The Rogue, Genius, Chaebol's Daughter is a Baby Master Detective! - Chapter 37

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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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The Delinquent, the Genius, and the Heiress’s Daughter Make a Baby Detective!
37
Haru’s mouth fell open. Siu turned away sharply, fidgeting with a block.
“And I never liked parties anyway. It’s not because of you or anything—”
The moment Siu turned his head to deny it, their eyes met, and he froze solid.
A lopsided grin crossed his face. It irritated her.
“I like that Haru isn’t alone. Heh.”
Stupid smile.
He turned away again, and the tips of his ears flushed crimson.
But not long after, Haru’s face fell once more.
“Hey, everyone—let’s play together!”
The moment Haru approached, her friends scattered like startled birds.
“Oh, I’m bored with this. Let’s play with the train set instead.”
“Yeah, me too.”
It wasn’t the first time. Nobody came near Haru unless Ho-jun or Siu were there.
At first she’d thought it strange, but now Haru understood. Her friends were avoiding her. During rest time, she overheard Seol-a speaking to the gathered children.
“Whoever plays with Haru is getting their birthday party invitation cancelled.”
“I’m never playing with her. My mom told me not to play with Haru too.”
“I like Seol-a way more than Haru!”
Seol-a smiled with satisfaction and pulled something from her backpack.
“Who wants to eat this? It’s candy that doesn’t sell in Korea. I brought it back from my trip.”
“Wow! I want some!”
“Me too!”
Haru pretended not to hear.
‘It’s fine. Haru has Ho-jun and Siu, so that’s enough.’
Haru’s steps were heavier than usual as she left the Kindergarten gate. She trudged along, clutching her Kindergarten Backpack straps in both hands, when a familiar voice called out.
“Haru.”
When Haru looked up, Lee Hyun-woo—sunglasses pushed up on his head—was leaning casually against a sports car, waving broadly.
“Dad’s here!”
“Yellow Hair Mister!”
Haru rushed over, and Lee Hyun-woo scooped her up, setting her into the rear-facing Car Seat in the open-top back.
“Did something happen?”
Haru shook her head vigorously and fastened the seatbelt with practiced efficiency.
“Really? You seem down.”
Lee Hyun-woo tilted his head to one side, his eyes narrowing. Haru didn’t answer, just fidgeted with the seatbelt.
Silence settled over them like a blanket.
With no questions coming, her tongue felt restless. Still fiddling with her fingers, Haru spoke in the smallest voice.
“Is Haru a bad little person?”
An answer came back immediately.
“Why? Did someone say Haru was bad?”
“They said Haru’s bad, so they won’t invite Haru to the party. But it’s okay!”
Haru laughed with forced brightness.
“Haru has lots of other friends! They said a magician was coming, but… I don’t need to see that!”
She heard a grinding sound from above. Haru looked up, but the mister was smiling as he always did.
‘Did I mishear?’
“…I’ll learn some magic tricks and show you instead.”
“Really?”
Haru’s eyes sparkled as her head shot up.
“Of course—Dad never lies.”
Lee Hyun-woo smiled and swung around to the driver’s seat.
“You know today’s the day you’re staying with me, right?”
“Huh? Black Hair Mister didn’t say anything about it.”
“That’s just how he is.”
Lee Hyun-woo shrugged and lowered his sunglasses. Then he suddenly turned to look at the back seat.
“By the way, what’s the name of the girl throwing the birthday party?”
Before Haru could answer, he waved it off.
“Never mind. So, shall we go?”
The car lurched forward with a whoosh.
Weaving through the busy streets and into a side alley, the car came to a stop in front of a large two-story house.
“Haru, this is finally our home!”
Lee Hyun-woo spread his arms wide open.
A banner reading “Welcome, Princess Haru” fluttered in the breeze above the entrance.
“Dad’s house has a slide, a ball pit, arcade games, and a swimming pool! It’s going to be so much fun, right?”
“Yes!”
As Haru nodded, Lee Hyun-woo pushed open the front door.
“Ta-da!”
Then he froze. A pair of large shoes sat in the entryway. Lee Hyun-woo’s head lifted slowly.
Someone lounged on the living room sofa—arms crossed, legs crossed, leaning back with languid ease.
“The black-haired mister?”
Haru kicked off her shoes and ran forward with quick, light steps.
“I’m home!”
