I Decided to Give the Contract to the Male Vassal - Chapter 17

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

Chapter 17

With only about two weeks left until the wedding ceremony, it was naturally a question that could arise.

“I’ll arrange an opportunity to search the Yeomhwa Family, so please thoroughly investigate the Yeomhwa Family. That’s all I need.”

“What if I find nothing?”

“If you work properly as you have so far, that won’t happen. I’m willing to bet on it.”

When I answered firmly, Wicheonso let out a laugh mixed with a sigh, as if finding it interesting.

“A bet… Very well. I happened to need blood anyway, so let me work seriously.”

Recently, he had been finding apostates and persistently hunting them down to execute them. It meant he would do the same with the Yeomhwa Family.

“If you find apostates in the Yeomhwa Family, please request permission for the marriage from the Heavenly Lord.”

Wicheonso finally burst into loud laughter.

“What if there are no apostates in the Yeomhwa Family?”

“Then I’ll have to pay the price for dragging the Third Prince of the Heavenly Sect into this.”

When I didn’t avoid his gaze, Wicheonso’s eyes widened slightly.

“Very well. Let’s do that.”

It was the answer I wanted. Before I could feel relieved inwardly, Wicheonso’s large hand grasped my wrist.

“But what good would marrying me do for you, Miss? Do you want to become the Young Sect Leader’s wife?”

Curiosity hung in his blood-red eyes.

“That is…”

The next moment, his hand clasped mine.

He pulled me toward his chest while holding my hand. Our faces came close enough for our breaths to touch.

My heart pounded as if it would burst.

“I have no intention of forming a marital bond with you.”

A still cool smile appeared on his moon-bright face.

“That’s perfect. I only want to make you the Young Sect Leader, and I have no intention of continuing married life either.”

If he had wanted a normal married relationship, it would have been troublesome instead.

“I’ll temporarily take the position of your wife. I plan to break off the engagement at an appropriate time, and if you want, we can put this in writing.”

Only then did Wicheonso release me.

Perhaps because I had briefly shared breaths with him at close range, my heart wouldn’t calm down easily.

‘He doesn’t seem to know about the Mageyo sorcerer’s prophecy.’

If he knew that prophecy about the Heavenly Demon arising from the bloodline of Seolsan Jeokga, he wouldn’t have let me go so easily.

Since even my eleventh brother didn’t know this fact, I thought perhaps few people knew this truth except for the Sect Leader.

“But why did you specifically choose me? Miss Jeok seems like she could leave the Yeomhwa Family on her own.”

Wicheonso asked me with an even more dangerous smile.

“It’s a marriage personally overseen by the Sect Leader. There’s no way I could completely escape with my abilities. That’s why I need your power.”

This was a lie.

I could even manage to flee.

But my enemy was the Alliance Leader of the Heavenly Tiger Alliance, which could be called the opposite of Mageyo.

There was no place better than Mageyo to hide and observe the situation while making plans for the time being.

Moreover, I needed time to recover my martial arts.

But I couldn’t tell Wicheonso about these things.

So I gave an answer mixed with appropriate truth.

“If we marry, you’ll protect me for a while, won’t you? That’s what I want.”

“It’s not a satisfying answer, but I suppose I’ll have to gradually discover your real purpose.”

Wicheonso brushed his sleeves. It was as if he had conditionally accepted my opinion.

My racing heart regained some composure, though only slightly.

“Should I continue sending letters to you in the same way? It would be good if it’s a method that doesn’t attract attention…”

“I’ll send someone. You can give the letters to them.”

It seemed there was someone who could be called the Third Prince’s eyes in the Yeomhwa Family.

“I’ll do that. But when will the poison you put in the tea take effect?”

At the mention of poison, Wicheonso’s eyes curved gently.

“You noticed?”

“Though it was masked by the tea’s fragrance, I could smell the grass poison.”

I had gulped down the tea in one go despite knowing it contained poison in order to gain his trust.

And that thought had worked.

“The first attack will be in ten days. If you don’t take the antidote, the intensity of the pain will gradually increase, and by the fifteenth day, your heart will stop.”

“I should send a letter as soon as possible to receive the antidote.”

When I replied calmly, Wicheonso quietly filled his teacup.

