The Youngest Daughter of the Snake Family - Chapter 9

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 9
I was startled. That place was every Suyin’s dream domain.
Especially in the ruined east, it was rumored to be a paradise.
It was famous for its beauty and tranquility.
But I’d heard it was one of those territories that powerful clans coveted so fiercely, no one dared touch it carelessly.
Could he possibly have acquired it now?
Recalling when the Household Master had visited my room not long ago, it hadn’t even been a full week.
I blinked in disbelief.
“Heh, with the Household Master taking action, there’s nothing more reassuring than that.”
“……But why this sudden interest in that land? You weren’t interested in it before.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Even as Jeras spoke as if he didn’t know, his expression suggested he understood something, and he looked at me sideways.
Why was he suddenly looking at me like that?
As I tilted my head in confusion, my stomach suddenly rumbled.
I was starting to get hungry.
As I glanced hesitantly toward the lunch box, Rosaria came to my side with a soft exclamation.
“Shall we have lunch now, Airin?”
“Chirp.”
“I’ll feed you.”
“It seems you wish to dine. Then I shall take my leave — there are still matters that require my attention. Please, enjoy your time.”
“Chirp-chirp.”
As Jeras bowed and rose to leave, I waved my wing to bid him farewell.
With his departure, I could finally settle in to eat without worry.
After I fastened a small triangular handkerchief around my neck and prepared myself, Rosaria began placing food into my beak.
As I pecked at the meal, a question suddenly arose in my mind. When would I be capable of Humanization?
“Would you care for some more?”
“Chirp.”
I wished I could grow larger soon.
Then Rosaria wouldn’t have to inconvenience herself feeding me each time, nor would she need to look after me in all these little ways.
I felt a pang of guilt and looked at Rosaria.
“Is something wrong, Airin?”
“Chirp-chirp-chirp-chirp. Chirp-chirp.”
I wanted to tell her thank you, but there was no proper way to convey it.
This added yet another reason to the growing list of why I needed to achieve Humanization as soon as possible.
Rosaria smiled warmly and blew gently on the baby food.
As I happily received each spoonful, the sound of grass being trodden reached my ears.
“So here you were. I was wondering where you’d gone.”
“Chirp?”
“Welcome back, Household Master.”
Rosaria shifted her posture and bowed.
Following her lead, I folded my wings and bowed my head respectfully, but my small body tipped forward.
Ah, so I still can’t manage a proper bow.
Staring anxiously as the ground approached, I suddenly found myself dangling in the air.
“Chirp?”
“You still don’t know how to control your own body, do you?”
“Well, she’s still very young.”
“I thought she was born quite some time ago.”
“It’s only been three weeks now.”
That’s right. I’m only three weeks old!
As I nodded my head up and down in agreement, the Household Master chuckled.
“Yes. You still have quite a long way to grow.”
“……Chirp.”
“A boat outing would take even longer still.”
A boat outing?
I lifted my head sharply to make sure I’d heard correctly.
Did he just suggest a boat outing?
“Ah, summer is approaching soon, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
“So that’s why you cleared all the way to the Beneah River! Certainly, that region is famous for its scenery. But didn’t you say expanding territories was bothersome?”
“There’s no harm in holding one or two more territories.”
It didn’t seem like I’d misheard after all.
Putting it together: the Household Master was returning to the Manor after pacifying the area, and now he was suggesting we visit there sometime later.
Was it really that easy?
As I stared blankly at the Household Master, he reached over and tapped my beak.
“That’s yours now.”
“…Chirp?”
He was giving me what? I felt like I’d just heard something enormous.
My mind went blank.
Rosaria clapped her hands together with delight.
“How wonderful! I’ve heard that you absolutely adore water play.”
“Splendid.”
“You must be thrilled, Airin!”
Wait, Rosaria. I need time to actually process this reality.
If I’m understanding correctly…
“We’ll simply visit our new playground whenever we like.”
