The Lazy Young Master of the Jin Clan

Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon followed the woman who had opened the door of the Baekhwa Pass and entered.

They walked on a red silk cloth illuminated by torches.

How long had they walked?

The woman guided the two to a white, octagonal space.

There were chairs where they could sit comfortably.

"Please sit."

As Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon sat down as guided, the woman naturally sat down opposite them.

Yu Oseon, who was sitting in a chair, was drawn by the scent he felt at the tip of his nose and turned his head.

At that, the woman smiled gently.

"Do you like the scent?"

"Ah... yes."

"It's an incense burner from the Western Regions. It gives off a unique scent that you can't smell in the Central Plains. It feels unfamiliar at first, but your mind and body will soon become comfortable."

Yu Oseon slowly nodded his head.

The woman, who was looking at him with a pleased expression, snapped her fingers, and the closed door opened, and girls appeared.

The girls, who were also wearing white clothes, naturally prepared tea and a teapot.

As the girls, who had finished their work with coordinated movements, left the room, the woman raised her cup, wet her lips, and then said.

"My name is Baekseo. I am the owner of this Baekhwa Pass. And you two?"

"My name is Seon'a. This person here is Young Lady Jin Suhyeon."

"Young Lady Jin is quiet, isn't she?"

"Ah, the Young Lady is suffering from aphasia..."

"Ah! I have committed a discourtesy. I'm sorry."

As Baekseo lightly bowed her head to show her apology, Jin Sohyun also bowed his head in return.

"Then what is the relationship between you two?"

"I am Young Lady Jin's maidservant."

"Then unfortunately, the conversation will have to be between the two of us."

"Yes."

Baekseo sat with her legs crossed and looked at Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon alternately with an interested gaze.

Her gaze was unusual, and Yu Oseon even felt as if he were being stripped naked.

"So, what brings you two to the Baekhwa Pass?"

"That is..."

Yu Oseon hesitated to answer.

The Baekhwa Pass was a place where nothing was known.

Yu Oseon, who had been hesitating for a while, gathered his courage and said.

"Actually, the Young Lady's close friend has disappeared without a trace. Around this... Baekhwa Pass."

"You have such a very unfortunate situation. By any chance, can I know the name of your friend?"

"It's Moseol. She is the second daughter of the Mo Family in Seohwahyeon."

Yu Oseon said the name of one of the women who had disappeared relatively recently and examined Baekseo's face.

Baekseo closed her eyes as if she were lost in thought for a moment.

After some time had passed, Baekseo opened her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I don't know who that is."

"Ah... is that so?"

"Yes. Is there anything else you need?"

At Baekseo's question, Yu Oseon looked at Jin Sohyun.

His gaze contained the meaning of what he should do now.

Jin Sohyun, who had been sitting still until now, moved his head left and right, looked around, and then pulled Yu Oseon and said something.

His voice was so small that Baekseo could not hear it.

As Yu Oseon, who had heard all the story, returned to his original seat, Baekseo asked with curiosity.

"What did the Young Lady say?"

"She's curious about what the Baekhwa Pass does."

"You want to know about the Baekhwa Pass?"

Yu Oseon and Jin Sohyun nodded their heads at the same time.

At that, Baekseo got up from her seat.

"Follow me."

Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon, who had also gotten up from their seats, followed the leading Baekseo and walked down a long corridor.

The scale of the Baekhwa Pass was quite large.

Even though they had walked for a long time, the corridor continued endlessly.

By the time he was feeling bored of walking, Baekseo stopped her steps.

"This way."

The two, who had walked to where Baekseo had pointed, witnessed an amazing sight there.

There were numerous women there.

From young girls to young maidens and old women.

Women of various ages were gathered in various forms.

Someone was playing an instrument, and someone was singing to the performance.

Someone was doing embroidery, and someone was reading a book.

And some were cooking and sharing food together.

Although what they were doing was all different, there was one thing in common.

‘They look happy.’

As Yu Oseon thought, the women's faces were full of smiles.

