Dad is Back From a Deserted Island - Chapter 14

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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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Father has returned from the Deserted Island
Chapter 14

Observing the remarkably similar reactions of mother and daughter, Kiki snorted dismissively and perched atop Vivian’s head, lifting my chin with exaggerated pride.
[That’s right! I am a divine spirit, after all. Communing with nature to discern the location of such mines is child’s play!]
“He says it’s easy for him! He can commune with nature!”
[Commune, not ‘toon’!]
“Com… commune!”
“Is that truly so?”
Even amid the comedic banter between the two—or rather, between one person and one divine spirit—Jean could not bring myself to laugh.
My eyes and mouth hung wide open; I wanted to smile at such joyous news, yet astonishment overwhelmed me.
[Yes, absolutely. So from now on, treat me with proper respect, human. If I’m satisfied with your hospitality, I may bestow such favors upon you from time to time.]
“Thank you so very much!”
Jean sprang to my feet and lifted Kiki from atop Vivian’s head.
“You truly are the greatest, divine spirit!”
Kiki’s lips twitched—the very same creature who had moments before raged at being touched so carelessly.
When Jean began spinning in circles, as I had done countless times with Vivian, the baby monkey let out a delighted laugh.
“Ah. I like this.”
[Hehe… hehehehe! To think I’d find joy in something so trivial!]
Kiki’s face flushed—though hidden beneath pitch-black fur, it went unnoticed—and I squeaked before wriggling free from Jean’s grasp.
“Oh. Vivian, would you ask the divine spirit if Father made a mistake?”
“Mmm… it’s okay! He seems to like it!”
Rather than protesting, Kiki merely smoothed down my fur with embarrassment—evidence enough of the truth.
Jean pondered briefly whether it was presumptuous to adore a divine spirit, then cleared my throat and settled back into my seat.
“Ahem. Divine spirit, I’m afraid I only know what gemstones exist in the mine, and even my knowledge of its location is vague at best. I don’t know its name at all. Can you still find it?”
[Hmm. A mine you don’t even know properly doesn’t sound like it would yield fine gemstones. Tell me what kind of gemstone it is, at least.]
Kiki, who had been answering with indifference, suddenly froze.
Jean was gazing at me with eyes brimming with desperate hope.
My lips parted to answer, trembling slightly.
“…Diamonds.”
If I could obtain just this.
My plan would be as good as complete.

* * *

One day before Jean de Lamber recovered his memories.
“Damn it. When things go wrong, they really go wrong.”
“What’s happened?”
Eduard, the Merchant who had taken in the wandering Jean, had been frowning since morning.
He had received news that his rival had acquired a diamond mine.
Unlike Eduard, who prided himself on conducting business with some semblance of conscience, he harbored deep contempt for a man who would stop at nothing to earn money.
To think such fortune had been granted to that scoundrel.
And precisely when he was competing with the man for an Imperial contract.
“A diamond mine? How could something like that be discovered so discreetly? If a new vein had been found, I would have heard word of it months ago.”
“They say it was discovered in an abandoned mine that had been deemed unprofitable. I thought it was just an ordinary vein, but it turned out to contain diamonds.”
“So it was an abandoned mine in that man’s territory. Even so, to receive such information this late…”
“Indeed. It was discovered in Serenville, apparently.”
That was all Jean remembered about the diamond mine up to this point.
On the day he had resolved to gather proper information, a splitting headache had accompanied his recovered memories, completely upending the priorities of everything.
However, Serenville was the region in the Empire where mining was most developed, with over twenty mines in total.
Even excluding the currently operational ones, there were over ten abandoned mines, and without any information, I couldn’t possibly purchase all of them—not to mention I had no funds—and if I went around searching through so many places, those vultures would surely catch wind of it.
That’s why I had been prepared to wait up to a decade.
If Kiki could truly locate the diamond mine, it would save me an enormous amount of time. Nothing could be better than this.
“The mine is in Serenville, but… ah, Serenville is what we call the duchy where we live. Both Beluang, which you visited yesterday, and this village are all under the Serenville Duchy. If you look at this map here…”
I unfolded the map so Kiki could see it clearly, pointing out several abandoned mines with my finger.
“These, these, and this one are probably not it. The owners temporarily closed them, so it’s ambiguous to call them abandoned. This one was a gold mine, so it’s probably not it either. Diamonds and gold don’t come from the same place, after all.”
This was the result of synthesizing the information I had diligently gathered in Beluang yesterday.
“There are also abandoned mines in this vicinity—though calling it nearby when you need to travel by carriage is a stretch. Anyway, there are mines there, but those probably aren’t it either. They don’t meet any of the conditions necessary for diamonds to form.”
[Hmm. So I need to investigate about six locations then. The distant ones might take some time to examine. Human.]
When Vivian relayed the message, I laughed and bowed deeply, asking where those places were.
“Kiki. You’re going to dislocate my shoulder!”
Kiki, who had been climbing higher without a care, suddenly sank downward.

