Surviving the Romance Fantasy

It was as if one of the party officials who had been fighting among themselves and playing with power until the end of the imperial capital’s destruction had disappeared.

– Boom, boom, boom!

Heukwoldae and its leader, Cheong Jin-myeong, were imprisoned, flogged, and had to pay for their crimes through long periods of hard labor.

They did not have to bear the serious crime of trying to kill the crown prince, but the fact that they were deceived by a disciple and almost harmed the crown prince was a serious crime.

However, Cheong Jin-myeong’s action of not swinging the sword at the last moment played a big role in preventing him from being severely punished.

In that way, Black Moon survived.

– Boom, boom, boom!

It’s been about a week since the assassination.

Early morning.

The underground prison of Taeokcheong was filled with sounds like heavy footsteps.

Not only the members of the Black Moon Team who were imprisoned in their respective dungeons, but even Cheong Jin-myeong, who was quietly bowing his head in the deepest part with his hands tied behind his back, had no choice but to open his eyes.

Soon, a young-looking boy entered through the deep darkness of the dungeon.

In that hand… was a bunch of keys that could open the dungeon.

“Black Moon Captain Cheong Jin-myeong, you are correct.”

When the boy came up to the bars where Cheong Jin-myeong was confined and confirmed his name, he responded by quietly nodding his head.

“My name is Bicheon, the lieutenant of Seol Daein of the main palace, Hyeongwoljang. Princess Cheondo examined the situation at the time and made a suggestion to the Emperor. “It is a great sin to have almost harmed His Highness the Crown Prince due to a once wrong judgment, but I will give you a chance to test your loyalty again.”

With that said, the apprentice warrior Bicheon unlocked the bars where Cheong Jinmyeong was trapped.

Cheong Jin-myeong, who was looking at that scene, could not help but believe his eyes. No matter how unintentionally it was concluded, I couldn’t believe that the person who almost harmed Crown Prince Hyeonwon was let go so easily.

“Belong to the active room and have your loyalty tested by Chief Hyeongwol. “I live my life serving Qingdao to the best of my ability.”

Hyeonghwalbang was a place where Hyeongwoljang Seoltaepyeong’s family members were gathered, and could actually be said to be his territory.

Black Moon Captain Cheong Jin-myeong and the members of the Black Moon Team under him were able to live with their lives under the command of Hyeongwol-jang.

It was a process of struggling to survive, but it is also true that he pointed his sword at Prince Hyeonwon anyway.

I couldn’t believe that I was able to survive despite committing such a high treason.

“Where is Hyeongwoljang…?”

“Be respectful. As of today, Chief Hyeongwol is Captain Blackwol’s superior.”

“…Where is the executioner?”

“I had some personal business to attend to, so I stayed at the concubine for a while. Captain Black Moon first heads to the active room. Of course, the Black Moon Team members are also with us.”

An active room spread out in the outskirts of the northwest of the ecliptic.

Heukwoldae, which was looking down at the place from the cliff of the surrounding hill, could not help but fall into a complicated mood.

The wide open plains cannot be called fertile even with empty words, and even if you look from a distance, all the people are skinny and look like poor people.

Most of the people who looked sane lived on a day-to-day income, so it was a waste of a place to call it a slum. It was more like a den of the poor.

After Seol Tae-pyeong came as the head of the village, he was able to make money by canceling the overdue taxes, but it is still a place where people who have difficult lives gather.

Even if you were at the lowest point in your life, you would not want to live in a place like this.

“This is now the headquarters of the Black Moon Team.”

– Boom.

Bicheon said as he put down various luggage on the floor with a “thud” sound.

There were a lot of various supplies and food that had been received under the direction of Hyeongwoljang.

Seol Taepyeong’s adjutant, Bicheon, looks young, but he has a somewhat sharp personality, and he does not seem to be discouraged even when facing the rather tough-looking Black Moon Captain.

It made me wonder if I had to have this much courage to serve a military officer of that caliber as my lord. His own strength was probably not normal.

“Be sure to have a view of the active room in advance. “There is a lot of work to be done.”

There is one building worth seeing from afar: the house of Hyeongwoljang Seol Taepyeong.

Most of the other things were shabby and looked like they were falling apart.

In order for the active room to function properly as a territory, a large number of technicians were needed, and it seemed that a lot of simple labor was also needed.

“The members of the Black Moon were originally people who wandered the border area and hunted ghosts, but I heard that in their original hometown, they were ordinary people who made a living using their skills.”

Among them, some were blacksmiths, some were gunpowder technicians, one or two were skilled in Taoist arts, and quite a few were skilled in woodworking and architecture.

“The active room is currently full of poor people without talent and uneducated farmers. “I can’t say it’s a good house, but I will give you a house you can live in and a few abandoned houses that can be used as a base… Please make this your hometown.”

“Is this what Lord Hyeongwol ordered?”

Apprentice warrior Bicheon lowered his head and spoke quietly.

“However, Great Seol, please give the Black Moon Team a new hometown. “I just instructed you to do so.”

Black Moon Captain Cheong Jin-myeong closed his eyes at those words.

