Chapter 32: Heavenly Dragon Festival Part 3

(TN: The official under the gate will be changed to Under Councilor. Sorry for the mistakes.)

“It appears that the preparations for the Heavenly Dragon Festival have been successfully completed under the leadership of the Inbong clan. However, the health of the Heavenly Maiden continues to deteriorate… I’m not sure if she will be able to stand on the festival stage.”

The imperial council that was presided over directly by Emperor Woon Sung was the highest assembly within the palace.

While most practical agendas were settled at the level of high council meetings, significant issues that required the emperor’s direct attention often escalated to the imperial council.

Numerous high-ranking officials bowed their heads before Emperor Woon Sung in the audience hall of the main palace.

And Emperor Woon Sung looked down at his subjects with solemn eyes beneath his crown.

The three major civil officials: the Chief Councilor, the Central Councilor, and the Under Councilor. And the three major military officials: the General-in-Chief, Senior General, and the Vice General.

And behind them was a line of high officials bowing their heads and waiting for the emperor’s next words.

“The Heavenly Dragon Festival is an important event that prays for a year of prosperity and peace, but it may not be appropriate to have the Heavenly Maiden participate on stage to the harm of her health.”

“The headmaid of the Heavenly Dragon Hall reported that her mistress can manage to move, but exerting herself might lead to severe consequences.”

“The festival is tomorrow, and this is indeed a matter of great concern.”

Emperor Woon Sung’s expression darkened upon hearing the report from Chief Councilor In Seon Rok.

“Continue to monitor our princess’s health.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The court officials unanimously bowed their heads in agreement to Emperor Woon Sung’s command.

“Take charge of this Heavenly Dragon Festival, Head of the Inbong clan.”

Following the emperor’s order, Ha Gang Seok who was the head of the Inbong clan stepped forward with a bow.

“It is a profound honor to greet Your Majesty in person. Your Highness.”

“I have heard that the Inbong clan has gone through great trouble organizing this Heavenly Dragon Festival.”

“Not at all. As a servant to the throne, how could I hesitate to put effort into preparing the Heavenly Dragon Festival, which glorifies the majesty of the Cheongdo Empire?”

The Inbong clan was known for having members who were all too eager for power.

Emperor Woon Sung was not oblivious of this fact. He was someone who lived as a monarch for many years, so he had long developed an ability to see through people’s greed.

However, it was easier to manage those who openly harbored such blatant greed.

It made their actions somewhat predictable.

“The connection between myself and the Inbong clan runs deep after all. Ha Chae Rim, my beloved consort, comes from the Inbong clan and isn’t my beloved Crown Prince’s consort, Ha Wol, also a daughter of the Inbong clan?”

“We of the Inbong clan are truly humbled by your grace.”

Consort Ha Chae Rim held the position of the emperor’s fourth wife in the main palace. She had been the mistress of the Black Tortoise Palace when Emperor Woon Sung was the Crown Prince.

While she could not place people in key positions as freely as the Jeongseon clan did, she was able to establish great authority for the Inbong clan members just by being married to the emperor.

But compared to the prestigious Jeonseon clan, which had produced figures like Chief Councilor In Seon Rok, Vice General In Chang Seok, and the Vermilion Princess In Ha Yeon, the Inbong clan inevitably seemed lower in stature.

“Consort Ha Chae Rim and Consort Ha Wol also put much effort into preparing for this Heavenly Dragon Festival… I must personally commend their contributions.”

“Your benevolence overwhelms us.”

“Wol-ah, this Heavenly Dragon Festival presents a perfect opportunity to greatly enhance our family’s prestige.”

It was uncommon for members of the main palace to frequent the inner palace.

However, given the special occasion of preparing for the Heavenly Dragon Festival, there were frequent visits by outsiders to the White Tiger Palace every day.

Consort Ha Chae Rim who was Emperor Woon Sung’s fourth wife entered the White Tiger Palace as a distinguished guest and engaged in various discussions with crown princess consort Ha Wol.

Since they were both from the same Inbong clan and since she had experienced life as a crown princess consort herself, she had plenty of advice to offer Ha Wol.

Naturally, as was often the case with those from the Inbong clan, their intentions tended to be materialistic.

“When I was the Black Princess, opportunities to assert my authority like this were almost non-existent.”

“I heard that while preparing for this festival, Consort Chae Rim brought in a lot of support from the local nobles. There will probably be many street vendors and the fireworks are expected to be spectacular.”

“One must do at least that much. The expectations placed on you by the Inbong clan are immense, Wol-ah. You must not let your guard down, understand?”

