I Thought the Youngest Daughter of the Sichuan Tang Family Was Hated - Chapter 40

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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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“…He dislikes me.”
He dislikes me.
No matter how many times I muttered it in a daze, the shock wouldn’t fade.
I’d heard people say they disliked me before, but this was different.
‘…Perhaps I’ve been receiving too much affection lately.’
Moreover, I never imagined that Namgoong Do-hwi, my only friend, would say such a thing.
Days had passed since that thunderbolt of a statement, and he hadn’t shown his face since.
Had his goodwill toward me completely vanished?
“I’ll be heading home soon….”
I didn’t want to begin my relationship with him this way.
How could I resolve this?
“Little one. Why do you seem so listless?”
Dang Mu-seon, seated beside me, asked with concern.
But my mind was filled only with thoughts of Namgoong Do-hwi.
‘Ugh. I think I overstepped my bounds!’
I regretted it, tugging at my hair.
“Is your scalp itchy? Hmm?”
Dang Mu-seon said the local water might not agree with my body, and he tidied my disheveled hair for me.
“Grandfather….”
I sighed deeply and leaned against his arm.
“Are you sleepy? Would you like to go rest inside?”
He asked gently, stroking my head.
I slowly shook my head.
“No. This is an important event.”
“Important, is it? What’s there to see in children’s antics?”
Children’s antics….
I glanced around, wondering if anyone had heard that.
‘To Grandfather, it may seem that way, but this is supposed to be the Three Great Families’ performance gathering.’
A performance gathering.
Literally, it should mean performances… but it doesn’t.
It’s an occasion where each of the Three Great Families exchanges their treasures and strengthens their bonds.
In other words, it’s a somewhat childish event where families boast about their power and prestige.
A performance gathering was held at every Three Great Families gathering, and today was that day.
“We can’t skip it. It’s our turn.”
Now it was our Dang Family’s turn to perform.
The others had all restored and displayed portions of secret martial arts that had been lost during the war, but we were different.
“Behold this.”
The Poison Expert Branch Master was showcasing a paralytic poison he had created using the Chilryeong Mountains’ poison qi.
“…The important thing is that this poison blocks only sensation….”
“What does that mean?”
“My, surely not.”
The Poison Expert Branch Master’s words stirred murmurs throughout the hall.
He continued with evident pride, exhaling through his nose.
“It provides exceptional assistance in external cultivation training!”
“Oho.”
“Excellent. And they say there are no side effects.”
Everyone’s eyes gleamed as they became intrigued.
“Should you wish to learn more, I invite you to seek out myself and this young master after the banquet concludes.”
Indeed.
This gathering served as a venue for business dealings for the Dang Family as well.
The Poison Expert Branch Master descended from his position amid applause, offering a subtle bow to Dang Mu-seon before taking a seat beside me.
“Wow, the response is excellent.”
When I whispered this to Dang Mu-seon, the corners of his mouth curved upward slightly.
“Who made it, then? Of course the reaction would be good.”
“Ah, Grandfather made it?”
“Otherwise, would these fools have crafted it? Ridiculous.”
Dang Mu-seon cast a sidelong glance at the several Dang Family elders accompanying him, then raised his cup to his lips.
“Next shall be the Namgoong Clan.”
A voice rang out at that moment.
I saw Namgoong Sae-ryun rise abruptly from where he sat at a distance.
He wore a genial smile and leisurely swept his gaze across the surroundings.
It didn’t appear particularly favorable.
‘Oh.’
Our eyes met.
“Ha, haha….”
I relaxed my expression as if I hadn’t been frowning moments before, offering an awkward smile.
He too widened his eyes and smiled, fine wrinkles gathering at the corners.
Soon after, he opened his mouth.
“I hear that in those circles, my Namgoong is called a martial family that has lost its foundation.”
At his words, the noise of the banquet hall subsided.
Namgoong Sae-ryun shook his head as if to dispel the heavy atmosphere.
“It is not an inaccurate assessment. We have indeed lost portions of the sword technique said to be the foundation of the Emperor’s Sword.”
I straightened my hunched posture. Even in passing, it was a sensitive statement to hear.
‘So the Namgoong Clan actually admits to it.’
The Namgoong Clan, with their righteous and confident bearing.
Perhaps because of their reputation as the strongest among the martial families, they never acknowledged their own weaknesses.
This was one of their few vulnerabilities.
The loss of portions of their sword technique during the Demonic Cult’s invasion. Moreover, all the masters who had deeply mastered that technique perished in the war, leaving no one to transmit their understanding.
It was a fact everyone knew openly, yet they had stubbornly pretended ignorance—until now, suddenly admitting it.
