Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 161

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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 161

At the city’s entrance, guards were casually checking the identities and appearances of those passing through. Raymond ignored the main gate where people stood waiting in line as if it were perfectly natural, and urged his horse toward a side path instead.
A rear gate came into view in the sparse crowd, and beside it sat a man yawning in his chair. Without a word, Raymond showed him the Castrain Family crest from inside his coat. The man’s eyes widened, and he quietly opened the gate for us.
I felt oddly embarrassed at the glance Raymond cast toward me, squirming in his arms. My hair was covered so it wouldn’t show, and I deliberately kept my gaze fixed downward to avoid meeting his eyes. He wouldn’t know who I was, but…
…well, I’d injured myself frequently enough anyway. Since I couldn’t even ride a horse well on my own, there was no real need to make much of this way of traveling.
As I moved nestled almost against Raymond’s chest, I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious about it.
When the horse suddenly fidgeted, Raymond soothed it by taking the reins, bowing his head as if to assess the situation. His dark hair brushed against my cheek. I froze in place. His nose was so close I could almost feel it. I sensed Raymond’s gaze.
“……”
It felt as though someone had placed an aquarium half-filled with water against my back. Every time the fish inside fluttered—splash, splash—ripples scattered like that. I could hear the sound of his heartbeat. I reminded myself silently.
This is fine as it is.
Just like this.
“…We’ll arrive very soon. Just wait a little longer, please.”
“……”
Not knowing what else to say, I closed my mouth. To ignore Raymond’s body heat, which I could still feel, I deliberately focused my attention on the landscape around us instead.
A great trading city, though perhaps not as grand as Cortez. The new city we’d come to was also crowded with people.
It had a more modest feel than the Southern Region, which had been full of bright colors and ornamental flowers and goods, but it was alive in its own way.
Raymond skillfully navigated toward less crowded areas and stopped in front of a small building. It looked more like an ordinary house than a temple.
When he knocked on the door, a voice called out “Yes?” and someone came to open it.
“Yes, what brings you…oh my, Lord Raymond! What can I do for you?”
“…I’m asking for your help treating this person.”
The woman who came out was dressed in plain white clothes. She had a modest, kind expression somehow reminiscent of the High Priest Illian, and seeing Raymond state his business without preamble as if they were already acquainted, she clicked her tongue in amusement. When she saw Raymond tying the fidgeting horse to the side, the woman gestured.
“Come inside for now.”
The interior was as modest as the outside—a simple home itself. I sat in the chair she offered and accepted the teacup she provided, gauging the situation.
“You hardly ever come here, so I wondered why you’d suddenly visit. It seems you were in a hurry because someone precious was injured.”
“Yes. That’s how it is.”
I watched Raymond answer matter-of-factly, then fumbled for words.
“…I’m late with my introductions, but…hello. I’m Titania……”
“Oh, just by the way Lord Raymond carried you here like some precious treasure, I already knew who you were. Hello there, Your Highness? I’m Teresia. Where are you injured?”
I held out my arm to her. The woman took my arm, closed her eyes, and quietly recited a neat prayer.
If the High Priest Illian’s power had felt refreshing like peppermint candy, then this woman’s power was like holding warm tea water in one’s mouth—a warmth that spread gently. I unwrapped the bandage that had been binding my arm. It had healed without a trace.
“Wow! You really are skillful.”
“Ha ha. Aren’t I?”
The woman smiled brightly and handed me a small cloth pouch. It was full of cookies loaded with nuts.
“I felt like baking cookies today especially. Take them with you and enjoy. Bibi is quite fond of my cookies too, you know.”
“Thank you so much for the treatment.”
“I’ve heard much about you from the High Priest Illian. Divine Power can heal wounds, but it’s not all-powerful, so please take good care of yourself. Since you seem to be in a hurry, I won’t keep you.”
“I’m always grateful……”
If that High Priest had talked about me, they must be close. But she wasn’t wearing priestly robes. This place didn’t seem to be a temple either……
Perhaps noticing my curiosity, Raymond spoke to me as we received her farewell and stepped outside the building.
“…Teresia is not, strictly speaking, a priest belonging to a temple. She can use Divine Power, but the temple believes she can no longer use it.”
