The Emperor's Dog Chapter 1

Translator: s.h.i.+ko

Proofreader: Asu

〈0〉 Prologue

It was a common development. It was raining heavily outside and we’d run out of scallions. My brother had recently gone on vacation and returned drunk, and was stretched out in the living room. He was young, ignorant, tired and careless.

There wasn’t even enough scallions to fill a spoon. My mother, who was preparing the hangover soup for my older brother, urged me to go to the grocery store and buy some more. I was lying on the sofa, munching on snacks whilst reading a novel so of course I was shocked.

“I’ll let you eat.”

“Hari, you’re not gonna eat? Go ahead and starve, then.”

I covered my book silently. Food was precious.

“Dirty favouritism…”

“Quit your complaining and hurry up. Don’t forget to buy it at the Super Mart since it’s cheaper there.”

I nodded, putting on my slippers and opening the front door immediately. With only a few hundred won in my pockets, I was in a hurry to get to the mart across the street. However, after graduating from college, I was unable to get a job and therefore I stayed at home. That meant I no longer had the authority to refuse errands from my omnipotent mother.

I soon arrived at the mart, grumbling as hard as I could. Unlike the wet streets outside that had been hammered with rain, the inside of the mart was pleasant and cool. I headed straight for the vegetable aisle, grabbed the scallions and stood at the checkout counter.

I didn’t forget to grab a candy bar along the way, just as how sparrows can’t just pa.s.s by a mill[1]. It was my timid revenge against my mother. I was told to go to the mart to buy scallions, but the pleasure of blowing away hundreds of wons! 

“As expected, I am a good daughter.”

I left the mart with a satisfied smile. The rain was much stronger than before. It now felt like a typhoon. On days like these, the best way to spend time was to stay at home and read novels. That’s how my day had been going.

But now I was outside. d.a.m.n it, mate [2].

I stood in front of the crosswalk whilst swearing. My mother’s blatant discrimination against me – compared to my brother – didn’t hurt since we’d also had a long history back in college. 

Your son in medical school is much more important than your daughter in Seoul National University. Well, it’s not like I didn’t understand why. Still, even when I was young, I noticed some discrimination against me.

It’s stronger now, but in the past my brother used to go to the hospital a lot since he was weak; everytime, I was left alone at home. Maybe that’s when I started getting used to the subtle discrimination.

“Haah, now I’m the one who’s getting a headache.”

I stood waiting for the signal to change, but oddly enough, it stayed red. I waited since I’m a law abiding citizen, but no matter how long I stood there, it did not turn green. 

“It’s broken again.”

It was something that happened a lot. The sign frequently did that. Even if you send in a complaint, it’s useless. It happened all the time, so I took a look from left to right. It was hard to see through the storm, but it was clear that there was no oncoming traffic.

In fact, we didn’t have many cars pa.s.sing through this road during daytime on weekdays. I crossed the crosswalk, the red light on as usual. My wet shoes felt unpleasant so I wanted to get home as soon as possible. 

I fell down. The drizzling rain dampened my pants and calves. Ugh, now i need to change clothes and wash them. Just as I reached the center of the crosswalk, a strange sense of alertness washed over me.

“Oh…?”

The sound of something travelling at a high speed pa.s.sed through the rain. 

‘Bang—!’

I slowly turned my head. The lights of a fast car spread throughout the rain. A loud clattering sound struck my eardrums. There was no way to escape. I was ran over before I even realized what was happening.

And like that, I got into a car accident. I was on my way to buy some scallions for my d.a.m.n brother on the sidewalk across from my house. The raindrops poured down on the fallen body. 

There was a thought I had the moment i died. I’m glad I got hit by a Lamborghini. It feels better when you’re hit by an expensive car. It’s about as good as it can get when it’s a Lamborghini. Let’s not mention the fact that I was holding a bag of scallions with my left arm.

Ah, that was a waste. I wasn’t able to complete the novel I was reading. Maybe that’s why I feel like I’m connecting with the female lead right now.

〈1〉 The puppy of the Imperial palace

“You’ve finally returned to the palace.”

“Is there a problem?”

“It’s all up to the little one.”

The dreamy-sounding whispers disappeared in a flash. 

I felt like I was wrapped up in something cozy. What the h.e.l.l is this? I was run over and killed by a lamborghini… how am I alive? I had a slight idea, but that’s about it. I tried my best to move my body but i didn’t budge. I wasn’t able to open my eyes so there was nothing I could do.

But it wasn’t frustrating or annoying… and I kind of just accepted it. Is this the afterlife you only hear of in stories? Why do I read novels like those? Reincarnating into another world after death. Is that what’s happening? I had many questions.

But I still wasn’t sure of anything yet. There was only a sense of comfort left. Maybe it was something concerning my body, but I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer. I soon woke up, but I still couldn’t open my eyes. 

What the h.e.l.l’s going on? Maybe I got some brain damage[3] after the accident. I became furious when I remembered Juharu[4], who had been drinking and sleeping peacefully.

If he hadn’t been drinking, I wouldn’t be in this situation! He should be the one dying, why is it me?! Oh, it’s just so unfair!

It was at that moment.

“Fortunately, it was born in good health.”

It was someone’s voice. The old man’s voice came from above, surprisingly. Even though it wasn’t Korean, it sounded natural and not strange at all to me. I instinctively realized. 

