🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 16
On the dry ground, Jihoo pressed his forehead close to the earth, and thick, hot tears streamed down his face along with heavy, labored breaths.
“Do you really want it!”
“If only you knew who my father is, you might understand!”
“How dare you touch my nose! How dare you touch my face! You really do want it, don’t you!”
At that moment, Jihoo regretted thinking the little princess’s warnings were nonsense. His shoulders shook as he sobbed hot tears of belated regret.
Watching Jihoo with a less-than-pleased expression, Eunhye suddenly crouched down close to him.
“Child!”
A startled court lady pressed herself next to Eunhye, while Hongmun and Kim Dae-hyun, who had also been lying behind Jihoo, lifted their heads.
Then, crouched in front of Jihoo, Eunhye glanced at Kim Dae-hyun and, tilting her head curiously, asked:
“Who are you?”
Only then did Kim Dae-hyun, still bowed low, reveal his identity.
“I am Kim Dae-hyun, Hongmun Officer of the Royal Secretariat. It is my first time seeing the little princess.”
“Ah… then what is your relationship with this child named Jihoo?”
Eunhye asked, still crouched down in her adorable posture.
“Humbly, I am the uncle of this foolish child.”
“I see…”
Eunhye nodded as if she understood, and gently placed her hand on Jihoo’s trembling shoulder.
Startled, Jihoo ducked further when her small hand accidentally touched him.
“Now, do you still want it?”
“Princess, I… I beg you, please take my life instead.”
Jihoo spoke through tears with a sorrowful voice. Eunhye frowned slightly at his words.
“Do you really want it?”
“Huh?”
Jihoo raised his dusty, tear-streaked face, blinking in surprise.
“If you really don’t want it, then don’t keep asking for it. You might get sick from it.”
What does she mean?
His long eyelashes were dusted with fine dirt like cotton. Eunhye scrunched her nose and smiled, then removed her hand from his shoulder.
“How could I possibly give it to you, the son of my teacher? And you… are different somehow. Especially the ‘myeong-gyeon’ you carry…”
“Ah!”
At the mention of the ‘myeong-gyeon,’ Jihoo quickly gasped as if remembering something, and hurriedly put his hand into his chest.
“What is it?”
Eunhye, crouched in front of him with wide round eyes, watched as Jihoo carefully presented the ‘myeong-gyeon’ with both hands, bowing his head once more.
The white ‘myeong-gyeon,’ gently placed on Jihoo’s hands as he knelt on the dusty ground, exuded a refined aura. Eunhye swallowed hard at the elegant energy emanating from it.
“You want to give this to me?”
“Yes, Princess. It is insignificant compared to the offense I committed, but I am grateful that I have something to offer. Please accept it.”
Eunhye carefully looked at the ‘myeong-gyeon’ in his dusty hands, then finally stood up and stretched her legs.
“Enough, stand up. And you too, uncle.”
At her command, the two men who had been lying on the dry ground got up and knelt.
“Princess, but this ‘myeong-gyeon’…”
Jihoo held the item with trembling hands, unsure what to do now that Eunhye had not taken it.
“You said it was precious when you saw it, didn’t you? So I wish to present it to you.”
Eunhye, gazing at Jihoo’s trembling hands supporting the ‘myeong-gyeon,’ shook her head slowly.
“How strange. I thought you’d want it as soon as you saw it again. But looking closely, it seems the owner is not me. So just keep it well for yourself.”
“Eh? Then, how should I atone for the offense I committed against you?”
Her eyes… they’re mesmerizing again, that little trickster!
One court lady glared fiercely at Jihoo, sending a desperate look toward Eunhye. She wasn’t entirely sure what had happened, but clearly this boy had committed an unforgivable offense against her, and now he was begging for his life and family’s safety.
Even if the princess forgave him, she would never forgive him!
Eunhye frowned at Jihoo, who was sobbing.
“You, uneducated boy! Do you think the rudeness you showed me ends with that ‘myeong-gyeon’?”
“No, Princess!”
Startled, Jihoo dropped flat again on the ground, shouting.
