The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 116

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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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Chapter 116
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“Sigh.”
A deep breath filled the ornate guest chamber. Baek Li Pae-hyuk closed his eyes and tilted his head back. A heavy weight pressed down upon his mind. It was not physical exhaustion. It was mental fatigue.
The small child’s face, scrunched up in distress. Though it looked as though tears might spill at any moment, not a single drop fell from those eyes.
“In that respect, she takes after no one at all.”
How long had my eyes been closed? The moment I opened them, the guest chamber door burst wide. An elderly man of enormous frame entered with a flushed face, grinning wickedly.
Baek Li Pae-hyuk’s brow furrowed slightly.
“You haven’t slept yet?”
“Put me down!”
Baek Geom Danju’s voice rose in pitch as he giggled.
“I was trying to sleep, I was lying down, but… everyone on the Inn 4th Floor must have heard. If you’re going to put on a spectacle, you should do it from beginning to end—what was that?”
“Just now, were you mimicking my granddaughter? How audacious.”
“If you weren’t both my blood grandfather and the Family Head, there would have been curses attached to that remark.”
“Nonsense.”
Baek Geom Danju looked at Baek Li Pae-hyuk with drowsy eyes, then surveyed the room.
“Well now… it wasn’t the Family Head who put on that spectacle, was it?”
I could not deceive Baek Geom Danju’s perception with falsehoods. I remained silent, and his eyes gleamed. Only one person had entered and left during his absence.
Baek Li-yeon.
“Hehehehe, I wondered why she was suddenly so restless in the dead of night… tsk.”
Baek Geom Danju approached, swirling a wine bottle, and dropped heavily into a chair.
“Now then, shouldn’t you be grinning from ear to ear with joy? Why do you suddenly look like a corpse?”
Splash. Baek Geom Danju poured wine from the bottle he carried into the cup before Baek Li Pae-hyuk.
“Here, a toast to celebrate.”
He brought the bottle to his own lips and drank deeply, gulp after gulp.
“Ah, speaking of which. Goodness, it’s already damaged. I was supposed to return it in perfect condition.”
Baek Geom Danju opened the hand not holding the bottle. A small yellow wildflower, entirely out of place. Its petals were crumpled. The moment Baek Li Pae-hyuk saw it, he knew who had given it.
“Yeon gave it to U-cheol when she came in, I’m told. Isn’t it charming?”
U-cheol was a member of the Baek Geom Unit standing guard at the door.
“Hmph, what’s so special about that?”
“Ah yes, yes. I hear the Family Head has a rabbit handkerchief. What I meant was whether the sentiment wasn’t charming. The kindness of heart, you see.”
“…”
“Unlike someone else.”
“My head is already complicated enough without you adding to it.”
“Family Head, the Baek Geom Unit are like children I’ve raised myself.”
“Jae-cheon.”
Baek Li Pae-hyuk warned with a sharp tone. Baek Geom Danju ignored him and continued with a smiling face.
“Wherever their hearts go, mine follows as well.”
“Must I truly lose my temper for you to stop?”
“Do as you wish. I’m long past the age of trembling at your displeasure, Family Head. I was already thinking of passing on the position of Baek Geom Danju soon enough, so this works out well.”
“….”
“Even if you are an absolute master of the Jianghu with few in the world to compare to, you are merely a father who cannot lift his head before his inadequate son. Is child-rearing not the greatest trial even for the Top Eleven Masters of the World?”
Baek Geom Danju laughed heartily. Baek Li Pae-hyuk stroked his beard with a stern expression and opened his mouth.
“Baek Li-ui-muk and Baek Li-myeong have never committed such grave errors as to be cast out from the succession despite being the eldest son and eldest grandson.”
At those words, Baek Geom Danju’s eyes widened slightly. He had not expected Baek Li Pae-hyuk to speak in such a manner.
This was the first time he had directly acknowledged the qualifications of both Baek Li-ui-muk and Baek Li-myeong. He had always shut down any discussion with a curt refusal.
“Do not speak idle wishes aloud. Weigh the gravity of your words.”
After a brief silence, Baek Li Pae-hyuk spoke in a troubled voice.
“…And Ui-gang is not in a position to concern himself with this now.”
The image of my granddaughter rushing out upon hearing her father’s words remained vivid. I was already troubled about what to tell Ui-gang. There was never a moment of peace, here or there.
“Of late, I have come to think that I have failed in my duties as Family Head.”
