The Baby Raising A Devil - Chapter 2

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 2

The woman who brought me to the bathroom smiled brightly as she carefully removed my cumbersome, frilly clothes.

“Please call me Lea, little one.”

“Yes.”

“Now we’re going to have some fun playing in warm water. Are you excited?”

“Yes.”

“Oh my, what a good child.”

“Yes.”

Lea patted my back affectionately as if I were adorable, then drew the water.

Soon the maids came in and I began my proper bath.

It was very comfortable just sitting in the warm water while they efficiently washed me.

Though it was a bit difficult to resist wanting to touch the fluffy bubbles.

‘I need to behave myself.’

Troublesome children are disliked.

I knew from my experience as Duke Valois’s daughter that for a child who doesn’t receive their parents’ attention, the help of servants is essential for survival.

The maids’ movements were very quick and skilled. So enduring the hair washing time wasn’t too difficult.

‘Duke Dubbled is a bad person, but he doesn’t seem to be trash like Duke Valois.’

He didn’t hit me and even provided servants for me.

Duke Dubbled’s favorability, which had hit rock bottom, rose just a tiny bit.

After the bath ended, Lea dressed me in cozy clothes.

The clothes the Empress Dowager’s attendant had put on me were only flashy but rough and oversized, making them extremely uncomfortable, but these clothes were very comfortable.

While Lea was buttoning up my clothes, the maids started chattering.

“Do you think the master will really adopt her?”

“Even if it’s the Empress Dowager’s command, he’s not one to follow orders blindly.”

“But she’s the child of destiny.”

“Well, about that…”

The maid glanced at the door and whispered.

“There are many opinions that the Divine Oracle was misinterpreted. They say the amount of Divine Power inherent in the little one’s body is far too little.”

That was also the reason Duke Valois had abused me without a second thought.

There were many people who didn’t believe I was the child of destiny.

‘I was actually fake anyway.’

Even while I was thinking this, the maid’s chatter continued.

“Besides, how bad is the relationship between House Dubbled and the Papal Court. In my opinion, adoption would be difficult—”

“Enough.”

Lea cut off the maids’ conversation with a deliberately stern tone.

“This is not a conversation to have in front of the little one.”

Lea warned the maids with a glare and handed me the mug.

“Here, drink this.”

Her gentle voice made me feel a little relieved.

If I were to be ignored by the servants like during my days as Lady Valois, life would be difficult, but fortunately Lea, who was a senior servant, seemed to be kind to children.

If by any chance the servants bullied me, Lea might help me.

‘Lea must be a good person. She’s even giving me food.’

Curious about what they ate at the Dubbled estate, I peered into the cup and my eyes grew as wide as lanterns.

‘My goodness, this is chocolate.’

Chocolate was such an expensive luxury that it made your eyes pop out.

Naturally, in my previous life when I was part of a beggar gang, I couldn’t even catch a glimpse of such fine food as chocolate.

In my first life at House Amitie, which was frugal according to the master’s nature, they avoided luxuries.

House Valois, which abused me, would never give me such a thing.

I only got to taste it a little when going to the palace to meet the Empress Dowager or when stopping by the Papal Court.

After tasting the chocolate, I trembled with overwhelming emotion.

The sweetness spread throughout my mouth. The texture on my tongue was as soft as velvet, and a bitter-sweet aroma rushed into my nose.

‘Ah, I wouldn’t mind regressing again today…’

Lea watched me slurp down the chocolate as if hiding it from crabs, looking at me as if I were adorable, then gently wiped the chocolate smeared all over my mouth.

“Shall we go see the master now?”

I was a little disappointed that I couldn’t scrape up the chocolate at the bottom of the mug with a spoon, but I obediently followed Lea.

‘I need to behave well, behave well.’

Compared to my previous life, this place was heaven, and I was quite fond of this heaven.

He has no interest in me.

He even provides servants, and that servant seems like a good person who wouldn’t lay a hand on a child.

And he gives me a whole cup full of chocolate.

Weren’t these the optimal conditions for staying until I leave for exile!

‘But the Duke probably won’t easily let me be adopted.’

He was rumored to be a cold-blooded person without blood or tears. And from what I could see, the rumors didn’t seem wrong.

‘But that doesn’t mean I can just sit around doing nothing.’

I didn’t want to be beaten by Duke Valois for the rest of my life and die again.

I also didn’t want to join a beggar gang and starve to death.

‘I’ll make Duke Dubbled like me so he’ll want to adopt me.’

The place Lea took me, burning with determination, was the Duke’s office.

I could see the Duke conversing with two men who appeared to be clerks.

I let go of Lea’s hand and ran over with quick little steps, clinging to the Duke’s leg.

Lea gasped and covered her mouth in surprise, and the flustered clerk tried to pull me away from him.

But I clung on tightly as if grasping a lifeline and wouldn’t let go.

The Duke’s eyebrow twitched.

“What are you doing.”

I desperately bounced up and down in front of the Duke, then raised my hand high and said.

“Ana juddeyo. (Please hug me.)”

I could read both displeasure and bewilderment in his narrowed eyes. My neck instinctively shrank back.

‘But I don’t want to die miserably again.’

I don’t want to regress.

I’ll just eat a little rice.

I’ll never again have such presumptuous thoughts about wanting to be loved.

I had simply blurted out everything I’d heard from the priests of the Religious Order.

I sat on the Duke’s lap, looking at Duke Dubbled’s excited retainers.

“Truly remarkable. How can you be so clever?”

“That’s because you’re the child of destiny.”

“Indeed.”

The retainers chuckled warmly.

I felt a pang of guilt and quietly averted my gaze.

‘Actually, I’m a fake child of destiny.’

I couldn’t just freely use my memories from before regression either.

A baby’s body has an undeveloped brain, making it impulsive and forcing me to act childish.

With an immature brain, it was difficult to engage in ‘adult thinking.’

When I tried to think deeply like an adult in this body, I would either fall into sleep for days or become incredibly hungry.

It seemed similar to how being tense makes you tired, or using your brain a lot makes you hungry.

What was even worse was that the reverse also applied.

When I was hungry or sleepy, I would completely become a child.

Being able to use my mind even this much normally was probably divine protection.

‘You don’t need to give me protection, just stop making me regress.’

Just as I was pouting and lost in thought.

One of the retainers tried to pat my head, finding me cute, and I was so startled that I clung to the Duke’s neck.

‘Th-that scared me.’

I was surprised because someone I didn’t know well tried to touch me!

“The little one is quite shy around strangers.”

When an elderly retainer said this with a chuckle, the retainer who had tried to touch me awkwardly lowered his hand.

“It’s surprising how you’re shy around strangers yet stick so close to His Grace.”

“Other children would burst into tears, overwhelmed by his presence.”

“And you only tell stories about the Temple and Imperial Family when sitting on His Grace’s lap, don’t you?”

I wasn’t deliberately telling stories only on the Duke’s lap.

My telling stories about the Imperial Family and shrine was, after all, paying rent.

The reason I only told stories on the Duke’s lap was because Duke Valois’s abuse had made me extremely shy around adult men.

‘Come to think of it, it is strange. Why don’t I feel shy around Duke Dubbled?’

It was probably my will to live, determined not to die unhappily again.

I needed to become close with the Duke first so he would let me stay here long.

“Come down and sit.”

The Duke said.

I answered “Yes.” and sat back down on his lap.

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