‘Uneducated’… wasn’t that exactly what he had called the princess earlier?
Seeing Jihoo tightly close his eyes and lie face-down, Kim Dae-hyun didn’t know how to react and awkwardly tried to bow.
At that moment, Eunhye shook her cute little head and scolded sharply:
“Ah, now it’s enough, so stand up! Didn’t I say it’s enough?”
“Huh?”
Surprised by Eunhye’s words, Jihoo blinked his wide eyes while raising his head.
“You don’t need the ‘myeong-gyeon’ anymore. Though you were extremely rude earlier, it also comforted and encouraged me, so it’s fine. Don’t worry—just return home now.”
Comfort? Had he really given the princess any comfort at all?
Eunhye smiled slightly at Jihoo, as if telling him he could leave now, waving her small hands.
“Really, don’t worry. If you want to atone, just serve our elder brother, the Crown Prince, loyally, okay?”
“Ah… Princess!”
Both Jihoo and Kim Dae-hyun nodded in a dazed, almost stunned acknowledgment.
Eunhye then turned to the court lady who had been glaring at Jihoo.
“Court lady, let’s go. I’m quite hungry.”
“Yes, Princess! Let’s hurry…”
“No, I’ll walk.”
Eunhye stepped past the court lady, who had quickly sat down in front of her, and began walking steadily toward Hyeshin Palace.
For some reason, Eunhye didn’t want to appear like a child in front of Jihoo.
“Oh my, Princess! You mustn’t go alone!”
“Come quickly!”
Jihoo, who had gotten up with his head spinning as if a storm had passed, bowed deeply toward Eunhye walking ahead.
‘Thank you, Princess.’
The offense he had committed against her was a crime against royalty, punishable by death. He had scolded and insulted a princess and even touched her recklessly—how could he hope to live?
Yet the gracious little princess had forgiven him. She had even instructed him to atone by serving the Crown Prince loyally.
Though young, the princess was exceptionally intelligent, wise, and magnanimous.
Watching Eunhye walk away, Jihoo’s eyes were filled with the devoted affection of a puppy gazing at its master.
Kim Dae-hyun gently placed his hand on Jihoo’s shoulder and quietly nodded.
From the rumors, he had thought the princess was immature, yet today he had seen a princess embodying the true line of the nation—wise, sharp, generous, and capable.
Already showing such qualities, how much greater would she become when grown?
Kim Dae-hyun couldn’t help imagining his nephew standing beside her, smiling with satisfaction.
“Now, let’s go. I have a lot to talk to you about.”
Jihoo nodded and bowed once more toward the now-distant Eunhye.
‘Princess, I will never forget your mercy today. As you instructed, I will serve the Crown Prince faithfully.’
The fleeting glimmer of gold in Jihoo’s eyes went unnoticed by anyone.
“Princess, what on earth happened with that mischievous boy?”
Walking toward Hyeshin Palace, a court lady following Eunhye asked with curiosity.
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Oh, please tell me! He’s the same boy who didn’t recognize you earlier, right?”
Eunhye shook her head.
“No, you wouldn’t understand.”
“Then why did he comfort you? What do you mean by that?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Really?”
Eunhye nodded firmly, her plump cheeks bouncing.
The court lady smiled at her cute expression, then noticed Chief Lady Park rushing over from afar.
“Chief Lady Park!”
The boisterous court lady’s voice rang sharply, and a soft, gentle voice suddenly spoke:
“Were you walking alone? Let’s go together. Two are better than one, right?”
Eunhye recalled Jihoo’s warm words of comfort and smiled softly.
“Come on, hurry up! Your nose is about to get all full of snot.”
Again, she remembered the ‘myeong-gyeon’ and Jihoo’s careful touch, and couldn’t help wrinkling her nose in delight.
Somehow, she could still faintly smell the scent that had come from the ‘myeong-gyeon.’
Even though she had refused it, its true owner was undoubtedly Jihoo.
When he tried to hand it to her, the letters on the corner of the ‘myeong-gyeon’ shone with a crimson, auspicious light, as if warning her not to touch it.
