Jaesun: Justice - Part 2
Renascence
When Jaesun found out that Dongwoo had returned to the capital, she began to prepare her scant belongings to leave. However, Hoya came along to stop her.
“I thought I was only going to be here because Dongwoo wasn’t around to watch out for me,” she said.
“True, but I think you should stay,” Hoya answered. “He has things to do, for his family business and for the conspiracy. You’ll be better cared for here. There are more people to do it. Why leave behind the comfort of this place? Besides, if you stay, you’ll get to see me more often.” They both knew their time together was limited.
She sighed, defeated. “Fine. I’ll stay.”
Hoya leaned down, kissing her on the forehead, followed by her cheek, and then finally, on her lips, all with a gentleness belying his strength. “Thank you,” he whispered, holding her close.
***
She agreed to stay, but the whispers of the servants bothered her. There was already talk about whether Hoya wanted her as his mistress. As she had found out a while ago, his father was a duke. If he sullied his reputation, that would not bode well for either of them. She would be called a temptress, perhaps even a sorceress, never mind that she didn’t even have the magic to light a candle.
But she couldn’t deny that she wanted him. Even as her heart and mind yearned for him, so did her body. It made her feel impure and guilty.
One time, without thinking she had begun to undo his shirt lacings while they were alone in his room, her fingers skating along the skin of his exposed chest. Another time, they had all but undressed each other, only to stop before actually doing the deed. Even though Jaesun could have easily asked Hyora about magical means of preventing pregnancy, she knew that wasn’t the only inhibition. If they were found out, that would only cause trouble, and there would be emotional consequences for them as well.
Thus, they maintained their boundaries at kissing, though their hands did wander a bit at times.
***
Jaesun did her work for the conspiracy without much enthusiasm. It felt a bit mindless to her, lacking the thrill and excitement of field work. She did enjoy cracking codes and having the power to make some decisions, but ultimately she couldn’t really get into it.
The reports she got back from Seulhee were interesting for her to read, and despite her jealousy, she found herself feeling respect and admiration for her. Seulhee had to pretend to be deaf and mute, which was no small task. She was a commoner in a hellhole of nobles, a sheep among the wolves.
The girl seemed to have an acute eye for detail and a natural knack for analyzing people, and she puzzled out the interrelationships and dynamics of the council members quite well. It made Jaesun’s life easier since she had more material to pass on to certain people to go about driving wedges into the cracks of the council’s weaknesses.
Although Sungyeol was supposed to be something of a supervisor to Jaesun, he gave her a lot of leeway. In recent times he was often gone for something, and he said that he’d been called on to become a part of the team of mages that would take down the council’s hired mages. He would be participating in the battle to take back the palace.
She supposed she envied him, but at the same time, she worried about him. It was dangerous, the work he was doing. After doing all this desk work, she had grown cozy, a bit complacent, almost forgetting that lives were on the line. Before, she had conveniently ignored the risks and thought only about the excitement. Now that everything was converging on a final battle, the hazards of the conspiracy’s work were becoming all too apparent.
It was during this final stretch that she reconciled her anger and bitterness at not being chosen to enter the palace. She had put in her effort, regardless of where or in what form, and that was what mattered. Her sister would have been proud, she hoped.
***
When the day finally arrived, Jaesun couldn’t help but fret. Sungyeol wasn’t the only person she cared about who would be taking part in the siege. Hoya was going as well. He wouldn’t be in the front line of attack or play a major part in the fighting, but he was going since he might be needed for whatever he could do with his magic.
At the same time, she was excited. She, a mere merchant’s daughter, had played a role in this immense framework. She was helping save the kingdom, in her own way, even if she wasn’t personally attacking the council members and bringing them to their knees. Justice would be served.
It was this knowledge that had kept her going and kept her strong, that had helped her overcome her hatred and bitterness. The news of the operation’s success was almost anticlimactic to her, but she was filled with a mixture of pride and gratification and relief. The kingdom would return to its rightful state. She was almost free.
