Youngest on Top - Chapter 3

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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 3

‘Well, it’s none of my concern anyway.’

I had no way of knowing whether the Duke of Noishurael had found his daughter or not.
The last I’d heard, he hadn’t found her yet.

‘But he might have found her since then.’

What a shame.
If I’d known information about the Duke of Noishurael’s daughter, it would have been tremendously useful.
I clicked my tongue with regret.

“I do hope His Grace finds his daughter soon. He’s visited us several times now, and it pains me that we cannot be of greater help.”
“He’s come here many times?”
“Yes. He comes hoping to receive a divine oracle.”
“….”

‘The Artemisia Temple has no saint, so they won’t be able to receive an oracle anyway.’

I chose not to voice that fact and sadden Randel.
The Duke of Noishurael surely knew as much, yet he had come here several times regardless—perhaps clinging to a faint hope.

‘…Do I have parents somewhere?’

I couldn’t say for certain.
I’d never seen them even once.

“Sae?”

Randel’s voice pulled me back to myself.
Looking up, I found him gazing down at me with worried eyes.

‘Oops.’

To show him I was fine, I released his hand and bounded down the corridor with light, bouncing steps.
The breeze brushing my forehead felt refreshing, and the sunlight warming my body was gentle.
It felt as though the sacred power dwelling within the temple was greeting me with a warm welcome.

Randel’s lips curved into a smile as he watched me bounce along eagerly.
My spirits lifted, and my pace quickened of its own accord.
My foot caught on a sunken edge in the floor.

“Whoa?”

My young body couldn’t regain its balance, and I tumbled forward helplessly.
In that instant.
A firm hand swept me up before I could fall.

“…!”

My perspective suddenly shifted higher.
My hair tickled Randel’s forehead.

“You must be more careful.”

Randel exhaled a sigh of relief and gave my forehead a gentle tap.

It was unexpected.
Randel embodied the very image of a Temple Priest—his appearance and bearing immaculate and serene.
Yet he possessed surprising reflexes and strength.

‘…As I thought. He’s not just an ordinary Temple Priest.’

“Thank you.”

After I thanked him, he set me down.
Then he grasped my hand firmly and began walking.
He seemed worried I might stumble again if I rushed ahead.

“Watch the ground carefully—it’s dangerous.”
“Yes.”

The temple floor was riddled with cracks and fissures.
The building was old, and they lacked the funds for repairs.
Honestly, I worried it might collapse at any moment.

As Randel and I entered the office, the priesthood greeted us.

“Welcome, Randel.”
“So you’ve come.”
“Hello!”

As I performed a respectful bow, the priesthood smiled warmly.
They had no idea that I had appeared alongside Pharmanath’s divine power.
Because of this, they were exceptionally kind to me.

While Randel exchanged words with the other priests, I sat quietly and opened a fairy tale book.

“So you can already read.”
“Quite a bright child, aren’t you?”

The priests smiled at me and began their work.
I tilted my head curiously, watching them over the edge of my book.

After spending several days with Randel, I had come to realize he was far more impressive than I had initially assumed.
Yet here he was, handling my affairs instead of his actual duties—.

‘He must be here to watch me.’

It seemed the High Priest had entrusted this task to someone he trusted deeply.

‘But it’s not a bad arrangement for me.’

Anyone who knew I had appeared with Pharmanath’s divine power would never treat me as kindly as Randel does.
Since Randel is a good person, perhaps he volunteered to care for me of his own accord.

I organized my thoughts and continued reading my fairy tale book quietly.
The fairy tale was engaging.
The angel illustrations were beautiful too.

How much time had passed?

“Aren’t you hungry?”
“Children need to eat well.”

It seemed to be break time, as the priests came to my side and spoke to me.

“I ate lots of rice! (I ate a lot of food!)”
“Let me see… Here, have some cookies. One of our believers brought them as a gift.”
“Let’s eat together! (Let’s share!)”
“I don’t like cookies.”
“Neither do I.”
“Not really my preference either.”

They were all lying.
As a child, I decided to let it slide.

“Thank you, Mogen! (Thank you, Mogen!)”

When I thanked Mogen for the cookies, he chuckled warmly and gently tapped my cheek.

