Wandering Through Vol. 2 Chapter 54 - Reunion

Not long after the first month of the year passed, snow began to fall.

Leegwang lay listlessly on the wooden floor of the detached quarters, then lazily shifted his gaze when he noticed the outer gate opening. 

 

A blind shaman entered.

It was the Shaman of Seongsucheong. Without even stepping foot into Leegwang’s quarters, he quickly disappeared into the main house.

Leegwang’s eyes narrowed.

It had been a year since he had driven out his sickly wife and brought in a new one. From the very first night, the new wife in the main house seemed to hold a grudge against Leegwang for not coming to her, glaring viciously whenever she saw him. 

 

Of course, Leegwang also felt irritated every time he caught sight of her, so the relationship between the couple was extremely hostile.

Even if they happened to cross paths from a distance, their daily routine involved scattering salt outside their rooms, cursing the day as unlucky.

Leegwang often thought that if his food were ever poisoned, the culprit would undoubtedly be that woman.

He couldn’t understand why he had taken such a woman as his new wife. His previous wife had been frail and always stayed in her room—that seemed far better in comparison. 

 

This woman was pointlessly too healthy.

He frequently considered summoning an evil spirit to haunt her.

At first, even that felt like too much effort, and later, it became meaningless when she started coaxing the Shaman to her side.

No matter how troublesome it was, he should have just killed her early on.

Leegwang blinked sluggishly as he recalled the suffocating boredom of the past summer. Back then, life had been so tedious that he had often thought of dying.

But even dying felt like too much effort, so he just lay facedown in his room.

His memories before last summer were somewhat fragmented. 

 

In truth, ‘fragmented’ was an understatement—they were nearly empty. He remembered his family, the servants working in the house, and all the tasks he had done, yet strangely, he couldn’t recall how he had lived his entire life.

Since he remembered everything necessary, no one noticed the gaps in his memory.

Even the king seemed to suspect something was off, but he appeared pleased to see his ghostly younger brother sprawled lifelessly in his room, so he said nothing.

In fact, no matter what others whispered, the king often took Leegwang’s side.

 

If only he weren’t so bothersome, I’d dig into what he knows…

Just the thought of it was already irritating.

‘How annoying.’

 

Leegwang watched the snow falling from the eaves before raising his arm to shield his eyes. He had slept so much that he could no longer fall asleep easily. 

 

On top of that, lately, whenever he did sleep, he had such obscene dreams that waking up to change his wet pants was just another nuisance.

 

He considered meeting a woman, but even breathing felt like too much effort. He didn’t want to lift a finger. 

 

If this dull, tedious existence was what life amounted to, wouldn’t it be better just to die?

 

Since last summer, Leegwang had lived up to the rumors that he was the half-brother of the prince—no matter the time of day.

 

“Are you asleep?”

 

The voice was familiar. It was the palace maid who had slipped into his quarters without greeting him earlier. 

 

Without lowering his arm from his eyes, Leegwang answered slowly.

 

“Yeah.”

 

It was a dismissal, a clear go away. The maid understood immediately. Of course, that didn’t mean she left.

 

Sensing her lingering presence, Leegwang had no choice but to speak again.

 

“Go back to clinging to my wife like you always do.”

 

“…Do not insult the princess consort like that. She has never done anything improper.”

 

As if that was any of his concern.

 

Honestly, Leegwang wouldn’t have cared even if the royal secretary had kidnapped that sly woman from the inner quarters and run away. 

 

No, it wasn’t just that he didn’t care—he might have even opened the main gate himself and helped her carry away that troublesome body.

 

Once, while passing by the inner quarters, he saw the two of them standing far apart, exchanging what sounded like today’s fortunes. It seemed such a joyous occasion was still a long way off.

 

Now, Leegwang couldn’t even be bothered to answer and simply closed his mouth.

 

The presence of the royal secretary was annoying, but he thought the man would leave if he stayed silent. 

 

However, even after a long while, the royal secretary, who hadn’t left, spoke again.

 

“Aren’t you cold?”

 

Even though it was the middle of winter with snow falling, Leegwang’s attire was a sight to behold. The clothes he had hastily thrown on weren’t even properly fastened, leaving his body barely covered. 

 

Dressed like that, staying on the porch would have been perfect for freezing to death. The royal secretary spoke once more.

 

“Wouldn’t it be better to go inside and lie down?”

 

Leegwang had found the room stifling and had barely managed to drag himself a few steps onto the porch. 

 

Now, the royal secretary was telling him to get up from the porch and go back inside.

