THIRD POV
"Is there something troubling you? You don't look okay at all,"
Chaehwa observed the latter, her eyes narrowing with concern as she took in Jangmi's disheveled appearance.
The lines of worry were evident on Jangmi's face, her eyes were clouded with an indecipherable emotion and her posture slightly slouched.
The pianist took a deep, shaky breath, the weight of her decision heavy in her chest. She paused for a moment, her eyes flickering with a mix of apprehension as she carefully chose her words. "I've decided to stop,"
Without clarifying what she was speaking of, Chaehwa immediately grasped what Jangmi meant.
Without a moment's hesitation, the midnight-haired moved forward, enveloping Jangmi in a tight, comforting embrace. Her arms wrapped protectively around her, offering warmth and solace.
"It's okay, Jangmi," Chaehwa whispered soothingly, her voice soft and reassuring. "You don't have to carry that burden anymore."
After all, Jangmi decided to be merciful just this once as she finally placed an end to everything— she decided that Eunbyeol, Lady Minseo and Daeun would leave the Kingdom and start anew in a distant empire. Instead of imprisonment or harsh labour within the palace, she uses the favour she gained from Wooyoung.
Is that to give them the opportunity for a fresh start; but with a twist.
Jangmi arranged for them to work as labourers in a distant empire, far from the familiar surroundings of the Kingdom they dwell. All the businesses, remaining maids and the Kim Manor were officially under Hongjoong's name as how it used to belong to him. The tasks assigned would be challenging for them yet it was a chance for them to rebuild their lives outside the shadow of their previous actions towards Jemma.
The departure would serve as a form of penance and a chance for them to learn from their mistakes— a pursuit of redemption.
On which this marks, the end of her rage.
During this moment, she decides to finally break through the chains of vengeance and set not only her soul free; but Jemma's too.
Detangling herself from Chaehwa's embrace, Jangmi couldn't shake off the unease inside of her.
From the corner of her eye, she caught a movement by a figure, a woman with red hair.
Jangmi instantly casts her eyes on the floor-to-ceiling windows in the distance where she caught the sight of Young Miss Hongmo . Yet the moment their eyes met, the red-haired maiden scurried away from her sight.
A frown etched the pianist's face.
"Have you heard about a Young Miss named Hongmo?" Jangmi raised a question and Chaehwa furrowed her brow in response, "It seems like it, why?"
"Why is she still here?"
Chaehwa paused for a moment before she began, "She's from the Kingdom Keahi which explains her vibrant red hair, the Queen welcomed her to stay in the palace for a while as the journey back to her Kingdom is a long one." She pondered, "Why do you ask?"
Jangmi wanted to speak of the recent encounter, the sinister look Hongmo gave her after the hasty retreat, yet she decided to keep quiet.
"It's nothing,"
..
In the alchemy-lit room, Jangmi carefully measured ingredients, her focus unwavering.
The air buzzed with anticipation as herbs mingled under her touch, conducting an antidote.
An antidote that once given, marks the brink of her remaining days in the palace.
A soft knock disrupted her concentration. The door, ajar, hinted at a visitor. San stood there, holding a gleaming plant with petals that radiated through the dark room.
Jangmi's eyes met his as she ushered him to hand her the plant secured in a ceramic pot. They shared a conversation without words as his gesture spoke volumes.
Jangmi's fingers delicately cradled the ceramic pot as she turned to face him. "Thank you, San,"
With a subtle yet meaningful nod, he stepped away, leaving the room imbued with the segments of the cure for the Second Prince.
Jangmi finally decided to begin as she carefully selected hibiscus petals, each one glowing with a faint luminescence. She placed the petals in a crystal mortar, and with a silver pestle, she began the rhythmic process of grinding the petals. As they yielded to her touch, a soft, hum filled the chamber as she worked.
Jangmi then added droplets of dew collected from moonlit nights, each one glistening like liquid silver. She carefully poured the dew over the crushed petals, creating a mesmerizing concoction that seemed to radiate with an inner glow.
"By the moon's light, let this essence unravel and unbind the shadows of poison. As I say this, so mote it be,"
The room hummed with a quiet vibrancy as Jangmi carefully bottled the antidote. The liquid inside seemed to capture the very essence of moonlit nights and the healing properties of hibiscus.
As she left the chamber with the radiant antidote in hand. She purposely walks slowly towards Seonghwa's quarters, as if fastening her pace would also make their separation happen immediately.
She remembers to knock before opening the door before she approaches the Prince, who was sitting on the bed and facing her with his back, his head slowly tilting to the sides as it met hers.
She found herself settling without sharing a conversation with him. He knew what was bound to happen and just decided to accept it with open arms. With a small spoon, Jangmi measures the antidote before she lifts the silverware, offering it to the Prince before her.
Their hands briefly touch, a fleeting yet charged moment, as he consumes the antidote almost hesitantly.
Silence envelops the room, broken only by the soft clinking of the spoon. The antidote's healing trance begins to weave through his veins.
"It'll detoxify the poison within your body in no time," Jangmi utters with a steadiness in her voice, her gaze unwavering as it meets his. In the depth of her eyes, there's a mixture of concern and a hint of something more.
Jangmi silently gathered her belongings in the chamber, deciding to sleep to leave for the night and break the rules; which is to sleep in Chaehwa's quarters tonight. But suddenly there was a grip on her arms that took her red-handed.
And she looked up to see Seonghwa with a meaningful yet hesitant expression. And when he spoke, he spoke volumes of his yearning.
"Sleep here for the night," He reluctantly expressed.
Jangmi, teasingly, responded with a playful glint in her eyes, "Did you suddenly decide to admit you enjoy my company?" Her words lingered in the air, sarcastic as it seemed but deep down her heart still weighed heavy.
Seonghwa, still avoiding direct words, met Jangmi's eyes for a moment. He then gestured and softly mumbled, "Stay, only if you want,"
Jangmi cleared her throat before averting her gaze. She knew she does not have the heart to turn him down.
"If you insist," She settled into the indicated spot silently.
As they lay side by side in the bed, a palpable tension lingered. Neither dared to break the silence, and the weight of unspoken feelings created an awkward air between them.
The subtle rustling of sheets was drowned out by the pounding of their hearts, as the room held quiet anticipation, filled with a hesitant, unacknowledged love.
Seonghwa, feeling the weight of the unspoken tension, shifted to sit at the head of the bed. He gazed directly at the hazel-heard and broke the silence.
"Can we stop pretending now, Jangmi?" The room, once heavy with unspoken feelings, was pierced by his words.
Jangmi, caught off guard by Seonghwa's directness, furrowed her brow in confusion.
The air, thick with unspoken emotions, left her momentarily speechless.
"Pretending? What do you mean?" Her eyes searched his face for clues, uncertain of where this moment might lead.
"Let's stop pretending this act anymore, we both know who we are." Seonghwa persisted as he gazed deeply into her eyes, seemingly in search for familiarity into them. "You in front of me is the woman I moved mountains for, painted canvases for, went through every highest wall for, pierced my heart and bitterly cried for, The woman I have long been searching for. The woman whom I thought was long dead. The woman who saved me from the schemes of fate. The woman before me today is the woman I have always loved but disappeared. But now that fate brought you back to me, can we stop pretending and can I hold you in my arms again?"
..