Since I’m a Time-Limited Princess Who Has No Tomorrow - Chapter 93

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 93
As the house collapsed and space opened up, the debris tumbled down at a slower pace. Only after the fox and bird had completely escaped the cave did they finally catch their breath.
“We made it….”
“Um, but who are you?”
Yi Yeon-jo asked carefully from atop the sprawled fox.
Seok-ran, at a loss for words, clamped her mouth shut. She couldn’t honestly reveal her identity, yet using enchantment on these innocent young creatures felt equally wrong.
Seeing the Thousand-Year Fox’s distress, the Black Phoenix emitted a peculiar cry. At that, the twin children’s eyes fluttered closed as they drifted into sleep.
“Well done. That was awkward.”
“From here on, it’s a matter for the Mortal Realm. We’ll deliver them to humans and leave it to them.”
The taciturn Black Phoenix took flight carrying Se-ru-hwa. Seok-ran heaved a long sigh and rose to her feet.
“At least we found the princess, but what a ordeal this has been.”
The fox and bird returned to where the Crown Prince’s Guard was searching, bringing the children with them.
* * *
When I regained consciousness, several days had already passed, and I was within the Palace.
The moment I awoke, I contacted my parents through the trembling Eight Pillar Order. Both were so worried that their faces had turned ashen.
[We were peacefully preparing your birthday gift, and then this horrible thing happened….]
[Hee-yo, this is our fault. We never imagined Doo-eok-sini’s connections would approach you like this….]
I shook my head at my self-reproaching parents.
“This happened because I sent Seok-juk-i to Seol Deung-hwa, which became the catalyst. It was ‘Se-ru-hwa’ who was discovered, not ‘Princess Cheonmyeong.’ It’s my problem, not your mistake.”
[True, it’s fortunate that the human Se-ru-hwa was exposed to Doo-eok-sini, not you as Princess Cheonmyeong.]
[Still, we’ll make sure nothing like this happens again.]
“It’s fine. This is ultimately a matter of the Mortal Realm. If you interfere carelessly, you’ll accumulate karmic debt. So please don’t overexert yourselves.”
[Hee-yo, how could there be overexertion when it’s for your sake?]
[You nearly died!]
“I didn’t nearly die. My protective charm didn’t even crack. I wasn’t in much danger at all.”
[Still….]
“Besides, Seok-ran told me you mobilized the Mountain Spirits and even sent Heuk-yeon to rescue me. You’ve already helped more than enough.”
Heuk-yeon, one of An-si’s siblings, was a Black Phoenix dwelling in the Abyss, the deepest part of the Underworld.
‘You must have sent Heuk-yeon because among those with the ability to pierce through shadows and intervene in the Mortal Realm, she accumulates the least karmic debt.’
Even so, this kind of interference wasn’t good for them. They hadn’t even paid the price through offerings.
“In any case, I’m safe, so please don’t worry, alright?”
[Hee-yo….]
“And try to refrain from involving yourselves in Mortal Realm affairs. Now that Doo-eok-sini has appeared, you need to be even more careful about accumulating karmic debt. I’m worried about you.”
[Understood. We’ll be careful too.]
I decided to tell them later about how healing had become a concept within my divine power.
‘If this concept can’t be separated… they’ll just get their hopes up only to be disappointed. Let me think about it more first and then tell them.’
Once I examine it further alone and become certain, I’ll discuss it with them.
After concluding my conversation with my parents, I looked into how the aftermath of the kidnapping incident had been handled.
I learned from Seok-ran how we had been discovered by the Palace Guard.
The pilgrimage journey was immediately halted, and a search for the monster began instead. During this, Seok-ran had found and brought back the demons who were preparing an ambush, but startled, she dropped them in the brush near the military camp, where humans discovered them.
A pitch-black wooden tablet. Carved from a tree struck by lightning, it bore the character for “suppression” (抑)—an artifact imbued with a potent curse that subjugated and enslaved its bearer. The Observatory and Star Mansion Bureau had jointly analyzed it, and the findings had caused quite the uproar: traces remarkably similar to records of Doo-eok-sini from a century prior.
When the Crown Prince awoke and testified that Geuseon-dae had spoken the name “Doo-eok-sini,” the evidence combined with his account sent the court into absolute chaos. Everyone knew of the Straw Hat War. If Doo-eok-sini had returned, a second such conflict could erupt.
Once it became certain that the kidnapper of the Crown Princess and Crown Prince was not human but Doo-eok-sini himself, the investigation shifted direction entirely. The court resolved to launch a full-scale pursuit and inquiry into Doo-eok-sini. Moreover, rumors circulated that they intended to revive the Jagyogapsa to counter this threat.
Yet the Jagyogapsa was not an organization that could be reconstituted merely by imperial decree. The Gwae-ryeok-nan-sin had to reach consensus. Since they had only recently recovered from the aftermath of the Straw Hat War a century ago, reassembling them would prove no simple matter. This turmoil weighed heavily on the court.
And that turmoil now weighed equally upon my mind.
“My lady? What troubles you?”
The Crown Prince asked with puzzlement as I paused mid-meal, my gaze fixed upon him.
I shook my head in deflection.
“Oh, nothing. I was merely thinking how handsome Your Highness is.”
“….”
The Crown Prince lowered his head, his ears flushing slightly crimson.
