“Uh, a kid…? What?”
“Is that… a cigarette?”
The girl, who seemed no older than an elementary school student, casually held a cigarette in her mouth instead of candy and let out a hearty laugh.
This left Rosaria and Felix utterly confused.
They had anticipated that the so-called Third Princess might share a similar predicament to theirs, but this dramatic introduction left them speechless.
“You, step outside for a moment. It seems these people are here to see me.”
“But, Your Highness, the Third Princess…!”
“It’s fine! Trust me!”
“Understood… However, if anything happens, please be sure to call out.”
Making a striking entrance, the Third Princess, Estelle, glanced around the room at those who remained. Then she gestured at Noten Geos, who was awkwardly standing by, to leave.
Though Noten Geos was visibly nervous about leaving the noble Princess Estelle alone with these strangers……especially ones capable of setting the Great Forest, including the World Tree, ablaze……her confident smile and the reassuring thump of her hand against her chest left him no choice but to comply.
Once Noten Geos exited, only the members of the Evergarden family and Estelle remained in the room.
“Hoo… Ssshhh So, you’ve come to see me?”
After a moment of silence, it was Estelle who broke it, putting out her cigarette in an ashtray.
“First, I’d like to apologize for the chaos caused by our unauthorized intrusion into Elven territory. It was an inconsiderate action that could have had major repercussions. However, we deemed that taking the time to follow proper procedures wasn’t an option.”
“Haha! Bold actions, yet you maintain your manners?”
“Of course, if mere politeness solved everything, the world would be a peaceful place, wouldn’t it?”
“Indeed. At the very least, I hope to avoid bloodshed here. Your understanding would be greatly appreciated.”
“Your words have a sharp edge. In my life—long if you think about it, short if you don’t—I’ve encountered plenty of tongues like yours.”
“Let me give you some advice, young lady. When you wag your tongue, it’s better to know who you’re wagging it at.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
As soon as the conversation began, the air turned tense as Freya probed for Estelle’s reaction.
In that instant, Freya realized that the Third Princess in front of her was not a native of this world but, like herself, her family, and Tené, a transmigrator.
Given that Estelle was calmly conversing with someone accompanied by a dragon, a being revered and feared in this world, there were only two possibilities.
The first was that Estelle possessed nerves of steel, unfazed by charging into the center of her country with a dragon in tow. The second was that, like Freya, Estelle was a transmigrator unfamiliar with how powerful a dragon truly was.
From Freya’s perspective, the Third Princess seemed to embody both possibilities in perfect balance.
“Shall we get to the point? The tea you served was excellent, but I’m more inclined to enjoy my tea leisurely at home.”
“Haha, young people are so fiery. Full of spirit, huh?”
“…You. What is your relationship with Hanseong Corporation?”
Breaking the verbal dance, Freya dove straight into the main topic. Her polite demeanor shifted as she spoke coldly, her voice cutting through the air.
“…Oh? Isn’t this the part where you first ask if we’re from the same hometown?”
“I’m not in the mood for word games. I have a history with Hanseong Corporation that I’d rather not remember. It’s made me deeply uncomfortable.”
Even in the face of Freya’s pointed words, Estelle retained her relaxed smile, gazing steadily into Freya’s eyes.
However, Freya’s usual gentle expression was replaced with an icy glare that seemed capable of slicing through anything.
A faint red light glimmered in her eyes—an aura of menace that was nothing like the Freya everyone knew.
Before meeting Darian, Freya had always been a commanding figure with an indomitable charisma.
“You asked about my connection to Hanseong Corporation?
Then, let me enlighten you.”
Estelle finally spoke, facing Freya’s cutting gaze head-on.
“My connection? Ha! What a laugh. How absurd to question my claim over something that is mine.”
“Yours…?”
In that moment, as soon as the word “mine” left Estelle’s lips, Freya’s eyes widened in shock.
“…What did you just say?
Yours?
Did you just say Hanseong Corporation is yours?”
“There’s only one person I know who would dare say that…”
“…No way.”
The others, who had been holding their breath as they observed the conversation, were equally stunned, exchanging bewildered looks.
“My 93 years of life. Starting from the bottom, I worked tirelessly to make my name known across the world. Wouldn’t my second life be the same?”
“Oh, right. I almost forgot to introduce myself. My name is Kim Hanseong. That’s my name, young ones.”
A legend reborn.
