"Who says I'm bedridden?" Kim Harang's soft voice asked coldly as her brown eyes rested on Jun Myung-hee.
Because Kim Harang had been in the Kim castle for a year and hadn't gone out once, her skin was much paler than normal. She had light makeup on, and her sickly, pale appearance made her appear more angelic and ethereal.
Silence fell before people began to whisper amongst themselves.
She walked toward them. Jun Myung-hee, seeing Kim Harang approach, lowered her head instantly.
"Sister." Kim Harang nodded curtly to Kim Seo-yeon.
Kim Seo-yeon stared at her, slightly dazed. This was the woman who had been hysterical this morning; how was she so composed now? And why did she seem so different?
"Jun Myung-hee, don't let the wind cut off your tongue," Kim Harang said icily.
Ko Do-eun curled her lips into a smirk. "Kim Harang, since you're not bedridden, explain to us why we haven't seen you in a year."
She did not like Kim Harang either.
"I don't have to explain anything to you." Kim Harang rolled her eyes.
Lee So-hee scoffed. "These Kim sisters! Acting superior to everyone!"
They all looked at each other with deathly expressions. Suddenly, the sound of shoes tapping on the floor and a sudden surge in chatter dissolved the cold tension among the ladies.
He was dressed in black pants and a black shirt, topped with a long-tailed coat. The black coat was adorned with golden dragon motifs, and he paired the attire with a white fur shawl. He looked majestic, every bit a noble.
The ladies staring at him felt their breaths hitch in their throats.
"Is that the Ninth Prince?" Ji Tae-ri barely managed to whisper.
The photography exhibition the other night had been a private event with no paparazzi. Only the elite knew that Park Tae-yong had returned. At this public event, his return would spark a massive conversation across the country.
Kim Seo-yeon walked toward him amid the stark stares of the women.
"What is she doing? Does she think that because she's the main character tonight, she can latch onto him?" one of the ladies mocked.
"Exactly! Ko Do-eun has been trying for so long to get that man, and even Kim Harang failed. Who does Kim Seo-yeon think she is?" another added.
Ko Do-eun clenched her jaw, annoyed. Kim Harang stared at Park Tae-yong with slight longing but didn't move.
In a moment that shocked everyone, Kim Seo-yeon intertwined her arm with Park Tae-yong's. They walked together toward Kim Myeongju. While Kim Seo-yeon nodded and smiled at the guests, Park Tae-yong remained stoic and unconcerned.
"Did you find anything suspicious?" Kim Seo-yeon whispered to him.
"You should have told me about this person sooner. I couldn't find anything," he whispered back.
Her grip on his arm tightened visibly.
"Tell your mother to end the event now," he whispered in a scolding tone as they stopped in front of Kim Myeongju and Kim Min-ho.
"Mother, Father. My fiancé, the Ninth Prince," Kim Seo-yeon said.
Her voice was neither too high nor too low, but since everyone had their eyes glued to them, her words carried clearly. The room erupted into noisy chatter. The ladies turned to Ko Do-eun with questioning gazes. She stomped her foot and left with Lee So-hee and Hwang Bo-young in a fit of annoyance.
Park Tae-yong bowed perfunctorily. "Duke Kim. Duchess Kim."
"Mother, we need to talk—" Kim Seo-yeon hadn't finished when a loud thud echoed through the hall.
A sharp ringing sound played through the speakers as the projector began displaying footage.
"Ah Zan..."
Kim Myeongju's moans filled the room. Her breath hitched in her throat as she stood paralyzed by shock.
There was no way Kim Yi Hun could have sold her out. Was he truly that wicked to his own mother?
"Turn that off! Turn it off!" Kim Seo-yeon was the first to snap out of it.
Within seconds, the video was disconnected. The silence that followed was louder than the moans that had filled the hall.
Kim Seo-yeon felt the heat of a hundred judgmental eyes, but a hand; strong, cold, and steady; clamped onto her shoulder.
"Don't look at her. Look at them. If you show weakness now, the Kims are dead by morning," Park Tae-yong whispered in her ear.
