Youngest on Top - Chapter 71

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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 71

Everyone wanted to take Sae as their godchild.
The Elder didn’t seem to know, but last time it actually escalated into a full incident.
The Temple Priests fought and bickered over who would take Sae as their godchild.

“You’re going to grab a child who’s trying to sleep and bring up godparent talk? What if the child can’t sleep and doesn’t grow properly!”
“You failed anyway! You failed anyway—!!”
“You’re picking a fight with your voice? I can match you—!!”
“Sae is mine—!!”
“No, she’s my godchild—!!”

They shouted in the middle of the night, nearly waking all the children.
After those two Temple Priests nearly lost their voices, Sae became neutral territory.
But then….

‘If this continues, won’t our precious little one become someone else’s godchild?’
‘What if she gets taken away…!’

The Temple Priests’ eyes gleamed with intensity.
One Temple Priest cleared his throat loudly and spoke.

“Give up on Sae. I decided to take her as my godchild back during the assembly.”
“I decided during the fire incident!”
“Ha! You all made up your minds after learning how wonderful Sae is. I decided from the moment I arrived.”
“I decided around the time she was born…!”
“You met Sae back then? What?!”
“No… Are you bragging about your voice again? You bastard—!!”
“What the hell—!!”

The Meeting Hall was turning into chaos.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Elders stared at the Temple Priests with disapproving expressions.

“Restrain yourselves! Is a child an object!”

When the Elders spoke in deeply angry voices, the Temple Priests flinched.
One Elder sighed.

“Godparents and godchildren are meant for harmony, not to become reasons for conflict.”
“I-I’m terribly sorry, Elders….”
“We can’t have you all fighting over Sae like this. No further approaches until she makes her choice.”
“Yes….”

The Temple Priests lowered their heads with gloomy expressions.

* * *

A few days later.

“Ahem, I think it wouldn’t be so bad to have another child around these days?”
“It would be nice to have a cute daughter.”

They were the Elders.
I tilted my head while practicing the creation of snowmen using sacred power.

‘They’ve been hovering around and talking about children for quite some time now.’

Was it because winter was cold and lonely?
They chanted “children, children” so much that I even wondered if I should play matchmaker.

Temple Priests could certainly marry.
However, given the circumstances of Artemisia Temple, most of them remained unmarried.

“Elders, do you want to have children?”

At my question, the Elders’ faces brightened.

“Ahem, having children would certainly ease the loneliness. Truth be told, my parents passed away long ago, and all I have left is one sibling—”
“Sae, I don’t even have siblings.”
“Still… you two have family… I was entrusted to relatives before I was even born….”
“That relative is Count Voleto, isn’t he! The rumors say he raised you with love!”

The Elders suddenly began bickering among themselves.
I blinked my eyes.

“But Elders, a child needs a mother too. (But Elders, a child needs a wife to exist.)”
“Huh?”
“Without a wife, there can be no child. (Without a wife, there’s no child.)”

So wouldn’t it be better to seek out a matchmaker instead of coming to me?
The only grandmothers I know are the female Elders at the Temple.
And they have a terrible relationship with these men.

“I’m still unmarried because I’m terrified of marrying someone like that!”

—I’d heard them say that quite often.

“No, I don’t necessarily need a wife….”
“Elder, are you garbage…?”

How can there be a child without a wife?
Surely they weren’t suggesting they’d just create a child and bring them here?

I stared at the Elders with disbelief in my eyes.
At that, the Elders jumped up and waved their hands frantically.

“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant…!”
“Y-yes! That’s not it—I was thinking of making Sae your godparent—”

Just then, Derrick came running over.

“What about me?”
“Hm?”
“As your godfather! What do you think of me as your godfather!”

Godfather?

‘Ah, so they’re talking about a godparent-godchild relationship.’

Derrick gripped my shoulder with his massive, pot-lid-like hand.
And he looked down at me with incredibly fervent eyes.

“If you become my child, I shall teach you the Thunder Break that all the children wish to learn.”

Are you talking about Thunder Break?
One day, Dmitri’s group was

“Thhhhuuuunder Brrrreeeaaak! Come on, fall already.”
“Got it. Now it’s my turn. Ughhhh! Thunder Break?! I’ve never experienced such a powerful attack!”