"This Baekhwa Pass is a forbidden area for men, and all the members are women."

"Why?"

As Yu Oseon asked, Baekseo covered her mouth with her sleeve and laughed.

"Huhu... because everyone gathered here... is a woman who has been hurt by the world and people and has run away."

"Ah..."

Baekseo came close to Yu Oseon's side.

And then she pointed to a young woman who was cooking.

"Do you see the woman with a scar on her face over there?"

"Yes."

"She got a burn on one side of her face due to her husband's domestic violence. She was afraid that she would be beaten to death by the one she loved if she stayed there, so she came here to the Baekhwa Pass."

"Th-That's..."

Yu Oseon made a pitiful face.

"She's not the only one."

After that, Baekseo pointed to a girl, a woman, and an old woman and explained their unfortunate stories.

Surprisingly, all the women staying at the Baekhwa Pass were people who could not live a normal life.

And they had come to the Baekhwa Pass in search of salvation.

"You said you were curious about what the Baekhwa Pass does, right? The Baekhwa Pass is a shelter and salvation for women who have lost their way and are wandering. We take in pitiful women and give them a new life. By providing them with a new identity and a new job... we let them live a second life."

"Ah... then!"

"That's right. The case of the disappearance of women in Gansu. This is all the work of the Baekhwa Pass."

Only then did Yu Oseon and Jin Sohyun realize where the women who had disappeared in Gansu had gone.

And they also realized why they had disappeared.

They had not disappeared. They had run away.

In search of salvation.

"Didn't I tell you?"

"What?"

Baekseo stepped back and smiled brightly at Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon.

"That the Baekhwa Pass is a forbidden area for men. And the name of the woman with the scar on her face is... Moseol."

As soon as she finished speaking, the floor where Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon were standing caved in.

Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon fell in an instant.

Click.

Baekseo, who was staring at the floor that had returned to its original state, muttered.

"Welcome to the Baekhwa Pass."

***

"Ughhh!"

Yu Oseon and Jin Sohyun realized that they had fallen into a trap.

The two, who had fallen down in an instant, soon got close to the ground.

‘At this rate, I’ll break something!’

Yu Oseon, who had foreseen a painful future, squeezed his eyes shut.

But at that moment, Jin Sohyun held him.

Thump—!!

The painful future did not come.

It was because Jin Sohyun, who was holding Yu Oseon, had landed on the ground with a thump.

"Heok— Heok—! A-Are you alright?"

"It's a little tingly, but it's bearable."

Jin Sohyun put Yu Oseon down, staggering.

The two raised their heads to check where they were.

But in front of them were familiar faces.

"Huh?"

The four people who had discovered Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon blinked.

"Young Lady Moyong... Young Lady Oh?"

As Yu Oseon, who had recognized them, approached with a bright face, Oh Seolhwa said in a flustered manner.

"Wh-Who are you?"

"It's me, Yu Oseon!"

"Yu Oseon?"

"You're Young Hero Yu!?"

Moyong Susu, who had recognized Yu Oseon, looked him up and down with a surprised face.

"Are you cross-dressing?"

"Ahaha... well... there were circumstances."

"It suits you well."

"Haha..."

The gazes of Moyong Susu and Oh Seolhwa, who had been laughing at the cross-dressed Yu Oseon, simultaneously turned to Jin Sohyun.

The woman who had appeared with Yu Oseon had a large physique, but she had an outstanding beauty that could be compared to Cheon Yerang.

"Who are you?"

At Oh Seolhwa's question, Jin Sohyun made an awkward smile.

Moyong Susu, who had seen his smile, said in surprise.

"Don't tell me... Young Hero Jin!?"

"Whaaat! You're Young Hero Jin!?"

The two women reacted violently and came close to Jin Sohyun.

They touched his braided hair and also touched his cheeks, and the two women made a face as if they couldn't believe it.

"No, how... can you be prettier than me?"

Oh Seolhwa was flabbergasted.