White Princess Ha Wol nodded her head and observed Consort Chae Rim’s expression carefully.

With the Heavenly Dragon Festival scheduled for the next day after long preparations, there were many planned activities.

Hoping for a grand conclusion to the festival, the White Princess gracefully sipped her luxurious tea from the table.

-The Heavenly Dragon descends! Clear the way!

The massive Great Star Gates began to open with a heavy sound.

The gathered crowd of common folk began to clap and shout in front of the Great Star Gate and on the Heavenly Dragon Avenue.

This was the only time of the year when the palace was open to the public. Otherwise, they would never get a chance to see inside the palace.

People flocked to the Truth Insight Terrace. They were eager to catch a glimpse of the palace where the Son of Heaven, the Emperor, resided.

Of course, even from the Truth Insight Terrace which was only the entrance to the vast Cheongdo Palace, you couldn’t see the main palace where the Emperor lived. The mere fact of being able to enter the palace grounds was what mattered.

The sun was high in the sky.

It’s the day of the Heavenly Dragon Festival, a time to eat, drink, and be merry to bless the year.

From now until late at night, everyone forgets their worldly cares and concerns and indulges in loud and joyful revelry.

The Truth Insight Terrace was filled with all sorts of street vendors.

Festivals naturally attract money. Taking advantage of the occasion, merchants from all over the country set up their stalls and started shouting to attract customers.

Even if the entire Cheongdo Palace guards were assembled here, they couldn’t fill the Truth Insight Terrace so the sight of tens of thousands of commoners crowding in was truly a majestic scene.

The crowd was so large that it spilled out beyond the terrace into the Heavenly Dragon Avenue outside the Great Star Gate.

Everyone was full of laughter. Many were already tipsy from the daytime drinking and they were singing aloud, while women exchanged hairpins and men gambled or bought greasy meat to eat.

“Whoa, it’s already bustling!”

Yeon Ri climbed up beside me on the walls next to the Great Star Gate and exclaimed in admiration.

Indeed, everywhere one could see was packed with crowds. It was only natural that the capital would be bustling as people from the provinces who wanted to experience the Heavenly Dragon Festival for themselves had come in droves.

“There’s the stage! It’s really large!”

At the very back of the Truth Insight Terrace, a grandiose stage had been set up.

When night fell, the Heavenly Maiden would ascend this stage to bless the year and the organizers would release sky lanterns together.

At the same time, the people would release their lanterns and fill the night sky with a magnificent sight that would bring the Heavenly Dragon Festival to a close. The fireworks display was also spectacular. These alone drew people even from the border regions just to witness this event.

“That must be where the emperor eats!”

At the deepest part of the Truth Insight Terrace, an imposingly large tent had been erected. It was even larger than an average house.

This was where Emperor Woon Sung himself would enjoy a banquet. The area around it was strangely deserted.

Only about a hundred warriors from the Imperial guards were stationed around and keeping watch. On a day when the palace was open to the public, it was impossible for anyone to get close to the Emperor.

As the evening progressed and the festival reached its peak, Emperor Woon Sung planned to survey the site and raise a toast with his high officials. To prevent any unwanted incidents, not even a mouse could infiltrate that area.

“There are so many vendors! I need to take a look around before it gets dark and I start my work!”

“Yeon Ri, don’t you need to attend to your duties at the White Immortal Palace?”

“Of course I’ve taken care of everything that needs to be done! It’s a festival that happens just once a year; I can’t just stay cooped up in the White Immortal Palace!”

After that, Yeon Ri pulled me by the arm down from the walls and we wandered around the vendors while grabbing a heap of different snacks to eat.

Perhaps this was her reaction after only eating rice soup every single day, but she became overly excited and caused quite a fuss. Seeing her cry streams of tears after just eating one skewer of meat as if she had tasted the finest delicacies of land and sea was seriously pitiful.

Damn…

Next time, I’ll make sure to teach her what real gourmet food is…

After all, I don’t have much else to do until late in the afternoon.

While a warrior from the Red Palace might be incredibly busy, as I’ve said before, a warrior from the White Immortal Palace often holds a more ceremonial role.

I just needed to go up on the stage and cross swords with the Vermilion Princess at sunset.

However… the fact that the Vermilion Princess was involved made me endlessly uneasy.

Even if my body could rest, my mind had to remain alert.

That the Vermilion Princess had specifically called me to the stage meant that from that moment on, anything could happen.

“…You seem to be enjoying the festival quite thoroughly.”