—Is that what you’re referring to?
Every time I heard that name, Ilay and Edmund would look at me as if I were an insect.

At those words, the Elders cried out indignantly.

“Derrick, the Elders are speaking!”
“That underhanded bastard!”
“Why are you pressuring the child!”

People began gathering one by one at the commotion.
Temple Priests even came rushing from far away, making thundering sounds as they ran.

“Wait, you tell us not to approach, then you make the first move?”
“Goodness, can’t you watch your tongue in front of a child?!”

I was crushed between the Elders and the Temple Priests, groaning.
Then, someone suddenly snatched me away.

Devon, who had pulled me into his embrace, glared fiercely at those around us.

“Anyone here want a receipt for their troubles?”
“….”
“….”

The Temple Priests flinched and retreated.
After that, Devon looked down at me with a gentle expression.

“If you make me your godfather, all of our temple’s money belongs to you.”

…That’s embezzlement.

I rolled my eyes and avoided Devon’s gaze.
Then an Elder with completely white hair and a long white beard grabbed me with trembling hands.

“Sae… oh…”

At that, the healing priests jumped to their feet.

“If you go outside in winter, you’ll catch your death!”
“A hundred-year-old body cannot withstand the cold!”

The white-haired Elder completely ignored their protests and looked at me.

“Will you… become my great-grandchild…”

‘No, Elder, we’re from different generations. Different generations.’

If I became the Elder’s great-granddaughter, I’d be in the same generational rank as the High Priest…

Everyone from all sides was clamoring for me to become their great-grandchild.
They were growling at each other like they were playing tug-of-war over my arm.

‘Why is everyone acting like this?’

That was when it happened.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

A cold voice rang out.
The High Priest stood with furrowed brows, looking at me, the priests, and the Elders.
The priests flinched and retreated.
I quickly grabbed the High Priest’s hand like a lifeline.

‘Phew, I almost got torn apart there.’

“Don’t stand outside in this cold and catch some pointless illness. Everyone, go inside.”

When the High Priest spoke in an indifferent tone, the adults bowed awkwardly.
I escaped the situation while holding the High Priest’s hand.
It seemed our destination was the Main Building.

‘Good. I wanted to see the books in the Main Building anyway.’

“Daddy, please. I want to see the book.”
“What book?”
“The one with the Divine Beast in it.”
“There are many words, so it will be difficult for you to read.”
“But there are pictures too! I like the pictures of the Divine Beast!”
“Very well.”
“Thank you so much!”

Artemisia possessed many fine books, a legacy of its former prosperity.
Information unavailable in other temples could be found here.

“Books! The Divine Beast is in them too. And other Divine Beasts as well…!”
“Yes.”
“There’s a chick too.”
“A Divine Beast with yellow feathers is no chick. It’s a phoenix. …But then.”
“Yes?”

The High Priest glanced at me sideways.

“Isn’t it best that the High Priest is your guardian? Surely.”
“….”

Silence settled between us.

‘Was that your goal too, High Priest?’

As I stared at him with cold, narrowed eyes, the High Priest cleared his throat awkwardly.

* * *

If I stayed outside any longer, I felt my back would break from all this talk about guardianship.
So I declined the books and retreated to the Trainee Priest Quarters, avoiding the adults.

The children approached me cautiously the moment they saw me.
Then they asked with very serious expressions.

“A-are you really going to ask ‘that person’ to be your guardian?”
“Think it over carefully once more.”

Ever since I answered the children’s question about who I would choose as my godparent, they had been like this.

“Kaiser.”
“B-but he’s dangerous!”
“Of course he’s admirable and magnificent and incredible, but…!”
“Kaiser would swallow a soft thing like you in one bite!”

That’s right.
When the children asked me that question, I had said—

“Sae want… Kaiser. (I want… Kaiser.)”

I wanted Kaiser the Sacred Knight to be my godparent.

【It is thanks to Kaiser that Artemisia Temple still occupies the first seat in the Octagon.】
—That Kaiser from the story.

He was returning to the Temple.
After ending the Holy Demon War.

“Sae happy godparent Kaiser. (I’m happy my godparent is Kaiser.)”

