Surviving as the Terminally Ill Young Lady of the North Sea Ice Palace - Chapter 50

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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 50
“F-forty Liang!”
Dan Ri-hyang gritted his teeth and raised his hand as well.
Oh, so this one has quite a bit of money too?
Now that I think about it, he mentioned the Dan Ri Clan when introducing his family.
It must be a fairly well-known household in his hometown.
“……Fifty Liang.”
But despite Dan Ri-hyang’s bid, Wi Jong-haeng coolly raised the price without hesitation.
Ah, there we go! Our candidate number three truly has impressive nerve.
“Come on, forty-five Liang!”
“Fifty Liang.”
“F-fifty-two Liang!”
“Fifty-five Liang!”
Candidate number two, Poong Seung, and candidate number four, Paeng-ga, had also jumped into the fray.
Once the bidding passed fifty Liang, even the young masters from wealthy families seemed to hesitate, and the pace of increases slowed considerably.
In the novels I read in my past life, characters would casually steal ten thousand Liang in gold and wager fortunes without batting an eye.
“Wow…….”
“They brought that much money to the academy?”
Ju Pyeong-sam and Seon Mu-hyeok from our dormitory had come along with Gu Won-ui as well.
But the price had skyrocketed so quickly that they could only watch and lick their lips without joining in.
What about candidate number one, though?
What was she doing?
Seeing how she’d been making such a fuss earlier, I naturally assumed Namgung Ayoung would bid too.
But she didn’t step forward; instead, she stood among the crowd picking nervously at her fingernails.
‘Does she not have much money to spend personally?’
Perhaps she wasn’t a direct heir—wealthy enough, but not quite as skilled as the others.
A similar situation to Poong Seung or Wi Jong-haeng?
“I, I lack funds right now, but I could tell my family and bring back a hundred Liang, or even a hundred fifty……!”
Two Liang, three Liang, rising in increments, and then five at a time.
Eventually it surpassed seventy Liang, and Paeng-ga—candidate number four—spoke almost pleadingly.
“It’s a shame, but I won’t lack money when I return to my family.”
However, I was planning to use what I have on hand today and keep some in reserve.
Credit was not an option.
“Eighty Liang!”
“……Eighty-two Liang.”
“Ninety Liang!”
“A hundred Liang…….”
“A hundred twenty Liang!”
The ones who fought to the very end were candidate number two and number three.
Poong Seung and Wi Jong-haeng.
Wi Jong-haeng’s voice grew cautious once the Antidote’s price exceeded fifty Liang.
But Poong Seung called out numbers as confidently and cheerfully as when he’d been spouting nonsense about the North Sea Ice Palace.
And I was the complete opposite.
Since the bidding started, I’d been desperately suppressing the urge to grin—exerting every ounce of willpower I had.
I couldn’t have it said that the Young Lady of the North Sea Ice Palace was grinning like an idiot over a few Liang!
“A hundred twenty Liang—does anyone bid higher?”
I swept my gaze across the gathered crowd and asked.
Just moments before, everyone had been chattering excitedly that the price had broken a hundred Liang.
But at my question, they all fell silent.
Well, there we are.
“You brought the money in silver, yes?”
“Of course!”
Poong Seung pulled out Silver Liang from his pack in jingling handfuls.
Ah, how it gleamed! Yes, silver really ought to pile up like this!
Even though there’s hardly anywhere to spend money here at the academy.
Still, as the Young Lady of the North Sea Ice Palace, it was only natural to carry money in quantities heavy enough to weigh one down.
“Whew……! Thank you so much, Young Lady Seon!”
Oh, but I’m the one who should be grateful, esteemed customer.
Poong Seung handed over a full hundred twenty Liang with a grin, pocketing the Antidote.
‘But does finding Internal Power really matter much for someone like him?’
She certainly didn’t say anything crude.
Money had changed hands, so the merchandise went directly to the customer.
She warned the children who were watching with eager eyes and recommended they swallow it right away.
Gulp!
Poong Seung followed her advice without hesitation.
“Ahhhhh! At last, at last I’ve recovered my Internal Power!”
He was overjoyed.
I was pleased as well.
