“We caught it together, so we should enjoy the reward together.”

“But I haven’t done much. It was you who caught the tiger, Nari…”

Yeonwoo shot an arrow into the tiger’s head; Geon was the one who finished it off. Moreover, setting foot in the sacred area of the palace? Seeing the king’s courage up close?

As Yeonwoo stammered in confusion, Geon calmly replied, “If it weren’t for you, it would have been difficult.”

“Still, how can someone like me enter the palace with you, Nari?”

When Yeonwoo rejected with a gesture, Geon asked with a serious expression, “What do you think you are?”

“I’m just an ordinary soldier, and not even a trained one. Just a trainee.”

Bowing deeply, Yeonwoo drew a meaningless picture on the floor with her toe.

Geon approached her, extending his hand towards her.

Then, he gently lifted Yeonwoo’s chin and spoke in a low, soft voice.

“Look at me.”

The expression on Geon’s face as Yeonwoo faced him for the first time was strange, as if angry yet affectionate.

“If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here.”

Deep black eyes stared down at Yeonwoo.

Geon engraved his voice into her heart, word by word, with each gaze fixed on her.

“Apart from being a soldier, you are my person. I have decided that.”

Geon’s gaze at her was unwavering.

Yeonwoo felt captured by his eyes, like prey ensnared in a trap. She couldn’t resist the trust conveyed by Geon’s voice deep in her heart.

“But still, do you dare say you’re nothing?”

“No…”

Yeonwoo nodded.

It wasn’t the first time she heard it. The moment Geon called her his person, Yeonwoo felt like the most special existence in the world.

With Geon’s trusting gaze, she felt she could accomplish anything.

This time, Yeonwoo stared at Geon with a determined gaze.

“I will enter the palace with you, Nari.”

“Good.”

Only after hearing Yeonwoo’s answer did Geon’s expression become noticeably lighter.

“By the way, how did you deal with the bandits?”

“Oh! I used the trap we set on the ground together, Nari.”

Yeonwoo started explaining casually to Geon’s question.

“Three of them fell into the trap, and the rest, one with a bow, one with explosives and a bow, I caught using the trap on the ground.”

Geon listened attentively to Yeonwoo’s detailed explanation of how she could capture the bandits.

She had almost fallen victim to the tiger, and she had seen him injured.
Moreover, considering the sudden ambush, one could imagine how surprised Yeonwoo must have been, even without seeing it. In a situation where practical combat experience was nonexistent, Yeonwoo had no one to rely on, making it undoubtedly challenging in various ways.

Despite many unfavorable conditions, Yeonwoo managed to survive by making the most of the given circumstances. Moreover, it wasn’t an easy task just to evade the assassins, let alone eliminate them.

Geon admired Yeonwoo’s ability to strategize in a crisis. Such situations were not exclusive to today. When they defeated a wild boar in the mountains or rescued Geon in a perilous situation by the river, it was the same.

It was truly admirable how she, with her small stature, accomplished tasks that even men with considerable strength found challenging. Geon felt a strong determination in Yeonwoo that was not commonly found in regular soldiers, making her a promising talent.

“Good job,” Geon said, acknowledging that moving an unconscious man larger than Yeonwoo herself to his cabin from the brink of danger was no ordinary task. Geon could sense a resilient determination in Yeonwoo that was rare among regular soldiers.

“And thank you,” Geon added, flashing a genuine smile at Yeonwoo. Upon seeing his smile, Yeonwoo’s heart raced once again, wondering why her heart made such a commotion every time she saw him lately.

She worried whether the pounding sound inside her was only audible to her or if Geon could hear it as well. To calm her racing heart, Yeonwoo turned her gaze away from Geon’s smile and changed the subject.

“By the way, those assassins who attacked me wore the same clothes as the ones we encountered by the river last time. Are they the same people?”

At those words, Geon’s expression instantly hardened.

“…Most likely.”

“Who are those guys, and why do they keep attacking me?”

Yeonwoo asked, but Geon remained silent for a moment.

When they encountered the assassins by the river, there was no need for Yeonwoo to know, so he didn’t explain. But now, the situation was different. Yeonwoo had already become more than just an ordinary person to Geon. Furthermore, because of Geon, Yeonwoo had been attacked by the assassins twice. She had the right to know about the identity of the assassins.

“They…”

Geon hesitated for a moment after opening his lips.

He vaguely guessed who was sending the assassins to him.

If he were to disappear, the one who would benefit the most was obvious.

However, there was only suspicion, no evidence that the person intended harm to Geon.

Revealing inaccurate information to Yeonwoo could potentially drag her into even more dangerous situations.