That was when it happened.
Crash!
Something shattered into pieces.

‘What was that?’

When I turned around, Derrick was staring at me with an expression of utter shock.
Mogen stood beside him.

A plate lay shattered at Derrick’s feet.
Cookies scattered among the fragments.

Derrick asked in a voice full of disbelief.

“Is… is that really true?”
“Huh?”
“You really chose that bastard Kaiser!”

‘He’s trying to win me over with cookies.’

Derrick covered his mouth with trembling hands.

“Leave me be! That guy…! What’s so great about that guy anyway!”
“Kaiser isn’t that kind of guy.”

The one called the strongest Sacred Knight.

Derrick seemed to receive an enormous shock from my response.

“Really? You really chose Kaiser?”
“Yeah, Kaiser.”
“You’re lying!”

He clenched both fists tightly against his chest and turned his head away with a whimper.
It was quite a difficult sight to witness…

“Sae looked so dignified and adorable holding the mace I gave him!”
“…”
“Of course I should be… Hic!”

Derrick bolted out of the room.
With his large frame running, the ground seemed to shake with each thundering step.
Anyone watching would think he was the abandoned female lead…

My eyes met Mogen’s, who stood beside Derrick.
Tears welled up in his large eyes.
As if they would spill over at any moment.

“…I suppose I’m far from adequate to be Sae’s godfather. But still…”

He seemed deeply hurt.

I was truly taken aback.
I never expected them to be this disappointed about choosing Kaiser as godfather.

The trainees’ reactions were as I had anticipated.
Kaiser was certainly an exceptionally skilled Sacred Knight in terms of ability.

‘His personality is absolutely insufferable.’

He was genuinely infamous for his temperament.

“That bastard should’ve been in a gangster’s den instead of a temple.”
“A gangster would be better. He’s not even human. He’s a demon, a demon.”

In any case, those unlucky Parmanace folk.
They dare call a Sacred Knight a demon just because he’s not their knight.

In any case, that was how the public evaluated Kaiser.
A cold-blooded man devoid of blood and tears.
A ruthless knight who made anyone’s legs tremble at the mere sight of him.

‘But what I need isn’t a kind and gentle godfather—it’s one with tremendous prestige.’

Just as I was thinking that, Randel entered through the door.

“Sae, this is a letter that came from Gerald of the Whitepearl Merchant Guild.”
“Thank you.”

I bowed and quickly extended my hand.
Then I looked back at Randel’s face with a puzzled “Hm?”

‘That’s strange. Why is Randel delivering this himself?’

This kind of errand wasn’t Randel’s job.

I tilted my head and grasped the letter.

“Randel…?”

For some reason, Randel wouldn’t let go of the letter.
No matter how hard I pulled, the letter wouldn’t release from Randel’s grip.
Randel stared directly at my face and spoke.

“Sae.”
“Yes.”
“Every choice must be made with careful deliberation.”
“…?”
“A single moment’s decision can become irreversible, reshaping the entire direction of one’s life—”

What is this?
Why is he lecturing me like this…?

Randel was never the type to nag.

“That’s why you must always reflect upon your own choices.”
“….”
“And if you feel something has gone wrong, correct it immediately. Never forget that there are always other options.”
“….”
“A godparent is an important role. It’s a parental position, so understanding and cherishing the child is what matters most.”
“….”
“There are surely better godfathers out there.”
“….”
“Not someone with a broken personality, who can’t get along with anyone, and who resorts to swinging a sword to solve every problem—a brute.”

‘Is he perhaps talking about Kaiser….’

Randel’s expression was extremely serious.
This was the first time I’d seen him speak so much.
I almost mistook him for a miniature Gerald.
Of course, his tone wasn’t as foolish as Gerald’s.

But if Randel was saying this much….

‘Kaiser’s personality really must be a complete disaster….’

* * *

Several days later.
The trainee priests lined up in the plaza.
The Temple Priests stood at the front, and even the Elders were all present.

The trainee priests swallowed nervously, whispering among themselves.

“Is he coming now?”
“Yeah. First time seeing it.”

Everyone at the temple had gathered today for the homecoming reception.
In other words, Kaiser the Sacred Knight was returning with his order of knights.

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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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