Requiem of Subdued Souls

Chapter 128: Harp Case (13)

Seol Young was dumbfounded.

“High Governor! Hyo Wol!”

Baek Eon and Song Ok hurriedly ran to them.

“What is this? What happened inside?”

“Eu…”

Hyo Wol got up from the floor.

“The High Governor…”

His white clothes were stained with blood, and seeing that, his face turned blue. It was the first time Seol Young saw his third hyung make such a face.

But it made sense because of everything that happened in a short amount of time.

Being stuck inside the box, the arrow that Song Ok shot a couple of days ago returned, and right at that time, Zaha jumped in and blocked it.

Hyo Wol couldn’t help but be shocked, and he had every right to be.

Hyo Wol looked at his clothes.

“Great-rang, this isn’t my blood. The High Governor is injured because of me!”

“I know.”

Baek Eon turned to Zaha.

“Let me take a look at your wound.”

“No need.”

Zaha refused. It must be because he couldn’t show his body to anyone. They shouldn’t find out he was dead.

Didn’t it have to be looked at though? It was an arrow that was strong enough to kill a person inside the harp box, so how huge would the wound be?

Seol Young was shocked and was about to walk toward them when Zaha shouted,

“What are you doing, Seol Young-rang? That treasure is here!”

He was conscious of the Ministry of Justice’s presence.. Seol Young came to his senses at his shout,

‘Right!’

Zaha intervened and ruined the causality. And as the power of causality was broken, there was a possibility that the harp box would collapse.

They shouldn’t miss this chance.

Zaha outwitted the opponent while watching the blood flow.

“I understand.”

Seol Young hurriedly moved there and grabbed the harp box with all his might.

He didn’t even have to use his spiritual power.

The top was open, and it lost its power. All it held was its shape, and it broke when he touched it.

At that moment, Seol Young’s right wrist felt a shock, and he felt that the evil force that took control of a part of his consciousness had taken a hit.

“Ah, it broke.”

Said Seol Young.

“…?”

The Pavilion Head stared at him.

She was also shocked at two people being stuck in the harp box and one of them being injured. But even in the midst of that, she kept observing Seol Young.

‘Why is he delaying this? Can it be that he can’t solve this case?’

With such doubts, she continued to look for a loophole in Seol Young’s movements, but in the end, he managed to solve it.

The harp box, which no one in the shrine could do anything.

The evil thing that refused to budge even after calling the best people to exorcise it.

It shattered from Seol Young’s touch.

As promised, they destroyed it at the right time.

So what could she say?

She was speechless.

‘Is it over now?’

Seol Young quickly went to where everyone was and checked if there were any problems left.

Baek Eon insisted on helping Zaha, and eventually, he allowed him to help, so Baek Eon cut a part of his clothes off and used a familiar powder and herb mix that was on him to stop the bleeding.

“The wound isn’t as deep as I thought, but it will hurt for a while.”

While Baek Eon was healing his wounds, Song Ok went somewhere and got a black robe. It seemed like he planned to put it on Zaha’s bloody clothes.

“Almost done.”

The official, who didn’t belong to either side, was watching them all with wide eyes.

‘Ah, we need to be careful.’

Seol Young had nothing to do now, so he went over to the official and asked,

“Where did you hear that this harp box killed a person?”

“…?”

The official hesitated,

“So, while I was looking for the death record of the official Hwan Jong of the Great Heavenly Pavilion, I thought it was strange….”

“And?”

“And then I was informed of what I just said….”

“Who informed you?”

“…”

The official looked shocked, like he couldn’t recall what had happened.

‘As I thought.’

Seol Young nodded.

Some unknown force must have done this.

“Well.”

The official didn’t know.

“But it is true that there were questions regarding the death of the official. Contrary to custom, he was immediately cremated without a funeral. Didn’t the Pavilion Head know this?”

Would the subordinates move without the order of their head?

The official seemed to want to confirm that.

“…”

The Pavilion Head silently looked like she was lost in her thoughts.

‘But seeing this…’

When the official brought up the story of the dead heavenly official, Seol Young had a question.

‘Who shot the arrow that killed the heavenly official?’

Wasn’t the Pavilion Head thinking the same thing?

