Surviving as Jang Hee-bin's Child Court Lady - Chapter 51

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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 51. The Hustler and the Hothead
Seol-hyang had made me promise solemnly not to leave the Ginkgo Tree, but I couldn’t suppress my curiosity.
That fierce rebuke about ‘how unfair!’ should have been stronger.
Fortunately, the distance between the Shell Game Area and the Ginkgo Tree wasn’t far.
I crept away from my spot and peered toward the Shell Game Area.
Commotion at the Shell Game Area was hardly an uncommon occurrence.
‘Still, there’s nothing quite as entertaining as watching a fight.’
Let anyone win.
No, let the unfair one lose… wait, is that even right?
Already, a crowd had gathered densely before the Shell Game Area.
The moment I squeezed my small frame between the legs of the onlookers and poked my face through, I heard another thunderous shout.
“Outrageous! Unjust! This is wrong!”
Wrong! Wrong!
The inflammatory tone naturally made me want to chant along.
Finally, through the crowd, I glimpsed the figure of someone willing to wage fierce struggle.
“…Huh?”
It’s just a child…?
A Young Nobleman, who looked to be barely ten years old, stood with arms crossed and glared at the Shell Game Operator with piercing eyes.
His voice was so loud that despite his youthful pitch, I never would have imagined he was a child.
The Young Nobleman wore a formal hat adorned with gold leaf, dressed in silk robes and a sleeveless jacket.
He was clearly a nobleman’s son from a well-to-do household.
“Shame on you! How dare you deceive an elderly man with nothing?”
Oh… a champion of justice?
“Return the money you’ve unjustly extorted at once!”
His momentum was impressive.
Looking again, the Young Nobleman certainly possessed an unusual gleam in his eyes.
Despite his fair and delicate features, his gaze was remarkably sharp, and his eyes shone with uncommon brilliance.
In a kind light, they were bright and eager; in a harsh light…
‘That kid’s eyes are a bit wild, aren’t they.’
In any case, from the Young Nobleman’s words, I could grasp the situation at a glance.
A shabby Elderly Man sitting before the Shell Game Area with a vacant expression appeared to be today’s victim.
Today’s shell game had been conducted in a very simple manner.
Three cups and one wooden tile.
The rule was simple: match the cup containing the wooden tile and win money; fail to match it and lose money.
The righteous Young Nobleman, having lost repeatedly, had apparently decided to help the Elderly Man who had squandered his fortune.
“Flip over that cup at once! If the wooden tile is inside, I’ll cut off my own hand.”
With unwavering confidence, the boy made his move.
The Shell Game Operator shrugged, looking at a loss.
‘Indeed, it’s all about momentum.’
Just a ten-year-old child, yet by pressing forward with sheer force, even the Shell Game Operator—who must have seen it all—was left speechless.
The Shell Game Operator’s counterattack began immediately.
“What? The Young Nobleman hasn’t even lost money himself—why are you causing such a commotion? We simply won fairly and squarely!”
“What? Fairly? That’s hardly fair—it’s downright foul!”
“Just move along, sir. This is no concern for a noble gentleman like yourself.”
“What? No concern? This is precisely a matter of honor and righteousness!”
“If you keep interfering with our business, we won’t be able to hold back much longer….”
“Then report us to the magistrate if you must!”
Wow!
The Young Nobleman’s fearless eloquence set the crowd clapping and cheering.
‘He’s got a silver tongue.’
The Young Nobleman refused to yield an inch.
The Shell Game Operator, who had been glaring at him menacingly, spoke.
“But what will you do if, when I flip the cup, the wooden tile is there?”
“That won’t happen, but if it does, I’ll pay ten times the wager!”
“Ten times the wager, you say? That would be a whole silver coin!”
“A coin or whatever—I won’t lose, so don’t worry. And if I win, I’ll return double what you took from that old man!”
“Eh? Double? But we’re merchants too. That’s a bit….”
“Enough talk—just flip it!”
The Young Nobleman’s momentum was formidable, but his temper burned like fire.
Intimidated by his intensity, the Shell Game Operator hesitated….
“This won’t do. I’ll flip it myself!”
The boy flipped the cup over decisively.
And….
Clatter!
…a wooden tile tumbled out from beneath the final cup.
Oh.
Silver-tongued Young Nobleman.
Looks like he’s been had.
The Young Nobleman’s expression turned blank with shock.
“No…. How is this possible…. This is impossible! By mathematics, by probability, it’s inconceivable! How could I fail to win even once in over twenty attempts….”
“My, the Young Nobleman seems to have lost his words. Didn’t I tell you? I’m an honest man, I said?”
