The Bastard First Prince Doesn't Want to Die

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]

Chapter: 190

"I didn’t understand Mother. I didn’t want to understand her. What does it matter? We’ll live and die here anyway."

Sannyeong, who had seemed half out of her mind, suddenly regained focus. Her voice became clearer, more grounded. Finally, it seemed like we could have a proper conversation.

I rolled my eyes, trying to piece together the meaning behind her fragmented words.

I was the one who didn’t understand. What did the Emperor of Huawei have to do with this village?

"What exactly was the village chief trying to do?"

"She wanted to bring down the Emperor."

The idea of a frail, elderly woman like the village chief trying to overthrow the imperial throne of Huawei was absurd.

The Emperor was the most powerful figure in the world, surrounded by warriors whose abilities rivaled those of Jincheon in his prime. Just a handful of his men could wipe this village off the map without a trace.

"…The Emperor is 'one of us' too."

Sannyeong’s voice grew weaker and weaker.

But her hand remained fixed on the map, obsessively pointing at something—as if trying to draw something out of it.

"The Emperor has an ability?"

She nodded.

I see. But that wasn’t exactly surprising.

There were plenty of times when the Emperor’s actions made people question whether he was even human. The tale of how he wiped out the entire royal family of Suseo and swallowed up their palace in mere days was famous, after all.

Of course, that event hadn’t happened yet—only I knew it would.

"Now that Mother is dead, the Emperor will finally move in earnest."

That jolted me awake.

The imperial court had waged countless wars of conquest over the years, but directly targeting foreign royal families was a relatively recent development.

And somehow, that had something to do with the village chief?

I quickly reassessed my opinion of her.

She might have looked like a frail old woman, but if she was truly capable of opposing the Emperor, then her abilities must have far surpassed even King Bonhyeon or my maternal grandfather.

I knelt down to meet Sannyeong’s gaze.

"What exactly was the chief trying to stop?"

"…Do you know how abilities manifest?"

I shook my head.

"Each time an ability is used, it causes corruption."

"Corruption?"

Sannyeong’s gaze flickered toward me.

For a brief moment, she had seemed lucid, but now her eyes turned hollow once again—filled with an uncontainable fury and sorrow.

"Demonic beasts," she whispered.

So, using abilities was the cause of demonic beasts appearing.

…Did that mean I was responsible for them too?

Unlike the village chief, I couldn’t even control when my ability activated.

Sannyeong must have noticed the shift in my expression, because she let out a short sigh before continuing.

"The heavens remain in the sky, the earth stays grounded, fire rises, and water flows downward—this is the natural order. It must not be defied."

She paused briefly.

"But that man… he possesses an ability that lets him see glimpses of the near past and the near future. And the more he defies the natural order…"

"The more demonic beasts appear?"

Sannyeong nodded.

"And yet, even that isn’t enough for him—he covets the abilities of others as well."

A sudden question crossed my mind.

"Was there ever a way to approach the Emperor?"

She shook her head.

"That bloodline has always been the same. Whenever they found someone with an ability, they would capture them and make them into their servants. If it was something they could steal, they would stop at nothing to take it. And if it was something they couldn’t steal, they would keep the person as their vassal."

I recalled how the Emperor had gathered countless warriors and talents from all over. He never discriminated by birth or status—if someone had skill, he would take them in and keep them close.

Keep them close… like the Royal Guards, perhaps?

Wait—wasn’t Jincheon the same?

But Jincheon had never displayed any abilities…

"But wouldn’t an increase in demonic beasts be a problem for the Emperor too?"

"What does he care?" Sannyeong scoffed. "That wretched bloodline sits atop their golden palace, running their mouths while the powerless suffer. Even if demonic beasts were to flood the imperial capital, by then, he would already have every ability in the world in his grasp. Why would he care?"

I furrowed my brows.

"Understood. Then the village…?"

"It was probably doomed from the start. Our village was originally founded to clean up the demonic beasts that appear due to the abilities used by outsiders."

I already knew that from reading the archives.

The village, in a sense, was like a garbage dump. That might not be the most polite way to put it, but it was essentially accurate.

Back when I didn’t know that demonic beasts were created by the overuse of abilities, I had no idea what that meant. But now, I understood.

"Then what is this?"

I pointed at the map. Even after looking at it again, it still made me uncomfortable.

"It’s an ancient ritual medium that draws corruption into this land. But it’s no longer necessary, so I’m going to destroy it."

Hearing that, I felt my blood run cold.

So that map was a medium for a spell that summoned all the world’s corruption into the Demon Realm.

Would destroying that spell cause demonic beasts to appear everywhere?

When I asked, Sannyeong hesitated for a moment before giving a reluctant nod.

"But there’s no other choice. We have to survive too, don’t we?"