The cookies were stale.
They had clearly been saved for later.
He must have been planning to give them to the trainee priests when they returned.

I glanced up and looked toward the administrative office.
The priesthood couldn’t even drink coffee or tea while working.
Then what were they drinking?
Just… hot water.

“…”

‘This won’t do.’

I had intended to keep a low profile.
After all, I was currently under suspicion.

‘But I can’t just ignore this.’

For my grand ambition of eventually surpassing everyone, the Artemisia Sect had to improve.

Fortunately, I had a good excuse ready.
I gripped the fairy tale book tightly.

‘Time to build my merit!’

Some people would grow more suspicious of me, but others would come to favor me.
And I might even get to see the face of our highest authority—someone I hadn’t laid eyes on since that first day.

Most importantly—

“Well? Is it delicious?”

Mogen and the other priests looked at me with eager eyes.
Behind them, Randel smiled as he watched us.

I took another bite of the cookie.
It was still soggy.
But.

“Yes!”

It was absolutely delicious.

* * *

After Randel finished signing today’s documents in his office, he led me out.

“See you all later.”

As he waved, the priests’ faces fell with disappointment.

“Ugh… I should have been the one to take charge of Sae’s education.”
“Lord Randel, I’m so envious…”

There would be lessons after lunch.
Until the other trainee priests returned, I would receive basic instruction from Randel.
Which meant I had free time until lunch.

“Randel.”

I tugged at the hem of Randel’s robe, and he smiled down at me.

“Let’s play treasure hunt! (Let’s play treasure hunt!)”
“Treasure hunt?”
“Yeah. From the book. Treasure came out! (Yeah. From the book. Treasure appeared!)”

I spread both arms wide like a child and clenched my fists tightly.

“So I’m gonna find treasure. (So I’m gonna find treasure.)”
“Do you want treasure?”
“Yes!”

I nodded vigorously.

“What do you want to do with the treasure?”
“I’ll find treasure and give meat to Randel. (I’ll find treasure and give meat to Randel.)”

Randel, who had been chuckling, paused and looked down at me.

“And soft bread too. (And soft bread too.)”
“….”
“And I’ll give Mogen cookies. (And I’ll give Mogen cookies.)”
“….”
“The Priesthood gets tea! (The Priesthood gets tea!)”
“….”
“And, and….”

I spoke shyly.

“I want to give all my treasure to the High Priest. (I want to give all my treasure to the High Priest.)”
“I see.”
“The High Priest let me live here. (The High Priest made me able to live here.)”

Randel’s eyes gazing at me narrowed.

“So then. (So then.)”

I clasped both hands together earnestly.

“Don’t you all like me a little bit?”
“….”
“You like me even just a little, don’t you?”

Even if they doubted me, I still wanted them to like me, at least a little.

Randel’s hand came to rest upon my head.
It was a very warm and large hand.

“Everyone will like you without needing things like that.”
“….”
“Instead of reasons like that, if you think searching for things sounds fun, let’s play an exploration game.”

I gazed quietly at Randel for a moment, then lowered my head.
For some reason, my nose ached, making it difficult to meet his eyes.

‘…I wish Randel were a little less kind.’

Nod, nod.
As I bobbed my head gently, Randel took my hand.

* * *

The treasure mentioned in the fairy tale book was real.
Of course, the book’s content didn’t actually contain a treasure hunt.
It was a fairy tale adaptation of a portion of the Artemisia Scripture, after all.

‘But it was in the illustrations!’

The first edition of that fairy tale book was created several hundred years ago.
Naturally, the illustrations reflected what the Temple looked like at that time.
No one had ever considered that a small pattern drawn in a children’s fairy tale book could be related to treasure.

“Hurry! Hurry!”
“Yes, but be careful. You’ll fall again.”

As I pulled at Randel’s sleeve while holding the fairy tale book open, he laughed.

“This is the place from that scene in the book. It’s been an unused building for some time now….”

I nodded while looking at the picture in the fairy tale book.
Randel had guided me correctly.

But.

“This one’s missing,” I said, pointing at the pattern drawn on the temple wall in the fairy tale.

Randel asked as I indicated the design in the storybook.

