Wandering Through Vol. 2 Chapter 57 - Reunion

Yiseo had deliberately settled in the mountains because she could no longer blend in among people after her body became an empty vessel abandoned by the divine. 

 

Where there are people, there are bound to be spirits.

 

In these sparsely populated mountains, spirits were rarely seen, and even if a stray ghost occasionally wandered in, the talismans plastered all over her house managed to deal with them one way or another.

 

Life in the mountains was comfortable that way, but the world below was different.

 

Whenever Yiseo descended the mountain, she always had to be fully prepared—and even then, there had been several dangerous encounters.

 

To spirits, Yiseo’s body was far too tempting.

 

The moment she stepped down the mountain, she could feel the greedy eyes of spirits fixed on her. 

 

Dark, lustful gazes, dripping with desire.

 

Lately, she had grown careless from staying too long in the mountains. This gaze, filled with hunger, undoubtedly belonged to a spirit.

 

Just what kind of ghost had wandered into these remote mountains to stare at her like this? 

 

Yiseo prepared to scatter the salt from her pocket and glared at the space beyond the wall.

 

Behind the wall, something stood among the dense pine trees, staring back at her.

 

Their eyes met.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

The pouch of salt slipped from Yiseo’s hand and thudded to the ground.

 

The moment she recognized the man looking at her, Yiseo bit her lip, her face pale. 

 

Slowly, the man approached her. They stood facing each other, separated only by the wall.

 

“Who are you?”

 

‘He wouldn’t remember anything.’

 

Yiseo clung to that hope and forced herself to speak. Though her voice trembled at the edges, it was the best she could do.

 

The man’s eyes narrowed slightly. He stared down at Yiseo’s pale face and countered,

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking questions? Who are you, and why do you share my fate?”

 

His tone was menacing, but strangely, Yiseo felt relieved.

He had forgotten her.

‘He didn’t know who I was…’

 

🦋

 

“Ban. Stay up at the temple for a while. I need to speak with our guest.”

“But…”

 

After hesitantly sending Ban away, Yiseo sat across from Leegwang, who was seated on the wooden floor. 

 

Instead of looking at her, he kept his gaze fixed on the closed door and asked,

“Aren’t you going inside?”

“How could I carelessly enter a room with a man I don’t know?”

“You look cold.”

“I’m fine.”

 

Leegwang’s brow twitched. Whether displeased with her answer or not, he soon reached out and opened the door himself.

“Go in.”

“I…”

“I’ll stay here. Just go in alone. We can talk with the door open, can’t we?”

 

Yiseo hesitated at his uncompromising tone but eventually entered the room. It was indeed less cold inside than out, even with the door open.

 

 Once she sat down, Leegwang turned toward the room.

 

With the open door between them, facing each other from inside and out, she couldn’t help but wonder—what kind of absurd situation was this?

 

Was he… worried about her well-being?

 

Though his tone didn’t sound particularly worried…

 

Yiseo fell into brief thought before quickly snapping back to attention under Leegwang’s piercing gaze. She couldn’t afford to let her mind wander. She had to be cautious. 

 

Rapidly sorting through her thoughts, she chose her words carefully.

 

“I was concerned about the… affliction you’ve received, Your Highness.”

 

“A moment ago, you asked who I was. So you knew my identity all along?”

 

A flicker of frustration passed through her. Biting her lip, Yiseo admitted obediently.

 

“Yes. I know exactly who you are. That’s why I pretended otherwise.”

 

She glanced subtly at Leegwang’s expression. There was little change. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking. His eyes seemed slightly clouded, though.

 

“I didn’t want you to find out that I’d… taken your life force. I didn’t realize you already knew.”

 

“…”

 

“I never intended to take it from the beginning. Last year, when you were gravely ill, the divine energy you received left your body and descended upon me. I don’t know why, but it seems our lifespans became entangled, leading to this situation.”

 

“…”

 

“I’ve been searching for a way to undo it, but since there’s no precedent, it might… take some… time…”

 

‘Is he even listening?’

 

Yiseo met Leegwang’s pitch-black, gleaming eyes and struggled to continue before giving up. She could sense it instinctively—he wasn’t paying the slightest attention to her explanation.

 

Leegwang’s voice, low and restrained, cut in.

 

“What’s your name? And your family?”

 

“…Kim Yiseo. As for my family… I was cast out after failing the marriage…”

 

She trailed off, thinking that revealing her family might lead him to realize she was his former betrothed. 

