SAFBIAN Ch 172

Chapter 172 (Extra 2.5)

“Are you finished? Shall we go now?”

While watching, Haban had been playfully twining Dori’s hair, which swayed temptingly like a fox’s tail.

“Where to?”

Dori snatched his hair as if hiding a tail.

But was it really possible to sneak out? Even if Lady Jang and Eunuch Kim weren’t outside the door, weren’t other attendants still standing guard?

As if reading his mind, Haban gave a brief smile and led Dori along.

Yet instead of opening the door and stepping out immediately, he headed deeper into the bedchamber. Beyond a sliding door lay a room seldom used. With no windows, the air felt cool and stifling.

While Dori stood there, bewildered, Haban wrapped an arm around his shoulders and led him behind a folding screen that covered an entire wall. Looking closely, a portion of the wall was a slightly different shade.

Creak.

It wasn’t a wall—it was a door he hadn’t known existed.

“A secret passage.”

Dori’s heart hammered wildly. It felt like embarking on a grand adventure.

The space beyond the door was pitch black. A damp, earthy smell reached them, and the dense darkness stretched so far its depth could not be guessed.

Haban, who had prepared a lamp in advance, lit it and immediately extended a hand to Dori.

Though a fox’s senses were keen enough to see better than humans in the dark, he worried anyway—Dori often didn’t watch his footing and might trip over nothing.

Understanding his meaning, Dori pouted and clasped Haban’s hand tightly.

“It’s been a while since I was confirmed as Seongho.”

“A while? It’s barely been two years.”

“You’re the only one who treats me this young.”

“Consider it a sign of how precious you are.”

At that, Dori had nothing more to say.

Haban ushered Dori in first, then followed into the passage and shut the door.

They walked some distance in quiet, their footsteps the only sound. Then Haban stopped and carefully felt along the wall.

Dori glanced between the path ahead and Haban, tilting his head.

“This one?”

“Yes.”

So that was it. The other routes were traps.

Dori nodded.

On the way, the path had branched several times. Even if someone learned of the secret passage, it wouldn’t be easy to escape. He hadn’t expected another door to appear so abruptly in the middle of the passage.

“If I’m not with Haban, it’ll be impossible alone. I didn’t even memorize the way.”

Dori smacked his lips in regret. He no longer planned to run away like before, but still, it would have been good to know.

“Let’s hurry out, then.”

“Careful. You never know what might jump out.”

When Dori rushed to reach for the door, Haban grabbed his wrist and pulled it back. Before Dori could try again, Haban grasped and pulled the handle himself, and a blocked breeze swept in coolly.

“…Where are we?”

It was a forest. Dark green leaves stretched so thickly that they seemed to blot out the night sky.

Dori stared up in wonder. Only belatedly did he notice, within the dim silhouettes, a person and two beasts standing.

He quietly slipped behind Haban.

“Your Majesty.”

A figure wrapped in black pulled his mask down to the chin. Recognizing Seohon’s face, Dori finally relaxed.

“Were there any suspicious figures?”

“No. We’ve secured the perimeter. Once Your Majesty departs, we will follow immediately.”

“Well done.”

While Haban and Seohon spoke, Dori scrutinized the two horses hidden in the shadows. They looked familiar.

Neigh. One horse, held by the reins, let out a displeased cry.

“It is! It’s you!”

The haughty black horse pawed the ground once with a front hoof—its temperament as proud as ever.

Glad, Dori ran over. The black horse snapped its head aside but didn’t refuse the hand that stroked its body.

“Been well? You recognize me, don’t you?”

But before Dori could finish his greetings with the horse, he was pulled backward.

Haban scolded with a stern face.

“Why are you touching just any body?”

“No, that’s a horse. Your horse…”

Under that disapproving gaze, Dori fumbled for an excuse and instead tightly grasped Haban’s hand. That was, indeed, the more effective approach.

Warm lips met and parted. When they moved to meet again, Dori pushed quickly and shook his head, then gestured toward the shadows. Haban, however, held firm.

Given the circumstance, though, Haban turned away before long. Seohon, who had been keeping his distant gaze, offered the reins then and there.

“…Where’s mine?”

When only one set of reins was handed to Haban, Dori tilted his head. He reached out a hand, but Seohon stepped back.

“We’re traveling together; there’s no need to bother with separate mounts.”

Haban patted the black horse’s back as if soothing it.

Avoiding Haban’s eyes, Dori glanced at the black horse as it snorted and asked reluctantly,

“I’m heavier as a human than as a fox. Won’t it be too much?”

