Blooming even in the mud - Chapter 66

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Blooming Even in the Mud Chapter 66

“Does anyone have any idea what is going on?”
“Well, it doesn’t seem to be state affairs.”
Since the host had left his seat, the excitement of the banquet subsided somewhat. The guests, who were chatting in low voices, realized something was amiss before long.
The Butler returned to the banquet seating.
“My apologies, but this is a message from the Master stating that today’s banquet is adjourned.”
“Did something happen to the General?”
“A fire has broken out at the Private Residence. The flames are not being brought under control as easily as expected, so just in case, it would be best for you gentlemen to prepare to evacuate as well.”
“What? A fire broke out?! If so, this is no time to be sitting around!”
“Since the fire broke out in the Inner House, there is plenty of time for you gentlemen to evacuate.”
Only then did the guests hurriedly rush outside. In the distance, they could see the Pavilion of the Inner House—a place where they could not even set foot—burning fiercely.
Wang Jeong-mun also felt his drunkenness completely vanish.
“Goodness, how did such a thing happen…”
“I hope it doesn’t turn into a massive fire.”
Passing by the sighing guests, Wang Jeong-mun ran toward the Inner House. Shouldn’t he lend a hand in putting out the fire?
One by one, the guests followed behind Wang Jeong-mun.
Gyeong Won-ui had told them to evacuate, but they were people who not only owed him a debt of gratitude but also respected him. No one intended to just sit back with folded arms and watch the fire.
“Quickly! Quickly, bring more water!”
“Don’t spill it in your haste!”
“Are there no more buckets?”
The area near the Inner House was a scene of utter chaos. As the three-story Pavilion burned, hot smoke continuously licked the surroundings.
“Stand in line and pass the buckets in order! Those with empty hands, find anything that can be used as a bucket!”
Fortunately, Gyeong Won-ui took command of the chaotic slaves, and the confusion was brought under control to some extent.
“Chop down the wooden fences with axes so the fire doesn’t spread outside the Inner House! And you, explain the situation to the neighboring private residences and borrow some slaves to help extinguish the fire.”
Admiring Gyeong Won-ui’s composure for not losing his presence of mind even when his private residence was being completely destroyed by fire, Wang Jeong-mun also joined in.
He snatched an axe handle from a completely powerless servant and split a wooden fence. The split fence was cleared away immediately.
Sweat drenched him in no time, and hot breath surged up from his lungs. The flames of the Inner House were not being caught at all.
‘Still, since we’ve mostly cleared away things that could catch fire, as long as a strong wind doesn’t suddenly blow, it won’t spread to other parts of the private residence. The pond where we fetch water isn’t that far either.’
Wang Jeong-mun wiped his sweat with his sleeve and looked for the next thing to do.
Because he had that brief moment of leisure, Wang Jeong-mun did not miss the words mumbled by a maidservant.
“Yoo Seo-hwa! Is Yoo Seo-hwa not here? Have you guys seen Yoo Seo-hwa?!”
Yoo Seo-hwa. A single word used as a name that was absurdly trivial to call a person pierced Wang Jeong-mun’s ears.
‘When they were looking for the Princess earlier today, the slaves called her Yoo Seo-hwa too, didn’t they?’
It wasn’t a name likely held by two different people. Wang Jeong-mun grabbed the maidservant who was hurriedly searching the surroundings.
“Is the Yoo Seo-hwa you are speaking of a slave from the Sewing Room?”
“Yes, yes! Have you seen Yoo Seo-hwa?”
“Why are you looking for Yoo Seo-hwa here?”
“Actually, before the fire broke out earlier, Yoo Seo-hwa went into the Inner House on an errand. I thought she would have come out before the fire started, but no matter how much I look, I can’t find her.”
The maidservant replied incoherently with a face that looked ready to cry. Wang Jeong-mun’s heart dropped with a thud.
‘Her Highness is inside the pavilion? In the middle of those flames?!’
“That bucket! Give it to me quickly!!”
Wang Jeong-mun snatched a bucket being passed down the line and poured it over his head. In an instant, a cold sensation washed over him from head to toe, only to be vaporized immediately by the surrounding heat.
There was not a single second to waste. Without even having the luxury to wipe away the water droplets trickling down his forehead, Wang Jeong-mun dashed toward the burning pavilion.
“Ugh!”
However, his running steps faltered and came to a halt in front of the flames.
The fire was far more ferocious than it appeared from a distance. The heat swirling in the air was so excessively hot that it was difficult even to breathe.
If the external flames were to this extent, how severe must it be inside?
‘Is Her Highness safe?’
The imagination that Yoo Seo-hwa might already be dead firmly gripped his ankles.
‘No. I must not harbor such ominous thoughts.’
He tried to master his anxious mind and rush inside, but his feet faltered once again. He simply did not have the confidence to break through this demonic fire.
The entrance of the pavilion looked exactly like a path leading to the Scorching Hell.
“Master! It’s dangerous! You mustn’t, Master!”
Even before the servants’ shouts could finish, a tall figure ran past him.
Wang Jeong-mun blankly stared at the back of Gyeong Won-ui, who plunged without hesitation into the demonic fire where he himself had not dared to set foot.

