Episode 98
On the very first day she arrived at Nagajang, Na Seo-yu had met Lady Min. But after that, she spent two whole days sitting blankly in her room, unable to do anything but wait.
And today, Lady Min finally summoned Na Seo-yu again.
It was the first time in two days since she had been left to languish as if she didn’t exist.
When Lady Min faced Na Seo-yu once more, she noticed how much thinner and more worn she looked in just those two days.
It was clear she had been through a great deal of emotional turmoil.
Casting a brief, sharp smile at that sight, Lady Min quickly resumed her stern expression and spoke.
“Don’t you even greet your own brother when you see him?”
At those words, Na Seo-yu glanced at the young man sitting beside Lady Min.
He bore an arrogant expression, a cold smile directed at her—and he was none other than Na Seo-hwang, her half-brother.
In this household, it was not the younger sibling who greeted the elder first; the sister was expected to initiate the greeting. Yet no one found this odd.
It had always been that way.
Forcing a smile, Na Seo-yu greeted him.
“So, Seo-hwang. How have you been?”
But no reply came.
Na Seo-hwang simply looked at her with a disdainful smirk.
When he remained silent, Lady Min asked Na Seo-yu casually, as if it were the most natural thing.
“So, have you given any thought to your marriage?”
The reason Lady Min had left Na Seo-yu alone for two days was to break her spirit.
Having observed her for a long time, Lady Min knew that the more Na Seo-yu was left alone, the heavier her guilt would weigh on her.
And now, no longer a child, Na Seo-yu understood exactly what Lady Min wanted.
So she answered quietly but firmly.
“No. I do not want that kind of marriage.”
A heavy silence filled the room.
Lady Min and Na Seo-hwang exchanged cold glances, silently glaring at Na Seo-yu, who kept her head bowed.
After a moment, Lady Min spoke softly.
“I see. So you intend to hold on to your selfish desires until the very end. Well, if that’s how you feel, there’s nothing I can do. You may leave.”
Na Seo-yu struggled to her feet, bowed her head, and left the room.
Lady Min and Na Seo-hwang watched her go with icy stares.
A moment after she left, Na Seo-hwang asked Lady Min.
“Why let her go just like that? Shouldn’t we slap her or scold her like before?”
Lady Min ground her teeth in response.
“Do you think I want to just let her go? I want to grab her by the hair right now. But isn’t she still a woman who’s been on the front lines? The look in her eyes last time was unusual—sharp, like a seasoned warrior. It wouldn’t be wise to provoke her recklessly.”
Na Seo-hwang scoffed.
“Hmph! Do you really think she’s some top-tier warrior? Even if she were, we could just call in some fighters to handle her. You’re just getting more scared.”
Lady Min soothed him gently.
“In situations like this, controlling the mind is more important than controlling the body. Let’s wait until she breaks her own spirit.”
Na Seo-hwang snapped.
“It’s been two days, and she still won’t give in! What if she stubbornly refuses and returns to the front lines? We’ve already arranged a marriage proposal with Salsangbang—are you saying we should cancel it?”
That was shocking.
Before even speaking to Na Seo-yu, the two of them had already arranged a marriage proposal on her behalf.
Lady Min smiled fiercely.
“Hmph! Don’t worry about that. They say people change when their martial skills improve? That foolish girl would never change. Just wait a few more days—she’ll come to me begging, agreeing to the marriage, pleading to see her father. You know how foolish she is, don’t you?”
Na Seo-hwang smirked.
“Hmph! She’s foolishly kind, and quite pretty too. If she weren’t related by blood, I’d have taken her for myself rather than let her go to someone else.”
Lady Min scolded him playfully.
“Oh, come now! You’re about to become the head of Nagajang—why waste your attention on such a lowly woman? You should be looking for someone who can raise you higher.”
But neither of them knew that someone was eavesdropping on their conversation from the roof above their room.
Hidden on the rooftop, Sunwoo Jin listened through his spirit technique.
He muttered softly.
“I rushed all this way, relieved there was no Cheolgwi, only to find two beasts instead.”
From his vantage point, Sunwoo Jin caught sight of Na Seo-yu’s weary figure as she slowly walked back to her room.
She was the only person he had ever truly cared for across his two lives.
For the first time in a long while, a fierce killing intent flared within him—directed at the people below.
Alone in her room, Na Seo-yu sank into thought once more.
Lady Min’s intentions were obvious.
She was using her father and Nagajang as leverage to control her again—this time, to force a political marriage.
The problem was, even though she knew this, she had no way to fight back.
“Father…”
She worried deeply about her father, who was too ill to move.
If only she knew how he was doing, or if she could at least see his face once, her heart wouldn’t feel so heavy.
She was on the verge of despair.
