Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Little Head of the Household, Sien
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Since safety comes first, I couldn’t let go of my suspicions and needed to keep watching these seemingly innocent uncles a little longer.
Who knows, I might even have to protect these rough-looking guys too.
It was a tragedy so profound even the heavens couldn’t help but lament.
“ Yeah... Everyone sure loves cute things... ”
And just like that, I became the little head of the household, taking under my wing not only our Mirmod family but even Dad’s friends, now that he’d become the Rocern Count...
But that was fine.
‘After all, I proved just how strong I am today during the hunt.’
Letting out a long sigh, I opened my mouth.
“ Good. For the next hunting tournament, bring back something even cooler. ”
“ Like a thrush, Sien? ”
“ No. A lion or a dragon! Catch some harder ones. ”
It was all nonsense.
There was no way these pure-hearted uncles—who could barely catch a rabbit and ran at the sight of a magical beast—would bring back lions or dragons, tall and lanky as they were.
‘But if I say it like this, at least they’ll stay on their guard.’
The uncle who’d been sniffling tears earlier while looking at me, the one with such a fierce face it looked scratched up but with a soft heart, spoke up loudly.
“ Lions or dragons? Oh, that’s right up my alley— ”
“ Ah, shut it. ”
Dad cut off the uncle mid-sentence and pressed down firmly on my steamed-bun cheeks.
Then, as he placed meat on my plate in front of me, he said,
“ Sien, eat lots. That’s how you’ll grow big. Don’t even think about scary things like lions or dragons, okay? ”
‘Dad really underestimates me, doesn’t he?’
My height was smaller than kids my age, my speech all mumbled.
I looked even younger than five.
Frankly, it was a far cry from the makings of a proper black-hearted villain.
I objectively assessed my own capabilities.
Then, in full battle mode, fork in my left hand and knife in my right, I declared,
“ Ung! Let’s eat first! ”
Just as Dad said, I dug into the roasted rabbit legs with gusto.
As they watched me eat heartily, the uncles let out exclamations one after another.
I tore into the meat bones and all, ferociously and viciously, chomping away with my front teeth bared, mimicking that uncle’s savage expression from earlier!
Of course, only to the extent that my tiny corn-kernel teeth wouldn’t come loose.
As I set the bone down on my plate, I thought to myself.
Before long, the table was filled with a cheerful atmosphere.
As if no one knew a spy had infiltrated just moments ago.
‘Come to think of it, I should tell them about what happened earlier. Dad seems to trust everyone too easily.’
“ Oh, right. Earlier, when Dad was gone, a spy came? ”
The atmosphere, which had just started heating up with noisy chatter, sank in an instant.
“ ...Did that happen? I thought I heard something. ”
“ Ung, don’t be scared. I chased him off. ”
I started to mention the artifact but bit my lip instead. Dad didn’t know I’d gotten a magic tool from Grandma, and I planned to keep it secret for now. With a bright smile, I tightly grabbed the hem of the maid sister’s dress behind me.
“ Ung, no. It was the maid sisters who chased him out. ”
Dad fell silent, his face expressionless.
I raised my tiny, white kitten-paw hands and patted Dad comfortingly. Ever since hearing the word “spy,” his face had gone pale as a ghost. He must’ve been scared.
Well, for our fragile new Count Dad, an attack by spies was probably terrifying.
I said solemnly,
“ There are lots of bad people in the world. So don’t trust people too much. ”
But the frozen atmosphere didn’t thaw.
Instead, Dad spoke in a warm voice.
“ That won’t happen again, Sien. ”
He abruptly stood up from his meal and came to my side, hugging my shoulders tight and patting my back just like I’d done to him moments ago.
“ Were you very scared? ”
I recalled the resentful glares of those spies as they fled, drenched in blood.
With a smug face, I shouted,
“ Nah, not at all. Dad, stay sharp. ”
“ Hm? ”
“ We’re in an emergency right now. This is a super scary family, you know. ”
“ Haha... How did you know, my daughter... ”
Seeing Dad’s brows furrow, I said sternly,
“ So instead of just catching rabbits, we need to train and do lots of bad stuff too. ”
I scrunched up my face and pressed down on the wrinkles between Dad’s brows with my tiny hands, saying loudly,
“ Sien, baby. Our little one just needs to think happy thoughts. ”
“ ... ”
“ Dad will make everyone in the Mirmod family good people, so don’t worry. ”
Unfortunately, Dad’s head was still full of flowers.
Sighing deeply, I thought,
‘For now, I’ll just get stronger and more ruthless. Reforming Dad... I’ll have to put that on hold for a while.’
I opened my eyes wide with fierce determination.
First things first, I needed to dig into who sent those spies.
It was time to find out just who this “beautiful person” behind them was.
***
Meanwhile, Delphia sat idly in her barracks.
The hunting tournament should’ve ended by now, but the spies she’d sent into the forest hadn’t returned. Nor had Martius’s daughter, Sien.
Yawning, she reviewed the documents from her vassals.
Truth be told, everything was dreadfully boring.
‘I don’t know Martius that well, but he was certainly unique.’
Still only in her mid-twenties, she’d only witnessed a few of Martius’s misdeeds firsthand.
The children of noble families rarely got close anyway, so she and he hadn’t been particularly acquainted.
‘Still, in my hazy memories, Martius stood out as an intriguing figure...’
With no word from her spies yet, she thought coolly,
“ Ah, no news is bad news. They must all be dead. ”
She rolled her blood-red eyes around.
