Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 185
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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 185
The Divine Beast’s lifeless form crumbled slowly. Snow that had begun to fall from the sky mingled with what had become the creature’s ash-grey dust. Each time a thin breeze stirred, fragments of the dead Divine Beast scattered into nothingness, handful by handful. The chick that had emerged from within lifted its head gradually. As the snowstorm grew fiercer, it carried away every remaining trace of the Divine Beast into the empty air. It was a very quiet funeral.
“Peep.”
‘Uh, uh, hello?’
Unlike the mother Divine Beast, which had required the sword’s translation, the newly hatched chick’s words came directly into my mind the moment it spoke to me—just as they had with Poda before.
-Originally, you see, Divine Beast chicks absorb their parents’ corpses and make them their own. Divine Beasts accumulate power over long lives, and there are many enemies that hunt newborn, fragile Divine Beasts. But this Divine Beast transferred its power to the Contractor before dying! So, in a manner of speaking, it’s as though the Divine Beast was absorbed, which is why communication seems possible. A kindred spirit, perhaps…?
Wait, what? It gave its power to me instead of to its own child? I was stunned. It was like I’d robbed a struggling child of their parents’ inheritance—the actions of a corrupt relative.
Still, one thing was certain: I could now sense what kind of power it was without needing that kind mechanical voice to recite its properties. Perhaps because I could use light and wind, I somehow understood. I concentrated the power deliberately to my fingertips. A wound that had remained as a hairline fracture suddenly burned hot, and in the next moment, it vanished.
Soil. The fundamental power that priests are thought to channel through sacred water when they exercise the Healing Force. I suspect I might also be able to nurture earthly vitality and offer blessings.
‘……Without fertilizer, life force would drain away quickly.’
I’ve acquired a modest self-healing ability. It’s not that my body recovers on its own—rather, I draw upon my body’s vigor and life force to stem the tide of urgent wounds. Now I understand why external injuries can be healed but illnesses and aging cannot.
“Squawk. Chirp.”
‘Yes, yes, nice to meet you….’
“Your Highness? Could you explain what is happening here?”
“Well…….”
I took a moment to choose my words before answering Raymond, but first I glanced at the creature chirping in front of me. The chick—or rather, the Divine Beast—seemed to regard both the sword and me with unmistakable displeasure. I couldn’t believe such a tiny creature could produce such a clear expression.
“Chirp. Peep. Squawk.”
‘Fate sounds a bit grand when you say it like that, but, yes, well, I’ll do my best…?’
The chick heaved a sigh and pecked insistently at my feet. I tilted my head in confusion, then crouched down and extended my palm. Jemina hopped onto my outstretched hand.
‘Yes, yes, I’ll make sure you’re fed well.’
‘Understood…….>’
Was it really all right to adopt a Divine Beast companion like this, so haphazardly? When I placed Jemina on my shoulder somewhat awkwardly, the chick burrowed into the inner hood draped across my shoulders.
“This is insane—I mean, it’s really a Divine Beast.”
Pan seemed to think the atmosphere had finally lightened, because he began to fuss with excitement. Rasper beside him, his face flushed with enthusiasm, was equally animated.
“Your Highness, Your Highness. We did successfully rescue the Divine Beast chick, didn’t we? We hatched it properly, didn’t we?”
“Its appearance is far less impressive than the information passed down in the literature, but well. There’s a creature that was supposedly extinct entirely, and here it is! If word spreads, every mage will be turned upside down! Wait, this isn’t the time for that.”
Pan had finally recovered from his ordeal with the illegally modified high-speed sledge, his eyes alight as he knelt in the place where Jemina had bid farewell to her parents and meticulously searched the ground for traces.
“Look, Rasper! Without the Divine Beast’s permission, we can’t use their body parts freely, but even the traces or fragments touched by their blood make excellent materials. Now that snow has mixed in, but if I inscribe a simple Barrier Formation here and examine the properties…….”
“Wow, really…….”