“…I apologize.”

Warrior Commander Jang Rae might have seen me indulging in all sorts of food and his eyes were narrowed into half-moons.

From the perspective of the Red Palace’s warrior commander, he had so many places to guard that managing the personnel alone must have kept him extremely busy.

…Well, what can you do? Didn’t I make my motto clear before? I want to work less and earn more…

As long as I fulfill my duties as a warrior of the White Immortal Palace, the warrior commander can’t really interfere with what I do in my spare time.

“…It’s not a reprimand. You came on time.”

“Should I head to the stage this way?”

“Yes. Take one of my wooden tablets. Show it, and the guards stationed there will let you in.”

As the sun began to set, I moved deeper behind the stage and showed my identification tablet to the warriors of the Red Palace.

They inspected the tablet bearing the warrior commander’s seal and studied my face before reluctantly guiding me inside while sweating profusely.

Behind the stage, the area was filled with all kinds of tents.

Some tents were simple, while others were elaborately traditional. It was easy to tell which tents housed the distinguished guests just by looking at their exteriors.

By the time you reached the tents near the inner palace, each was guarded by about twenty soldiers. From here on, it seemed these were the quarters of high officials or their equivalents.

With the influx of outsiders during this time, it was crucial that no unpleasant incidents occurred. The warriors of the Red Palace were all on high alert.

After passing a series of impressive tents, I entered the largest one situated at the very back.

At this point, the structure was more like a building made of fabric than a tent. When I think about the people of the Inbong clan who prepared all of this, their hard work truly brings tears to my eyes.

I was guided by warriors from the Red Palace and entered a tent heavily decorated with Vermilion Bird embroidery.

Inside, the luxurious tent was filled with numerous maids from the Vermilion Bird Palace. Although it was a tent, it had three heavy doors and at least three or four guards stood guard at each one. The interior was also crammed with various pieces of furniture that were impressively large in scale.

After navigating through the many heavy doors, the owner of this grand tent, Vermilion Princess In Ha Yeon, finally made her appearance.

“I am Seol Tae Pyeong of the White Immortal Palace. It is truly an honor to stand on the stage with Your Highness today.”

I bowed my head and looked around.

I could see from where I was standing that the Vermilion Princess was sitting in a simply decorated chair and having her makeup done by Hyeon Dang’s skilled hands.

When she turned her head towards me, the Vermilion Princess’s face brightened momentarily as she recognized me.

“Oh… you! The… is…”

Her voice suddenly rose and then she grew embarrassed and quickly lowered it.

Clearing her throat and straightening her neck, she continued in a dismissive tone as if it were nothing.

“You really haven’t changed at all.”

“Yes, I am still lacking a lot.”

“It’s enough that you know.”

Her demeanor was oddly sharp as if she thought this was the correct way to behave.

She resumed having her makeup done by Hyeon Dang’s skilled hands and looked towards the mirror, but she kept glancing subtly in my direction.

I swallowed dryly and spoke.

“I apologize for interrupting your makeup. Now that you have seen me, I will see you on the stage above.”

“Wa-Wait a moment.”

“…Yes?”

I was about to bow and leave but the Vermilion Princess stopped me.

Then after examining me for a long time and letting out a sigh, she said,

“I didn’t even order you to leave, so how can you make your own judgment? You have no sense of hierarchy.”

“I-I’m very sorry.”

The Vermilion Princess began to act even more harshly.

Perhaps… she had her reasons for establishing such a strategy.

It seemed that the Vermilion Princess’s strategy to deal with me more harshly than others was her way of maintaining her emotional balance.

However, the side glances she threw my way seemed to probe whether her harshness might actually hurt me… but I wasn’t really bothered.

“…You are to take a real sword and ascend the stage.”

Her command left me momentarily speechless.

I do not wield a real sword against people. Even if I had to draw a sword in front of someone, it would only be directed at objects or animals.

“But …”

“Do you intend to refuse the order of the crown princess?”

“……”

“You really have no tact. How can you behave like this and expect to remain at Cheongdo Palace?”

The maids serving the Vermilion Princess swallowed dryly.

There was nothing good to be gained from angering the mistress of Vermilion Bird Palace. It seemed strangely odd that the usually kind and mature Vermilion Princess was being particularly harsh towards me alone.

However, Hyeon Dang nonchalantly brushed the Vermilion Princess’s hair as if it were nothing. It seemed she had guessed the situation quite well.

“Or is there a reason you cannot draw a real sword?”