In truth, to Gyeong Won-ui, the fire that broke out in the Inner House was not much of a problem.
The traces of his mother and sister who used to live there had long since weathered away and vanished over five years. No lingering attachments remained.
Even when he hurriedly arrived after hearing the news of the fire from the Butler, Gyeong Won-ui was perfectly calm.
“The weather is dry, so I should have strictly told them to be careful with sparks. It is my fault.”
“It’s fine. For now, focus only on suppressing the fire. No one must be harmed, so prioritize preventing it from spreading to the surroundings rather than forcing an extinguishment.”
The flames were fierce. It didn’t seem like it would be extinguished until the pavilion was completely consumed.
As long as no lives were lost and it didn’t spread to other buildings, it was fine. Just as he was thinking that, he heard the voice of a maidservant.
“Actually, before the fire broke out earlier, Yoo Seo-hwa went into the Inner House on an errand. I thought she would have come out before the fire started, but no matter how much I look, I can’t find her.”
Yoo Seo-hwa.
Even amidst the frantic clamor, that single name was heard clearly. The person indicated by that designation was—.
There was no time to ponder. There was no leisure to cross-examine whether it was true. He didn’t even think to ask other people if they had seen Yoo Seo-hwa.
The moment the circumstance that Yoo Seo-hwa might be trapped in the burning pavilion was perceived, his body was already leaping into the flames.
It was not a decision made after repeated thoughts in his head.
The moment he sensed her emergency, his body moved instinctively. As if that place was exactly where he was supposed to be.
Yoo Seo-hwa is in danger.
Everything else was meaningless to him at that moment.
“Her Highness!”
Without even realizing that he was addressing Yoo Seo-hwa just as he used to in the past, Gyeong Won-ui frantically searched through the pavilion.
“…!”
It was only when a charred wardrobe collapsed in front of his feet with a crash that he barely regained his composure. If he had taken just one more step forward, he would have been engulfed in flames.
Only then did he feel the excruciating pain of the terrible demonic fire biting into his lungs and scratching his skin.
As an emergency measure, he tore a piece of cloth from his sleeve and wrapped it around to cover his nose and mouth.
‘I should have at least doused myself with water before coming.’
It was a belated realization. However, when he learned of Yoo Seo-hwa’s situation, he had no luxury to exercise sound judgment.
Even so, turning back now to go outside the building to look for water was utterly absurd.
Gyeong Won-ui calmed his ragged breathing and gripped his hilt. The hilt, which had absorbed the heat, wrapped hotly around his palm as if it would cause burns, but he did not care.
“Her Highness! Are you safe!”
He shouted, hoping his voice would reach beyond the flames. There was no returning answer. All around, there was still only the sound of things burning fiercely in the raging fire.
He ran through the flames, striking down burning folding screens and furniture blocking his path with his Hwando. Thinking she might have hidden inside a chest or a wardrobe, he searched thoroughly, but Yoo Seo-hwa was nowhere to be seen on the first and second floors.
‘Is she on the third floor?’
There was a possibility she had evacuated upward to escape the fire.
Gyeong Won-ui swallowed a cough and ran down the hallway. Yoo Seo-hwa, who must have been in these flames longer than him, would be suffering far more.
He hesitated at the stairs leading up to the third floor.
‘The stairs look like they are about to collapse.’
The middle of the staircase engrossed by the demonic fire was burnt black and had collapsed. Although there was space left to step on the edge and leap up, it would surely collapse if his weight was placed on it.
If he went up this time, he might not find a way to come back down.
‘What does it matter if I can’t come down!’
Gyeong Won-ui leaped over the stairs without hesitation. Behind his back, the sound of the stairs collapsing with a loud crash echoed.
“Her Highness, Her Highness! Where are you?!”
Even as he called out anxiously, Gyeong Won-ui hoped she wouldn’t be here. For it would mean she was safe outside.
But in the last room at the end of the hallway, Gyeong Won-ui found Yoo Seo-hwa.
Paying no heed to the flames, she was sitting neatly on a chair with her eyes closed.
As if she were a person waiting for death.
Gyeong Won-ui hurriedly pulled off the piece of cloth covering his mouth and nose as he approached.
“…Her Highness.”
As she faced him, surprise mirrored in Yoo Seo-hwa’s eyes.
“Have you come all the way here to take my life? Even if you do not go to such trouble, the flames will soon claim this life anyway.”
“What?”
Yoo Seo-hwa’s gaze, staring blankly, was directed toward the Hwando Gyeong Won-ui was holding. Belatedly understanding the meaning of her words, Gyeong Won-ui set the Hwando down on the floor.
“This is no time to be doing this. You must evacuate outside quickly.”
This time too, Yoo Seo-hwa acted unexpectedly.
Instead of rising from the chair, she tightly clenched her hands clasped on her lap.
“I will not go out.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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