“Is such a thing possible?”
“This place is…much like the hometown of the High Priest Marjid. The aristocratic faction of priests has a firm grip on power here, so it’s easy to cast out a commoner-born priest with even flimsy pretexts. Teresia was so talented and of such good character that she would have become the perfect successor to the High Priest Illian, which is why they were all desperate to drive her out beforehand. In the Northern Region, the Castrain Family’s influence is nearly absolute. But outside the Northern Region…well, the odds of receiving timely treatment or help if something happens are rather low.”
So she was like insurance in case something went terribly wrong.
But was it really all right to seek out someone so precious just to treat one person like me?
…If I said something like that, I’d probably just get an answer like “Why don’t you value yourself more?” so I’d better not think about it.
Now that my arm was healed, I didn’t really need to be cradled in Raymond’s arms like a doll anymore…but I had no confidence I could manage to ride a horse properly while avoiding others’ gazes on my own.
I simply kept my mouth closed and allowed Raymond to lead me, safely slipping out of the city while avoiding scrutiny, and rejoined the rest of the group.
We were supposed to enter the city properly once we arrived and then travel via Warp Tunnel, so the carriage was ready to depart at any moment.
Or rather, it should have been, but the atmosphere felt oddly unsettled.
What was this? There were more people than before we left.
“Your Highness! I hope you’ve been well!”
“Oh.”
I couldn’t hide my surprise as I watched someone approach me with gleaming eyes.
“Lord Flux? How did you get here?”
The person coming toward me, grinning widely and extending his hand, looked far better than before.
Whether it was my imagination or not, from head to toe he was well-dressed, and his hair, as if polished with oil, shone brilliantly.
He looked just like a peacock showing off his feathers, having primped himself up considerably.
“Even if not quite to the level of the Hecate Tavern, our family’s capabilities aren’t lacking. Since Your Highness is moving officially, we couldn’t possibly be unaware. And I happened to have business in this area anyway.”
We’d kept in indirect contact all this time, but it had been ages since we’d seen each other in person.
Not since we left the Southern Region and went up to the Imperial Palace……
“I’ve really put to good use the bracelet you gave me back then, Lord Flux.”
Yes, it’s been incredibly useful. Just thinking about it makes me happy. It’s like having an unlimited black card…I can’t quite match the Castrain Family’s spending power given their sheer scale, but at least I never have to worry about running out of money. That happiness……
“Really? Well, I’m honored.”
Flux’s cheeks flushed red. There was a gaze watching his shy smile with particular displeasure. It was Bibi.
…Right. Bibi had been outraged when she heard what happened, asking why I’d forgiven that trash……
In the original story, Flux had willingly served as Bibi’s faithful subordinate, and it felt odd to see him not minding it even as Bibi watched with narrowed eyes.
“I…I wanted you to carry it comfortably wherever and whenever you go, so if it wouldn’t be improper, I’ve prepared some other accessories besides the bracelet.”
“Huh? If I accidentally lost even one, it’d be a disaster. Such precious things only need to be one……”
“I can cast magic so that only Your Highness the Princess can use them.”
“Even with magic, if someone notices something this precious, they might break the spell and try to steal it anyway, right?”
“If you’re that concerned, then keep this mage at your side and use him as you wish.”
Flux gestured with a smile. A man standing behind him approached me with feeble, faltering steps. I stifled a laugh inwardly.
My available liquid assets were limited. The Hecate Tavern, the Castrain Family’s support, Flux’s help—with them, there was nothing I couldn’t do. But no matter how much help I had, even though my teacher had deserted the Magic Tower and broken every taboo to become humanity’s public enemy, to keep his secret, hide it under a false identity in aristocratic society, rack up debts here and there, and use a former Tower Master as my personal tool, I needed at least a plausible pretext.
Pan Morcoscius Arnile.
The man, famous for his temperament of throwing tantrums at anyone like a Chihuahua, was grinding his teeth as he bowed to me.
His hair, clearly dyed to stand out, was a vivid shade of pink.
“…I shall serve you…with all my heart…Your Highness……”
Instead of answering, I smiled faintly.
Welcome. My useful servant.

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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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