Surviving as the Villainess’s Servant in a Martial Arts Novel - Chapter 68

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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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Episode 68

A girl runs through the rainy road.

In the middle of the road, a young boy lies collapsed.

The boy was covered in dirt and filthy, but the girl paid no mind and approached him closely. Then she sat down beside him and embraced the boy’s body.

The girl called out to the boy desperately. Her small voice trembled aimlessly.

“Older Sister, wake up, Older Sister…”

The girl, Pyeong Hyeon’s face was stained with tears.

Pyeong Hyeon.

—is not his real name.

His real name is Lee Sa-hyeon.

He’s a man.

Lee Sa-hyeon was originally a boy. However, he’s currently cross-dressing due to circumstances.

The reason Sa-hyeon cross-dressed was simple.

“Do you understand? Your identity must not be discovered. Who you are must never be revealed.”

It was to hide his identity.

Sa-hyeon had lived in the Mountain Forest since birth.

The group Sa-hyeon belonged to originally lived elsewhere, but due to an ‘unexpected accident’ they lost their home, and now they had entered the Mountain Forest and were wandering from place to place.

When he was young, Sa-hyeon hated this. So Sa-hyeon would often complain to Father.

“Father, are we moving our dwelling again? Why do we always have to move around? It’s not like we’re running away…”

Even with Sa-hyeon’s complaints, Father would only smile kindly and comfort Sa-hyeon.

“I’m sorry. But please be patient a little longer. We must find the divine treasure. Once we find it, we’ll go to the place where we truly belong, so please wait.”

Sa-hyeon believed Father’s words and waited. Hoping that Father would quickly find that divine treasure.

However, Father ultimately couldn’t keep his promise.

When Sa-hyeon turned six years old, he passed away from illness.

Father had always been physically weak. He was born with a frail body, and after the unexpected accident, his vitality greatly declined and never recovered, eventually leading to death.

Sa-hyeon was deeply saddened. Sa-hyeon’s Mother had passed away while recovering from childbirth, and now even Father had passed away, leaving him alone.

Sa-hyeon cried for days and nights.

It was Eom Father who came to find such Sa-hyeon.

“Young Master, how long will you keep crying? Will Young Master Lee come back to life just because you do that?”

Sa-hyeon found Eom Father unfamiliar.

There was the reason that she was the second-in-command after Father, but it was because Eom Father’s impression was so cold.

Unlike others, Eom Father didn’t find Sa-hyeon cute. While others wanted to give Sa-hyeon even a rice cake when they saw him, Eom Father would frown and quickly leave.

So Sa-hyeon found Eom Father more difficult than anyone, but now Eom Father was comforting Sa-hyeon.

“From now on, you must keep your wits about you. Young Master Lee entrusted everything to Young Master. Young Master must fulfill that responsibility.”

“Eom Father…”

“Young Master is still young, so this Eom Father will take on Young Master’s duties instead. So Young Master must grow up safely. Only then will Young Master Lee be able to close his eyes in peace. Do you understand?”

In short, it meant that from now on, Eom Father would take care of Sa-hyeon.

Sa-hyeon was young but quite clever for his age, so he could understand what Eom Father was saying. Including the subtle worry contained within.

“…Thank you.”

Eom Father only snorted.

Sa-hyeon spent some time awkwardly with Eom Father.

Eom Father, to put it nicely, didn’t have a very gentle disposition. Having lived alone for so long, she was both domineering and eccentric.

Because of Eom Father’s disposition, Sa-hyeon was sometimes flustered, but he soon realized that Eom Father was a good person. Because Eom Father tried hard to take care of Sa-hyeon while pretending not to.

After realizing this, Sa-hyeon opened his heart to Eom Father. Later, he even made the first suggestion.

“Eom Father, please don’t use formal speech with me anymore. I’m much younger than Eom Father, and Eom Father is like my Grandmother.”

Eom Father readily agreed. It was around that time that Eom Father began calling Sa-hyeon ‘Hyeon-ah’ instead of ‘Young Master’.

Soon the two became like a real Grandmother and Granddaughter. Sa-hyeon was satisfied with the current situation.

Except for just one thing.

“Eom Father, can’t I come along too? I want to go Outside and see…”

“No. Don’t you know why?”

Because Sa-hyeon couldn’t go Outside.

It was the same when Sa-hyeon was young. Because of ‘that bloodline’, not only Sa-hyeon but even Father refrained from going out as much as possible.