After losing his hometown, he spent his life wandering around the world, being looked down upon as a ghost hunter.

I couldn’t find a place to settle down, and I couldn’t get rid of the Black Moon, so I lived a gray life that wasn’t here or there.

Without any family left, he lived a life filled with a mechanical sense of duty that ultimately required him to take responsibility for Blackwoldae.

If there is no such reason, is it because I can’t find any reason to live anymore?

Cheong Jin-myeong himself was a weaker person than expected.

“It is truly a place worth seeing.”

Early dawn dawns.

The sun always rises in this active room, which is neither fertile nor beautiful.

It is not a particularly hopeful scene, nor is it a heartbreaking and despairing scene.

As always, the sun rises without fail, and the people in the active room come out with their farming tools and head to their workplace.

That’s what living was like.

“I agree with that.”

Bicheon looked at the scene of the active room unfolding below the cliff and spoke as if it was no big deal.

“That’s why there is no place like this to call home.”

“…”

Although he wondered what that meant, Cheong Jin-myeong eventually nodded, feeling the wind blowing over his body.

If you have lost your hometown, all you have to do is create a new hometown.

However, creating a new hometown means creating a new foundation there, accumulating memories and memories, and building up the weight of your heart.

And, if you are stacking something, it is better to build it up from the bottom.

Even though it was an active room with nothing going right, I imagined that if it survived to the best of its ability under a proper monarch, it might become a fiefdom of its own.

The members of the Black Moon were probably also setting up their posts somewhere in this active room. There will be people who open workshops or something like that, and there will also be people who stand alone as the head of the household because they have a daughter.

If that happens, will there come a time when I look back on my life as a nomadic Black Moon member as a wanderer?

It is a sight that seems like a distant future, or a goal that can be reached in the near future.

“I see. “I have to admit it.”

However, Cheong Jin-myeong just looked up at the blue sky and smiled.

I once again remember the image of the military officer sitting on the wooden table in the mountain hut in the active room and smiling at Cheong Jin-myeong. Although he was an incomprehensible person, at least he did not seem to be incompetent or evil.

If you ask me if I am a person who is willing to show loyalty, I can only nod my head.

No matter what anyone said, one could only say that he was a natural for a monarch.

“I owe a big debt to my brother-in-law.”

The laughter burst out so refreshingly that it seemed as if the youthful feeling of looking at the open sky was exuding.

However, that refreshing smile only lasted for a moment.

The fact that there is a group that accepts you, a home to return to, and a place you can call home.

Does that fact make my heart flutter again?

Black Moon Captain Cheong Jin-myeong lowered his head for a moment and said nothing.

Only the wide open view of the active room was wrapped around his shoulders.

*

‘Did everything really end well?’

The assassination of Prince Hyeonwon, in which Captain Blackwol was involved, also seems to have been largely resolved well.

There were still some unsatisfactory parts, but those were up to Seol Taepyeong to resolve on his own.

Queen Jin Cheong-rang sat on the floor of the Cheongryong Palace, quietly intoxicated with the night air.

Jin Sookbi likes the sound of insects and frogs croaking in the garden when the sun goes down.

When you look up at the moon hanging at the end of the eaves, intoxicated by the sounds of the night, you suddenly get the illusion that time has stopped.

That dazed feeling of floating alone in a dark space, as if all is well in the world.

Does this mean that he is a hermit no matter what? As Lady Jin was someone who enjoyed quietly enjoying the feeling of floating, for the first time in a while the maids were gone and she was contemplating the solitude of the late night alone.

In any case, Seol Taepyeong rose to the high position of Hyeongwoljang, and by pushing out his disciples, he also snooped around the political scene at Cheongdo Palace.

There will be times when you cannot solve everything with force alone, and there will be times when you will have to suffer greatly.

In this Cheongdo Palace filled with the fishy smell of blood, will the honest man be able to pull himself together and survive?

“I’m worried.”

I had no idea that the words I mumbled would receive an answer.

“What are you so worried about?”

“Sobbing.”

Jin Sook-bi hiccuped at the familiar voice and quickly turned her head to see Seol Tae-pyeong standing in the yard.

Queen Jin, who was startled, quickly covered her dazed face with the sleeve of her palace robe.

“Seo, seo, Seol Tae… Isn’t it Seol Muin… How can you get to the Blue Dragon Palace without even saying a word…?”

“Aren’t you still holding the position of internal examiner? There are many other things to do, but I can easily get permission to go in and out of the concubine.”

“Yeah, that’s right… Still, I was a little surprised that he suddenly appeared.”

“We apologize for disturbing your rest.”

“Oh, no..! no! no! “There was no disturbance at all, so don’t worry.”

Jin Su-bi could not help but stutter uncharacteristically.

This is because it is the first time that Seol Tae-pyeong showed up to meet Queen Jin.

He felt some sort of fear from Lady Jin and would push her away. It wasn’t that he didn’t have any guesses, but his attitude was very heartbreaking.

When I was young, I was so hurt by Seol Tae-pyeong’s unfriendly attitude that I even shed tears in front of him. Now that I think about that time, I found myself kicking the blanket while I was sleeping.

“Seol, the military leader… did you come to see me…?”

