The Baby Sprout Who Bloomed in the Villain Duke’s Family - Chapter 37

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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 37
But.
‘Hey, how are you?’
‘Fine, how are you?’
‘Hey, what are you doing?’
‘Horseback riding.’
Clover never got another chance to exchange more than five words with Sone after that.
Sone was plainly avoiding her, and Clover didn’t have the means to chase after her.
‘Ugh, this is frustrating…….’
Was Sone really that busy? Or…….
Clover lay sprawled across the Grassland with her eyes squeezed shut.
She didn’t want to think about the worst possibilities.
Then.
“Clover, what are you doing out here?”
Arwin scooped her up in one smooth motion.
Clover made no move to struggle, hanging docile in his grip as she mumbled.
“Strong Synthesis…….”
“Strong Synthesis? Photosynthesis?”
“Yeah, watching the sun…….”
“So why are you drooping like a wilted flower?”
“There’s just…… stuff.”
She didn’t want to tell her family that Sone was avoiding her.
That would be as good as criticizing her sister.
Besides, from what she’d observed, Sone’s avoidance of Clover didn’t mean she was warm or affectionate toward the rest of the family either.
Sone was always alone.
Thinking about it that way made her wonder if it was just Sone’s nature.
‘But something about it feels like…… avoidance.’
Clover knew better than anyone what a face of avoidance looked like.
At Demper House, that’s how it had always been. So many people had looked at her that way.
But Sone wasn’t wearing that kind of face. Which is why it hurt more.
Why wouldn’t she even greet her, no matter how hard Clover tried to catch up? Why had she never once looked back?
‘Sigh.’
Limp and drooping.
After shaking the wilted Clover a few times, Arwin pressed his cheek against hers.
“Is this about Sone?”
A pang of recognition.
How did he know? Clover’s head snapped up to look at him.
Arwin laughed awkwardly.
“It’s obvious. You’ve been moping since then, always trailing behind her like a duckling.”
“……Does it show that much?”
“Obviously.”
Arwin dropped onto the grass and settled Clover on his lap.
“But don’t worry too much. That’s just how she is.”
Soft rustling.
He gently brushed a strand of Clover’s silky hair back behind her ear.
“She’s been like that since childhood. Even when she cares about something, she can’t express it. It’s like she has no idea how to be gentle.”
Arwin gathered the rest of Clover’s hair back into his hands.
“So don’t worry, little one. Give it time, and you’ll grow closer.”
“……But……”
“Hmm?”
Clover pouted her lip and spoke in an aggrieved voice.
“But you said I had seven nights before leaving.”
One had already passed, so that left only six.
“…….”
“…….”
“……Um.”
A brief silence fell between Arwin and Clover.
Arwin, who hadn’t thought that far ahead, sheepishly scratched his cheek.
***
“A letter?”
The Dowager Empress frowned as she received the letter that had arrived from Claudian.
“Yes, the Duke of Claudian sent it.”
The attendant presented the letter and spoke. The Dowager Empress tilted her head.
‘There’s no reason for him to send a letter. What could this be about?’
Could it be news that he was visiting the Imperial Palace again, bringing Clover with him? The Dowager Empress broke the wax seal that had secured the letter.
But before reading it.
“All of you, leave.”
“Yes.”
She dismissed all the attendants standing nearby.
It was a long-held habit of the Dowager Empress. Never to have anyone present when reading correspondence.
Only after the attendants had left did her hand move again. She unfolded the letter and slowly read through its contents.
“Hmm…….”
What was written there was neither the welcome news that he would visit the Imperial Palace with Clover, nor word that Elicia had awakened.
It would seem wise to be cautious of those around you always.
It was a warning.
A warning from Kalid Claudian to his wife’s friend and his mother’s companion.
The letter contained accounts of the “strange occurrences” that had happened to Clover recently, and how she had become unusually frightened upon seeing a certain attendant in the Imperial Palace.
