Born As The Daughter of a Lowly Concubine - Chapter 116

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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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Born as the daughter of a concubine of low rank.
Chapter 116
No. Perhaps “burst in” wasn’t quite the right word. It had felt rather ceremonial, actually.
The kidnappers first covered the prison adequately with cloth, then threatened that if anyone made a sound, they would not only take it out on them but would hunt down their families and show them no mercy.
“We’ve received a report of an illegal slave trading house being opened. Do you know anything about it?”
“No, who would be brazen enough to do such a thing these days? It’s likely just a rumor.”
“Still, we ought to verify it. Would it be alright if we had a look around?”
“Of course. We have nothing to hide, so please, come in.”
Why so confident?
Even hearing their voices alone left me baffled.
“Shouldn’t we look around this area as well?”
“Have a thorough look.”
“Oh, what could possibly be worth looking at? Surely you, Captain, know as well as I do.”
“I know, I know. But there have been such troubling rumors going around lately…….”
As the Podo Bureau Captain and the Military Officers spoke, their eyes met mine—I was at the bars, my face poking through the cloth they’d pulled back.
It seemed they’d intended to make only a cursory inspection and leave, but upon seeing me, their expressions shifted to shock.
When the voices drew near, I’d leaned my face toward the bars on impulse, hoping to catch a glimpse, and in that moment I found myself staring at a face I seemed to recognize—and let out a scream.
“Ahhhhh! Someone help me!!”
Behind me and from various corners came silent gasps of alarm—the kidnappers had only just threatened us to stay quiet and well-behaved.
But they didn’t know what they were dealing with. My family was not the sort they could intimidate.
“No! Someone help me!”
The other women tried to cover my mouth in their shock, but I didn’t yield. Whether it was doubt in their hearts or genuine fear, they withdrew from resisting me without protest.
“Who is that girl over there……?”
“Ha ha, ah, that girl—a Nobi—she’s been running a fever, and her mind’s become a bit muddled, so she’s been spouting nonsense. We’re keeping her isolated. Ha ha ha.”
The man couldn’t bring himself to strike me before witnesses, so he made these excuses while handing the Captain a heavy money pouch.
‘You’ll die too…… later.’
While I was quietly composing a death list in my mind, one of the Military Officers who’d come with the Captain wore a troubled expression as he studied the area, his brow furrowing.
The Officer whose eyes met mine—I was still leaning close to the bars—blinked as though he’d glimpsed something that shouldn’t be here.
“Hmm?”
And truthfully, I too had found his face familiar from the moment he appeared.
‘He looks like someone who worked at the palace once.’
I couldn’t recall his exact position, but I was certain I’d seen him at the palace grounds some years back.
‘Hmm, who was it again? His name escapes me, but it feels like I…… helped him with something.’
I’d helped so many people as I pleased over the years that my memory had grown hazy.
There were countless instances where someone claimed their family had fallen ill, and I’d sent for a physician to their home.
Not that I was particularly soft-hearted or generous—rather, living as I did, I’d thought that small favors might one day be repaid in kind.
Whether such thinking had borne real fruit, I honestly couldn’t say.
Just as I was recalling this, he too seemed to be remembering who I was.
“That can’t be……?”
“Why are you acting strange?”
Regardless of the Captain’s confused gaze, the Officer approached me as though entranced.
He dropped to one knee, bringing his eyes level with mine as I sat, and asked quietly:
“Your Highness……is it you?”
“What……?”
At those words from the Officer’s mouth, the relatively calm atmosphere among them froze cold.
In the silence that followed, only the Officer’s voice and mine rang out with perfect clarity.
“Yes. It’s been a long time. How are the children growing?”
“By your grace, Your Highness, they are healthy and thriving. However…….”
Ah. So it was the house where the child had been ill. I’d sent for a physician for them.
The Officer’s hands trembled.
“How…… did you come to be in such a place?”
“I was kidnapped.”
The Captain threw down the bundle of money he’d just received and shouted—whether he’d known from my presence that this Officer had once served the palace, or simply from my terse answer:
“A kidnapper of a Royal Family Member! Apprehend them!”
“Yes, sir!!”
My, that was a swift change in posture…….
“Your Highness, step back!”
Without waiting for the Officer’s command, everyone began drawing their blades, but I wasn’t bold enough to stand close by at a time like this.
I’d watched people train many times, but I’d never before witnessed anyone actually fighting for their lives.
Fortunately, the cloth the kidnappers had draped over us blocked most of the view outside, but the sounds alone were enough to terrify me.
Clang! Clang!
A horrible shriek tore through the air.
Thud! Crunch!
Agony.
The unsettling sounds from outside made everyone flinch and tremble.
Those of us locked away together didn’t understand what was happening—our faces had gone blank with confusion, though I imagined the others in different cells weren’t faring much better.
“Are you… the Princess?”
“That’s not what matters right now.”
Even as I said it, I knew it was important.
But asking about it in a moment like this seemed pointless.
Bang! Crack!
……
When something struck our wooden cell and timber split with a sickening sound, everyone’s face twisted with dread.
And the impact ripped away the cloth that had been shielding us psychologically, laying bare a vicious battle scene right before our eyes.
A strangled scream escaped someone.
We pressed ourselves as far back as we could, desperate to stay out of the fighting.
‘But what’s happening? I thought this was too fast for So-i or Cheon-ho to have sent help. Maybe it’s a different team altogether.’
Seong Gyeom-sabok had been pursuing us, so perhaps the authorities had arrived instead.
I couldn’t tell if that was good or bad.
What mattered was who would win.
The criminals were fighting surprisingly well, but if the authorities lost here, that would be equally disastrous.