Kim Seo-yeon didn't look at her mother, who had sunk to the floor in a heap of shame. She didn't look at the Duke, whose face was a shade of murderous purple. Instead, she scanned the crowd until her eyes landed on a figure leaning against the far mahogany door.
Kim Yi Hun.
He caught her gaze, winked, and stepped back into the darkness of the corridor.
A small, deprecating smile touched her lips as she turned back to the audience.
"Guests, the Kim Castle of O-yeong is unable to accommodate you further. We apologize for the inconvenience."
Kim Min-ho, who had been dangerously silent, motioned to the guards. In a few minutes, the hall had been cleared.
"Servants, escort Kim Harang to her room," Kim Seo-yeon ordered, looking at the flabbergasted Kim Harang. The maids pulled her up the stairs; she didn't resist.
Kim Seo-yeon turned to Kim Myeongju. Her regality was gone; she looked like she had aged a decade.
"Mother, pick up the phone. We need to find a lookalike by morning," Kim Seo-yeon said calmly. "Father, now is not the time to fight with your wife. Get on the phone and start pulling strings. This must not get out."
Both the Duke and the Duchess looked at her. It wasn't the time for pride, but for survival.
…
Kim Ye-sol sipped her coffee, sitting cross-legged on the sofa. She turned on the TV.
"The Duchess of O-yeong, Her Highness Myeongju, has just..."
Kim Ye-sol switched the channel. She wanted to watch another show. Her manicured fingernails tapped rhythmically on her coffee mug as she rested her chin in her palm, unaware of the situation that had just unfolded at O-yeong.
By morning, the headlines were dominated by the new heiress of O-yeong, the "sabotage" and the return of the Ninth Prince. News stations broadcast that Kim Myeongju had been framed by an old enemy. The "lookalike" who had allegedly posed in the video had already been "found and arrested."
Kim Seo-yeon leaned back in her chair and sipped her tea. The patio was bright today. Clad in a white sundress, she scrolled through the headlines on her tablet. She had already instructed Son Ji-woo to reject all interview requests.
Her phone rang. It was Park Tae-yong.
"Kim Ye-sol and Kim Jaejun have arrived at the Capital," he said calmly.
Kim Seo-yeon bit her lip, blinking back sudden tears. "Where are they?"
She walked into the living room of Park Tae-yong's house. He was seated on the farthest sofa with his legs crossed, scrolling through his tablet, seemingly unconcerned with the two middle-aged people in the room.
When Kim Ye-sol saw Kim Seo-yeon, she paused. Kim Seo-yeon seemed to have upgraded overnight—her clothes were of exquisite quality, and she was adorned with expensive jewelry. The Kims hadn't been poor, but the level of wealth Seo-yeon now possessed was beyond their imagination.
Kim Ye-sol was the first to stand. She walked to Kim Seo-yeon and pulled her into a tight, tearful hug. When Kim Jaejun joined them, embracing both in his arms, Kim Seo-yeon's composure wavered.
Kim Seo-yeon maintained a stoic face. She couldn't cry yet. Seeing them made her heart ache—they were so different from the monsters in the Kim Castle.
By the time they broke the hug, Park Tae-yong had quietly slipped out of the room. Kim Ye-sol dragged Kim Seo-yeon to sit between them, her eyes red.
"Explain."
Kim Seo-yeon narrated everything.
Throughout the story, Ye-sol's tears didn't dry. When Seo-yeon finished, she stood up.
"Park Tae-yong has arranged a place for you in the Capital. You can stay there while I stabilize my position here," she said calmly.
"No," Kim Jaejun shook his head, his eyes reddened. "We'll return to Gang City. We can't stay here. We'll root for you from afar, our puppy." He stood up, holding onto Ye-sol to steady her.
The tears Seo-yeon had kept in check finally fell. She wiped them away quickly, maintaining her composure as her parents were escorted out.
Afterward, she went to find Park Tae-yong.
"My grandmother will be here for dinner. I won't take 'no' for an answer this time," he said, his eyes fixed on her.
"Whatever," Kim Seo-yeon replied.
She had no energy left to fight him.
So much could happen overnight.