Having made sense of the situation, I opened my beak in shock.
He’d just given me that enormous place as a gift and called it a playground?
“Chirp, chirp…”
Faced with a gift so staggering and incomprehensible, I couldn’t collect my wits.
* * *
Word spread far and wide that the Astropel Family had a youngest daughter.
Nearly a month had passed since rumors began circulating about a problem with the third egg, and now at last came this news.
Since it was already common knowledge that the third egg was not a Black Mamba, the household servants gathered in clusters that afternoon after the meeting concluded, whispering among themselves.
“Didn’t they say she was a baby bird?”
“I hear her eyes are the same crimson red as the Household Master’s.”
“Is that so?”
The servants who had been standing in a circle fell silent.
None of them had actually seen the baby bird.
Where could one go to see the subject of all these rumors?
When no one offered an answer, disappointment flickered across their faces.
“Has no one actually seen her?”
“Heh. I caught sight of her playing in the Garden the other day. She was impossibly adorable.”
An elderly man appeared in the meeting room, and all eyes turned toward him.
Jeras smiled warmly, recalling the baby bird who had greeted him with such courtesy.
“Are her eyes truly that red, Jeras?”
“They are.”
When the stern expression that had always kept the meeting hall cold melted into gentleness, everyone couldn’t help but marvel.
To think that this young lady could soften even Jeras.
As everyone was exchanging curious remarks, someone raised a hand and asked.
“But… how was the young lady able to enter the Family if she wasn’t born from a Clan egg?”
All eyes turned to the man.
This remained an unresolved mystery.
Everyone wondered how Airin could possibly have been registered into the Family.
Since Kaid hadn’t elaborated, the matter felt all the more vexing.
“The Household Master has recognized her as his daughter, so isn’t she simply the youngest daughter of the Astropel Family now?”
“That may be so, but if it becomes known that we’re raising a young Suyin from another Clan… wouldn’t that cause problems?”
Everyone’s expression grew noticeably grave.
According to Suyin Law, it was forbidden to take in and raise a young Suyin without a guardian.
This had an extremely detrimental effect on the growth of a young Suyin, so custom held that one of the same Clan members would raise them instead.
Moreover, since it was rare for a young Suyin to leave their Territory of their own accord, the problem could become even more serious.
If the Clan from which the young Suyin came raised an objection, there would be no way to refute it—the child would have to be returned immediately. It was a matter of that gravity.
Thus, Kaid’s recognition of the baby bird Airin as his daughter was a highly unprecedented and dangerous act.
The Black Mambas’ excitement at the news of the youngest daughter’s arrival faded quickly, and their expressions grew somber.
“Does this mean the young lady cannot remain in the Family?”
“If things go poorly, it could happen. …The truth is, no one knows how she came to the Family in the first place.”
That was certainly true.
In fact, Airin’s very existence was highly suspicious.
A species that shouldn’t have been born in the Family had come into being.
Perhaps Airin had been caught up in the affairs of adults before she was even born.
Whatever path brought her to the Family, the reasons were unlikely to be good.
“This is quite the puzzle. The young lady’s position in the household is rather ambiguous, isn’t it?”
“And yet the Household Master saw fit to give her a name. What in the world could he be thinking?”
“How are we supposed to fathom his intentions?”
When news of her arrival had first spread, how shocked everyone had been.
They had assumed the fledgling would vanish from the family within days.
Yet somehow, she had come to bear the name Airin Astropel.
And now, they said, she wandered the Manor at will, unafraid.
The rumors surrounding Airin had grown so thick that every eye in the household turned toward her.
“At this point, perhaps it hardly matters who she is.”
Someone murmured the words softly.
As if bound by an unspoken accord, every gaze converged in that same direction.
Black Mamba, the one who had spoken, lifted a shoulder in a shrug.
“True enough. They say he’s already given her everything from Anead to Beneah.”
This tale had become so well-known that not a soul in the household was ignorant of it.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————