In that moment, I studied the boy anew. No matter how many times I examined him, my conclusion remained unchanged.
‘His rank has indeed risen. Slightly, but unmistakably.’
Rank—one’s station, one’s position.
The Celestial Deities govern the absolute and natural principles that maintain this world’s equilibrium and create harmony. The Celestial Deities are not sentient beings but rather a form of concept—the world’s own unconscious will and intention.
The station that the Celestial Deities recognize is what we call “rank.”
Every being is born with a certain rank. Those born as deities possess a deity’s rank; those born as humans possess a human’s rank; those born as beasts possess a beast’s rank.
Most remain in their station from birth until death, yet occasionally one’s rank elevates. When someone’s rank rises above their innate station, it means the Celestial Deities regard that being more favorably—deeming them worthy of a higher place.
Through rigorous cultivation of body and spirit to reach enlightenment, through mastering the Way to attain awakening, through correcting what deviates from the natural order, through overcoming great trials, or through achieving deeds the Celestial Deities deem worthy, one’s rank ascends. As rank continues to rise, one may enter the Heavenly Realm and gain the qualifications to become a deity.
‘Fox demons cultivate the Way to elevate their rank. Gamun-jang underwent trials and became a fate deity through elevated rank. My parents’ achievement in vanquishing Doo-eok-sini also elevated their ranks.’
Yet now, viewing the Crown Prince through my celestial sight, his rank had risen slightly.
‘Was it from consuming Geuseon-dae? Or from reaching a special realm as a darkness deity?’
Regardless of the precise cause, the elevation was undeniable. Seeing it, my thoughts grew turbulent, countless possibilities swirling through my mind.
Doo-eok-sini. The deity that suppresses the head. Born to suppress the supreme deities who are the world’s head. An entity that feeds on karma and grows stronger—best eliminated in the Mortal Realm before ascending to the Heavenly Realm.
My parents slew a Doo-eok-sini who had already become a deity in ages past, and thereby obtained the rank of supreme deity. Then, if one were to slay Doo-eok-sini before it becomes a deity, what rank would one obtain?
Elevation of rank. The possibility of becoming a deity.
The Straw God Plan.
For me to survive, at least seven subordinate deities must be born beneath me, each receiving a portion of my divine power. Since I cannot create deities at will, I attempted the Straw God Plan—treating straw effigies as deities and infusing them with divine essence to separate my power.
It failed, but another method was proposed: I could sleep for thousands of years or more until seven deities are born, or until another cure is found.
‘Then…’
As my thoughts converged, a single question crystallized.
‘If I identify candidates with potential to become my subordinate deities, and they slay Doo-eok-sini in the Mortal Realm and obtain elevated rank…’
If I separate my divine power and bestow it upon them, and they become my Straw Gods…
‘Could I… survive?’
A thrill coursed through me. In 210 years of existence, this was the first clear hope I had ever known.
Throughout the meal, after returning, even as I lay down to sleep, I continued turning this thought over in my mind.
‘Is there someone who would become a deity for me, who would stake their life fighting Doo-eok-sini?’
‘An-si would certainly agree without hesitation, but it’s impossible from the start. She is a divine being who already possesses her own divine power. Divine beings can refine their own power to become deities, but it is difficult for them to receive my power.’
‘Beings without divine power yet… those capable of receiving my power. Humans are most promising… demons require far longer cultivation as they are inherently corrupted. Among humans, the Gwae-ryeok-nan-sin who can actually fight Doo-eok-sini have the highest potential.’
‘To become a subordinate deity capable of receiving my power, they must govern a concept contained within my power… but saying it is easy; how do I guide them toward this? I don’t even have a domain I govern yet.’
‘Healing… If I could imbue my divine power with the concept of healing, could I bestow other concepts upon it as well? If I could even temporarily separate them….’
‘The divine essence within the Straw Gods. That was able to temporarily hold my separated divine power. If I place my concepts within that divine essence… and give it to the Straw God candidates?’
‘If they borrow my divine power through the divine essence and fight Doo-eok-sini?’
‘Wouldn’t my chances of victory against Doo-eok-sini increase, and wouldn’t the possibility of gaining rank and receiving that divine power to become a subordinate god also rise?’
‘But could I really find seven humans willing to do this… to fight risking their very lives, to have their entire futures transformed after battle, to ascend to the Heavenly Realm as gods…?’
‘Isn’t it selfish of me to seek out Straw God candidates and cultivate them into deities merely to save myself?’
‘…But I want to live.’
‘Only after entering this body, only now… can I finally live while truly feeling the world.’
‘Merely ten years ahead. When this body turns twenty, it ends.’
‘I want to live longer… I want to experience so much more… I want to become a true god.’
Then I must strive to survive. I must find the humans who will save me.
‘Perhaps if I help many people, someone will come to want to save me.’
If no one does, then my virtue was insufficient, then I lacked the qualifications to become a great god, a supreme deity—then I can accept it cleanly and let go.
My reasoning could be flawed; I might defeat Doo-eok-sini yet lack sufficient rank, or the candidates might gain rank but refuse to become my subordinate gods, or I might fail to defeat Doo-eok-sini altogether.
‘But.’
I can accept failure or give up if things don’t work out… but I cannot abandon this without even trying.
‘So… let me attempt this!’
I snapped my eyes open. I rose abruptly and approached An-si.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————