Of course, Na Seo-yu understood well that Lady Min was holding her father and Nagajang hostage to threaten her.
She knew she couldn’t give in.
But…
“Mother has taken Father and Nagajang hostage. What can I possibly do against her?”
For Na Seo-yu, the family’s well-being and her father’s safety were the most important things in life.
So the idea of causing turmoil within the family by opposing Lady Min was simply not an option.
She muttered hopelessly.
“Do I really have to marry?”
She even considered that maybe it would be better to accept the marriage and see her father, just as Lady Min said.
But…
“Jojang Seolpung, what am I to do?”
The image of Seolpung, the leader of the Jo clan, appeared clearly in her mind, making it impossible to accept.
Marrying anyone else was unthinkable.
Yet, at the same time, she felt guilty for not seeing her father because of her feelings for Seolpung.
Was she truly being selfish, just as Lady Min claimed?
She was overwhelmed and confused.
“To protect my family, I have to sacrifice myself.”
Even though she was an adult now, the idea Lady Min had drilled into her since childhood was hard to shake.
As Na Seo-yu wrestled with her thoughts, night fell once again.
It was already the third day.
Then—
Knock! Knock!
Someone knocked on her door.
Startled, Na Seo-yu was surprised because no one in Nagajang had tried to contact or speak to her since Lady Min’s orders.
Who could be knocking at this hour?
“Who is it?”
She opened the door cautiously—and was shocked to see someone she never expected standing there.
“Lord Sunwoo?!”
Sunwoo Jin smiled gently and put a finger to his lips, signaling her to be quiet.
Then he stepped inside her room.
Na Seo-yu whispered.
“Lord Sunwoo, what’s going on?”
“Actually…”
Sunwoo Jin told her about the Cheolgwi they had missed at the Fifteenth Station, explaining why he had come in such a hurry.
Na Seo-yu finally smiled.
“So you came to rescue me. Thank you, Lord Sunwoo.”
Sunwoo Jin returned her smile.
“It’s nothing. I couldn’t just leave you in danger.”
They shared a brief, warm moment, looking at each other.
Na Seo-yu sensed something different about Sunwoo Jin.
No, he had definitely changed.
In the past, if she smiled at him, he would have been startled and looked away.
But this time, he held her gaze steadily, his eyes deep and unwavering.
It was the first time since he entered the Seventh Division.
Na Seo-yu blushed slightly and looked away, feeling a little flustered.
She spoke hesitantly.
“Um, now that we’ve confirmed there’s no Cheolgwi, are you going back?”
Sunwoo Jin smiled again.
He found her embarrassment adorable, even though he didn’t realize it was the same thought she had always had when looking at him.
“No. We should stay a bit longer—there might still be something we haven’t found. And… I have something to tell you.”
“To tell me?”
Na Seo-yu asked, puzzled.
Sunwoo Jin’s tone grew serious.
“My father isn’t unconscious.”
Na Seo-yu blinked, not quite understanding.
“…What?”
Sunwoo Jin explained further.
“He can’t move his body, that’s true. But his mind is perfectly clear. In fact, he’s been asking if there’s any news from me—he misses me.”
“…What?”
Only now, as I finally understood Sun Woo-jin’s words, tears welled up in Na Seo-yu’s eyes.
Since arriving earlier, Sun Woo-jin had been quietly scouting around the Nagajang estate, checking every corner. He even followed Mrs. Min and managed to confirm the room where Na Seo-yu’s father, the head of the Nagajang family, was lying.
It seemed Mrs. Min hadn’t mentioned Na Seo-yu’s arrival at all, because they even overheard the head’s voice asking Seo-yu if she hadn’t received any letters.
Hearing that, Na Seo-yu covered her mouth with her hand, choking back sobs.
“How could this be…?”
Her eyes flickered with a storm of emotions—relief that her father was still conscious, anger toward Mrs. Min, and gratitude toward Sun Woo-jin.
Sun Woo-jin smiled gently at her and asked, “So, shall we go see him now?”
“…What?”
“I mean your father, the head of the Na family. If we go now, we can visit him quietly, without anyone noticing.”
Visiting him quietly and secretly—that was something Na Seo-yu had never dared to consider before.
“But… Mother said I must keep him completely stable.”
Sun Woo-jin shook his head and asked, “Do you still believe that? From what I’ve heard, it seems your father is actually quite heartbroken that you haven’t come. Seeing your face might even lift his spirits. And surely you’re not planning to wait until after that woman’s supposed marriage promise before you meet him?”
Na Seo-yu immediately realized he was right. If her father’s health wasn’t truly at risk from seeing her, there was no reason to heed Mrs. Min’s warnings.
With a clear expression, she nodded.
“You’re right. There’s no reason to worry about that anymore. I have to see him now.”
