Dad is Back From a Deserted Island - Chapter 58

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

Father has returned from the Deserted Island
Chapter 58

Jean de Lamber’s body jolted with such shock that he nearly yanked Vivian back behind him on the spot.
But he desperately suppressed the urge, fearing it would only provoke Bear further.
[Human, just human. But truly a divine beast. I can feel it.]
“I-I really am a divine beast. I’m not trying to deceive you, I swear.”
[I know. You couldn’t fool me with something like that.]
“S-so, can I go then?”
[I never said I’d let you go.]
Vivian’s breath caught sharply.
[Humans cannot be trusted. They only ever destroy, erase, and kill.]
“I’m sorry about that! But I have to wake Kiki. Kiki is my… precious family.”
Bear exhaled forcefully through his nose, and the sound startled Vivian so badly she nearly dropped Kiki.
[Since you’re a divine beast, I’ll take you to the Tree Spirit. But if you cause even the slightest harm to the Tree Spirit, I’ll kill you. And the human behind you too.]
“Really? Thank you! I promise I won’t cause any harm. I’ll only ask questions, I swear.”
“Vivian, you’re thanking him? How did you manage to have such a good conversation with that bear?”
“He said he’d take me to the Tree Spirit! He did threaten to kill us if we hurt it, but… we wouldn’t do that anyway, right?”
Jean de Lamber whispered from behind, and Vivian whispered back in response.
At her words that the conversation had gone well, he managed only a relieved sigh, though he couldn’t fully relax.
One wrong move could offend Bear and make him retract his offer, attacking them immediately.
One blessing was that following in Bear’s wake meant they encountered far fewer branches and thorns blocking their path.
As the tension eased slightly, Vivian broached the subject she’d been wanting to discuss.
“By the way, Father.”
“Hmm?”
“You told me to run while you held them off, right?”
“I… did?”
At the strangely chilling tone, Jean de Lamber’s eyes shifted nervously.
“So what were you planning to do after I escaped?”
“…”
Jean de Lamber fell silent.
He could never admit that he’d planned to hold out as long as possible before dying, knowing he stood no chance against Bear.
But sometimes silence speaks louder than words.
“…I hate you, Father.”
Vivian’s eyes as she turned to look at Jean de Lamber were filled with resentment.
“If you die in my place, what about me? I have no one but you.”
I was not unaware of Father’s willingness to sacrifice himself in dangerous situations. By now, I was old enough to understand that much.
But that didn’t mean I welcomed such sacrifice.
“Father, you climb trees so well. You can easily jump between branches and escape. So why do you sacrifice yourself so readily every single time…?”
Others would call me ungrateful for speaking such words.
They would tell me to be grateful for having such a father. They would ask where else in the world one could find a father like mine.
How could I possibly express this feeling?
I paused, searching for the right words.
“It just… upsets me.”
“Vivian, Vivian! Father was just… we were both facing death. In such a situation, it’s only natural—”
“I know that much! I do. But I can’t help feeling upset and angry about it. Just… forget it.”
I quickened my pace and moved ahead, making it clear I didn’t wish to continue the conversation.
Jean de Lamber stared at my retreating figure with a stunned expression.
He had never imagined I would react this way.
‘I have seen your grave, Vivian. I have stood before the tomb that held you.’
Rather than witness that again, he would gladly die a hundred times, a thousand times over.
‘I returned only to save you. Sacrificing myself for you is the most natural thing in the world to me.’
But he could not voice these words. He doubted whether I would even believe them, and he feared that speaking them aloud might somehow make that terrible reality come to pass.
In the end, Jean de Lamber said nothing.
An awkward silence settled between us as we walked on in silence.
The deeper we ventured into the Deep Forest following Bear, the more treacherous the path became. Thick, gnarled roots jutted from the ground like traps, blocking our way.
Jean de Lamber moved ahead first, intending to help me over the roots, but I crossed them on my own without even looking at him.
In that moment, his expression was so pitiful that even Bear felt a twinge of sympathy.
[Humans, truly…]
Bear let out another low, rumbling growl and continued down the path.
How much time had passed?
Though walking had become easier since meeting Bear, we had been traveling for so long that I could feel blisters forming on the soles of my feet.
I turned to Bear cautiously.
“Um, Bear? How much further do we have to go?”
[We are nearly there, human.]
Hope kindled at Bear’s words, but only briefly.
A dense wall of thorny vines blocked our path ahead.
“This… we can’t simply climb over this.”
The thorns were so sharp that even gloved hands couldn’t grip them.
If we couldn’t climb over them, there was only one option left.
We would have to cut through the thorny vines.
But I couldn’t be certain whether such an action would be acceptable before Bear, who seemed like the forest’s guardian.
Given that he already seemed to dislike humans, if I did something to further displease him—
Jean de Lamber shuddered at the terrible thought.
Before he had even placed his hand on his sword, Bear began to growl in a way that suggested displeasure, which made the situation all the more tense.
[Cut through.]
“Huh?”
[You humans cannot cross this. Climb onto my back. Both of you.]
“Is… is that really okay?”
[No more talk. Get on. Before I change my mind.]
“What did that bear just say to make you act like this?”
It was the first thing Jean de Lamber had said since their earlier conversation.
But before I could even register the awkwardness, Vivian turned to him with a bewildered expression.
“He said to climb on his back.”
“What…?”
“F-father, hurry and get on. He said to do it before he changes his mind.”
Bear showed no intention of offering the kindness of bending his body to make it easier for the two to mount.
With no choice, Jean de Lamber leaped onto Bear’s back first. The only animal he’d ever ridden was a horse, but this was entirely different.
Startled by the rounded body and stiff fur, Jean de Lamber quickly extended his hand to Vivian.
“Hold on.”
“…Okay.”
Once Vivian climbed onto his back as well, Bear began moving again.
No matter how thick Bear’s hide was, passing through such thorny vines would have to be painful.
Yet Bear’s actions defied their expectations entirely.
Remarkably, Bear backed up, took a running start, and with movements incongruous to his massive frame, leaped over the thorny vines that towered higher than Jean de Lamber’s height.
At the tremendous height and speed, Jean de Lamber and Vivian had no choice but to grip Bear’s back tightly to keep from falling.
Too dizzy to regain their senses, they didn’t even notice when Bear stopped moving.
[Get down.]
Bear spoke in a cold voice, as if he wanted nothing more than to throw the two of them off immediately.
“Th-thank you. Bear.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Jean de Lamber also offered his gratitude to Bear almost reflexively before jumping down from his back.
The place they had arrived at was a vast Clearing.
And in the very center of that Clearing—
“Wow.”
There stood something closer to a fortress wall than a tree.
A trunk twisted slowly by the passage of time and now hardened in that warped state. Between the cracked bark, moss had accumulated in layers, and the grooves were deep enough for an entire hand to sink into.
Roots far thicker than a human torso spread outward, and even boulders had been pushed aside and tilted by their force.
Branches spread so densely that the sky was invisible, casting a cool shadow even in daylight.
On the opposite side of the tree stood an enormously thick old stump. It seemed to be evidence of a tree that humans had felled.
Vivian approached the tree slowly, feeling both wonder and sorrow, and placed her hand upon it.
While I could converse with animals without physical contact, hearing the stories of plants required touching them.
Otherwise, my ears would go deaf from the endless chatter of rustling leaves.
“Tree, or rather, Tree Spirit. Please, I beg you. Give me an answer.”
Perhaps her desperate voice awakened the tree’s deep slumber. Though no wind blew, the branches trembled and the leaves whispered against each other.
[A human dares to set foot in this place.]
It was the voice of an enraged tree.

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