Youngest on Top - Chapter 84

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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 84

“It’s really nothing.”

I popped the mint chocolate into my mouth.
The strong mint flavor spread across my tongue.
Perhaps the mint was too intense.
I felt tears welling up slightly.

“I just… remembered old times, that’s all.”

Strangely, I’d been thinking about the past constantly these days.
Before the regression.
Memories of what happened at Parmanasus Temple circled through my mind.
They appeared in my dreams, and I kept recalling them even while awake.
Everyone loved the Sacred Maiden Amelia, cherished her, held her dear.
And I…

“But things are completely different now than they were then!”

I lifted my head and spoke with determination.
I couldn’t let my spirits fall after Ilay had given me this strong mint chocolate.

“Finding the Sacred Maiden is a good thing, regardless of her personality.”
“…That’s true.”
“Right now she’s fragile glass that breaks with just a little scolding, so I won’t, but once she gets better, I’ll teach her a lesson!”

As I swung my fist around enthusiastically, Ilay finally let out a small laugh.

“Yeah. If she really is the Sacred Maiden.”

Diana is probably the genuine Sacred Maiden.
I had doubted it, but the sacred artifact responded to her, and she’s enduring the aftermath of awakening with her own body, isn’t she?

‘Wait.’

A certain hypothesis flashed through my mind.
I paused and lifted my head.

* * *

A few days later.

‘Finally, it’s complete!’

I lifted the finished Crepundia high into the air with a flourish.

‘Phew, it was grueling work pouring my sacred power into this, but it was worth every bit of effort.’

Now Kaiser would no longer be easily corrupted, no matter how many demons he fought.
I smiled contentedly and placed the Crepundia in my desk drawer.
Since evening had already fallen, I planned to give it to him tomorrow.

‘This is my final trump card. When I give this to him, I’ll ask him to become my godfather.’

Kaiser had said he had no intention of taking me as his godchild, but perhaps seeing my sincerity might make him reconsider at least once.
I had wanted to tell him while presenting this, so I had restrained myself from approaching Kaiser all this time.
Gifting him this Crepundia would show my feelings far better than a hundred words ever could.

And so, the next morning.
After finishing breakfast, I returned to my room and opened the drawer.
But then.

“Huh?”

It was gone.
The Crepundia I had poured so much care into making.

* * *

I ran in a panic.
I could instantly tell who had done this.

“Haa, haa…!”

I arrived at the annex of the Temple where the Holy Knights were stationed.
I stopped in my tracks, breathing heavily.
In the Winter Garden, Diana stood there with her face flushed shyly, gazing at Kaiser.
Looking at Kaiser.

“You see, it’s like Randel said. Papa says I must choose carefully and think it through. So, Diaena thought really, really hard about it.”

Hehe!
Diana tapped her own head and corrected herself.

“Actually, from the very beginning, Diaena only thought of one person.”

Diana squeezed her eyes shut.

“Kazamin, please be Diaena’s papa!”

As she said this, Diana held out something to Kaiser with both hands.
Beneath the pale winter sunlight, a crimson divine stone gleamed.
And the holy power crystal beside it sparkled brilliantly red.

“…!”

The holy power crystal I had created was blue.
But the holy power crystal shining in Diana’s hands was a red deeper than any rose.
Just like the eyes of that child and Kaiser.

The Holy Knights surrounding Kaiser and Diana could not contain their admiration.

“Wow, I’ve never seen such a large and beautiful crystal before!”
“Just looking at it brings peace to my heart.”
“And that attached below—isn’t that a divine stone? If it’s red, it amplifies holy power! Such a precious thing…!”
“This will be truly helpful to Kaiser. What tremendous strength it will be when fighting monsters!”
“And the divine stone matches Kaiser’s eye color exactly! Wow, how did she even match the color?”
“With this much sincerity, Kaiser will have no choice but to accept her.”
“Our Sacred Maiden is truly remarkable!”

The Holy Knights laughed heartily, lifting the atmosphere.
They all hoped Kaiser would accept Diana as his daughter.
I clenched my fists tightly.

“….”

Kaiser reached out and grasped the Crepundia the child offered him.
Diana’s eyes trembled with joy.
Just as the beaming child was about to speak.
Kaiser opened his mouth first.

“There’s another child who wants to become my daughter besides you.”
“I know! The one who keeps taking Diaena away!”

My body shrank back at those sharp words.

‘What?’

