The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 198

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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 198
‘Ugh… how am I supposed to answer this?’
If I’d known nothing about it, I could have answered easily. But knowing what had passed between the families made it awkward to speak.
‘And does Uncle even know that I’m aware of the marriage proposal…?’
If I let the silence stretch too long, he’d find it suspicious.
I ventured a question cautiously.
“Why are you suddenly asking me that?”
“You two seem to get along well.”
I tilted my head.
“All of a sudden?”
“Yes. Haven’t you two been running around playing together without a care? And you—fine, but Ryu-cheong is how old? Tsk, he should be ashamed.”
“Me? When did I ever—!”
“Why are you pretending not to know?”
“I’m not pretending! I never did anything like that!”
“Oh please. You were dashing about in the Inn corridor, eating dinner together, practicing breathing exercises, this and that—don’t think I didn’t notice.”
“…!”
I stood speechless, my mouth hanging open.
‘He… he heard all of that? Well, of course he did!’
He’d been on the same floor—Uncle would have heard everything. I just hadn’t thought that far at the time.
My face burned. I didn’t need to check; it was surely crimson.
And Namgung Wan was looking at me with an oddly pleased expression.
Why are you looking at me like that! Your eyes are strange!
“So, what’s your answer to my question?”
I stammered out a reply.
“Ryu-cheong… he’s a good person.”
“A good person?”
“Yes.”
“What makes him good?”
“…”
Why is he pressing me like this? I’m already dying of embarrassment!
At least he seemed to think I hadn’t overheard the marriage proposal talk.
If Namgung Wan knew I was aware of it, there’s no way he’d be asking so casually.
“…”
When I fell silent, Namgung Wan asked instead.
“What’s your ideal type?”
“My ideal type?”
We were talking about why I liked Namgung Ryu-cheong, and now he’s asking about my ideal type.
‘Uncle, aren’t you being a bit too obvious?’
How much longer should I pretend not to understand? Should I keep pretending? At this point, wouldn’t feigning ignorance just make me look stupid?
But I had no choice. I had to play dumb, pretend I knew nothing, and answer lightly.
“I don’t know. I’ve never thought about it. Are you going to keep asking me strange questions?”
Namgung Wan muttered with sudden frustration.
“…You fool. What have you been doing all this time?”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind… forget it.”
Namgung Wan nodded to himself as if considering something, then spoke.
“If you ever develop feelings for someone, tell me about it.”
“Huh? You, Uncle?”
Namgung Wan answered, clearly seeing my bewilderment.
“That’s right. I need to see with my own eyes how exceptional they are. They’d better be superior to my son, at the very least.”
His tone suggested he wouldn’t approve any marriage proposal otherwise.
Perhaps I truly had two fathers.
Still, the sentiment behind his words warmed my heart. It meant he cherished me that much.
I answered playfully.
“Well, do you think anyone exists who surpasses Ryu-cheong?”
To objectively find someone superior in appearance, ability, and family standing… hmm.
Besides, parents always think their children are the most beautiful, so Uncle would naturally see his son as the greatest.
“Right. You understand well. Then that settles it.”
Namgung Wan laughed triumphantly and took another step forward.
But not long after, he spoke again.
“Yeon.”
“Yes?”
His voice turned serious.
“Do you know how I came to be injured in the arm?”
“I heard that a child from a civilian household suddenly appeared, and you were wounded while protecting them.”
When I saw the Seong Warrior’s corpse, the scene that flashed before me matched this account, and the descriptions I later heard from the White Tiger Unit warriors were identical to what I witnessed.
I could confirm once more that what I had seen was no mere illusion.
“Yes. In the end, that child died.”
“I see…”
Given Namgung Wan’s injury and the casualties that occurred, protecting the child must have been difficult.
“I don’t regret what happened then, but I was foolish. And I believed my arm was lost simply because my judgment in that moment was wrong.”
I nodded, urging him to continue.
“But after my arm healed, I began to think something was very strange.”
“What was strange?”
“I suffered such a grave wound, yet I retreated instead of pressing the advantage further.”
“…Didn’t you barely escape after a fierce battle?”
“I did wound the one leading the Demonic Cult, but even so, I should have had the strength to pursue them.”
If that were true, it certainly was strange.
Namgung Wan continued slowly.
“What if their objective from the start wasn’t to wound me? If I think of it that way, their actions finally make sense.”
“So the goal was to prevent you from wielding your sword?”
“Probably.”