“yes.”

At those words, Queen Jin had to quickly press down on Ha Guan with her sleeve. I didn’t even know what kind of expression I was making.

Most likely, he came because he needed to get a permit due to his work as an internal medical examiner. There was no need to get excited. Because Seol Taepyeong had never visited Queen Jin for personal business.

However, as Seol Taepyeong continued, Queen Jin had to hold her breath once again.

“I found some precious liquor at Cheonryongchae, so I stopped by to give Lady Jin a little taste.”

“…!”

…for personal reasons…!

This is why it can’t be more personal than this…!

Things that happen suddenly can cause a person’s cognitive ability to become impaired.

Queen Jin had a hard time deciding what to say as she flicked her eyes from bottom right to bottom left.

Meanwhile, Seol Taepyeong came up from the yard and approached the floor.

Hyeongwoljang, 3rd class bell.

Jin Suk-bi is still in a far higher position, but compared to the time when he was an apprentice warrior, the gap has become ridiculously reduced.

Unlike an apprentice samurai who could not even utter a word without kneeling and bowing his head, he could offer a mantra to his true concubine when he reached the age of Hyeongwoljang.

The speed of this man’s success was like that of a wild horse running across the plains.

“Is that so… because you were thinking about me…?”

“That’s right.”

who are you.

This opinion is fake.

He said those words to Queen Jin so refreshingly that the thought came to his mind.

However, in the eyes of Queen Jin, no matter how much she looked at it, the Seoltaepyeong that she knew was correct.

However… his expression seemed heavier than usual.

As soon as her eyes reached there, Queen Jin took a deep breath.

“…You don’t look good.”

“Is that so?”

“The matter involving the Munhagwan and the Black Moon University has been completed successfully, so why are you looking so serious?”

“…”

“The Seol warrior I knew was always full of confidence, had a young spirit, and had a manly expression.”

He was also a man who never visited Queen Jin for personal reasons.

However, I wonder if there was any change in the man’s state of mind… I was almost worried as I saw him treat Queen Jin calmly.

And, Jin Sookbi was a person with particularly good sense in these areas.

“…is it related to the Wolgui you said you killed?”

“…”

Have we hit the nail on the head?

Seol Taepyeong stood for a while and then poured the alcohol he had brought into the teacup next to him.

You may not think that pouring alcohol into a teacup is romantic, but when you actually pour it, the shape of the moon floating above it makes it look quite elegant.

After pouring the drink, Seol Tae-pyeong poured himself a drink as well.

It was unfamiliar to see him gulping down alcohol in one go, so Sookbi Jin also took a sip of the expensive and precious liquor.

Jin Sukbi didn’t particularly like alcohol, but even just looking at it, she could tell that something with a good scent was a very high-end product.

“It’s just… I’ve received a lot of help from Lady Jin in various ways, but I felt like I’d never posted a proper thank you note.”

“Did you have that thought in mind?”

“yes. “If you don’t express it when you can, you might regret it later.”

Seol Taepyeong said that, put down his drink, and quietly looked up at the sky.

Once the urgent situation was somewhat resolved, what remained in the corner of Seol Taepyeong’s mind was the fading smile of Yuegui Yoran.

The figure of Wolgui, who pushed his back until the very end, was probably Jin Sook-bi from a long time ago that he could not remember.

Yes. Jin Sook-bi was by Seol Tae-pyeong’s side again and again until the end, even in the midst of the spinning world.

However, since it seemed clear that those words were not good… Seol Tae-pyeong, who watched this, could not help but feel a bitter aftertaste until the end.

Therefore, Seol Taepyeong poured drinks for Queen Jin.

It may be meaningless. Jin Sookbi herself would just be confused.

Nevertheless, Seol Taepyeong spoke with an upright heart, even if only to put an end to this dull feeling.

“Thank you, Lady Jin. “The fact that you always believe in me means a lot to me.”

Seol Taepyeong looked up at the moon and said.

Queen Jin tilted her head at those new words, but eventually smiled and answered while holding her drink.

“Well, that’s a new thing to say.”

A night sky without a single cloud.

The light of the moon rising in the sky seemed to embrace the two people.

Finally, the next morning.

Cheong Jin-myeong, the commander of the Black Woldae, entered the house of Seol Tae-pyeong, the head of the Black Moon, dragging the Black Woldae, and knelt down.

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The members of the Black Moon Team, who were gathered in the yard, were all lowering their heads and pledging allegiance to Seol Taepyeong.

The entire Black Woldae, which was skilled in stealth and catching demons, was absorbed into Seoltaepyeong’s active room.

It didn’t take long for the news to spread to every corner of Cheongdo Palace.

‘Good…’

Princess Ahyeon, who was sitting in Cheonokjeong, also burst into laughter when she heard the news.

‘Now, in order to implement the next plan… I need to recruit Prince Hyeonwon…’

There isn’t much time. The urgent priority was to quickly elevate Seol Tae-pyeong to the position of general.

At that time, the head maid, Yi-ryeong, approached and asked.

“Princess. “If you’re staying at Cheonokjeong, would you like some tea and refreshments?”

“…”

“…Princess?”