“… Actually, I have a traumatic memory from my childhood of having harmed someone with a sword. It still haunts me.”

“…Tsk.”

The Vermilion Princess frowned.

It seemed that touching my raw nerve was bothering her, but she could not show sympathy right now which resulted in her current strange expression.

The Vermilion Princess truly steeled her heart.

Seeing her gritting her teeth and trying to push me away… I even felt grateful.

I see… damn… Vermilion Princess…

Perhaps the person who cares about me the most in the Four Great Palaces is… Vermilion Princess…

I felt tears of emotion welling up…

“You insolent fool. This time, on the stage, I must correct your baseless mindset.”

“I will try my best to show that I have no shortcomings.”

“…Just go away.”

I got up, bowed again, and then stepped out of the tent.

Indeed… she is the owner of the Golden hairpin and the most authoritative crown princess consort, the Vermilion Princess.

She is wise and more mentally mature than anyone else. She knew exactly how to conduct herself…

“Hooo…”

After stepping out of the tent, I took a deep, refreshing breath.

Looking up at the sky, I noticed the sun was setting.

“So far, there are no problems…”

Indeed, if it’s the Vermilion Princess…

I trust her…

I climbed onto the large stage and gripped the ceremonial sword.

The plan was similar to that during the birthday ceremony: exchange a few blows and then lose on purpose.

I also intended to put some pressure on her so that the Vermilion Princess could showcase her swordsmanship. This was something she would probably prefer more.

– Wow!

– Look at the stage!

No matter how open the venue was, it was impossible to allow people of noble status to be seen up close like this.

The stage for the Heavenly Dragon Festival was impressively large, but it was a considerable distance from the gathering place of the people in the public viewing area. One could barely make out the shapes of people from such a distance. This separation was necessary so that, in case anyone harbored malicious intentions and launched a hidden weapon or an arrow, the warriors could react in time.

While the excitement and festivity were important, the most crucial aspect was the protection of the noble people. This precaution was unavoidable.

– It’s the Vermilion Princess! She certainly has the appearance that befits the Vermilion Bird Palace!

Those sitting nearby were mostly high-ranking officials from the palace, and even among them, the participants were mostly officials of the high council.

The festive atmosphere was fully ripe with many participants visibly drunk.

The Vermilion Princess who was escorted by her maids ascended the stage and gripped her sword.

She then placed her hands together in front and bowed to the high officials.

“May this auspicious day herald the continued dominance of Cheongdo under the protection of the Heavenly Dragon throughout the coming year.

After delivering these formal words, she turned to face me and drew her sword.

With a flick of the sword tip, a sachet tied to the handle swayed once.

Her fingertips holding the handle… were trembling slightly as always.

When I saw that, I momentarily closed my eyes tightly and then opened them.

“I am Seol Tae Pyeong, a warrior of the White Immortal Palace.”

I raised my sword in its sheath and bowed my head in greeting.

Afterward, I slowly drew my sword.

On the opposite side of the stage stood the beautiful Vermilion Princess who received the attention of countless people.

A crown princess must not lose her elegance even when swinging her sword. The sight of her with her back straight and with the ends of her red robe hanging down was truly majestic.

Lifting my gaze to her fiery red eyes, I could see a golden hairpin nestled in her flame-like hair.

I took a deep breath.

If I attacked in earnest, the Vermilion Princess would not withstand even a single exchange. There was a need to hold back a bit.

However, overdoing it would hurt the Vermilion Princess’s pride. She had some skills in martial arts and took pride in that fact.

To test how sharp her senses were, perhaps I should make the first exchange a bit more forceful.

With that thought in mind, I took my first step.

And there was no need for a second step.

From a lowered stance, a single push was enough to leap right in front of the Vermilion Princess.

Her eyes widened suddenly at the quickly closed distance.

But the Vermilion Princess’s body responded accurately to my attack. She had managed to fend off a similar attack at the last birthday ceremony.

Clang!

The Vermilion Princess’s swift swordplay deflected my attack.

She gritted her teeth. Despite deflecting it, she seemed to struggle with the remaining impact.

But the skill at the tip of her sword had greatly improved.

Nearly a year had passed since last year’s birthday ceremony. During that time, the Vermilion Princess had not missed a day of training.

As if to prove her progress, the Vermilion Princess swung her sword faster than before.

Whoosh!

I stepped back to dodge the horizontal slice.

And knowing I would dodge, the Vermilion Princess stepped forward and raised her sword to strike. Her actions almost seemed like a continuous motion.

