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Translator Note:
Hi, I just wanted to let you know that besides Vol. 4 I will also translate Volumes 1, 2, and 3.
And...... As it was written in bold above, PLEASE DON'T SHARE OR REPOST!!
I'm sure many of you already know that. Korean Publishers is strict, so...... Again, PLEASE DON'T SHARE OR REPOST!!
Thank you!
***
Novel The Great Wish Volume 1
Chapter 2 - Open Your Closed Eyes
Part 3
To
the south, with the Imperial Palace at the center, mansions were gathered
together to form a certain area. The owners of the luxurious mansion were all
wealthy or high-ranking nobles. The mansion located at the very edge of the
southern street was not owned by a high-ranking noble and was not close to the
Imperial Palace, but it was famous in another sense.
Unlike
the other mansions, which were usually named after families, the people called
them the Red Ivy Mansion because of the ivy climbing up their walls.
The
Red Ivy Mansion was very old, dilapidated, and huge in scale. It remained empty
for over ten years after the death of the last owner, the Count. This is
because the Count left in his will that he would only inherit the mansion to
someone who would preserve it in its original condition.
The
mansion was so large that its upkeep was prohibitive. It was old, out of style,
and not in a location that could afford it. The descendants had given up on
inheriting it, and no one had come forward to buy it.
Then,
a few years ago, a buyer showed up. The sight of wagons full of luggage pulling
up to the mansion caused quite a stir, with people coming out to watch.
In
the years that followed, it was not known who the new owner of the Ivy Mansion
was. It was only rumored the new owner was a foreign merchant.
Balth,
the butler of the Ivy Mansion, was walking through the hallway when he noticed
a smudge on the window and stopped. He took out his handkerchief, wiped it with
a squeaky clean, and looked at it from different angles. He nodded in
satisfaction as he checked the condition of the clear glass.
Balth
had recently rediscovered his aptitudes; he had always been a man of action,
working on his feet and dealing with people. After grumbling at being thrust
into the role of butler out of nowhere, he was becoming a very good butler.
He
hadn't realized he had a housekeeper's temperament, unable to ignore a speck of
dust on the window sill, and he loved the butler's suit and one-eyed glasses
he'd bought because he thought, 'This is what a butler should do!'
Balth
frowned as he saw someone coming from the other side of the hall. He quickened
his pace and approached quickly.
"Where
are you going?"
Kuhn
glanced at Balth, who was giving him an openly displeased look.
"The
Palace."
Balth
quickly pulled up beside him.
"Again?"
"Dyan
wants to see me."
"You
were there not long ago."
"Even
if I just saw him yesterday, I still have to go if I have any business to
do."
"You
don't need to see each other often. Just send an errand boy."
"Is
that the law?"
"Kuhn,
why in the world does he keep telling you to come and go?"
"Me
going to see him or Dyan coming to see me. Which one is easier? Dyan has many
eyes on him. He needs to be careful."
"Has
he ever been without a watcher? It's worrying that you keep going into the
Palace alone. Maybe you should take someone with you."
"Who?"
"Anyone
who could be thrown as fodder if something happens, and you could get your body
out from there. There are plenty of candidates. They're all willing to die
laughing."
Kuhn
sighed. It's even scarier that he's not joking.
"Look,
Dyan is still a Crown Prince. If something happens, Dyan will stop it."
"You
trust him?"
"Dyan
won't be happy if he finds out. He thought you were on his side."
Balth
snorted.
"Why
would I be on his side? Stephan was badmouthing him so much that I only said a
few words in his defense. And don't you dare to think about getting rid of me.
I'll never leave your side."
Kuhn
smirked.
"If
I lose a capable butler, I’ll be the only one at risk."
Balth
sighed heavily.
"Am
I completely becoming a butler now?"
"There
is no one else to do it."
"Yes,
yes. If you want, I'll take care of you until I'm dead. I'll do it, so please
go ahead and fetch the Mistress of the House."
Why
did the conversation veer in this direction?
Kuhn
closed his mouth. The pressure to get married started around the time he turned
20 and grew stronger as the years passed. As if they had gathered together to
form a plan, it became natural that if he said something, the conversation
would end up being about marriage.
He
wouldn't have minded it too much if they only talked about it 3 or 4 times.
However, all this marriage talk was making him crazy.
'But
I can't just bring any woman back and marry her.'
As
the head of the clan, Kuhn is obligated to leave an heir. But, just because he
wasn't fulfilling his duty now didn't mean that he planned to stay a bachelor.
He always envisioned a wife and children in his future.
It's
just, he hadn't found her yet. He wanted a special woman, a woman capable of
ruling the clan alongside him, a woman who could give birth to and raise an
heir who could inherit and protect everything he left behind.
And
the most important condition was very personal and demanding. However, the most
important condition was extremely private and difficult to fulfill. Like his
parents and even his grandparents, Kuhn wanted to marry for love, not due to
necessity.
This
was the woman he would share a bed with for the rest of his life. Someone who
would spend the rest of her life with him. Someone he is attracted to both
mentally and physically. He needed to desire her naked body. He had to have the
desire to embrace her, kiss her, and love her.
