The Baby Who Regressed Refuses Childcare - Chapter 59

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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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Is this what it’s like when a person receives such a huge shock that they can’t speak?

Kainton stared at the little girl before him, his lips frozen and twitching.

The child standing on the platform was small.

Her pronunciation was lisped with every word, and her face was endlessly innocent.

However, every single word she was uttering was far from ordinary.

“Your Grace, I’m sorry for sleeping carelessly in your precious meeting hall. I’ll accept whatever punishment you give me… According to Article 1, Section 1 of the family code, the head of house’s authority is absolute…”

She seemed to be babbling childish nonsense, yet it made the vassals tremble.

The family code that specified the head’s authority—that carried significant impact.

“Wh-what kind of situation is this?”

“I-I don’t really know either…”

Sure enough, whispers from several branch family members could be heard from behind.

Their thoughts were obvious.

‘Now they’re getting scared.’

Right after Sharon Abner inherited the position of head of house, the hierarchy within the family became a complete mess.

Sharon Abner had performed her role as head of house excellently in external affairs.

But not within the Abner family itself.

She was strangely intimidated by the branch families and vassals.

No matter how much they crossed the line, she never acted strictly with them.

And Kainton thought he somewhat understood the reason.

‘The fact that she stole Jayden’s position. That’s that woman’s weakness.’

Sharon Abner is an excellent head of house.

Thanks to her, the family was able to recover.

But it’s also true that she took her son’s position.

‘Even if she acts like nothing’s wrong on the surface, she must harbor something like guilt.’

Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense that Sharon Abner couldn’t dismiss or punish the branch families.

‘So we thought the more we held onto Jayden and pressed the issue, the more manageable Sharon Abner would become.’

Throwing stones at a large lion is only scary at first.

If the lion doesn’t charge after throwing stones twice or three times, there’s no reason not to do it ten or a hundred times.

That’s how the fear had diminished.

That’s how everyone had forgotten the head of house’s power.

‘But Article 1, Section 1 says the head of house’s power is the strongest.’

That annoying little brat had reminded everyone of that.

‘If you’re going to throw stones at a beast, be prepared to get bitten.’

She had also spoken directly to Sharon Abner.

‘The Duke is really too kind, so kind that she overlooks vassals who don’t even study the family code properly. No executions, no torture…’

They’re acting so impudently, but you really won’t bite? Really won’t kill them?

That was definitely what she meant.

Deep wrinkles formed on Kainton’s brow.

Because of that child’s few words, the branch families were actually splitting apart.

Those who had been acting boldly just moments before shut their mouths and cast their eyes downward with anxious expressions.

It was because they realized that Sharon Abner could punish them at any time.

Kainton clenched his fist with his sweat-soaked hand.

‘If I lose here, everything is over.’

Now only advancing forward remained as his path.

“However, that head of house’s authority! Wasn’t it obtained unjustly in the first place!”

Everyone’s attention focused on him at his loud shout.

“Don’t talk about family codes! Let’s just all go back to the beginning! Back to when the previous head passed away!”

Sharon Abner, Lady Larienne who had been passionately arguing until just moments ago.

Even the problematic little girl was looking at him.

“The family has Young Master Jayden, the previous head’s legitimate eldest son! If things had gone as they should have, the young master should have inherited the position of head of house!”

“…”

“Isn’t the current head of house an outsider when you think about it?!”

Finally, the words that would cause tremendous repercussions passed through Kainton’s lips.

“Everyone just keeps quiet about it, but isn’t she from the Michaeliann Clan! The Michaeliann Clan, who doesn’t have even a drop of Abner blood mixed in, completely separate from the Abners!”

Veins bulged in Kainton’s neck.

To win, he had to push this argument to the very end.

There was no other way.

“Also, look at the Empire, no, the entire continent! Where is there any case of a woman, especially one who doesn’t even have the family’s blood and entered the family through marriage, seizing the position of head of house!”

The meeting hall became as quiet as death.

Only Kainton was shouting like a madman.

