Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: That Princess Back Then
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There was once a girl.
A girl kinder and purer than anyone else in the world.
A girl with a clear and untainted heart, one who could never be believed to have been born to parents drenched in rivers of blood.
Whenever her parents returned home with their hands stained in filthy blood, that child would always rush to them with a radiant smile, arms outstretched for an embrace.
Because of that child, her parents... the man known as Han-seo...
could swing the sword of sin, its blade black with gore, without a shred of regret.
No matter how dirty or ugly the deeds they committed.
For the sake of that child's happiness,
as long as he could see that child's smile, he deemed it enough.
But perhaps the sins committed by her parents were far too grave.
The child, whom he wished happiness for more than anyone,
withered away at a tender age, like a flower that never had the chance to fully bloom.
Clutching Han-seo's hand as he begged her to live just a little longer.
With her face flushed with fever, that child mustered a weary smile and said,
"I'm... sorry... Next time... I'm born... I'll be your... daughter... again..."
These were the last words that child left behind.
Even amid the whispers of others blaming her parents' sins for her fate,
her final words held not a trace of resentment.
This left an indelible scar in the heart of the man called Han-seo.
And so, carrying this horrific guilt deep in his chest, Han-seo lived on until...
That child appeared before him.
A woman who bore an uncanny resemblance to what his deceased daughter might have grown into had she lived.
Lee Su-ryeon.
The moment he saw her threatened by street thugs, Han-seo's body moved before his mind could catch up.
By the time he came to his senses, the thugs lay scattered at his feet, and before him stood Su-ryeon, who looked so much like that child.
This fateful encounter slowly drew Han-seo and Su-ryeon closer.
As their bond deepened and Han-seo learned more about Su-ryeon,
he found himself falling for her more and more.
The way she called him "Big Brother" with that beaming smile.
It was so identical to his lost child that it made Han-seo feel as if she had truly come back to life.
Though she worked as a courtesan, Su-ryeon seemed to have some other purpose.
Han-seo didn't know what it was, but he genuinely wanted to help her.
As long as he could see the smile of his lost child in this way, it was enough for him.
But when he finally learned the truth behind it all...
When he discovered that Su-ryeon was the daughter of the late Minister of War,
and that her goal was revenge for his death...
Han-seo finally realized.
This was no salvation for him.
It was a cruel curse,
the unyielding shackles of his unresolved sins.
For the one who had swung the sword at the Minister that day
was no other than Han-seo himself.
"It... won't end... will it? Even after taking that child... it's still like this..."
The past sins that had circled back to him once more.
Han-seo could feel all too clearly how that nightmarish karma continued to torment him.
Just moments ago, the Inner Guards and investigators he had summoned had nearly killed that child for real.
He had brushed it off to the Captain of the Inner Guard, but recalling that moment still made his heart pound.
Fortunately, he had intervened personally to protect her, but the fact that he had come so close to committing the irreparable
made him question his involvement once again.
"How long must I keep this up?... Just how long?"
Murmuring in hollow despair, Han-seo gazed at the tassel dangling from his sword.
A gift handmade by Su-ryeon not long ago. Though crude, it was more precious to him than a box of gold ingots.
But if things continued like this, he would reach an irreversible point with the very child who had given it to him.
Once she learned the truth, she would surely come to hate him,
and in the worst case, he might end up killing her with his own hands.
But...
Even so, Han-seo couldn't abandon this path.
No... he couldn't afford to.
He had devoted his entire life to reaching this point.
If he let it go now,
if he tore down everything he had built through blood and sweat, even losing his daughter in the process...
It would be tantamount to denying his entire existence.
"I've... come too far already. There's no... turning back now..."
Thus, steeling himself.
Even as the unrelenting anguish gnawed at him,
Han-seo rose wearily and began to walk.
Before dawn broke, he had to be where he belonged...
"Ah..."
Oh Young-ae let out an involuntary sigh of pity.
Until moments ago, she had been watching the drama with skepticism, but now she found herself overtaken by a profound melancholy.
