Even If Flowers Bloom on a Broken Branch - Chapter 35

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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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35.
Lee Yeon reached out and grasped the cup placed before her.
‘I can’t breathe.’
Though she had come fully prepared, her stomach turned and she felt severely nauseous. As expected, this was not a place where she belonged.
The food, the water, and even the air in this place were offensive. It was agonizing because it kept bringing back past memories.
However, it was a grave discourtesy to leave before the King and Queen had departed. Because she didn’t want to give either of them, or anyone else in this room, any excuse to catch her off guard, Lee Yeon desperately suppressed her nausea.
“Lee Yeon.”
Jinyul leaned toward her and whispered softly.
“Drink this instead. That one is liquor.”
He placed a different cup into her hand and took away the original one. Then, conversing naturally with someone else, he drained it in one gulp.
Frowning slightly, he shook his head at Lee Yeon.
‘It is strong liquor.’
Lee Yeon bit her lip gently.
‘Who gave me this cup?’
She couldn’t remember. She only remembered coming to the seat guided by the palace maid and sitting side by side with Jinyul.
If she had swallowed that cup thinking it was water, she would have become intoxicated immediately.
It felt as if enemies were all around her, a force trying to make a fool out of her. Lee Yeon slowly drank the water, closing and opening her eyes.
‘Never.’
She would not show even the slightest opening. She would steal every gaze intended for you.
Lee Yeon’s eyes turned toward the Dragon Throne for a brief moment before being veiled by her long eyelashes.
‘So keep glaring at me like you want to kill me.’
So that everyone present in this room can witness your complete and utter ruin.
* * *
Eun-oh fixed her gaze on Jinpyeong. He was looking ahead with an expression quite different from when he looked at Lee Yeon.
Languid and bored, it was that familiar expression of his. His eyes, which seemed indifferent to everything, only took on a different light when they held Lee Yeon.
Eun-oh found that maddeningly bothersome.
‘Look at me, Your Majesty.’
She wished he would look at her with those eyes just once. If he did, the anxiety swirling in her heart felt like it would quiet down in an instant.
Yet the King merely looked straight ahead in silence, and at the end of his gaze were the Grand Prince and his wife.
Appearing exceptionally affectionate and close.
“…….”
The King remained silent, and Eun-oh likewise sat upright without a single hint of disarray.
On the outside, it was perfect. It was the very picture of a celebration for the beautiful Queen’s enthronement.
However, the actual center of attention was not her.
‘Seo Lee Yeon.’
Eun-oh stared at the place Jinpyeong was watching.
Sitting so close that their knees almost touched, they seemed unable to stop smiling, as if something was endlessly amusing.
The Grand Prince continuously offered food to Lee Yeon, and Lee Yeon would nod as she whispered softly to him.
No one could dispute that they were a well-matched pair.
“As expected, Grand Prince Jinyul’s discernment is extraordinary,”
All Officials whispered quietly.
“Is his wife not truly elegant?”
“That bearing and grace are no ordinary feat. They said she was Lord Seo’s treasure, and indeed it is true.”
“The rumor that the Grand Prince dotes on her completely was not a lie. To think he could be so affectionate.”
In their minds, the image of Jinyul asking the King to publicly recognize his wife was vividly recalled.
The Grand Prince had not asked for wealth and honor for himself, but had used his single precious Wish Token to save his wife, who was destined to become a Concubine.
And the more they thought about it, it was a stroke of genius that made them slap their knees in admiration.
“How did he think of such a thing? He made a request that His Majesty had no choice but to grant. His Highness’s foresight is remarkably extraordinary.”
He twisted the King’s command using the prize granted by the King. He had set a board that forced permission.
In their minds, the perception of Jinyul as a tragic prince and the King’s sword was strong. Other than being excellent at swordsmanship, there was no particularly striking impression.
But that event today completely transformed the impression of Jinyul.
“…….”
Eun-oh bit her lip tightly.
The gaze of the officials toward the Grand Prince and his wife was blatant, and every single word they spoke felt like an arrow flying to pierce her.
The fingertips holding her wine cup trembled faintly.
‘This is a banquet for me.’
All of this was a place to honor her, yet right now, not a single person uttered her name. Not even her husband and her father.
Just then, the Grand Prince and his wife caught her eye. Jinyul whispered something into Lee Yeon’s ear, and Lee Yeon was struggling to suppress her laughter.
Pressed between her teeth, Eun-oh’s lips turned stark white.
Clack.
Eun-oh set her cup down with a sharp sound. She had placed it down so hard it almost shattered. Because it looked almost as if she had dropped it, Court Lady Shin, who was standing behind her, cautiously approached.
“Your Majesty, are you alright?”
“……I am fine.”
Yet Eun-oh’s voice trembled as if it would crumble. Court Lady Shin’s expression grew even more worried.
Eun-oh glanced at Jinpyeong sideways. She wanted him, not Court Lady Shin, to look at her. She wanted him to worry. She wanted him to ask, just one word, if she was alright.
