The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 341

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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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Special Side Story: Chapter 11
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As Namgung Ryu-cheong and I emerged from the pavilion, we could see Namgung Hee playing in the front courtyard with the young disciples of the Five Moon Palace, while Baek Li Se-hwa watched over him. All traces of worry and concern had vanished from their faces.
Namgung Hee soon spotted us and came running over.
“Mother! Father! Are you done talking?”
“Yes.”
“I have a question. Why doesn’t Maternal Grandmother live with Maternal Grandfather? Paternal Grandmother lives with Paternal Grandfather, and Father lives with Mother.”
Both Namgung Ryu-cheong and I found ourselves at a loss for words on how to explain, when Baek Li Se-hwa, who had followed behind, spoke to Namgung Hee.
“That’s not something you should ask about.”
“Why? I’m curious.”
“Well….”
Baek Li Se-hwa seemed unable to explain clearly and wore an expression of contemplation.
I stroked Baek Li Se-hwa’s head and spoke.
“It is a very difficult thing to spend time together with those you wish to be with.”
At that moment, Namgung Ryu-cheong interjected from beside me.
“That’s right. Exceedingly, very, quite difficult.”
His tone carried a deeper meaning, and I shot him a glare.
Namgung Hee, blinking as he looked at us, suddenly exclaimed as if he understood.
“Father, Mother made things difficult for you!”
I stumbled for a moment and gripped the railing.
Namgung Ryu-cheong nodded at his son as if to confirm. Seeing this, Namgung Hee’s eyes brightened as he asked how difficult it had been. Just as I was at a loss for words about what to say to this absurd father and son—
“Mother, I heard there’s a unique instrument here at the Five Moon Palace. You said you’d show me earlier… may we go see it?”
“Of course.”
“Sister! Is that the one from before? The flute!”
“Yes.”
“Mother, I want to see it too!”
I inwardly sighed with relief and stroked Baek Li Se-hwa’s head.
“Very well. But do not attempt to play it carelessly. It was crafted for martial cultivation and is dangerous.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll be careful. And I’ll keep a close eye on Hee too.”
The way she spoke of my concerns without being told was truly reassuring.
With permission granted, Namgung Hee flew down the staircase. Following behind him, Se-hwa called out.
“Don’t run on the stairs. It’s dangerous. Besides, your arm still isn’t fully healed.”
“It doesn’t hurt!”
“Good then. I suppose I don’t need to help you anymore.”
“What?”
“Copying down the martial techniques.”
“No, it hurts! It hurts! It hurts a lot!”
“Then don’t run.”
“Okay….”
I watched the children disappear into the distance with a warm gaze.
Namgung Ryu-cheong, who had been watching alongside me, finally spoke once the children had completely vanished from sight.
“Are you truly certain about this?”
Baek Li-yeon turned to face Namgung Ryu-cheong. He frowned as he pressed further.
“You can actually trust that man?”
Baek Li-yeon nodded slowly.
“Why do you trust him?”
Little was known about regression, but one thing was certain: it centered on Cheon-ma’s power. If Yalyu turned back time, Cheon-ma’s strength would remain with him. He could return to the past with his power intact.
“He’s already betrayed you before.”
“That’s exactly why I know.”
Baek Li-yeon continued, seeing the confusion in his eyes.
“He feels no remorse toward me, which is why he doesn’t regret that act.”
Namgung Ryu-cheong’s face twisted.
“Why would someone without regret turn back time?”
“You certainly know him well.”
Baek Li-yeon stared at Namgung Ryu-cheong before asking.
“Are you jealous?”
“Who would be jealous of such a pathetic wretch?”
“Mm, you’re jealous.”
“….”
“If you had such an ability… what would you do? Would you turn back time?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong crossed his arms and tilted his head. Fragments of the past flickered through his mind, then faded.
“There are many things I’d want to undo. Because you suffered. I’d want to change things so you wouldn’t be hurt… so you wouldn’t struggle.”
“But?”
“But because of the children, I can’t bring myself to turn it back.”
Baek Li-yeon smiled knowingly and nodded.
“I feel the same way. So from now on, we must live without regret.”
“Yes.”
Baek Li-yeon’s gaze turned toward the distant void.
She wished that because he harbored no regret, he would not merely let time slip away, but would return satisfied with happiness—that his remaining days would be peaceful, as peaceful as her own happiness.
Baek Li-yeon turned to Namgung Ryu-cheong.
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes.”
As they walked side by side, Namgung Ryu-cheong’s hand grasped hers firmly.
【Side Story 4 – End】
Side Story 5. And Thus, Fate Weaves Through the World
Baek Li Se-ran was truly the golden thread among all golden threads in the Jianghu.
Her father was the Namgung Family Head, and her mother was the sole daughter of the Baek Li Family Head and the current Murim Alliance Leader. Her mother had even defeated Cheon-ma long before she was born.
As the union of two great families representing the current Jianghu, their household had developed somewhat unique circumstances.
