The 21st Century Grand Grand Duchess in the Royal Academy - Chapter 12

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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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A Twenty-First Century Grand Duchess in the Royal Academy
Nightmare
The entrance examination season was an unavoidable ordeal even for Wan, a Grand Duke of the realm. Though the Royal Family enjoyed numerous privileges, scholarly knowledge and academic credentials were not among them. In fact, he found himself at a disadvantage in such matters. Any hint of favoritism would earn him the reputation of a royal who couldn’t study properly. Thus, to receive an excellent education from a prestigious institution, he had no choice but to prove himself through merit alone.
Members of the royal extended family, including the Royal Family itself, typically chose between Sungkyunkwan and the Royal Academy. Wan attended the Royal Academy precisely because he could not attend the same school as Hwan—a precaution against the catastrophic risk of succession being severed should both heirs be in the same place.
For this reason, Wan could not travel by airplane or automobile with his family. Not since he was very young.
Four years ago, when Wan was fifteen, that rule applied on a particular day—Children’s Day. The event was held at an Orphanage sponsored by the Royal Family. Since the King and Crown Prince had other official duties, Queen Uihyeon and Wan attended in their stead. The Queen, deeply invested in child welfare, extended the campaign far beyond its scheduled time.
As a result, Wan spent the entire day playing with the orphans, exhausting himself thoroughly. Choi Sanggung whispered beside him not to overexert himself, but Wan shook his head. He was having more fun than the children themselves. In the Palace, he wasn’t allowed to run freely or shout, but here he could do both to his heart’s content.
The children adored him for it. By the time the royal motorcade lined up before the Orphanage, some children were clutching his clothes and crying. Wan held their hands and made them a promise—that he would return next year, and the year after that, without fail.
After lingering through these farewells, Wan finally boarded his vehicle. He noticed a text from his brother and called Queen Uihyeon in the car ahead.
“Mother, shall we pick up chicken on the way to the Palace?”
— Chicken?
“Brother texted that he wants some.”
As he grumbled that his brother always made him do these things, his mother’s laughter echoed through the phone.
— Why not, then?
“Yes.”
The moment he answered, a deafening crash shattered the air. Choi Sanggung, seated beside him, pulled him into an embrace. Only after regaining his senses did he realize she was trembling too. He thought of his mother, but—
“Mother….”
Choi Sanggung did not release her hold.
“Let go!”
“Please remain still, Your Highness.”
“I said let go!”
“You must not look.”
Though he saw nothing, Wan’s instincts screamed that something was terribly wrong. The sound of Choi Sanggung’s weeping, the crackling of the Royal Guard’s radios, and finally the wail of sirens—only then could he push her away.
“Your Highness!”
Ignoring Choi Sanggung’s cry, Wan stumbled from the vehicle and froze at the sight before him. He tried to comprehend what he was seeing, but comprehension eluded him entirely. His mother’s car, mangled beyond recognition, and a truck that seemed to have materialized from nowhere.
“Mother….”
“Your Highness!”
As he reached toward where his mother lay, Choi Sanggung, who had followed him from the car, embraced him again. Determined that he see nothing more, she pressed his head firmly against her and cried out.
“Take His Highness to the Royal Hospital at once. Quickly!”
“Yes!”
As the voices around him grew louder, strength drained from Wan’s body.
It took Wan a considerable time to recognize what he felt as fear. And only much later did he realize that when he was afraid, he could not cry.
“Ahhhhh!”
“Why, why is this happening!”
In the hour when dawn’s blue had not yet fully lifted, Hyun bolted into the Guest House, startled by Wan’s scream. His ashen face and the cold sweat drenching his nightclothes made it clear he had suffered another nightmare.
“Are you alright?”
“Water… I need water.”
“Of course, just a moment.”
Hyun turned on the desk lamp with practiced ease and handed him water. Waking at dawn to Wan’s screams had become routine. Indeed, Hyun’s room was not located in the servants’ quarters precisely for this reason.
“Did you take your medicine yesterday?”
“Mm.”
“It seems the medicine isn’t working anymore.”
“It’s been going on for days now.”
“Perhaps a consultation with the physician tomorrow….”
“Never mind.”
I lay back down on the bed with obvious irritation. Hyun knew I wouldn’t fall asleep again, yet felt helpless watching me struggle. If only I would visit the Royal Hospital or see the court physician, but I despised both. Even the herbal medicine prescribed for sound sleep had lost its efficacy, as though my body had grown immune to it….
“Hyun.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“You should get some rest too. That’s how you’ll grow tall.”
Despite the exhaustion etched across my face, my voice remained tender. Hyun’s lips pouted slightly—it was rather amusing to hear such words from someone who could grow as tall as a refrigerator despite sleeping poorly.
Hyun exhaled a sigh and settled onto the sofa beside my bed. As he lay down using a cushion as a pillow, my stern voice cut through the silence.
“Hyun.”
“I’ll just sleep here tonight.”
“Are you a child? Go to your own room at once.”
My sharp tone was somewhat frightening, but Hyun held firm.
“I may not be able to ward off misfortune entirely, but I can at least reflect it back.”
“Where did you learn such nonsense?”
“From a drama.”
“I told you to stop watching those things.”
“But you watch them too, my lord.”
I sighed with annoyance and said nothing more. Hyun, relieved that I wouldn’t drive him away, quietly closed his eyes. At moments like these, being fourteen felt like a blessing. He was permitted things that would never be allowed to anyone else.
Hyun had once been an abandoned existence left before my Private Residence. I had taken him in when I was merely five years old, wrapped as he was in swaddling clothes. Of course, at that time I lived in the Palace rather than the Private Residence, but I was nonetheless the master of that estate.
‘Let him live there.’
Upon receiving word of the infant abandoned at my Private Residence, I had issued that command. Taking pity on a newborn I had never seen. His Majesty and the Queen Consort had expressed their concerns upon hearing the news, but they could not overcome my stubbornness, or so the story went.
It was quite some time later that Hyun first saw my face. I was ten years old, and Hyun was five. I had gone out with my brother, the Crown Prince Hwan, and upon seeing Hyun, the first words I spoke were—
‘Brother, say hello. This is my younger brother, Hyun.’
Those words shocked not only the Crown Prince but all the attendants as well. The matter was reported to His Majesty, and chaos ensued. I received a thorough scolding and was made to write a reflection, yet for quite some time afterward, I continued to refer to Hyun as my younger brother.
Perhaps because of my special treatment of him, the servants at the Private Residence did not treat Hyun carelessly either. They regarded him not as an abandoned child, but as one who had been taken in. Not as a parentless child, but as the child of a Grand Prince.
After that, I would often visit the Private Residence to see Hyun, and my affection was so evident that Choi Sanggung would occasionally wipe away tears. She found it heartbreaking how I mimicked a father’s love despite never having experienced one myself.
Because of this, Hyun became like a father to me, like an older brother. The mere five-year age difference between us was inconsequential. I simply wished for Hyun’s happiness above all else in this world.
In that sense, Hyun sometimes resented Queen Uihyeon. If she had not departed so tragically, perhaps my long nights could have been more peaceful, he would think. If she had not passed away, perhaps my lonely life could have been warmer, he would think.
Thus, misfortune held no terror for him. If it meant my nights could pass safely, he could bear such a burden.
From the Records of Hui
May 2005: The Queen Consort passed away at the Royal Hospital.
In May 2005, the Central Palace passed away at the Royal Hospital.

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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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