The Baby Who Regressed Refuses Childcare - Chapter 270
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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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I blinked blankly.
Hiding in the birch tree forest that Garou had told me about was only temporary.
I could see a massive whirlwind of magic energy rising up into the sky.
When I returned to the village as if entranced, a different scene from before unfolded.
Fallen people, and Abner’s knights moving busily among them.
“Find survivors!”
Among them, a man who appeared to be of high rank at first glance spoke.
Then the others began moving busily.
“If there are any living, bring them here!”
“Y-yes, Captain.”
But as time passed, the knights’ expressions only grew more grim.
“There are no survivors. Except for that child who came out from under the stones, not a single one…”
I turned my gaze toward the ritual altar while hiding in the grass.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere? What on earth happened here, hmm?”
Lloyd Abner.
My grandfather in his youth was holding Grandmother and asking her.
Grandmother couldn’t give any answer.
She was only trembling with a face pale as death.
“Sir Chen! Bring a blanket!”
A knight brought something to cover her with.
Grandfather wrapped it around Grandmother’s body, tied it securely with a knot, then asked again.
“Can’t you speak? You’re not hurt anywhere, are you? You’re not dizzy or anything like that, right?”
“Lloyd Abner.”
Then an old man approached from nearby.
“There are no additional survivors. For now, we’ll take that child and return to the Duke’s Castle.”
“But Father. What about all these corpses…”
“Wasn’t the main purpose of our search party to eliminate poachers? With this number of people, we can’t do anything anyway. Going to the Duke’s Castle to bring wagons and stretchers is the priority.”
Grandfather looked at Grandmother with worried eyes, then soon nodded.
“Come, this way.”
I watched blankly as the knights lifted Grandmother up.
Grandfather couldn’t take his eyes off Grandmother.
Finally everyone mounted their horses, and the horses began galloping along the path.
Only after confirming that Abner’s army was moving away did I lower my gaze to my wrist.
The bracelet still showed no reaction whatsoever.
It was because I had drawn out all the magic power inside and given it to Aminares.
‘…But it’s okay.’
The original purpose of this bracelet was to tell me the coordinates of the rift.
Now I knew where the rift was even without the bracelet, so it was fine.
I took a deep breath and stepped forward.
The deeper I went into the village, the more eyes that couldn’t close caught my attention.
My heart raced and my breathing became labored.
Still, I continued, continued walking forward.
“…Ha.”
But when I arrived in front of the fallen Garou, I couldn’t even stand properly.
My legs were shaking and my mind went blank.
“Not now, please…”
Right after witnessing everyone’s death in the war, I was always in this state.
Even just hearing that someone had died from illness or accident would bring on panic attacks.
“It’s okay, it’s okay…”
I repeated to myself while catching my breath.
When I knelt on my unsteady legs, only then could I see Garou lying quietly.
His nose bridge that seemed cut by something.
His lips where dried blood had stuck.
My vision became blurry in an instant.
Over Garou’s cold face, his other face that I had seen hours ago overlapped.
“Annellia.”
His face that had been alive and moving.
A face that could be angry, surprised, sad, a face where expressions existed.
I urgently pressed my hands against the ground.
“I wish you good luck, Annellia.”
The Garou before my eyes was the rift.
So I had to find a way to get Tian out of the rift before Abner’s army returned.
I knew it in my head, but I couldn’t move because of the hallucinations I was hearing.
“Annellia.”
“Thank you so much.”
Though we had only met briefly in this space, Garou was a good person.
Like Grandmother’s father, he was warm, kind, and also strong.
“Ugh, huu…”
My body began trembling uncontrollably.
Tears fell down my cheeks to the ground, drip, drip.
But on the ground already soaked with blood, no traces were left.
“Not now. Not now, please…”
The scene from the last day fighting Crookiatus unfolded before my eyes again.
Armin who had fallen with his eyes wide open in bewilderment.
Dimas who was sobbing while holding such Armin.
Owen and Awin, Euriko, Mother and Father who were motionless while holding each other.
Grandmother who was leaning against the debris.
Grandmother who wouldn’t answer no matter how much I called, who couldn’t answer.
My nail marks were carved into the wet dirt ground.
My head was so dizzy I felt like I might lose consciousness at any moment.
But at that moment, a fragment of memory that had been chewed over so much it remained like a tattoo flashed through my mind.
“…Tian.”
“It’ll be okay.”
The smile he wore while turning his back to me.
The voice that reassured me it would be okay.
“I love you.”
That day, what I lost wasn’t just friends.
It wasn’t just family.
I had also lost Tian.
“Ha.”
I lifted my head, gasping for breath.
My face was reflected in the mirror fragments scattered on the floor.
“Huff, ha, haah.”
It was an unfamiliar sight.
My complexion was deathly pale, my lips were blue.
The whites around my unfocused pupils were completely red with burst blood vessels.
I bit down hard on my lips.
I forced strength into my unmoving legs and crawled forward.
Scratches were forming all over my body from the scattered stones and glass shards, but I didn’t care.
Finally, I placed my hand over Garou’s stiffly hardened hand.
“Please, please!”
I prayed desperately.
I gathered my scattering consciousness and searched for what little magic remained in my body.
And when I poured it into Garou with all my strength,
My blocked breath burst free and my vision brightened.
I felt the power that flowed out of me filling Garou, or rather something inside him.
I wasn’t certain.
There was nothing I could see or hear.
But I could feel it.
I could feel my power stretching out like a thin thread, searching for something.
And that it was finally breaking through the hard shell of what it had found, piece by piece.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
The unidentifiable sensation became even clearer.
In the darkness, irreversible cracks were being carved into a massive, solid surface.
The cracks spread faster and wider.
And finally,
Crack-!
I opened my eyes wide.
And slowly opened my mouth.
“This is…”
The world was crumbling down.
The interdimensional space created by Crookiatus’s lingering resentment was being destroyed.
When I looked down, I could see Garou’s form disappearing into black dust.
It wasn’t just him.
Aminares who had been collapsed in the distance, and the other Michaeliann too.
Everyone who had existed in this space was turning to dust.
When I lifted my head again, I could see the sky crumbling like burnt paper.
Beyond it stretched an endless void.
That’s when it happened.
“Lia?”
My body froze stiff.
“Lia.”
My lips trembled, and hot moisture welled up in my throbbing eyes.
I straightened my crouched body.
And very slowly turned around.
Black hair that had grown long enough to touch the ground.
Eyes the color of dawn’s red light.
The lips that always surprised me when I touched them, always soft and warm.
“…Tian.”
His name burst from my lips.
“Tian-!”
I staggered to my feet.
My unsteady running steps reached out and embraced Tian tightly.
His solid, large body urgently supported me.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”
Before I knew it, the world around us had completely crumbled.
The forest, village, and sky had no trace left, filled only with pitch-black darkness.
I couldn’t even tell where we were standing, but it didn’t matter.
“I’m sorry for being late. I tried to come quickly, I really did…”
Beyond my vision blurred with tears.
I could see Tian’s two eyes gazing at me.
His body was still filled with gentle warmth.
“Because I, because I came too late,”
“…It wasn’t.”
Then his wet voice cut off my words.
Tian was staring at me in a daze.
“I thought it would be fine as long as you were happy. I thought I could handle everything.”
He slowly, desperately pulled me into his embrace.
“It wasn’t. It was all my arrogance.”
Tian gradually collapsed in my arms.
“I missed you…”
“…”
“I thought I’d go crazy from missing you, Lia…”
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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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