The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 94

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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 94
“Hmph, you should have stayed quiet from the start.”
As I slowly lowered my hand from his mouth, Jang Cheol’s teeth chattered before he spoke in a hushed, accusatory tone.
“Y-you insane girl! Why are you even practicing blood point strikes?”
“To ambush brats like you? Why? It’s working perfectly.”
“You fool without inner energy…!”
“Really? The fool here is you, isn’t it? Getting taken down by someone without inner energy.”
“You, you….”
Jang Cheol opened and closed his mouth repeatedly.
“Anyway, idiots like you let your guard down just because someone lacks inner energy.”
“Y-you attacked so suddenly! I didn’t see it coming!”
“Stop making excuses. Do you really think Jang Gongja or Namgung Ryu-cheong would have fallen for it so easily? Tsk, you simply lack skill. Admit it.”
Jang Cheol’s face flushed crimson as he exhaled sharply through his nose.
As I debated with Jang Cheol over who was truly the fool, I suddenly recalled how Namgung Ryu-cheong had called me an idiot through telepathy, and I found it absurd.
When the real fool was standing right here!
I sighed softly and decided to stop teasing him, shifting toward the real matter at hand.
“Who do you hate most—me, Namgung Ryu-cheong, or Jang O?”
“Obviously…!”
Jang Cheol, who had been about to shout, suddenly clenched his teeth.
“Why should I tell you that! Who do you think you are? What could you possibly know!”
“Well, I probably know your future better than you do.”
“What… what nonsense is this?”
I met his gaze—as if he were looking at a madman—with complete composure and spoke.
“Even I, who’ve only been at the Namgung Clan for a few months, have heard about it.”
“Heard what!”
“That you’re disliked by the Jang Family Head?”
“….”
“They say the Jang Family Head ignores Jang Gongja, the eldest, and only cherishes the second son.”
The strike had landed squarely.
“And So Bu-in told me—Lady Jang came to apologize despite her frail health because she hoped you wouldn’t be scolded by the Jang Family Head.”
I continued speaking, using Jang Cheol’s silence as my companion.
“But what happens if you act out like this? After Lady Jang left, her coughing wouldn’t stop, and she had to rest urgently.”
“…Mother?”
Mother.
Perhaps because I had spent time with Namgung Ryu-cheong, who always used formal terms like “mother” or “esteemed mother,” Jang Cheol suddenly looked very young to me.
Guilt was evident on Jang Cheol’s face.
‘So she does care for him after all.’
Whether So Bu-in had refrained from telling me because she thought it would hurt me, or because she deemed it unnecessary, I wasn’t certain. But there was a deeper reason behind Lady Jang’s apology.
Lady Jang’s intention to apologize to me was genuine. But more precisely, it had been an excuse to visit the Namgung Clan. Likely, through this apology, Lady Jang hoped to restore good relations with the Namgung Clan. After all, she would know her own body better than anyone.
She wanted to create connections that might help, even slightly, the son her husband despised.
But if he’s this foolish even when I’m trying to feed him the answer…
“Is Mother all right?”
“How would I know?”
Then I let out a scoff.
“You worry about Mother while failing to apologize properly for a single apple, and you’ve created this entire mess?”
“That’s because… that bastard Namgung Ryu-cheong suddenly butted in…!”
“And as if that weren’t enough, you tried to beat your own brother senseless in the middle of the Namgung Clan.”
“That was because he started it first…!”
Jang Gongja’s acupuncture point must have loosened, for he flailed his hands at the empty air.
“Blaming others, making excuses… Jang Gongja, how pathetic.”
“You…!”
“If you keep shifting blame onto others and wallowing in resentment like some reckless fool, who exactly do you think that benefits?”
Jang Cheol’s face twisted slightly.
“…Why… why are you saying such things to me?”
I lowered my gaze for a moment.
“Because I’m sick of watching a foolish villain play a supporting role.”
“What?”
“I hope your future changes.”
“W-what are you even talking about?”
I didn’t explain further and turned away.
They say environment shapes a person, but I still hoped he could change. I wished for him to escape that pointless villain’s role.
‘From here on, it’s Jang Cheol’s choice. I’ve given him enough advice.’
Besides, I had already stopped Jang Cheol from grabbing his brother by the collar in the Namgung Clan.
I looked toward the corridor where Namgung Ryu-cheong and Jang O had been standing, my golden eyes searching. I saw nothing unusual.
‘Did they leave?’
There was a chance the walls were too thick for me to see through…
I’d spent quite some time in the room, so if they were still there, that would be strange. With that thought, I opened the door and froze in surprise.
“…!”
Namgung Ryu-cheong stood before the door with an expressionless face. I’d been too busy checking the corridor to notice him at the entrance.
“N-Namgung Gongja. You startled me.”
Namgung Ryu-cheong tilted his head slightly and raised an eyebrow.