Namgung Wan clicked his tongue slightly.
“Tsk, if Cheon Gwi-jo had still been alive, we could have confirmed it.”
“Ha ha, well, yes, that’s true.”
Namgung Wan glanced at me sideways.
“Why are you being so sheepish about it? You didn’t kill him.”
Well, that was because I was genuinely delighted that Cheon Gwi-jo was dead.
In any case, since I hadn’t obtained any information from Cheon Gwi-jo, I’d examined his corpse several times, clinging to a faint hope.
I wondered if I might see something from his body the way I’d seen what could be called a vision—memories read from the Seong Warrior’s corpse.
But just as I’d been unable to read anything from the bodies of anyone besides the Seong Warrior, Cheon Gwi-jo yielded nothing either.
Namgung Wan continued.
“Moreover, among those attacked at the Murim Alliance, there were several who sustained injuries similar to mine. And most of them were individuals who led a clan, sect, or organization.”
And most of them, like you, had earned a reputation as righteous wanderers.
Though they called themselves the Righteous Faction, not everyone there was virtuous like my father or Namgung Wan.
Rather, there were more people with questionable character like the Murim Alliance Leader—those who merely wore the mask of the Righteous Faction and pursued their own gains under the guise of justice.
And people of a similar ilk to the Murim Alliance Leader mostly survived without injury.
It was people like my father and Namgung Wan who died or were wounded.
Namgung Wan continued.
“Weakening our forces is only natural for the Demonic Cult.”
“….”
“But it would be far simpler if they just killed us.”
As Namgung Wan said, simply killing would have been far more convenient than injuring someone just enough to prevent them from wielding a sword.
“There must be some purpose behind this. Those bastards would never act without reason.”
I felt the weight of Namgung Wan’s gaze upon me.
“I had a sister once. She was murdered by the Demonic Cult.”
“….”
“Someone I grew up with from childhood turned out to be a spy for the Demonic Cult.”
I gasped, my eyes widening as I stared at Namgung Wan.
“No one saw it coming. Because of him, my mother, my sister, and the entire family my sister married into all….”
It was a famous incident—the precious jewel of the Namgung Clan and the Danmok Family she married into were completely annihilated by the Demonic Cult.
But it had happened before I was even born, before Namgung Ryu-cheong himself was born. So this was the first time I was hearing the details of what truly occurred.
Even Namgung Ryu-cheong had never really mentioned it.
‘So it was because of a spy.’
To think someone raised alongside them from childhood could slaughter their direct bloodline….
I felt a chill at how they’d managed to plant a spy past the Namgung Clan’s vigilance—such remarkable capability.
Namgung Wan spoke, his voice trembling with barely contained fury.
“I swore then. If the Demonic Cult ever laid a hand on my people again, I would never let it pass.”
Suddenly, Namgung Wan let out a bitter laugh.
“Yet instead of revenge, I nearly lost the ability to wield my sword because of them, and quite….”
Namgung Wan paused mid-sentence and never mentioned how difficult it had been.
He had seemed fine, but it was all an act of composure.
I recalled how he had spoken playfully even while deciding to sever his own arm.
I spoke with deliberate lightness.
“It’s fortunate I was here, isn’t it?”
“Ha… Yes. Thank you.”
Namgung Wan, who had fallen silent for a moment, spoke again.
“And be careful.”
I tilted my head in confusion.
“Those people didn’t kill Man Shin-ui without reason.”
The sudden mention of that name made me falter involuntarily.
What…? Could he possibly know that Man Shin-ui’s abilities were connected to the Demonic Cult?
“The ones who killed Man Shin-ui were from the Demonic Cult.”
“The ones who killed Man Shin-ui were from the Demonic Cult?”
“Yes. I learned this while tracking down the assassins at the time…”
Namgung Wan looked at me with worried eyes.
“The Demonic Cult may have killed Man Shin-ui precisely because they coveted your current ability—the one you received from him.”
“Ah… I see.”
I hesitated briefly before speaking.
“But if they truly coveted Man Shin-ui’s ability, wouldn’t the Demonic Cult have targeted me long ago?”
“Perhaps. You must not let your guard down. Their intentions are difficult to predict, and they are meticulous and cunning. They can wait years for their purpose.”
“…”
“The reason I tell you this, young as you are, is…”
Namgung Wan exhaled a long sigh, his expression tinged with sorrow and anguish.
“Because the future now rests upon your shoulders and those of your generation.”

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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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