Dang Il-bi narrowed his eyes.
“What’s gotten into you, doing something you never normally do?”
“They’re guests, after all. And they’re Unnie’s guests.”
Dang Eun-bi replied smoothly.
As the subtle aroma of tea brushed past their noses, a glint of interest appeared in Dang Han-bi’s eyes.
He glanced into the cups and said,
“This is quite a fine tea. You’ve brought something even we rarely get to see.”
“I made a special request to the head of the hall.”
She had said she was currently part of the Medical Hall.
If it was the head of that hall, their skill and status would be anything but ordinary, so obtaining high-quality tea leaves wouldn’t be difficult.
And since they cherished Dang Eun-bi, they must have readily given them to her.
Even so, the twin heroes made no move to touch the tray.
“You’re aware that your behavior is highly suspicious, aren’t you?”
Just yesterday, she had attempted poisoning twice. There was nothing stopping her from trying a third time.
And not just anything, but a drink, which was perfect for lacing with poison.
There was no way they could accept it so easily.
As if she had expected this reaction, Dang Eun-bi lifted the tray slightly and made a suggestion.
“That’s why I brought one for myself too. You can choose first, and I’ll drink the one that’s left.”
If you hand over the choice, it naturally becomes harder to pull tricks.
That was especially true in a case like this, where she was targeting only one person.
Of course, there were countless ways to administer poison.
It wasn’t impossible that all six cups were poisoned.
Though it seemed unlikely she would go that far.
Normally, even the slightest suspicion would be enough to pass.
No matter the odds, it’s not worth betting your life on it.
The twins seemed to have reached a similar conclusion and were about to send Dang Eun-bi away, but I casually reached out, picked up a teacup from the tray, and spoke in a pure Kim Ho tone.
“You’ve gone this far, so I’d like to trust you this once.”
“…Are you sure?”
The meaning behind that question wasn’t “Do you really trust her?” but closer to “Can you endure it?”
I nodded without hesitation in response, and starting with Seo Ye-in, the others each picked up a teacup as well.
Now, only one cup remained on the tray.
Just as Dang Eun-bi was about to reach for it, I placed my cup back on the tray and said,
“Sorry, but can we switch?”
“…Ah, yes. Go ahead.”
Dang Eun-bi flinched for a brief moment, but quickly regained her composure and nodded.
If she refused here, everything she had worked for might fall apart.
In a slightly tense atmosphere, everyone began sipping their tea.
The Dang twins exchanged a few remarks, letting out quiet admiration.
“As expected, this is fine tea.”
“It rivals the Longjing from the Zhuge Clan.”
“Perhaps we should try asking the head of the Medical Hall ourselves.”
“They might be willing to spare us a little.”
As they warmed themselves with the tea, driving away the winter chill—
“…Huh?”
Dang Eun-bi suddenly widened her eyes.
She reached into her clothes and pockets, then began patting herself down.
She even briefly opened her inventory and rummaged through it, but it seemed she couldn’t find what she was looking for.
Of course, I saw it.
Her shadow wriggled, crept up along her leg, and then slipped into her clothes, swiftly pulling out several small glass bottles.
It was the handiwork of the former Thieves’ Club president.
As his younger sister continued to fidget anxiously, Dang Il-bi grew puzzled and asked,
“What’s gotten you so flustered?”
“Well… something’s missing.”
“Are you sure you didn’t leave it somewhere?”
“No, I’m not an idiot. Who would go around leaving behind an antidote—!”
She hurriedly clamped her mouth shut, but it was already too late.
The expressions of the Dang twins instantly turned stern.
“I thought something seemed off.”
“Preparing an antidote means you used poison.”
“What an immature child you are.”
“After making such promises yesterday.”
“You couldn’t even last a day before causing trouble again?”
Soon, they took out a few silver needles and dipped them into each of the teacups.
It was the most basic method of detecting poison.
As a result, while the others’ cups remained unchanged, the needles placed into mine and Dang Eun-bi’s turned a bluish color.
Holding up the evidence, Dang Han-bi said,
“Don’t even think about denying it. Tell us the truth. What poison did you use?”
“…Auxiliary Poison Powder…”
“What? Auxiliary Poison Powder?”
Even Dang Gyu-young, along with the Dang twins, raised their eyebrows.
Thinking it might be unfamiliar to outsiders, they added an explanation.
“It’s a substance that enhances the penetration of poison. It’s used when you absolutely want to ensure the target is poisoned… seeing it used here is unexpected.”
Dang Han-bi turned back to his youngest sister and pressed her more sternly.
“Where did you get the Auxiliary Poison Powder? Don’t tell me you took it from the Medical Hall.”
“N-No! Actually, it was from the Council of Elders…”
“The Council of Elders. As expected.”
The Dang twins’ eyes sharpened.
They took turns explaining while looking at us.
“They’re the ones who would be most displeased with this situation.”
“Above all, they value rules and tradition.”
Dang Gyu-young was someone who stood in direct opposition to those very rules and traditions.
Though she was of the direct lineage, she had abandoned it all and left to carve out her own path.
“We expected them to make a move eventually, but this is sooner than anticipated.”
“Either they’re feeling pressed, or they think the timing is right.”
While the twins showed signs of concern, I casually lifted my teacup.
“It’s fine. I was prepared for this from the start. If anything, this just gave me another chance to show them.”
As I said that, I turned my head slightly and gestured toward the distance.
I had already been sensing a subtle gaze since we first arrived at the training grounds.
Most likely, as the twins said, it was someone from the Council of Elders.
They had probably been watching everything. Not just the sparring, but even the fact that poison mixed with Auxiliary Poison Powder had no effect on me.