This was not my world. It was a language that I’d never heard before. Besides, I still had the memories of my past life. Was that my father? I felt my heart beating faster.

“Hmm… But why isn’t it moving?”

That’s because I’m not moving right now! But do you want me to move? Encouraged by the voice, I started moving. I slowly lifted my arms, feeling that I could, in fact, move. Oh, I can move now! But the more I tried, the harder it got.

“Good, his majesty will be pleased.”

His majesty?

I even forgot about the joy of being able to move when i heard the t.i.tle. Did you just say his majesty? 

“Yes, the duke will give you a big reward, so don’t worry.”

Duke? Is that what I was born as? I began to indulge in my fantasies. I didn’t forget what that man said earlier. I’m sure he said his majesty. The emperor exists. And he even said the duke!

There was a novel I read before I died. It was a novel where the main character reincarnated as the only daughter of a tyrant emperor. If that were the case, was I reborn as the daughter of the emperor?

The word ‘duke’ was said earlier. Maybe I’m the duke’s daughter. Whether it was the daughter of the emperor or duke, I loved the idea. I’ve been given a golden spoon[5]! A golden spoon is the best!

However, there was no guarantee I was born a woman. I could be a man. In that case, men were better off in these types of worlds than women. The thought of being born into a rich family, female or male, made me happy. Plus, I even had the memories of my past life. The second life is the best!

I was happy and excited. I was still not able to open my eyes yet, but I was filled with hope. There was a gold mine in front of me. But there was still one question that wouldn’t go away. Why couldn’t I open my eyes? Don’t babies usually open their eyes soon after birth? I couldn’t tell because I didn’t have good vision yet, but my eyes weren’t open.

I became hungry because I was thinking too much. Then, something ran down my mouth. I opened my mouth and drank it. I don’t know what it is, but I don’t have a choice since I was hungry. What is this? It certainly isn’t a mother’s milk. 

“Good, good. You eat well, pretty princess.”

The old man’s voice encouraged me. Pretty princess. It’s either i’m a princess or it’s just a metaphor. Anyways, I found out that my gender is female. Drinking the liquid that ran down my mouth, I guessed it’s probably milk or breast milk. But it did taste a little fishy. I closed my mouth and turned my head when I was full and can no longer eat. 

“I’m almost finished.”

I heard the old man laugh and his footsteps soon faded away. Having had a meal, I leaned back on the floor. I was exhausted… life is hard for a baby. I only ate one meal, but I felt like I ran a marathon.

No, but why isn’t anyone holding me and patting me on the back? Since i’m a newborn, they should pat me until I burp. At that moment, I wondered if I was really born as a valuable person. What should I do if I throw up? I couldn’t believe that I was worrying about this. But I didn’t have anyone holding me and patting me.

At one point, the silent surroundings became noisy, as if there was someone there. All I could do was listen in the direction of the sound. 

“Other than that, did you hear? His majesty purged a large number of rebels. The blood wind does not end.”

“I’ve been doing research on the Orthodox. Isn’t it natural?” 

There was another person besides the old man. I mulled over their conversation for a while. Rebel? Purge? Orthodox? I couldn’t understand the short conversation at all.

(T/N: me neither)

(PR: likewise lol)

Haa, I don’t know. I wish I could open my eyes! I quickly lost interest. 

Time pa.s.sed. I wasn’t able to tell how long it’s been. It seemed to me that two weeks had pa.s.sed. In the meantime, I’d been eating and sleeping repeatedly on what I believe is milk fed to me by the old man. It was a boring day… and I still couldn’t open my eyes for some reason. I was able to move my body little by little.

During this time, I’ve tried out several things. I tried my very best to move my body and put all my strength into opening my eyes. I succeeded in crawling around but still failed to open my eyes.

“When will you open your eyes?”

I sympathized with the voice and shook my head. I wondered more and more. When will I be able to open my eyes… since I was blind, the only sense I could rely on was my hearing. I gathered information on the voice of the familiar man. Alternately, I heard a few unclear voices.

The name of this empire is La.s.sendal. The current emperor seemed to be a tyrant who rebelled and ma.s.sacred both his father and brother to ascend the throne. The situation is very chaotic right now. Rebellions were being purged throughout various parts of the empire and there seemed to be a very unpleasant atmosphere.

But I wasn’t able to tell who was in the conversation. Still, I thought that he could possibly be a n.o.ble. Somehow, I thought so. However, I could still not understand why I was left alone and unattended. 

The next day, when I woke up, I realized that something was different. I was convinced there was something different about my body. I tried to stand on my feet as usual, but it was still too early.

Flas.h.!.+

I was finally able to open my eyes. There was nothing that went wrong in my attempt. At last, the moment I’d been waiting for. I felt my heart throbbing and my body shaking. Now, what was I born as? The daughter of a tyrant emperor? A duke’s daughter? Being a boy is fine too! I don’t care!

[1] Korean idiom meaning something impossible to pa.s.s up

[2] She literally says mate (메이트) if there’s a mistake with this translation, please feel free to tell me!

[3] It says vegetable, which is a term for people who have brain damage

[4] Her brother

[5] Being born with privilege and wealth

considering the t.i.tle, hari sweetie you poor child…