Black Killer Whale Baby - Chapter 45
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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 45
The Supreme Disciplinary Committee proceeded much like a trial, so they were undoubtedly witnesses he’d prepared to use there.
Those who entered the prepared space revealed their identities as follows.
First, Lord Baian’s faction—accomplices of that wretch and claiming to be victims of this incident—came forward in turn to assert their grievances.
‘We were harmed while pursuing Lord Baian!’
…The more I think about it, the more ridiculous these bastards are.
Hey, you’re claiming right now that you got beaten up by a three-year-old.
You worthless trash.
‘Isn’t she the daughter of Lord Pierre?’
Yet the phrase “Pierre’s daughter” that they kept repeating was being wielded like a universal cure-all for this entire situation.
It seemed no one found this strange.
Then the door opened and others entered.
“This man is the retainer of my close friend who was with me that day.”
He was the retainer of that faction who had been nearby that day.
He hadn’t been caught up in the fight, but he’d witnessed everything.
The retainer looked deathly pale, but he was quick to stumble through his words.
The content was no different from Baian’s claims.
“Um… everything was, just as Lord Baian said, the Noble Lady did hurl severe insults… I, testify only to what I saw… Yes. Lord Baian’s words were correct. It was truly… such harsh profanity that one couldn’t bear to hear it with open ears.”
His trembling and stammering appearance seemed suspicious.
However, it could be overlooked as the pressure and tension of participating as a witness in such an important proceeding.
Everything unfolded exactly as that wretch had prepared.
‘If he’d said such things in the Disciplinary Committee, it probably wouldn’t have worked 100 percent… but.’
Where does the power to make people believe words come from?
It comes from power.
In the Supreme Disciplinary Committee, Father was at least the highest-ranking person.
So it would proceed with some balance and fairness.
‘The atmosphere is shifting.’
Once the retainer’s final testimony ended, the Meeting Hall fell silent again.
I could feel the retainers listening with extreme attention.
‘This is not good.’
Sure enough, in this silence, the ruler of this space who had been listening all along.
The Orca Family Matriarch opened her mouth.
“So… the conclusion is.”
Her brief words cut through the air.
“You’re not guilty?”
“Yes, that’s correct! Matriarch!”
Unified claims flowing like water, seamlessly connected, and the witness testimony—though hesitant—was airtight.
Baian nodded confidently, like a flopping live fish.
“Is that so? Then I didn’t need to bring this matter to my meeting in the first place?”
“That’s right!”
“….”
That stupid bastard.
‘As expected, that fool deserves to be kicked out of the corridor. His vessel is cracked.’
The Orca Family Matriarch’s question was essentially saying, ‘So are you telling me you brought a matter without any wrongdoing to this meeting for nothing, you little herring punk?’
Baian had answered loudly, but it seemed he quickly noticed something was amiss.
“Ah, no. I misspoke due to nervousness…! Surely not. How could I possibly say that bringing an agenda to this meeting was wrong? It was such a disgraceful matter that the Supreme Disciplinary Committee was convened. Of course it’s a matter worthy of serious consideration.”
Yet Baian, despite his stupidity, smoothly worked his tongue as if he didn’t belong in this position by accident.
His skill at hastily changing the subject was A-class all on its own.
“The Matriarch must have had her reasons, after all.”
His gaze flickered toward me. Immediately, a cruel light flashed in his eyes.
“Rather, since the Matriarch wouldn’t have known the true nature of that cousin sister, I think it’s both unfortunate and fortunate that I can speak of it directly here. What good is being the daughter of the great Pierre, when she lacks the dignity to match?”
Oh, now I need to reassess my opinion of that bastard.
His skill at subtle insults is quite refined, isn’t it, you fish-head?
“Ah, perhaps even his education was flawed from the start.”
Father! Did you hear? He’s insulting you too!
I looked at Father with anticipation.
‘…Right, cancel that expectation. No, I didn’t even have expectations.’
Father wore an indifferent expression, as if wondering which whale was singing in the sea.
No, he actually seemed to be looking at it with some contempt. Or was it disdain?
“I see. So in the end, some insignificant loach who received barely any education at all has disturbed the discipline of my house. This is it, then. Moreover, the little thing has already become skilled at cursing parents.”
