A Lingering Sickly Scent

The carriage quickly arrived at the marketplace Prince Eighteenth mentioned.

“I will return soon, so please wait here for a moment.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

“Ahem… if you feel tired, you may rest inside the carriage.”

The way he kept staring at my lips while saying that immediately reminded me to stay alert around him at all times.

From now on, I absolutely could not let my guard down in front of Prince Eighteenth.

Seeing me stay silent, he smiled and stepped out of the carriage. The door briefly opened, letting me see the building he entered.

It was an apothecary.

“….”

I assumed he had some important reason for coming here, especially since he said this visit was originally planned for tomorrow. Still, once I was left alone, my thoughts naturally drifted back to the incident at the lake.

What exactly happened back there?

There had been several huge explosions, then Prince Eighteenth’s guards immediately surrounded our boat.

After that, Namgung Hwi and Yeon Ji-oh’s boat approached ours under the excuse of seeking shelter.

Honestly, it annoyed me that they came directly toward us. But logically, running toward heavily armed martial artists during danger was the smartest move.

Still… something felt strange.

The explosion itself was suspicious enough, but Namgung Hwi bothered me the most.

Even stranger, Namgung Ha-ryang and the others on the boat had barely reacted despite the dangerous situation.

Normally, subordinates should rush to protect their Young Patriarch during an attack.

Instead, all of them stood frozen, staring only at Namgung Hwi’s back.

I remembered Namgung Ha-ryang’s devastated expression and frowned.

The look on his face had nothing to do with the chaos around them.

It felt connected to the explosion somehow, but I couldn’t understand how.

My thoughts drifted to the way Namgung Hwi had stared at me earlier.

I sighed heavily and forced myself to stop thinking about it.

Why he looked at me like that was none of my concern.

Back then, he ignored me every time I tried speaking to him.

Now that we were basically strangers, his sudden interest felt ridiculous.

I shook my head firmly, trying to erase the image of Namgung Hwi showing more emotion today than he had in the last five years combined.

Then suddenly, loud shouting came from outside the carriage.

“…not!”

“…please!”

The marketplace was crowded, so overlapping voices weren’t unusual.

But this clearly wasn’t a normal argument.

Curious, I reached for the carriage window to open it.

It wouldn’t move.

“Young Master.”

“Jin-cheong?”

Right. Jin-cheong and Yeo-ui were outside.

Because Prince Eighteenth’s guards forced them to stay far away earlier, I had briefly forgotten they were here.

Happy to hear his voice, I tried opening the window again.

It still wouldn’t budge.

“You must not open it, Young Master.”

“…What’s happening outside?”

“If possible, please cover your ears as well.”

My ears too?

His sudden warning confused me, but if Jin-cheong was saying this, there had to be a reason.

I immediately covered my ears.

“I covered them.”

“Do not remove your hands until the carriage door opens.”

“Good heavens!”

“Aaagh!”

Before he could even finish speaking, horrifying screams rang out outside.

The screams were full of pain.

“Jin-cheong!”

“Do not worry about me. I already sent Yeo-ui back to the bureau for something important, so please focus on your own safety, Young Master.”

“….”

How was I supposed to stay calm hearing screams like that?

I tried opening the window again, but it was clearly being held shut from outside.

“Are you sure everything is alright?”

“Yes. It will be handled soon, so please do not worry.”

“Alright.”

The way Jin-cheong spoke made me instinctively stop asking questions.

And honestly, it was obvious this was connected to the lake incident.

I suspected it before, but I never expected the attackers to follow us all the way into the city.

Still, since Jin-cheong sounded calm, I tried not to panic.

Taking deep breaths, I attempted to steady myself.

Then a loud voice suddenly echoed through the street.

“Every person connected to this establishment will be investigated! Anyone found aiding them will be punished for treason!”

Treason?

Connected to this establishment?

At first, I thought they were catching the attackers from the lake.

