Born As The Daughter of a Lowly Concubine - Chapter 114

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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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I was born the daughter of a concubine of the lowest rank.
Chapter 114
‘Si-a must have gotten over her anger a bit, hasn’t she?’
The Crown Prince’s steps felt lighter than they had in weeks as he made his way back to his Residence after organizing his tasks for the day.
He’d found time to visit Si-a briefly, and the tiresome matters he’d expected to consume hours had been resolved far more quickly than anticipated.
As a result, he found himself with a rare stretch of leisure time before the sun even set.
Ordinarily, he would have summoned Si-a to ask how she’d been faring lately, spent the evening eating the food she’d brought, but she still hadn’t stirred from her Residence.
According to Song Naegwan, however, Si-a hadn’t seemed angry at all.
Song Naegwan had watched over Si-a just as long as he had; if he said so, it had to be true.
After sulking for so long, it would be a bit awkward to simply show up now, just because he’d bought her some books.
But before long, she’d surely come find him without a care in the world, eyes sparkling, chattering away—”Brother, brother”—as she always did.
‘I won’t deny that I’ve spoiled her a bit.’
In the austere confines of the palace, Si-a was the sole exception.
His one and only younger sister, the only one who fluttered freely through the halls, skirts swirling, when the King and Queen were elsewhere.
Even when his mind ached over unsolvable problems, the mere sight of her would lift his spirits without fail.
‘Seongwon must have felt the same way.’
When he was younger, he’d sometimes pouted, thinking his brother seemed to favor Si-a far too much.
But now, watching Si-a—still so small, still so much smaller than him—he understood exactly why his brother had cherished her so dearly.
Back then, Si-a had been even tinier, even younger; to Seongwon, she must have been a sister worth protecting with one’s life.
He himself had found her quite endearing as well, though those memories had grown hazy with time—she’d been so young.
Still, even without those memories, he was aware that his younger sister, who never seemed to grow up, was more a child than her years suggested, and he indulged her whims knowingly.
The Crown Prince noticed a smile tugging at his lips as his thoughts drifted to Si-a, and he let out a wry laugh.
‘For all that I am, I’ve found precious little joy in life.’
Si-a’s words—that he was a dull, joyless person—struck him anew with unexpected force.
Yet this was how he’d lived since birth.
When he thought back, his childhood had been filled with unalloyed delight in study and martial arts, but after his sudden ascension to the position of Crown Prince, that lightness had vanished.
‘Is it because I feel I’ve stolen my brother’s place?’
His happiest memories all belonged to the time when Seongwon had still been here.
He’d never once wished to be Crown Prince—it had always been his brother’s role, after all.
How foolish and immature he’d been in those days.
The thought of how anxiously those around him must have watched that witless version of himself was almost unbearable.
‘No, don’t think about it.’
He couldn’t waste this rare moment of rest torturing himself.
Perhaps he’d play with the cats for a while.
With that in mind, he returned to his Residence, only to find that the cats—who normally treated his chambers as their own private domain—were nowhere to be seen.
“How strange.”
These were the same creatures who usually scattered his belongings everywhere and then vanished, giving the palace attendants endless headaches, yet they’d managed to disappear precisely when he wanted to play with them.
Since he had time, he thought about reading, but for some reason found himself drawn not to his usual books but to something else entirely.
‘It was… enjoyable, though.’
Before he quite realized it, his hand had reached for a worn, dog-eared copy whose torn pages had been carefully mended with paper.
He’d once dismissed Si-a’s habit of reading novels, never imagining he’d become so absorbed in one himself.
Perhaps he’d been too narrow-minded all along.
The palace attendants had done their best to repair it, pasting paper over the damage and copying out passages in their own handwriting, so while it was rather a mess, it was still readable—and over the following days, the Crown Prince found himself returning to it again and again.
As he gazed down at the battered, obviously damaged volume, he suddenly found himself thinking of that woman he’d met.
***
“Might I trouble you to yield your copy of ‘Flower Shadow’ with the author’s autograph to me?”
“I beg your pardon?”
At his words, the woman pulled the book closer and stepped back.
Her wariness was unmistakable, and the Crown Prince, flustered, retreated several paces and cleared his throat awkwardly.
“If I’ve startled you, I apologize. I’m not a suspicious person—I simply have great need of that particular book. I can offer any price you name. Surely that would be acceptable?”
“You should be able to find illustrated editions without an autograph easily enough.”
