Upon his return to the manor, Heewon tiredly questioned why his clothes always got so dirty when he went out on his walks. It seemed like every time they left him alone, he'd get up to no good, always off doing his own shenanigans or getting involved in something dangerous.
"I just wanted to be alone, so I went to the forest." He shrugged.
Sooyoung raised an eyebrow skeptically, her gaze piercing. "The forest, really?" she questioned, her tone laced with doubt.
"Yeah?" His voice had a hint of defensiveness. "It's so peaceful there, the birds are always chirping, and the landscape is amazing. Unlike here there isn't a witch always screeching my ears off, I can actually hear myself think."
At that Han Sooyoung's face twisted into a snarl. Before she could spit out whatever nasty insult was brewing on the tip of her tongue, the Duchess interjected, her hand resting pensively on her chin. "Indeed, the forest can be tranquil," she mused. "However, my dear son, you should be cautious when venturing there." Concern filled her eyes as she directed her gaze towards him, her hands going back to wiping the dirt off his face as she was trying to before.
Puzzled, Dokja tilted his head "Why, Mother? What could be so bad about the forest?"
As the Duchess explained the dark rumors surrounding the forest about the murders and disappearances reported, Dokja wondered if anyone else had ever encountered Biyoo and Popo. Curiosity tinged his voice as he asked, "Do you know what kind of creatures are said to inhabit the forest?"
The Duchess let out a long hum, her hands clasped together as she finished cleaning his face. "No one truly knows," she replied. "But there are tales of those who've entered the forest losing their sanities upon coming back out, or never returning at all."
While the notion was chilling, Dokja couldn't help but doubt the accuracy of these rumors. Besides the headless knight, the creatures he'd encountered in the forest were all precious. Perhaps it was the headless knight that caused those stories…
-----
It'd been a week since his last encounter with Yoo Joonghyuk when Kim Dokja received another letter.
Dear Sir Dokja,
Would you be open to having a cup of tea at my manor again? I fully understand if you're preoccupied with more i mportant matters, but I'd much appreciate it if you could consider it.
-Lee Seolhwa
Dokja pursed his lips. Tea with Lee Seolhwa again? He'd love to maintain their friendship, but with Prince Joonghyuk always around the corner, it may not be possible. Being associated with her inherently meant incurring the risk of running into him again, and another meeting was the last thing he needed right now. He could probably make up some excuse to the heiress.
"What's that?"
"GYAH!" Dokja jumped out of his skin, not realizing that Sooyoung was by his side looking over his shoulder.
"Well, hello to you too," she said, grinning. Dokja tried moving the letter out of sight when she snatched it from his hands.
"Hey!" He tried to take the letter from her, but she planted her hand over his face, stopping him, and read the letter. When she finished, Han Sooyoung let go of his face, and Dokja took the opportunity to snatch it back, though she didn't put up a fight. "Don't read a letter that's not meant to you," he insisted, but she just rolled her eyes and sat on the chair. Taking a paper and pen, Dokja sat down to write his response. Sooyoung raised her eyebrows at him.
"What are you doing?"
"Isn't it obvious? I'm rejecting Lady Seolhwa's offer," Dokja replied while writing, not looking at her
"And why exactly would you do that?"
"Because I have other stuff to do". She guffawed at him.
"Other stuff? Bitch, since when did you become busy? The only thing you do is read on your balcony," she cackled, but Dokja ignored her.
He was surprised when she suddenly grabbed the letter he was writing and tore it up. "What the hell, Souyoung?!"
"Go have tea with her and don't be lazy, you bastard. Since you're on your whole self improvement era stuff it's the least you can do to make up for everything you made her put up with," she urged him, and threw the letter scraps into the trash can.
"No! What if the crown prince is there? Do you want me to get killed?!"
But she just played with her hair and looked at him blankly. "So what? You two always try killing each other, and you already apologized to him anyways. Just fucking go."
He wanted to shout in her face what an awful idea that was. He wanted to shake her shoulders. He didn't know if she was really his friend. Did she want him to die? "No, I'm not going," he said resolutely, and turned his back to leave.
"I'll let you read my new novels. The ones that haven't been published yet, you'd be the first to get them". Dokja froze where he stood and slowly looked back in her direction.
"…Really?"
"Yep, if you go and have tea with Lady Seolhwa, cross my heart and hope to die!". He squeezed his lips into a thin line, and his eyes narrowed. Should he take the bait or not? His life, or some stories he may never get his hands on?
What should I choose?
-------
"I'm glad you accepted my invitation, Sir Dokja" Lee Seolhwa said. He smiled at her.
He didn't know how he ended up here, he really should've thought this through better. Worst of all, Knight Heewon wasn't even accompanying him today.
Han Sooyoung had convinced her to stay back, saying that it'd 'ruin the dramatic atmosphere if she was looming in the background'. While Heewon wasn't convinced by that argument, Han Sooyoung eventually got the knight on her side by reassuring her that the Lee household would have adequate security, with the Lee family being almost as prominent as theirs. Han Sooyoung's novel had better be a magnumo pus to rival all other novels.
"Sir Dokja, have you heard the rumors about the Raven Veil?" Lady Seolhwa asked, curiosity lacing her voice.
[…Raven Veil, an infamous murderer that assassinated people in the darkness of night. While the populace had
largely believed it to be an urban legend at first, their doubts waned as the killings around town and amongst nobles
began to increase. No one knew of their identity, though some speculate that they may be a noble themselves.]
