Black Killer Whale Baby - Chapter 111

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 111
Ekion’s smile was something I’d witnessed for five years, yet never grew accustomed to.
It was certainly a face worthy of admiration.
A visage that transcended even the eyes I’d grown accustomed to among beautiful and handsome orcas.
His frame wasn’t particularly large, yet somehow his face seemed to grow more beautiful with each passing day.
‘When he’s fully grown, won’t he be the kind of face that makes women weep?’
Certainly, the fully-grown Ekion I’d only seen during his rampages was undeniably handsome.
I turned my head and rested my chin on my hand.
“Father, about Ekion—when he truly smiles, he’s breathtakingly beautiful. How does he even look like that?”
“When you have such thoughts, look in a mirror.”
“…Father, your compliment skills have improved considerably. I’m impressed.”
I faltered for a moment before letting out a soft laugh.
Father, who’d been watching me intently, stroked my head.
For a moment, it seemed Father was looking toward Ekion, and then I heard the sound of him clicking his tongue.
Hmm. Father always reacted that way whenever he looked at Ekion alone, didn’t he?
“I have a debt to that dragon, so I’m letting it be for now…”
A debt? I tilted my head at this unfamiliar revelation.
“The more I see of him, the more shameless he appears.”
The blunt words, spoken with such indifference, only deepened my confusion.
Father didn’t seem inclined to leave my questions unanswered, speaking immediately.
“That one doesn’t go outside. Did you know that?”
“Huh? You mean Ekion?”
In the meantime, Father’s water current wrapped around me, lifting me gently, and I naturally adjusted my posture, nestling against him contentedly.
A drowsy satisfaction crossed Father’s face.
I shook Father’s shoulder, urging him to continue.
“What do you mean? What are you saying?”
Since he still wouldn’t answer, I eventually spoke first, adding my own thoughts.
“He never went out in the first place, right? Besides, it was dangerous, so I made sure he didn’t go out.”
“That was three years ago, wasn’t it? Now, there’s absolutely no problem with his status.”
Blue hair was the symbol of the Dragon Duke, but only among land-dwelling animals.
Blue hair was actually a rather common trait among aquatic beastkin.
Moreover, just as octopus beastkin possessed it as a racial characteristic, there were occasionally beastkin like Ekion who possessed golden eyes.
Thus, the retainer from three years ago who recognized the Dragon Duke could be considered a very exceptional case.
“That one won’t go outside without you.”
“Mmm…”
It wasn’t particularly surprising news.
It was something I’d vaguely suspected all along.
The fact that while I attended the Educational Institution, Ekion would stand motionless before the window overlooking the path of my return, like a stone monument waiting for a loved one.
‘It truly felt like raising a puppy or kitten I’d picked up from the street.’
My sense of responsibility grew even stronger.
“It’s not just me he follows. Isn’t it more like an imprinting effect, similar to how ducklings or chicks on land bond with the first creature they see?”
“You mean a being that hatches from an egg follows the first creature it sees as its mother?”
“Exactly. Of course, I wasn’t the first he ever saw. But a bond… I was the first to share something similar with him.”
I believed that even when Ekion couldn’t understand language, he must have possessed some concept of ‘salvation.’
After meeting me, he gained a good home, a good environment, stable meals.
Now that everything has changed, his world has surely expanded even further.
Still, the beginning would be special.
Since his entire environment has transformed, wouldn’t things continue to improve from here on?”
“I see. You don’t seem to regard this matter as particularly serious.”
“Hm? Is there a particular aspect I should take more seriously?”
I became earnest in turn.
I was always prepared to listen carefully to Father’s words.
“Well, this doesn’t seem to be entirely a good thing.”
“Why?”
“I could explain if I really had to, but if you hear it now, you’ll likely regret it later.”
“Regret?”
Father, whom I looked up at, wore an expression as though something troubled him.
‘Three years ago, after making that expression, he soon caught the Retainer who harbored suspicions about Ekion’s true nature, didn’t he?’
“It’s nothing.”
“…The way you say that makes me feel I should hear it all the more.”
“Simply… I thought that when danger arose because of the young Dragon Duke, I would protect you.”
“…”
“My strength exists for that purpose.”
Ah, that’s right. Father knew of the conspiracy surrounding Ekion.
