I Became My Ex-Boyfriend’s Concubine - Chapter 14

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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 14

He stared down at the petitions piled like a mountain across the table. Every character within them cried out in unison.
End the Rain Prayer Ceremony.
A sharp resonance wrapped around him in layers like curtains, drawing tighter with each breath until it felt as though it would crush his windpipe.
Black characters swimming across the paper seemed to writhe and grab at his ankles.
Without thinking, he pressed his palm to his forehead. His heartbeat thundered from his crown down to his ears, echoing endlessly.
He lifted his head as if to see the invisible. He tilted his ear as if to hear the unspoken.
But the voices of the common people beyond the palace walls had never crossed the towering gates. What filled that void was only the cold gaze of ministers who dealt in enforced silence.
Draped in the pretense of loyalty, they had become a vast wall blocking his eyes and ears.
He had always held his ground. The fury that surged within him he forced deep into his chest.
It was all he believed he could do right now.
Yes, it was not yet time. He had to wait for the moment.
When that day came, he would rise again—he had sworn this to himself countless times.
And perhaps.
He swept all the petitions off the table. The identical sheets tangled together and scattered across the floor.
“You there—is Sang-seon present?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. You called for me?”
At the same moment the answer came, Yun stepped inside. He pointed at the petitions scattered below.
“Dispose of every last scrap of this garbage.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
He watched the eunuchs clearing away the petitions. A strange lightness bloomed in his chest.
Yes, perhaps this was the moment he had been waiting for all along.
He clenched his fist tightly.
He could not afford to lose this chance. This time, no matter what, he would not retreat.
As he was steeling himself with these thoughts, Sang-seon drew near.
“Is there something you wish to say?”
“Your Majesty. Do you recall the visit you postponed before?”
“Before, you say……”
When he seemed at a loss, Sang-seon pressed on.
“She waits before the Chimjeon.”
Then it came back to him. His lips parted slightly.
Ah, that minister’s daughter?
“What shall we do?”
“Hmm.”
He folded his arms and sprawled back in his seat. When Yun looked startled, he waved a lazy hand.
“It’s far too cold today. Tell her I’m not coming.”
“But, Sire, then today’s visit would be……”
“The visit can wait.”
He grinned wickedly, head resting on his arm.
“Let us each do as we please, shall we not?”

***

“What did you just say?”
Danbi’s mouth fell open. Yun bowed his head in apology.
“How am I supposed to do that alone? Then what was the point of my coming here?”
“I, I beg your pardon, miss.”
Danbi closed her mouth. The sight of his spine bent at a hundred and twenty degrees left her without the heart to rage.
Right—even a well that isn’t dry needs someone to dig it. He says it’s too cold to do anything, so what can be done?
Danbi reluctantly climbed into the palanquin. Something between stubbornness and wounded pride began to bubble and seethe in her chest.
Next time, no matter what, she would see his face and make him listen—that was all she could think.
But the next time did not come easily. Every time Danbi sought out the Chimjeon, he had a fresh excuse ready.
Yesterday it was rain; today it was bitter wind. Tomorrow would bring yet another reason, and she found herself almost curious what it would be.
Several days passed like this.
Bang!
Danbi kicked open the gate and stormed into the So-gung.
At the same moment, the hair ornaments pinned in her locks tumbled to the floor. Her hands tore through her hair in raw frustration.
“Oh, my lady!”
“What? The moonlight’s too bright, so you’re embarrassed? That makes no sense whatsoever!”
Danbi glared fiercely at the full moon hanging in the sky, as if she could superimpose that wretched face over it.
“You’re mocking me right now, aren’t you?”
“That is to say…….”
Watching him offer such transparent excuses as though they were legitimate reasons, her frustration finally boiled over.
Of course, her rising anger was a problem, but the real issue was far more pressing: if this continued, she wouldn’t be able to clear the Quest.
“This won’t do. I have to meet him somehow to progress to the next Quest.”
Danbi paced in circles around the courtyard, arms crossed, when she abruptly stopped in her tracks.
A bright smile bloomed across her face.
‘That’s it! Why didn’t I think of that sooner?’