Ignoring the royal secretary’s words, Leegwang didn’t move an inch.

 

He wouldn’t have cared even if he froze to death. He didn’t feel particularly cold. Though his reddened fingertips and body seemed to be screaming from the cold, the sensations Leegwang actually felt were somewhat dull.

 

“Your Highness.”

 

The royal secretary hesitated before speaking again. But Leegwang, still sprawled out like a 

corpse, didn’t even twitch a finger.

 

“Don’t you think this behavior of yours is a bit strange?”

 

“…”

 

“Even an old man counting his days would be more lively than Your Highness.”

 

Even without a response, the royal secretary showed no sign of stopping. Eventually, Leegwang slowly retorted.

 

“So isn’t that fortunate for you? No matter how annoyingly you act, I stay still and quiet.”

 

If Leegwang had even the slightest will to overcome this annoyance, Gukmu would no longer be of this world. 

 

Perhaps from the moment Gukmu began frequenting the inner quarters, he would have been tied up with his wife and disposed of.

No one knew that fact better than Gukmu himself.

 

“…I say this out of gratitude for your kindness. The state of the Grand Prince is not normal.”

 

And what was he supposed to do about that?

 

Leegwang knew his own condition was far from normal. But he simply lacked the will to resolve it.

 

“The newly arrived Park Su at the Sacred Water Pavilion mentioned that one of her previous clients had a somewhat unusual fate.”

 

“…”

 

“She didn’t know how it was possible, but there was a lady who seemed to be living as if parasitic on someone else’s fate. That lady had been wandering around, searching for a way to resolve it. Park Su said she didn’t know the solution at the time and simply sent her away, but after coincidentally meeting the Grand Prince, she realized whose fate that lady was parasitizing.”

 

“…”

 

“It was the Grand Prince’s fate.”

 

Even after hearing all that, Leegwang remained unmoved.

 

Who would dare do such a thing—stealing a share of his lifespan? And honestly, to confront it…

 

He felt no attachment to life, so why should it matter if someone was sharing his fate?

 

“Perhaps the reason the Grand Prince lacks vitality is because of that very reason.”

 

Despite Gukmu’s words, Leegwang felt no urge to seek out the one sharing his fate.

 

Truthfully, he didn’t even bother to remember Gukmu’s warning. 

 

What was I supposed to do? 

 

Track down that person, uncover the truth, reclaim his fate—all that hassle seemed more tedious than simply dying.

 

Moreover, since the Shaman had mentioned it once, it seemed he considered his duty fulfilled, as he never brought it up again. 

 

Naturally, the topic easily faded from Leegwang’s mind.

 

The reason Leegwang recalled the subject again was near the end of winter. It wasn’t because he suddenly regretted his dwindling lifespan, nor because his lethargy had lessened. 

 

It was simply because…

 

“Your wife has disappeared, Grand Prince!”

 

…his wife had run away in the middle of the night.

 

She had meticulously packed the dowry items she had brought and made a clean escape.

 

“…”

 

Leegwang stared at the kitchen knife stuck into his desk in the sarangchae (men’s quarters) and briefly wondered whether it was meant to finalize their divorce or simply to curse him.

 

On the desk lay a jeogori (traditional jacket) with its collar cut off—a symbol of divorce—and the blade of the kitchen knife planted atop it gleamed coldly.

 

Honestly, he couldn’t care less whether his wife ran away, died, or whatever else happened to her.

 

But Court Lady Shanggung was rounding up the servants like catching mice, eunuchs sent from the palace were making a fuss, and people from his wife’s household were murmuring in anxiety.

 

Leegwang found all of it incredibly bothersome.

 

There was no sign of the commotion in the household settling down. 

 

Annoyed, Leegwang simply left. He had no intention of returning until things quieted down a bit.

 

After all, he had rarely stayed at home in the past anyway.

 

Once outside, he wondered what to do, and then the State Councilor’s words came to mind. 

 

Though he had grown lethargic, his mind hadn’t dulled, so Leegwang quickly remembered the place the Shaman had mentioned back then.

 

Coincidentally, it was outside Hanseong (old Seoul).

 

If he took his time going there and back, it would take quite a while—enough time for the household to settle down.

 

Leegwang rode his horse, moving even slower than walking pace, and leisurely left Hanseong. He didn’t even consider the possibility of the king panicking over the sudden disappearance of a grand prince.

 

The snow had melted, turning the roads muddy, but the snow in the mountains remained untouched.

 

As he climbed toward an unnamed mountain temple where his wife—the one who was supposed to share his fate—was staying, Leegwang debated several times whether he should just turn back.