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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 4
Sienna
resumed practicing her swordsmanship after a long absence. She hadn't picked up
her sword for a while because she didn't feel like it, ever since she suspected
that the knight might go easy on her, but last night's dream had her head
spinning, and she wanted to release her frustrations by moving her body and
sweating it out.
The
knight who had long been her opponent in swordsmanship practice had been called
today. The moment their swords clashed, her brow furrowed. She could feel the
difference. Sienna lowered her sword, and the knight, who had been positioning
themself for the next attack, lowered their sword in surprise.
"Is
something the matter, Princess?"
Sienna
glared, and the knight unnecessarily agitated.
"Did
you do your best?"
"What?"
"I'm
asking you if you are showing me the full extent of your skills or are you only
going easy on me and matching my level?"
"Princess,
you can only improve your swordsmanship if there is a constant exchange of give
and take."
"So
you're saying that I'm not good enough and you've been lowering yourself to my
level."
The
knight's expression was cautious as they tried to gauge the Princess's
intentions.
"It
is not my place to question your teaching methods. I'm a student, after all.
But it is also an important virtue of a teacher to help students objectively
assess their level. Don't you think?"
"You're
right."
"You
have deceived me."
"Princess,
I would never......"
"The
answer is 'Yes' or 'No'. You led me to believe I was more than I was, and you
never corrected me."
The
knight swallowed dryly. Their eyes glazed over. They had been teaching the
Princess for a long time now, so they knew how she was. She would never accept
a lame excuse.
"......Yes."
"Did
you make that decision arbitrarily?"
"I......"
"Think
carefully before answering. I have no intention of punishing you no matter what
your answer, but if you did that just to flatter me, I will be very
disappointed, and I will never see you again."
The
knight was troubled. Sienna waited for the knight's long silence.
"I
have received instructions to do that."
"From
whom?"
The
knight narrowed their eyes, then opened their mouth. There was no getting out
of this one.
"It
was the Red Queen who gave the instructions."
Sienna's
eyes flickered.
"When?"
"It
was around the time when I started teaching you swordsmanship, Princess."
Sienna
closed her eyes heavily and opened them.
"What
did the Red Queen say? Tell me, without adding or subtracting."
「 She is a princess, and she is the one who will become
the future owner of the empire. Everything must be perfect. She is choosing to
practice the sword as a way to exercise, and it must never become a stumbling
block for her. As her mother, I know her temperament well. She is stubborn and
very hard on herself. When she sees a flaw in herself, she will dig deep to
perfect it. She's not going to be a knight, so what's the point of her being so
good at swordsmanship? She has a lot to do, and she doesn't have time for
frivolous things like swordsmanship. So, please help the princess be fully
satisfied with her own skills. 」
As
the knight rambled on, Sienna could almost hear Patricia's voice in her ear.
When
she first mentioned that she was going to learn swordsmanship, Patricia didn't
think it was a good idea, saying it would make her hands rough. But Patricia
didn't object either. After that, Patricia never asked about practicing
swordsmanship. Sienna thought that Patricia had no interest in her
swordsmanship at all.
"Then,
did the Red Queen also call the Knight Commander?"
"Ah......
That, no. Privately, I asked the Captain to do it. I apologize, Princess. But,
it's not a lie when I said that your skills are improving surprisingly quickly,
Princess."
"Swordsmanship
is more about sincerity than talent. That's what you said on the first day you
taught me. Once every 2 or 3 days. Just a couple of hours. With that amount of
practice, how long will it take to be able to fight one knight? Whole
life?"
Sienna
was ashamed of her pride; she believed she could make up for her lack of
practice with her overwhelming talent. Until just a few days ago.
She
stared at the knight, who bowed their head deeply.
"I
will forgive you."
The
knight looked up in surprise, frozen, thinking their career was over.
"But
on one condition. First, let's pretend today's occasion never happened. Forget
what we talked about today. Two, from now on, I want you to show your true
skill. Because I want to know what level I am at. Can you do that?"
"Yes,
Princess. I promise."
"Then
let's practice again today......"
Sienna
gripped her sword and adjusted her stance, then turned to the knight.
"Have
you seen the Red Queen since then?"
"I
have seen her occasionally."
No
way. Her heart began to pound.
"Occasionally,
when?"
"About
once every 2 or 3 months."
"Even
recently?"
"Yes.
I saw her about a month ago."
"What
did she say when she called you?"
The
knight, who had spoken so casually, tensed as Sienna probed.
"The
Red Queen didn't say much. She just wondering if you were having a hard time
with your lessons. She just asked questions about your welfare. I thought the
Red Queen was worried about you, Princess. I never spied on you for her."
As
a mother, Patricia might be interested in her child's education. But Sienna's
intuition told her it wasn't all that pure.