It was the same for Moyong Susu.

"I knew that Young Hero Jin's appearance was considerable... but I didn't know it would be this much."

"Um, now, please stop..."

"Ah! I'm sorry! Young Hero Jin looked so much like a woman that I..."

Moyong Susu and Oh Seolhwa, who had been touching Jin Sohyun out of curiosity, were startled and stepped back.

But the two women still looked at Jin Sohyun with a face as if they were amazed.

"It suits you so well."

"Kkeung..."

"By the way, did you cross-dress to get into the Baekhwa Pass?"

"This was the only way."

"Indeed, the Baekhwa Pass is an impregnable fortress, so it's impossible to infiltrate unless you use a thunder cannon or something."

"Yes. By the way, what happened?"

At Jin Sohyun's question, Moyong Susu briefly explained what had happened so far.

The first group, which had come to the Baekhwa Pass to investigate the disappearance case in Gansu, had been guided by Baekseo, just as Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon had been, and had looked around the inside of the Baekhwa Pass.

In the process, they had discovered that the missing women were gathered in one place, and they had immediately fallen down here.

"What about Young Lady Cheon and the other team members?"

"I don't know either. Young Lady Cheon left a week ago, and Young Lady Hwang and Young Lady Ju left two days ago."

"We fell because we were caught as men... but why did the young ladies fall?"

As Yu Oseon asked with curiosity, Moyong Susu answered with a frustrated face.

"To keep the secret."

"A secret?"

"You both saw it on your way here, didn't you? What the Baekhwa Pass is used for. The Baekhwa Pass can't let us out to keep their secret. They're telling us to rot here for the sake of the women who have lost their way and are wandering."

The Baekhwa Pass had been holding Cheon Yerang and the other team members here until now to keep their secret.

Only then did Yu Oseon, who had realized the reason why the first group had disappeared, look around with a serious face.

The place they were in was a kind of prison.

It was blocked by walls on all four sides, and the only things were a small hole made for air circulation and a gap for food distribution.

The only door there was a door that led to the bathroom.

The bathroom also had no other place to go other than the space for relieving oneself.

It was a space that was no different from a sealed room.

To get out of here, they had to go up the passage they had fallen through.

"The only entrance is the passage we fell through... but it's too high to climb. It's impossible unless the Baekhwa Pass lowers a ladder. And."

Moyong Susu placed her hand on her lower abdomen where her dantian was and said.

"The food and water provided by the Baekhwa Pass contain a qi-scattering poison."

"Come to think of it!"

Yu Oseon felt his internal energy scattering on its own.

The tea they had drunk before coming here had contained a qi-scattering poison.

"I didn't know the effect would appear so slowly. I didn't know there was such a qi-scattering poison."

"The combination also changes every time, so there's no resistance."

Moyong Susu and Oh Seolhwa, who had been trapped in the sealed room prison, could not do anything.

It seemed to be the same for Jin Sohyun and Yu Oseon.

"But it's a relief to see your faces like this."

Moyong Susu and Oh Seolhwa's will to escape from the sealed room had been broken.

It was the same for Yu Oseon.

No matter how much he looked around, there seemed to be no way to get out of here.

At that moment.

Jin Sohyun took off the long robe he was wearing and then began to tear his skirt.

"Wh-What are you doing!?"

The surprised Oh Seolhwa covered her face with both hands.

Of course, her ten fingers could not cover her two eyes.

In the meantime, Jin Sohyun, who had finished his preparations, looked up at the passage he had fallen through.

"Young Hero Jin?"

As Moyong Susu called his name with a puzzled expression, Jin Sohyun raised his internal energy.

"You're saying we can go up here, right?"

"Yes... but it's too high and..."

"I'll be back soon."

Jin Sohyun kicked the ground and flew up, and then stuck to the wall.

He looked like a lizard.

Oh Seolhwa, who was watching Jin Sohyun climbing the wall on all fours, said as if she had seen something she shouldn't have.

"...What is that?"

(End of Chapter)