I Became the Eldest Daughter of a Fallen Family - Chapter 2
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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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Episode 2. Good Deed Points
‘I’m going to lose my mind.’
Sixteen? Or maybe five?
So Yeon-hui exhaled sharply as she stared at her youthful face reflected in the bronze mirror.
‘No, what kind of absurd thing is this?’
She had died and awakened in a child’s body. Not just her, but her entire family as well.
But there was one thing that was different…….
“Yeon-su, what did you say this year is?”
“The Year of the Horse.”
“No, not that.”
“Year 16 of Geon-heung. Sister, are you absolutely certain you didn’t hit your head?”
“I’m certain, really. Probably.”
This was not Earth.
Nor was it the modern era of the twenty-first century.
Year 16 of Geon-heung. The year marking the sixteenth anniversary of the ascension of the twenty-seventh great emperor of the Dae Jin Kingdom.
Yesterday she had been a citizen of a liberal democratic nation; today she was a subject of an emperor.
Well, it couldn’t be helped—she had transmigrated to a fantasy world with an ancient setting—but that wasn’t the only problem.
‘Ju Ha-jin, you son of a bitch! You again?’
Whatever twisted fate bound them, Ju Ha-jin was the So Clan’s enemy in this world as well.
He had destroyed the family here too, framing So Yeon-hui’s father with false accusations.
It happened on the day of Grandmother’s birthday celebration.
When the Eighth Prince, Ju U-jin, who had come to congratulate the So Clan, suddenly died at the event, the Fourth Prince Ju Ha-jin and his maternal relatives, headed by the Honored Consort Yeon, began accusing the So Clan of treason against the imperial family.
They claimed that General So Jin had been caught secretly embezzling military provisions by the Eighth Prince and killed him to cover up the evidence.
‘Nonsense! It must be about that wooden box—he held a grudge and fabricated the accusation.’
In fact, So Yeon-hui had been a disciple of a respected scholar and had received an unusual education in classical texts for a woman.
She was even quite talented, so her cherished teacher had given her a precious treasure.
She never imagined it would catch the eye of the Fourth Prince Ju Ha-jin.
“Young Lady So, if you sell me that wooden box, I will give you thirty gold taels.”
“Your Highness, there are things in this world that cannot be bought, no matter how noble one’s rank or how abundant one’s gold. For me, this wooden box is one such thing.”
What person would willingly hand over their teacher’s gift when someone suddenly appears and demands to buy it?
But he had been born the son of an emperor and had lowered his head to a woman for the first time—and she had shamed him. There was no way he wouldn’t harbor resentment.
So Jin repeatedly protested his innocence, but ultimately he bore the false charge.
As a result, So Yeon-hui and her family became criminals overnight and were exiled to a remote mountain village.
How deeply So Yeon-hui must have resented herself.
At merely fifteen years of age, she had chosen death, secretly eating a poisoned mushroom.
‘We’ll see if I let him off easy this time.’
So Yeon-hui clenched her teeth, her fists trembling.
Though she was now exiled to this godforsaken village, she swore that one day she would repay him—settling not just today’s grievance but the bitterness of her previous life as well.
Of course, surviving without falling prey to Ju Ha-jin’s schemes would have to come first.
“Eat quickly. The porridge will get cold. Mother went to great lengths to get eggs for this, you know.”
So Yeon-su pouted her lips with a pouty expression as she spoke.
A savory aroma tickled her nose, but that wasn’t the important part.
“How is Mother? Is she healthy? And Grandmother and Father—they’re not ailing anywhere?”
“You’re the one who nearly died from eating a poisoned mushroom, and you’re worried about everyone else? Of course they’re all healthy. Sister, from now on, don’t just eat anything you find. Are you the neighborhood’s pet dog?”
At So Yeon-su’s words, So Yeon-hui smiled awkwardly and nodded.
‘Thank goodness, no one seems to be sick.’
When she’d seen them earlier, they’d all looked so gaunt she’d feared they must be ill.
If it was simply malnutrition, that was a relief. With proper nutrition, they could recover to their normal state.
‘The problem is that even our daily sustenance is dire.’
The So Clan, stripped of all wealth, had come to Man-gok Village with almost nothing.
