Royal Coup d'État - Chapter 52

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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 52
Merely seven minutes. Cheon-yang Hyeon-ju’s brief live broadcast shook the Republic of Korea.
While the traditional media ran Gwang-pyeong’s conscience confession as a front-page story, on social media it was Seon’s live broadcast that became the burning topic of conversation.
Within five minutes of ending the broadcast, short-form edits were already uploaded, monopolizing the buzz entirely.
[There are people attacking me to delay the investigation. I’m not unaware of who orchestrated this whole affair.]
This particular segment especially circulated across multiple social media platforms, igniting public curiosity.
Who could it be? What could they possibly fear so much that they’d pressure Cheon-yang Hyeon-ju and obstruct the investigation?
All the public could do was cast question marks into the world. But for Seon, there was nothing more to be grateful for. As national attention shifted toward the Crown Prince investigation, she could proceed with the inquiry more safely.
“I never expected you to stir up such trouble, Your Highness.”
Seok-chul grumbled, fidgeting with the seatbelt. Yet his lips kept twitching, as though satisfied with the ripples that continued to unfold.
After conducting the live broadcast in secret without alerting anyone, Seon’s phone erupted with all manner of notifications. Not only did the Office of the Royal Household Public Relations Team reach out, but Seok-chul—who’d seemed busier than Seon lately—called persistently until she answered, and there was even a call from Tae-o.
Cleaning up the mess she’d already created proved less difficult than expected. She’d always acted once something was prepared, but launching things without a plan first wasn’t bad either. No—it was actually exhilarating.
The thrill that came from unexpected action was hard to put into words. Was this why Gyeongan Gun kept getting into trouble? This was the first moment in Seon’s life that she understood her cousin.
Of course, if things had gone sideways it would have been disastrous, but ultimately all circumstances began flowing in Seon’s favor.
“In any case, the pushback against you entering Changdeok Palace has diminished, which is fortunate.”
“Because the excuse that I need protection from the forces attacking my father worked well.”
Seon smiled with satisfaction.
There had been moments over the past few days when her insides were turned upside down, but she’d gained just as much. They say bitterness precedes sweetness. What did it feel like to turn back the attack on herself and her father, the very attack that had been made while revealing an illegitimate child?
She wouldn’t simply endure anymore. When attacked, she would strike back in kind.
She could fight without becoming as sordid as Uijeong Daegun.
“How is Gyeongan Gun these days?”
“Surprisingly quiet. He seems to be shuttling back and forth between Changwon Main Palace and a Seoul hotel, and lately he’s even cut back on entertainment.”
“Should I celebrate your brother’s reformation or remain vigilant?”
Seon murmured in a leisurely voice. Her body leaned back with ease.
“Gyeongan Gun cannot become a target for Your Highness. He’s a man who can do nothing without Uijeong Daegun’s complete support.”
Seok-chul’s sharp assessment was accurate.
Without Uijeong Daegun’s full backing, he wouldn’t have even graduated from university, and having barely obtained his degree, he’d never have advanced to graduate school. The fact that at thirty he hadn’t even come close to finishing graduate studies spoke volumes about his capabilities.
Had she harbored no expectations of Gyeongan Gun from the start, even his life might have been a little easier.
His innocent childhood. Recalling his elementary school days when he loved soccer, his wandering and waywardness made a small measure of sense.
Though living as a member of the royal family did require sacrificing certain dreams, not everyone lived quite like that.
“However, we have found the illegitimate child.”
At Seok-chul’s quiet words, Seon’s mind snapped to attention. The cold water of discovery doused the elation that had warmed her chest.
One mountain after another, they say. Seon still had countless problems to resolve.
“Where is he?”
“He is presumed to be in Seoul.”
“What? Seoul?”
Seon frowned, repeating the words.
“In the capital, despite needing to hide?”
“There appears to be a force behind those hiding him.”
Hiding him?
The first face that came to Seon’s mind was Uijeong Daegun’s. It was a long-held card over her father’s weakness—entirely plausible.
Yet in the rearview mirror, she saw Seok-chul shaking his head. It wasn’t Uijeong Daegun. Seon’s curiosity deepened.
“I think it’s better to go into details after the meeting ends.”
Seok-chul spoke while glancing out the window. As the car’s wheels slowed, outside noise began penetrating the vehicle’s body.
