The Beloved Baby Priestess of the Twelve Zodiac Gods - Chapter 7

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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 7
The following day, the Hong Sa-ga was bustling with preparations for Yeo Ryeong’s welcome banquet.
Red ribbons hung throughout the house, strung with lanterns of every hue, and the kitchen was thick with the fragrant, oily smell of cooking.
During a brief interlude, Yeon-ssi took tea with Yeo Ryeong.
This was Yeon-ssi’s first time meeting Yeo Ryeong in person.
She, who had always admired the priestess, could not help but be overjoyed at this opportunity.
“It is an honor to serve you so closely. Did you sleep well last night?”
At her animated greeting, Yeo Ryeong offered only a faint smile.
There had been considerable commotion the night before.
“The child appears to be dying, priestess!”
When Geum-geum, who had gone to fetch Arin, returned alone with a face drained of all color, Do-gyeong and Yeo Ryeong rushed to the Annex at once.
The moment they saw the state of it, they fell silent.
‘How could they leave a child alone in such a place……’
Do-gyeong exhaled a sharp breath, his fists clenching.
Beneath a peach tree in full, cascading bloom, Arin was struggling to breathe.
The three of them moved Arin, burning with fever, to a room and summoned a physician in secret.
‘Malnutrition.’
‘Malnutrition?’
‘It appears she has not eaten properly for quite some time. Her immunity has severely deteriorated, and her body has suffered considerably from prolonged exposure to cold. That it reached this point without anyone caring for the child—we nearly lost her.’
At the physician’s words, Do-gyeong’s displeasure became evident.
‘This is unforgivable. A child cannot be treated this way.’
‘Contain your anger. There are many ears listening.’
In truth, Yeo Ryeong was seething as well.
Geum-geum’s words had not been exaggerated.
Arin had been left to languish in utterly squalid conditions.
Had Yeo Ryeong arrived even slightly later, the child would have been lost.
Yeo Ryeong carefully retraced what she had seen of the Annex where Arin had been kept.
Completely isolated from the Main Hall, it was like a prison.
The door was firmly locked, and food appeared to be passed through only a dog door.
On the table where someone had left a meal, unaware Arin was no longer there, sat nothing but a soy dish and barley rice.
It was impossible to imagine how long that small child had endured alone in a place that hadn’t been properly cleaned.
Meanwhile, the room where Yeon-ssi stayed was spotless, without a speck of dust.
At this stark contrast, Yeo Ryeong’s gaze grew glacial.
It was then that Yeon-ssi, oblivious, opened her mouth.
“Are you comfortable where you’re staying? I instructed them to take special care. I do hope it meets your expectations.”
“It’s a very fine room. It smells of being swept and polished daily.”
“I’m so glad it pleases you. That room is always kept vacant and maintained for visiting guests of importance.”
A room always prepared for guests who might come at any moment was kept immaculate.
Yet the woman’s own child, born of her own body, dwelled in a ruin of an Annex—and she did not spare it a thought.
Yeo Ryeong broached the subject gently.
“I noticed an Annex to the west. What is that building used for?”
At the mention of the Annex, Yeon-ssi’s shoulders trembled faintly.
Only for a moment; then she began to lie without a trace of hesitation.
“Ah, no one uses that place. There is much that needs repair, and it’s dangerous. It’s best not to go near it.”
According to Geum-geum, Arin had been abandoned in the Annex for quite some time.
After the Manifestation failed, they pressed her for a year, then discarded the child entirely.
“Hm.”
Yeo Ryeong could not suppress a bitter exhalation.
‘What wretched parents the child has found.’
The Twelve Zodiac Clan was particularly obsessed with Manifestation.
Even members of the Collateral Line with strong abilities were often adopted as heirs and successors.
On occasion, the Main Line and Collateral Line were pitted against each other in contests of power, resulting in bloodshed.
Yeo Ryeong regarded such people as little different from demons wearing human skin.
Yeo Ryeong asked in an even tone.
“Is there nothing you would ask of me?”
“Pardon?”
“You have welcomed me so warmly, despite my sudden arrival. I thought I might do something in return.”
As Yeo Ryeong opened this door, Yeon-ssi blinked.
For a moment she thought of Arin, who could not master the Manifestation, but the warning from Hong I-jin that the child must never be discovered came to mind, and she swallowed the words.
“Then I ask that you watch over my Ah-hyeon in the future. He takes after his father in stubbornness, and I worry whether he will get along well with others his age.”
“For your daughter’s sake, there’s nothing you wouldn’t do?”
“Our So-so is quite clever and dear—you’ll see for yourself when you meet her later. We’re grateful simply for the affection you’ll show her during your stay.”
So-so.
The moment Yeon-ssi spoke the name So-so instead of Arin.
She had lost the final chance that Yeo Ryeong had given her.
Parents who turned a blind eye to a child caught between life and death were unfit to claim kinship, no matter the blood.
Yeo Ryeong, thinking quietly of Arin, opened her mouth.
“True. I’m rather curious myself.”
* * *
Do-gyeong made his way to the Annex where Arin had been staying.
Yesterday, in the chaos of taking the child away, they’d had no time to gather her belongings.
In the courtyard lay an overturned box of honey pastries where Arin had collapsed, along with a bundle of luggage.
Do-gyeong collected the pastries back into their box and gathered up the bundle.
The bundle was strangely light, and Do-gyeong’s eyes narrowed at once.
When he loosened the tie, the bundle contained nothing but a spare set of clothes, a wooden doll, and a single unusually ornate decorative pouch.
Do-gyeong frowned at the few coins and a key inside the pouch.
“Strange.”
The decorative pouch was so ornate it stood out sharply among the child’s meager possessions.
When he turned it over, he found a name written on it.
[Hong So-so]
“Ah.”
It was the name of the false daughter Hong I-jin had recently brought into the household register.
‘Could they have been meeting?’
Just then, he heard someone approaching the Annex in quick, hurried steps.
Do-gyeong quietly concealed himself.
Moments later, a young girl peered over the stone wall into the courtyard.
“Hey! Are you in there?”
From the softness of her voice, it seemed she was looking for Arin.
When no answer came from inside, the girl at the wall opened the Annex door and stepped in.
“Finally left, has she?”
At the low, muttered words, Do-gyeong’s expression sharpened.
The girl entered without removing her shoes, searching for someone.
Finding the place empty, she smirked.
“If she hadn’t gone this time, I really would have given her a beating. Lucky for her.”
A wicked smile played across So-so’s face as she dusted off her hands with satisfaction.
‘A stone rolling in removes one already lodged—how convenient.’
The girl was still so young, yet already engaging in such cruelty.
Do-gyeong waited silently until So-so left the Annex.
As she departed, he narrowed his eyes at the object in her hand.
‘That is….’
* * *
Having finished dressing, So-so examined her reflection in the mirror with meticulous care.
Today, a smile never quite left her lips.
“Mm-hm.”
She even began humming, prompting a maidservant to speak.
“Young Miss So-so, you seem to be in quite a good mood today.”
“Today I’m going to make a formal greeting to the Divine Maiden for the first time. I hear Brother Ah-hyeon hasn’t met her either?”
“That’s right. The Divine Maiden mostly resides in the Twelve Zodiac Village. Ever since our young Miss arrived at the Hong Sa-ga, nothing but good fortune has filled this house.”
So-so grinned at the maidservant’s flattery.
Moreover, this morning she’d confirmed the Annex was completely empty, and the lingering discomfort she’d felt finally lifted like a weight falling away.
‘Now I’m the only young lady of this house.’

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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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