SEO EUN.
youngest adoptive sister.
⇢ her younger sister that she looks after dearly. min helped her in her training as they trained to be gisaeng together. despite their differences, they get along well and their sisterly bond is strong, but after all these years, min still keeps her demons a secret from her sister.
SEO RIM.
oldest adoptive sister (npc).
⇢ as her older sister, min looks up to her as a role model, hoping that she could be as strong and independent as rim. after leaving for tamna, the title of madame has been passed onto min. she patiently waits for next time she will get to see her. she's the only one out of min's sisters to know about her sinbyeong.
SEO JIN.
younger adoptive sister.
⇢ in development.
RYU MINHO.
friend from the past.
⇢ meeting when they were both very young, yeonwoo (min) helped show minho the ropes of commoner life without questioning his true identity. in turn, he helped her in teaching the things he knew.
CHO CHANGHO.
twin brother figure (npc).
⇢ their friendship began during min's early days at sook. changho helped her with dancing while min helped him with playing instruments. they often looked to each other for support as she found his presence comforting when things became suffocating in sook. they often enable each other, common sense being a trait neither has when they're together. min thinks of changho as the same-aged brother she never had.
PARK YEONGHAN.
favorite regular, close friend.
⇢ having known each other for 6 years, yeonghan is min's favorite regular and one of her first clients. notably, he's the only client she's done sexual favors for. he visits her regularly as her last client on purpose, so that min could drink with him. they're very comfortable with each other—the only reason why he continues to come as a client is that he would still like to compensate her for her time, despite min's protests.
RYU SONGMIN.
first love; ex-lover.
⇢ originally tasked to spy on him for yeonhwa, he catches her in the act, and in a turn of events, they begin a romance for the thrill of it. from 1861-1864, they secretly dated and min found herself falling for him. however, after a chain of events following being found out, min breaks it off with him. now, they engage in antics to bother each other, partially fueled by min's secret anger towards him for not fighting for their relationship. secrets aren't forever.
YOON HAEWON.
best friend.
⇢ their first interaction was a chaotic one: fighting over a hairpin that they couldn't afford at the marketplace, which catalyzed their friendship to grow. bonding over liking pretty objects, they began to hangout often, and over time, min became a listening ear for haewon and a pillar of support while she went through a rough breakup with seojun.
JIN JAEKYUNG.
love-hate r/s; ex-lover (npc).
⇢ first met in 1864 at sook. after min left the room due to his friend's rude remarks, he went after her and spent the night walking together. it was love at first sight for him, but it took a year for min to feel anything. very briefly, they dated. things took a turn when he opened hanbamman for her, but she refused to join and fully accept his feelings. their relationship was plagued with issues, with jaekyung liking min more than she likes him, as min still views him as a childish boy. push and pull.
BAE EUNJI.
cousin.
⇢ in development.
SEO JUNG.
older adoptive sister.
⇢ having been at sook longer than min, it was a surprise for rim to choose min as the new madame. as a result, tensions between jung and min have rose sharply as jung believes she deserves the position more than her younger sister.
KWON NABI.
ex-adoptive sister; maintains a close sisterly bond.
⇢ introduced to sook by lady ryu in 1861, she trained with min. they only spent five years together as she left sook after graciously being bought out by a nobleman. despite their limited time as sisters, min considers her to be the one she's closest to aside from rim.
SEOL JUHWAN.
close friend; crush.
⇢ a longtime friend, they briefly confided in each other years ago, when min was yeonwoo and juhwan was kyungho. after reuniting not too long after min joined sook, they naturally became close, close enough to share parts of themselves not known by others. he's rare: someone min could comfortably lean on. min fears that her feelings for him may ruin their precious friendship and thus, keeps them hidden. unspoken words.
IM SEOHYANG.
close friend.
⇢ first met as teenagers. they often go on little adventures together and like to gossip whenever they see each other. min often enjoys accompanying seohyang on her herb picking trips when she can.
RYU YEONHWA.
close friend.
⇢ aside from bringing women to yeonhwa's shelter often, they spend time together biweekly with yeonhwa teaching min new skills and min filling yeonhwa in on the latest gossip she has heard around town and her workplace (especially information on a particular brother). as a result, they have developed a strong friendship that keeps min coming back to the ryu estate just to see her.
SEOL MINHWAN.
ex tutor; acquaintance.
⇢ a critical part in learning how to read and write, he began to tutor her after realizing that min couldn't read the books he lent to her during his visits to her older sister, rim. min was met with success, thanks to minhwan, but he suddenly stopped coming by the gisaeng house.
GO MIRO.
older brother figure.
⇢ in development.
CHOI SAEMI.
close friend.
⇢ a relatively new friendship, they happened to meet by chance when saemi decided to ask min for directions. not long after, min found herself attached to the girl, going as far to try to convince her to be a gisaeng at sook.
OH BITNA.
older sister figure, friend.
⇢ in development.
KIM BYUNGJUN.
sook’s new chef.
⇢ in development.
BAE EUNHYUK.
cousin.
⇢ in development.