A Baby Cat Who Commands the Dog Clan - Chapter 6

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 6
“It’s strange—my limbs feel so full of vigor.”
Nam Goong Ho smiled with quiet satisfaction.
‘Full of vigor, of course. How could it be otherwise?’
Hong Seol’s body was ravaged by two opposing forces locked in constant warfare within her.
It was like watching two evenly matched warriors clash—the devastation spread everywhere.
Because of this, Hong Seol had no way to properly accumulate inner strength.
No matter how much she gathered in her dantian, it would leak away through the fractured meridians—like grain pouring endlessly from a sack full of holes. The principle was identical.
Moreover, her small frame could not bear the energy that escaped in this manner. She was like a ramshackle hut on the verge of collapse at any moment.
“The thousand-year ginseng you just consumed is a substance that repairs your meridians.”
It was rather like a skilled mason applying mortar to seal the cracks in a fractured wall.
Though the wall remained precarious—it could crumble again at any time.
‘Well, at least I’ve extinguished the most urgent fire.’
The child’s chances of suddenly collapsing dead had diminished considerably.
Hong Seol did not know it, but Nam Goong Ho’s heart was beating considerably faster than usual.
‘This feeling is peculiar.’
As a martial arts elder, I had every reason to rejoice at discovering a child of such exceptional talent.
And if that child could fulfill my long-cherished desire, all the better.
But it was not merely that.
‘How strange the human heart truly is.’
At first, I felt only pity for her.
But seeing the brilliance of her talent, I find myself seized by desire—the desire to stand beside her and witness how far this child might grow.
I, who have never taken a single disciple in all my years, dismissing such things as troublesome.
Fascinated by how light her body had become, Hong Seol repeatedly clenched and unclenched her small fists.
Nam Goong Ho, watching her with contentment, spoke.
“Now that I think of it, I never did explain how you came to be here. It seems you exhausted yourself climbing to the very peak of Dae Chuk Mountain on such a cold day with your frail body. When you suddenly lost consciousness, I brought you here for now.”
Hong Seol’s eyes sparkled.
‘This grandfather saved me!’
And he gave me mountains of food and precious medicinal herbs besides.
‘I—I must thank him at once!’
Only by being a well-mannered child could I hope to remain here.
In her own way, Hong Seol quickly slid down from the chair, pressed her small hands together, and bowed her head.
“Thank you for saving me. You are my—my benefactor.”
Benefactor.
Nam Goong Ho let out a soft chuckle at the archaic phrasing so unsuited to an eight-year-old.
Those sinister Myo Family dogs would never have taught her etiquette. She must have picked up such words by chance somewhere and was merely imitating them.
Unaware of anything, Hong Seol found herself smiling bashfully in imitation of Nam Goong Ho.
‘Thank goodness. My bow must have been proper!’
With her belly full and her tension eased, curiosity bloomed within her.
Hong Seol stole glances at the cloud-shaped embroidery adorning Nam Goong Ho’s collar as she asked.
“Um, is this the Nam Goong Family Estate?”
“Indeed. More specifically, this is Chang Cheon Pavilion—the residence of the Former Patriarch.”
What?
Hong Seol’s eyes widened.
The Former Patriarch referred to the previous head of the Nam Goong Family. Watching Nam Goong Ho, who was grinning from ear to ear, Hong Seol tilted her head in confusion.
“The Former Patriarch? But you don’t look quite so… grandfatherly, if I’m being honest.”
“Bwahahaha!”
At this unexpected compliment, Nam Goong Ho laughed with such hearty abandon that his Adam’s apple bobbed visibly. The sound was so boisterous that every warrior in the Inner Hall Training Ground turned to gaze toward Chang Cheon Pavilion.
“Is that so? When one cultivates pure inner strength diligently, one can appear somewhat younger than one’s actual years.”
“Wow.”
Hong Seol’s lips parted slightly in wonder. Seizing the moment, Nam Goong Ho posed his question.
“How would you like to learn martial arts from me, child?”
He was none other than the Former Patriarch of the Nam Goong Family. If one were to become a warrior, it would be difficult to find a better master than this.
Though I cannot yet draw upon inner strength, external techniques could certainly be refined.
By conditioning the body beforehand, learning the Yin-Yang Divine Art would prove far easier once the illness was cured.
It was a question born of Nam Goong Ho’s foresight.
Yet a shadow swiftly crossed Hong Seol’s small face.
“I… I’m afraid I cannot use inner strength. My body won’t allow it.”
Having spoken, Hong Seol hung her head low.
Nam Goong Ho felt a pang of regret.
In her bewildered expression, he could envision a child who had endured a lifetime of scorn simply for lacking the ability to cultivate inner strength.
