The Youngest Daughter of the Snake Family - Chapter 14

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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 14
I was certain of it: Sete didn’t like me.
I told myself it was only natural since I wasn’t the same kind of snake as he was, but disappointment gnawed at me all the same.
I curled my body inward.
I knew not everyone could welcome me, that it was unavoidable, yet my heart refused the logic.
I hid the Colored Paper I’d meant to give as a gift behind my back.
“Don’t be too disheartened. You and Sete can become friends,” Rozaria said gently.
“Cheep, cheep, cheep.”
“You want to be friends with me?” Sete tilted his head with an expressionless face. I poked my head forward slightly.
If he said yes, would he take this?
The half-folded butterfly was crumpled and creased. But it was all I had.
“Strange creature. A bird unafraid of me—how peculiar.”
“That’s precisely what makes you charming,” Rozaria offered.
“Everyone else runs away trembling.”
Sete stepped closer and extended his palm. Cautiously, I handed him the Colored Paper.
“Since you’re giving it, I’ll take it for now.”
“……Chirp.”
“But I don’t welcome you. I’d prefer you didn’t catch my eye in the future. That is, if you wish to keep living.”
As the mood turned ominous, Rozaria’s expression hardened.
“Young master, if you continue in that vein, I’ll have no choice but to report this to the head of the household. Please show restraint.”
“Ah, right. I suppose I should stop here then. Father finding out would be troublesome.”
An arrogant smile—so like Kaid’s—played at the corners of Sete’s mouth.
I watched him from within Rozaria’s arms.
As Sete turned to leave, he cast his gaze down to my legs and spoke in a tone of disdain.
“I smelled blood earlier. Looks like you scraped yourself when you fell.”
At his words, Rozaria examined my legs.
I hadn’t fallen hard, so it was only a tiny abrasion, yet her face went deathly pale.
“Where did you get hurt? Did this happen when you fell earlier?”
“Chirp.”
For some reason, the pain bloomed anew, belatedly throbbing. Perhaps my anxiety had been holding it back.
It stings, Rozaria. Please, help me.
Sete, watching me receive care, furrowed his brow.
“So a sibling like you is unnecessary after all. Injured by a mere fall—you’re pathetically frail.”
With those words, I became a weak, helpless chick.
* * *
The outing ended there.
Back in my room, I washed briefly, then Rozaria applied medicine to my leg and carefully applied a Bandage.
Though only a short time had passed, it felt as though eons had elapsed. I lay on the bed and hugged my pillow.
“Chirp……. Chirp, chirp.”
My voice came out low and subdued, still hurt.
“Are you still quite upset?” Rozaria asked, gently stroking my head as I lay there.
I nodded slowly.
The weight of that first, intense meeting in the Garden lingered, refusing to fade.
I lay staring at the ceiling, blinking listlessly.
Despite the afternoon rest hour, sleep would not come.
“Why can’t you drift off? Shall I close the curtains for you?”
“Chirp, chirp.”
I shook my head. Darkness wouldn’t bring sleep.
For some reason, every nerve in my body felt unnaturally heightened.
Perhaps Sete’s Pheromone had affected me.
Even Rozaria’s slightest movement made me tense with awareness.
I whimpered and tossed restlessly.
“Airin?”
When I suddenly made a sound of distress, Rozaria called my name.
But I didn’t answer, burrowing instead beneath the blankets.
“Chirp……. Chirp, chirp.”
My heartbeat had quickened for reasons I couldn’t fathom.
Why was this happening?