An orphan boy who polished the shoes of traitors to earn pennies but went on to found Korea’s most powerful corporation. A figure who shone like the brightest star in the nation. The first chairman of Hanseong Group.
Kim Hanseong.
“Wait, Grandpa?!?”
“Grandfather?!”
“He’s my grandfather?!”
“…What?”
And thus, Freya’s grandfather, Kim Hanseong, blazed his second life in this new world within Starshine of Dawn.
He had always thought he had lived a life without regrets.
Starting as an orphan without a father or mother, he had run tirelessly until now.
On cold winter days, he saved every penny he earned as a shoeshiner, enduring hunger with his stomach pressed against his back.
Yet, he would gaze at the bright stars in the night sky, promising himself that he would succeed.
That moment was vivid in his memory, but before he knew it, he had come this far.
When Japan, defeated in war, withdrew and liberation came, war flared up again in the devastated Korea.
He fought to survive with all his might.
To avoid being looked down upon for being illiterate, he did manual labor at the harbor in the morning and attended night school in the evening.
With the little English dictionary that was nearly worn out, he would read it under the light of a dim candle, his nose tingling in the cold, while the moonlight rose.
With his persistence, he somehow gathered enough money to open his first shop.
He took advantage of the harbor’s location, selling goods that came from neighboring Japan.
Gradually, his business expanded.
Thanks to that, he accumulated numerous advantages and grew to the point where his business could be considered a company. Soon, he started a full-fledged trading business and founded a corporation.
He was a person with an extraordinary sense for seeing through the essence of things.
He was quick to jump into any market that seemed profitable, and if there was no market, he was skilled at pioneering one.
From a worthless orphan, he became a figure known to everyone in Korea.
Now, lying in a hospital bed, he quietly sensed his fate, and a flood of regrets rose within him.
It had been three years since he retired from the position of chairman, but internal power struggles within the company still hadn’t ceased.
He had been foolish to raise such shortsighted fools, who only looked at money, even though they were his own flesh and blood.
He had lived fiercely from a young age, teaching his children the importance of competition, but he never intended for them to turn their knives on each other in the process.
But now, it was too late.
He was merely an old man, quietly facing his final days in a hospital room.
Feeling his heartbeat slow, he soon thought of one person.
A grandson from a collateral line, but one with exceptional qualities.
From a young age, that child had entered the fierce struggle for hierarchy due to his parents’ ambitions.
Despite being persecuted and subjected to all sorts of tricks by even political figures, the child managed to avoid them all and steadily built his position.
One day, that child fell in love and decided to leave everything he had built, including the company. He had thought it was such a waste, but deep down, he secretly cheered him on.
Perhaps it was because he had never experienced the emotion of love himself, even though he had married out of political necessity to a wife who passed away before him. Could it be that, in some way, he envied that child?
Even after severing ties with the company, the child still maintained contact with him, occasionally visiting and chatting.
Every time they spoke, he couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the child’s smile, something he never saw in the company.
He had also gotten to know his dependable granddaughter-in-law and his cute great-grandson.
Since he was hospitalized three years ago, the child had come to visit him frequently, and they had many conversations.
As he read books recommended by his great-granddaughter and calmly sorted out his remaining life, his end finally came.
Kim Hanseong looked at the bustling nurses and the blurry figures around him with weak eyes, and thought to himself:
If there were two lives to live, I would aim for the highest position again.
With that resolve, his heart finally came to rest.
Born in 1931. Died at the age of 93.
And so, the story of Kim Hanseong came to an end.
The body, which had been growing colder and colder, now seemed to float up gently, and soon a warm, comforting sensation enveloped him.
Though he had never believed in the existence of gods during his life, he wondered, Is this heaven? and became intoxicated by the feeling.
“… Huh? This isn’t heaven?”
As his mind cleared and his eyes, which had been dull, snapped wide open, he blinked in confusion.
The warmth that had been absent from his hands and feet returned, and his once-stopped heart began thumping within his chest.
Sensing something strange, he immediately tried to sit up, only to realize he wasn’t in the hospital room where he had been lying just moments ago, but rather in a luxurious bed made of fine cloth.
“Wh-what is this…? W-who’s voice is that?!”
Startled by the voice, which was not the deep, calm tone of an old man, but rather a sweet, melodic sound like a nightingale’s song, the sound of a jade bead rolling softly, he was shocked once again.
Kim Hanseong, who had been twitching his long ears, soon realized.
Thus, he began the second act of his life.
In the body of the third princess of the elves, CelebrÃan Estel.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.