The Villainess in the Childcare Story Doesn’t Hide Her Personality - 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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“Are you Vice Director Harrington?”
It was common for provincial lords to requisition Imperial Bureaucracy officials who came to enjoy their vacations.
Of course, now that I held the rank of Vice Director rather than a mere clerk, they couldn’t force me, but I despised being entangled in tedious affairs.
‘I’ll feign ignorance as much as possible.’
I answered dryly without lifting my gaze.
“You’ve mistaken me for someone else.”
“I know you’re the Vice Director.”
What’s this?
Was there something significant enough to summon the Vice Director of the Child Protection Bureau?
Reluctantly, I lifted my head to find a soldier in a sharply tailored uniform regarding me with an expressionless face.
‘I didn’t anticipate this.’
A soldier, not a minor nobleman?
That changes matters considerably.
‘He can’t be a Grand Duke.’
Imperial law strictly forbade maintaining private armies. Of course, the Grand Duchy was an autonomous territory and possessed its own military, but those soldiers could never venture beyond the Northern Territory in their official capacity.
Naturally, provincial lords were equally restricted.
The one who summoned me was undoubtedly a high-ranking officer of the Imperial Army.
“Please follow me. The Commander is waiting.”
I remained seated.
“First, identify which unit you belong to.”
“I cannot disclose that.”
“Then I’m not going.”
“If you continue to refuse, I’ll have no choice but to place you under arrest.”
I let out a derisive laugh.
This man’s “Commander” was at best my equal in rank, or possibly even lower.
“By what authority?”
“….”
Instead of answering, the soldier withdrew a document from his pocket and showed it to me.
‘Insane.’
My body went rigid. I recognized this handwriting.
That bizarre, intricate script no one dared forge, for the penalty was death itself.
It was an unlimited arrest warrant bearing the Emperor’s own signature.
In theory, such authority could even apprehend high nobility.
What chance did a commoner like me have?
I rose from my seat.
Examining the soldier more carefully, I noticed he bore no rank insignia, yet his elevated position was unmistakable.
And this man’s “Commander”….
I pressed my lips together.
‘…It must be the Commander-in-Chief.’
Only someone of that rank would be granted unlimited arrest authority.
‘What on earth could this be about… Wait.’
A thought struck me, and my blood ran cold.
Could Grand Duke Cardicha’s plans have been exposed, and was I now being accused of treason simply because I’d recently grown acquainted with him?
My head began to spin, but the soldier gave me no time to think further.
“I’ve been ordered to escort you respectfully, Vice Director Harrington.”
“….”
Faced with what amounted to a veiled threat, I followed him in silence.
The soldier placed me in a carriage that had been waiting, and after dozens of minutes of travel, we stopped before an unremarkable Inn.
The one who greeted me in the empty Inn was….
“It’s been a while, Tessa.”
So this is what it feels like to have your eyes nearly pop from your head.
I stood speechless, simply staring at the figure before me.
Beneath military-short black hair lay eyes gleaming amber, a prominent nose that commanded presence, and sharp, refined jawline.
This man exuded an intense impression while somehow radiating a languid aura—like a sleek black panther with lustrous fur, utterly captivating.
His identity was Cain Inkaris, Commander-in-Chief of the Empire.
And why was someone like him pretending to know me?
Well, Cain had been my classmate at the Academy.
After I graduated first, we’d never exchanged a single word!
“I’m sorry for summoning you this way. I can’t let it be known that I’m here.”
“…Are you in your right mind, Cain?”
I finally gathered myself enough to speak.
“Coercing someone and dragging them here—have you become the very materialist you used to despise just from sitting in the Commander-in-Chief’s seat for a while?”
Cain didn’t even blink.
“Your personality hasn’t changed one bit. Though it seems you’re doing better than expected? Vice Director, no less. You’ve risen quite far.”
“….”
I didn’t tell him that it was essentially a demotion.
Cain Inkaris resembled a great white shark.
If I revealed any weakness, he’d tear into it.
“As you can see, I’m doing quite well.”
“I’m relieved.”
Cain tilted his head slightly.
“I worried about you a lot. After we parted ways like that….”
To be clear, Cain was absolutely not my ex-boyfriend or anything of the sort.
We’d simply grown close for a time, then naturally drifted apart.
Still, his words were more than enough to cause misunderstanding to anyone listening.
‘Thank goodness there’s no one here who knows me.’
…Though my subordinates’ eyes had widened, the military and Imperial Bureaucracy rarely mingled, so it should be fine.
“I’m busy, so just tell me what you need.”
“You don’t look busy at all.”
“Compared to you, nothing could be considered busy.”
And nothing makes me more eager than reading an engaging mystery novel.
Especially when the culprit’s about to be revealed any moment now.
Fortunately, Cain Inkaris got straight to the point.
“I need a successor, Tessa. Can you recommend someone suitable?”
…Is this bastard out of his mind?
And why the hell is he asking me?
If he’d been any other nobleman, I would’ve thought twice, three times before opening my mouth.
But the person in question was Cain Inkaris.
There was no need to guard my tongue.
I twisted my lips and shot back immediately.
“Why are you asking me?”
If you want to adopt someone, the logical thing would be to visit an orphanage.
If you want to take on an exceptional talent as your successor, you’d go to the Academy and pick someone out.
Cain rejected both methods as if he’d read my thoughts.
“I can’t go flipping through every orphanage in the Capital. If I went to the Academy, it’d cause a massive uproar. So I figured asking you for help would be the best approach.”
Then he added one more thing.
“You’re Vice Director of the Child Protection Bureau, aren’t you?”
What does that have to do with recommending a successor?
And this bastard knows full well that I was demoted!
I refused flatly.
“No. I don’t have anyone to recommend.”
“Please, Tessa….”
Look at him dragging out his words like that.
I pressed my forehead.
“Why do you suddenly need a successor? At your young age. You could have children and raise them, and you’d still have more than enough time to develop a proper successor.”
Surprisingly, the Commander-in-Chief of the Empire was a hereditary position.
Otherwise, there’s no way Cain could’ve become Commander-in-Chief at such a young age.
The actual work was handled by the Army Commander and Navy Commander, while the Commander-in-Chief served as a kind of figurehead to show off his handsome face—something only possible because of this arrangement.
Of course, it would be problematic if he had no talent whatsoever.
And regardless of how much I disliked Cain Inkaris, his talents were exceptional enough that rumors of him holding real power as Commander-in-Chief had even reached the distant Ministry of Finance.
“…That’s exactly the problem.”
Cain let out a sigh.
“Both my father and mother keep pressuring me to get married.”
Oh.
My brow furrowed involuntarily.
Cain’s parents….
They were certainly capable, but they were far from ideal in-laws.
“Even though I told them I don’t have anyone in particular, they keep saying I need to marry for the sake of succession. If I bring in a successor, the marriage talk will die down, and the problem will be solved.”
So he wants to raise a child just to avoid getting married?
That’s completely insane.
“You’re going to raise a child for that reason?”
“Yes.”
Cain Inkaris nodded.
“Is that not acceptable? Or would you marry me instead, Tessa? I’d be fine with that.”
Hey, I’m not fine with it!

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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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