But given that there was no direct suggestion to dismiss the attendant or investigate her,
‘It seems the child’s words unsettled him enough that he couldn’t simply let them pass.’
Yet Anernia paid it no mind.
She was the most exalted woman in this empire, the most beloved person in Rosiferone, and a venerable elder.
With such status came many enemies. She had faced countless threats since childhood, now so distant she scarcely remembered them.
Why should she fear merely one attendant harboring ill intent? Besides, though she did not know who the attendant Clover had seen was, turning the Imperial Palace upside down to catch her would bring more trouble than gain.
Moreover, if the attendant harbored malice in secret or obscurity, there might well be far more than the one Clover had glimpsed. That was simply the nature of the Imperial Palace.
So perhaps the young Clover, visiting the Imperial Palace for the first time, had simply been startled by its atmosphere and spoken carelessly.
‘Still, it would be wise to remain cautious.’
She had survived thus far.
And much of the reason she could do so lay in Elicia’s warnings of danger and her faithful service.
So it would be prudent not to dismiss lightly the words of Clover, a child who bore such a striking resemblance to Elicia.
But.
‘Still, I hope they visit again soon.’
There was something she wished to give.
Anernia murmured this while sipping lukewarm black tea.
***
Evening time.
Belze, with Clover seated on his lap, read slowly from a book.
“When the World Tree vanished, the Boundary of Spring and Summer grew faint. The spirits of flowers and trees disappeared, or lost their original forms.”
The book Belze was reading now concerned the history of the Continent.
Published under the title “Easy Continental History for Children!”, this book was quite popular among young ones.
“So that’s why the flowers are like that?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Clover found this book fascinating.
Especially the part about “the World Tree and Flowers.”
Bad people had caused the death of the “World Tree,” which had kept the world beautiful, and as its power vanished and balance crumbled, the flowers became hideous and began to reek.
“Long ago, flowers were very beautiful. People even gave them as gifts to their lovers.”
She had heard roughly from Lucky about why flowers had become that way, but hearing it again felt fresh somehow.
“So people don’t give flowers anymore?”
“Well…… I suppose not, since they smell. And they don’t look quite right either.”
“I see.”
I like flowers though, so why is that?
Clover twisted around in Belze’s embrace, turning to gaze up at the ceiling.
‘Hmm, I wonder if the flowers I planted will bloom.’
If anything grew at all, she had meant to give it to her father without fail.
But if no one liked receiving flowers, it seemed she might need to reconsider.
“But they say long ago flowers were truly beautiful. Some were said to be more beautiful than jewels…… isn’t that amazing? There must be records somewhere documenting those ancient flowers.”
“Ooh, I’m curious.”
“I’ll mention it to Kalid. Perhaps we might be able to obtain them. Well then, young lady, shall we stop reading for today?”
“Yes.”
Belze chuckled softly, closed the book, laid Clover down properly, and rose.
Then he left the room, saying he would put the book away.
Right then.
Pitter-patter-patter.
Lucky appeared before Clover’s eyes as she lay sprawled on her back, gazing up at the ceiling.
Oh! You showed up at just the right moment!
Clover’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Lucky.
“Lucky, that thing I just heard—is it really true?”
[Yes.]
“Hmm, giving flowers as a gift…….”
[……In ancient times, lovers really did give each other flowers. The nobility cultivated gardens full of them. The fragrant blooms would fill the entire garden, overflowing with perfume…….]
Lucky’s voice drifted off as if lost in some distant memory.
“I see. That would be lovely even now.”
[It’s just difficult these days. Who wants to receive something that smells?]
True enough.
Maybe I really do need to think of a different gift.
Clover lay there in a daze, her spirits dampened, arms spread wide open, when Lucky drifted silently closer to her cheek.
Lucky pressed softly against her face and whispered.
[But flowers that you make—those you might be able to give.]
With each word Lucky spoke, golden light flickered brightly.
[You’re special, little one.]

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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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