“It doesn’t make sense from the start! The current head of house should never have been allowed to inherit the ducal position from the beginning! The previous head only did so because he passed away suddenly, but if he had been alive, he surely would have wanted to pass the position to his legitimate eldest son, Young Master Jayden!”

Huff, huff, Kainton gasped for breath.

With this, all the words that had been swirling inside him had come out.

He glared at Sharon Abner with blazing eyes.

Sharon Abner’s face showed a hint of pain.

‘Yes. Now realize it! Realize it and give up!’

Kainton wanted to stimulate the guilt she harbored.

From the moment Sharon Abner inherited the ducal position, she had faced countless opposition.

She must have heard the words he just said, or even worse, hundreds or thousands of times.

‘No matter how strong she pretends to be, inside she must be shattered. She stole her own son’s position, after all.’

So please, let her finally be exhausted and collapse.

He hoped she would stop enduring and step down.

However.

“That’s strange, Annellia has seen it though.”

That little girl added her words again with a peculiar expression.

Whether it was his imagination or not, this time there seemed to be a faint hostility visible in her seemingly naive eyes.

“Why can’t someone who entered the family through marriage inherit the family?”

The child tilted her head sideways.

“The founder of the Abner family was an adventurer who crossed high mountains and pioneered the northern continent.”

The child’s eyes sparkled eerily.

“That adventurer established the Abner family and got sick, and when she thought she was going to die, she passed the leadership position to her husband. Annellia read it. In an old history book that was in the library.”

“…”

“After that too, there were several times in Abner’s history when the head of house position was passed to a spouse, it was written in ancient language.”

Cold sweat trickled down Kainton’s temples.

The child who had been staring intently at him pointed her finger up.

“That book I was studying under the desk before falling asleep is that book. Take a look, grandfather.”

The meeting hall remained quiet.

It was because that little girl’s statement was so astonishing that no one dared to exclaim or scream.

If everything was true, this would be a monumental event that could overturn the family’s history.

Kainton felt countless gazes piercing him as he staggered to pick up the book.

The section with a thin piece of paper inserted as a bookmark naturally opened.

“…Ancient language.”

“Yes. It’s written there. Right there.”

Kainton lowered his gaze.

Of course, he couldn’t read anything.

But this time, no one could find fault with the child.

‘That child is a prodigy, no. She’s definitely a genius.’

I had already heard rumors about the child.

At such a young age, she had finished all the magic books and was conducting research.

‘And she memorized all the law records. That thick volume from beginning to end.’

With memory a hundred, a thousand times superior to others, how could she not read ancient language?

Ancient language was just very difficult to learn, but it wasn’t as if there were absolutely no people who could read it.

Above all….

“I, I had no idea such a thing had happened.”

“To think the family’s history was like that… Of, of course we’ll have to verify it.”

The terrified branch family members trailed off their words.

The fear that had started from just a child’s words was already spreading rapidly.

Having treated Sharon Abner so unreasonably and rudely all this time, the vassals’ terror was maximized.

‘If Sharon Abner decides to punish us now, we’re dead.’

Everyone seemed to be thinking this.

It was the moment when a thin groan escaped from Kainton’s lips.

“Ah, wait!”

The child jumped up from her seat.

Then she rummaged through the cloth pouch she was carrying.

“Talking about history books reminds me! Lia found this at the very back of that book too.”

The child pulled out something like a folded piece of paper from the pouch.

Then she held it out to Sharon Abner.

“This letter, it’s yours, Duke!”

Sharon Abner’s gaze slowly moved to the paper the child was offering.

The child smiled innocently.

“Sharon, I want you to sit on the throne. This is a letter, right? Sharon is the Duke’s name. But Lia doesn’t know what throne means. What’s a throne, Duke?”

Throne.

And the only person who had ever called Sharon ‘you’.

To the branch family members who knew what those words meant, that letter was yet another bomb.

So even though a child who could read books in ancient language didn’t know what a mere ‘throne’ was, no one found it strange.

It would be more accurate to say they weren’t even in the right state of mind for that.

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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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