I Became the Owner of the Heavenly Flower Palace-Chapter 24: The Nameless Oracle
Jincheon was at a loss for words.
He didn’t know her circumstances.
If she was living a life of seclusion, no different from imprisonment, simply scolding her for a bit of mischief might be far too cruel.
He gazed at her steadily.
Even from this close, he still couldn’t quite see her eyes.
Only her long lashes trembled slightly.
“Are you... not allowed to leave this place?”
“No? I go out.”
She answered without a hint of hesitation.
“A few days ago, I even went to Jucheon to buy some newly released sweets. Not that it’s any less boring than here.”
Jucheon was the small town where Jincheon had been staying.
He agreed it was dull—but that wasn’t the issue.
“There’s nothing there. No music, no good liquor, no beautiful pavilions, no dazzling night scenery. So what if there are more people? My man isn’t there.”
The last part didn’t register with Jincheon.
In other words, he had been fooled.
“...Haa.”
Jincheon let out a sigh.
Then he asked her,
“This is the Celestial Dragon Spring, right?”
“Yes. One of the Ten Sacred Grounds belonging only to the Red Dragon—the Celestial Dragon Spring.”
“And you’re the Oracle?”
“That’s what they call me.”
She smiled faintly as she continued.
“But really, I’m just a nameless priestess bound to the Celestial Dragon Spring.”
Her words carried some weight, but Jincheon didn’t press further.
There was something more important right now.
“I’m Jincheon.”
“Oh my, you still have a name?”
She raised one hand in surprise to cover her mouth.
“The moment you ascended to the Red Dragon’s seat, your name no longer held meaning.”
“Whether it holds meaning or not isn’t the point right now.”
Jincheon asked her,
“I was just asked to deliver the Red Orb. That’s all. Like I said earlier.”
“I see.”
Jincheon frowned slightly.
Did she even listen to him properly?
“I’ll say it again. I was asked to deliver it. I was told that once I handed it over, my role would be finished.”
“Yes. I know.”
He swallowed the urge to say, ‘You know? Know what?’ and asked,
“Then why am I the Red Dragon?”
“Because you’re holding the Wrath.”
And now, they were back to square one.
Jincheon barely held down the anger that surged up inside him.
“Then...”
He spoke calmly.
“If I give this orb to someone else, does that make them the Red Dragon?”
“I suppose so.”
“No, that’s—what kind of nonsense is that...?”
“If they can receive it. Barehanded.”
She waved her pale hand daintily, and Jincheon found himself speechless.
Her logic sounded correct.
But just like what he was about to say a moment ago—how could something so absurd be real?
Even if it made sense logically, it just didn’t make sense.
Rustle.
Jincheon pulled out a small pouch from his robe.
From inside it, he took out the red orb—the Wrath.
Click.
The orb shimmered under the sunlight, now resting in his palm.
“This orb...”
The Oracle wasn’t even looking at it.
Her unreadable gaze was clearly fixed on Jincheon.
“...Is it ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) true that touching it means death?”
“Would you like to try?”
She smiled softly, extending her hand.
Her white fingers fluttered in front of Jincheon’s eyes.
“To satisfy the Red Dragon’s curiosity, dying wouldn’t be such a terrible fate.”
Jincheon sighed.
“...I’m not doing something that stupid.”
“I know.”
Annoyance flared up inside him.
Before he knew it, Jincheon asked,
“What do you mean?”
“Everything.”
What the hell was she talking about?
Jincheon stared at her.
“Gi Seoran stands out, even among the Heavenly Flame. She’s skilled, but more than that—she’s bold. Po Eunryeong is remarkable as well, among the Cheonhwa. Especially...”
Whether she could see or not, her eyes curved into a delicate arc.
“When you walked down the boulevard carrying the Wrath—that was simply awe-inspiring. It was like all of the Heavenly Valley was following a new Red Dragon.”
Jincheon flinched.
But the Oracle continued as if she didn’t notice.
“And that robe—who gave it to you?”
She was referring to the crimson overcoat.
The same one someone had handed to him last night as he walked down the boulevard. The one he was still wearing now.
“Uh, I’m not sure who it was...”
“No. You know.”
“I really don’t. It’s just—”
“The nameless ones.”
She cut him off.
“Because no one knows who gave it to you, that robe carries only one meaning. It was placed on you by the nameless people of the Heavenly Valley, for the new Red Dragon.”
Jincheon was at a loss for words.
That vivid red cloak still rested on his shoulders.
Because he couldn’t say who had given it to him, her words—that it represented the nameless—couldn’t be denied.
The Oracle continued in a gentle voice.
“You wore that robe and gave them your command. That you would shoulder all the karma and burdens—that they must not die. That this was not the place for them to die, and that today was not the day they were meant to die.”
“No, that’s not what I—”
The Oracle let out a quiet giggle.
“You’re cruel. But then again, that is the true nature of the Red Dragon.”
Jincheon was confused.
Call it posturing, maybe—but cruel? That wasn’t fair.
“How is that cruel?”
“Do you think it isn’t?”
“Yes.”
“Then I suppose it isn’t.”
Jincheon frowned.
The Oracle went on.
“That’s not all. Last night, you silenced Dongpung by holding out the Wrath—and this morning, you stole his heart entirely. Poor Dongpung. You could’ve released him.”
“I did let him go.”
“No. You bound him even tighter—with a vow so severe, not even death could release him.”
“No, that’s—”
She faced him directly.
“And just a little while ago, you even accepted the oath of the Seven Luminaries. Now, you hold the Twelve Cloud Generals and the Court’s Seven Attendants in each hand. What more could I possibly say?”