“Is that the picture you were looking for?”
“It’s pretty.”
“It must have faded away because it’s so old.”

That couldn’t be right.
It was simply not visible at first glance.

A High Priest from long ago had concealed it.
Because of a problem that arose during that era.
And since then, the building had fallen into disuse.

‘It’s not hidden by sacred power. If it were sacred power, the High Priests of later generations would have noticed it long ago.’

The priesthood tended to resolve matters using sacred power.
To exploit that weakness—.

‘It must be physically concealed!’

“That’s strange! It should be here!”

I clenched my small fists and tapped against the wall repeatedly.
Though it seemed random, every tap was deliberate.
Left to right, diagonally upward, then sideways, then down.
The movements symbolized the celestial path of Artemeia.

“Child, you’ll hurt your hands. Stop—”

That was when it happened.

Crunch…

With a low rumble, the wall shifted.
And what revealed itself was a pattern identical to the one drawn in the fairy tale book.

“It’s treasure! It’s treasure!”

I shouted with jubilation.
Randel’s face had gone pale.

“H-how is this even….”

Right?
How could it possibly move?
I have absolutely no idea!

Randel reached his hand toward the revealed pattern.
His holy power flowed into the pattern as though being drawn in.

“Huh?”

I tilted my head in confusion.

“What is this?”

A shimmering gate materialized before my eyes.
And within it.

“This is….”

Golden statues and coins from the era when the Artemisia Temple flourished were packed inside.

“I heard we’d find treasure, but to actually discover it like this….”

Randel’s astounded murmur reached my ears.

Ahem.
Isn’t this precisely what you’d call a customized prophecy service?

‘My apologies to the High Priest of old.’

I let out a smirk beside Randel, who had lost his words.

‘Shall we shake down the storehouse?’

* * *

The reception hall was frozen in a frigid silence.

Hair as black as if a piece of night had been carved away.
Eyes a blue deeper than the coldest waters of the Arctic.
Cheeks and jaw as though chiseled from ice itself.
Yet what made people shrink back even more was the overwhelming pressure that emanated from him.

This man was the tyrant of the snowy wastes who had conquered the vast northern territories.
Perardin Noishurael Duke.

Everyone in the room held their breath, trembling beneath his majesty.

Slowly, the Duke’s lips parted.

“In the end, I can learn nothing about my daughter.”
“I-I am terribly sorry, Your Grace.”
“…Whether here or there, it is always the same words.”

The Duke clicked his tongue softly.
At that sound, as though it were thunder itself, people’s shoulders shrank inward.

It was then.

“I beg your pardon, but Artemisia can only offer the same answer.”

The reception hall door opened, and a man in the vestments of a High Priest entered.

“High Priest Anatullio.”

An ordinary man would not have dared meet the gaze of the Duke of Noishurael, bowing his head instead.
Yet High Priest Anatullio faced him with composure undisturbed.

A flicker of interest crossed the Duke’s eyes.
The tension between the two men hung thick in the reception room, suffocating and taut.

“Your Grace, you understand the reason well enough.”

The Artemisia Temple has no Saint.
So how could we possibly receive a divine oracle?

“We have exhausted every available means.”
“And so.”
“I must speak plainly, Your Grace. The Artemisia Temple cannot fulfill your wishes.”

A deep, resonant hum reverberated through the air—

A wave of force erupted outward from the Duke of Noishurael.
As though a gravitational field had manifested around him, the objects nearby were drawn toward him and toppled.

The Duke’s face remained expressionless.
He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them and nodded to the High Priest.

“Forgive me.”
“I understand your concern for your daughter.”

At that composed response, a glimmer of surprise flickered across the Duke of Noishurael’s gaze.
But only for a moment.
The Duke rose from his seat without hesitation.

Knock, knock.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.

High Priest Anatullio’s brow furrowed.
Everyone would know the Duke of Noishurael from the north was here.
No one would interrupt without pressing cause.

“…What is the matter?”

Despite his curt tone, the assistant priest who entered paid it no mind.

“High Priest! High Priest!”

The Assistant High Priest let out a cry, his ashen face twisted in an expression I couldn’t quite decipher—was he laughing or weeping?

“We’ve struck gold!”

—————
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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