The Baby Sprout Who Bloomed in the Villain Duke’s Family - Chapter 10

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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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Episode 10
When that youngest child, whom she’d sent away with such finality, returned looking not merely grimy but positively wretched, the sting of it was unbearable.
‘What on earth was I thinking, treating her like that?’
Setting aside the fact that she was a direct descendant of Claudian, she was just a small child—barely four years old.
Even if she’d been born with a formidable Ability, a four-year-old couldn’t possibly display such power.
“I can’t forgive myself…….”
Demian murmured the words.
Beyond the window, Clover lay sprawled on the grass, tangled with something blue and shapeless.
“That is…….”
What on earth was that? Demian narrowed his eyes in puzzlement, straining to get a better look at the “blue mass.”
“Wait, that!”
“What?”
“Brother, isn’t that Father’s Summoned Beast?”
“What? The North Wind Lion?”
The two boys pressed themselves against the window in alarm. As their excitement mounted and their movements grew sharper, a faint breeze stirred between them.
But there was no room in their minds for such things. What mattered was the identity of the creature playing beside Clover.
Startled, Demian peered more closely at the “blue mass” clinging to the tiny girl’s side—small as a pea pod.
“It really is…….”
He murmured the words trailing off.
It truly was Kalid’s Summoned Beast, the North Wind Lion.
A Summoned Beast.
A being born from an Ability User’s power, a companion in life that shared death itself with its master.
The form each Summoned Beast took depended on the magnitude of the Ability User’s power.
Some Ability Users possessed Summoned Beasts that were simple, crude lumps; others had companions far more refined in appearance.
Thus, the size and beauty of a Summoned Beast determined the measure of its master’s power.
And Kalid’s Summoned Beast, the North Wind Lion…….
Ability Users spoke of it in one voice: the greatest and most magnificent Summoned Beast among all living Ability Users.
It bore its reputation with such pride that it would not reveal itself, approach anyone, or draw near except at its master’s summons.
Since his own children—Sone, Demian, and Arwin—could scarcely get close to it, it was safe to say it granted access to almost no one else.
Yet here it was, casting aside its proud and noble bearing, transformed into nothing more than a cat’s shape, rolling about in the grass before them.
‘This can’t be real…….’
When the pea-pod-sized girl sprang up in place, the North Wind Lion—who had been pondering something—leaped up alongside her.
It was a sight neither Demian nor Arwin had ever witnessed in all their time living at the Claudian Mansion.
And if he was being honest, Sone Claudian, the eldest daughter of Claudian and several years their senior, had surely never seen it either.
“This won’t do!”
Arwin, who had been unable to tear his eyes from the girl’s constant movement, murmured the words.
“I want to go meet Clover.”
“What?”
“If you send her away now, who knows when we’ll see each other again.”
Arwin gazed at the round back of her head intently as he spoke.
“I have to meet her, I want to say hello to the little one.”
***
Clover, carried back to her room dangling from Belze’s hand, laughed brightly as she picked at the strawberry sitting atop a cake.
[You’re really that happy?]
“Of course!”
Of course she felt good—Clover felt as though she might float away.
It was all thanks to Kalid’s Summoned Beast, the cat she’d just met.

‘Next time?’

With those words, the cat bounded away. But Clover remained seated in that very spot for a long while afterward.
She couldn’t believe in this sudden stroke of luck.
It was only after pinching her own cheek that Clover realized what had just happened was real.
Then, thrilled, she’d bounced around until Belze found her and brought her back to her room.
But that was fine. The treasure was as good as found already.
‘Tomorrow…….’
Tomorrow she’d find the treasure, which meant she wouldn’t have to go to Demper.
If Clover found it in a single day—the thing her father had been searching for so hard—wouldn’t he be pleased?
Father would be happy, wouldn’t he?
Clover’s imagination soared.
Clover, positively brimming with delight, broke into a wide grin. Even as she tried to contain it, laughter kept spilling through in little bursts.
‘That’s right, this is perfect. I really will be able to stay here. I wasn’t keen on going anywhere else anyway, and it’s worked out beautifully.’
“Yeah, you’ve been really good to me. But Lucky…”
‘Mm?’
“Why can’t I find Father’s Ability?”
‘Hmm, well… I’m not entirely sure about that either. Still, we’ll figure it out if we keep looking.’
“I wish tomorrow would come soon…”
Still smiling, Clover cut a generous forkful of cake and placed it in her mouth. The soft cream melted smoothly on her tongue, a perfect match for her current mood.
‘I love the Claudian Mansion…’
Father was here, and though she hadn’t met them yet, there were older siblings too, and delicious cake besides.
The thought that she’d be able to stay in such a place made her laugh without thinking. She was still chewing contentedly, fork in hand, when it happened.
“Miss.”
Belze, who had stepped out for a moment, returned and called to Clover. She lifted her head from her cake.
“Mm?”
“We have a visitor. Would you care to receive them?”
“A visitor?”
“Well…”
Belze glanced hesitantly toward the outside, seeming flustered. From the way he was being so careful, whoever it was, there must be quite an important person standing beyond the door.
“Who is it?”
“Can’t I just come in?”
An unfamiliar voice called from beyond the threshold. Clover’s eyes widened and her ears perked up.
Who is that?
“But young master, Miss Clover hasn’t fully recovered yet…”
“But I saw earlier that she does fine with the North Wind Lion, so she should be all right with us.”
The voice was gentle, yet carried an unmistakable stubbornness. Startled by this unfamiliar tone, Clover quietly reached out and hugged the cushion beside her.
‘A stranger. A voice I’ve never heard before…’
Clover was, in fact, rather shy around new people. The way she’d been startled when she first met Belze proved it wasn’t unusual for her.
‘Don’t worry, little one. These don’t seem like bad people.’
At that, Lucky began to glow golden, hovering in front of Clover and bobbing gently.
‘I think your family has come.’
“Mm? Family…?”
It was just as Clover murmured this that the half-closed door swung fully open.
Whoosh.
A gentle breeze slipped into the room where Clover sat, and her short bangs fluttered softly in the draft.
Then two boys, unmistakably resembling Kalid, stepped into view.
Both possessed the same golden eyes as Kalid, and though faint, she could sense the Storm Ability emanating from them. There was also that same ‘scent of wind’ she’d noticed from the cat.
The neatly dressed boys were every bit as handsome as Kalid, and though she was meeting them for the first time, they didn’t feel like strangers at all.
As Clover shifted her gaze to the boys, clutching the cushion tightly, the one standing on the left smiled broadly and spoke.
“I won’t come any closer. I’ll stay here and look at you. That should be all right, yes?”
The boy spoke as if asking Belze’s permission, and after a brief moment of consideration, Belze nodded.
The two brothers then truly did not cross the threshold, instead stepping back from the doorway to observe Clover.
“Hello, Clover.”
“Hello, little one.”
The two brothers, alike yet subtly different, gazed at her simultaneously with golden eyes that shone brilliant as the sun.
Clover watched them quietly for a moment, then softly repeated what Lucky had told her just moments before.
“Family.”
“Mm?”
“Clover’s family…”

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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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