Kang Tae-jun’s hand found the top of Haru’s head with practiced ease as she performed a belly button bow. Lee Hyun-woo’s face crumpled at once.
“What are you doing here?”
“That’s what I’d like to ask. You kidnap a child without saying a word?”
“Kidnap.”
Lee Hyun-woo blew his bangs out of his face.
“A month passed. I brought her back because of that. Is there a problem?”
“You can’t just take her without packing her things. Here, take this.”
Kang Tae-jun thrust a thick stack of papers at him.
“What is this?”
“Haru’s wake-up time, bedtime, meal plan, Successor Training progress chart—”
“Come on, raising a child isn’t about paperwork. It’s about love. Love!”
“Lack of planning ruins a child.”
“It’s not lack of planning—it’s all up here in my head. What Haru likes. Haru, what does Dad’s house have?”
“A slide! A swimming pool!”
Haru answered, her eyes sparkling.
“See? That’s parenting.”
Kang Tae-jun let out a scoff. Lee Hyun-woo, genuinely stung now, pressed on.
“So what about you? How did you raise Haru? What did you play with her?”
“Play with her?”
There hadn’t been time for play—only teaching, really.
“Exactly. Nothing to say, is there?”
Lee Hyun-woo cast his eyes over the luggage beside Kang Tae-jun.
“That’s all her things? She has no clothes besides her kindergarten uniform?”
Kang Tae-jun stiffened. He’d never thought about something so delicate. He’d been too preoccupied with premium meals and elite education.
“Haru.”
Lee Hyun-woo knelt down in front of her, bringing his eyes level with hers.
“Want to go shopping for clothes with Dad?”
“Clothes?”
“Yeah. Let’s go tear through the whole department store with Dad!”
He extended his hand, and Haru grasped his pinky finger tightly.
“Yes!”
“…I’m coming too.”
“You stay here and organize those documents.”
Lee Hyun-woo stuck out his tongue.
***
-This Saturday is Seol-a’s birthday party. All you mothers from Sprout Class will be coming, right?^^
A stream of confirmations appeared below the message. A satisfied smile settled on Seol-a’s Mother’s face.
She slipped her phone into her handbag and began shopping with a light step. She needed to choose an outfit for the party.
As she crossed through the Luxury Boutique, she spotted someone whose presence seemed to pull all eyes like a black hole.
“Oh my….”
Her pace slowed. The uncommon shade of the back of his head had caught her attention.
“I feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before.”
As curiosity quickened her steps, a woman approaching from the opposite direction spoke to him first.
“Lee Hyun-woo? What are you doing here?”
Seol-a’s Mother had already walked to an angle where she could see both their faces.
The man pushed his sunglasses up onto his head. In the moment his face was revealed, the air around him seemed to brighten with an almost dreamlike glow.
‘Is he a celebrity I saw on TV…?’
The man’s face crumpled immediately. He ignored the woman and turned away, wrapping his body protectively around the child.
“Haru, if a scary lady like that tries to talk to you, you run away right away and call Dad, okay? You understand?”
“Dad? Hey, did you cause an accident?”
The woman grabbed the man’s shoulder.
Only then did Seol-a’s Mother’s eyes widen in recognition.
“…Lee Hyun-a?”
The pinnacle of Hannam-dong’s high society—someone Seol-a’s Mother had wanted to befriend for years but had never even managed to exchange business cards with. The eldest daughter of Dae-guk Ilbo.
‘What’s the connection between them? And this child…? Did he cause an accident?’
Seol-a’s Mother’s gaze fixed on the child. She could only see the back, but the twin pigtails poking out from under the hat were endearing.
“Hello, sir.”
When the child performed a belly button bow, Lee Hyun-a’s feral expression softened slightly.
“There’s no way such a cute child is yours. Did you kidnap her?”
“What are you talking about? Just pretend you don’t know anything and move on like always.”
“You don’t hold back with your sister, do you? Huh?”
“Damn it.”
“Mister said a bad word.”
“No, I didn’t. It’s Haru. Dad doesn’t use bad words. You just heard it wrong.”
Lee Hyun-a knelt down in front of the child. She rested her forearms on her knees and stared intently at Haru’s face for a long moment, then turned and grabbed Lee Hyun-woo by the collar, jerking him down.
“Oof.”
“You look exactly like you did when you were little!”
Lee Hyun-woo’s face went slack with surprise.
“Wait? I look like I did when I was little?”
Lee Hyun-a released his collar with a look of disgust.

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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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