"Let’s think this through again. Instead of clinging to the Demon Realm, why don’t we all leave and live outside? I’ll help you. Finding a place to settle isn’t difficult. You wouldn’t even have to be separated from your neighbors. I can make sure the entire village stays together. I have the means to do that."

"How can you say such a thing so easily—telling us to abandon our home?!" Sannyeong snapped.

If I put myself in her shoes…

If someone had told me to abandon Blood Cloud Fortress and flee to the capital to survive, I probably would’ve beaten them to a pulp.

I suppose I should be grateful she didn’t hit me.

Since I stayed silent, Sannyeong turned back to the map and the altar, seemingly intent on continuing the ritual.

No, wait. I couldn’t let that happen.

Without hesitation, I grabbed her and hoisted her over my shoulder.

"What are you doing?! Put me down!"

She struggled fiercely, but it couldn’t be helped.

Carrying her, I walked straight out of the small shrine and headed toward where Aro and the Hwan siblings were waiting.

The further I got from the map, the less pain I felt in my body.

So that map really was the problem.

"Uncle."

As soon as I arrived, Aro was the first to notice me and came running.

She looked startled when she saw me carrying Sannyeong, but being quick-witted, she seemed to grasp the situation right away and didn’t ask any unnecessary questions.

She didn’t even bother asking why.

"W-What the—?"

"Lady Sannyeong?"

The siblings, on the other hand, stared in shock at Sannyeong, who was furiously thrashing and yelling at me to put her down.

"Are you insane?" Hwang Danyo asked, utterly appalled.

I shook my head.

"We’re going back to the village."

They looked at me, completely lost.

But when I started walking first and Aro followed without hesitation, they had no choice but to trail behind.

Since we had gone deep into the shrine, the walk back was long.

"What exactly happened in there?" Hwang Danyo asked.

I considered ignoring her but ended up replying.

"You don’t need to know."

Sannyeong had been carrying out this ritual in secret—alone.

Did it really need to be explained?

In my opinion, it wasn’t worth the trouble.

Telling them would only stir up more conflict. Even if I explained, the village would end up divided over what Sannyeong had done. That much was obvious.

When I didn’t answer, Hwang Danyo looked displeased but didn’t push further. That was for the best.

As we stepped out of the shrine’s pavilion and into the courtyard, a heavy tension settled over me—one I hadn’t felt before.

Outside the shrine’s mist, Jawoon Elder would be waiting.

How was I supposed to face him now?

He would undoubtedly believe I had deceived him.

"Why aren’t we going, Uncle?"

Aro tilted her head, puzzled.

She must have sensed that something was seriously wrong—her expression had been dark this entire time.

Now, she was trying to act cheerful, but that only made her look more pitiful.

"Why?"

When I didn’t answer and simply stared ahead, she asked again, confused.

Forcing the corners of my mouth up slightly, I stepped forward into the mist.

Just before stepping through the thick mist, I turned back.

The pavilion and the stone pillars in front of it looked far more worn-out than when I first saw them, as if they were pushing me forward. And in front of them stood a pitch-black shadow, slowly waving its limb-like appendages.

I gave the dark figure a small bow before stepping through the mist.

At that moment, it felt as if I had surfaced from deep water—an overwhelming rush of sounds and sensations flooded my senses all at once. I could hear what I hadn’t before, see what had previously been obscured.

Ah, right. This was how my vision was supposed to be.

Becoming aware of my abilities once again, I glanced back. The mist was thick and opaque, yet for some reason, I thought I could faintly see what lay beyond it. Or perhaps it was just an afterimage lingering in my eyes.

"…Baek Yeon?"

A low, familiar voice called out.

Swallowing hard, I turned forward.

There stood Jawoon.

He looked exhausted. Unlike the last time I saw him, a long scar now marked his face—one of the many wounds he must have sustained while fighting demonic beasts, mostly alone. A strange sense of guilt welled up inside me.

"…It’s been a while."

Unable to meet his gaze, I lowered my eyes and stared at the ground as I spoke.

Jawoon let out a few dry chuckles, then tilted his head back and exhaled a long sigh. Every breath he released felt like a blow to my chest.

"I thought you were dead."

His voice carried a quiet sorrow.

I still couldn’t bring myself to look at him as I answered, "I wasn’t. As you can see."

"You look fine."

"Yes."

"Why won’t you lift your head?"

"That’s…"

"Let me see your face."

At his words, I reluctantly looked up.

"Hah."

He looked as though he had aged another ten years. No doubt he had been through a great deal.

"Even if I ask, you won’t tell me anything, will you?"

I couldn’t deny it.

I had no intention of explaining what had happened—not to Hwang Danyo, not to Hwang Gongyoung, not even to Aro.

"It’s enough that you’re alive. Let’s go."

Jawoon turned on his heel.

He pretended as if nothing was wrong, but I could tell—he felt deeply betrayed.

[Translator - Jjescus ]

[Proofreader - Starfall ]