Surviving as the Heavenly Demon’s Concubine - Chapter 17

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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‘Hmm. I absolutely must not say it like that.’

The absurdity of it sounding too much like excuses despite only stating facts.

Moreover, there was the risk of it being interpreted as criticism like ‘What were you doing that you couldn’t even hear a call for help? Isn’t that negligence of duty?’ When even showing herself in a good light wasn’t enough, she couldn’t afford to do anything that might earn her disfavor.

“Well, it’s a long story to tell…”

“Keep it short.”

She knew he would say that.

Riser calmly applied subtle pressure to the guard captain.

“If I do that, some content will be omitted. I’m afraid that when the judge finds out later, he might suspect I deliberately hid something. If you could guarantee that you ordered me to give an abbreviated answer, then I would cut to the chase and report it.”

“…Wait a moment.”

The guard let out a sigh.

No matter what, guaranteeing with his own mouth that ‘I told her to speak roughly’ was a burdensome matter.

The guard, anticipating that the interrogation with Riser would be lengthy, took out a small bamboo tube that was hanging from his waist.

‘What is he doing?’

She thought he might take out a memo pad or fine brush, but what came out of the bamboo tube was a fluffy cotton ball.

Clang-. Clang.

When he closed the bamboo tube again and shook it, a clear bell sound echoed throughout Noeok.

“What is that?”

When Riser, unable to overcome her curiosity, asked the guard about the identity of the bell, he instead asked back with a puzzled look.

“You don’t know the Jieum Bell?”

“I’ve only been in Cheonryeon Palace for a few days.”

The guard’s gaze toward Riser turned cold.

‘So she was a preliminary initiate.’

To be going in and out of prison already when she hadn’t even been on Mount Shiwandai for a thousand days.

She was young too, but what a promising little troublemaker she was.

“What is it used for?”

The guard put the cotton ball back into the bamboo tube to prevent the bell from ringing, then spoke to Riser.

“It’s used to call other guards. Now that you know, stop with the useless talk. Tell me everything in detail without leaving anything out.”

The guard answered in a noticeably blunt tone and took out a small notebook, preparing to record Riser’s statement with a fine brush.

‘I feel like the situation has become unfavorable somehow.’

Riser, instinctively sensing danger, obediently followed the guard’s words.

“Understood. At first… I heard rumbling sounds from the next cell.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said. Judging by the volume of the sound, it seemed he had been hungry for quite a long time. Perhaps Noeok’s meals didn’t suit his taste?”

The guard felt somewhat displeased.

He had certainly told her with his own mouth to tell everything without leaving anything out, but wasn’t this getting too trivial?

“Aren’t you going to write it down?”

“Hmm? Ah, I should write it down.”

The guard had no choice but to write in his notebook ‘Third Prince rumbling, long hunger, reason – presumed unpalatable meals.’ Recording such useless information made him sigh involuntarily.

“After breaking the ice like that, we chatted about various things for a while. Then…”

“Wait. Why are you suddenly condensing that part?”

The guard questioned Riser with sharp eyes.

He suspected she might be trying to gloss over something because she felt guilty about it.

“But it really was just various casual talk.”

“I clearly told you not to leave out a single word!”

When the guard threatened her, Riser was startled.

She never expected he meant for her to talk in such detail.

“I’m sorry! I’ll tell you everything!”

‘The people investigating the Namgung Yeonhwa incident weren’t this thorough.’

It seemed everyone had become sensitive because it involved the Cheonma Bloodline.

Riser did her best to recall her memories so she wouldn’t find herself in an awkward position by answering carelessly.

“Umm. I remember discussing art, for one.”

The guard’s brush stopped abruptly.

“Art?”

“Yes. There was a slight difference of opinion between the Third Prince and me about what it means for a singer to be evaluated as singing well. I thought that an artist’s individuality was just as important as strong vocalization and wide vocal range…”

“Wait. Wait.”

The guard hesitated for a long time, not knowing how to respond, then spoke with difficulty.

“Well, how should I put it. It doesn’t seem like a topic suitable for the location.”

“…! Wait a moment! There were suitable topics too!”

Riser spoke urgently, afraid of disappointing the guard’s expectations.

“That is, right. We shared constructive criticism together with the Third Prince regarding the limitations of Mount Shiwandai’s judicial system that fails to encompass exceptional elements of various crimes.”

‘Two criminals locked in a cell had a grand time badmouthing the country.’

The guard’s stopped brush began to move slowly again.

At least it was much easier to understand than talking about art and such.

“Oh, sorry, but could you change ‘constructive’ to ‘moderate’? I think it might sound too radical.”

“…”

The guard laid his brush flat and covered the characters that read ‘constructive’ with ink.

‘So it really was just various casual talk.’

In the meantime, how frequently the topics changed during that short time.

【”Originally, with elixirs, it’s not just the spiritual power of the raw materials themselves that matters, but the combination with other ingredients. Since the Demon Prince only approaches it quantitatively, he can’t properly assess their value.”】

【”The Demon Prince said he’d look into a burial site for me, but does that mean he’ll buy me land? Would it be difficult to receive it in advance while I’m still alive?”】

Throughout recording the extensive and nutritionless chatter between Riser and Mujin, the guard deeply regretted it. He should have said it was okay to leave out a word or two!

“Look here. Isn’t it common sense that drinking alcohol on an empty stomach is harmful to the body? So I was severely scolding him…”

The guard, who had been writing in a daze, was startled and looked up.

Of all people, Third Prince Cheonmu Jin was not someone who would meekly take a scolding from anyone.

Wasn’t Mujin the very troublemaker that even his birth mother, Lady Soyeon, had given up on disciplining?

“Who did you just say you scolded?”

‘Oh no!’

Riser snapped to attention.

In her desperation to hide Byeokrok’s existence, she had made a mistake.

She had focused only on changing the story about scolding him for mixing medicine and alcohol to drinking on an empty stomach, missing the actually problematic part.

‘I might get charged with something like defaming the dignity of the Cheonma Bloodline.’

She didn’t know if such a crime actually existed, but it felt like there would be.

Riser clasped her hands together and looked up at the guard with earnest eyes, pleading.

“Thinking about it carefully, that doesn’t seem like an appropriate expression. Could you please rewrite it as ‘offered sincere advice with heartfelt concern’?”

“Wet your lips before you lie.”

The guard clicked his tongue and put down his brush.

Even if she was a preliminary initiate, there should be limits to fearlessness.

“Aren’t you even afraid of the Cheonma Bloodline?”

Oh dear. It seemed he wouldn’t rewrite it after all.

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