The Dragon Family’s Beloved Baby Cat - Chapter 37

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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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Chapter 37

 

The blue orb embedded at the top of the ancestral shrine seemed to move subtly…

 

Moa was bothered by that glimmer, but seeing her family’s joyful faces, she forgot everything and smiled brightly.

 

“Now let’s go and get some good rest. You must be tired from the tension wearing off.”

 

Just as Jin Saheon was patting Moa’s back and about to turn around.

 

Rumble—!

 

Suddenly, the ground vibrated faintly.

 

It wasn’t the ancestral shrine shaking.

 

From deeper within the vast Jinryongseoga manor, heavy waves were being transmitted from the inner depths.

 

‘Finally, has the Sealed Prison opened!’

 

Jin Saheon clenched his fists tightly with tension.

 

He had thought there would be enough time to take the child to rest, but the Sealed Prison had opened before he could even prepare mentally.

 

“This, this is it! Grandfather!”

 

And just as much as becoming Jin Moa mattered, rescuing Grandfather who was trapped in the Sealed Prison was also a big deal for Moa.

 

Even without knowing anything, Moa immediately thought of Jin Wonbaek and shouted loudly.

 

“Dad, let’s rest later and go rescue Grandfather!”

 

Having filled her belly before the initiation ceremony, Moa’s condition was sufficiently good.

 

Rather than resting, Moa wanted to rescue Grandfather first and tugged at Jin Saheon’s sleeve, pleading.

 

“Won’t you be scared?”

 

“Huh? Of what?”

 

Jin Saheon asked worriedly, recalling the hideous appearance of his father when he last saw him.

 

But Moa, who knew nothing, only tilted her head in confusion.

 

“Honey, please take care.”

 

Jaseonghwa also realized the time had come and approached Jin Saheon, pleading earnestly.

 

“Father…”

 

“Yoonah. Please take care of Mother and your sister.”

 

Jin Saheon placed his hand on Yeongang’s shoulder and left a request with his eldest son who was watching with worried eyes.

 

Then he lifted Moa into his arms and ran toward the Sealed Prison like a flying tiger.

 

***

 

The place Jin Saheon and Moa arrived at was a dark cave wrapped tightly in iron chains.

 

Yehui, who had hurriedly run to keep up with the incredibly fast Jin Saheon, also stood behind Moa with a tense face.

 

To fulfill the Head of the Manor’s command to protect the child’s back, she had to mobilize all the clan martial arts she had learned at the North Palace Family and the assassination techniques she had acquired as a spy.

 

“Is Grandfather really in here?”

 

Moa asked in a trembling voice.

 

The solid iron chains were broken and scattered on the floor like rotten rope, and the inside looked dark and decrepit.

 

No matter that it was a place to confine criminals, it looked too dark and heavy for Grandfather to be in.

 

“Graaaaaahhhhh!”

 

A scream like a beast’s howl came from inside the cave.

 

Moa flinched and gripped Jin Saheon’s sleeve.

 

Yehui, who was standing behind the child, placed her hand reassuringly on Moa’s shoulder as if to comfort her.

 

“Grandfather…?”

 

Howling and thumping sounds continuously echoed from inside the cave.

 

As they cautiously approached a little closer, a peculiar stench like something rotting wafted from inside.

 

‘Ugh…!’

 

Moa frowned.

 

[Moa, snap out of it. Something’s coming!]

 

Somi’s warning rang in her head.

 

And soon after,

 

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

 

Something came running out, banging its head against the wall.

 

Clang—! Crash!

 

However, soon after, bound by the chains of shackles attached to both legs, it couldn’t escape outside the cave and rolled on the floor.

 

A white-haired old man rolling miserably on the floor.

 

His body was so gauntly thin it was hard to consider him human, and the aura he emitted was incomparably ferocious.

 

Black chains were tangled all over his body in a mess, making him look like a cocoon.

 

“Ugh, graaahhh!”

 

The old man seemed out of his mind, now banging his head on the floor, self-harming.

 

“Ah, Father!”

 

Jin Saheon cried out in an anguished voice.

 

His condition was worse than when he had last seen him.

 

“Graaaaaahhh—!”

 

The old man didn’t recognize his son and growled with murderous intent.

 

He was human, yet not human at all.

 

When he raised his head, Moa almost stepped back in horror.

 

If Yehui hadn’t been standing behind her, holding her firmly, she might have ruined her first meeting with Grandfather by running away.

 

If that had happened, Moa would have regretted it tremendously.

 

“Th-thank you, Sister Yehui.”

 

“Miss…”

 

Yehui was also in a state of great shock.

 

Though she too was a victim manipulated by the Emperor, seeing Jin Wonbaek’s miserable state made tears flow down automatically.

 

‘How could a human do this to another human…! The Emperor is a monster… no, a demon! Without a doubt!’

 

A figure born into the noble Jinryong Clan who had even risen to Head of the Manor.

 

But now he was no different from a beast that had lost its reason.

 

From repeating self-harm so much, his bleeding forehead had developed calluses that protruded like a dolphin’s.

 

The skin visible on his face and below his neck had rotted away, with flesh falling off.

 

The muscles and insides revealed beneath.

 

If he weren’t wearing restraints on his limbs, it seemed he would have torn everything apart already.

 

‘Rather, wouldn’t it be better to… to kill him mercifully…’

 

Though suicide and murder were great sins forbidden by the Heavenly Deity, how could one make someone continue living in such a state.

