The Golden-Handed Baby Fixes Everything! - Chapter 8

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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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Chapter 8
“……?”
“Your ears clogged up? Bark, I said.”
A slender, long-fingered hand clamped down on Dominic’s shoulder as he blinked stupidly.
Gah.
It didn’t seem like he was putting any real strength into it, yet Dominic felt his shoulder might shatter any second.
Where on earth is this strength coming from…!
“What are you doing? I said bark. You owe me compensation for my shattered heart, don’t you?”
Bark.
Dominic swallowed his breath at the prodding, laced with amusement.
‘I can’t… breathe.’
A primal dread started at the tips of his toes and crawled its way up through his body.
It was like staring straight into a vast darkness.
Pushed to his limit, Dominic finally gave in.
“…W-woof.”
He barked.
It was a bark that had surrendered every last shred of human dignity.
“……”
“……”
For a moment, silence settled over the hallway.
And then, after a while.
“Wow. He actually barked.”
Ha.
A short burst of laughter followed.
* * *
“From now on, don’t bark, and live. Unless you want to be silenced forever.”
“Y-yes, yes!”
“Now get lost. Looking at your face is irritating.”
Before the words had even finished, Dominic bolted off as if his tail were on fire.
Conti stood there with a lopsided stance, watching the shabby retreating back.
Ah.
Maybe I should’ve just taken care of him right then?
‘Creatures like that are more trouble when you leave them alone.’
Vermin have a habit of climbing higher without ever knowing where the limit is.
The nasty feeling refused to leave him.
Whenever he thought about Marshmallow, who had probably been dealing with that bastard…
“What to do. What should I do.”
A humming voice slipped out from his crooked, upturned lips.
A troubled finger traced lazy circles through the air.
A black aura shimmered at the tip of his index finger.
But then.
“Well, forget it.”
It wouldn’t hurt to give him one more chance, would it?
“Don’t go badmouthing Ricky-oppa and Newbie Ajjeossi! They’re both good people!”
After all, he was a good person.
Honestly.
“Even being a good person isn’t easy.”
Conti clicked his tongue and headed for the dining hall.
Round, plump Marshmallow must be waiting for him, after all.
Chapter 2
The dead of night, when everyone had fallen asleep.
Hehehe.
I, the only one not yet asleep, let out a meaningful laugh.
‘I finally pulled it off.’
No, I actually did it.
At lunch, after Dominic had left, I succeeded in bringing up the orphanage topic with Oliver Ajeossi when he walked into the dining hall!
“Uncle, you know about orphanages? They’re… really scary.”
“Suddenly?”
“Yeah. I heard from someone, and they’re super scary. They take your money, too! If they take your money, you become a broke beggar, right? Then you’re hungry all the time, crying all the time, and then you die.”
“Die? They go that far?”
“Because the world inside is cold, after all.”
“Yeah. Cold and extreme, huh.”
‘Whoa. I’m so cool, Melloni!’
Awesome, Melloni!
So proud of you, Melloni!
The coolest four-year-old in the whole Empire, Melloni!
Swelling with pride, I couldn’t stop my cheeks from rising into a grin.
‘I’ve put in all this effort, so Oliver Ajeossi should find me a decent orphanage, right?’
Besides, I’d scored some points today.
“Little one. If Brambshua shut its doors and you had to live with one of the three of us, who would you choose?”
The moment my orphanage story wrapped up, Ricky Oppa tossed out the question without warning.
Caught off guard, I thought it over for a moment—
“…Oliver Ajjeo.”
I picked Oliver Ajeossi.
It wasn’t a sly move to earn his favor. It was a conclusion I’d reached through reasonable deduction.
‘Ricky Oppa has to look after his mom and his sick little brother, so he’s out. And Jeanne Unni takes responsibility way too seriously, so she’s out too.’
Once Jeanne Unni took me in, she’d surely feel responsible for me for the rest of her life.
‘I can’t let myself become a stumbling block to her bright future.’
So there was no choice but to pick Oliver Ajeossi.
‘Looking after lost children must be part of an investigator’s job, right?’
The vibe was that he’d keep me for a few days, then send me off to some decent-enough orphanage.
Thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind that I’d chosen him.
The sausage he quietly handed me was proof of that.
Hehe.
Grinning to myself as I recalled the day’s events, I rubbed my aching cheeks gently and lay down under the blanket.
“Mm. Time to sleep now.”
Little kids need to go to bed early and wake up early, after all.