“It’s not so weak as that. It’ll be fine.”

“…Then what if I transform into a fox?”

Haban’s thick brows twitched.

They’d gone to all this trouble to slip away at night without Lady Jang and Eunuch Kim. If one of them turned into a fox and they couldn’t converse intimately, what would be the point?

Haban ushered the hesitant Dori up onto the horse, then swung up behind him.

Seohon, who had watched their silent bickering, was already astride the white horse.

“Let’s go.”

The black horse bearing both of them moved first. Dori had expected it to thunder away, raising dust, but it plodded forward slowly.

Even so, simply being away from the stifling palace and free from prying eyes satisfied Dori. He felt unburdened.

Before long, they left the forest. Leaning back against Haban, Dori looked up at the sky with a wide smile.

“Are you feeling good?”

“Yes.”

How did he know? When Haban asked, Dori nodded and answered, feeling Haban’s arm tighten around his waist.

“Hold on tight now.”

With those words, their pace gradually quickened.

Dori perked his ears. Since exiting the passage, the hidden shadows had been leaping along; just earlier they had mounted horses as well—likely prepared in advance.

“Of course.”

Haban would never have left with only the two of them.

Relieved, Dori finally watched the road ahead with ease. A wide plain spread across his field of view in a rush.

Hyah!

With a short signal, the black horse tossed its mane and surged forward.

After arriving at the summer palace, Dori’s condition clearly improved.

He regained his appetite during the day and slept soundly at night without tossing and turning—so much so that the earlier worry he might struggle to adjust in unfamiliar surroundings felt needless.

Dori wandered the summer palace freely. In the imperial palace, he waddled with affected composure under Lady Jang’s watchful eye, but without her, his strides were confident, arms and legs stretching boldly.

His favorite place was the stairs of the watchtower. Often he was found lying there as a white fox, enjoying the cool wind and the view below.

“…Kaang.”

Of course, every time, Haban scolded him for climbing somewhere dangerous. No matter how agile and quick a fox might be, his heart couldn’t help but lurch.

At first, Dori pretended to listen quietly, but soon he grew annoyed, sharply turning his head to the side. He raised his black nose high, huffed and grumbled, and then darted away.

And that evening, a cute thief slipped into the emperor’s bath chamber.

While Haban bathed, someone crept in and ran off with his belt. Since a thin inner robe was fastened only by that tie, Haban had to leave the bath with only his arms thrust through the sleeves.

Water dripped from his long black hair. Wet footprints marked where his damp soles touched and lifted.

His broad chest showed clearly through the parted front. As he took large strides, the fluttering fabric revealed a formidable lower physique.

Haban grabbed the nape of Dori, who was curled in a ball, hiding in a corner of the bedchamber.

“Kang! Kaang! Kang-kang!”

The fox flattened his ears, flailing his blunt paws.

“You’d better be prepared.”

“Keng!”

Dori barked as if protesting and modestly hid his belly with his front paws.

But Haban had no intention of letting it go. He set the fox on the bed. Before Dori could crawl into the blankets, Haban grabbed his hind legs and pulled.

“Kya-aang!”

Dori thrashed his hind legs.

“Hey!”

Smack. Startled, the fox turned back after receiving a swat on one hip. His golden eyes went wide.

“How can you commit mischief and then act offended?”

Haban laid the fox on his back between his knees, belly up, and with one hand held both front paws together.

The wide-eyed fox was at a loss, tucking his chin so deep it sank to his neck, and unconsciously extending and retracting his claws.

With each quick, snorting breath, the fine fur on his chest fluttered.

“If you promise not to climb up there again, I’ll let it go this time.”

“…Kawng.”

Dori answered as if to say “not a chance” and nervously licked his nose. He had received the same punishment before and could guess what would happen next.

“Right. No one listens the first time.”

Haban spread the fox’s hind legs to either side. Then he began to knead the soft belly thoroughly.

“Kya-aang! Kaang! Keng! …Kkiing! …S-stop!”

Poof! Unable to endure the tickling, Dori transformed into his human form.

Dragging the blanket up to hide his pale body, he glared with rounded eyes. Tears clung to his thick lashes from resisting the tickling.

“You’re crying already? We’re only just getting started.”

“Eek!”

On the narrow bed, there was nowhere for Dori to run.

Shrinking his shoulders and clutching the blanket desperately, he finally let out a moan as those searching hands traced curves and slipped inward.