“Yes, exactly that!”
The Orca Family Matriarch stroked her chin.
“So that’s how it is…. In this place that I govern, something unrecognized… dared to defy one of the successors.”
The Orca Family Matriarch’s blue-green gaze rolled slowly toward me.
“Ignorant of hierarchy and reckless like a seal. …How presumptuous.”
Boom!
‘Damn it.’
Is this the power of the current Matriarch?
The water power the Orca Family Matriarch wielded coiled around me like a serpent.
‘I, I can’t breathe.’
My hands trembled instinctively under the pressure climbing across my shoulders.
I couldn’t allow myself to be intimidated like this.
This was a battle of momentum!
It was the moment I gritted my teeth and endured.
I felt something weightless settle gently on my shoulder.
And at the same time….
‘I can breathe easier…!’
The weight on my shoulder was Father’s hand.
The temperature of his hand was cool. No, rather cold.
“How exactly did you raise this child? Without even teaching the fundamentals that form the foundation of orca society.”
“….”
“Letting her run wild like some reckless brute.”
Oddly enough, the Orca Family Matriarch didn’t even address me directly.
As if I wasn’t worth speaking to.
It was a deliberate, thorough dismissal.
“Releasing something weak is beyond all reason.”
Instead, her words continued as though meant only for Father to hear.
My fists clenched involuntarily.
‘If Father says he didn’t raise me here, I’m finished.’
Then all my lies up until now would be exposed.
From that moment on, no matter what I did, I’d never escape the stigma branded upon me in this place.
No amount of strength I gained would make it easy to recover from.
Perhaps this was… the moment to discover what Father truly thought of me.
‘If Father found my performance distasteful, there’s no better opportunity than now.’
One word and my position would plummet into the abyss.
I gripped my skirt tightly.
“….”
The dress the Herring Sisters had carefully made, staying up all night.
If I fell into the abyss here, what would become of those girls?
People I’d only recently grown attached to. Surely they wouldn’t be unaffected.
“I raised her according to my own rules.”
In that moment.
At his slow yet forceful voice, I lifted my head in surprise.
Before my eyes appeared a sharp jawline, lean and defined.
“Rules?”
“Yes. I told her to win unconditionally when fighting.”
Dark circles contrasting with his clear, piercing gaze.
My father, who looked fatigued and decadent even today, spoke in his usual manner.
He let the words fall.
“Without injury.”
His final words sounded almost like a rebuke directed at me.
If you fight, win. If you win, do it without getting hurt.
Yet why did it feel like more than mere reproach?
‘Father, what are you thinking?’
Why are you taking my side here?
You gain nothing from this.
“She did sustain an injury, but that’s something to take up with the other party, not my daughter.”
“Hm? How amusing.”
“It must be amusing to you, Mother.”
“….”
The Orca Family Matriarch’s expression hardened slightly, her gaze sharpening.
“Indeed, you’re not the son I knew. In all my years, I never thought I’d see you—so willful and arrogant—defending another existence.”
“Since you’re already watching, observe more. I have a question: when is this side’s turn?”
“Turn?”
“Yes, now that the other side’s nonsense has ended.”
Father continued without hesitation.
“Isn’t listening to this side’s words also part of the role of Chairman that you yourself volunteered for in this Disciplinary Committee?”
“….”
The Orca Family Matriarch’s face became expressionless. Soon after, she nodded.
“Fair point. That’s worth hearing. Very well. Go ahead and speak.”
“Yes, I shall.”
“Directly to—”
“My daughter.”
My eyes sparkled.
“…!!”
What? An opportunity like this is coming my way? Really?
Just as with Baian, the Orca Family Matriarch fell silent once more.
This was permission to speak!
Glancing sideways, Baian wore an expression like he’d bitten into something bitter.
Yet a faint smirk played across his face.
That smug look of “what could you possibly accomplish?”
‘Fine, I only need five minutes.’
That’s all the time you’ll need to regret this.
“Grandmother.”
As my crisp, measured words rang out, I felt several people’s surprise.
They’d already seen me enter, yet they were startled again.
“I have just one question.”
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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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