The killings had only begun the day that Kim Dokja had entered the world. At that point he had much more pressing matters to worry about.."I've only heard rumors here and there."
Lady Seolhwa nodded understandingly, "As of recently, I've been called in by the Seoul Empire itself to assist in the investigation by analyzing the bodies of the murderer's victims," she looked at her lap, downtrodden, "The state that the victims were left in… it's terrible…"
As the heir of a family of physicians and as a woman filled to the brim with empathy, seeing such a terrible sight must've had a deep impact on her. Skilled as Lee Seolhwa was, one of the criticisms her family had always thrown at her was that she was too connected to her patients, mourning the loss of one for days on end if she wasn't able to save them.
While she wouldn't weep and shut down completely, a somber air would cling to her like the plague during those times, following her as she continued working diligently.
A physician's job was to do everything in their power to stop the ailments affecting their patients, and if impossible to do so, to make them comfortable until their last moments.
This was a sentiment repeated over and over again to Lady Seolhwa, but she couldn't help but only focus on the first half of it. To then have her face victims that were long past saving…anyone would be affected, but her especially.
Dokja rested his hand on hers. "It's alright, you're trying the best you can. For now, let's pray for the victims and the safety of the kingdom," he tried reassuring her, a bit at a loss for the proper words to say. From what he'd read,
Lee Seohwa was the type of woman who never remained idle, always having her hands full with patients or researching ways to advance her skills. She found comfort in assisting the people that she could, whether it be under someone's request or of her own volition. So in a situation where she wasn't able to do anything more to help… no matter how lightly he put it, Lady Seolhwa would never be satisfied with such a scenario.
Despite his lackluster attempt to comfort her, she smiled back at him, albeit a bit worn out. He pulled back his hand when he saw the maids approaching with new tea and pastries. They placed them on the table and refilled the teacups before leaving. The two spent the next few moments drinking their tea in silence. While it wasn't necessarily awkward, remnants of the tense discussion earlier lingered.
"Oh, that's right, I have something to give to you, Sir Dokja". She searched her dress and the area around her, but couldn't find whatever she was looking for. "Sir Dokja, can you excuse me for a bit? I think I left it in my chamber."
"Of course," he said, and she stood up from her seat to go get her item.
While Seolhwa was gone, Dokja stretched out his legs under the table and leaned back in his chair. Honestly he was regretting his reluctance to come here in the first place, it looked like Lady Seolhwa just wanted someone to relax with after having gone through an intense experience. He considered thanking Han Sooyoung for convincing him to go, or at least he would have considered it had the notion been any less terrifying.
He could just imagine how long she'd hold it over his head. Though, upon properly reflecting on his visit here, Dokja couldn't help but feel a sense of tranquility at the whole situation. Here he was, able to have tea with one of the people he knew his other self would eventually draw the ire of. In his original world, Kim Dokja never had control over much of anything, much less his life. But coming here,he finally had the power to take his life into his own hands. Given, it wasn't exactly his life to begin with, but he'd take what he could.
From the corner of his eye, Dokja noticed a maid walking past the garden area, and for some reason she looked familiar, like he'd seen her somewhere. But he chose not to pay much attention to it, thinking that maybe he was just seeing things.
Seolhwa promptly returned to the table, clutching something in her hands. When she sat down, she presented the item to him. It was a handkerchief with the symbol of the Underworld Ducal sewn into the cloth. He couldn't tell for sure, but it looked like it could've been handmade.
Dokja reached for the handkerchief, admiring the detail. "This is beautiful, Lady Seolhwa. Did you make this yourself?"
"Yes!" Seolhwa seemed very proud of her handywork," The last time we had tea, I had to send you away because of His Highness. So, this is my peace offering for you," she finished, adding a sugar cube to her tea and stirring it in.
Dokja placed the handkerchief down on the table. "You really didn't have to do this, Lady Seolhwa, and besides, it would've been rude of me to intrude on your conversation."
She took his hand and looked at him sincerely. "Sir Dokja, I simply wanted to make a present for a fellow friend. Please accept it."
"I never said that I wouldn't accept it." he responded cheekily.
She chuckled and removed her hand from his, taking a sip of her tea. Dokja reached for the handkerchief, but when he looked at Lee Seolhwa, a look of terror overcame her face. She dropped her teacup, a loud shatter ringing through the garden as blood started spewing from her mouth. Heart in his throat Dokja leaped out of his seat and ran to her side in a panic, reaching her just in time to prevent her from hitting the ground. His arms cradled her head, trying to keep her upright so that she couldn't suffocate in her blood.
"Lady Seolhwa, stay with me! Don't close your eyes!". He shook her, trying to keep her conscious. She was getting pale, and her body wasn't moving.
"It...hurts. I...I can't...breathe," she choked out, and more blood spilled from her mouth.
"HELP!" Dokja screamed out, but no one seemed to hear him. So, he screamed louder. Luckily, a maid was passing by. "HELP!" he shouted at her, getting her attention. Her eyes widened, and she was just about to run over to them when Dokja stopped her. "GO, CALL A PHYSICIAN, NOW! He ordered. The maid nodded and dashed off into the manor.
"Lady Seolhwa, please, stay awake!" His heart was pounding against his chest, desperately thinking of what to do as he cradled an increasingly pale Lee Seolhwa in his arms. He could only try calling out to her each time she sputtered up more blood. By the time help had come, Lady Seolhwa had lost consciousness.