– Chirp chirp. Chirp.

The mountain birds were chirping in harmony from the trees lined along the trail.

About fifteen minutes along the mountain path.

A small four-sided courtyard residence appeared halfway up the slope.

“This place should be very quiet and peaceful for your stay. There’s also a detached wing next to it, so one more person can stay comfortably. Just as you requested, there’s a large storeroom too.”

The broker pointed toward the property, composed of the main house, a separate annex, and the storeroom.

He stepped toward the gate as he continued speaking.

“The owner only comes here occasionally during the summer to rest. Normally, it’s rented out to people visiting the Yellow River or staying here for health reasons, so it’s been kept in excellent condition.”

As he’d said, the place was indeed well-maintained.

Though it had been vacant for a while, the yard was clean, and the weeds had been neatly trimmed—even though it was in the mountains.

“The view is beautiful too. From the pavilion, you can even see the young master’s boat.”

“Oh. You’re right! Hwa-eun, look.”

“It really is a stunning view.”

Just as he said, when we climbed up the pavilion at the edge of the yard near the cliff, we could see the boat moored in the river below and even spot Geumdo at a glance.

While Hwa-eun and I were basking in the scenery, the broker leaned in toward me and whispered.

“It’s a quiet spot, far from the village—hardly anyone comes by. It’s perfect for the two of you to enjoy a good time together. Who knows, maybe you’ll leave with three instead of two. Hehe.”

He ended with a sly smile and a wink.

“Three? Ah... ahem...”

In the Central Plains, it was suspicious enough for an unmarried man and woman to rent a place together for two months.

That’s just the kind of world this was.

So when we’d first met, I had explained we were married—and clearly, he’d taken it that way.

He probably assumed we were a wealthy newlywed couple out on a romantic Yellow River retreat.

If he had known we were people from the Tang Clan in Sichuan, he wouldn’t have acted like this.

But since I hadn’t said anything—just in case the Blood Cult or Five Venoms Sect had people lurking nearby—he was acting extra... friendly.

His comment made me a little flustered.

Especially since the emotional afterglow of giving her the lily and hearing Hwa-eun’s response still hadn’t faded.

‘I can’t even look her in the face right now.’

“Ahem... I see.”

But before I could respond, Hwa-eun spoke up first.

Her cheeks faintly flushed, she asked me,

“So-ryong, w-what do you think?”

“I-I like it. Very much.”

Both of us sounded awkward. The broker smiled and muttered to himself,

“Ah, how sweet. It’s a good # Nоvеlight # time in life... a good time.”

He seemed to be enjoying it more than we were.

Blushing, Hwa-eun rubbed her cheek with the back of her hand, then nodded to the broker.

“We’ll take this one. Just for two months.”

“You’ve made a fine choice, Lady Seol. Then let’s get the agreement drawn up.”

Smiling, the broker pulled out his bundle and began preparing brush and ink.

“Please wait just a moment. I’ll fetch some water first. You can draw water from that well—it’s mountain spring water, very crisp and clean.”

As he left for the well to prepare ink, Hwa-eun spoke with a shy smile.

“Once the agreement is done, you should go back and rest on the boat. I’ll bring the others, tidy up the house a bit, and buy what we need.”

“Shouldn’t I help?”

“Taking care of the home is the woman’s job. I’ll be fine.”

The reason we were suddenly looking for a house wasn’t to follow up on the lily gift.

‘As much as I’d like that.’

We weren’t in need of a newlywed house.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

The actual reason was to find a quiet place to stay until my older brother returned—and to reach the Five-Poison Realm in peace.

Once Seol, Bing, and Dong were registered, I’d fall into the meditative dreamscape. That usually lasted about two weeks.

So we needed a stable and secluded place, safer than a rocking boat.

Just slipping into a mental trance would’ve been fine even on the boat, but since this was a Five-Poison Realm ascension, Hwa-eun had insisted we find a house. The risk of Qi deviation on a swaying boat was too great.

That’s why we came to this small mountain village behind the nearby city—to secure a home for this purpose.