***
Kuhn
put on his knight's uniform as usual and went to meet Dyan. The meeting place
had changed. It was no longer the Labyrinth Garden, but a small Palace. As soon
as he saw Dyan, Kuhn thought about Princess Sienna. These two half-siblings
looked nothing alike.
Kuhn
still felt bad about running away from her like last time. The cut on his left
hand tingled and reminded him of it.
"Everything
fine?"
"What
happened?"
Dyan
didn't seem to know. Kuhn was both relieved and disappointed.
"Just,
I just asked how you were doing."
"I'm
fine. We just met yesterday, so what could have happened since then?"
"Where
are we?"
"A
place I stayed for a while when I first came to the Palace. This Palace is
empty now."
"Why
did you call for me?"
"Do
I need a reason to call you? Aren't we friends?"
The
maid set the tea down on the table and stepped away. Kun stared at Dyan without
touching the teacup in front of him.
"Dyan,
I'm busy. I don’t have time to fool around."
Kuhn's
expressionless face was cold. Dyan felt a bit intimidated but didn't want to
let it show in front of Kuhn, so he became even more lighthearted and shrugged
his shoulders.
"I
can't even joke with you. I just finished talking to Duke Grosch."
"You
did a good job roasting and boiling that snake."
Relief
flashed across Kuhn's face, then faded. He was worried that the negotiations
were slower than he'd hoped.
"I'm
sure he also weighed the pros and cons and decided he had nothing to lose. It
also means someone from his family would become the Red Queen."
Dyan
proposed a marriage alliance to Duke Grosch. Dyan would take the Duke's
granddaughter as his wife.
It
had been a long time since they had spoken. But the Duke was noncommittal and
stalled. One of the reasons for the delay may be the investigation of Dyan's
surroundings.
One
wouldn't call off a marriage just because the man had 1 or 2 lovers he was
enjoying, but no one would want to marry their granddaughter off to a
promiscuous man, even if it was an arranged marriage. In that sense, Dyan was
clean. Not because he hid it well, but because he really didn't have any. He
really didn't have any dirt on his character. He was a man who only dreamed of
the future. Therefore, he made sure to take care of himself.
"Did
you see her face?"
"Who?"
"The
Duke's granddaughter."
"No.
What's the use of seeing her? Even if she were the ugliest girl in the world,
I'd still marry her. But of course, she wouldn't be ugly, she's come from the
Duke Family."
All
6 of the Duke Families with the status of feudal lords had their blood mixed
with the Imperial Family little by little through marriages with the Imperial
Family. Even if they didn't have the Imperial Family's trait —two-colored hair,
they had excellent physiques and outstanding looks.
"......Are
you sure about that?"
Dyan's
expression hardened.
"Is
there something you've heard about Duke Grosch's Family?"
"No.
I mean, are you sure you can marry someone like that?"
Dyan
looked at Kuhn with a puzzled expression, then burst out laughing.
"Kuhn
Lard, are you crazy? You sound uncharacteristically sentimental. For people
like us, marriage is a contract, a business."
"Leave
me out of that 'us'. I'll pick my own woman."
"Do
you think that's even possible?"
Dyan
was dumbfounded. This guy looked like he was eating something wrong, Dyan
thought. But Kuhn was serious.
"It's
my right, and it's my clan tradition."
"......Really?"
"Marriage
is between the one you love and......"
Dyan
shouted, 'Aaahhhhh!'
"Shut
up. Don't say another word. It makes me sick to my stomach to hear that coming
out of your mouth."
Dyan
pretended to scratch his arm with an exaggerated gesture.
"Anyways,
I just wanted to let you know what's been going on. The engagement announcement
will be going out soon."
"Don't
you think you're rushing things?"
"Duke
Grosch wants it to be so."
"That's
strange. He was dragging his feet earlier, so why now?"
"It
must be because of the Red Queen. These days, there is a rumor the Red Queen
has been diligently selecting candidates for the Blue King lately."
"If
it's the Blue King......"
"Princess
Sienna's husband."
Kuhn's
hand that was holding the teacup flinched slightly.
"Duke
Grosch doesn't have anyone to offer as a candidate for the Blue King. So it's a
good thing for me. Otherwise, the Duke would never have been able to make a
decision between me and the Princess until the end."
"Isn't
it a bit early? Princess Sienna wasn't even old enough yet."
"Not
too early for engaged before the coming-of-age ceremony. Princess Sienna
doesn't seem to care much about finding a husband, so maybe that's why the Red
Queen is in a hurry. Because she'll have to turn the candidate into an obedient
dog before Princess Sienna takes an interest."
"......"
Princess
Sienna's marriage.
That
arrogant woman who seemed to hold the world beneath her feet was to become the
wife of a man? Kuhn couldn't picture it. She was like a sword with a sharpened
edge. It was hard and pungent. If you held it wrong, it would turn your hand to
blood.
Suddenly,
Kuhn remembered her golden eyes as she tried to strike him with her sword. Kuhn
took a sip of the cooled tea. Strangely, his throat felt like it was burning.
***
You can read the newly released chapter of [Novel] The Great Wish Vol. 4 on Patreon or Ko-Fi at The SeiRei Wish tiers. Thank you!
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