The Dragon Family’s Beloved Baby Cat - Chapter 77

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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 77

***

The morning when the next tea gathering was to be held.

Danhwi put on the new clothes that the eunuch had prepared.

It was a slightly lighter blue outfit than the pale blue clothing he had worn last time.

The finely embroidered gold cloud patterns looked very refreshing.

‘Will Moa like my clothes again today?’

Danhwi thought to himself as he looked at his reflection in the new outfit.

After always showing only a shabby appearance, his improved attire since starting the tea gatherings had made Moa very happy.

“It suits you very well, Crown Prince. It was made from silk specially bestowed by His Majesty, so it’s quite rewarding.”

Danhwi’s expression stiffened slightly at the eunuch’s words.

The fact that the Emperor had specially bestowed it felt somehow unsettling.

However, Danhwi shook off the ominous feeling and focused his thoughts on Moa.

Just the thought of Moa coming to visit made his heart race.

“Ugh.”

The moment he moved, Danhwi felt a sharp sensation around his wrist and let out a low cry.

‘What is this?’

He lifted his wrist to check and even touched it, but nothing appeared.

It was a natural result since the goblin needle seed made with gold magic had already attached to his skin and become transparent.

“Your Highness? Are you alright?”

“…It’s nothing. The clothes are just a bit scratchy.”

Danhwi brushed it off casually.

He could never suspect that gold magic might be cast on the fabric.

***

The tea gathering at Gyeonganggung was peaceful.

Today it was just Moa, Rin, and Danhwi. Only the three of them.

The children from other families who had attended last time sent word that they couldn’t attend due to sudden circumstances.

“It’s just us today.”

Rin said leisurely as she lifted her teacup.

Even so, she was inwardly a bit puzzled.

‘For so many families to suddenly have circumstances arise…’

Her instincts found this strange, but there was no way to confirm it immediately, so there was nothing she could do.

However, Danhwi actually thought it was fortunate.

When other children were present, he felt awkward and couldn’t properly talk with Moa.

“Crown Prince!”

Moa pulled out a bundle of papers from her bosom.

“I’m going to write letters today, can you help me?”

“It’s not ‘can you help me,’ you should say ‘could you please help me.'”

Rin, who was watching from the side, briefly interjected.

Moa went “Oh my,” and covered her mouth, then shouted “Could you please!”

“…Sure.”

Danhwi nodded somewhat awkwardly.

‘I wish she would call me brother and speak casually again.’

However, after glancing at Rin once, he didn’t voice this thought.

Although Moa said Rin could be trusted, Danhwi didn’t trust anyone except Moa.

“Who are you writing letters to?”

“My family! I promised I would definitely write to them.”

Moa triumphantly spread out the paper.

Then she took out a brush and began grinding ink, but her posture was quite clumsy.

“Wait a moment.”

Danhwi ground the ink for Moa instead.

Since the Emperor had never provided him with a proper teacher, this was almost the first time he had done this since he was very young.

He had recently met a teacher from Taehaksa, but perhaps due to the Emperor’s instructions, the teacher was strangely unenthusiastic.

Because of this, Danhwi’s hand movements, which were initially a bit awkward, gradually became more skillful as he recalled memories from his childhood.

“Ooh.”

Moa pursed her lips like a bird’s beak and exclaimed in admiration.

When the ink was completely prepared, Moa gripped the brush tightly and glared at the paper.

Her eyes alone were those of a master calligrapher.

Just as Moa’s brush was about to make the first stroke.

“Your Highness, I apologize for interrupting the tea gathering. Urgent news has come from Saryeom House seeking the Young Master.”

A eunuch appeared and interrupted the letter writing.

Rin was momentarily puzzled by the sudden news.

“Hmm… May I step away for a moment, Your Highness?”

“Permission granted.”

This was perfect timing. Danhwi quickly gave permission with a face showing no regret.

Rin stood up with a displeased expression and disappeared following the eunuch.

Then Danhwi turned his face toward Moa.

“…Shall we continue?”

At Danhwi’s question, Moa smiled brightly and nodded.

“Yes! Brother, I want to write ‘Grandfather is the best! I love you!’ to Grandfather.”

And as if understanding his heart, now that only the two of them remained, Moa’s way of speaking became friendly like before.

Inwardly satisfied, Danhwi’s lips relaxed.

“Can you write well now?”

“Like earthworms crawling on tree branches.”

“…What does that mean?”

Danhwi was somewhat flustered. Then Moa said “You’ll see when you look,” and started writing immediately.