She watched this entire thing happen right from the start. Originally, she would have received something from the heavens to help her out.

She had been handling things for decades now, so she must have guessed that there was a connection between Song Ok’s archery and Hyo Wol’s accident by now.

‘If someone shoots the harp box, someone will die after a while.’

If she had thought about it until there…

Then her memories would go back to what had happened a few days ago.

Before the death of the official.

Who shot the harp box?

Looking at her face, it seemed like she understood it.

“…!”

Her complexion noticeably changed, and her eyes moved to a certain place. The officials, who hadn’t understood what had happened, were standing there with frightened looks on their faces.

She gazed at them, and everyone else also looked at them.

And it could be guessed enough.

The Great Heavenly Pavilion head.

She was the one who brought the harp box out and tried to do everything perfectly by ordering her people so something bad wouldn’t happen.

So she must have made the necessary preparations before that.

And an arrow was shot? Wasn’t it an unsightly display in front of the King and Queen?

Couldn’t one of the officials under her test it?

Of course, they were all just speculations.

But her eyes seemed to say that those guesses were right.

“…”

When she noticed Seol Young’s eyes on her, she suddenly came to her senses.

Seol Young, Zaha, the White Tiger Troops, and the other Hwarangs were here.

Everything that happened was enough for the Hwarangs to know the truth, and she just realized that it was too late.

When she didn’t say anything, the official turned to the Hwarangs.

“Wasn’t it strange? Was there a slight suspicion from the Hwarangs?”

The Pavilion Head was shocked, and so were the people under her.

What if everyone learned the truth?

“Looking at the Hwarangs…”

Seol Young opened his mouth instead of his hyungs, who were busy treating the wound.

“The real cause of the death of the official….”

“Seol Young-rang! Be quiet! Do not speak…!”

“… it is exactly as it appears on the death record.”

“…”

The Pavilion Head tried to control him without even listening to his words and went silent at his unexpected answer.

Seol Young just said what he wanted to say and shut his mouth. Of course, he thought about the dead official.

The official died first, so it helped them understand what would happen next, and it could be said that the official died to help the others.

Seol Young made a promise to his soul that he would definitely reveal the injustice and help him.

But back then, he knew nothing, and now he couldn’t help but ask,

‘Does the deceased really want the truth to be revealed?’

Maybe not. So he decided to stay silent.

“…”

And the Pavilion Head didn’t expect Seol Young to do that.

-One of their own was killed by an arrow shot by one of their own.

It seemed like she thought he would reveal that or at least hint at it to everyone, making everyone question them.

Considering how she had treated the guy over the years, she couldn’t blame him.

‘But…’

Seol Young frowned a little.

Still, would he do it?

Besides, didn’t she see it?

He almost lost two of his hyungs at the same time because of the harp box.

‘Now matter how much you look at me, I am a human.’

Seol Young glanced at her coldly.

“Well…”

After Zaha’s treatment was done, he said,

“This harp box is a sacred thing and is not an object anyone can manipulate. Following the words of the previous King, we performed the ritual, and the harp box had to show auspiciousness once again. Hyo Wol-rang tried to open it, but at that moment, he got stuck inside.”

He pretended to explain it to the Hwarangs.

And the Pavilion Head, who had been still, opened her mouth slowly,

“It seems like that to me too.”

And then she turned to the sky,

“We can no longer hold the ritual, so let’s go.”

“Yes.”

The people below her turned around and followed after her. They didn’t even look back, as if they were all fed up with the harp box.

“Right. Then us too.”

When Zaha and the Pavilion Head had done their work, the official from the Ministry of Justice had nothing else to check. So he also left.

Everyone had left.

As if they were listening to the words of the Pavilion Head, the soldiers began to clean up.

The sunrise flag, which indicated that the ritual would happen, was pulled out, and the altar was cleaned with just the remnants of the harp box left.

The future that Seol Young saw didn’t happen.

“…”

Seol Young was dead sober until then.

He was gazing at the scene that just happened when he suddenly felt his body go numb.

‘It’s the end, really.’

His eyes spun, and his legs lost their strength. Then he fell forward.

Everyone was shocked.

“Seol Young!”

Zaha spoke as if it was absurd,

“Seol Young-rang, I am the one who is hurt.”