I was tilting my head in confusion when Rozaria lifted the blanket with a worried expression.
“Is there something uncomfortable, Airin?”
“Chirp…….”
That wasn’t quite it.
I fussed with my fluffy feathers, and a strange, cottony sensation seemed to spread through my entire body.
Feeling as though I needed to find a comfortable position quickly, I drew the blanket tighter around myself.
As I rolled about and shifted restlessly, Rozaria patted my back gently.
“Shall I sing you a lullaby?”
“Chirp.”
“Please fall asleep soon, Airin. The stars and the moon are already sleeping.”
“Chirp-chirp.”
Rozaria drew the blanket up to my chest.
Wrapped in that cozy warmth, my eyes—which had been alert just moments before—grew heavy and began to close.
I forced them open with effort, but they fell shut again beneath her soothing touch.
I whimpered and rubbed my head against her hand.
“Why won’t you fall asleep tonight? Is it because of what just happened? It’s time for sleep.”
“Chirp-chirp-chirp-chirp.”
“Yes.”
“Chirp-chirp-chirp…….”
Under the steady rhythm of her patting, my consciousness slowly began to drift away.
* * *
Deep into the night, when everyone had begun to sleep.
Rozaria checked Airin’s condition with growing concern.
Airin remained asleep, not waking all day long.
Rozaria, who had prepared meals at the usual times, paced the floor restlessly.
“Why is she sleeping so long? She should eat dinner too.”
If she simply slept soundly through the night, that would be fine, but if she happened to wake in the early hours, her sleep schedule could be completely reversed.
Wanting to avoid such a situation, Rozaria fell into deep thought.
Should she wake her now?
“Perhaps she’s been exhausted. ……Maybe I should seek out Hestia.”
But what if Airin woke while she was gone?
While she wouldn’t do anything dangerous on her own, she might become frightened if she realized she was alone at night.
If she tried to leave the bed during Rozaria’s absence, it could be serious.
Airin still could not fly.
In truth, this was unexpected.
Usually, as a tail begins to grow, interest in Flight appears as well, but Airin’s growth seemed slightly slower.
There were environmental factors at play.
Had she had her original guardian, Airin might have grown more quickly.
“……She must grow without any problems.”
It was said that occasionally, young Therianthropes fail to develop properly and remain in their animal form.
Since she had already experienced growth pains from her First Awakening, there was no question she would humanize, yet Rozaria remained inwardly uneasy.
Even minor symptoms could affect her development.
The growth process of the Bird Clan was not widely known.
Each clan kept their development secret, and since the Bird Clan’s territory was mainly the sky, there were few opportunities to encounter them.
“Sigh……. If I’d known this would happen, I should have built a better relationship with them at the border.”
Remembering the Bird Clan guarding the Eastern Border, she exhaled with regret.
Had she done so, she might have been able to seek their help.
Rozaria gazed down at Airin, sleeping obliviously.
Airin, who never slept all day, lay motionless in slumber.
What if this was a warning sign related to her Second Awakening?
No unusual symptom appearing before growth should be dismissed lightly.
Rozaria’s brow furrowed.
“I can’t leave this alone. I must seek out Hestia.”
She rose from where she had been sitting.
As she grasped the door handle to leave the room, Rozaria turned back and spoke.
“……I’ll be back soon, Airin.”
Rozaria carefully opened the door and stepped out, her footsteps silent.
Moments later, Airin’s eyes—still asleep—began to flutter.
“Chirp, chirp-chirp…….”
Her small body trembled as though her wings were searching for a place of safety.
Soon enough, he began drawing his body beneath the quilt, seeking its shelter.
The corner of the quilt where Airin had slipped in rose up in a small but distinct bulge.
Through the narrow gap in the quilted folds, Airin remained asleep, her breathing steady and measured—deep, soft sighs escaping her lips.
The body that had been curled tight moments before began to relax, unfurling as though it had never known tension at all.
The quilt allowed only the smallest of breath-holes to remain open, just enough to draw air through.
And then it came—that moment.
A delicate pheromone rose from around her small, pale form, drifting upward in soft, billowing wisps.
It was a scent so sweetly rich it tickled at the tip of his nose.
It hovered close to Airin, circling without departing, lingering as a faithful guard—until her eyes opened, until morning broke the night.

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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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