‘What was it like before the regression? I can’t quite remember.’
As I traced through hazy memories, a young boy approached and stood beside Namgoong Sae-ryun.
It was Namgoong Do-hwi.
Namgoong Sae-ryun tapped Do-hwi’s shoulder and continued speaking loudly.
“Until now, I’ve been racking my brains trying to perfectly restore this. All because of the Swordless Ghost Blade of the Shadowless Sect. But now, things are different.”
Do-hwi and Namgoong Sae-ryun gazed at each other and smiled brightly.
They truly seemed close.
“I’ve realized that the well-honed path of the emperor itself is the very essence of Namgoong.”
With those words, Namgoong Sae-ryun gently pushed Do-hwi’s back.
Do-hwi slowly, yet without hesitation, stepped to the center of the banquet hall.
He took a deep breath, his gaze sweeping across each of us seated in a circle around him.
“See? Didn’t I tell you? A mere performance.”
Dang Mu-seon snorted dismissively.
In that instant, Do-hwi drew his sword from the scabbard at his waist.
The draw was so fluid it was hard to believe it came from a seven-year-old like me.
‘…What is this?’
As he grasped the blade with both hands and closed his eyes, I felt something emanating from the sharp steel.
White and blue energy seemed to flow and gather along the blade like water.
Even I, who knew little, could sense it.
This was not something a seven-year-old should be capable of.
“…!”
Veins bulged at Do-hwi’s temples as if they might burst.
I found myself standing up without thinking.
Didn’t anyone else worry? His face and hands were crimson, and his knees were on the verge of buckling.
Do-hwi, gathering every ounce of his strength, exhaled evenly.
And then.
“Haaah!”
He slashed.
From the blade that cut through empty air, a faint white arc extended outward.
When that sharp force touched the stone seat positioned at the center, it dispersed weakly into the air.
“Tsk!”
A clicking sound of disapproval echoed from afar.
It was Namgoong Sae-ryun. His expression was harsh, clearly unsatisfied with the result.
That was when it happened.
A thin crack appeared in the stone seat.
“Wow. Just now, could that have been…?”
“Incredible…! Releasing qi at that age—truly a prodigy!”
As the crowd’s cheers erupted, Namgoong Sae-ryun’s expression softened.
“Well done, my son.”
He sent his applause to his own child with evident satisfaction.
But I could tell. That was merely a fabricated expression.
I found myself studying Do-hwi as if entranced.
The boy looked on the verge of tears. Had he, like me, discerned something in Namgoong Sae-ryun’s words?
‘….’
That unsettling feeling crashed over me once more.
It was then that Do-hwi, as if steeling himself for something, swallowed hard.
After sheathing his sword, he scanned the faces around him, searching for someone.
Then our eyes met.
His expression crumpled distinctly in that instant. Had my worry shown so plainly on my face?
Soon enough, he walked toward me with heavy steps.
His face drenched in sweat and heat, his hands trembling from the strain of wielding a technique beyond his capacity, his legs barely holding him upright.
The young boy was utterly disheveled, and yet—he was magnificent.
Was this what warriors called elegance? The elegance of proving one’s strength.
‘And here I am, being hated by such a person.’
Should I apologize now? That technique could have killed me in a fit of rage, after all.
I could have been the one ranked first.
“Hee-yeon.”
He called my name.
Sitting in the foremost seat, I was nearly at eye level with him.
Our gazes locked as I swallowed dryly.
‘What, what are you doing coming over here?’
My throat felt parched.
I couldn’t fathom why he’d approached me in front of everyone.
‘Calm down. He won’t be able to use that technique twice.’
He’s probably just warning me.
Not to act recklessly.
“Miss Hee-yeon.”
My name was called twice. Goosebumps prickled down my spine.
Forget it. I don’t care!
I squeezed my eyes shut. I was prepared to swallow my pride and apologize.
But then.
“Last time, I—”
“I like you, Miss.”
Namgoong Do-hwi beat me to it.
With words far more absurd than I’d anticipated, and therefore far more terrifying.
“I fell for you at first sight.”
“…Wh…?”
My throat seized; no words would come.
‘No, wait. You. What are you even—?!’
I remember it vividly still.
What he’d said to me last time.
“It just happened. You.”
“Become my betrothed.”
“The person I despise most.”
Crack!
I thought the sound came from my own jaw dropping so wide it nearly split in two.
But it wasn’t.
The sound came from behind me.
My Father, seated around me.
My grandfather. My older brothers.
They had all shattered the wine cups, bowls, and chairs their hands had been touching.

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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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