Han-seo's anguish and torment had been conveyed so vividly.
Even knowing it was just a drama, even watching it through a screen. In that moment, Oh Young-ae's heart ached with Han-seo's pain as if it were her own.
It wasn't just the situation's inherent tragedy;
above all, it was Chae Soo-jeong's acting, conveying every emotion crystal-clear without shedding a single tear.
His expressions, movements, even his breathing.
Everything evoked the agony of a "father" forced to sever ties with a daughter-like child.
It even softened the backlash against Han-seo betraying the protagonist's group.
'I feel it every time, but her acting is truly astounding...'
Even Oh Young-ae, with her discerning eye, had to concede Soo-jeong's skill.
And the other viewers watching the drama with her felt the same.
The viewers were simply awestruck by the seamless performance.
But separate from the Han-seo discussion, a few sharp-eyed viewers started pointing out something else.
"Huh?"
Oh Young-ae, scrolling through the chat, caught on late.
She hurriedly pulled up the finale of Tears of the Queen Consort.
"Ah... yeah, that's right. This was her as the princess."
A cute girl with sparkling, innocent eyes.
With Oh Young-ae's confirmation, the chat exploded with discussion on the topic.
The girl had only appeared in one brief scene at the end, so she wasn't hugely recognizable.
A few remembered her as "Ha Yu-ra's daughter."
But this subtle link to Tears of the Queen Consort gave viewers an intriguing breadcrumb.
Mixing jokes with a hint of anticipation, viewers began to wonder about the veiled Queen Dowager's identity.
At that moment.
"Ah, time flies. Moving right into the next part."
The ad break ended, and the drama resumed.
Growing ever more curious about what came next, the viewers refocused on the screen.
"Hmmm..."
A man examined documents with a grave expression.
The dozen or so people in the room couldn't lift their heads, only breaking into cold sweats.
It felt as if an invisible blade danced around their necks.
One wrong move here, and heads would roll—in the corporate sense. They felt like they were on the execution block.
And shortly after.
The man finished reviewing the documents and slammed them onto the desk with a sharp thud.
Venaris Cosmetics.
A major brand, not quite conglomerate-sized but a pillar in the industry.
And at this moment.
Executive Director Kim Do-cheol's face emanated a faint killing intent.
Not literal murder, but the kind that promised corporate demise.
Venaris's sales had been declining for two straight quarters, pushing indicators toward the red zone.
The lax atmosphere lately had him seriously considering axing a department head to restore discipline...
"...Seen the sales figures?"
"Ugh..."
"Y-Yes... we have."
"...Sigh... Alright... Let's do better."
He held back for now.
It wasn't the first time in his career running the company.
But if next quarter was the same, the axe would fall.
As the tense meeting ended, one person slipped out like they were fleeing.
Among the department heads, she was the youngest in her mid-30s.
Han Jeong-hwa let out a heavy sigh, lost in deep thought.
'Ugh... What to do? One slip, and I could lose the department head spot I clawed my way into...'
The plummeting sales.
Consensus was it stemmed more from promotion and advertising than product issues.
So if heads rolled, she—head of advertising—had over an 80% chance of being first.
To survive, she needed to revamp ads, swap models, anything to boost sales.
'Contract periods are up anyway, so swap models first... Then a new model...?'
In that instant, one person flashed through her mind.
From the drama she'd been hooked on lately.
Her sole joy in this grinding reality.
In it, one figure captivated Han Jeong-hwa completely.
Impossibly fair skin that didn't scream "man."
An aura that seized attention instantly—even from her, who'd seen countless actors—impossible to look away from.
Plus an intensely alluring charm that ensnared her heart.
'Come to think of it, she's a rookie, right?'
Recognition was low, but that meant affordable rates.
In this budget crunch, no extra funding expected—a positive.
After quick calculations, convinced it was an improvement,
Han Jeong-hwa whipped out her phone and jotted a note.
"...Alright. Let's try it. As our male model... 'Big Brother Han-seo'..."