A cry of agony pierced the chaos.
Watching blood spill before my eyes made my whole body shake.
‘I’ve coughed up blood before, but I’ve never seen someone collapse in front of me like this—it terrifies me!’
Yet amid the terror, something else occurred to me.
“They said the illegal slave trading house was opening today, so buyers will come to purchase Nobi! We have to arrest them too—kyaah?”
Screech—
Unfortunately, in the chaos of battle, it wasn’t our side that heard me—it was the human traffickers.
The ringleader of the kidnapping, wounded from the fighting, turned toward me with a face twisted in fury.
“Damn it! Damn it! Why is a Royal Family Member in a place like this!”
……
I wanted to point out that he was the one who’d dragged me off the street, but I knew better than to provoke him now.
Besides, though it sounds strange to say, I was rather famous.
“A Royal Family Member? Damn it! Because of that crazy Princess, we’ve lost so many Nobi to sell all this time—we’ve suffered because of her!”
“……That’s what you’re upset about?”
“If I’m going to die, I won’t go alone!”
It was senseless logic, but there was no point trying to reason with someone whose eyes had gone wild.
Besides, he seemed like the sort who was mad even when thinking clearly.
Perhaps it was because I’d been around madmen since infancy, but once I realized this one couldn’t be reasoned with, I felt no need to persuade him.
The man shaking the wooden bars frantically suddenly understood he had the key, and pushed open the cell door.
“Kyaaaah!!”
“No, this can’t—”
Those who tried to shield me could only shrink back before the gleaming blade.
His target was me alone—he didn’t even glance at the others.
I bit my lip and stumbled backward, but there was nowhere to run in the cramped wooden cell.
“Come here!”
……!!
Thud—!
And just as the man reached for me, something struck the kidnapper’s head from nowhere.
He couldn’t even cry out before slamming into the wooden bars and crumpling to the ground, and the impact set the entire wooden cell swaying dangerously.
“Are you all right?”
“I’m… fine.”
It was Cheon-ho who had appeared and struck the kidnapper.
As I reached for the hand he offered me, the kidnapper I thought had been knocked out suddenly lunged toward Cheon-ho instead.
“Look out!”
……!
Shielding me, Cheon-ho sidestepped and swept the reckless attacker’s legs, then twisted the man’s arm behind his back.
A scream tore from the kidnapper’s throat.
“Do you have rope or anything like that?”
People moved to unfasten their clothing, but seeing one of the other criminals charging toward us, Cheon-ho simply hurled the man—arm still locked—straight at the incoming attacker.
“It’s dangerous, so please don’t come any closer.”
With those words, Cheon-ho planted himself in the entrance, blocking anyone who tried to push through.
The wooden prison swayed a little, but having only one entrance thanks to the barred walls made it possible to hold the line.
Cheon-ho was clearly strong, and his movements were anything but ordinary.
I’d known he was no average fighter since his clash with Seong Gyeom-sabok, but what exactly did this man do for a living?
‘And why is he risking so much to help me?’
Most of those trying to force their way in were after me as a hostage, so Cheon-ho’s struggle was ultimately my fault.
My chest tightened at the thought of him getting hurt because of me.
“Everyone, stand down!!”
Fortunately, a contingent of soldiers arrived not long after, and faced with their overwhelming numbers, the Human Trafficking Ring gave up any thought of escape and surrendered.
Some had already fled, of course, but the soldiers split up to pursue them.
“Phew.”
“Are you alright?”
Only once the situation had settled and Cheon-ho confirmed the members of the trafficking ring were being bound did he finally relax, collapsing where he stood.
“I was startled, but I’m fine. Are you unharmed, my lady?”
“Thanks to you. Are you injured?”
“No, I’m alright. Not a scratch.”
Hmm, his clothes look far from fine, but if he says he’s unharmed, there’s no way to verify it.
Cheon-ho soon got to his feet and, deciding it was now safe to leave, guided me and the other women outside.
Once we emerged, I searched the crowd of wounded for familiar faces. Fortunately, the soldier who’d first recognized me appeared unscathed.
But among the newly arrived troops, I spotted another familiar face.
“Brother?”
“Si-a!”
What are you doing here…?
Without waiting for my confusion to settle, the Crown Prince grabbed me and spun me around, checking me over for any injuries.
‘Haven’t we done this before?’
As that thought crossed my mind, I heard Cheon-ho’s laughter from beside us.
“Heh.”
“……”
The man’s earned my lenience for what he’s been through.
“Are you truly unhurt? Good heavens, you little thing…”
Well, maybe it’s a blessing to be young, brother.
Though that’s not really the issue right now.
“Brother, are you sure it’s safe for you to be here?”
“How could I sit idle and wait when you’ve been abducted?”
I’d only meant to express concern, but the Crown Prince took it as criticism instead.
And he’s the one who should be hearing that complaint…
Only! The Crown Prince! In! Such! A! Dangerous! Place! Absolutely! Not!
But thinking of how worried he must have been when he heard of my abduction, I placidly accepted his embrace and comforting pats.
While the Crown Prince held me in an emotional reunion, issuing directions in between, the Ikyeongsa and others worked tirelessly, and most of the Human Trafficking Ring was successfully apprehended.
‘Though the buyers heading here likely got away.’
With all this chaos, anyone with even a shred of sense would have realized something had gone wrong and fled.
‘It bothers me to think it’s because of me, but if things had gone differently, who knows what would have happened.’
In any case, I’d done what I needed to do.
Half-embraced by the Crown Prince, I pointed to one of the bound men and called out:
“Brother, that one hit me!”

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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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