* * *

Before Jean departed, Vivian’s days were simply filled with play. As a nobleman in name only, Jean had never subjected her to the rigorous studies that other noble families imposed on their children from childhood.
Peter, with whom she had once played so harmoniously, had vanished, but Kiki had taken his place instead.
Vivian had reclaimed the carefree existence she had lost.
“You know you’re not supposed to leave the Garden, right?”
“Don’t worry, Dad! I’m all grown up now!”
At the words of his daughter, who still hadn’t lost a single baby tooth, Jean couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
After Jean departed for his cleaning duties, Vivian sat in the Garden with Kiki and began plucking flowers.
“I’ll make you a flower crown!”
[A flower crown?]
“Yes! You weave the flowers together like this and this to make a crown!”
[Ah, I see. A crown befitting a divine beast such as myself! Make haste!]
“Goodness, don’t rush me.”
Her hands moved with surprising dexterity as she gathered flowers of lovely hues and wove their stems into shape.
It was exactly the method Jean had taught her when she was even younger.
Even during the times she’d been alone, waiting for her father, she had often made them, so Vivian’s skill at crafting flower crowns was quite impressive.
Kiki, meanwhile, was busy offering unsolicited advice from the sidelines—this flower would look better next to that one, that blossom was superior to this one—constantly backseat driving.
“You talk too much, Kiki.”
[And you’re far too disrespectful!]
“Anyway, it’s done!”
[Oh, it has quite the refined appearance.]
“Hehe. Since your head is so small, I could make it much faster.”
When the flower crown settled atop the adorable little monkey’s head, it was so impossibly cute that Vivian wanted to squeeze him.
Unable to contain her pride, Vivian suddenly wrapped her arms around Kiki in a tight embrace.
[Kyiiiiek!]
Kiki reflexively shrieked in surprise.
Yet despite the outburst, he made no effort to wriggle free, instead settling contentedly in her arms.
“Hehe. So you do like hugs, Kiki?”
[I do not.]
“Yet here you are, sitting so peacefully.”
[This noble being does not enjoy being held by just anyone! However, when I’m in your embrace, it feels as though….]
“As though?”
Kiki lifted his head from Vivian’s embrace.
Meeting those ruby-like, gleaming red eyes, Vivian’s expression grew faintly distant as the vague image of someone surfaced in her mind, and she found herself squinting ever so slightly.
[It feels familiar.]
“Huh?”
[Vivian. You’re quite an odd human.]
“Are you insulting me out of nowhere?”
[Could your mother perhaps be of imperial blood?]
“My mom? No, she’s not. The imperial family are incredibly important people, you know. But my mom is my mom, and my dad is my dad, right?”
[True enough. There’s no way the imperial family would live in such a remote backwater.]
“Why does she keep cursing like that?”
Vivian and Kiki bickered for a moment before bursting into laughter and dashing about playfully.
Kiki pestered her so insistently about wearing matching crowns that Vivian fashioned one for herself and placed it upon her head.
The sight of a child and a monkey sharing flower crowns and playing together was truly peaceful.

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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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