My name is K. I am a cat.
Is my name really a letter of the alphabet? No. I actually have a different name. But don’t be curious about it. Just K is enough.
I mentioned before that I am a cat.
My fur is entirely black from the tip of my ears to the end of my tail. Unlike those mongrel cats, my coat has not a single hair of a different color mixed in. The purity of my fur color is a testimony to my noble pedigree.
My superiority doesn’t stop with the color of my silky fur.
The shape of my pricked ears is perfectly symmetrical, and my gracefully curving tail is perfect. Furthermore, I can silently land on my well-padded and plump paws, even when falling from great heights.
And what about my elegantly curving whiskers sprouting from my nose? They are so outstanding that they are simultaneously functional and aesthetically pleasing! Of course, my big, round eyes and beautiful, strong claws cannot be left out, either.
Perfect from every angle, I am a cold city cat, a solitary soul. I would only be warm to my woman. Duh.1[T/N: Yes, the entire first part is repeated from the prologue. ^^’ I triple-checked, and it is indeed the same.]
At the moment, I was staring at the ground at the living beings, who were making a fuss. These were humans working at the imperial palace I was living in. Of course, they all also have a name, but for my convenience, I will separate them into two groups and call them maids2시녀: (shinyeo) (literally) maid, lady-in-waiting, female servant. Female servants in the households of British nobility were technically called “maidservants,” but I kept it at the short “maid.” Comparable to: manservant.
[T/N: There is actually a hierarchy among the maid(servant)s, but as long as it’s not touched upon in the book, I will leave it at the generalized “maid(servant).”
Side note: A “lady-in-waiting” was a high-ranking servant of noble birth who directly served royal/imperial princesses and queens/empresses. Here, however, they mean the lower-ranked maids of common birth.] and manservants.3시종: (shijong) (literally) attendant. As male servants in the households of British nobility were called “manservants,” I changed the translation. Comparable to: maidservant.
[T/N: There is actually a hierarchy among the manservants, but as long as it’s not touched upon in the book, I will leave it at the generalized “manservant.”] Of course, just by appearance, I could separate them further into pretty maids and ugly maids, but I will pass on that for now. I could also separate them further by big-chested4거유: (geoyu) Refers to bust size C to F. See Namu Wiki 거유 (Korean) and flat-chested5빈유: (binyu) Refers to bust size AA. See Namu Wiki 빈유 (Korean) maids, but I will also pass on that.
Whatever the case, they and acted silly and stared at me, who was currently sitting on top of a tree. Seeing them pacing anxiously and breaking out into cold sweats was not a pretty sight. But this was a situation they couldn’t turn their eyes away from. The reason for this was that they were anxiously calling out for me at the moment.
“Nabi…!6나비: (nabi) (literally) Butterfly. A very popular Korean name for pets. Be good! Come here…!”
My name is K.
“Come on, come down, Nabi!”7어서 내여와야지.: The servants here address K as you would address a child or a pet. “-야지” is an informal lowering address indicating that the addressee is supposed to do what the addresser is saying.
[T/N: There is no really good translation for this, or at least, I can’t think of anything, so I tried to convey this with “Come on.”]
My name is K.
“Nabi!”
My name is K.
“Nabi! Come on, come down!”
My name is K…. Let’s not talk about this.
As it is challenging to teach ignorant humans my real name, I will refrain from doing so. It is not their fault in the first place that they cannot understand my words, so I don’t blame them. But even so, I will never change my name to “Nabi.” Because my name is K.
I ignored the humans calling me in a strange tongue and turned my head away. The view from the top of this tall tree was worth seeing. The garden, which stretched far to the sides, and the majestic imperial palace nestled in the middle were quite a feast for the eyes. And this splendid and magnificent imperial palace is the house I live in.
I looked down to the ground again and saw the humans coming with a long ladder. Glancing secretly at it, I saw it was short of reaching the height of the place I was at. But the heavily lamenting humans still wanted to try it, even with something like this. They were the type of people who had to take a photo to determine whether it was poop or doenjang.8된장: (doenjang) a type of fermented soybean paste from Korea; similar in taste and texture to Chinese dajiang and Japanese miso.
[T/N: If you want to know more and go down an interesting comparison lane of different types including photos, read this article by Kimchimari: Know your Doenjang (Korean Soybean Paste)!] In the face of the humans’ pathetic assumptions, a cold, contemptuous smile9썩소 (sseokso): abbreviation of 썩은 미소 (seeogeun miso), “rotten smile” in English. See Namu Wiki 썩소 (Korean) for an explanation and a couple of example images. rose to my lips, and I lifted my head to appreciate the sunset glow.
It has already been several hours since I climbed on top of this tree.
After strolling through the garden for several hours, I discovered a tree to my liking and climbed up – this tree. The tree was so extremely tall that I climbed and climbed endlessly. I climbed until I reached the spot I was currently sitting on and knew once again how superior I was.
“Sir10경: (kyeung) (literally) Sir, Lord. As this person is a knight, the correct form of address in the UK is “Sir.”
[T/N: I will not go into detail about the difference between Sir and Lord, as there are too many rules here. I will address each person’s correct form of address when it arises. As a rule of thumb: A “Sir” has a lower standing than a “Lord.” For more information, read Forms of Address in the UK (Wikipedia).] Licht!” 11리히트: (rihiteu) surname, likely ”Licht” (German, Dutch, and Yiddish origin meaning “light”) or ”Richt.” (German origin, most likely shortened from “Richter” = “judge,” as many surnames are derived from occupations.) Technically, not an English surname, but the most likely spelling.
