The Obsessive Male Leads Want to Eat Me Alive - Chapter 44

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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 44
“I hereby formally withdraw Anette’s adoption.
—Gerard von Axilpherion”
‘I did it!’
I had to cover my mouth to contain my delight.
In that sweet moment of savoring victory, I noticed something—the handwriting was pressed down so heavily it was almost aggressive.
‘Ah, he must have gritted his teeth while writing this out of sheer rage.’
Picturing Gerard’s trembling face filled me with an oddly satisfying sense of triumph.
‘Hehe. Fool.’
Mimosa, who had handed me the card, spoke to me.
“The Crown Prince’s aide will come to meet you tomorrow afternoon, it seems. He says there are matters for both of you to settle.”
‘He’s coming to take the cigarette case.’
I needed to make sure of something before that happened.
I asked Mimosa a question.
“It’s impossible to cancel an adoption withdrawal according to the regulations, correct?”
“That’s right, Anette.”
Mimosa opened the thick regulation book—the one containing the Forest’s rules—to the exact section and showed it to me.
[Once an adoptive parent withdraws their adoption intent, re-adoption is prohibited. (Exception: cases where the Tree requests re-adoption.)
This is to respect the rights of the Tree’s members.]
‘This rule exists because of thoughtless nobles who change their minds on a whim, so children won’t be hurt.’
For me, it was perfect.
Gerard would never be able to submit an adoption request for me again.
Mimosa asked with an expression of intense curiosity.
“How on earth did you convince the Crown Prince, Anette? He’s not someone who can be persuaded.”
“…Well.”
It wasn’t really persuasion.
I’d say it was eighty percent negotiation, fifteen percent coercion, and the remaining five percent was gambling, all mixed together.
I answered with a bright smile.
“I simply explained my thoughts to him step by step. Now, if you’ll excuse me, ma’am!”
I bowed to the woman whose expression was brimming with curiosity and left the room.
My footsteps felt remarkably light.
* * *
“Your sister is suspicious.”
Heinrich, with his arms crossed, spoke gravely.
Right now, the two boys were alone in the Incinerator.
It was Heinrich who had secretly coaxed Sisrain here, saying he had something to tell him. It was unusual—he normally wouldn’t make such a proposal. After all, they treated each other like dirt.
So Sisrain had already sensed that something significant had happened.
“Anette is suspicious? What do you mean?”
Sisrain’s expression sharpened the moment the name “Anette” was mentioned.
“Did she not tell you anything?”
“Explain yourself clearly.”
“Sister asked me something strange.”
Heinrich absently stroked his chin.
“She asked what I’d do if she got adopted. I’d never been asked something like that before. And didn’t she seem off during dinner earlier?”
She had seemed very off indeed.
Heinrich described it as if he’d witnessed something terrifying.
“You know how Sister always devours a cream bun within thirty seconds, right?”
“…That’s true.”
“But this time, she just sat there thinking about it without eating!”
Sisrain nodded with a grave expression.
Certainly, that was a significant change.
Anette refusing a cream bun might have meant something serious was happening.
“It is strange, I’ll admit.”
“Sister definitely has something troubling her. But it seems like she’s trying to handle it quietly on her own. That’s why I’m crafting a magical artifact to find out what it is and help her.”
Heinrich’s violet eyes gleamed with intrigue.
“….”
Sisrain regarded him with an expressionless gaze.
A magical artifact.
The “Fundamentals of Magical Artifacts” curriculum for eleven-year-olds was, quite literally, just fundamentals.
Magical artifacts were so difficult to create that even the Mage Tower’s resources were rarely sufficient, making them extraordinarily expensive.
‘Anything he makes will be crude.’
It wouldn’t be useful.
Unless he was an absolute genius, there was no way he could create something worthwhile after merely attending basic magical artifact instruction.
And as for whether this silver-haired buffoon before him happened to be a genius―
“Ah, this brilliant mind of mine.”
“….”
Heinrich, who had been posturing with his hand on his forehead, suddenly met Sisrain’s cold gaze.
“Why are you looking at me like that, you beast?! Stop with that look!”
Sisrain quietly shook his head before the hissing, foolish cat.
Then he spoke matter-of-factly.
“It would be wise to keep watch over Anette for now.”
“…I agree with that.”
The two reluctantly became a team.
Two boys who held each other in subtle contempt, yet formed a “temporary alliance” for Anette’s sake.
It was the moment when the shoddy bridge that Anette had designed actually functioned for the first time.
“Good. Do your part.”
“Fine! You do yours, beast.”
