The Youngest Daughter of the Snake Family - Chapter 4

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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 4
* * *
The next day, she appeared with a doll slightly larger than my body.
It was a garishly colored Snake Doll.
Surely not.
“Look here, little one. This is your prey.”
“……Chirp?”
Even if it was just a doll……
That was unmistakably a snake. She couldn’t possibly think I was capable of hunting one, could she?
To begin with, since I’m not a bird of prey, I could live perfectly well on fruit and seeds alone.
And besides—isn’t a snake part of Rosaria’s own clan?
I felt utterly bewildered.
There seemed to be problems on multiple fronts, but Rosaria appeared unconcerned.
“I’ll leave a bit of my pheromone on it.”
“Chirp.”
“Please remember this scent.”
Rosaria brought her wrist close so I could perceive her pheromone.
Her scent wasn’t quite as potent as the House Master’s, but it carried an unmistakably dangerous edge.
It had that quality of wanting to sink fangs into the back of my neck.
What was strange was that I didn’t feel directly threatened by her.
What was that about?
I tilted my head. It seemed I already recognized something similar, though not quite identical.
It must be my imagination.
“Chirp!”
“As expected, you’re a clever one. Now that you’ve memorized it, I’ll go hide it.”
“Chirp!”
I nodded in agreement.
Whether I’d actually be able to find it once hidden was questionable, but given such effort, I couldn’t simply refuse.
Rosaria returned after quite some time.
“My apologies, little one. It took a while to find a suitable spot.”
Had she hidden it somewhere terribly far away?
“Shall we go look for it?”
“Chirp!”
“Take your time sensing the pheromone. Mastering this will make Humanization much easier for you later.”
“Chirp!”
Humanization!
At a word that made my ears perk up, I focused my attention entirely.
Where had she hidden it?
If she’d hidden it too far away, I might not be able to find it.
“Chirp!”
I lifted my head abruptly as I caught a faint pheromone drifting on the breeze.
My small feet, which had been still, began moving eagerly.
It seemed to be somewhere around here.
I walked forward while glancing back. Fortunately, Rosaria was following me.
Reassured by her presence, I quickened my pace. After walking for several minutes—
“Chirp!”
The garishly colored doll appeared between the bushes.
Found it!
I spread my wings wide and seized the doll with my beak in one swift motion.
Take that! Take that! Take that!
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Truth be told, I had no idea if I was doing this correctly.
I’d simply recalled the way I’d watched from over someone’s shoulder long ago and decided to strike at the neck first.
While holding the doll in my beak, I thrashed it about violently, when suddenly I heard cheerful applause from somewhere.
Clap, clap, clap!
“……Chirp?”
Still holding the doll in my beak, I tilted my head and looked toward the sound.
There stood the House Master and Baon, both watching intently.
Baon, who had been applauding with exaggerated enthusiasm, trembled with barely suppressed laughter.
“Well, I’ll be…… Heh.”
“…….”
“You’re quite the ferocious hunter.”
“…….”
“It’s enough to make my knees buckle with fear.”
I dropped the doll I’d been holding.
What do I do. It’s the House Master.
I wished Rosaria would hurry and come save me.
He’d seemed to be following behind me, but now I couldn’t see him anywhere.
The House Master was still watching me with an unreadable expression.
He almost seemed curious about something.
What on earth could he find curious?
The House Master, who had been observing from a few paces away, called out to me.
“You.”
“Chirp?”
“Your eyes are red.”
“……Chirp?”
What was his point?
The House Master couldn’t tear his gaze away from me.
Those crimson eyes, scanning me up and down, held a glimmer of astonishment.
“Is such a thing even possible, Baon?”
“Indeed, it is. This is the first time I’ve witnessed such a situation myself.”
Baon adjusted his Silver-Rimmed Glasses and let out a brief exclamation of wonder.
Sharp eyes, concealed behind the lenses, fixed themselves upon me.
Unnerved by the caution he’d kept hidden until now, I called out to him.
“Chirp-chirp?”
“It seems such things do actually occur. I’ve only heard tales of it, never imagining I’d witness it with my own eyes.”
“For a mere bird, you certainly do inherit all your inherent traits.”
The House Master swept his cool gaze across me, then turned his head toward the colorful Snake Doll.
“Rosaria’s pheromone.”
“It seems Rosaria was teaching her to hunt.”
