The woman opened her eyes wide the moment she saw that Baeksa was awake.

Then she smiled brightly.

“Oh my, you’re awake?”a