MTLNOVEL Chapter 43 - History is Made at Night (1)
(TL Note: Guys, I’m sorry for my translation mistake. I mistranslated Gu Yang-mun’s name. His name is actually Ouyang Mun. His name in Hangul is this 구양문 (Ku-yang-mun), later in the story there is a prestigious family within the cult with the surname Ouyang. I thought his surname was Gu just like the MC of Zenith’s Childhood, but it’s just my misunderstanding. It’s just like the case where in Chinese, the Zhuge family is called Zhuge, but in Korean, it’s Jegal.)
Chapter 43: History is Made at Night (1)
They say most of the world’s pleasures unfold at night.
But on this supposedly serene night—
‘I can’t sleep!’
I was lying awake, staring into the darkness.
The reason was simple.
Beside me lay a woman whose beauty was breathtaking, almost unsettling.
‘No. It’s not because she is beautiful!’
Though it was well past bedtime, I shook my head, determined to keep myself awake.
‘Jin Hayeon could be a mole. The moment I fall asleep, she might stab my heart with that emotionless face of hers!’
Yes, it must be anxiety.
Between the lingering effects of my Demonic Arts and the ever-present threat of assassination, restful sleep was a distant luxury.
‘That’s why my heart is pounding so hard. Yeah, that’s it.’
I tossed and turned, trying to convince myself, but—
Glance.
I couldn’t resist sneaking a peek at Jin Hayeon’s sleeping face.
‘Wow… How can a person be this beautiful?’
During the day, her psychopathic tendencies usually squashed any buds of feeling that might have sprouted. But here at night, I couldn’t help but be mesmerized by her delicate features.
And while I was absentmindedly admiring this doll bathed in moonlight.
Flinch.
The doll suddenly opened its eyes.
“Eep!?”
A strange and strangled scream escaped my mouth, reminding me of a child caught red-handed while doing something wrong.
Unfazed by my reaction, Jin Hayeon spoke in her characteristically emotionless tone.
“Are you unable to sleep, Young Master?”
“Ahem. I- I’m usually a light sleeper. Being in unfamiliar surroundings makes it a little hard for me to fall asleep.”
A lie involuntarily escaped my mouth. But Jin Hayeon furrowed her delicate eyebrows.
“Yet you slept soundly during your latest trip.”
This is why sharp-witted children are exhausting.
Was it because fatigue was suddenly washing over me? Or was it because of her characteristically emotionless tone?
My heart, which had been racing since bedtime, rapidly calmed down.
“Ahem. I’m suddenly feeling sleepy. Rest well, Miss Jin.”
“I’m already quite comfortable.”
“I… I see.”
Completely drained, I fell into a deep sleep.
***
“Yaaawn.”
Since I went to bed much later than usual, I wasn’t refreshed at all—instead, fatigue hit me the moment I opened my eyes.
Rubbing my stiff neck, I glanced sideways—only to find Jin Hayeon’s bedding already neatly folded.
“I’ve brought breakfast, Young Master.”
She opened the door and entered, carrying a tray laden with food.
‘This feels exactly like we’re married.’
Horrified by the thought, I shook my head vigorously to dismiss it.
Right. That face is a trap.
The moment I fell for that face, a suffocating future would unfold day by day.
Munch, munch.
I shoveled the breakfast she’d prepared into my mouth so mechanically that, in my exhaustion, I barely registered the taste.
Just as I finished, Jin Hayeon broke the silence.
“Since you woke up an hour later than usual, we’ll begin morning studies immediately, Young Master.”
“……”
Indeed, she truly had a knack for making me breathless.
Morning studies and lunch passed as usual. Then, visitors began trickling in, but the atmosphere felt empty compared to usual.
“Big Brother!”
Seon-ah, as usual, stuck close to me, rubbing her chubby cheeks and grinning broadly. But other than her, almost no one else came.
Neither Eldest Brother nor Hang Geon appeared, nor did Sixth Brother, who suffered from auditory and visual hallucinations.
As far as I knew, Third Brother was away on a mission.
Only Ouyang Mun, recently returned from his own mission, was present .
“Hahahaha! It’s rather quiet today, Young Master!”
Meaning he was just chattering to himself.
How long had I been absentmindedly playing with cute Seon-ah’s hair, tuning out Ouyang Mun’s endless nonsense?
‘It’s peaceful so far.’
Neither Jin Hayeon nor the bodyguards had made any suspicious moves.
“Yawn. Ah, sorry, Young Warrior Gu.”
Yawning while someone was speaking was considered rude, so I quickly apologized.
“Haha. It’s fine, Young Master! You seem quite tired.”
“I didn’t sleep well last night.”
“Well, after what happened recently, it’s no wonder you couldn’t sleep.”
“It wasn’t entirely because of that either.”
Since there were others involved in that assassination attempt around us, I tried to change the subject subtly.
Ouyang Mun, however, seemed to misunderstand that hint, subtly eyeing Jin Hayeon as he did so.
“I heard you spoke to the Heavenly Demon on Hayeon’s behalf. As a fellow graduate of the Hall of the Demonic Way, I thank you on her behalf. Hahaha!”
I’d said to show kindness, not flaunt their non-existent camaraderie. But he seemed to have misunderstood my advice in a strange way.
“Why are you thanking the Young Master on my behalf when you are merely a comrade?”
Both my ears and Seol-ah’s perked up at the prospect of an impending one-sided love quarrel.
It couldn’t be helped—it was the only entertainment available here.
But little did I expect this entertainment to return as a bomb.
“Ahem. Still, as a comrade, that much is expected, isn’t it?”
“Mind your own business. Even without your interference, I have been reflecting on my own. That’s why I’ve been sleeping in the same room as the Young Master.”
“!?”