I carefully stepped out and closed the door behind me.
“What are you doing here?”
“What are you doing here?”
“Hmm? Well…”
Wait, now that I think about it, did I really need to hide what I discussed with Jang Cheol? I could talk about it.
Then Namgung Ryu-cheong spoke.
“This is my room.”
“What!”
I looked at the closed door behind me, then back at Namgung Ryu-cheong.
“You have your own Residence Quarter, don’t you?”
“Yes. This was the chamber I used when I lived in my mother’s Residence Quarter until I was seven. Even after I left, my mother kept it as it was.”
“I see….”
Namgung Ryu-cheong gently moved me aside from the doorway and reached for the handle.
I quickly grabbed his arm.
“What are you doing?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong held the doorknob, his expression displeased as he looked at me.
“Well, it’s just….”
How was I supposed to explain that I’d been arguing with someone in my own chamber? It wasn’t exactly a pleasant time together, but the fact that we’d been alone was somewhat awkward to explain….
Namgung Ryu-cheong sighed and pushed my shoulder aside gently.
“Move. I heard everything.”
“What?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong pushed the door open and stepped inside.
“Jang Gongja, leave my chamber.”
Jang Cheol’s face was streaked with tears—whether from crying after I’d left or from something else, I couldn’t tell. Namgung Ryu-cheong spoke in his usual tone, as if he couldn’t see Jang Cheol’s tears at all.
“Lady Jang’s quarters are in the building you’ll see if you go straight to the left. There should be a Female Servant there.”
Jang Cheol, embarrassed at being caught crying, hurriedly wiped his eyes with his sleeve and rushed from the chamber. As he passed, he shot me a resentful glare—a silent accusation of why I’d brought him here in the first place.
‘But I didn’t know either….’
If I’d known, would I have said such things in this chamber?
I hunched my shoulders uncomfortably.
He’d heard everything I said to Jang Cheol. How pathetic must I look in Namgung Ryu-cheong’s eyes?
‘I should escape too!’
I’d taken only one step.
“Stop right there.”
“….”
I turned back to Namgung Ryu-cheong with an awkward smile.
Namgung Ryu-cheong looked furious.
“I… I didn’t know this was your chamber… I’m sorry….”
“Is this how you usually are?”
“Huh?”
“Do you always take such an interest in others?”
I stared at him in confusion. He wasn’t angry about me entering his chamber uninvited?
Namgung Ryu-cheong continued coldly.
“What did Jang Gongja say to you? Are you planning to befriend him? Did you already forget that he tormented the Servant you care for and spoke rudely to you?”
“….”
“What good will giving advice to someone like that do?”
I scratched my head. Even without Namgung Ryu-cheong pressing me, I harbored the same doubts myself.
Would anything actually change?
“Yes.”
“What?”
“When you bully someone in the future, won’t my words come to mind?”
“….”
“If it becomes even one chance for Jang Gongja’s world, then my effort won’t be wasted.”
Namgung Ryu-cheong opened his mouth slightly before clamping it shut. Then he muttered in a deflated voice.
“How foolish.”
“You called me an idiot just now, and now it’s a fool?”
Namgung Ryu-cheong ignored me and surveyed the chamber. I followed him inside as though I’d never intended to escape. He glanced at me following him but said nothing.
Since I’d had no desire to look around when I was with Jang Cheol, this was almost like seeing it for the first time. Even though the chamber’s owner had moved elsewhere, So Bu-in had maintained it so meticulously that not a speck of dust had accumulated. Yet certain areas clearly showed gaps where things were missing.
I picked up a decorative object and set it down again as I spoke.
“By the way, where is Jang O?”
“Jang O?”
“I saw you talking with him earlier.”
“There’s nothing to call talking. I just ran into him in the corridor.”
“Hmm, I thought you were making a new friend.”
Namgung Ryu-cheong, who had been examining the books on the shelf, suddenly turned his head and glared at me.
“…Why?”
“I don’t have any friends but you.”
Despite this sudden confession, Namgung Ryu-cheong’s demeanor was utterly shameless and confident.
Only one friend.
His acknowledgment left me both honored and flustered.
“Is that… a boast?”
“Which is why you shouldn’t associate with people of inferior standing.”
I stood there with my mouth hanging open.
‘Is this that thing—don’t play with anyone but me?’
Now that I heard it, I finally understood why Namgung Ryu-cheong had been so irritable from the moment we were in the Practice Hall with the Suhyang Sect people. He hadn’t liked that I was spending time with others!
‘No, haha. This is actually kind of cute.’
I smoothed down the corners of my mouth that were rising involuntarily. A laugh escaped despite my efforts to suppress it.
“Why are you laughing?”
“If I tell you, you’ll get angry.”
“Tell me.”
“I laughed because you’re cute… See! You’re getting angry!”

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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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