The flames in the Incinerator roared to life.
* * *
‘Hm? Why is my ear itching?’
Who are these bastards talking about me? Stop it, just stop…!
I rubbed my ears vigorously.
Tap, tap, tap!
It was then. I heard what sounded like a very faint tapping against the window.
“…?”
There’s no one else in this Warehouse but me?
Bewildered, I looked toward the window and gasped.
‘What in the world is that ferociously adorable creature?’
There was a small tuft of fur.
A baby squirrel wearing a red bow tie, with a fluffy tail and shiny black eyes.
Its front teeth jutted out in an endearingly cute way.
The squirrel tapped the window again with its front paws, which it held together politely like hands.
Tap, tap-tap!
“…Oh, did that tiny little paw just knock?”
Oh my goodness, I’m dying from the cuteness!!!
I rushed over and slid the window open.
The squirrel bounced through and produced a card from beneath the window that was nearly as large as its own body.
‘Is this some kind of messenger squirrel?’
As I accepted the card, the gentlemanly squirrel bowed respectfully with a dignified pose.
“Thank you, my small and adorable friend.”
The card bore an emblem with crossed magic guns, a skull, and a rose.
Which house could it be?
Which noble family uses such a charming squirrel as a messenger?
‘I’ve seen this emblem in class before.’
The magic guns in particular were used by the rough and cruel information brokers of the underworld, and very few nobles in the Empire used them.
There was only one house in the Empire that used these magic guns.
“House of Winston!”
Sure enough, beneath the family emblem was an elegant signature written in flowing script.
Bijae Winston
‘It seems good things are happening today.’
I received confirmation that I’d escaped from that insufferable prince at the Imperial Palace, and on top of that, I even received an invitation from my pure-hearted patron.
Excited to open the card, I hesitated.
‘Or maybe not.’
Come to think of it, extending an invitation might have been too much, so perhaps he cancelled it.
‘It might be an apology.’
In truth, I still couldn’t understand why my patron had sponsored me in the first place.
In my previous life, I was also from an orphanage, and no one ever wanted to adopt me.
An ordinary orphan girl with nothing special about her.
There was no adult who treated me kindly in my past life.
The orphanage I was in before, the Forest, received poor support and the director was a scoundrel who embezzled the government funds, so I was always hungry.
That’s why the baking lessons held once a week at the orphanage were my greatest joy.
That fragrant aroma of bread.
The scent of bread meant one thing: I wouldn’t go hungry today.
It was the smell of abundance and warmth.
So when I turned eighteen and left that place, I harbored a precious dream—to become a baker.
It was the dream of my lifetime.
Something I desperately wanted to achieve at least once.
Whenever I imagined opening a small bakery and sharing delicious bread with hungry people, my heart would grow warm.
As I stepped through the orphanage gates, what did I shout?
“Now it begins. My life.”
The moment those words left my lips, a drunk driver on a motorcycle struck me down, and I died instantly.
‘What a meaningless existence it was.’
My shoulders drooped slightly.
‘Strange. I can’t seem to find my courage.’
Suddenly, I was afraid to open the card.
“I could cancel it….”
Even if my sponsor withdrew the sponsorship and invitation, there was nothing I could do about it.
Such blind and honeyed kindness was likely to burst like a soap bubble at any moment.
In truth, I had already learned this lesson in my previous life.
“Sigh.”
I took a deep breath.
Then I retrieved an acorn from the warehouse and gave it to the grateful little squirrel.
Munch, munch, munch—
The messenger squirrel (?) from Marquis Winston’s Estate eagerly cracked open the acorn with its tiny paws.
Meanwhile, I piled soft straw atop a box in the warehouse, settled into the cozy spot, and opened the card.
‘No matter what it says, I won’t be disappointed.’
With that resolve, I read the contents.
「 Dear Anette,
We’ve finally finished preparing to invite you to the estate.
Would you come to our home at 11 in the morning, two days from now?
We’ve prepared plenty of food that we think you’ll enjoy.
I do hope it won’t be lacking, though I’m not entirely sure.
Every day, I’ve been planning this invitation while wondering what our dear girl might like.
Oh, and Kyle is looking forward to it greatly as well.
I asked him to keep it secret, but ever since the banquet where he met you, he’s been so excited he can barely sleep.
I’m the same way.
See you then.
― With affection, your sponsor. 」
It was warm, like a tender embrace.
Contrary to my expectations….
My anxiety and worry melted away like snow, yet strangely, my eyes kept welling up with tears, and I rubbed them roughly with the back of my hand.

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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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