The moment Jin Hayeon dropped the bomb, Ouyang Mun’s eyes bulged and his jaw dropped as he looked back and forth between me and her.
The little kid by my side also looked back and forth between me and Jin Hayeon, but her reaction was entirely different.
“Hmph. I want to play with Big Brother at night too.”
She pouted enviously.
And that pitiful soul on the other hand—
“W-w-what are you saying?”
Ouyang Mun, who had momentarily short-circuited, was now on the verge of a meltdown.
Unlike the little one, whose thoughts remained pure, Ouyang Mun’s imagination not only took things a step further but also ran wild.
“Now that I think about it, the Young Master mentioned being t-tired earlier… D-don’t tell me!?”
The more he spoke, the more Jin Hayeon’s gaze turned into one of utter disgust, as if she were looking at an insect.
Yet, already too far gone, he failed to recognize her disdain.
“How could you do this to me Master!”
“Ahem. Get a hold of yourself you fool. And why am I your master?”
“Didn’t you say you’d accept me as your disciple back then? Don’t tell me all the advice you gave me was a lie!?”
If I left him like this, his already doomed love life would be beyond salvation.
No, they already seemed to have crossed the river of afterlife, but I felt I should at least let them remain as comrade.
“Snap out of it. We shared a room purely for security reasons. Nothing happened.”
“Is, is that true?”
“It is.”
I met Ouyang Mun’s doubtful gaze with a look that lacked any ounce of shame.
Did my unwavering gaze do the trick? Ouyang Mun’s shaky gaze slowly became steady.
Then, after a brief moment of contemplation, Ouyang Mun suddenly spoke in a voice brimming with resolve.
“Master.”
“Speak.”
“Please accept me as your guard.”
“What kind of dogshi—no, what nonsense are you spouting? You are part of the White Tortoise Corps.”
“If you allow it, I’ll submit my resignation immediately. If I become your personal guard, then Hayeon won’t have to sleep in the same room as you anymore, right?”
While his suspicion had disappeared, what replaced that was a burning madness.
Just as I thought, this guy was a true lunatic, befitting his status as an elite member of this damned cult.
‘I thought his side effect was mania, but now I see—it’s obsession.’
But his diagnosis was irrelevant now.
“Is changing allegiances within the cult so easy that you make light of it? Come to your senses and focus on your own duties.”
Sharing a room with a stalker-like crazy man? Absolutely not.
Perhaps because I shut him down so decisively—
Grab.
This lunatic actually dropped to his knees and clung to my leg, refusing to let go.
“P-please, Master! You can work me to the bone if you want—just let me be your personal guard!”
Looking at that desperate figure, I couldn’t help but think.
‘What a pathetic man.’
They say love might conquer pride, but this was just sad.
***
After belatedly realizing Jin Hayeon’s disgusted glare, Ouyang Mun bolted out of the Windrock Palace in shame.
Time passed, and once the break ended, Il-mok spent his time as usual—either sparring with Jin Hayeon or training under his Master.
Later, that evening.
“Today’s training was pretty intense. I’m feeling hungry.” Il-mok muttered, rubbing his stomach.
“I’ll bring some late-night snacks from the kitchen.”
As Jin Hayeon was about to leave, Kwan Mu‑yeol—who was standing guard at one corner of Windrock Palace—interjected.
“Continue the acupuncture, Miss Jin. I’ll go.”
“It’s fine, Warrior Kwan.”
When Jin Hayeon refused, Kwan Mu-yeol replied with a serious tone.
“I insist. Even if I’m away, Jang Hwi will be here, and don’t you have many tasks to attend to, Miss Jin?”
In the end, Jin Hayeon relented to Kwan Mu-yeol insistence.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
As soon as Jin Hayeon finished speaking, Kwan Mu-yeol left Windrock Palace, and she resumed massaging Il-mok’s body.
Feeling the chilliness transmitted through Jin Ha-yeon’s hands, Il-mok thought.
‘What’s this? Since when did he care about her?’
Until now, neither Kwan Mu-yeol nor Jang Hwi had ever stepped forward to help Jin Hayeon in her various duties.
Yet today—perhaps because of Ouyang Mun’s outrageous antics—Il-mok found it oddly intriguing to see Kwan Mu‑yeol suddenly showing Jin Hayeon some favor.
‘Hmm. This could become an interesting spectacle.’
The first image that came to Il-mok’s mind was of Kwan Mu-yeol and Ouyang Mun fighting over Jin Hayeon in a love triangle.
And knowing Jin Hayeon, she would undoubtedly look at him as though he were nothing more than an insect.
***
Meanwhile.
Kwan Mu-yeol, who had become the unwitting victim of Il-mok’s strange imagination, had quickly reached the kitchen.
“What can I prepare for you?”
“Just some simple snacks to go with the Dragon Well Tea will do.”
Kwan Mu-yeol replied in a curt tone to the woman on duty.
She poured hot water from the simmering stove, brewed the tea, and then placed a few of the midnight snack pastries that had been prepared in advance on a plate and served them.
Kwan Mu-yeol placed them on a tray and prepared to leave.
“Won’t you stay and enjoy it yourself?”
“I’m here on an errand.”
The woman nodded at his explanation and didn’t ask further.
“Take care.”
Kwan Mu-yeol nodded and left the kitchen. But instead of heading straight to Windrock Palace, he slipped into a darkened side path.
After ensuring that no one was tailing him, he breathed a sigh of relief. Then he reached into his garment and pulled out a small leather pouch.
Rustle.
Upon untying the string that bound the leather pouch, inside lay a vividly patterned mushroom that looked much like a poisonous toadstool.
Kwan Mu-yeol then pinched off the edge of the mushroom with his fingers, channeled his internal energy to turn it into powder, and mixed it into the Dragon Well Tea.