The Morning Star Baby Wants a Family - Chapter 53

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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 53
Cheon-eul’s mask shattered, revealing a flustered face beneath, but Seowan paid it no mind and pressed him down onto the bed by his shoulders.
“Remove your upper garment.”
The words fell flat and emotionless.
Cheon-eul squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.
“Seowan, this is….”
“I know you dress in layers like a proper nobleman. Since you were burned in that state, your condition must be dire. Take it off.”
Seowan’s logic was sound, yet Cheon-eul felt the world tilt beneath him for a moment.
“…The bedding will become soiled.”
He murmured pleadingly, his hesitation evident.
Seowan clicked her tongue as if exasperated by such trivial concerns, then placed her fingertips against his shoulder.
Cheon-eul’s drenched garments dried instantly. Only the portions burned and shriveled by fire retained their moisture.
“Hae-na, go wait in the adjacent room for a moment.”
Hae-na nodded obediently and pattered out of the room.
The moment the door closed with a soft click, Seowan’s gaze turned cold as she looked down at Cheon-eul.
Unable to resist the silent pressure, Cheon-eul slowly removed his outer robe.
As he peeled away the pale gray undergarment, his pale, muscular torso was revealed.
Cheon-eul gathered the half-removed undergarment in his grasp.
“This should suffice.”
Fortunately, Seowan said nothing further and simply turned his body at an angle.
His broad, straight shoulders and densely packed lean muscle came into view.
Down the center of his back—pale and smooth as porcelain—a patch of angry red burned.
The sight of that wound twisted Seowan’s expression. She sat in silence for a moment, then rose to her feet.
Her measured footsteps receded, then drew near again, and the scent of medicinal herbs wafted through the air.
Seowan settled behind Cheon-eul and applied the wound salve to his injury.
Cheon-eul trembled slightly at the sudden sensation.
Against his fevered skin, the ointment felt numbingly cold.
Seowan’s fingertips were precise as she carefully spread it across the wound.
Cheon-eul clenched his teeth, and sinews stood taut along his firm jaw. Seeing his profile, Seowan let out a low chuckle.
“I wonder how much debt you’ve incurred to me because of this incident.”
“….”
“Or is this also the whimsy you spoke of?”
Despite her mocking tone, her fingers moving across the wound remained tender and careful.
“Tell me what you want. Since I’ve left a scar on a nobleman’s back, I’d need to sell my entire fortune to make amends.”
Soon her hand withdrew, and Seowan’s cold voice reached him.
Cheon-eul found himself laughing softly. Those words, which should have sounded callous, somehow felt different to him.
Today’s incident had been entirely his own doing.
He could have ignored his own injury, but Seowan had not.
A person who accepts nothing carelessly.
A person who always repays, no matter how small the debt.
Such was Seowan’s nature.
I recalled Hae-na’s words about her older sister being a kind person, though the memory was hazy.
At the time, I had merely laughed it off.
Only now, in this moment, did I realize that Hae-na had been right.
Seowan returned with clean bandages and wrapped the wound before circling my torso once.
Her hands moved as though embracing me. As I silently accepted her touch, I opened my mouth.
“I did not do this expecting anything in return.”
Just as Seowan had said, I was not the sort to offer kindness without reason.
The words I had uttered last were false, yet simultaneously true.
The moment I saw the burning branch falling toward Seowan, my body moved of its own accord.
In that instant, there was no calculation. I simply did not want her to be hurt. I meant to push her away, but my concern made me pull her into my arms instead.
“I simply wanted to.”
My fingertips took the bandage from Seowan’s hand.
“As you said, it was merely a whim.”
I smiled faintly. At that, Seowan’s face crumpled.
“Damn it, how many times must I hear the same words from your mouth?”
Seowan cursed and snatched the bandage from my hand.
As she tied it tightly, my torso swayed.
For a moment, our noses nearly touched. The scent of peonies wafted between us.
“It would be easier if, as Hae-na said, you harbored feelings for me. Then at least I could understand.”
Before I could exhale the breath I had drawn, Seowan spoke. My heart plummeted at her casual words.
Her coral lips parted slightly. I gazed up at her with trembling eyes.
If she truly said such a thing.
If I were to say that I harbored feelings for you….
My throat felt impossibly tight. Before I could speak, Seowan turned away.
“Leave now. And do not do such a thing again.”
She spoke coldly and left the room without hesitation. The door closed, and her footsteps faded.
After staring at the closed door for some time, I sensed movement beyond it.
“Geomun Seongggun.”
A Servant Girl entered and bowed respectfully.
In her hands lay neatly folded clothing—a man’s garments.
“Tamlang Seongggun has sent this. She said you would have need of it….”
My face went blank. The Servant Girl placed the clothes on the table, bowed, and left.
Long after the door closed, I slowly rose from my seat.
My expression crumbled as I gazed down at the folded garments. I could neither smile nor weep as I stared at them.
Hae-na’s words had been right.
With a heart both desolate and overwhelming, I acknowledged this truth once more.
* * *
Meanwhile, Hae-na, who had moved to the adjacent room as Seowan instructed, was bouncing on her feet.
‘She was indeed injured, wasn’t she?’
All the way to Gaeyang Palace, a faint smell of charring emanated from Cheon-eul.
When I opened the door and faced Seowan and Cheon-eul, that smell grew far more pungent.
Children notice what adults try to hide far more quickly than one might expect.
I was nearly certain that Cheon-eul had been struck by burning wood.
I wanted to examine the wound, but I sensed that my small presence would only be in the way. Perhaps that was why Seowan had sent me to the adjoining room?
As I paced restlessly about the room, the door creaked open.
“Sister!”
My eyes widened as I scurried toward Seowan.
“Is Cheon-eul badly hurt? Is he… is he alright now?”
My barrage of questions caught Seowan slightly off guard. I fidgeted as I looked up at my sister.
“There is nothing to worry about. The wound was not so severe, and I have already treated it. The Cheon are naturally resilient, so he will recover soon enough.”
Only after hearing Seowan’s words did I release a deep breath of relief.
Seowan smiled wryly and ruffled my hair vigorously.
“I told you not to grow close to him, yet when did you become so familiar? It seems I am of no consequence to you.”
“Ugh.”
I stumbled under her touch and made a foolish sound. Seowan withdrew her hand and smiled faintly.
Only then did I notice the holes scattered across Seowan’s garment where the fabric had been singed.
“Only the hem of the robe was scorched slightly. Do not be concerned.”
As my face paled, Seowan hastened to comfort me.
“Yes…”
Even as I answered, I watched intently as Seowan removed her outer robe.
Once I confirmed there were no new wounds among the old scars, I rushed toward the half-open cabinet.
“Here.”
Seowan smiled gently as she accepted the garment from me.
She then retrieved my sleeping robe and brought it over.
As Seowan changed my clothes, she checked once more to ensure I had no injuries.
Though she held me snugly in her embrace, I was so small and delicate that worry consumed her.
“Sister, about that fire…”
I spoke carefully while resting against Seowan. She lifted her head as she tied my garment’s strings.
“It seemed unusual. Even with the rain, it did not extinguish easily, and also…”
I hesitated. Lowering my head, I spoke very softly.
“There seemed to be that light mixed within it. The light I saw from you, sister.”
Since fire itself was light, I could not be certain I had truly seen it correctly.
But in that moment when the great flames wavered, I glimpsed what seemed to be an otherworldly white light.
At my words, Seowan’s expression hardened.

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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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