“But I must have one with the author’s signature.”
According to what he’d overheard, a writer’s autographed copy held special meaning for readers.
Since many people desired to own the calligraphy of famous scholars, the sentiment wasn’t difficult to understand.
Besides, Si-a loved collecting things.
She would never forgive him if he brought her the same book without the author’s signature.
But he found it rather embarrassing to explain those circumstances to a stranger.
“Why do you have such particular need of an autographed edition?”
“Why would you ask such a thing?”
“If you won’t tell me, then I’m afraid I cannot give it to you.”
She was a bold woman.
Her lips didn’t open easily, but the fact that it had been sold by pre-order made finding another copy seem hopeless at this point.
Faced with her resolute manner, the Crown Prince had no choice but to tell the truth.
“The truth is, my sister had the autographed edition, but I accidentally damaged the book, and she became quite angry with me.”
“Your sister…?”
“Since that day, she won’t even look me in the eye, and we haven’t exchanged a single proper word. She’s never been this angry before, but damaging the book seems to have upset her greatly. I’m told it’s a book sold only to pre-order customers, so it can’t be obtained again. To ease my sister’s anger, I must at least procure the same copy for her, mustn’t I?”
After hesitating for so long, why did the words come tumbling out so carelessly the moment he opened his mouth?
The Crown Prince felt a little ashamed, yet strangely relieved.
When he thought about it, this was the first time he’d laid bare his heart to anyone besides his sister.
“My goodness.”
And as if his confession had been wholly unexpected, the woman’s cold expression vanished, replaced by a wide smile.
“Don’t mock me, I beg you.”
“No, no, not at all. Mock you? I simply admired that a brother could think so deeply of his sister. That’s quite rare.”
“Ahem. I see.”
Observing the Crown Prince’s embarrassment, the woman smiled warmly and offered a positive answer.
“For such a reason, I’ll make an exception for you.”
“Truly?”
“Ah, but the copy I have now isn’t the autographed edition, so I’ll need some time to bring it to you.”
“Will it take very long?”
Though he’d come outside the palace today because his schedule had freed up, returning late would be problematic.
“Well, I have one at my workplace, so it shouldn’t take too long. It’s not far from here.”
“Ah, then that’s fortunate.”
The woman looked at the Crown Prince’s expression and seemed to hesitate for a moment before telling him to follow her and adding a remark.
“I’m a court physician at Hye Minser, so you needn’t worry about the people behind you.”
“Ah.”
At those words, the guards and Song Naegwan who had been following behind averted their eyes as if they hadn’t heard.
It seemed their expressions had grown rather grim while the Crown Prince wasn’t looking. For the crown prince of a nation to be desperately pestering a mere woman hardly made a flattering picture.
But since it was this side that was in need, there was nothing for it.
The Crown Prince fell into step behind the woman and apologized.
“If I’ve been discourteous, I pray you’ll forgive me. I’m rather bookish by nature and worry overmuch.”
“Is that so? Looking at your fine physique and the calluses on your hands, I took you for a martial artist.”
“You observed all that in such a short time?”
“My profession naturally teaches one to observe people carefully.”
A court physician from Hye Minser.
For the Crown Prince, meeting a field practitioner like this was entirely new.
Though he’d left that domain mostly to Si-a, certain policy matters had occurred to him, so the Crown Prince asked the woman various questions, and she—a court physician—answered without hesitation, their conversation flowing freely.
“You’re quite learned in medicine.”
“My mother and younger sibling had often to visit clinics, so I merely read some medical texts out of necessity.”
Conversation without restraint with someone ignorant of his station was so rare that the Crown Prince felt his heart lighten, and he found himself talking more than he’d realized.
“By the way, how much payment should I offer for the book?”
“The list price will do. In fact, many people missed the pre-order and later offered premiums to buy it, so the proprietor has been quite troubled by it all.”
“Ah…”
Though his circumstances were different, the Crown Prince had attempted something similar, and he fell into a moment of self-recrimination at her words.
“Excuse me. Are you all right?”
“What is it?”
Having noticed a middle-aged woman collapsed on the street and a weeping child, the woman approached, performed a pulse diagnosis on the woman, and hoisted her onto her back.
“I must ask you to look after this child. Oh, and the book as well.”
“Pardon?”
Without another word, she dashed toward Hye Minser without looking back.
The Crown Prince was startled, though it didn’t take long to understand what had happened.
