Chapter 224: Not to Her Liking
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 224: Not to Her Liking
“Th-this is Horus...?”
“Yeah... well. That’s how it turned out.”
Ravi, Sera, Theodora, Tresha, Father, Auntie Marta, and even Sola and Walter—most of them had looks of pure disbelief on their faces.
“No matter how I look at it, that’s a human.”
“But she does have wings on her back.”
“Then isn’t she a beastkin?”
“She’s a bit different from the avian beastkin, though...”
As the conversation went on, it seemed to be drifting further and further toward the conclusion of ‘Anyway, it’s definitely not a Horus.’
“Where did you bring her from?”
“That’s right, Brother! Kidnapping is illegal!”
“I brought her from the 50th floor. It’s technically kidnapping, but it’s not illegal.”
A young girl sat there, blinking blankly without a word. She was perched on the edge of Sera’s bed, wearing a pair of Father’s spare pajamas that were far too big for her.
“Can she talk?”
“She was just born, so probably not.”
“Um... hello?”
“....”
The Horus... chick? Child? Baby? She gave no reaction to Dora’s greeting.
“Iris, what exactly happened? Wasn’t a baby Horus supposed to come out?”
“One did.”
“Where in the world does this look like a baby Horus? It’s just a person with wings.”
She had light sandy-brown hair, dark brown wings, and bright golden eyes. There was a certain resemblance to the Horus I had fought on the 50th floor. Her wings, in particular, were a dead ringer for those of a Horus.
“I didn’t expect a human to come out either.”
To be honest, I thought a tiny Horus would emerge. I figured a baby Horus would be cute, but I didn’t expect this kind of cute.
“I can feel an incredible amount of mana! Is she the Hero’s child?”
“Sola, saying it like that makes the situation sound weird.”
Sera and Theodora, who were listening nearby, both instinctively touched their lower bellies and looked at me.
“S-so, Yoo Eon is a father...?”
“Hehe... hmm... S-so you’ve become a daddy....”
“I told you, that’s not it. What are you two even talking about?”
“Then are you going to abandon her?! I didn’t think you were that kind of person, Yoo Eon!”
“Brother, is that true?! That’s too much!!”
“No, why is everyone acting like this? Everyone, just be quiet for a second.”
The unprecedented event of a human child emerging from a Horus egg—like some ancient legend—had the inn in an uproar. Everyone had crowded into Sera’s cramped room, shouting and making a fuss.
Aren’t they going to take care of the customers? The guests will probably want breakfast soon.
“Hmm, but if she’s a kid, shouldn’t we feed her?”
“Now that you mention it.”
About thirty minutes ago, right after she hatched, I had hurriedly woken Sera up and asked her to give the Horus baby a wash. This current situation was what followed after they’d dressed her in whatever was available.
In other words, Little Horus hadn't eaten a single thing yet.
“What do Horuses eat...?”
“Humans?”
“Do baby Horuses eat humans too...?”
“I’m not really sure....”
Theodora and Ravi were engaged in a rather gruesome discussion. I turned to Iris, who was standing beside me, and asked her as well.
“I don’t know. Milk?”
“...Why are you looking at me....”
Iris was the type who knew what she knew and didn't know what she didn't. When she looked at Sera and suggested breastfeeding, I gently pressed her cheek and turned her head away.
“Someone who has raised a child...”
“Ah, come to think of it.”
There was exactly one person in this inn who had experience raising a child.
* * *
“The egg from yesterday?”
“Yes, Auntie. It hatched this morning.”
“Hmm.”
Auntie Marta stood with her arms crossed, staring intently at the Horus. The Horus was currently clutching Sera’s hand tightly. Looking at her physical development, she had a small frame that looked to be about five or six years old in human years.
“What should we do?”
Auntie Marta seemed to ponder for a moment before crouching down and sticking a finger into the little Horus’s mouth.
She then applied a bit of pressure to pry the Horus’s mouth open.
“She has teeth. And since she isn't trying to suck on my finger, she’s past the nursing stage.”
“Oh.”
As expected of someone with experience. So, what were the candidates for Little Horus’s meal?
“Is it baby food, then?”
“Yeah. Go buy a hunk of meat.”
Auntie Marta’s opinion was that we should finely mince the meat and boil it thoroughly with grain to make a porridge-like baby food. Actually, at five years old in human years, she was well past the age for baby food.
Still, it felt a bit much to feed a newborn child tough meat or unappetizing vegetables. Auntie said it would be better to start with baby food, see how she handled it, and then move on to other things.
“That’s helpful. Walter, let’s go buy a hunk of meat.”
—Kee-ru-ru-ruk!
Walter’s energy was high, perhaps happy to have a winged younger sibling. He flapped his wings and flew off with a five-silver coin in his mouth, looking quite reliable.