But he did not turn his head even once. Even now, he merely brought the wine cup to his lips expressionlessly.
‘When Seo Lee Yeon bowed, he nodded.’
That small nod tore Eun-oh’s heart to shreds. The face that showed no movement for her, the unchanging expression that reacted only to that woman, was unbearably painful to endure.
Feeling as if her heart was constricting and burning, Eun-oh drank the remaining wine in her cup all at once.
“Your Majesty!”
Court Lady Shin cried out in a startled voice.
“Your Majesty,”
Eun-oh said in a slightly cracked voice.
“I do not feel well, so I shall retire first. Please grant me permission.”
In truth, she wanted him to hold her back. To ask her to enjoy it a little longer since it was a celebration for her. Or to ask what was making her uncomfortable.
But Jinpyeong merely refilled his cup indifferently.
“Go.”
That single word was his permission. He did not give her a single glance. Those words sounded exactly as if he were telling her to get out.
“……I beg your forgiveness.”
Eun-oh gripped her fan tightly as she stepped down from the dais. She staggered under the weight of her clothes, but there was no one who looked back at her.
Everyone was still laughing, sharing cups, and talking about Lee Yeon and Jinyul. In that moment, Eun-oh realized.
Today, she had never been the protagonist, not even once.
* * *
Returning to the Queen’s Quarters, Eun-oh dismissed Court Lady Shin. Then, leaving only her undergarments, she stripped off all her ceremonial robes.
The skirt embroidered with pearls lay crumpled on the floor. The royal crest, etched in silver and gold thread, touched the wooden floorboards.
Eun-oh stared down at it for a long time before reaching out to clutch the garment.
Rip!
The sound of fabric tearing echoed through the space.
The beautifully colored cloth was torn mercilessly, and gold threads scattered across the floor. The pearls that had been strung along each gold and silver thread bounced in all directions.
Eun-oh tore it to shreds, unmindful that her fingernails were breaking.
“Every…… last one of you!”
It was the worst. It was a disaster. Not a single thing had gone according to her plan.
Lee Yeon’s dramatic appearance, the request spoken by the man standing beside her, and the solidarity and deep affection between the two of them had all defied her expectations.
Under Eun-oh’s merciless hands, the seams of the ceremonial robe burst apart. Jewels struck the floor, making a clamorous noise.
“Seo Lee Yeon……!”
Eun-oh murmured, panting. Gasping for breath, she leaned her back against the wall.
Whether it was because of the alcohol or this maddening rage, heat radiated from her entire body. Her heart pounded as if it would burst.
‘I’m envious.’
She was envious.
The face of Jinyul looking at that woman came to mind. The way he quietly held her hand, the way he firmly locked fingers with her, the lips that whispered something in her ear, and that warm gaze.
‘That look in his eyes…….’
She envied that the most.
It was a look she had never possessed once in her life. Not to mention Jinpyeong, even her father had never looked at her with such warm and affectionate eyes. Yet Seo Lee Yeon had it all.
Eun-oh recalled the image of Lord Seo appealing to the King earlier.
‘Please grant the request, Your Majesty.’
It was a request for the Grand Prince, but Lee Yeon was at the end of his gaze.
Deeply grateful to the Grand Prince who had offered a wish for his daughter, he had cried out for that request to be granted.
‘For the sake of Seo Lee Yeon.’
Eun-oh bit her lip hard.
She hated that woman who possessed everything. The more brightly she shone, the more Eun-oh felt herself being dragged down into an abyss.
Furthermore, the King had granted that request.
“Ahhh!”
Eun-oh grabbed a piece of the torn silk fabric and struck the floor. The pearls attached to the cloth scattered in all directions.
“It’s all mine!”
Her voice echoed through the room as if it would split. It resounded loudly through the chaotic room.
“My place, my clothes, my banquet, the gaze I was supposed to receive!”
An echo of anger and weeping, as if her breath were bursting out, resounded.
Eun-oh sank to the floor just like that. Her face, smeared with resentful tears, was no longer beautiful.
Ruined makeup, disheveled hair, torn clothes, and brutally broken fingernails—it was a sight far removed from that of a Queen.
“……Why.”
Eun-oh covered her mouth with the back of her hand. If she didn’t, it felt like a sob would burst out.
Tears she could no longer hold back eventually rolled down her cheeks.
“Why does no one look at me.”
Eun-oh glared out the window while sitting against the wall. It was the direction of the Grand Hall.
In her eyes, it felt as if she could see Lee Yeon. She could see that face smiling brightly while sitting beside Jinyul.
‘Why are you the only one so happy.’
Eun-oh’s lips trembled.
She wanted to erase that smile. She wanted to tear down her world. Otherwise, she felt she would be overshadowed by that light and buried in darkness forever.
“Aaaahhh!”
Eun-oh screamed and clutched her head violently. Hair covered in camellia oil caught between her broken fingernails.
“Seo Lee Yeon!”
I hate you, I curse you.
Eun-oh screamed. Despite the commotion, no one entered the room.
To the very end, she was alone.

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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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