After a short wait, the broker came back with water and ground the ink. Hwa-eun wrote the name “Seol Hwa-eun” on the contract—a false name—and thus our quiet little life in the four-sided courtyard began.

***

That very evening, right after sunset, I headed to the house with the kids.

Since it was a rented house, I couldn’t let them inside in case they broke something, but that’s exactly why we rented a place with a storeroom.

By the time we arrived, someone had probably already laid out straw bedding in the storage area for them.

As we walked along the forest path, the kids were clearly excited.

– Tssrrr.

– Pii!

– Kyoot!

It had been a while since they were allowed to go out freely, so they were absolutely thrilled.

Ever since returning from the Ventilation Hall, we’d been stuck on top of the bamboo house built on Geumdo for about a week while searching for a place to live.

We’d stayed hidden indoors the entire time to avoid being seen.

“Do you like it that much?”

– Shiaa.

– Skaa.

Following behind were Cheongyu and Orange, with Yeondu also happily hopping along.

Then, suddenly, a light appeared in front of us.

As it got closer, the children scattered in all directions.

We had agreed earlier that if we encountered anyone on the road, they’d hide right away.

After a moment’s wait, a lantern arrived at the front—and behind it, a familiar voice called out.

“So-ryong.”

“Ah, Sister Seol?”

I’d been worried it might be someone else, but thankfully, it was her.

“Kids, it’s your aunt. Come on out.”

At her voice, Yo-hwa descended from a tree on her silk thread, and Jeokwol-noona silently floated down to rest on my shoulder from the shadows.

Cho, Yeondu, and Cheongwol slithered out of the woods, and the smaller creatures clung to the larger ones as they emerged.

Sandan wasn’t here, of course—she was always with Hwa-eun.

“Were you heading back to the boat?”

“No, I came to greet you all.”

“Then let’s walk back together.”

“All right.”

We started heading toward the rented house with Sister Seol leading the way, holding the lantern.

Halfway there, she looked back at me and asked,

“So-ryong, how is your mental burden?”

She was probably checking on my condition in preparation for the next breakthrough along the way.

“It’s fine now.”

There were two kinds of mental strain I was feeling.

One came from the group chat opened through the Four-Poison Realm.

The other was the pressure that came from advancing my Beast Heart Technique.

At first, the group chat was extremely difficult to deal with, but by now, I’d grown used to it—so much so that I could ignore it if I focused on something else.

And the mental strain from the advancement of the Beast Heart Technique had also quickly subsided, returning to normal.

So I was now in a state where I could handle attempting the Five-Poison Realm.

“Your internal injuries?”

“I think they’ve healed.”

The injuries Sister Seol was asking about were from when I was poisoned by Sandan and had to forcefully reverse my Qi flow to resist it.

It hadn’t been serious, and after about three days of rest, I’d fully recovered—so that wasn’t an issue either.

Hearing my answer, Sister Seol nodded, then spoke with a firm expression.

“Good. Then let’s begin tonight.”

“Understood.”

She had been checking my physical condition daily anyway, so this was her way of saying we could proceed.

And I had been looking forward to the Five-Poison Realm for a long time as well, so I nodded.

After walking the forest path for a bit more with Sister Seol and the kids, we arrived at the front of the house.

A good smell was wafting from inside.

“Mmm. Something smells nice.”

At first, I thought she must’ve bought some food and brought it back.

She had said she’d go down to the market in the village at the foot of the mountain to pick up a few things.

But the answer I got was unexpected.

“Hwa-eun’s been busy cooking since early evening.”

“Hwa-eun?”

“Mm-hm.”

Hwa-eun’s cooking, huh.

She’d occasionally packed ready-made meals during trips, but I’d never really eaten her cooking directly.

On the boat, the crew usually handled the food. Outside, we bought our meals.

When the crew wasn’t around, our “cooking” amounted to nothing more than grilling prepped meat.

The aroma drifting over was quite promising, but the fact that it was Hwa-eun’s cooking sparked both anticipation and concern.