Even through the heavily tinted windows inside the car, one could sense how vast the crowd had gathered outside.
It was inevitable. Today was the day Seon would hold a press conference and live broadcast, stepping before the public for the first time.
And it was the day she would attend as an adviser to the formal investigation into the allegations surrounding the Crown Prince’s death.
“Your Highness! Please say a few words!”
“What is the status of the investigation, Your Highness!”
“If there is a suspect among the royalty, who would be the most likely culprit?”
Questions poured down on Seon before she’d even stepped out. Outside, where the photo line was set up at some distance from the limousine, reporters called out with fierce intensity, their voices altogether different from their usual tone, unwilling to miss this moment.
“Your Highness’s position has changed.”
Seok-chul, sensing it as well, offered a faint smile.
When she was merely the popular Cheon-yang Hyeon-ju, this sort of attention had never followed her. The journalists’ curiosity had been limited to her love life and marriage prospects at best. It wasn’t surprising that the public’s expectations of her had been narrow, labeled as she was with the contemptuous epithet “royal hanger-on.”
But now it was different. Seon had questioned the Crown Prince’s death and exposed that the perpetrator lay within the royal household. Having revealed that forces were still pressuring and persecuting her, she had drawn the public’s protection and interest.
Seon, who according to others only knew how to present a pretty face, was now beginning to be discussed as a member of the royal family who could even be considered for succession to the throne.
“I can’t keep them waiting any longer.”
Seon examined herself in the mirror. A face no different from usual, even her smile smooth and flawless. An appearance bearing no shame before the nation.
Exhaling a thin breath, Seon soon tightened the corners of her mouth. Wherever she stepped forward, she was resolved not to lose this smile. After all, public interest was her weapon.
Seok-chul, who’d exited first, opened the limousine’s rear door. As daylight slowly flooded in, a barrage of flashes erupted with blinding intensity.
The Royal Household Administration announced only that she was participating in the investigation. It wasn’t anything particularly noteworthy. The Royal Household Administration was always obliged to announce when a member of the imperial family undertook official duties.
For her, it was an ordinary day. Yet it was also the day everything changed.
“Your Highness! This is the Minkook Daily! Could you look this way, please?”
“How is the investigation progressing? Your Highness!”
“Who is the most likely suspect at this moment? Please tell us how the investigation is proceeding!”
The indifferent gazes from her Task Force days had transformed into something savage and burning.
Holding Seok-chul’s hand, she descended slowly from the limousine and stepped forward, one foot after another.
She wore an ivory jeogori with a subtle sheen, cut down close to her waist, and a navy silk skirt of a length that just grazed her knees—an appearance both graceful and brimming with vitality.
The garments had been chosen deliberately: to emphasize her status as a young member of the imperial family, while never forgetting the solemnity of the mourning period.
Flashbulbs erupted with each clicking step of her shoes, fashioned after flower shoes, the clicking keeping pace with the photographers’ frenzy. Her every movement was fodder for their cameras.
Not yet. Not now.
She walked forward with deliberate indifference to the journalists’ questions, eyes fixed ahead, until she stopped at the entrance of the National Police Agency headquarters. Beyond the glass doors inside, she glimpsed a familiar face waiting for her.
Truly an unexpected person. From the moment they’d first met until now. He moved in ways that surprised her even when it proved difficult. She gave a slight nod, then turned her body toward the camera.
“My fellow citizens.”
Her quiet voice carried through the crowd.
Without a microphone, the journalists voluntarily began to lower their voices so they could hear her words.
“I ask for your understanding regarding my inability to comment on matters currently under investigation, given my position as a witness.”
Disappointment flickered across the journalists’ faces. As if she couldn’t see through their desire to extract something—anything—that would make for sensational evening news.
She offered a composed smile and continued.
“But my fellow citizens.”
At the resolute tone of her voice, the cameras seemed drawn to her face as though enchanted.
“If there exists someone not only capable of murdering the Crown Prince, but also willing to sell the nation’s assets for private gain—and worse still, if such a person exists within the imperial household itself!”
Everyone fixed their eyes on her in shock. Watching the journalists’ jaws slowly drop, she finished her statement with unhurried composure.
“As a member of the imperial family bearing the right of succession to the throne, I swear to uncover the truth and hold them accountable, without fail.”

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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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