Swish! Whoosh! Whoosh!

However, the next several sword strikes all failed to reach near my body.

As she executed a few more sweeping strikes, it was clear that unless I intentionally allowed it, her sword would not touch my body.

I dodged the sword’s tip this way and that, and as if challenging her, I spun around and swung my sword horizontally.

Clang!

It was at that moment as the Vermilion Princess once again deflected my sword that the anomaly occurred.

Ssshh!

Whooosh!

“…What?!”

The Vermilion Princess let out a sharp cry and clenched her eyes shut as if something had been sprayed in her face.

Perhaps the sachet tied to her sword hilt had come undone. Yet, it had seemed securely tied.

Like a spell had been cast, the sachet unraveled on its own… and spilled its contents onto the Vermilion Princess’s face. The particles were so thin that even I who was standing close by barely noticed them. Those below the stage likely saw nothing at all.

Even though her face was covered in a dark powder from the sachet, the Vermilion Princess miraculously swung her sword and kept my movements in check.

“Guh…!”

I quickly jumped back to create distance.

I lowered my stance and gripped the hilt of the sword while watching the Vermilion Princess’ condition and preparing for any further attacks that might come.

However, the Vermilion Princess was not in a state to launch additional attacks.

“Guh, haah. Gah! Haah!”

Thud, thud!

The sound of the Vermilion Princess’s sword rolling on the ground echoed.

The high officials below the stage widened their eyes in shock.

The Vermilion Princess with her robe trailing behind her crouched down, grabbed her collar, and began to sneeze repeatedly.

“Haah… Haah… Gahh…! Hah!”

“…Lady Vermilion Princess?”

It was clear she was not in a normal state.

Soon her face began to redden and she fell to the ground as if she had become dizzy.

It could have been a temporary confusion due to the summer heat. Heatstroke tends to happen suddenly.

I quickly sheathed my sword and rushed to Vermilion Princess.

“Vermilion Princess, are you all right? If you’re feeling too dizzy, you should lie down on the ground!”

I quickly checked on Vermilion Princess; it was clear something was seriously wrong with her.

She was sweating profusely and it felt as if heat was radiating from her body.

When I looked into her eyes, the usually fiery spark seemed faint.

She looked at me with those clouded eyes … and started sneezing again.

“Haah, haah… haah…”

“You should come down from the stage. I will help you. Let’s go down quickly…”

“Haah… haah… haah…”

After a long bout of sneezing and struggling to keep her posture, I decided it was best to take her down to see a physician.

“…What is this strange scent…?”

Amidst it all, a peculiar smell lingered at the tip of my nose.

Feeling something was off, I quickly covered my nose with my sleeve and held my breath.

“Vermilion Princess, can you hear me? Vermilion Princess!”

“Yes… I can hear…”

“Do you recognize who I am? Please try to stand, Vermilion Princess!”

“Yes… I can tell… I can tell it’s you… from the White Immortal Palace… Seol Tae Pyeong…”

“Yes, that’s right! Let’s go down now, Vermilion Princess!”

“Yes… how could I forget you…”

“…What?”

A chill ran down my spine suddenly.

The Vermilion Princess grabbed my collar and lifted her head, then spoke in a whisper.

“I have never once forgotten you…”

Her usual authoritative voice was gone and was instead replaced by a trembling end to her words.

Her voice was so desperate…

It was fortunate that her voice was so weak so it likely wasn’t heard by the people outside the stage.

“Could you… hold me just once…”

“…….”

“The memory of being carried on your back that day on White Immortal Mountain… it lingers in my mind like a delusion and won’t leave… I clearly… didn’t want to say this…”

“…”

“I tried to forget, tried so hard… uh… ah… I was certain I had… but it seems that only made it worse…”

On the stage, with many people watching, the Vermilion Princess clutched my collar, lifted her head, and whispered with eyes that were incredibly clouded as if she was intoxicated by something.

It was clear she wasn’t in a state to make proper judgments.

I trembled once then had to swallow dryly.

This was…

If I didn’t keep my wits about me… I would die…

Swoosh!

I tried to let go of Vermilion Princess’s robe and step back, but she tightened her grip on my collar and her voice trembled.

“Stay… by my side…”

Even as she sneezed and struggled to hold onto her clouded mind, the Vermilion Princess whispered pleadingly to me.

“I order you … To stay by my side.”

“…”

Vermilion Princess In Ha Yeon was breathing hard and struggling to come to her senses… Her dim eyes were shaking.

She looked completely bewitched. As if she had lost all self-control.