 

It wasn’t entirely a lie, either. Her parents had practically treated her as dead and refused to acknowledge her.

 

“Yiseo, Yiseo…”

 

Perhaps it was because she had rarely been called by her name before. The way her name rolled off Leegwang’s tongue felt strangely unfamiliar.

 

“If you’ve been cast out of your household, then I suppose there’s no one to inform of your whereabouts.”

 

‘What whereabouts?’

Yiseo couldn’t understand why he was saying such things. 

 

Did he mean he would tell my family that I had stolen the Grand Prince’s lifespan? How would ordinary people even know about such a thing?

 

She cautiously replied,

“Yes. So if you must punish someone, punish only me—”

 

“I have no intention of punishing you. Either way, since your lifespan is now tied to mine, come with me. I’d be a little concerned about you descending the mountain in an empty vessel, but as long as I’m by your side, there’ll be no problem. I’ll protect you well.”

 

“…”

 

For a moment, Yiseo doubted her ears. 

 

‘What exactly had I just heard?’

 

His words felt like they had skipped over too much, leaping to conclusions she couldn’t follow. 

 

Countless questions swirled in her mind. Barely managing to grasp the most incomprehensible part of his statement, she pointed it out.

 

“Why… should I go with the Grand Prince?”

 

Only then did Leegwang realize what he had omitted. He parted his lips and spoke.

 

“If we share a lifespan, that makes our bond as intimate as that of a married couple. It’s only right that we live as husband and wife. Conveniently, the inner quarters of my residence are empty—you can move in right away.”

 

“…”

 

…Was it possible he remembered his past life?

 

Yiseo was flustered. So flustered, in fact, that her mind went completely blank, leaving her unable to form a single thought. She had no idea what to say.

 

From Leegwang’s perspective, with no memory, she must be a woman he’s seeing for the first time.

And not just any woman—a small, plain, unremarkable one living beneath a temple.

Why on earth would a grand prince bring such a woman home? Even offering her the inner quarters? Is this some kind of joke?

 

“Why… would you think that… How could…”

Even after speaking this far, Leegwang still wore an expression of utter confusion, as if he found her strange. He spoke bluntly and decisively.

“I like you.”

 

Yiseo was at a loss for words before finally forcing out her first response.

“…I have a crippled leg.”

“I know.”

“I’m already married.”

“Since you’ve been widowed, there’s no husband, is there?”

“My body is weak, and I can’t do anything.”

“I’m not asking you to work, so why does that matter?”

 

At Leegwang’s retort, Yiseo quickly added,

“I can’t bear children.”

“I was never fated to have children anyway.”

 

No matter what Yiseo said, he countered without hesitation. 

 

In the end, she had no choice but to ask him directly. Despite listing every reason why he shouldn’t take her in, why?

 

“Then why offer me the inner quarters?”

“I told you—I like you.”

“But how? Your Highness, you’re seeing me for the first time, aren’t you?”

 

Leegwang’s previously unwavering answer faltered. 

 

At his hesitation, Yiseo raised her lowered gaze. Their eyes met. Those pitch-black eyes, gleaming all this while, were now fixed intently on her.

 

…Come to think of it, she had once mistaken those eyes for a ghost’s.

The kind of gloomy, lustful gaze that belonged to spirits coveting her body.

 

For a moment, Yiseo wondered—could it be?

“Do you… desire my body?”

 

He was a man whose lust overflowed so much that even after going at it all night, he still couldn’t be satisfied. 

 

Yiseo, who had experienced it firsthand, knew that better than anyone.

Having tangled with him so many times, even if his mind had forgotten, his body might still remember and crave Yiseo.

The thought made Yiseo’s head turn cold, as if something finally made sense.

Perhaps the moment he saw her, his body had reacted. Maybe he had mistaken that physical response for his heart stirring.

 

“Isn’t your body also a part of you?”

 

Well, that was true. His answer drained the tension from her. Yiseo lowered her head and muttered,

“If you desired my body, you didn’t need to go that far.”

 

It wasn’t as if they had only slept together once or twice. She had already experienced things a proper noblewoman couldn’t even imagine. 

 

He had worn her down until she was raw, so what was the point of pretending to be an innocent who knew nothing of men now?

 

“I don’t want to follow you, Your Highness. My home is here—where else would I go? If this is the price for the life I stole, then I’d rather pay with my body. If what you want is my body, then I’ll give it to you for a night.”

 

Yiseo was certain he wouldn’t refuse this offer. 

 

Not the man who had greedily taken her body night after night.