“I thought I was only going to be here because Dongwoo wasn’t around to watch out for me,” she said.
“True, but I think you should stay,” Hoya answered. “He has things to do, for his family business and for the conspiracy. You’ll be better cared for here. There are more people to do it. Why leave behind the comfort of this place? Besides, if you stay, you’ll get to see me more often.” They both knew their time together was limited.
She sighed, defeated. “Fine. I’ll stay.”
Hoya leaned down, kissing her on the forehead, followed by her cheek, and then finally, on her lips, all with a gentleness belying his strength. “Thank you,” he whispered, holding her close.
***
She agreed to stay, but the whispers of the servants bothered her. There was already talk about whether Hoya wanted her as his mistress. As she had found out a while ago, his father was a duke. If he sullied his reputation, that would not bode well for either of them. She would be called a temptress, perhaps even a sorceress, never mind that she didn’t even have the magic to light a candle.
But she couldn’t deny that she wanted him. Even as her heart and mind yearned for him, so did her body. It made her feel impure and guilty.
One time, without thinking she had begun to undo his shirt lacings while they were alone in his room, her fingers skating along the skin of his exposed chest. Another time, they had all but undressed each other, only to stop before actually doing the deed. Even though Jaesun could have easily asked Hyora about magical means of preventing pregnancy, she knew that wasn’t the only inhibition. If they were found out, that would only cause trouble, and there would be emotional consequences for them as well.
Thus, they maintained their boundaries at kissing, though their hands did wander a bit at times.
***
Jaesun did her work for the conspiracy without much enthusiasm. It felt a bit mindless to her, lacking the thrill and excitement of field work. She did enjoy cracking codes and having the power to make some decisions, but ultimately she couldn’t really get into it.
The reports she got back from Seulhee were interesting for her to read, and despite her jealousy, she found herself feeling respect and admiration for her. Seulhee had to pretend to be deaf and mute, which was no small task. She was a commoner in a hellhole of nobles, a sheep among the wolves.
The girl seemed to have an acute eye for detail and a natural knack for analyzing people, and she puzzled out the interrelationships and dynamics of the council members quite well. It made Jaesun’s life easier since she had more material to pass on to certain people to go about driving wedges into the cracks of the council’s weaknesses.
Although Sungyeol was supposed to be something of a supervisor to Jaesun, he gave her a lot of leeway. In recent times he was often gone for something, and he said that he’d been called on to become a part of the team of mages that would take down the council’s hired mages. He would be participating in the battle to take back the palace.
She supposed she envied him, but at the same time, she worried about him. It was dangerous, the work he was doing. After doing all this desk work, she had grown cozy, a bit complacent, almost forgetting that lives were on the line. Before, she had conveniently ignored the risks and thought only about the excitement. Now that everything was converging on a final battle, the hazards of the conspiracy’s work were becoming all too apparent.
It was during this final stretch that she reconciled her anger and bitterness at not being chosen to enter the palace. She had put in her effort, regardless of where or in what form, and that was what mattered. Her sister would have been proud, she hoped.
***
When the day finally arrived, Jaesun couldn’t help but fret. Sungyeol wasn’t the only person she cared about who would be taking part in the siege. Hoya was going as well. He wouldn’t be in the front line of attack or play a major part in the fighting, but he was going since he might be needed for whatever he could do with his magic.
At the same time, she was excited. She, a mere merchant’s daughter, had played a role in this immense framework. She was helping save the kingdom, in her own way, even if she wasn’t personally attacking the council members and bringing them to their knees. Justice would be served.
It was this knowledge that had kept her going and kept her strong, that had helped her overcome her hatred and bitterness. The news of the operation’s success was almost anticlimactic to her, but she was filled with a mixture of pride and gratification and relief. The kingdom would return to its rightful state. She was almost free.
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