Her eldest sister was registered into the Baek Li Family and bore the Baek Li name, while her second-eldest brother inherited the Namgung name. As for her, the third child, she inherited the Baek Li name, becoming Baek Li Se-ran.
Unlike her elder sister and brother, who were born in consecutive years, she was the youngest, born seven years later, and both families cherished her as they would their own lives.
She loved her family and both clans dearly. Yet… there was an emptiness within her.
The Baek Li Estate belonged to her elder sister, and the Namgung Clan belonged to her brother. She too wished to possess something that was hers alone.
If she spoke of this to others, they would call her greedy and ungrateful. So she had never, not once, voiced this feeling to anyone.
Certainly not to her family. They all loved her genuinely, and she knew that if she spoke, they would all grieve deeply.
Her elder sister and brother, eight and seven years her senior respectively, had already made names for themselves in the world by the time she first grasped a sword.
Her somewhat cold but dependable and brilliant elder sister, and her unpredictable, reckless older brother whose name was shouted daily like a battle cry, yet so beloved.
She always felt trapped in the shadow of their brilliance.
Lacking nothing, yet suffocated and hollow.
Unable to fill that thirst within her, Baek Li Se-ran left her family under the pretense of a coming-of-age journey through the Jianghu after her ceremony. She traveled far and wide, helping those who were injured and in distress.
And now.
“Judging by the sword on your back, you must be a Jianghu warrior?”
A man who appeared to be a county official with a worn spear blocked her path.
Baek Li Se-ran felt puzzled, but she nodded readily.
“Yes.”
“The County Magistrate wishes to see you.”
“Pardon?”
Baek Li Se-ran made no attempt to hide her bewilderment as she asked.
“Why me?”
“When ordered to follow, follow without question. Are you refusing the County Magistrate’s command?”
* * *
Lee U, a county official in a small county, had come from a mountain valley and learned martial arts from a rural martial academy.
But reclusive masters were nothing more than tales from novels. The martial arts of the rural academy were inferior, and he had never crossed the wall of skill and talent, remaining at a third-rate level.
Yet even as a third-rate martial artist, he possessed far greater strength than ordinary people, so he used that ability to work as a county official.
In his late thirties, he had been recognized for his abilities and even became a training commander, but recently he had begun to doubt the purpose of his work. It was all because of the newly appointed County Magistrate.
Just then, two of his subordinate officials brought another Jianghu warrior to the county office.
‘Bad luck. Of all places to pass through.’
The girl with a sword on her back had a soft, downy face that had barely matured, appearing to be at the age of having just undergone her coming-of-age ceremony.
Lee U clicked his tongue inwardly as he looked at his subordinates.
‘The County Magistrate said to bring all Jianghu warriors, but even so, how could they bring such a young child?’
And the girl, true to the nature of a Jianghu warrior who knew how to wield a sword and wandered alone without fear, maintained a composed expression even as she was dragged along by the officials.
‘A young girl wandering alone like this. What kind of parents are they? She doesn’t know the dangers of the world.’
Soon after, the County Magistrate emerged to greet the Jianghu warrior.
“Welcome, warrior. What is your name?”
“I am Baek Li Se-ran.”
“I see. Young Lady Baek Li. Do you know why I have summoned you?”
“No, sir.”
Lee U, who had been observing the conversation with the County Magistrate, tilted his head slightly.
‘Baek Li Se-ran? Where have I heard that name before?’
Lee U, sensing something, interjected.
“The name sounds familiar. What is your relation to the Baek Li Family, renowned throughout the land?”
It was because the man who appeared to be a guard next to the County Magistrate showed a reaction.
“It is my maternal family.”
“Your… maternal family?”
“My mother’s surname is Baek Li, and her name is Yeon.”
At those words, Lee U’s breath caught in his throat.
He denied the reality and asked again.
“D-do you perhaps mean… the County’s Martial World representative, Baek Li Dae-hyup?”
“Baek Li Dae-hyup?”
Lee U bowed toward the County Magistrate and whispered in his ear.
“He is the representative of the Orthodox Sect’s Martial Arts Alliance. County Magistrate, this person is merely…”
However, before Lee U could finish speaking, the County Magistrate struck the armrest of his seat and declared:
“Excellent! Her mother is a supreme master, you say? A tiger’s cub must surely be a tiger. Perfect for hunting tigers! If any injustice were to occur, would not that master step forward?”
Lee U’s vision darkened in an instant.
‘This madman!’
He seemed to think that being an official made him invincible, but an official’s position could not shield one from a blade in the night. Even if the County Magistrate might show some caution, a subordinate like himself had no such luxury.
Now it all came rushing back. The youngest daughter of both the Namgung Clan and the Baek Li Family! He had heard that both families treasured this youngest daughter as dearly as their own lives!
Upon realizing she was a young lady of the Baek Li Family, he wondered how he could have failed to recognize her—her appearance was as radiant as a freshly bloomed flower.
That he had merely regarded such a beautiful girl as an ordinary Jianghu warrior made him want to strike his own head.

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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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