Just as I was about to close my eyes, feeling thoroughly content, something happened.
Tap, tap.
“Are you awake, Marshmallow?”
A faint knock at the door came with Oliver Ajeossi’s voice.
“Ajjeo?”
I jumped up from my spot and crept quietly toward the door.
I opened it as silently as I could and peeked out, and there was Oliver Ajeossi, leaning against the wall.
“Oh dear. Good little kids should be asleep by now.”
“…If you give me five minutes, I’ll go right to sleep.”
“Then I’ll have to make this quick, within five minutes.”
Nod, nod.
At my nodding, Oliver Ajeossi smiled broadly.
He plopped down onto the corridor floor.
I scurried over to his side and plopped down beside him.
The hallway was pitch-black, yet strangely, sitting side by side with him, I wasn’t scared at all.
Haha.
He let out a small laugh and ruffled my hair vigorously.
“Marshmallow, what do you think of Panteibe?”
…Huh? All of a sudden?
The question caught me completely off guard, and I felt flustered.
‘I wonder what he came here to talk about in the middle of the night.’
But the flustered feeling passed quickly, and I came up with an answer fast.
“Mm, a good family…?”
He’s an investigator sent by Panteibe, so it’s better to say something nice.
Luckily, my answer seemed to have hit the mark.
“Oh, is that so? So you think it’s a good family?”
Satisfaction colored his voice.
He was that pleased just because I’d praised his organization.
‘Guess Oliver Ajeossi has a deep sense of loyalty to his group.’
In that case.
“Yep! Ricky Oppa and the others said it’s a really good family! And Gongzan-nim is super handsome too!”
Panteibe, yay!
Gongzan is awesome too!
The best! So stylish!
I held up both thumbs and enthusiastically praised Panteibe.
Little did I know, in the days to come, what kind of consequences this would bring.
* * *
‘Mister’s not around today, either.’
Did he really leave Brambshua?
Several days had passed since our last conversation with Mister.
Ever since that night, he’d vanished from Brambshua without a trace.
Everyone seemed curious about where Oliver had gone, but no one seemed too bothered by it.
After all, nobody could leave Brambshua anyway.
‘Right. It’s not exactly easy to get out of Brambshua.’
But Oliver was different.
He’d infiltrated Brambshua to investigate it, so he must have figured out a way out in advance.
‘Seeing that he’s gone like this…’
Had he left because the investigation of Brambshua was over?
Which would mean Brambshua was about to shut its doors-
“…Ugh.”
So this peaceful life was coming to an end.
“What’s with the sigh, squirt?”
“Nothing. I just resent time for passing so quickly…”
“Well, look at you. Where’d a little brat like you learn to say things like that?”
Giggle, giggle.
Ricky, still laughing, began braiding my hair.
“How’s Sister Jeanne doing? Is she still hurting a lot?”
“No, she’s much better now. If she rests up through today, she’ll be fully healed.”
Jeanne had been suffering from a nasty cold since the day before yesterday.
Afraid she might pass it on to someone, she had isolated herself in a small room off to the side.
Typical of responsible Jeanne.
“I hope she doesn’t get sick again…”
“Tell me about it. Good health is everything.”
As he answered, Ricky’s hands paused for a moment.
And then.
“…I hope my little sister gets healthy again too.”
He murmured in a bitter voice.
‘Come to think of it, he did say his little sister was sick.’
She’d contracted some extremely rare illness and had been bedridden for a long time.
“Do you know how cute my Lina is?”
“My Lina. I hope her condition hasn’t gotten worse.”
“Ah, I miss my Lina.”
‘My Lina.’
He was always worrying about and longing for the sister he’d left behind outside.
Every time that happened, I…
‘Secretly envied him.’
The fact that he had a family who loved him this much.
Even now, I can’t help feeling a little jealous of that.
‘…No. That’s too shameful.’
Lina must be suffering from her illness, and yet here I was, envying her.
My conscience pricked at me sharply. I turned around to look at him and spoke.
“Don’t worry. Your little sister’s definitely going to get better. Melloni guarantees it!”
“Oh yeah? If my little squirt guarantees it, then I’d trust it a whole lot!”
He tugged lightly on my cheek and flashed a bright smile.
I smiled back at him and thought.
‘I hope Lina gets better soon.’
So he could always smile like that.
But somehow, wishes rarely come true.
A few hours later.
“No-!”
A desperate cry from Ricky echoed through Brambshua.

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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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