Raymond was present at this location, the Divine Beast chick was safe, and the bittersweet final moment between parent and child had passed—knowing all this, I watched the two mages chatter away to each other about matters known only to scholars, my eyes growing hazy. They look so happy……. But I wouldn’t have been able to save Jemina without their help, so I’ll let it slide.
To Raymond’s questioning gaze, I offered an abbreviated account. Roughly speaking, I’d sensed traces of the Divine Beast’s power, and one thing led to another, and I needed a means of transport that ordinary carriages couldn’t enter here, so I remembered the sledge I’d ridden that morning……. As my explanation continued, Raymond’s face creased like parchment paper.
“……So you’re saying you left without a word and disappeared? Without even a proper escort?”
“Well, I do have my personal protection mage…….”
“……Come to think of it, I know that person as your personal guard, and yet they seem quite close with Rasper?”
Pan and Rasper, who had been happily excavating for research materials, went rigid. My face froze along with them. Oh, ah, ahhh…….
“……My personal protection mage is truly an accomplished mage and scholar, you see, and it appears Rasper became quite close to them in the library! So when I was escaping with the mage, Rasper, um, um, the young prince also……. Said they would help….”
My gaze wandered aimlessly.
Rasper is truly an accomplished mage. He can certainly protect himself. And with the Rasper-and-Pan combination, they’re incredibly strong.
The problem is that both are ranged mages, but even with me to handle some close-quarters swordplay, three of us should be able to hold our own against most Magic Beasts, or at the very least endure until the Castrain Family noticed something amiss and dispatched reinforcements.
It’s not as though we left with someone else’s precious young child without any plan……. Well, not entirely…….
Ordinarily, Rasper and Pan would have remembered not to reveal their identities in front of Raymond. But there, shaking on that sledge and preoccupied with the Divine Beast, it seems things just unfolded this way…….
Unable to find any way to cover for them, I sat frozen while Rasper, whose face had grown delighted as he touched the bare earth, took a deep breath and rose to his feet.
“Um, big brother. Actually, I have a confession to make. …I’m a mage.”
Raymond’s eyes widened.
“Um, compared to my big brothers, I wouldn’t say it’s anything so remarkable.”
“No, compared to us, you’re quite remarkable……!”
“Just stop talking, you mad mage.”
If my disciple started blubbering here, what would I do? I jabbed Pan in the ribs—he who would have a fit if he heard so much as a hint that his disciple was lacking. From within the hood, Jemina let out a “chirp….” that seemed to convey something like ‘Do I really have to live my life with these pathetic creatures…?’
“So, I was also interested in Divine Beasts and such matters. When Your Highness came to the library, we happened to have several conversations. Your protection mage’s skills are truly excellent, so I learned a great deal. When they said they sensed the Divine Beast’s aura, I thought I could help, so I insisted on coming along. It’s not Your Highness’s fault.”
“…….”
“I’m sorry for worrying you. I…….”
Raymond sighed quietly, his expression complicated, and gave Rasper’s head a light tap. A soft, measured sound.
“Is there anyone in our household who doesn’t know about your interests in such matters? Normally you keep everything bottled up inside, giving us not a shred of trouble at all.”
“Ahaha…….”
“It would have been more fitting for a member of the Castrain Family to accompany Her Highness than to let her go alone—if you were truly confident in your abilities, that is. I don’t mean to blame you. Only, next time, no matter what happens, bring people with you.”
“Yes…….”
Raymond regarded Pan and Rasper in turn with an unreadable expression. Then he looked at me, at my bedraggled state, and at the wreckage of the sledge scattered across the ground.
“In any case, Your Highness.”
“…….”
“What exactly is that object?”
“Ahahaha. You were quite shocked earlier, weren’t you? Rasper is an excellent mage and my protection mage is remarkable as well, so it wasn’t as dangerous as it appeared!”
“The expressions on both their faces while riding that sledge looked anything but safe.”
“I did apply at least basic safety incantations, so it turned out better than expected…….”
To be honest, I found it rather thrilling. But Raymond’s face bore the weary look of a police officer who’d stopped a speeding driver.
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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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