Hong Seol could not possibly know what manner of warrior Nam Goong Ho wished to nurture her into.
She was still a child struggling to adapt to the Nam Goong Family. It was far too early to speak of the future.
‘I spoke carelessly.’
Blast it all! An old fool rushing ahead with nothing but good intentions!
It was as though I could hear Dang Yi Mu’s reproachful voice from somewhere.
“I have made an error. It seems even pure martial cultivation cannot restrain an old man’s foolishness. Forgive me.”
Startled by his words, Hong Seol lifted her head. After a moment’s thought, she answered with surprising composure.
“I forgive you, Grandfather. You are my benefactor, after all.”
Watching Hong Seol affect such maturity, Nam Goong Ho felt a smile slip unbidden across his lips.
It seemed I had narrowly escaped being forever despised by the little kitten.
“But there is one thing I must ask of you.”
Hong Seol gazed at him with determined eyes. Her small hands clenched and unclenched, revealing that despite her composed expression, she was deeply nervous.
“You see…”
Why was she drawing this out so much?
Nam Goong Ho’s stern face filled with curiosity. Hong Seol drew a deep breath, then opened her cherry-like lips.
“Would it be alright if I worked as a servant in the Nam Goong Family?”
She had said it!
Hong Seol watched Nam Goong Ho’s expression intently, her nerves wound tight.
His face seemed to grow more forbidding by the second. Based on his expression alone, one might mistake him for a member of some criminal underworld rather than the Former Patriarch of the Nam Goong Family.
“That won’t do.”
Hong Seol’s eyes wavered at the blunt refusal.
The disappointed child was about to hang her head in despair.
Nam Goong Ho’s voice rang out.
“You are not here as a servant, but as a guest of the Nam Goong Family’s patriarch. How could I possibly ask you to do menial work?”
“A guest? Then… does that mean I’m allowed to stay here?”
“Yes. Since I have decided it so, no one in the Nam Goong Family would dare to object. You may stay as long as you wish.”
A warm smile bloomed across Nam Goong Ho’s face, and Hong Seol’s tense expression thawed like spring arriving.
‘I did it!’
Hong Seol’s cheeks flushed with warmth.
I had been anxious all along, knowing I had nowhere to return to.
The fear of being left alone on the streets melted away, replaced by a profound sense of relief.
‘As long as no one discovers I’m a cat-human…’
For now, I could stay under a roof. I wouldn’t go hungry at every meal. This alone was more than enough to make me grateful.
“You there.”
Nam Goong Ho called out to a servant who had just come to clear the table.
“Bathe this child and dress her in new silk robes. She is a guest who will be staying at Chang Cheon Pavilion.”
The servant, who had been bowing with clasped hands, widened her eyes in surprise.
“It will take at least four days to have new silk robes tailored to fit the young lady, Patriarch.”
“Isn’t there ‘that dress’?”
“Pardon?”
At Nam Goong Ho’s words, the servant’s face turned pale. Yet she could not defy the patriarch’s stern command.
“I shall prepare it as you have ordered.”
The servant bowed respectfully and extended her hand to Hong Seol.
“Please allow me to attend to you, young lady.”
“Ah.”
Hong Seol instinctively pulled her hand behind her back.
The memory of Chung Ok, the servant at the Myo Family Estate, came to mind. She would often snatch Hong Seol’s hand whenever she found my slow pace frustrating.
Once Chung Ok seized my hand, I had to scurry along in quick, painful steps. Sometimes she would suddenly grip my hand so tightly it hurt.
‘Terrifying!’
So I could not readily take the servant’s hand, even if it wasn’t Chung Ok’s.
“Young lady?”
“Yes…”
Only after being prompted once more did Hong Seol cautiously extend her hand. Soon she felt small fingers being gently enfolded.
The Nam Goong Family servant’s hand was unexpectedly warm and soft.
“Shall we go then?”
The two walked slowly down the corridors of Chang Cheon Pavilion.
She did not suddenly grip Hong Seol’s hand painfully, nor did she yank it to hurry her along. She simply smiled kindly whenever their eyes met.
“I am Mae Ran, a servant of Chang Cheon Pavilion. Please feel free to call me by my name.”
Hong Seol could not answer, only blinking her eyes. The servant’s courteous manner toward me felt utterly unfamiliar.
Once I turn the corner and get out of sight of Grandfather Nam Goong Ho, will Mae Ran’s demeanor flip like a coin?
My small chest filled with worry.
“Your quarters are just ahead, miss. We only need to walk a bit further.”
“Yes.”
I suppressed the anxiety threatening to spill out, following Mae Ran’s lead as my feet carried me forward.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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