Of course, we had deliberately let them see it.
Whoever had been hiding seemed to realize that only belatedly and quietly erased their presence.
At that, the Dang brothers let out dry chuckles.
“You’ve got quite the nerve.”
“It’s also a sign of confidence.”
“But this brat’s antics are a separate matter.”
“She needs to be properly disciplined.”
They turned back to “this brat” Dang Eun-bi and continued their interrogation.
“What poison did you mix with the Auxiliary Poison Powder?”
“I compounded it myself… it’s a poison that makes your inner thoughts spill out.”
In other words, a kind of truth serum.
No wonder she casually let slip the deadly word “antidote” and answered her brothers’ questioning so smoothly.
Frowning, Dang Han-bi threw out another question.
“Why did you use that kind of poison?”
“Of course I was curious….about that person.”
Dang Eun-bi continued, pointing at me and Dang Gyu-young.
“They may look close on the surface, but you never really know how much they truly like and care for each other.”
At that, Dang Gyu-young’s expression turned intrigued, and she brought the teacup to my lips.
“Hey, turn that thing off for a second.”
“It’s not something you can switch on and off.”
“How much do you care about me?”
“Of course you’re number one.”
“Heh, that’s more like it.”
Dang Gyu-young giggled.
At this, Seo Ye-in tugged lightly at my sleeve.
“…I’m hurt.”
“You know you’re number one too, right?”
“Tied for first?”
“Exactly.”
“…Less hurt.”
This time, Dang Gyu-young’s lips jutted out in a pout.
Deciding to placate her later, I turned my attention back to the three Dang siblings.
Dang Il-bi was asking the next question.
“It’s hard to understand. Why are you so harsh only toward that guy?”
“I didn’t like him from the start. A bad guy who took Unnie away.”
Dang Eun-bi replied, glaring in my direction.
Even if she had taken a truth serum, wasn’t that a bit too unfiltered?
Maybe she had just given up and was saying whatever came to mind.
Dang Gyu-young and Seo Ye-in seemed to agree, each adding a comment from either side.
“Bad guy.”
“Bad guy.”
And Dang Eun-bi’s blunt remarks didn’t stop there.
“And his eyes are way too sharp. He looks like he has a nasty personality.”
“……”
Everyone in the room exchanged glances.
Even Dang Il-bi and Dang Han-bi did.
It seemed an unspoken consensus had formed of “Honestly, that’s true.”
Dang Gyu-young cleared her throat to suppress a laugh, then spoke up in my defense.
“Ahem, if you keep looking, his eyes are kind of cute in a subtle way. And you get used to his personality over time.”
“You’re supposed to deny it. Look at you taking the chance to sneak in a jab.”
“Hehe, but it’s not wrong, is it?”
Dang Gyu-young giggled and hooked her arm through mine.
At the casual display of affection, Dang Eun-bi looked like her heart was breaking.
Sensing she might blurt out something harsh again, I spoke up first this time.
“How did you administer the poison?”
“…I used a mechanism.”
If she had scattered poison like yesterday, it would have been obvious even if not her but the head of the Council of Elders had done it.
Everyone’s perception was sharp, and their vigilance had only increased.
So, according to Dang Eun-bi, she had installed both the poison and a triggering mechanism beneath the teacup and tray, then activated it the moment I picked it up.
However, I had seen through that and switched the cup I first picked up with the one left until the end, resulting in both of us drinking the poisoned tea.
She had probably thought she could just take the antidote after drinking it, but Dang Gyu-young subtly interfered, leading to the current situation.
I looked straight at Dang Eun-bi and asked,
“What will you do now? You’ve tried three times, and all three failed.”
“I’ll keep going until it works. Five times, ten times if I have to.”
Her eyes were still burning fiercely with determination.
Even after that humiliating public confession in front of everyone.
It was the kind of tenacity you’d expect from a member of the Dang family or a freshman of next year’s Dragon Slayer Academy.
I gave a faint smile.
“I’ll be looking forward to it.”
“Just you wait!”
Leaving behind a line straight out of a third-rate villain, Dang Eun-bi ran off.
At the same time, the Dang brothers rubbed their faces.
“This is driving me crazy.”
“How are we supposed to discipline that brat?”
It didn’t seem like this was a one-time occurrence.
They let out deep sighs and composed their expressions.
“Shall we resume the sparring? Is that alright?”
“Of course. Please give me a moment.”
After asking for their understanding, I took Dang Gyu-young to one side of the training grounds.
“[Hardship] is off cooldown.”
“Perfect. I was itching to use it anyway.”
It seemed that fighting fiercely against her older cousins had sparked her drive to improve.
“Since your weaknesses are becoming apparent, there’s a high chance the quest will be tailored in that direction.”
“That makes it even better.”
At present, Dang Gyu-young’s weakness was that her shadow undead were consumed too quickly.
Even though both the Lab Director and the Shadow Lord were carefully selected A-ranks, it was still the case.
Filling two more slots would let her rotate four of them, but that wouldn’t be a fundamental solution.
If she faced stronger enemies or a greater number of opponents, the same situation would just repeat itself.
The best option was to use a Harship quest to learn or enhance skills and traits, and shore up her build.
I added, as if in passing,
“There is a more certain method.”
“Even more than Harship?”
“Yes. The problem is, it’s a bit demanding…”
“Go on. Don’t keep me in suspense.”
At Dang Gyu-young’s urging, I reached into my inventory.
Then I pulled out a booklet tinged with an ominous crimson hue.
It was the very Challenge Book I used for side quests.
As long as it was tied to a quest, it could be used anywhere.
“Let’s go with a Challenge Harship quest.”
Leave a Reply