Sun Woo-jin grinned in response.
“Then let’s go.”
Without hesitation, the two of them slipped up onto the roof of the Nagajang estate.
Climbing the roof without being spotted by the guards was no challenge for Sun Woo-jin—or for Na Seo-yu, who had trained alongside him in the new martial arts techniques.
As they moved, Na Seo-yu suddenly spoke to him through their secret communication.
Sun Woo-jin smiled softly. He thought Na Seo-yu could sense the change in his mindset.
Feeling a bit proud, he asked with a hint of hope, “Me? How have I changed?”
Na Seo-yu hesitated briefly before answering.
“Ugh.”
So, he was still ‘the son’ for now. The taste was bitter, but he decided to find meaning in the change. After all, dropping the word ‘cute’ was progress.
Soon, they reached the door of the head’s room.
Two guards stood watch, but they were already nodding off. Sun Woo-jin silently approached and pressed a pressure point, sending them into a deep sleep—so deep they wouldn’t remember a thing.
Na Seo-yu’s heart pounded as she carefully opened the door and stepped inside.
There, lying under the covers, was a middle-aged man with a haggard face, fast asleep.
“Father…”
Tears immediately spilled from Na Seo-yu’s eyes at the sight of his worn appearance.
Fearing she might wake him, she moved cautiously to sit beside him and whispered softly. But even the slightest sound stirred him awake.
The moment he opened his eyes, he called out her name.
“Seo-yu, is that you?”
His voice was desperate, as if he had been searching for her even in his dreams.
Na Seo-yu, her voice choked with emotion, replied through tears.
“Father…”
At once, the tired expression on his face brightened.
“Seo-yu! It really is you! You’re really here! This isn’t a dream—my Seo-yu has come!”
“Father!”
They embraced tightly, sobbing for a long while.
Even Sun Woo-jin, standing guard outside, felt his eyes grow red at the raw emotion in their voices.
The father who had searched for his daughter even in dreams, and the daughter who had been too worried to come—both were overwhelmed.
In that moment, Na Seo-yu found herself missing her own father back at the Sun Woo household.
They cried silently together for some time before finally beginning to speak.
With a tender gaze, the head of the family asked, “Mrs. Min said you couldn’t come because of some circumstances. Have those been resolved?”
Na Seo-yu, unable to reveal the full truth, answered with a heavy heart.
“…There were urgent matters, so I came without Mother knowing. Please keep it a secret from her.”
He looked at her for a moment, then asked with a dark expression.
“Did she try to stop you from seeing me?”
Na Seo-yu couldn’t bring herself to answer immediately at the unexpected truth from her father’s lips.
He sighed deeply.
“Ah, so that’s how it was. Only now, lying here, do I see her true cunning.”
It seemed he had recently begun to suspect something about her.
With a look of sorrow, he grasped Na Seo-yu’s hand tightly.
“I only realized now, as I lie here, that she has been blinding me all this time. And now I can guess how much you must have suffered. You, my good daughter, must have kept quiet about her to avoid worrying me.”
“No, Father, that’s not true. I just… I just—”
But no matter how much she denied it, tears poured uncontrollably from her eyes.
Her father’s words, finally understanding her heart, broke down her defenses.
He wiped his own tears and asked again.
“Seo-yu, was it also a lie that you insisted on going to the front lines?”
“Sob!”
Na Seo-yu covered her mouth with her hand to stifle her sobs.
Three years ago, because of Mrs. Min, she had to go to the front lines instead of her younger brother.
At the time, her father had been furious, believing she was stubbornly insisting on going, based on what Mrs. Min told him. But Mrs. Min had cunningly prevented any direct conversation between them, so they never truly understood each other’s intentions.
Na Seo-yu had thought her father preferred her to go instead of her brother, but that was not the case.
Now, finally understanding each other’s true feelings, tears streamed down their faces once more.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, my dear Seo-yu.”
“No, Father. No.”
After another long embrace and tears, the head asked again.
“Then the letter you sent, asking to marry someone from Salsangbang—that wasn’t true either, was it?”
He had received a letter from Mrs. Min a few days ago, supposedly from Na Seo-yu, requesting to arrange a marriage with someone from Salsangbang.
Na Seo-yu shook her head.
“No, Father. I never sent such a letter.”
He sighed deeply once more.
“So it was a forged letter, imitating your handwriting. And I didn’t even realize…”
He had been deeply disappointed by the letter, which asked for marriage arrangements without even visiting him.
But it was all false.
Holding her hand firmly, he said,
“Seo-yu, you must marry the person you truly love. Neither the head of the Na family nor I will interfere. And if there is no such person, you can simply live with me.”
Moved by her father’s heartfelt words, Na Seo-yu nodded through tears.
“Yes, Father. I understand.”