But when the Crown Prince reached out toward the weeping child, Song Naegwan behind him took a sharp breath and picked the child up himself.
“I shall take the child, my lord.”
“Ah… very well.”
The woman rushing toward Hye Minser with the child’s mother on her back, and Song Naegwan holding the child.
‘What is this peculiar feeling?’
Being the crown prince, he’d never had such a thought before, but in ordinary circumstances…
Shouldn’t the heavier burden have been given to him—a strong man? Did he appear so unreliable?
‘And I was just called a good-for-nothing not long ago by Si-a.’
In the end, having even the child thrust upon Song Naegwan left him in poor spirits.
Upon entering Hye Minser, court physicians and medical women were already gathered in a flurry, busy attending to the patient who had just been brought in.
Once inside, I looked around Hye Minser and found it far neater and better organized than I had expected.
‘I’d heard Si-a stops by often to manage the place herself.’
I casually asked another physician woman in passing, and learned that the Royal Princess herself took meticulous care of the clinic—which made me stand a little taller.
A short while later, a woman stepped back with a satisfied smile, wiping sweat from her brow, and only then noticed the Crown Prince. She laughed, suddenly embarrassed.
“Oh, I’m terribly sorry. Please wait just a moment. I’ll wash my hands and bring it right away.”
She returned shortly, carrying a book.
“If you ever fall ill, come see us. Though judging by your appearance, you seem to be from a respectable household, so you likely won’t need to visit Hye Minser. I do hope your younger sibling was pleased.”
***
‘She was a perceptive woman.’
And when she saw a patient, she’d rushed forward without hesitation to help.
The image of her smiling with genuine joy after treating the patient kept returning to my mind.
And thanks to that recollection, I remembered something I’d forgotten.
‘Come to think of it… I never paid her……’
It was true I had little experience with the ordinary act of handing over money to purchase something, but I certainly knew the basic principle that one ought to pay for goods.
I’d been distracted that day, though apparently more distracted than I’d realized.
While waiting for that physician woman to tend to her patient at Hye Minser, it grew late, and the moment I received the book, Song Naegwan hurried me straight back to the palace.
And yet—to take something without paying, when I am the Crown Prince of this realm!
‘Well, today I happen to have the time, so it should be fine.’
I would inform Ikweisa of my destination and return without delay.
Song Naegwan seemed reluctant, though he was hardly eager to cross the Crown Prince when his spirits had been so low of late.
Besides, the destination was Hye Minser—hardly a dangerous place—and I could always claim it was an inspection of public welfare.
Whether or not the Crown Prince sensed Song Naegwan’s concern, he made his decision and set about preparing at once, slipping out beyond the palace walls.
When I arrived at Hye Minser, the same physician woman I’d seen that day happened to be there.
“Why, isn’t this the scholar from before? What brings you here?”
“I’m ashamed to say I’ve only just remembered that I never properly thanked you that day. I apologize.”
I accepted the bundle of money Song Naegwan handed me and offered it to her. The woman received it with an expression that mirrored my own smile.
“Oh, I’d been so occupied I’d forgotten myself. Thank you so much for coming all this way. And your younger sibling—how are they?”
“Still nursing some lingering displeasure, though I expect it will fade soon enough.”
“If the book proved worthwhile, then I’m glad of it.”
With few patients that day, the two of us were sharing a warm conversation when—
Bang!
A large boy, gasping for breath, practically burst through the door in a stumbling rush.
Though still young in appearance, he stood only slightly shorter than the Crown Prince, with a sturdy frame and handsome features.
The staff at Hye Minser recognized him as the boy who had visited several times before, searching for the young mistress, and hurried toward him in alarm.
“What is the matter?”
“The young mistress—the Siyeongwon young mistress is in danger.”
“What are you saying?”
The physicians and physician women of Siyeongwon, and the Crown Prince as well, all knew whom the boy meant by the Siyeongwon young mistress, and they approached him with grave expressions.
“The young mistress has been abducted.”
“That’s impossible—such a thing couldn’t be—”
As people protested, the gasping boy withdrew something wrapped in silk from his robe.
A gasp.
Those who recognized what it was caught their breath.
The Samjo Dragon Tablet.
That he had brought this meant the abducted young mistress the boy spoke of was very likely the Royal Princess herself, or at the very least, it meant the Royal Princess was now caught in some grave peril.
The Crown Prince’s eyes widened.

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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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