Chapter 25
Honestly, she looked pretty.
But seeing her long arms and legs fully revealed, and her waist tightly fitted, made something twist inside him for no reason, and his mouth went dry.
“The clothes you usually wear suit you better.”
Un replied bluntly, like a mischievous child teasing a girl he liked.
He immediately worried that she might be hurt and was about to apologize, but Hari spoke first.
“Really now, my lord, you look better in your robe too.”
Hari clicked her tongue and turned away, her cheeks puffed out.
‘A rabbit.’
She said she was twenty. A grown woman, yet she kept looking as cute as a rabbit, and that was a problem.
It made him want to take care of everything for her, like she was a child.
‘Is it because of Seon?’
Un answered himself inwardly.
Maybe it was because he had a younger sibling around her age—maybe that was why he couldn’t take his eyes off her, why she seemed cute.
Still, he had to keep his boundaries.
“Let’s go. We need to finish before the curfew bell rings.”
Hari said as she walked toward the door. For today’s plan, she intended to follow Un.
‘He really feels like an expert.’
It was her first time seeing someone suit black clothes so well. His loose robe had looked good too, but unlike what she had said earlier, the perfectly fitted black outfit he wore now was truly striking.
With a sword at his waist, he looked like a deadly swordsman from a martial arts film.
Suddenly, Hari realized what Un had that she didn’t.
Just before reaching the door, she stopped and turned around.
“My lord, give me a sword too.”
Un paused.
“Do you know how to use one?”
“No.”
“Then no.”
Hari gave up easily. Even she thought it would be dangerous to give a sword to someone who had never held one.
Still, thinking long-term, she knew she would need one.
‘The country can’t protect everyone.’
She remembered the frightening rumor Maldong had told her earlier.
As she opened the door and stepped onto the stone outside, she said,
“My lord, after this is over, please teach me swordsmanship. I’ll pay you well. Ah! And also teach me how to ride a horse.”
Un looked at her hand gripping the wooden floor edge. It was small and delicate—unsuited for a sword.
“Instead of thinking about holding a sword, hire someone who knows how to use one well. Or rely on the state.”
“I can’t hire you every time. You said you’re busy. And what if I need it when you’re not around?”
Un tilted his head slightly. Beneath his long eyelashes, his dark eyes carefully examined her.
“What would an oejibu need with a sword? Are you planning something dangerous without telling me?”
An oejibu was someone who held a brush, not a sword.
She had never shown interest in weapons before, so her sudden insistence was suspicious.
Un frowned deeply.
“Are you being threatened?”
Hari raised her eyebrows.
She stayed silent at the absurd question, and Un’s expression darkened even more.
“Tell me. Do you feel like someone is watching you?”
He was serious.
If she let him misunderstand, it looked like he might run straight to the authorities, so she quickly shook her head.
“No. I’m just preparing for possibilities.”
“Ah…”
Relieved, Un stepped into the yard and looked at her.
“If you ever feel something strange, tell me.”
“Why? So you’ll teach me swordsmanship?”
Hari looked up at him, her eyes sparkling like stars in the night sky.
Un felt like giving in to her request, but quickly turned his head away.
“That won’t happen.”
If you learn something, you’ll end up using it.
If you know how to cook, you’ll cook. If you know sewing, you’ll end up sewing for others.
Wasn’t Hari already working as an oejibu because she knew the law?
If she learned swordsmanship, she would surely use it. And he didn’t want her, someone who saved people, to stain her hands with blood.
Hari pouted and complained.
“I said I’ll pay you. Didn’t you say Punguibang does anything for money?”
“That’s when it’s for strangers.”
“We’re strangers too.”
At her words, Un stopped abruptly. The warm air around him turned cold, like a winter field.
‘What? Did I push too much?’
But Hari had her reasons. It was because of the rumor Maldong told her earlier.
‘If he really refuses, I’ll find someone else.’
Was it Siyoung?
She didn’t know him well, but he clearly looked like a skilled warrior.
It might not be as comfortable as learning from Un, but she wanted to learn, so she didn’t want to overthink it.
“Alright, my lord. I won’t ask you anymore, so relax your expression.”
“You really intend to learn the sword? Then make time. I’ll teach you.”
“But you just said you wouldn’t.”
“You said we’re ‘strangers,’ so let’s call it a request. Even though I’ve helped you climb walls and hide, if we’re ‘strangers,’ then I’ll treat you properly like one.”
“Wait… are you sulking right now?”
Hari let out a small breath of disbelief.
A grown man getting upset over being called a ‘stranger’…
‘Why is that kind of cute?’
She didn’t know Un’s exact age, but he was definitely younger than the top lawyer Jung Hari used to be.
Still, since he was showing it so clearly, she had no choice but to comfort him.
Hari smiled slightly.
“I was joking.”
“A joke? Then what are we?”
He turned quickly and stepped closer. His eyes, now right in front of hers, were filled with expectation.
Hari pressed her lips together.
Usually, it was either stranger or lover—but there was no chance of that kind of relationship between them.
From the beginning, Hari had no intention of dating or marrying in Joseon.
‘I’m already tired of men.’
So that left only one option—not stranger, not lover.
“Friends.”
Hari clapped her hands softly.
One of Un’s eyebrows twitched.
“Friends. What could be better than that? Let’s be friends.”
“I’ve never had a woman as a friend.”
“Have you had one as a lover?”
“No!”
Un answered quickly, his neck turning red.
“That’s not important. From now on, we’re friends, so give me a discount on your fee.”
Hari spoke quickly, satisfied with her conclusion. It was a win-win situation. Her steps felt light.
Also, having taken off the heavy layered hanbok, her body actually felt lighter.
Un watched her walk ahead and let out a hollow sigh, then smiled faintly.
‘A woman as a friend.’
It was a rare and unexpected connection.
They say you can buy a house with a million coins, but a good neighbor costs ten million.
And yet, such a precious friend had come to him on her own.
‘Then I’ll teach her the sword for free.’
Friends don’t exchange money.
‘And I should find her a proper sword.’
Giving a gift to a friend was perfectly fine.
Un thought of many things he could do with his new friend.
Walking beside Hari, he asked,
“But why do you suddenly want to learn the sword?”
“Haven’t you heard the rumor? That women are disappearing on the first day of the month?”
Hari told him in detail what she had heard from Maldong.
On the night of the first day, when even the moon did not rise, a beautiful woman disappeared.
And after some time, a bundle of her hair and blood-soaked shoes were delivered to her home.
People kept quiet about it, and the authorities did not investigate actively, so it wasn’t widely known—but according to Maldong, there were already more than four victims.
This was also why Maldong had stopped writing the sequel to Inspector Story.
“I’m going to write a story about this case.”
Since summer was coming and the 사건 was shocking, people would be very interested. She said she would earn a lot of money and even make clothes for Hari.
‘She said it like she wanted money… but Maldong is actually afraid this case will be buried.’
The victims were courtesans, concubines, servants, and illegitimate daughters.
‘If they had been noblewomen, Hanyang would have been in chaos.’