I wasn’t sure if a young lady from a martial clan would actually know how to cook anything.

Most women in this era could do basic housework and cooking, but martial clan women were usually an exception.

Also, I remembered something a pastor once said when I was a kid.

At church, they used to visit households for blessings, and he mentioned that the hardest visit was always to newlyweds.

The reason, he said, was because as a pastor, he couldn’t lie—but in those homes, you had to say the food was good.

Now Hwa-eun was kind of playing the role of a new bride too, so the situation felt eerily similar.

Which is why I was both nervous and hopeful.

But remembering that moment from childhood, I thought—yeah, I should just say it’s good.

If even a pastor lied about it, surely I could too.

My stomach was growling, so I naturally started heading toward the kitchen.

But when we arrived, I couldn’t go in right away—because the kids were running around checking out every corner of the house.

I had to keep an eye on them in case they caused trouble.

『–Tssrrr. (Big Sis Cho, this must be where we’re staying. Ooh, look at this! There’s a well!)

–Tsst. (Dad said this is a borrowed house, so don’t break anything. Especially you, Bini.)

–Tssr. (Hmph. Got it. But already with the nagging...)』

After poking around a bit, the kids ended up at the storage building.

The storage area we’d prepared for them was wide open, with soft straw laid thick across the floor.

–Tsst! (This must be our spot!)

–Pii!? (Haa!?)

They explored the spacious storage room and each settled into a spot.

Some rolled around in the straw, some just closed their eyes where they were—seemed like they were ready to rest.

Since they looked settled, I turned and headed to the kitchen.

“Hwa-eun?”

Inside, there was no apron—this was the Central Plains, after all—but Hwa-eun had tied up her skirt around her waist and was hard at work on something.

Her nose was dusted with white flour.

‘Whoa. Cute.’

My heart stirred at the sheer cuteness of it.

When she heard me, she turned and smiled.

“Oh, So-ryong. Just a moment, it’s almost done. You must be hungry, right?”

“Take your time.”

From the smell alone, it was already a pass.

After waiting a bit and helping her carry the food to the room, I took a bite—and it was actually good.

“How is it?”

“It’s delicious. But when did you learn to cook?”

She never had much time to cook with all her martial arts training, so I was impressed.

Brushing back a lock of hair behind her ear, she answered,

“After things were settled with you, I started learning bit by bit from Mother.”

So she’d been preparing for marriage after all.

Moved by her thoughtfulness, I finished my meal.

After a brief rest, I went to the storage to ask the kids for a favor in preparation.

『Cheongyu, I’m probably not going to be able to move for a while because of martial arts training, okay?

Can you summon the snakes nearby to guard us?

Don’t let them attack anyone outright, but if someone approaches the house, just let Hwa-eun know.』

–Shiaa. (Understood.)

–Tsst. (Dad, we’ll help protect it too!)

–Tssrrr! (Yeah, we’ll do our part!)

‘Right. If my girls are on guard, I’ve got nothing to worry about.’

I’d only asked Cheongyu, but of course, the others insisted on helping too.

Once I entered the room and sat down cross-legged to prepare, Cheongyu—waiting outside—let out a low hiss that echoed through the mountain.

–Shiaaa!

At her call, snakes began to gather.

Pythons and other serpents that had been hiding in cracks of the house walls or under nearby trees slithered out into the courtyard.

–Shiaaa. Shiii.

As the Golden-Crowned Four-Fanged Queen gave orders, the snakes quickly dispersed to their assigned spots.

Yo-hwa dangled from the ceiling in the room where I was, and Cho, Yeondu, and Jeokwol-noona took to the skies.

At the entrance, Orange coiled himself into a protective spiral.

Behind me, Cheongyu took position.

Bini coiled herself loosely in a wide ring around me.

Hyang curled up with her body wrapped tight.

And Hwayang sat calmly atop my crossed legs.

“Hwayang too?”

–Pii!

Sister Seol came in to check on my preparations and gave me a baffled look.

“Kids... don’t you think this is a little much?”

Honestly, it really did feel a bit overprotective.