Surviving as the Heavenly Demon’s Concubine - Chapter 47

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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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Grumbling as he left Yakwang-jeon, Mujin unfolded the paper with the second riddle written on it.

 

[The name of the second daughter of the Song family fabric shop]

 

Mujin immediately headed to Cheonryeon Market and searched through every fabric shop.

 

However, there was no one surnamed Song among the shop owners, and thinking that Yeonhwa must have twisted something again, Mujin dug deeper with more persistence.

 

“I heard that house has a son-in-law surnamed Song. If the son-in-law inherits the shop in the future, wouldn’t it become the Song family fabric shop?”

 

Mujin spewed curses as he tracked down the Song son-in-law, grabbed him by the collar, and interrogated him about the second daughter’s name.

 

“How can you ask for the name of a daughter who hasn’t even been born yet?”

 

“Argh! This is driving me crazy!”

 

That was right. The Song family’s second daughter hadn’t even been born yet.

 

“Make one up now.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“Decide right now what you’ll name your second daughter!”

 

At Mujin’s rampage, the people of Cheonryeon Market inwardly thought ‘That scoundrel is at it again’ and shook their heads.

 

“Hueok! Song Ri! I’ll name the second one Song Ri!”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

The fabric shop Song merchant broke out in cold sweat and pointed with trembling hands to his eldest daughter who was toddling around.

 

The child’s name was Song Nae. She was a cute little girl whose name used the character nae for crabapple tree.

 

“Since the first is crabapple, wouldn’t it be natural for the second to be pear?”

 

“…That makes sense. Don’t change it. Got it?”

 

Only then did Mujin release his grip on Song’s collar.

 

The fabric shop Song merchant swore to the Heavenly Demon that even if a blade came to his throat, he would name his second daughter Song Ri.

 

‘So the second character is ri for pear tree.’

 

And now, having solved the third riddle and obtained the last character seo for rat.

 

“Dang Ri-seo …”

 

Finally, Mujin had obtained the three characters of his benefactor’s name.

 

“I don’t think I’ll ever forget this name until I die.”

 

Mujin headed to the Investigation Department, the Demon Sect’s intelligence agency, with such self-mockery.

 

“Third Prince, you’ve arrived.”

 

“I’m looking for someone.”

 

When Seo Yeon Khatun intervened, it wasn’t easy for even the Investigation Department to find someone.

 

Not because the Investigation Department lacked ability, but because once someone reached a certain level, they could block things with their power.

 

However…

 

‘If I know the name, there are plenty of ways to work around it.’

 

“Dang Ri-seo. A young woman.”

 

Because traces of artificially carved out information are bound to remain.

 

“Filter out those whose movements can’t be tracked around the time of Gyeongchip.”

 

If there was someone who had a suspiciously clean gap during the period when Riser was imprisoned in jail…

 

“Could you wait half a shichen?”

 

“Sure.”

 

That person would have to be exactly who Mujin was looking for.

 

* * *

 

“Ha… shit.”

 

Riser struggled to control the emotions that had suddenly surged up.

 

It wasn’t something that happened often. Hadn’t it already been 16 years since she was born into this world?

 

It wasn’t like she had suddenly possessed someone else’s body, so there wasn’t any particular sense of alienation, and she didn’t suffer learning to speak what was supposedly her native language.

 

Writing was… honestly not easy, but that was the same for other people of this era too.

 

So she thought she had become quite accustomed to this world with its questionable worldview.

 

Sometimes she became so accustomed that she felt like her true identity was Dang Ri-seo, and memories of her past life had just surfaced.

 

‘That was an illusion.’

 

I still haven’t put down roots.

 

‘In Sichuan, it was fine because no one approached me.’

 

The unwanted only daughter of the deceased Fourth Lady.

 

That title, which seemed like it would only bring loss if you got close, was also a shield that protected Riser.

 

Thanks to that, she was able to buy time to organize her thoughts and sort out her surroundings alone in this strange world.

 

Like web novel protagonists typically do, she had made quite solid future plans.

 

What she would do for a living when she became an adult and had to take responsibility for herself, what she would do to earn money.

 

‘Then I suddenly came to the Demon Sect.’

 

Due to an unimaginable variable, the future she had planned was completely blown away.

 

New environment, new people, new goals.

 

But Riser adapted to life at Cheonryeon Palace without much difficulty.

 

Saying that people are the same everywhere. Naturally, just like when she first reincarnated as Dang Ri-seo.

 

“…I’m scared too.”

 

The vague sense of alienation felt as a stranger in an unfamiliar world.

 

The fear that one day she might suddenly leave all relationships behind and be thrown into another world.

 

The emptiness of one who has realized that all the trajectories of her life are nothing more than drawings in the sand.

 

When just living day by day while refusing to face all of this was overwhelming enough.

 

‘How could I do such a thing?’

 

To create something precious in this fleeting world.

 

It was an unreasonable request. An excessive expectation.

 

“I’m not that strong…”

 

Riser slowly slid her back down along the pillar and slumped to the floor.

 

As she breathed in the cold night air, she felt her heated head gradually cooling down.

 

‘I should rest a little before going in. They’ll think it’s strange if they see my swollen eyes.’

 

Riser slowly raised her head.

 

The darkness attached to each pillar of the corridor overlapped with each other, blocking the passage, and between them the rear garden appeared sunken low.

 

‘When did it get so dark?’

 

She must have lost track of time studying with Jegal Lin.

 

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, the night garden gradually revealed its texture.

 

The dull shadows of broad-leafed trees, the blurred outlines of stone steps, and the night light pooled at the edge of the pond swayed subtly.

 

“Huh?”

 

Near the wall, at a point where the darkness was particularly thick, something was subtly out of place. A shape too irregular to be part of the garden.

 

‘A person!’

 

Riser felt her heart sink as she opened her mouth.

 

Before her breath could become sound, the shadow burst out as if tearing.

 

“…!!”

 

Without even a sound of scraping the ground, a cold hand covered her mouth and her body was pushed toward the pillar.

 

“Shh. Don’t scream.”

 

Their eyes met at a distance of less than a span.

 

‘Blue?’

 

Soon the tension in her shoulders was released.

 

She hadn’t expected him to be here at this hour, in this place… but at least he wasn’t a stranger.

 

‘How did the situation turn out like this?’

 

Mujin let out a short breath through his mouth.

 

He had been so focused on solving Yeonhwa’s riddles that he lacked awareness of the passage of time.

 

Dang Ri-seo. When he figured out those three characters, the sun was already setting.

 

He went straight to the Investigation Department to ask about the whereabouts of the name’s owner, waited half a shichen and received the answer of Cheonryeon Palace, so that was… he wasn’t sure exactly, but it had definitely passed sulsi (19~21 o’clock).

 

‘Ah, I should have just come tomorrow.’

 

What was so urgent that he departed for Cheonryeon Palace at that hour?

 

No matter how excellent Mujin’s lightness skill was, arriving too late to knock on the door was inevitable.

 

‘I should have turned back even then.’

 

It was unfortunate that he couldn’t find any reward for running around all day, and his aimless wandering around the area became the source of trouble.

 

Late at night.

 

Sensing the presence of a patrol guard making rounds, Mujin hastily climbed over the wall.

 

It was near Naewon in Cheonryeon Palace, where prospective concubines used as their lodging. If he encountered the guards, his situation would certainly become difficult, so he had no choice.

 

He would hide for a moment, and when the guards passed by, he could quietly slip away then.

 

That’s what he was thinking.

 

Without any warning, the Young Woman in Green burst out through the pavilion door, ran frantically along the corridor, then grabbed a pillar and began sobbing.

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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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