The Oracle of the Villainous Baby - Chapter 55
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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 55
“Chirp?”
“Mm. All done.”
The Heugyeomryong perched atop Bunny’s prone head let out a soft cry before tumbling down onto the pillow with a gentle bounce.
“Bunny sleep too.”
I slipped beneath the blankets, laid Toto beside me, and pulled Ma-Gom close before closing my eyes.
I’d practiced sleeping alone countless times, so nights no longer frightened or terrified me.
‘Back then, I was just a teensy bit scared…’
Regardless, I was becoming a splendid adult now, so there was nothing to fear anymore.
“Sleep well, Toto. Ma-Gom. Heugyeomryong.”
“Chirp!”
Buried up to my neck in the blankets, I closed my eyes.
Then I lifted my hand and gently smoothed the hair that so many people had petted today. Human hands were so warm.
‘What a wonderful day!’
So today had been joyful and delightful for me.
‘Bunny, win first place tomorrow and get praised by Father.’
Surely everyone would gape in awe at me and recognize my greatness.
‘The true protagonist always appears at the moment of crisis, after all.’
The Heugyeomryong would unleash tremendous power in dangerous moments too.
Hehe.
After kicking my legs a couple of times, I drifted off into peaceful slumber.
* * *
And the next day.
The long-awaited ranking tournament.
I took the stage confidently as Competitor Number One.
“Go, Heugyeomryong!!”
“Chirp!!”
With a confident expression and one hand planted firmly on my hip, I pointed at my opponent with my index finger and issued a resounding command—the Heugyeomryong
—a small bird—
shot forward like an arrow,
and with a thud,
tumbled end over end.
It collided directly with the sacred beast summoned by my young opponent and crashed to the ground in a heap.
“….”
“….”
“….”
Hundreds of spectators—from the Branch Families to the servants—fell into simultaneous silence.
“Heugyeomryoooong!!”
“Chirp chirp….”
I rushed to the dying cry of the Heugyeomryong, scooped it into my arms, and screamed.
“Oh… um, sorry.”
“Huh?!”
The boy opposite scratched the back of his head with an awkward expression, glancing briefly at Bunny and her surroundings.
Then he suddenly grabbed Bunny by the scruff of her neck as she clung to the Heugyeomryong on the ground, dangled her for a moment, and tossed her right out of the Training Arena.
“…Ah. B-Bunny, Young Lady, out of bounds! Gladys, victory!”
Before the referee could even finish his flustered announcement, Kiriel descended from the Upper Seat, quietly cradled Bunny in his arms, and returned to his seat.
“…Sniff.”
A bitter, bone-aching, and glorious defeat
—or so Bunny thought—
it was.
“Daddy! Bunny, I didn’t even get to show what I could do…. Waaah….”
Bunny nearly sobbed, clinging to Kiriel’s leg and burying her face against it as tears began to flow.
Luri said Bunny always picked big ones! Luri is a liar….
“Whimper….”
I practiced every single day.
Now I could even drop the Heu-Gyeom Dragon and apples!
First place was just too much.
Kiriel’s eyes trembled faintly as he gazed down at Bunny, whose sorrowful cries had erupted.
He deliberately opened his mouth with an expressionless face, speaking calmly.
“It’s because our daughter is still young.”
“Bunny’s not a baby….”
Waaah.
More alarmed by the endless stream of tears from the child’s eyes than by the snot and tears smearing his leg, Kiriel hastily reached out.
‘What if she dies of dehydration like this.’
One doesn’t actually die of dehydration from shedding tears, but Kiriel, new to fatherhood, had no way of knowing this fact. He only knew that small children were fragile.
“Would you like some pudding? Or maybe some choco… no, some chocolate? Of course, there are chocolate cookies too, and candy or juice as well.”
Having already foreseen Bunny’s defeat and following Lebon’s advice, Kiriel spoke rapidly, having prepared numerous items.