“But what exactly is a Horus?”
“Eh?”
The sudden question came from Tresha, who had been standing by as I sent Walter on the errand.
“It’s the 50th-floor boss of the Calax Great Labyrinth.”
“Aha, I see.”
Theodora’s concise answer resolved Tresha’s confusion, but come to think of it, she was right. What exactly was a Horus?
For now, it could be classified as a beast-type monster. Since those Burning Bisons running all over the 5th Stratum were called beast-type monsters, a Horus could reasonably fit into that category.
Seeing as it laid an egg, it seemed to be oviparous. However, its belly and chest clearly resembled those of a placental mammal like a lion or a tiger. Did that mean it didn't have a cloaca?
“Hmm.”
“...?”
Unfortunately, since our Little Horus had a female humanoid body, if I tried to investigate that question myself, it would likely lead to a misunderstanding that wouldn't end easily.
“Little Horus, who is your daddy?”
If she was brooding over the egg, then that Horus was likely this Little Horus’s mother. In that case, there should be a father. Where was he? Excluding a few exceptions that lived in the water, it was common sense that most mammals and birds reproduced sexually.
At my question, Little Horus lowered her head for a moment, fidgeted with her fingers, and then pointed her index finger straight at me.
“Me?”
“Papa.”
“Gasp!!! She talked—!!!!!!”
Little Horus winced and covered her ears at Ravi’s thunderous shout. Of course, the others watching were just as shocked. They just hadn't raised their voices because they were in front of a child.
—Bonk!
“Be quiet. You’re scaring the child.”
“Hing, I’m sorry....”
After Father gave Ravi a sharp scolding, everyone’s attention returned to the Horus.
“Setting that aside, so you can talk....”
Theodora, looking fascinated, leaned down to match the Horus’s eye level and began to ask questions.
“Is that person your papa?”
Little Horus nodded silently. From my perspective, having suddenly gained responsibility without any of the 'fun' part, I was a bit flustered. Still, I wasn't the kind of freak who would yell “Who’s your daddy?!” at a young child.
“Th-then... what about your mama?”
Theodora’s question was clearly loaded with ulterior motives. She was beaming, trying her best to leave a good impression on the Horus. However, the only response was silence.
The Horus glanced around the room for a moment, then shook her head from side to side.
“D-does she not have a mama....”
“Saying it like that makes it sound weird, Ravi.”
Sera, who was listening nearby, let out a deep sigh. I had no way of knowing what emotions were contained within it.
“Ah, it looks like Walter is back.”
“Then shall we feed her first? She must be hungry.”
“Yes, that would be best.”
* * *
Sera knew how to cook, but she didn't have any memory of making something like baby food. She hadn't had the experience of raising a child yet. Auntie Marta, who knew how to make it, minced the meat with dazzling skill and prepared the meal.
“Here, eat up.”
A wooden bowl was filled with a soft grain porridge mixed with minced meat. Would the Horus eat this baby food?
“Ho-Horus..? Can you say ‘ah’..?”
Sera held a wooden spoon with a bit of the food and slowly moved it toward the Horus’s mouth. Little Horus, sitting on a chair with barely her neck reaching above the table, stared intently at the spoon before opening her mouth wide and taking it in.
“Sh-she ate it..!”
“Wow..! She’s so cute..!”
“Yeah... she really is cute....”
The beautiful Little Horus was receiving rave reviews from all the older girls. Sera tilted the spoon and pulled it out, leaving the food in the Horus’s mouth.
—Munch, munch...
“Is she... eating it..?”
It was just a meal, but everyone was tense, watching the Horus’s reaction.
—Gulp.
“She swallowed!”
“She really swallowed it.”
“She did..!”
To everyone’s pride, she successfully swallowed her very first meal since birth. As expected, was Auntie Marta’s cooking something even a 50th-floor monarch couldn't resist?
“Man, that’s amazing.”
It was my first time seeing such a young child eat, so it was quite a novel experience for me as well.
After swallowing the food, the Horus stared fixedly at the table for a moment.
“Sera, doesn't it look like she wants more?”
“Ah, right. You’re probably right!”
Sera, whose expression had been melting at the Horus’s cuteness, snapped back to her senses. She scooped up another spoonful and brought it to the Horus’s mouth.
“....”
The Horus’s brow furrowed quite noticeably. She suddenly reached out, grabbed the bowl on the table, and pulled it toward her.
“Tch.”
—Clatter!
She clicked her tongue once, then proceeded to hurl the bowl of food onto the floor, spilling it everywhere.
“Wait.”
“Uh....”
The thick porridge splattered across the floorboards, and the bowl rolled a couple of times before coming to a stop with a dull thud.
‘I guess she wasn't a Horus, but a Horrid-us.’
Apparently, it wasn't to her liking.