The Baby Raising A Devil - Chapter 68

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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 68

After leaving the mansion, I walked along humming a tune.

“Are you in such a good mood?”

When Lea asked with a chuckle, I threw my arms up and exclaimed, “I’m excited!”

I always had to go out with Father and my older brothers, but today I came out by myself. This means I can now go out freely whenever I want.

‘When I get to the shopping district, I should stop by Hope Trading Company.’

A life where I can walk confidently on my own two feet without needing to use expensive scrolls.

Thinking about how I used to shed tears of blood when tearing scrolls, I was incredibly happy.

I took a carriage to the shopping district.

Dubbled’s expensive carriage was worth its high price, just like when coming to the Imperial Capital, and we arrived very quickly.

Before getting out of the carriage, I patted the small bag hanging at my side.

It was the allowance Father gave me. He told me to buy whatever I wanted, so today I planned to indulge myself to my heart’s content.

I enthusiastically explored the shopping district with Lea and Laura in tow.

While browsing brooches at a stall in front of a general store, I pointed to brooches shaped like a rose, a sword, and a lion.

“I’ll take these.”

Then I rustled around in my bag to pull out money and paid for them.

I carefully kept the lion-shaped brooch for myself and gave the rose and sword-shaped brooches to Laura and Lea respectively.

“Is it really okay for us to receive something so precious?”

“Young Lady…”

The two of them looked at me with teary eyes, which made me feel a bit embarrassed.

They were just cheap 10-franc brooches…

I had thought about indulging myself freely, but having lived as a beggar in this area in my previous life, luxury wasn’t as easy as I’d imagined.

‘If it’s not money for a specific purpose, it’s not easy to spend.’

I must splurge at another store!

With that determination, I walked energetically.

“Young Lady, there’s a tea house nearby. I heard the tea food there is incredibly delicious, so noble young ladies and lords frequently visit.”

I know.

Both Duchess Valois and Mina really loved that tea house.

‘But it turned out to be an information broker.’

Since it’s a place frequented by nobles, secret conversations take place there, and it was created to eavesdrop on those conversations.

‘I might end up buying information there someday, so I should check it out.’

And I’m also curious about the tea house’s tea and tea food.

They sold very special tea and tea food there.

It was something called green tea, which unlike the Empire’s black tea, was said to have a nutty and clean taste.

There were many interesting types of tea food too. There were chewy rice cakes filled with honey and sesame seeds, and red bean paste cut into squares to eat.

‘What were they called again? Kkul, kkul… Oh, honey rice cakes and sweet red bean jelly!’

While trying to recall the name, I got distracted and tripped over a stone. My body swayed.

‘Ugh!’

Having fallen spectacularly in the middle of the shopping district, I groaned “Ow ow ow ow…”

“Young Lady!”

“Oh my!”

It was the moment when Lea and Laura were about to rush over in surprise.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

The sound of footsteps came from all directions, then I heard shouting “Young─La─dy!”

‘What!’

Startled, I raised my head while still touching the ground.

“Young Lady, are you safe!”

“Are you hurt!”

“Do you have a hangnail under your fingernails!”

“Are you alright!”

“Are you bleeding!”

“Did you scrape your knees!”

“How are your palms!”

“Doctor! Doctor!”

“Escort the Young Lady!”

Countless knights who had rushed from all directions examined me with pale faces.

Instantly swept up in the wave of knights, I froze stiff.

There were so many that I couldn’t even see Lea and Laura’s faces.

They were even all wearing armor with capes bearing the Dubbled crest. They were high-ranking knights of company commander level or above.

‘The fact that all these people came means…’

At least 5,000 or more soldiers are gathered in the shopping district!

I was stunned, and the knights made a fuss while examining my body.

“Your knees! Your knees!”

“Your palms!”

“Do you have a hangnail under your fingernails!”

Watching them hold onto me and wail as if the sky had fallen, I recalled Lady Javelin’s words.

“As soon as we left the mansion, I could sense countless presences of Dubbled Knights. I thought we were going to war.”

I realized that 5,000 people had been watching wherever I went and quietly gritted my teeth.

‘Father… Older Brothers…!’

* * *

The people in the shopping district looked at Dubbled’s knights with horrified expressions.

They thought a civil war had broken out when so many knights suddenly swarmed in, but they were holding onto and wailing over a single child.

“We’re dead!”

“Ah, Mother… Your worthless son is departing…”

After causing such a commotion, they were now standing in a long line, hands clasped together in front of the small child, heads bowed.

The line was so long it seemed like it could wrap around the entire shopping district.

“So you’re saying you’ve been secretly following me from the very first day…”

“Yes…”

“How? With 5,000 people swarming around, how could I not have noticed?”