[T/N: I went with ”Licht,” as this is empirically the more common surname, especially in English-speaking countries.]
It became suddenly quiet on the ground. Seeing the maids facing one person and swarming around him, I narrowed my eyes. Just earlier, the maids and manservants had raised their heads to stare at me, but now, they surrounded one person. They looked at him as if he was their savior.
“What’s the matter?” 12무슨 일이냐.: Note: This is the same sentence as in Chapter 1.3 when Simon addressed Calix. However, the main difference is the form of address (degree of politeness). In Chapter 1.3, Simon says, “무슨 일이십니까.” The ending ”-십니까” is very formal and polite, as Simon is merely a knight, addressing his liege and crown prince. The ending “-이냐 “ is informal and not polite, as this person is addressing mere commoners.
The figure, which the assembled humans surrounded, was highly familiar. Of course. It was the knight, who kept following the crown prince around, Simon Licht. Hearing the maids’ and manservants’ appeals, he lifted his head and looked up at me. I sat with an elegant posture and looked down at him. I saw Simon’s expression distorting slightly, which made me quite delighted.
“Because the tree is too high, there is no way that he can come down on his own.”
One of the maids pleaded with an intimate tone in her voice. Looking at the shine in Simon’s eyes, he also agreed.
For a moment, Simon looked hesitant and then shouted at me.
“Come down here!” 13이리 내려와라!: Simon addresses K impolitely.
[T/N: As to be expected, though, as he is talking to an animal.]
What a joke.
When I snorted and sat there quietly, the maid next to him whispered.
“You also have to call his name.”14이름도 불러 주셔야죠.: The maid addresses Simon politely.
In response to this whisper, Simon’s face distorted even more.
With a smile at the corner of my lips, I stared down at Simon and narrowed my eyes. The reason for narrowing my eyes was not because the situation was amusing and funny. The reason was that the knight Simon’s eyesight was pretty good, and even now, he could clearly see my face, and just by seeing my eyes narrow and smile, he would get angry. If you think about it, Simon, who had a body frame with big muscles, was not easy to anger because he was a knight. When he got angry, the corners of his mouth would twitch. If he gets even more furious, he starts to snort. Saying that this is quite adorable might make me sound perverted, but to be honest, there is some truth to it.
“Na–.”
Simon, who barely shouted out one syllable, hardened his mouth finally. I could clearly see the back of Simon’s ears redden. It is assuredly not easy for a man with a big frame like him to be surrounded by maids and babble something like, ‘Nabi, come on, come down.’ 15나비야. 이리 내려와야지.: Also see footnote 7. [T/N: I know, this is technically the same as footnote 7, but the translation doesn’t really convey the proper tone. The tone here is less authoritative than his attempt before, but more like how you would coax a child or a pet, so much more cutesy. ^^]
Simon stuttered a couple of times, “Na–, Na–, Na–.” But ultimately, he suddenly shouted.
“Come immediately down!”
‘My eardrums will burst—you ignorant jerk.’
I looked at Simon with a sassy stare and then looked away. Over in that direction, I saw the crown prince, who gave me water, coming. It seemed that he heard Simon’s shouting.
“Your Royal Highness.”
Simon, the maids, and the manservants hastily bowed down and curtsied.16허리를 숙인다: (literally) to bow down.
[T/N: Technically, the Korean text only says, “bowed down,” but as maids curtsy, I took the liberty to add that part.] I felt vainly flattered even though I was not being greeted. That is what is called the fate of all cats. If a crown prince is raising it, it is the crown prince’s cat. If an earl is raising it, it is the earl’s cat. If a beggar is raising it, it is the beggar’s cat. And if it lives on the streets, it is treated like a thieving cat. It might not be necessary to be swayed by the ranking humans set up, but anyhow, I am now THE17무려: (muryeo) (literally) as many as; whopping. Usually used with a number to emphasize it.
[T/N: As the crown prince is not a number, I opted to emphasize it differently.] crown prince’s cat.
The crown prince, who had come from nearby, looked up at me.
Facing the crown prince’s golden eyes, I respectfully twitched my tail once or twice in response. I really didn’t consider this fellow my owner, but since I owed him, it was only proper to be courteous. I hoped he wouldn’t misunderstand my courtesy as a sense of loyalty or similar.
When I sat there elegantly and stared down blankly, the crown prince held out his hand.
‘What. What do you expect? That I come down?’
The crown prince tilted his head and started to move his outstretched hand up and down. He seemed to indicate for me to come down. As I watched him quietly, the crown prince slightly opened his mouth.
“Come down.”
I agonized for a moment. But, of course, even while doing so, I did not slouch in my elegant and dignified posture. The crown prince still stretched out his hand to me. He was prepared not to withdraw until I came down. When I saw this fellow’s sincerity, I started to feel that it might be convenient to come down. He was the fellow looking after me at the moment, so wasn’t it good to show him some face?
I barely made up my mind and opened my mouth.
“Meooow…”
I noticed that the humans’ expressions changed a bit when hearing my sad cry. So, in order to show them my conviction, I let out another long sobbing cry.
“Meooow…”
‘This is too high, so I can’t come down. Please get me down.’
T/N: Another week with severe migraines. =.= But I still got the translation done in time, this time even faster than last week, yay!
I edited some past chapters and notes, but no significant changes. I noted the changes down in the bottom notes with “Edited on XX,” so you know what and when something changed. If memory serves correctly, it should be the Prologue and Chapter 1.3.
For those of you, who are in the US and celebrate Thanksgiving, I wish you Happy Holidays this coming week! ^^
~ Souricelle