But was it just my imagination?
Kaiser’s eyes met mine.
Kaiser withdrew his gaze from me and looked at Diana.

“Is that so? But why are you copying that child?”
“Huh…?”
“Why do you keep copying that child?”
“D-Diaena said she’s always been like this….”
“Your tone of voice, even your expression.”
“No. Diaena has always been this way….”
“No. You were copying her. And.”

Kaiser clenched the Crepundia crystal tightly.
As Kaiser’s sacred power enveloped the crystal—.

Shhhhh—!
The surface of the crystal peeled away like scales.
And what was revealed was a crystal glowing with a brilliant blue light, as clear as a cloudless sky.
The Holy Knights gasped in shock.

“How did this happen?”
“Th-th-that is…!”

Diana trembled in shock, her eyes darting wildly.
Kaiser called to me.
To his side.

“Saelika. Come here.”

I hesitated before moving to stand beside him.

“Saelika.”
“Yes.”
“There must be something you wish to say to me.”

Kaiser waited for my words, clutching the Crepundia I had made.
I stammered before speaking.

“Kazamin, please become Diaena’s father. I’ll become a good child.”

Diana’s eyes widened as she glared at me.

“You, you’re taking mine again—!”
“Well, I don’t need a good daughter.”

Kaiser smiled ever so faintly.

“Just a daughter would suffice.”
“…!”

The Holy Knights covered their mouths, their eyes darting between me and Kaiser.
Even Diana.

Kaiser donned the Crepundia, which gleamed a brilliant azure entirely unlike his eye color, and bent at the waist to meet my gaze.

“Thank you for the gift. Saelika, I am your father.”
“Yes.”
“You are my daughter.”
“…Yes, Father!”

I answered brightly.
Since I was being brave, I didn’t cry.
Though my nose might have turned a bit red.

* * *

Kaiser summoned the High Priest, the Elder, and all the High Priests.
With Diana positioned at the very center.
Kaiser told everyone how Diana had stolen the Crepundia I created and pretended it was hers.
Diana shrank back and offered excuses as best she could.

“I-it was just so pretty. That’s why I did it. Everyone likes Tae’s older sister so much, so I thought if I gave them something pretty that Tae’s older sister made, wouldn’t they like Diaena too?”

It was similar to the excuse she had given Kaiser before.
An excuse that subtly shifted the blame onto me, as if she had no choice.
Diana desperately begged for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry. Diaena knows she was wrong. I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”

As Diana began crying and pleading, the Temple Priests started persuading the High Priest and the Elders.

“Surely you can forgive her. She’s still so young, isn’t she?”
“If she faints from all this…”
“She certainly made a mistake, but she’s showing such remorse.”

Kaiser, who had been watching with her arms crossed, called me over.

“Saelika.”
“Yes.”
“Four nights ago, you tried to investigate the sacred object Alpania.”

How did she know?
But seeing how she spoke with such certainty, it seemed she had evidence.
There was no point in making excuses.

“Yes, that’s right.”

But the attempt failed because the sacred relic was missing.
The place where Alpania was kept was completely empty.
When I said I was right, Diana glared at me with displeasure.

“Why were you trying to investigate that in secret? You really do hate Diaena—!”
“It’s not hatred. It’s reasonable suspicion.”

At Kaiser’s signal, Quentin brought Alpania.

“The reason Alpania wasn’t in its place is because I took it first to investigate it.”

The Temple Priests stirred with unease.
A Holy Knight like Kaiser touching a sacred relic without proper procedure was a problem that could be overlooked, but only just.
The real question was why Kaiser had investigated the sacred relic.
That was what mattered.

“This is a counterfeit.”
“…!”

Kaiser’s words sent shockwaves through the chamber.
The Temple Priests gasped in horror, even rising from their seats.

“How can that be? A sacred relic kept in the temple is a counterfeit?”
“But I can still feel the sacred power from the relic!”
“B-but surely Kaiser couldn’t have made a mistake in the investigation.”

The shouting Temple Priests all thought the same thing.
Why had Kaiser investigated the sacred relic Alpania?
Alpania was a sacred relic that amplified the Sacred Maiden’s divine power and helped adjust it precisely.
It was the relic that could determine whether the Sacred Maiden was genuine or not.
But if that relic was a counterfeit?

“Wait, if that’s a counterfeit—.”
“Diana is….”
“Could it be that she’s not the true Sacred Maiden…?”

