Something Beautiful
Chapter - 4

Kim Mingyu slowly lowered her hand that was still clutching the smoky gun and stared indifferently at Madam Lee's husband figure lying still on the ground. Jealous husbands do trouble them with their miserable, stupid wives. Not only were they often prejudiced, but they also insisted on discussing the illusion with a shootout at dawn. His flat gaze was still fixed on his opponent, the injured middle-aged man, who was now being treated by doctors and witnesses. Mingyu cursed the beautiful yet cunning woman who was constantly seducing him so this duel had to happen.

The twenty-seven-year-old Mingyu long ago decided that playing around with people's wives brings more trouble than pleasure. As a result, he has long restricted himself to dealing only with unmarried women. God knows their numbers so much, most are willing to gladly. However, teasing each other was a common thing in the lives of nobles. But the relationship he recently had with Una Lee, whom he had known since childhood, was much more than that. The innocuous temptation developed when the woman returned to Britain after traveling abroad for more than a year. A game that is nothing more than ordinary reprimands, indeed with a slightly inviting tone between two old friends that actually will not continue, will not continue, but one night last week Una managed to break into Mingyu's house without her servant's knowledge, and when Mingyu returned home he saw a woman had been in her bed, with a seductive body. Usually, he would pull the woman out of bed and tell her to go home, but that night it was due to drinking wine with his friends, and while he was considering what he should do with her, his body had taken over his mind and ordered that he accept the tantalizing offer.

Turning his head towards his horse tied to a nearby tree, Mingyu took a hard look at the dim rays of the sun in the sky. He can still sleep a few hours before a tiring day of work and socializing that will close at midnight with a dance party at Joen's residence.

***

Chandelier lights with hundreds of thousands of crystals shone brightly over the vast glass-walled dance hall, where guests dressed in satin, silk and velvet swirled to the rhythm of the waltz. The double-leaved French doors leading to the balcony were left open so a gentle breeze could blow in, and so that some lovebirds who wanted a little privacy under the moonlight could get out.

A little outside the door, a pair of men and women stood on the balcony. Their figure was partly protected by the shadow of the house, seemingly indifferent to the furore they caused among the guests for leaving the dance hall.

"What a shame!" miss Oh said to the group of young men and women accompanying her while throwing a hateful, jealous, cynical look at the door where the couple had just walked out, then added, "Una Lee acted like a cheesy, chasing after Mingyu like that, while her husband was lying at home for a duel with Mingyu this morning!"

Lord Choi looked at the angry Miss Oh with a cynical expression mixed with amusement, which was his trademark, and was also feared, by all the upper classes. "Of course, you're right, my beauty. Una must learn from you and pursue Mingyu secretly, not in front of many."

Miss Oh looked at him with a haughty look, but her delicate pink-hued cheeks said another. "Be careful, Mr. Choi, you're starting to lose your ability to separate the funny and the cynical."

"Don't equate me with Una Lee" Miss Oh said in an angry tone. "We are not at all similar."

"Ah, but you guys are similar. You're both after Mingyu. And that makes you the same as the six dozen other women I know, especially" he nodded towards the beautiful, red-haired ballet dancer who was dancing a waltz with a Russian prince, "Miss Jung, but it seems Miss Jung defeated all of you, because she is now the new mistress of Mingyu."

"I don't believe you!" miss Oh said, her blue eyes were directed at the graceful, red-haired lady who said people had charmed the Spanish king and the Russian prince. "Mingyu no one has yet!"

"We're talking about the fact that she went to the balcony with Una" said Miss Oh. No need to explain who 'he' is meant. Among the nobles, everyone knows that the word 'he' always refers to Mingyu Kim, the nobleman and royal owner of Kim Group who grips the economic conditions of the entire country.

'He' is the dream of girls, tall, mysterious, and very handsome with a dangerous charm. The young noble ladies agreed that his cold gray eyes could seduce nuns or freeze enemies on the spot. The older women tended to trust the former more and ignore the latter, as Mingyu Kim famously killed hundreds of French soldiers, not with his eyes, but with his skill of shooting and playing the sword. But no matter how old they were, all the noble ladies agreed on one thing. Only by one look would one know that Kim Mingyu was a man of good, charming, and graceful descent. A man who shines like a diamond. And often times it is as hard as a diamond.

"Mr Choi said Miss Jung had become her mistress," said Miss Oh, nodding towards the red-haired beauty who seemed unaware of Mingyu and Una's departure.

"Omong is empty" said the seventeen-year-old debutant who upholds manners. "If it were true that woman was his mistress, she would definitely not have brought him here. Can't."

"She can and she will take it," said another young woman, not letting her gaze off the French door where Mingyu and Una had just come out, while waiting impatiently to see the legendary figure of Mingyu.

"My mama said Mingyu did whatever she wanted and the man didn't care about the opinions of the crowd!"

Right at that moment, the object of their conversation and many people inside the dance hall were leaning on a balcony made out of stone, which was a stone, looking at the blue eyes of the glassy Una with a very subtle taste. "Your reputation's ruined in there, Una. If you still have common sense, you'll rest in the village for a few weeks to 'take care of' your husband until the rumors of the duel subside."

While trying to seem indifferent, Una shrugged his shoulders. "Gossip can't hurt me Mingyu. I have now become a noble with quite a high degree." A bitter tone rang out in his voice, suffocating him. "Although my husband is thirty years older than I am. Now my parents have a degree in the family, something they want."

"There is no point in regretting the past" Mingyu said, trying hard to be patient. "What happened let it happen."

"Why didn't you propose to me before you went to war in Spain?" una asked with a choked voice.

"Because," Mingyu replied bluntly, "I don't want to marry you."