 

“Don’t look. Miss, you mustn’t.”

 

Yehui tried to block Moa’s view.

 

Jin Saheon probably hadn’t expected such a miserable sight when he brought her, but it was absolutely not something to show a young child.

 

“Uh, uhhh… sniff…”

 

Moa shed tears naturally seeing Grandfather’s painful state.

 

She realized she had thought about it too easily.

 

Without even knowing how much pain Grandfather was in, she had thought it would end easily once the Sealed Prison opened.

 

‘Grandfather…’

 

Seeing Jin Saheon suffering in despair, Moa’s heart felt like it was being cut sharply.

 

‘I have to save Grandfather. But how…?’

 

While Moa was falling into confusion, Jin Saheon discovered the child was sobbing.

 

He ordered the Warrior Corps that had followed to subdue and move Jin Wonbaek to a place other than the Sealed Prison, then hurriedly took Moa and left that place.

 

“Grandfather…!”

 

Moa, being carried away in Jin Saheon’s arms, cried out tearfully.

 

Did that desperate voice reach him?

 

Jin Wonbaek’s hand, which had been clawing at the air in madness, stopped abruptly.

 

The old man’s eyes as he raised his head blankly.

 

In those eyes that had only been cloudy, for just a moment, an eerily clear focus appeared.

 

He gazed at Moa’s departing figure for a very long time.

 

***

 

“Waaaahhh! I don’t want to!”

 

In the quiet dawn, a scream that seemed to tear apart the Jinryong Clan’s mansion echoed through the air.

 

It was from Moa’s room.

 

“Miss! Miss Moa!”

 

Sehui, who had been dozing lightly in the adjacent room, was the first to burst through the door.

 

Following her, Yehui also entered, dressed more simply than usual.

 

The small body on the bed was drenched in cold sweat, flailing helplessly at the air.

 

“It’s a dream, Miss! It’s okay! I’m here!”

 

Sehui skillfully pulled Moa into her arms.

 

Yehui also grabbed Moa’s hand in panic, but the nightmare wouldn’t easily fade.

 

“Miss’s hands are so hot!”

 

Yehui gasped in alarm and blew on her hands even though they couldn’t possibly cool down.

 

“I’ll go get a wet cloth, so please stay by Miss’s side.”

 

After placing Moa in Yehui’s arms, Sehui quickly ran out.

 

Moa, delirious with high fever, clutched at Yehui’s clothes and sobbed loudly.

 

That’s when it happened.

 

From the end of the corridor came the sound of crashing footsteps, as if something was about to break.

 

Bang-!

 

The door burst open roughly once again.

 

“Moa!”

 

“What’s happening! Are there assassins!”

 

Jin Saheon and Jaseonghwa, along with Yeongang and Dowoon. The masters of the Jinryong Clan rushed in wearing their nightclothes.

 

The usually composed Jin Saheon was barefoot with his robe improperly tied, and Dowoon had even drawn his sword while running over.

 

“Daddy… Mommy…”

 

Seeing her family’s faces, Moa’s crying grew louder.

 

Jaseonghwa immediately approached the bed and took Moa from Yehui’s arms.

 

“Yes, Mommy’s here. Mommy’s right here. Our daughter, nothing’s wrong.”

 

Jaseonghwa held Moa tightly and gently rocked back and forth to help her calm down.

 

Jin Saheon wiped away the cold sweat beading on Moa’s forehead with his large hand.

 

“What kind of terrifying dream did she have…”

 

Jin Dowoon massaged Moa’s hands and feet with a worried expression.

 

“What ghost dared to enter our youngest’s dreams!”

 

Yeongang threw down the sword he was holding and approached Moa’s side, fuming.

 

With her family’s warmth and the bustling sounds around her, the cave’s darkness that had been binding Moa slowly receded.

 

“Huu, uung, Grandfather is, Grandfather is in so much pain…”

 

At the words that came from Moa’s mouth, the air in the room instantly grew heavy.

 

The family members looked into each other’s eyes.

 

They all knew what Moa had seen and why she was crying.

 

“Moa tried to stop him, but Grandfather kept…”

 

In Moa’s dream, Grandfather kept hitting his head.

 

She had cried “Don’t do it! Stop!” but when Grandfather wouldn’t stop, she had placed her palm on the ground where Grandfather’s forehead touched and burst into wailing sobs.

 

It was so vivid that she only realized it was a dream after waking up.

 

“Someone is calling me… telling me to come…”

 

Moa muttered while waving at the air with her tear-filled, blurry eyes.

 

“We need a physician… we need to call a physician. Her body is like a fireball.”

 

Jaseonghwa, thinking the child was seeing things due to high fever, spoke in a breaking voice.

 

“I’ll go fetch one. And Sister Sehui will bring a wet cloth.”

 

Yehui, who had been standing with her hand covering her mouth, quickly answered and rushed out of the room.

 

“Our baby, it’s okay. It was just a dream…”

 

“We’ll treat Grandfather. So stop crying now, okay?”

 

Jaseonghwa patted her soothingly, and Jin Saheon tried to steady his voice as he comforted Moa.

 

The entire family sat around Moa’s side, stroking her back and massaging her hands until the child fell asleep again.

 

After Moa finally fell back asleep.

 

Jin Saheon and Jaseonghwa took their sons, whose eyes had grown wide with worry, back to their rooms.

 

After that, they moved toward the end of the corridor without saying a word.

 

Both of their faces were grim.

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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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