When he was young, he didn’t really know it was frustrating. This Mountain was Sa-hyeon’s entire world, so it was natural. But Sa-hyeon soon learned that there was a bigger world outside the Mountain.

It was while reading Books.

Living in the Mountain, there were many boring times. So Sa-hyeon would mainly spend his days reading Books in Father’s Study.

Father’s Study had so many Books that it was amazing how they had moved all of them here. There, Sa-hyeon read various Books. Martial Arts Books from various sects, history, philosophy, politics, astronomy, medicine, divination…

Among them, if Sa-hyeon had to pick his favorite Book, it would naturally be this.

‘Really interesting!’

It was hero novels.

They mainly described events that occurred as righteous heroes wandered through Jianghu, containing thrilling adventures, deep friendships, and heartbreaking love.

Everything was interesting, but Sa-hyeon liked it when heroes helped people in trouble. When heroes received thanks, he felt proud himself.

And deep in his heart, such yearning would arise.

‘I want to become such a person too.’

He wanted to become a hero who never lost his beliefs in any situation, never lost his righteousness, and built strength to help people in difficulty.

From then on, Sa-hyeon began to throw tantrums.

He persuaded Eom Father many times, saying wasn’t he old enough now, that he would stay quiet and not do anything.

At first, Eom Father was firm.

“Do you know how heartless the outside world is? It’s full of despicable humans who try to stab you in the back at every opportunity. You especially need to be careful. If your identity is accidentally revealed, everyone could be in danger!”

At the words ‘everyone would be in danger’, Sa-hyeon hesitated. But young Sa-hyeon was immature, and his desire to go outside grew stronger.

When Sa-hyeon didn’t give up and kept pestering, it was Eom Father who finally surrendered.

“Sigh… Then, cross-dress.”

“Pardon?”

“You’ll have to pretend to be a girl and play the role of Grandmother and Granddaughter to deceive people’s attention even a little. Why, can’t you do it?”

“No, I can do it. I can do it!”

So Sa-hyeon ended up cross-dressing, which wasn’t in his fate, but he was still happy. Because he could finally go Outside, which he had dreamed of.

Of course, it wasn’t like wandering Jianghu as in novels, but just going to nearby Villages, but Sa-hyeon was happy with just that. He was so happy that he couldn’t sleep that night.

The world Sa-hyeon first encountered was…

‘Huh?’

Ordinary.

Whether it was because it was a Small Town, or because people’s lives were all the same, the sight of people building Houses and living along the Street was utterly ordinary.

But there were some interesting points.

First, Sa-hyeon saw Street Stalls for the first time.

He saw merchants soliciting customers and attracting people for the first time, and he also saw people lining up at large restaurants for the first time.

The delicious smells spreading along the Street, people’s bustling voices, and the vibrant energy.

Sa-hyeon suddenly thought.

‘I want to come again.’

After that, Sa-hyeon would often cross-dress and follow Eom Father to the Village.

Initially, Eom Father would often say no, but as trips to the Village without incident increased, Eom Father seemed to relax and would take Sa-hyeon along without much complaint.

Each time, Sa-hyeon would stick close to Eom Father’s side and look around the Village. The world that seemed the same yet different each visit was increasingly interesting.

That day too, he had just finished looking at items at the Stalls.

“Eom Father? No, Grandmother? Where are you?”

Sa-hyeon had lost Eom Father.

It was because Sa-hyeon had been distracted by looking at the Stalls and let go of Eom Father’s hand.

Sa-hyeon was flustered by the sudden situation. And he became anxious. Because he had never been separated from Eom Father before.

He hurriedly searched for Eom Father. However, the Streets were particularly crowded that day, and finding Eom Father among them was not easy. When Sa-hyeon was getting tired.

“Child, are you lost?”

Sa-hyeon met a Mysterious Man.

A Mysterious Man with a gentle face who smiled kindly.

Sa-hyeon regretted it many times later. If only he hadn’t spoken like that then, or at least if he had been even slightly suspicious of the Mysterious Man.

But Sa-hyeon at that time was too innocent and didn’t know the world’s dangers well. So thinking that Mysterious Man was trying to help him, he smiled brightly and spoke.

“Yes! I lost my grandmother. I was looking around and accidentally let go of her hand…”

It was Lee Sa-hyeon’s first mistake in his life.

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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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