[Grand fa ther I lo ve you]

Seeing the uneven spacing and round letters, Danhwi’s face reddened from trying to hold back laughter.

Moa’s handwriting really did look like wriggling earthworms from one perspective, and like thin tree branches from another.

“You’re missing the ‘ther’ character.”

“Oh right, right.”

Moa stared at the space between ‘Grand’ and ‘fa’ to squeeze in the ‘ther’ character.

It ended up becoming something like ‘Grandfa ther I lo ve you.’

The spacing was subtly insufficient, so the ‘ther’ character overlapped with ‘fa’ making it hard to read.

“Hmm, I think I need to write it again.”

“Wait, if you hold it like that, your hand will shake easily.”

Danhwi got up from his seat and approached Moa’s side.

“You hold it like this. Look.”

Danhwi placed his hand over Moa’s small hand.

At that moment, the transparent seed transferred to Moa’s hand without anyone noticing.

“Ow!”

Feeling a sudden sharp sensation, Moa’s eyes widened.

“This is that thing! Static, static electricity!”

Moa exclaimed, thinking of winter static electricity.

Danhwi, who had pulled away in surprise at Moa’s cry, nervously clasped their hands together again.

Moa’s hand was very warm.

He hoped Moa wouldn’t find his cold hands unpleasant.

He glanced sideways, but Moa seemed to have no particular thoughts about it, which was fortunate.

“You shouldn’t grip too tightly. You need to relax your strength a bit.”

“Like this?”

“Yeah. And lift your elbow.”

Danhwi’s hand carefully corrected the angle of the fingers holding the brush.

With both children’s hands overlapping, the brush tip glided across the paper.

Though it was still crooked, the strokes were much better than before.

“Wow! Older Brother is a genius!”

“This much is basic.”

Danhwi wore a proud expression.

“Still! Did your new teacher teach you this?”

“No… from before.”

Danhwi recalled learning the basics of writing from his mother, the former empress, when he was young.

“Grandfather will be so happy when he receives this!”

Moa said energetically.

“You know our grandfather, he got sulky because I didn’t give him a letter.”

A grown adult sulking over just a letter!

Moa giggled.

“Father too! Father doesn’t talk much, but he comes to my room every night to tuck me in. So I’m going to write ‘I love you’ to Father too.”

Moa excitedly poured out stories about her family.

About Mother combing her hair, Older Brother secretly bringing her snacks, Younger Brother playing pranks every day.

Danhwi listened quietly.

His hand was still overlapping Moa’s, but somehow he felt very distant from Moa.

‘Grandfather, Father, Mother, older brothers…’

There were many people around Moa.

Since Moa was a sun-like child who knew how to give love, there were surely many people who loved Moa too.

‘But I only have you.’

As if Moa might flutter away toward other people, Danhwi unconsciously gripped Moa’s hand tightly.

“Ow!”

When Moa screamed from the sharp pain, Danhwi was startled and quickly let go of her hand.

However, Moa thought Danhwi was heartbroken thinking about his family, so she felt sorry instead and made a tearful face.

“Sorry, Older Brother. You must miss your family too, but I was being thoughtless.”

“No… no. It’s not that. It’s okay.”

Only then did Danhwi realize that instead of missing parents or his hateful older brother, he had only been thinking about Moa.

‘Wanting to remove Moa’s family and be closest to her…’

But Moa was already a person of the Jinryong Clan.

‘It would have been nice if I had met her first and became her family…’

Danhwi shook his head to dispel the foolish thoughts, thinking he had wanted to become Moa’s only family.

***

Time passed like that for a while.

With Danhwi’s help, Moa completed the letters for her family members.

Though still crooked, they were much better than last time.

“I’m done!”

Moa lifted up the letters and smiled brightly.

It was right at that moment.

“…Huh?”

Moa’s expression hardened.

A tingling sensation kept rising from the back of her hand.

At first, she thought it was static electricity or an insect.

But the tingling gradually intensified, soon turning into sharp pain.

“Ow!”

Moa screamed.

“Moa?!”

Danhwi was startled and grabbed Moa.

But something was writhing on the back of Moa’s hand.

Something like a black shadow was growing through the back of her hand.

It fed on the divine power inside Moa’s body and soon grew rapidly to the size of a house.

The shadow-shaped monster fully grew and separated from the back of Moa’s hand.

“Wh-what is this?”

The startled Danhwi and Moa looked at each other and screamed.

“Waaaaah! Help us!”

The moment Moa shouted that, the door burst open.

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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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