“Teaching her to hunt?”
“Young ones must be taught every last detail from the beginning.”
“Our Clan wouldn’t need such things.”
“But the young master is different, is she not?”
“How bothersome.”
It was a terse exchange, ending neatly with “How bothersome.”
Though the atmosphere had grown lighter with such a trivial matter, I found myself spiraling in the opposite direction—into alarm.
Good heavens.
The House Master had moved beyond merely disliking me; now he found me tedious.
I stepped backward carefully, assessing my surroundings.
Where had Rosaria gone?
If I got caught and thrown out, what would happen then? A single word from the House Master would end everything.
As I stood there stamping my feet anxiously, Baon, with remarkable lack of tact, waved cheerfully.
“It’s been a while. In all this time…….”
“…….”
“You haven’t grown at all.”
Usually, people say you’ve grown, even as a hollow courtesy, don’t they?
Without thinking, I glared. Baon laughed good-naturedly.
Already anticipating my reaction, he continued with casual composure, utterly unbothered by my expression.
“You’re looking for Rosaria, then.”
“……Chirp.”
I nodded reluctantly. It absolutely wasn’t that my feelings were hurt because he said I hadn’t grown.
“She’s probably watching from somewhere nearby. When hunting, it’s standard practice to keep watch from a distance.”
If that were so, then she would have seen me meet the House Master.
It seemed Rosaria had no intention of showing herself.
After wrestling with how to navigate this situation, I steeled myself and stepped forward to face the House Master.
My sudden movement caused the House Master’s eyebrows to rise.
“Chirp.”
I fetched the colorful Snake Doll I’d been holding moments before and offered it to him.
“Hmm?”
“…What are you doing?”
The House Master’s expression pinched with displeasure.
Oh no. He doesn’t seem to like it. This is the only thing I have to give him right now.
“It appears to be a hunted offering, sir.”
“What?”
“A gift, I would say.”
“Chirp!”
I immediately chirped in agreement. I nudged the doll toward him with my wing insistently, and his expression turned peculiar.
There was some soil clinging to it, but that would brush away easily enough.
“Chirp-chirp!”
“It seems he’s urging you to accept it, sir.”
“Ha.”
When I nodded in affirmation at Baon’s words, the House Master’s face grew strange.
As though he’d heard something he shouldn’t have.
* * *
“Young Master!”
“Chirp-chirp-tweet!”
I was trudging along alone, having found nothing, when I heard Rosaria calling from far away.
My head snapped up at once.
Where had she been? I’d searched everywhere!
The sorrow I’d been holding back erupted, and I ran toward her crying frantically—and Rosaria laughed with an awkward expression.
Clearly, she hadn’t foreseen things unfolding quite this way.
Rosaria knelt down and extended her hand to me, her face full of apology.
“Did our young master get a terrible fright?”
“Chirp!”
“Oh, you’ve gotten so much dirt on you.”
Had I wandered about that recklessly?
The white feathers that had been pristine this morning were now dingy with soil.
Rosaria carefully brushed away the clumps of earth clinging to my plumage and straightened up.
I settled onto her palm in a comfortable position for travel. I’d done this several times already, so it wasn’t difficult.
I plopped down on my rump, and Rosaria’s face fell as she apologized.
“I’m so sorry, young master. This wasn’t how I meant for things to go. If only the House Master and Baon hadn’t come out just then……”
“Chirp-chirp.”
I squeezed her hand to reassure her that it was all right.
How could I blame her for running into those two? The House Master had simply been walking through his own home.
“Still, you found the hidden doll so skillfully!”
“Tweet!”
I puffed out my chest with pride.
Despite being a baby bird still clumsy at detecting pheromones, I’d located my target without hesitation on the first try.
Rosaria looked at me with admiration, then furrowed her brow.
“Though I never expected the House Master to actually take the doll.”
That was the truly baffling part. Remarkably, the House Master had accepted the doll I offered without objection.
I’d thought he’d refuse, given his strange expression, but he’d actually taken it—which was extraordinary.
And he’d said nothing at all.
I’d worried he might scold me again for wandering about freely, as he had in the corridor.
“Today’s lesson was absolutely perfect, young master. You found the doll and handled the crisis beautifully.”
“Chirp!”
“Once we’re back, I’ll give you a bubble bath. I found one that’s safe for you to use too.”
Bubbles!
I couldn’t contain my excitement.

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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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