“I thought you would be angry when you learned this fact, but you’re surprisingly calm.”

Then he savored a sip of tea that obviously contained poison. As if such poison was nothing to him.

“Because I would have acted the same way if I were you.”

So there was no reason to be angry. Rather, being under his surveillance was better for gaining trust.

“Well then, may I return now?”

“Please do.”

When he gave a signal, his subordinate entered.

It meant he would send me back to the inn across the street.

“I hope we can meet within ten days.”

Hearing his voice as dangerous as poison, I put on the veil I had placed on the chair.

❖ ❖ ❖

‘She would give me the Young Sect Leader position…’

It was a bold proposal that was hard to believe came from a woman who had supposedly lived confined in the Yeomhwa Family for a long time.

To be so confident that he wanted the Young Sect Leader position, just because he had taken in subordinates from Geukryeondang.

What was more surprising was that part of her words rang true.

‘To survive in the sect, there’s no position as secure as the Sect Leader’s.’

This was a fact that even the Sect Leader didn’t know.

Wicheonso pondered Chung-rin’s assumption while examining the remaining tea in his cup.

‘I didn’t expect her to drink all the tea even after detecting the poison…’

Even if it was to gain trust, it was a remarkably bold action.

He wondered how someone with that personality had been confined until now.

‘Why did she reveal her true nature only now, just days before the wedding ceremony?’

They said she lost her memory after falling into the lake – did she change her mind? Or was there a reason for it?

The moment he recalled her vivid eyes that caught his attention, someone who remained deep in his heart came to mind.

It was the person he had trusted most.

A being whose name he dared not even speak.

But those vivid and sparkling eyes – he would never forget them for the rest of his life.

Just remembering made his heart race madly and ache as if being squeezed at the same time.

Wicheonso soon shook his head and dismissed the thoughts.

If Chung-rin hadn’t mouthed ‘Baekah’ when he followed her after she fell into the lake, he wouldn’t have had such thoughts.

Aside from their intense gazes, the two people had nothing in common.

‘Marriage…’

If she had proposed a normal marriage, he would have refused immediately.

What she wanted was a temporary marriage contract.

This might not be a bad choice.

For him too, having a suitable marriage partner could serve as a shield.

Though he couldn’t trust Chung-rin yet, on the other hand, he became curious about what moves she would make.

She had essentially swallowed poison herself and handed him her lifeline, so giving her a chance would be fine.

When he made this decision, the presence that had disappeared outside Chungru had returned.

“Miss Jeok returned safely.”

It was Chungbeom, his trusted aide.

He confirmed that all the teacups on the table were empty.

“Should I prepare the antidote?”

“No, it’s not necessary.”

Chungbeom seemed inwardly impressed as he observed his lord’s condition.

While he figured that Wicheonso had built up resistance to most poisons through extreme training, he was still amazed that such a thing was even possible.

Chungbeom had also survived together in the hell that was Geukryeondang, but he couldn’t fathom where Wicheonso’s limits lay.

“Chungbeom. What are the chances that Miss Jeok is connected to the Heavenly Tiger Alliance?”

“The Seolsan Jeokga has maintained neutrality ever since revealing itself to the martial world. Since Miss Jeok has been confined in the Yeomhwa Family, the possibility of her being connected to them is slim.”

“But not entirely nonexistent, you mean.”

“The Heavenly Tiger Alliance has continuously sent spies to our sect. We cannot rule out every possibility.”

Being cautious by nature, Chungbeom precisely pointed out that he couldn’t be completely certain.

Wicheonso spun his teacup around and around before setting it back down on the tea table.

“Chungbeom. Continue monitoring Miss Jeok. If there’s anything suspicious, report it to me.”

“Yes, I will obey your command.”

As Wicheonso moved, his red robes fluttered.

“I’m going to Cheonmugung.”

Three years ago, the Sect Leader who had placed him in the position of Third Prince had finished his secluded training and returned to his throne.

The Sect Leader not only frequently checked his disciples’ loyalty, but also wanted to see their achievements with his own eyes.

Today would be another such occasion.

Yet Wicheonso wasn’t nervous in the slightest.

Rather, he moved forward boldly as if he had been waiting for this day.

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