They had only obtained this dilapidated thatched house and a few plots of forest land with the village headman’s help, and her maternal relatives had provided a little heirloom jewelry, but that was all.
They had survived by selling the jewelry to buy food, but now that resource was nearly exhausted.
‘Worrying about revenge when I can’t even secure the next meal.’
Sighing at her frustration, So Yeon-u, who had been quietly sitting in the corner, cautiously asked,
“……Sister, you didn’t do it on purpose, did you?”
“Do what?”
“Eat the poisoned mushroom on purpose. To end your life.”
……Perceptive, isn’t he?
But So Yeon-hui shook her head and answered firmly.
“How could I? Who would deliberately eat a poisoned mushroom? It was just an accident.”
“Really?”
“Yes, of course.”
After hearing her repeated assurances, his expression softened. He even sighed with relief, clutching his chest.
“Th-thank goodness. I thought…… I thought it was my fault.”
“What?”
“I thought you hated me, that you made that choice because of me.”
At his unexpected words, So Yeon-hui’s mind went blank for a moment.
She couldn’t even fathom how he’d come to such a conclusion.
“How could I hate you? Why would I hate you?”
“But Grandmother was unkind to you because of me. I said something thoughtless…….”
His emotion welled up, and So Yeon-u’s small lips pressed tightly together as he faltered.
Then he sniffled, brushing away tears with his hand.
At her brother’s tearful self-reproach, a memory she had nearly forgotten suddenly surfaced.
“Grandmother, it seems Mother always favors my older sister.”
“That’s only because your older sister is so accomplished. Still, the heir of the So Clan is you. No matter how talented Yeon-hui is, she is still a girl. It falls to you to continue the family line.”
It was probably something said without much thought.
Yet that small conversation had left deep wounds on both So Yeon-hui and So Yeon-u.
Worried that the precious heir’s spirit might be broken, Grandmother had made So Yeon-hui stop her studies.
From that incident, the relationship between So Yeon-hui and So Yeon-u grew rapidly cold.
Poor So Yeon-su, caught in the middle, had naturally borne the awkward tension as well.
But how could he still harbor such feelings all this time?
So Yeon-hui laughed softly and lightly pinched So Yeon-u’s cheek.
“Foolish talk. How could I hate you over something so trivial?”
Not that Grandmother’s favoritism hadn’t been vexing.
But what could be done about the mindset of this era?
‘Male preference lingers even in the twenty-first century—what hope for the ancient world?’
Besides, this was a family she had regained after enduring all that misfortune and death.
She didn’t have time for resentment when she should only be treasuring them.
“Stop worrying needlessly and share this porridge with me. It’d be a shame to eat all this egg porridge alone.”
Everyone knows food is the best way to comfort a crying child.
So Yeon-hui lifted the spoon, scooped a mouthful of egg porridge, and quickly placed it in her sniffling brother’s mouth.
And in that very moment.
Ding!
A clear notification sound rang out, and a translucent window suddenly appeared before So Yeon-hui’s eyes.
[Good Deed (Minor) Achieved: You sacrificed your portion for your family.]
[3 Points have been earned.]
[Current Points: 3pt]
……What?
‘What is this?’
So Yeon-hui blinked. The notification window disappeared, but her confusion only deepened.
‘Did I imagine it? Let me try once more.’
So Yeon-hui fed another spoonful of porridge to So Yeon-u.
But nothing happened.
This time, she tried giving some to her younger sister So Yeon-su…….
[Good Deed (Minor) Achieved: You sacrificed your portion for your family.]
[3 Points have been earned.]
[Current Points: 6pt]
Three additional points had been awarded.
‘……!!!’
Even amid the confusion, one thing became clear.
Perhaps—just perhaps—she had acquired an extraordinary ability.
‘W-what do I do now? Should I shout for a status window?’
Recalling the introductions of web novels she’d read before, So Yeon-hui quietly murmured every cliché phrase she could think of.
And when she casually uttered “Shop Window,”
Whoosh!
A white flash of light, and a rectangular, opaque hologram window suddenly materialized before So Yeon-hui’s eyes.
‘……What?’
What is this? Some kind of game system?
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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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