The Shell Game Operator, thoroughly delighted, chuckled smugly.
“Well then. Hand it over now. One silver coin!”
“….”
The Young Nobleman fell silent like someone with honey in his mouth.
His eyes blinked rapidly.
‘Hmm. His eyes are definitely glazed over.’
As I was thinking such thoughts….
“Hehehehe!”
The Young Nobleman began to laugh uncontrollably.
What’s with that strange reaction?
“Why do you find this amusing, sir? You’re a proper Young Nobleman—surely you carry at least a single tael of silver?”
“Hehe. Well, you see…”
The Young Nobleman grinned in a manner wholly unbefitting his station.
“I don’t have any money.”
…Was there ever a more tragic conclusion?
“I beg your pardon?”
The Shell Game Operator, visibly seething, jabbed the Young Nobleman’s shoulder repeatedly with his fingertip.
“Good heavens. This Young Nobleman is hopeless! I have no choice—I must go to his residence and collect payment!”
“Hehe.”
Another radiant smile.
“Truth be told, I don’t have a residence either.”
“What in blazes is this nonsense…!”
…Should I intervene or stay silent?
Intervene or… remain silent?
By then, I was intently studying the Ginkgo Tree from the corner of my eye.
If Seol-hyang returned now, perhaps it would be wisest to simply slip away unnoticed…
But Seol-hyang gave no sign of appearing.
That was when it happened.
A burly, rough-looking Bandit emerged from the crowd and approached the Young Nobleman.
Intimidated by the man’s imposing frame, the Young Nobleman retreated cautiously.
“A man’s word is worth its weight in gold! A man’s promise must be as precious as gold itself! You’re a cultured Young Nobleman—surely you know this?”
“…Yes, I do know it.”
“Then if a man has given his word, he must honor it! If you have no money, then strip off those fine silks and hand them over!”
“My clothes? Then what am I supposed to wear?”
“That’s hardly our concern. Why? Are you going to claim you’re not a man but some girl standing here watching?”
…Excuse me?
‘Some girl standing here watching.’
The man had hurled that insult while pointing directly at me!
This bastard…?
In that instant, the man roughly snatched the Young Nobleman’s hat from his head.
It was a crude and violent gesture.
‘Hah…’
This won’t do.
The Shell Game Operator and the Bandit didn’t seem to realize it.
But I’m not the only one who cannot abide what is unreasonable, unjust, dishonorable, and wrong.
“Hold on a moment.”
Weaving through the crowd’s legs, I stepped forward into the center of the Shell Game Area.
Here we go.
Time for my entrance!
***
The Shell Game Operator’s face went slack with bewilderment.
‘Where in the world did this come from?’
His expression made his thoughts painfully transparent.
Well, I suppose anyone would be taken aback if a four-year-old suddenly appeared with an absurdly solemn expression.
“Little one. I don’t let children play. Children, go on, get out of here!”
How predictable. The Shell Game Operator’s lines were utterly clichéd.
But I’d anticipated this level of resistance.
“Mister.”
“What is it?”
“You said you were an honest man, didn’t you?”
“…I did, but what of it?”
“What if you’re not an honest man?”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Then you’ll return the money this grandfather lost, and…that young nobleman over there…”
I gestured with my chin toward the Young Nobleman, who had already been stripped of his outer robe and inner vest.
“You’ll return his clothes too, won’t you?”
“Hey, what nonsense! Enough of that! This is a game for adults! I don’t let little girls like you play.”
Discrimination against children, and now sexism too?
But I hadn’t come here to play shell games in the first place.
“Then, mister.”
“Go on, leave!”
“Just one thing. Stand right there for a moment. I’ll do this one thing and leave right away.”
“Hah.”
The Shell Game Operator glared at me, utterly exasperated.
Time was running short.
I quickly shuffled backward.
One step, two steps, three, four…
‘This should be far enough.’
“Mister, stay right there!”
“Hah, a young nobleman and a girl no bigger than a grain of rice. My business is ruined today!”
While the Shell Game Operator grumbled away.
I quickly pulled a slingshot from my waist and loaded a stone I’d prepared in advance.
“What, what are you doing?”
Before he could even finish speaking, the slingshot twanged and released.
And the stone, as expected…
‘Direct hit!’
I struck the Shell Game Operator’s left wrist with perfect accuracy.
“Ow!”
Though the distance wasn’t great, the impact was substantial enough that the Shell Game Operator instinctively jerked his left arm upward.
At that very moment.
Clatter, clatter, clatter.
Two spare wooden tokens, hidden within the folds of my rolled-up sleeves, tumbled across the floor.

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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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