Lebon, standing nearby, placed various things on the Dining Table set beside the chair.
“Bunny’s not a baby….”
“Do you like juice?”
“Apple juice…?”
“Of course, Young Lady.”
Lebon filled a cup with apple juice and personally placed it in Bunny’s hands.
Bunny put the straw in her mouth and sipped the apple juice with a slurp.
“This is it, life is bitter.”
As Bunny let out a heavy sigh and sucked on the apple juice with a slurping sound, both Lebon and Kiriel’s bodies jolted once. Simultaneously, a small sound erupted from somewhere in the Upper Seat.
“…Pfft. Ahem.”
“Hmm?”
When Bunny turned her head, a dark-skinned man was laughing loudly.
‘Bunny, I know this person.’
Because Bunny was a genius who remembered everything she saw just once.
Surely….
“Klein Yudia!”
Bunny pointed at the man with her finger and spoke.
The man, who had been hunching his shoulders with his head bowed, lifted his gaze and let out a smirk.
“Oh, you know me?”
“Yes. When the Heu-Gyeom Dragon was summoned, I went with Father. And… Kalbad’s father, the one who said mean things to Bunny!”
As Bunny nodded her head and cried out with emphasis, Klein’s eyes widened before he burst into quiet laughter.
“Did that brat Kalbad say something mean to you?”
“Yes. To Allen too.”
“Ah, forgive him. That fool thinks he’s something special just because he summoned one Divine Beast. Can’t even manage his own affairs, yet he struts about so recklessly. He’s been nothing but a headache. I never raised him to be like this.”
Klein rubbed his temples lightly with his thumb as he spoke, his expression creased with frustration. At that troubled look, Bunny’s head tilted slightly.
“I’ll give him a proper scolding later.”
Bunny, who had been gazing intently at Klein, nodded. As long as he didn’t say mean things, she didn’t mind.
“Now, the next match is…!”
Watching the referee shout, Bunny fixed her gaze steadily on the Training Arena. She could see children much larger than herself stepping forward, clashing with Divine Beasts and sacred relics.
Unlike Bunny, they fought for an incredibly long time.
“Father.”
“Yes.”
“Will Father become a king?”
“Perhaps.”
“When will Bunny become a king?”
At Bunny’s question, Kiriel Yudia faltered, then gently lowered his gaze to look at the child and softly stroked her head.
“I suppose you’ll need to grow a bit more first.”
“Bunny wants to become a king soon and grow into a wonderful adult.”
“Why?”
Watching the children of the Mansion of Trials battling alongside their gleaming Divine Beasts, Bunny blinked quietly at Kiriel’s question.
“Then Bunny can do everything well alone and won’t be a burden. And I can save lots and lots of money… and make people who like Bunny.”
At Bunny’s calm, subdued voice, Kiriel quietly stroked the child’s hair.
He was not unaware that this child, barely five years old, had already lived a life of considerable hardship, but hearing her speak like this never failed to weigh on his heart.
“Even if you don’t become a powerful king, there are many people who care for you.”
Despite his expressionless face that seemed endlessly stoic, sincerity resonated in Kiriel’s voice.
Bunny understood that. Those who lied and those who didn’t were different.
‘But Bunny isn’t human….’
Humans would eventually come to hate Bunny.
Father, Grandfather, Allen—all of them.
Everyone.
Father hated the Demon Clan, and Bunny was of the Demon Clan. One who would become the Demon King.
So if she followed Luriel’s words and melted everyone’s hearts beforehand, securing them in advance, perhaps when Bunny became an incredibly powerful Demon King later, they wouldn’t come to hate her.
Bunny nodded instead of answering. Because this was something she could never tell anyone.
I made a firm promise with Luriel: we would never reveal that Bunny was a Demon Clan Member.
Even if that fact were exposed… we had to conceal that she was destined to become the future Demon King, the great ruler of the Demon Clan.
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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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