Some had disguised themselves as farmers, merchants, jesters, guards, and so on who had been near the Young Lady, while the captain-level knights had hidden their bodies within barriers.

And most of them had surrounded the entire shopping district.

Looking at the men mumbling their responses, Leblaine squeezed her eyes shut.

“Um, but Young Lady, don’t you have any hangnails under your fingernails? If we could just check once…”

“Why do you keep asking about hangnails?”

Then a middle-aged man with a thick beard began to sob.

“His Excellency said he would kill one of us for every hangnail that appears under the Young Lady’s fingernails!”

“…”

“Please spare us, Young Lady! I haven’t even seen my child enter the Academy yet!”

Then the other knights also cried out desperately, “Please spare us!”

Leblaine, who had been watching them with an enlightened expression, let out a deep sigh.

“Let’s go.”

“Where to…?”

“To scold Father and my brothers.”

“…!!”

The knights wiped away their tears as they watched Leblaine walking away majestically.

That dignified appearance!

Wasn’t she just like a tiny hero going to defeat the demon king!

* * *

I sat down with a plop and looked at Father and my brothers who were sitting in a row, avoiding my gaze.

“If all the soldiers are escorting me, who will guard the mansion?”

“Little one, we’re enough for that…”

“Who! Will guard it?”

“…”

Under my reproachful gaze, Isaac became speechless and quietly lowered his head.

“Leblaine, we were just worried about you…”

“Then who’s going to worry about the mansion?”

Then Lady Javelin, who was sitting on the opposite sofa with her legs crossed reading a book, answered leisurely.

“Just me, I suppose.”

Henri frowned at Lady Javelin, but when I glared at him, he became quiet again.

“Father.”

“…That much should be enough to subdue the Holy Knights.”

Why do we need to subdue the Holy Knights….

Even if the Pope has lost his mind, he wouldn’t try to kidnap me using the Holy Knights.

‘This won’t do.’

At this rate, far from being able to move around freely, I won’t be able to go out because it’ll be even more inconvenient than before.

If it comes to this, I have no choice.

I pondered what level of Intimidation I should use.

I’ll sleep with my blanket over my head.

I won’t eat.

I hate you.

─They work well in that order, and most things can be resolved with “I hate you.”

‘I should leave out the last resort of “I’ll run away from home.”‘

I used it to calm down Father and my Brothers who were about to wage war with neighboring territories for trivial reasons, but that day Dubbled Territory almost split in two.

‘Alright, the second one.’

I gasped and took a breath.

“I won’t ea─”

“We were wrong, little one!”

“We’re sorry!”

“We’ll reorganize the guard unit!”

Seeing my family members jumping up before I could even finish speaking, the Knights and Employees were silently horrified.

I sighed and said.

“You won’t scold the Knights either?”

“….”

“….”

“….”

“I won’t ea─!”

“We won’t scold them!”

“Absolutely!”

“Right!”

Good.

When I nodded, the Imperial Army Vice Commander who had been standing there trembling shed tears of relief.

After my dejected family members left, I sat down on the sofa, exhausted.

‘You worked hard today too, me.’

As I was thinking that and nodding my head drowsily, I heard a quiet chuckle.

It was Lady Javelin.

‘She smiled!’

It was a smile I had never seen her show in front of me before, so I was surprised and covered my cheeks with both hands.

“Even in front of Lisette, they never trembled like that. I got to see something interesting.”

Saying that, Lady Javelin closed her book with a snap.

“You’re going to the territory tomorrow.”

“Yes, Father said he has things to settle. We might come back to the Imperial Capital!”

That would probably happen.

An enormous number of letters from the Empress Dowager had arrived. She tried to summon me to the Imperial Palace every single day.

The break with the Temple was definitive. Even Cardinals came to ask for help in saving Adolf’s life, but the Empress Dowager was furious and drove them away.

It was only natural. It was certain that her body had been completely ruined by the Luminus medicine they had given her.

She stopped attending worship services, and all the sacred objects she had collected were disposed of.

‘And once Father finalizes Adolf’s punishment here, the Temple absolutely won’t be able to move for a while.’

So Father would never let this opportunity slip away.

Since the Empress Dowager had turned her back on the Temple, one major opposing vote had disappeared when it came time to make Dubbled independent.

Having achieved one of my goals, I chuckled sinisterly to myself.

“I see.”

She replied, lightly stroking the edge of her book as she spoke.

“Child.”

“Yes?”

“Could you show me the top of your foot?”

Right, Lea had said there was something similar between my foot and Lady Lisette’s.

I nodded and took off my socks.

Lady Javelin’s expression grew dim as she carefully looked at the top of my foot.

“If Baby Bird had been born safely, would she have been like you…”

It was the same voice as always, but for some reason I felt like there was moisture in it, so I fidgeted with my hands.

‘I wish I could have been Baby Bird.’

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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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