***

Yun suppressed a deep sigh as the palanquin came to a halt before him. Making excuses and offering refusals one after another sat uneasily in his chest.
Soon the palanquin curtain parted, and Danbi emerged into view.
Yun kept his head lowered, mechanically reciting the excuse he’d prepared in advance.
“My lady, His Majesty is occupied today, attending to the cats’ meals and——”
In that instant, something whooshed past Yun’s side.
When he startled and quickly looked up, all he could see was Danbi’s figure sprinting into the distance.
“My lady, my lady!”
Yun hurried after her.
But Danbi strode straight into the Chimjeon without hesitation. She moved with the casual confidence of someone entering her own inner chambers.
Her eyes traced the corridor as though reading a familiar map, then her feet carried her directly to the sovereign’s bedchamber. Yun rushed forward to block her path.
“My lady, this is most improper——”
“He’s busy?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Then I’ll wait.”
“That is to say——!”
As Yun fumbled for words, Danbi cut him off.
“Besides, even kings need sleep. I’ll simply wait here until he comes to bed. That’s acceptable, isn’t it?”
Facing such a radiant smile, Yun found himself unable to utter a single word, merely staring blankly at her luminous face.
While he stood momentarily robbed of his senses by her audacious momentum, Danbi shamelessly sprawled across the spacious bed.
“Oh, the cushioning is rather nice?”

Moments later, before the Byeonjeon.
Hyeon crouched in the courtyard, his brows raised sharply. The two cats, which had been docilely eating from his hand just moments before, bolted away like arrows.
“……She’ll wait?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. She says she will wait until you arrive. What shall we do?”
Hyeon turned his gaze toward the Chimjeon. A desolate chill passed across his features.

At that same moment, inside the Chimjeon.
“Goodness, my whole body aches. Having to wear heavy makeup and layer upon layer of clothing day after day—I feel like I’m being tortured to death. I can’t do this anymore!”
Danbi lay sprawled on the bed, continuously rubbing her entire body.
The heavy Gache and the thick layers of garments were a form of torture even when motionless, steadily draining her stamina.
If she repeated this every night, she might collapse before the game even ended. She absolutely had to settle this tonight, by whatever means necessary.
“But then again.”
Danbi tilted her head thoughtfully, arms crossed.
On the day she first entered the game, she had progressed by following Quests like this. And under the Audience mission, she’d been able to meet Hyeon without much difficulty.
“Back then we had the Consummation right away, so why is it different this time? I haven’t acted any differently than before.”
Danbi sank into thought, then shook her head vigorously.
“Ah, forget it. Using my brain this hard after so long is exhausting.”
Her body melted gradually into the soft bed. Danbi murmured with her eyes half-closed.
“I need to get out of here soon…….”

***

“My goodness, is that really true?”
“It is, I’m telling you. That new Concubine arrived yesterday and was Rejected by His Majesty on the spot.”
“Ha, a concubine facing Rejection.”
“That family strutted about thinking they had nothing to lose, and look how it turned out.”
The next day, whispers spread through the palace like wildfire—rumors of the Rejection of the Concubine, as it came to be called.
What made the gossip spread even faster was the detail that the woman who’d received the rejection happened to be the daughter of a high official.
Unaware of any of this, Danbi shuffled back to So-gung. The moment she opened the gate, Solm came rushing toward her in bare feet.
“Miss, are you all right?”
“What? Solm! Good morning! But what do you mean, am I all right? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Last night, His Highness…….”
“His Highness? Oh, you mean Lee Hyeon?”
“Oh, Miss! You mustn’t speak his name so carelessly!”
Solm pressed a hand to her chest and glanced nervously around.
“So what? He’s not even here anyway. But that bastard didn’t come home last night, did he? Does he never sleep?”
Danbi stretched and turned her head, and through Solm’s shoulder she caught sight of several palace attendants whispering while staring at her.
“Why do they keep looking at me like that? Do I have something on my face?”
“Well, that is…….”
As Solm leaned close and whispered in her ear, Danbi’s voice shot up.
“What? A rejection?!”

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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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