“Oh, to hear such words from you, sir. You have changed.”
Baek Geom Danju spoke as though genuinely astonished.
Baek Li Pae-hyuk let out a bitter laugh.
“Tell me—does Ui-gang desire it?”
“…To be honest, the Fourth Young Master’s lack of interest in the position of Family Head is genuine.”
“Yes. The heart’s desire is what matters most.”
Baek Geom Danju answered nothing, simply taking another drink. After a long silence, he spoke.
“Well, if only Baek Li-myeong possesses at least one of the two—virtue or skill—as you hope, it would be a blessing.”
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A figure that seemed to gather all the moonlight from the darkness. Yet through golden eyes, the sight was the opposite—a faint, withering light.
“…Jegal Family Head.”
With shadowed eyes curved in an arc, I spoke in an affectionate tone.
“Call me Hwa-mu.”
This was not someone I wished to meet, especially not in such circumstances. I swallowed a sigh inwardly.
‘Why now of all times….’
The timing was as though he had been watching and appeared at the precise moment. It was difficult enough to maintain my composure without having to face Jegal Family Head as well.
Moreover, Jegal Family Head seemed to have already sensed something, his eyes gleaming with interest. It was an attention that felt burdensome.
Jegal Family Head tilted his head slightly and asked.
“Were you crying?”
“No.”
In the blink of an eye, his qi energy drew near. A cold touch brushed against the corner of my eye and withdrew. Jegal Family Head gazed at his own thin fingertips and spoke.
“…I see. I thought you were.”
I glared at Jegal Family Head’s fingers that had touched and withdrawn in an instant. He wore a subtle expression—something like disappointment, perhaps?
‘What is this?’
Did he wish for me to cry?
Then Jegal Family Head crouched down beside me. I sprang to my feet at the sight. He grasped my arm.
“Hm? Why—don’t go.”
“Why shouldn’t I?”
I answered curtly and tried to pull away, but Jegal Family Head spoke as though exasperated.
“All the way here, someone kept clinging to me like a burr, and I thought I’d die from the annoyance. But there’s someone who latches onto Father and Grandfather and won’t let go, just laughing away. Right?”
“…Later. I have some things on my mind right now.”
“What things?”
I looked at the Jegal Family Head’s hand gripping my arm tightly. His thin fingers had turned pale white. I sighed and spoke, glancing at the white cat in my embrace.
“What’s this one’s name?”
It was an obvious deflection. The Jegal Family Head raised an eyebrow slightly, but instead of pressing the matter, he smiled gently and spoke.
“It doesn’t have one.”
“It doesn’t?”
“No.”
The Jegal Family Head added as if it were nothing.
“Since I’ll be leaving first anyway, what’s the point of giving it a name?”
“What?”
“When I die, there won’t be anyone to call it by name anyway, will there?”
“….”
Whenever such words tumbled out of the Jegal Family Head’s mouth, I never knew what to say. It would be okay, hang in there—such platitudes felt hollow when both he and I knew he wouldn’t last long.
Already troubled to death, I had now troubled the Jegal Family Head as well.
The Jegal Family Head continued with composure.
“You know what? I had an older sister above me.”
It was the first I’d heard of this.
“She died at twelve. That was already two years ago.”
A question suddenly occurred to me. How old was the Jegal Family Head when he died? I couldn’t remember. If I calculated backward from the age at which Namgung Ryu-cheong dominated the Jianghu….
‘Probably three to five years, give or take?’
And from the time his sister, who had suffered from the same chronic illness he’d had since birth, died—only one year remained.
The Jegal Family Head smiled faintly.
“How about it? Do you pity me now?”
I stared at the Jegal Family Head intently. He tilted his head as if asking why I was looking at him that way.
I spoke bluntly.
“You hate being pitied.”
“….”
The Jegal Family Head’s mouth opened slightly in surprise, then a smile spread across his face in an instant.
“Right.”
Then his eyes turned cold in a flash as he spoke.
“Those fools who don’t know their place. How dare they pity me?”
In those words, I felt hatred, anger, and resentment directed at some unknowable place—emotions so vivid and clear that they stood in stark contrast to the boy whose colors had all faded. Soon the Jegal Family Head returned to his usual self and asked with genuine curiosity.
“How did you know?”
I smiled slightly and opened my mouth.
“It’s a secret.”
“…You’re too much.”
The Jegal Family Head hung his head low.

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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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