Jincheon could tell she was telling the truth.
But there were still things he didn’t understand.
“Uh... are you mad?”
The Oracle flinched slightly.
“I’m not mad.”
“Pretty sure you are.”
The Oracle let out a sigh—for the first time since meeting Jincheon.
“...Because you took this long to come find me.”
She made a mock sulky face.
Her small, red lips jutting out ever so slightly made her look strangely cute.
“You’ve already accomplished everything so impressively—what more could I possibly tell you? There’s nothing left for me to advise you on.”
“Is giving advice part of an Oracle’s job?”
“If that’s what you want, then sure. Though, if you want something else...”
She grasped her skirt with both hands and lightly lifted it, bowing her head.
It was a seated bow, completely informal by court etiquette—but it was her own way of expressing submission.
Thanks to that, her white calves were exposed under the sunlight, without restraint.
“I’ll do whatever you desire.”
Ahem.
Jincheon quickly looked away and cleared his throat.
He glanced at her, and she was smiling sweetly.
‘She did that on purpose.’
He couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d been dancing in the palm of her hand from the start.
But he couldn’t bring himself to get angry. Or rather—oddly enough, he wasn’t angry.
‘Is this what they mean when they say, “All is forgiven if they’re pretty”?’
Even when irritation rose in his chest, one look at her face, and the anger evaporated as if it had never been there.
Jincheon let out a helpless, empty chuckle.
“Why are you laughing? Oh—don’t tell me you’re mocking me?”
“No. It’s just...”
He shrugged and said,
“It feels like we’re talking past each other, but somehow still understanding each other really well.”
The Oracle covered her mouth with her pale fingers and let out a delicate laugh.
“How flattering, all of a sudden. I heard you brought two of the Heavenly Flame into your chamber on your first day. Don’t tell me...”
“No! That’s not—!”
Jincheon waved his hands in denial.
“It’s true I went into the chamber, but nothing happened!”
“Oh, so that’s your style? You allow entry but prohibit intimacy...?”
“I said no!”
“Yes. No. I’ll keep that in mind—that it’s no.”
Her tone made it clear she wasn’t convinced in the slightest.
“But even so, does that erase the fact that you brought two women into your bedchamber?”
Ugh.
Her words hit the mark.
The bedchamber was the most private and intimate place in the palace.
To bring women into such a space required more caution—far more than he’d shown.
Jincheon was cornered.
“Well, I mean... I didn’t know any better at the time...”
“Not knowing doesn’t remove responsibility.”
It was the most basic, painfully obvious truth.
“If things were that easy, why would we need courts and constables? Of course, even if you irresponsibly cast those women aside, who would dare question the Red Dragon?”
“That’s not what I meant—”
Jincheon wasn’t allowed to finish.
“In any case, it’d be wise to start thinking about those two Heavenly Flame women. Rumors are already spreading.”
“What? Rumors about what...?”
Jincheon was startled.
“Well now, what kind of rumors do you think?”
The Oracle’s mischievous smile deepened.
Just as the frustrated Jincheon was about to say something—
Flutter.
A small, vibrantly colored bird landed on the Oracle’s shoulder.
When she held out her hand, the bird naturally hopped onto her pale, slender fingers.
Is that the same bird from earlier?
The tiny creature, with red and yellow feathers, was cute as could be.
It chirped incessantly as if trying to report something, sitting on the Oracle’s fingers.
This chapt𝓮r is updat𝒆d by ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom.
The Oracle smiled as she looked at it, and Jincheon said,
“It’s beautiful.”
The Oracle lifted her head with a slight jolt.
Realizing that Jincheon’s gaze was fixed on the bird, she let out a faint sigh.
“Be careful saying things like that to people.”
“Huh? What things?”
Jincheon asked, puzzled.
“The word beautiful. If you’re not careful, you might find someone waiting in your bedchamber when you return.”
At first, he didn’t understand what she meant—but then it clicked.
Indirectly expressing one’s true intent was common in courtly speech. And a simple phrase, misunderstood, could ruin someone’s life.
“R-right. But more importantly—”
Jincheon pressed on.
“What exactly are people saying about Lady Gi and Lady Po?”
“Well, it’s been such a long time since any Heavenly Flame entered the Red Dragon’s chamber, and those two are quite stunning, so people are wondering if that’s the reason.”
That part, he could at least understand.
“They’re also saying... that since you sent them back without unwrapping them, it’s like a ‘sealed return.’”
“Cough!”
He choked on his own breath.
He’d never heard that expression before, but he instantly understood it—and that scared him even more.
As he wheezed and coughed, the Oracle simply smiled and looked at him.
Once he’d caught his breath, Jincheon asked in dismay,
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
The Oracle spoke casually.
“Rumors settle on their own, as long as you leave them be. In the end, it all depends on how the Red Dragon treats those two women.”
The problem was—Jincheon didn’t know how to treat them.
He wasn’t even sure if he was the Red Dragon to begin with.
Just then—
The Oracle offered her other hand to the small bird perched on her fingers.
The bird pecked at some grains in her open palm as she whispered softly to it,
“Thank you for delivering the message. Can you go now and call the Divine Envoys?”
The bird nibbled a bit more, then let out a fluttering chirp and soared into the sky.
What the...? Can it understand her?
It was the first time he’d ever seen anything like that. And suddenly, he grew curious.
How old is she, anyway?
When they first met, she felt mystical and mature. But now, she seemed youthful—even a little playful. It was impossible to guess her age.
Whether she knew he was staring or not, the Oracle simply gazed into the sky where the bird had flown.