But now it sounded like they found an entire hidden network connected to them.

As I tried piecing together the situation outside, more screams echoed through the street.

I flinched repeatedly.

Then suddenly—

—the carriage door swung open.

The instant it did, a heavy metallic smell flooded the carriage.

“Ugh!”

The scent was overwhelming.

I quickly covered my mouth as nausea hit me instantly.

“Young Master? Are you alright?”

Prince Eighteenth hurried back inside and wrapped an arm around my waist to steady me.

Unfortunately, that made things worse.

The horrible metallic smell was coming from him.

I pushed against his chest frantically.

“The smell… it’s… ugh!”

I had never smelled anything so nauseating before.

I tried pushing him away harder, but his grip around my waist remained firm.

“Drive the carriage away immediately!”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

The carriage jolted forward at once.

But moving away didn’t remove the smell trapped inside.

If anything, the shaking only made my stomach worse.

I kept dry-heaving while Prince Eighteenth rubbed my back, trying to calm me down.

“I was careless. Once we leave this area, I’ll open the windows. Please endure a little longer.”

“….”

I understand, so hurry up already.

The smell and constant nausea drained my strength frighteningly fast.

Eventually, I went completely limp against Prince Eighteenth’s chest.

Just as my vision started blurring, fresh air suddenly rushed into the carriage.

“Huuu…”

“Are you feeling better now?”

The windows had only just opened, so obviously I wasn’t completely fine yet.

Too exhausted to answer, I focused on breathing slowly until the horrible smell finally faded.

“Haa…”

“I was too focused on dealing with the attackers and failed to care for you properly. I apologize.”

“No… it’s alright.”

Honestly, none of this would’ve happened if those attackers never ambushed us in the first place.

I shook my head weakly—

—and then suddenly realized my current position.

“….”

I truly had been too weak to support myself.

But this situation was unacceptable.

I clearly remembered sitting on the carriage seat earlier.

Now somehow—

—I was sitting directly on Prince Eighteenth’s lap.

Speechless, I immediately tried escaping his arms.

Or tried to.

“Let us remain like this until we reach the bureau. I fear you may become sick again otherwise.”

This position is causing me more distress than anything else.

Unfortunately, the person holding me was Prince Eighteenth. I couldn’t openly argue with him.

I clenched my robes tightly, swallowing my irritation, but he only tightened his arms further.

“I thank the heavens for allowing me to hold you like this.”

“….”

“From now on, I will remain by your side and protect you.”

The problem wasn’t even the words themselves.

It was the fact that Prince Eighteenth was completely trapped inside his own romantic fantasy.

Every time I tried moving away, he held me tighter.

Just as my patience reached its limit—

—the familiar scenery of the Mangeum Bureau appeared outside the window.

The carriage stopped.

“My Lord, we have arrived.”

“…Young Master Seo-yul still hasn’t fully recovered. Drive around once more.”

What?

I was about to protest immediately when a familiar voice sounded from outside.

“Did something happen to Yul, My Lord?”

“Brother?”

Startled, I looked toward the carriage door.

My older brother stood just outside.

“Yul, are you alright?”

“…I’m fine.”

Using that chance, I immediately escaped Prince Eighteenth’s embrace.

I expected him to stop me, but perhaps because my brother was nearby, he finally let go.

As I straightened my clothes and prepared to leave, I glanced back at him.

“Target locked.”

Prince Eighteenth stared silently at the hands that had been holding me moments ago.

He slowly clenched and unclenched them several times before letting out a deep sigh.

Seriously… reacting this strongly over a simple hug was unbelievable.

“It feels like a dream.”

Well, you’re never getting that dream again.

I firmly promised myself to never lower my guard around him again.

A faint smile appeared on Prince Eighteenth’s face.

“Open the door.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The door opened immediately.

As I stepped out of the carriage, I instantly saw my older brother standing nearby, staring at me intensely through the thin veil covering my face.