It was worth holding out instead of selling it for thirty liang.
In less than ten days, it had quadrupled in value.
“Does anyone else happen to have an Antidote? I’ll pay a hundred liang for it!”
Wi Jong-haeng called out, but unfortunately, it seemed no other student had obtained two Antidotes besides me.
“Damn it, I should have kept it instead of giving it away!”
“Ah… I should have saved one from last year!”
Among the onlookers were kindhearted juniors who didn’t understand the Antidote’s value and had yielded theirs,
and seniors who merely added a comment or two of feigned regret.
But no one came forward with one.
Of course, I had one spare, but a hundred and twenty liang would be more than enough to cover my expenses for an entire semester with money to spare.
I saw no reason to speak up.
“Well, the show’s over. Students from Cheonmyeong Pavilion and Jijeong Pavilion should probably head back now, shouldn’t you?”
Your curfew is coming up soon.
I dispersed the children.
Poong Seung, having bought the Antidote, seemed to hesitate about whether there was something else he wanted to discuss with me.
“Did you want to say something?”
“Ah, no, nothing at all! I apologize for the intrusion. Thank you so much!”
The moment I addressed him, he hurried back to rejoin his friends and returned to Cheonmyeong Pavilion.
* * *
Once the crowd had dispersed somewhat, I offered my thanks to Eun Hyeon.
“What could I possibly have done to deserve your gratitude? After all, Poong Seung was the one who won the bid.”
“Thanks to you bringing Wi Jong-haeng from Jijeong Pavilion, I was able to sell it for such a high price.”
“He was watching Young Lady Seo’s every word and action all along, so he would have found you without any hint from me.”
Oh well. That’s a shame.
I should have brought more money to the academy.
“By the way, where did you get all that money… and how are you planning to slip away from the academy?”
“There are ways.”
I assured Eun Hyeon not to worry about that, and told him to go back to Jijeong Pavilion and get some sleep.
He was concerned that if I were to escape the academy by going around the mountain, I’d need to leave early.
But I knew a secret passage.
After sending Eun Hyeon off and stepping into Inbon Pavilion, Gu Won-ui spoke to me.
“You’re going out through the rat hole I showed you, right?”
“Oh, how did you know?”
“You made money, so of course you’d go spend it.”
I wondered if she was about to say something about me bringing another child through the rat hole she’d shown me.
Eun Hyeon tried to appeal that he had no other friends and kept secrets well.
“Eun Hyeon is fine. In a few months, anyone who needs to know will find out anyway. Just keep the secret from the kids who are too careless.”
“Thanks.”
Thankfully, Gu Won-ui waved her hand and said it was okay.
“Want to borrow a Bamboo Hat?”
She kindly offered to lend me the item as well.
“No, that’s fine.”
I politely declined.
At night it was dark enough that my face would be reasonably hidden, but during the day, a Bamboo Hat alone wouldn’t cut it.
If the merchant house had been open at this hour, I would have slipped in and out by now.
But going there in the middle of the night to cause a fuss asking for Agarwood Root seemed worse than visiting as an ordinary customer in the morning.
“So how are you planning to get out?”
I smiled slyly.
“You’ve been training Geun Haeng this whole time, so surely you’ve already earned enough Merit Points for an Exterior Mission, right?”
Of course, that wasn’t the case.
Yak Seon had given me quite a lot of Merit Points, but I’d need to spend a hundred points soon to repay the debt for borrowing the Excalibur.
But seeing that Gu Won-ui thought that way, I wondered if the Murim Alliance soldiers outside wouldn’t think similarly?
* * *
I slipped out of Cheonmu Academy with Eun Hyeon through a gap in the fence early that morning.
We couldn’t risk being spotted by the gatekeepers at the main entrance, so we kept to the grass and made a wide detour around the academy grounds.
“I’ve come on an errand for Master Seon.”
“Ah, go ahead.”
I passed through the Nakyang city gates confidently, presenting myself as a Cheonmu Academy student.
If a Murim Alliance warrior spotted some ragged kid wolfing down food at a tavern at night, they might grow suspicious that we were Academy trainees sneaking out. But a student going about legitimate business in broad daylight? There were plenty of those.
