I Became My Ex-Boyfriend’s Concubine - Chapter 12

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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 12

“That cannot be, Your Majesty!”
In the Great Hall, shadows of the columns fell across the floor as morning light streamed through.
Hyun lifted his head slowly, tracing the shadows. Before him stood a man bowed in obeisance.
He disliked it. He always did—the way they bent their heads while their words dripped with complaint.
Hyun let out a long, deliberate sigh to make his displeasure plain.
“What is it that cannot be?”
The man raised his head slightly.
“To perform the Rain Ritual at a time when an unknown enemy holds a blade to our throat? This would only hand opportunity to our foes.”
“Indeed. For the sake of Your Majesty’s safety—”
“Build walls high and hide within them, is that it again?”
At Hyun’s mockery, the Left Prime Minister fell silent, flustered.
“Even if my own people held blades to their own necks, you would still counsel me to cower inside. How readily you speak such words.”
As Hyun’s sarcasm hung in the air, the officials exchanged nervous glances.
After a moment, the Right Prime Minister stepped forward with resolve.
“All of this is for Your Majesty’s protection. We beg your understanding.”
“We beg your understanding!”
Following his lead, the officials bowed in unison. Hyun let out a bitter laugh.
“So you squabble among yourselves every day, yet the moment the Rain Ritual is mentioned, you move as one body with one mind. How glad it makes my heart. Very well, Minister.”
Hyun smiled brightly and leaned forward.
“Then I shall postpone the consummation with the new concubine that was scheduled for today.”
“Your Majesty? I don’t understand—”
The Right Prime Minister’s head snapped up in alarm. Hyun stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“Did you not urge me to hide away? What if this newcomer also means to hold a blade to my throat? Even if she is your own daughter, Minister?”
“Your Majesty!”
As his eyes wavered, Hyun rested his chin in his palm with an air of amusement.
“I jest. I merely offer an example. Surely fairness demands it, does it not?”
“That is… well…”
The Right Prime Minister trailed off in confusion. Then the man opposite stepped forward.
“Your Majesty, would it not be wise to observe the signs further before deciding on the Rain Ritual?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“If Your Majesty were to proceed with the Ritual now, I fear some unforeseen misfortune might befall your person.”
“So the Left Prime Minister also counsels me to hide? My people go hungry by the day. All because there is no rain. Yet you would have me stand idle and watch?”
Hyun’s brow narrowed, and the Left Prime Minister bowed lower still.
“No, Your Majesty. We are now marshaling all forces to determine the identity of these ruffians. Soon we shall have a thread to follow. Would you not grant us this brief time to wait?”
Hyun gazed down at the Left Prime Minister, whose head nearly touched the ground.
After a long moment of silence, he exhaled deeply, as though yielding.
“Very well. I shall wait a little longer.”
“Your grace is boundless, Your Majesty.”
“Your grace is boundless!”
As the officials’ voices receded behind him, Hyun slowly lifted the Royal Seal.
A shadow fell across the Royal Decree. Just as he was about to press the seal, his hand hesitated.

***

When the audience ended, the officials descended the steps in a flurry. Minister Kim muttered in frustration.
“Why is His Majesty so fixated on the Rain Ritual? Is he truly so concerned for the people, or…?”
The Right Prime Minister shook his head vigorously.
“Impossible. There is surely some hidden purpose. He believes the Ritual will restore the power he has lost.”
“Perhaps. He has been in hiding for years now, ever since the attacks began. Can one Ritual truly undo all of that?”
“Let us hope he has not already forgotten how he lost all his brothers to poison.”
“If you wish to keep your lives, hold your tongues!”
At the sharp exchange between Minister Kim and Official Yoon, the Left Prime Minister shot them a piercing glare and strode toward them.
“How dare you speak of His Majesty in such a manner! What recklessness is this?”
The officials bowed their heads at once. Yet Minister Kim continued to grumble, his expression full of discontent.
“But surely even you opposed it, Minister. Your thoughts align with ours—”
“Not another word. My concern is genuinely for His Majesty’s safety. Unlike you hollow courtiers, I speak from the heart.”
The Left Prime Minister spun on his heel the moment he finished speaking. As his footsteps faded, the ministers slowly lifted their heads.
“Such talk is unnecessary.”
The Right Prime Minister rebuked him, and the Minister of Punishments muttered in response.
“But sir, didn’t the Left Prime Minister show some favor to our cause? Perhaps the Minister might also…….”
“Still don’t understand?”
The Right Prime Minister shot him a sidelong glance.
“The Left Prime Minister, backed by the Queen, will never share our purpose.”
“But sir, we still have cards left to play, don’t we?”
The Minister of Punishments leaned close to whisper in the Right Prime Minister’s ear, and a knowing smirk crossed his face.

***

In the Great Hall, Rang glanced sideways at Hyeon.
His role was to guard the King, but Rang was also an old friend of his. Years spent together had taught him to read his face—ever since childhood, a glance was all he needed.
He could always tell what was on his mind.
But this time, even Rang struggled to grasp what was happening. He couldn’t fathom why Hyeon was doing any of this—none of it made sense.
“Do you truly intend to postpone the Entering the Palace ceremony, Your Majesty?”
“There’s nothing preventing it.”
“But sir, the Left Prime Minister won’t sit idle.”
“You just saw him foam at the mouth over a single Rain Ritual. Men like that never leave me in peace. What difference would postponing one ceremony make?”
He wasn’t wrong. Whatever decision Hyeon made, they always seized on some trivial excuse to interfere.
Their stubbornness knew no bounds—the Left Prime Minister had already forced his own daughter into the position of concubine.
Watching Hyeon reluctantly accept that proposal, Rang thought to himself: he’s already exhausted.
“Then I shall follow your will, Your Majesty.”
“You were nagging about it just a moment ago.”
“The Left Prime Minister’s daughter—it’s transparent. There must be a dozen schemes hidden inside her.”
“Hmm, then I ought to verify it myself.”
“Verify what, sir?”
Hyeon smiled with meaningful intent.
“What she’s truly harboring.”

***

「Game cannot be terminated」

Danbi shook Sol’s shoulder, the translucent window hovering behind her.
“What are you talking about? We were just at the palace, weren’t we?”
“The palace, miss? We still have half a double hour to go.”
“You’re saying you don’t remember anything?”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
Then a crackling sound accompanied the appearance of another blue window.

「Sub Quest has arrived.
―Entering the Palace」

Inside the palanquin, Danbi crossed her arms and sorted through the situation in her mind.
“Okay, so I’m still in the Game, and I just…….”
The blade of the Royal Guards flickered before her eyes, the one that had risen above her head.
Without thinking, she touched her neck. The pain lingered—indescribable, but present.
“Right, I definitely died just now. That pain was real. Now that I think about it…….”
Danbi recalled the moment she’d bitten into an apple. The sweet juice had flooded her mouth.
“The taste I felt on my tongue…….”
When she’d pinched Sol’s cheek, the soft flesh had pressed back against her fingertips.
“The sensation of touch in my hands—”
Every bit of it was as real as reality itself.
Did that mean that even in a Game, sensation and feeling were no different from the waking world?
That even the pain of dying felt just as real?

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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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