"Princess,
if it makes you uncomfortable, I will not see the Red Queen again."
"No.
Go see her if she calls you. Just tell her the same things you've always told
her. Just don't tell her what happened today, don't let her know that I know."
"Yes,
Princess."
"It
is true that the Red Queen is my mother, but it is I, not she, who will be the
Emperor."
The
knight wasn't good with words, but they understood Sienna's meaning. A chill
ran down on their back, damp with sweat from earlier. They answered her by
bowing their head deeply.
She
finished practicing earlier than usual. After sending the knight away, Sienna
was left alone to think.
Patricia
wasn't the kind of person to be cowed by her daughter's words. If she was
offended, she would show it and sometimes throw a little tantrum. Still, Sienna
had believed that her mother was an honest woman.
The
knight said that they didn't discuss anything important.
'That's
probably true because there's nothing to say.'
She
didn't speak to the knight during sword practice. This was the longest
conversation they'd had today. The Red Queen must have noticed after a few
times. But, why did she keep calling them? To check something?
Sienna
looked around indifferently and sighed softly. There is no one around. There
was always someone by her side. But during her sword training sessions, she
hated to be distracted, so she told all the maids to leave.
This
meant that the only people who knew what she was doing at this hour were
herself and the knights who helped her train.
'She
wants to confirm, that I really do practice swordsmanship at this time.'
This
was too much for selfless motherly affection. It was relentless surveillance.
'If
she knew where I was and what I was doing, my every move would be within her earshot.'
Sienna
walked slowly. Not toward her Palace, but in a completely different direction.
'I
trusted you.'
She
winced as if she'd been hit with a blunt object. It was a shock to realize that
she had unwittingly been swayed by Patricia. This was not the mother Sienna had
vaguely pictured.
She
thought she was a bird flying freely in the open sky, but there were invisible,
thin, tough nets ready to snare her from all sides.
'I
believed you when you said that no mother would harm her child.'
The
Red Queen may argue that she didn't mean to harm her. If Sienna were an
ordinary person, she might be able to pass it off as the behavior of an
obsessed mother with her child. But Sienna is not an ordinary person. Trying to
control her was like trying to control the Empire.
It
was all speculation on her part. She had yet to hear what Patricia's true
feelings were, but it was too late to turn back. No matter what the answer,
distrust had already sprouted in her heart.
What's
more, the question she hadn't been able to resolve since her dream last night
had been answered. She had a clue as to why her future self was so opposed to
her mother. It was clear to her that her mother and maternal uncle were using
her to manipulate the state.
She
became suspicious of everyone around her. She felt like a lost child. It was
the darkest she had ever felt.
Before
she knew it, she was standing at the entrance to the Labyrinth Garden. A
dark-haired man's face appeared in her confused mind.
'Will
he be there?'
Sienna
had been disappointed when the knight had first shown their skill against her.
She hadn't lost her grip on her sword and had managed to block a few blows.
She
felt outclassed, but she also knew she deserved it. If the knight turned and
tried to kill her, she thought she might be able to find an opening and escape.
But
that man was a wall, and he didn't just send Sienna's sword flying with sheer
force; there was a mastery in the simple motion.
"Ah......"
The
inside of the labyrinth is empty. There were no tables and no people.
'There's
no way he'd be here.'
She
walked over to where the table had been. She stood and looked around.
'It
can't be.'
She
looked up with a smirk and locked eyes with a dark-haired man who had just
entered this place. Sienna's eyes widened. The man stood stiffly for a moment,
then hurriedly turned around. Sienna shouted at his back.
"Stop
right there!"
She
approached the frozen man, ready to chase him down and capture him if he ran
again, but he remained still, his back to her.
'I've
gone absolutely insane.'
Kuhn
sighed, cupping his face in one hand. He shouldn't have paid attention to the
Labyrinth Garden in the distance on the way back from his meeting with Dyan.
Why did he think of her, and what was he doing here?
"Today,
I want you to tell me your name."
The
voice came from right behind him. It was a beautiful voice that once you hear
it, you can never forget it. It was high-pitched, like a boy who hadn't reached
puberty, but it had power.
Kuhn
turned slowly to see Princess Sienna standing a few paces away, clad in light
armor and holding a sword as if she had been practicing swordsmanship. She was
so beautiful, with her slightly upturned eyes, that he felt a strange sense of
crisis.
"Name."
His
pseudonym was......
"Real
name."
"......Kuhn."
Oh,
no.
"That
all?"
He
wondered, why suddenly he couldn't think of a pseudonym. But, since he'd
already said it, he gave up and answered obediently.
"You
can just call me Kuhn."
"The
mercenary organization, Kalligo."
Sienna
flipped through the overheard information. The silent man's reaction was
nothing short of affirmation.
'This
is bad. How do I fix this?'
***
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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