So regardless of whether I sent Ekion back or decided his fate otherwise, I would inevitably face the Emperor, the Black Panther Duke, and the other land-dwelling noble beasts involved.
He seemed to have already considered this.
“Ah, I understand. I’m aware of how serious the situation is. Until I keep my promise with Tus, I’ll protect Ekion safely from any danger. The Imperial threat is no exception.”
“…No, it seems you haven’t understood at all.”
“What?”
“You’re competent in all matters. But you’re always vulnerable when it comes to emotions.”
“That’s… the same for you, Father.”
It was a similarity and common ground between us two.
Though my social skills were probably better than Father’s, weren’t they?
Thinking this, I wore a somewhat serious expression.
“Father. But there’s something I want to say.”
Five years had passed, yet my body remained small. Though this frustrated me, I grabbed Father’s cheek firmly with these small hands.
I gripped so hard that Father’s thin cheek compressed and puffed out.
Those who revered Father would have been shocked to witness such a sight.
They might think something like this:
Squishing the cheek of Pierre Aquasiadel himself!
“This is a serious matter.”
Today, I received Lirivel’s answer that she would follow me.
That meant many things would soon change.
“I won’t hide anymore from now on.”
“…Isn’t that exactly what you were already doing when you destroyed half the garden floor on the path leading here?”
“….”
That was true. When I met Lirivel, the floor I’d destroyed from losing control of my strength had spread as rumors in real time.
Right, I was trying to have a serious conversation, so let me gloss over that part.
I grumbled quietly.
Father chuckled softly and pulled me into his embrace. When I lifted my head, I could see his small smile.
It was a peaceful expression.
“Is there anything you wish from me?”
“No, there’s nothing I wish from you, Father.”
I shook my head gently.
“What I want, I’ll obtain with my own strength.”
My blue eyes, bathed in the midday sun, sparkled like a lake catching the light.
“…I sometimes wonder. If you ever awaken the power of water, what shade of blue will the water you summon be?”
I already knew the answer.
“I’ve always been curious, and I’ve waited for that day. It remains the same now.”
“….”
“You are already incredibly strong even without summoning water. But if it takes longer for you to awaken… I think I would regret it.”
His face was always expressionless, quiet, and undisturbed.
So even I was someone who struggled to interpret that expression.
Yet now, I felt I could grasp Father’s thoughts in my hands.
It was.
‘Will I be able to see it before I die.’
This kind of question.
In a way, it was only natural.
Father wasn’t without reason detached and resigned when I first met him.
“I know my illness best of all.”
He understood his condition better than anyone else in the world, and he was acutely aware of it.
Whether to others it truly seemed like he was ill.
He appeared healthy and untroubled, or as if he lived in resignation.
Yet he knew all too well that he still had a terminal condition. That he was someone facing his final days.
“Father.”
At my soft call, Father’s eyes rolled toward me.
What would that feeling be like?
…If it were me, could I truly leave everyone behind and die?
It was a question I couldn’t rashly answer, even with my regression.
“Answer me seriously. I want to ask today.”
Perhaps it was because I had heard Lirivel’s answer, who suffered from the same affliction.
I retrieved the question I had buried deep within my heart for the past five years, reserved for this very moment.
“Have you never thought about wanting to live longer?”
My face bore a tension unlike any I had shown before.
What if Father said otherwise? What on earth would I even say then?
As a regressor, I had experienced countless trials, yet I still….
I did not know how to make someone who wished to die want to live.
It was Father who broke the silence that seemed as though it would stretch on forever.
“Every day. I think about wanting to live.”
“Huh…?”
Father chuckled softly.
“Every single day since I met you.”
“….”
“Not a day has passed without it, it seems.”
I blinked, then broke into a broad smile.
“What a relief.”
I truly did not know how to persuade someone who wished to die.
But I was an Orca.
Once I set my sights on something, I would not let it slip away, even in death, even across lives reborn.
As someone who had even regressed, I could easily manage even if one or two more objectives were added to my list.
My face was radiant with a brilliant smile, yet obsession gleamed in my eyes.
‘Even if Father wishes to die, I won’t let him.’
Along with Ekion, whom I must take responsibility for, the most precious person within my circle.
So of course, I had to keep him alive.
What a true relief it was.
“That I can save Father with peace of mind.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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