It was the sort of cover that would hold up in the light of day.
New trainees weren’t supposed to take Exterior Missions, but judging from the Mission Board—there were orders ranging from ingredient deliveries commissioned by various restaurants to Bounty Hunts. All manner of things.
I figured any real inspection would end at the academy gates.
My assumption proved correct.
“I can’t believe we actually got out like that……”
Eun Hyeon kept glancing nervously around, as though unable to accept what had just happened.
“Keep still. You’ll draw suspicion for nothing.”
“Ah, my apologies.”
The moment I warned him, he fixed his eyes forward and walked.
Brazen as our escape had been, I had no intention of lingering over a leisurely meal or anything of the sort.
I headed straight for the Cheonhae Trading Company—the one Gu Won-ui had mentioned.
They dealt in high-grade medicinal herbs there, or so I’d heard.
“Good morning. Do you have the finest Agarwood Root and Sichuan Pepper? Oh, the Sichuan Pepper doesn’t need to be the highest grade.”
I approached the counter and politely requested both the medicinal herbs I wanted and the seasonings Gu Won-ui had asked for.
“Ah, so you’ve come from the Academy? Running an errand for Master Yak?”
“……Yes!”
Yak Seon’s nickname had caught me off-guard, but I kept my composure and replied without hesitation.
Wait—so this was actually Yak Seon’s regular supplier?
Of course. Since he couldn’t venture outside the Academy himself, he’d have to dispatch students for errands like these.
“How many roots do you need? Unfortunately, the finest grade was requested by another party, so I only have ten in stock.”
If I claimed to be running an errand for Yak Seon and then asked for just one root, it would seem odd.
“Ah……really? He told me to bring back twenty, so please give me everything you have.”
Since silver was in good supply, I casually bought all the Agarwood Root available.
According to the book Eun Hyeon had shown me yesterday, it was a medicinal herb that replenished vital energy—so brewing a few roots for myself wouldn’t hurt.
“Right then, that’ll be ten silver liang. I’ll throw in the Sichuan Pepper for free.”
“Thank you very much.”
The elderly merchant gestured briskly to a younger clerk, instructing him to fetch the Agarwood Root.
“How is Master Yak these days?”
These two must be more than just merchant and customer.
Still, as long as I succeeded in registering for today’s lecture, it didn’t much matter if the merchant later discovered my lie.
I responded casually, exchanging pleasantries about Yak Seon’s wellbeing.
“Oh, he’s as hale and hearty as ever.”
“Ha, as he should be.”
Perhaps because I’d been so agreeable, the merchant carried on the conversation while the Agarwood Root was being prepared, and we exchanged a few words of small talk.
“Speaking of which…… I’ve heard a strange rumor lately.”
“What sort of rumor?”
“They say that at Seokgyo Village, the Heuk Ryeong Sword was shattered into fragments by some reclusive master. The whole of Nakyang’s in an uproar—a new master has appeared, they’re saying!”
“……?”
Since entering the Academy, this was my first time venturing into Nakyang.
And before I’d entered, I hadn’t heard any such rumors. I’d naturally assumed this was the first time I was hearing of it.
Yet somehow, a familiar epithet was embedded in what he’d said.
“Even so—the Heuk Ryeong Sword is quite renowned in these parts, and the old woman wielded it so that it crumbled to powder with a single swing. Hyeol Sa No Gu, they’re calling her—the rumors about her are everywhere these days!”
北海冰宮 時限符 英愛로 살아남기 (連載)
지은이 │ 사향노루
펴낸이 │ 김주형
펴낸곳 │ 제이플미디어(주)
마케팅 │ 한재혁
주 소 │ 서울시 구로구 디지털로33길 11, 401호 (구로동, 에이스테크노타워8차)
전자우편 │ [email protected]
홈페이지 │ www.jayplemedia.com
ⓒ사향노루2026
※본 작품은 제이플미디어(주)가 저작권자와의 계약에 따라 발행한 것으로, 본사와 저자의 허락 없이는 어떠한 형태나 수단으로도 내용을 이용할 수 없습니다.
이를 위반할 시에는 형사, 민사상의 법적 책임을 질 수 있습니다.

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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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