The Temple Priests’ gazes fixed on Diana.
Proof that the relic was a counterfeit and not the genuine article meant nothing.
The proof that Diana was the Sacred Maiden was equally meaningless.

“Th-this is slander against Diaena!”

Diana shrieked, trembling violently.
And once again, Diana’s finger pointed directly at me.

“You’re jealous because Diaena is the Sacred Maiden and everyone loves her, aren’t you? Kaiser is on your side! You two conspired together!”

Diana leaped up from her seat in the center and rushed toward me.
Thump!
Diana shoved me with both hands.
Such small fists meant nothing to me—they carried no real force.
And yet.

“C-cough…!”

Strangely, I began coughing.

“Cough, cough! Cough…!”

I covered my mouth with both hands and coughed.
But why.

‘My hands… are they red?’

“S-Sae?”
“Good heavens! Sae!”
“Blood! There’s blood!”

What? Why is this happening?
My palms were stained crimson with blood.

‘Did I overexert myself creating multiple Crepundias?’

I had certainly expended considerable power crystallizing my divine essence.
I had poured even more effort into it, thinking this was my last chance to make Kaiser my father.
But to cough up blood like this….

“Hm….”

I tried to say it was fine, but all that came out when I opened my mouth was a groan.

“Sae! Get ahold of yourself!”

The High Priest panicked and poured his sacred power into me.
A white, warm light enveloped me, but my pain didn’t ease at all.

‘Why does it hurt so much?’

I was bewildered.
I had never experienced pain like this before.
Even when I threw myself into the flames to save those children, it didn’t hurt this badly—I couldn’t understand what was happening.

‘I shouldn’t worry them so much….’

Looking at the worried faces of the adults surrounding me, I lost consciousness entirely.

* * *

An endless sky stretched beneath my feet.
My gaze caught on long, slender limbs.
They weren’t short and plump limbs.
Moreover, something was fluttering behind my back.
When I turned around, enormous wings were attached to my back.
Huh? Am I an angel?

‘No, of course I’m an angel. Why did I think otherwise?’

Then, from far away, my brothers called out to me.

“Saelika!”
“There you are!”

My brothers, born from the same source.
Yet I felt no joy at seeing them!

‘They’ve come to reproach me again, I’m sure.’

My suspicions were confirmed.
The Brothers immediately began pelting me with nagging.
What good is being handsome anyway?
If nothing but complaints pour from your mouth, you’re just the Demon King of Nagging.

“You idiot! I told you to think before you act!”
“I knew it from the start—your fists always move faster than your brain!”
“Use your head instead of your fists! Then you’d see the answer right away!”

Answer?
What answer are they even talking about?

‘Besides, why do I need to use my head?’

I had no idea.
I furrowed my brow deeply.

“Are you all idiots?”
“What? Did you just call your older brothers idiots?”
“Yeah. You’re all idiots. Everyone knows that when your body is good, your mind gets to relax. With a body this good, why would I need to use my head?”

As I swung my fists around while speaking, my Brothers’ faces went pale.

“Sigh… and they call that a celestial being…”
“Artemia, why have you blessed this child with such tremendous power?”

The Brothers stared at me with their lamentation.
I thought they’d grab me and lock me away right then, but they didn’t.
Their eyes held a seriousness I rarely saw from them.

‘What are they trying to say? This is making me uneasy.’

The Brothers grasped my shoulders and worried seriously.

“We’re always concerned.”
“Our youngest’s poor intellect is causing his body to suffer.”
“Leave him be. He said using his body lets his mind relax.”

Why do I feel upset when I only said what I meant?
But the words that followed were completely unexpected.

“Saelika.”
“We have never thought you were lacking.”
“We’ve never been ashamed that you weren’t suited to be Artemia’s Messenger.”
“We may have been quite harsh and scolded you often, but….”
“We just wished you’d caused fewer incidents.”
“Do you know how much we suffered cleaning up after you?”

Somehow… my nose felt a bit tight.
Or maybe my mood was just getting worse?
In this uncertain state, my brothers’ voices seemed to grow increasingly distant.

“It’s true we were especially strict with you, but that was only… to… you—— unable to….”

‘What are you saying? Speak a little louder. I can’t hear!’

I wanted to hear my beloved brothers’ voices a little longer.
Please, speak just a bit louder.
Please!
Then, through the haze, a loud voice rang out.

“—lika!”
“—elika!”

My eyes snapped open.
The High Priest, the Elders, Randel, and Kaiser were looking down at me.

—————
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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