Martius’s return seemed poised to inject some fun into her mundane routine. Of course, it was still just her speculation for now.
“ Keep this up, and I’ll want to go there myself. ”
The documents also mentioned that the war-maniac Axel was wrapping up his war in haste.
He was scheduled to return to the family within a month at the latest.
“ I should arrive before Axel does. ”
Delphia closed the documents and wrapped her shawl around her neck like a noose.
“ This should be fun. ”
‘Just what does that kid look like? Half my size?’
Delphia had never truly experienced a “real” childhood. One day, she’d simply awakened in an infernal hell and undergone her adult rite.
“ Ah, maybe tomorrow or next week. ”
Delphia brushed back her snow-white hair and grinned.
The day the “Saintess” descended upon the earth was not far off.
She had all the information, of course. This generation’s Saintess, Melodia, was widely praised for her kindness in sponsoring orphans. But...
‘She’s excessively pristine and pure.’
Rumor had it she was being eyed as the Crown Prince’s political partner.
‘The temple’s involvement in the succession struggle can’t be ruled out entirely.’
Whether it was the temple or the Saintess, they’d surely go all out to prevent Martius Mirmod—rumored to be tied to demons—from inheriting the dukedom. That left room for her to profit in the chaos.
‘Things are getting interesting.’
From this incident, it was clear Martius didn’t hesitate to kill spies. He was diligently spreading his influence everywhere.
Martius or his daughter.
Axel.
Even the Saintess.
A delightful chaos was brewing.
“ I want to watch. ”
She swore, she had no intention of getting involved in that mess.
A playful observer—perfect, wasn’t it?
A sticky smile crept across Delphia’s lips.
***
The hunting tournament, meant to boost the morale of Dad—the Mirmod ducal heir turned Rocern Count—and his retainers, ended without incident.
‘Dad disappeared midway and left me bored.’
Dad had gripped my shoulders tight and said he’d get rid of anyone who bothered his daughter. He was utterly unreliable, but I nodded anyway.
I mumbled something through my teeth and turned away as Dad vanished somewhere.
Right after, back in my room at the mansion, I gazed at the darkened sky and recalled the retainers I’d met today.
“ Lady Sien, what are you thinking about while looking at the night sky? ”
I was about to say “Dad’s friends,” but instead turned from the window and flopped weakly onto the sofa.
No matter how I thought about it, Dad’s retainers were hopeless.
They were just like Dad—no villainous edge, just fragile, delicate types who loved cute things...
As if to confirm my thoughts, the sisters pulled out a small stuffed doll.
“ Ah, Lord Martius’s retainers presented a rabbit doll! ”
“ Would you like to see it? ”
They handed me a rabbit doll small enough to fit in my arms, beaming with pride.
‘What is this? A curse doll?’
It was a rabbit doll, but not quite.
I don’t know how else to put it, but the round black eyes were asymmetrically placed, and tufts of burst stuffing poked out messily from the ears.
“ They made it themselves! ”
Ah...
I nodded.
‘Those uncles must’ve sewn it with their pot-lid-sized hands.’
Imagining them clumsily stitching with their bear paws only deepened my worries.
‘Can I really support all those foolish uncles too?’
I slumped my shoulders and sighed.
Even sitting on fluffy bedding, my heart felt rough as sackcloth—what was this feeling?
“ Lady Sien, why the sigh? ”
At least I had my reliable maid sisters.
“ No... ”
“ Ah! Is it because of those spies we found earlier? ”
It wasn’t exactly because of the spies, but I nodded.
“ ...Spies, something’s off about them. ”
“ Right. We looked into it, and they seem to be dead. ”
Even after pondering deeply, their motives remained a mystery.
‘What were they after, trying to kidnap me during the tournament? Who sent them?’
Just then, as suspicion burned fiercely, a maid spoke.
“ We’ve discreetly commissioned the Press family. ”
“ The Press family? ”
“ Yes. It’s the family one of our benches briefly served. They’re quite skilled at digging up information. ”
“ And they say they have some suspicions. ”
We’d get answers if we dug deeper.
“ I see, that’s a relief. But... ”
I blinked at the maid sisters lined up before me.
Come to think of it, in my rush to survive, I’d never asked their names or families.
“ So, left sister’s name is Bench? ”
The maid sister on the left, with slightly bulkier muscles and a blue braid in her hair—Bench—answered firmly.
“ Yes. From the Press Viscount family. ”
As I nodded, the sister next to her, with pointy bangs, continued.
“ Ah, I’m Deadri from the Frett family. It’s an honor to tell you my name. ”
Hearing them, I paused.
Wait, had I just glossed over this too naturally?
‘Aren’t they revealing their names too easily?’
Maids in noble houses shed their names upon service, becoming mere “retainer maids” or “attendant maids.”
For a maid to reveal her name directly to her lord was a vow to serve them for life.
And they’d said it so casually.
Touched, my eyes welled up a bit.
“ Bench, Deadri. Let’s get along from now on! ”
“ Yes! When we catch those spies, I’ll snap their necks like a chicken’s—crack! ”
“ Loyalty! ”
Sometimes their violent talk scared me, but since I was going to be a black-hearted villain, I had to get used to it.
And honestly, their rough edges reassured me more than the rabbit doll from Dad’s uncle friends.
“ Good, let’s first figure out where those spies came from! ”
The sisters nodded.
“ Come to think of it, Lady Sien, didn’t you have an appointment tomorrow? ”
At their words, I slapped my knee. Right—I was still on a major mission. Before hunting spies, I needed to gain one more ally.
The quest: [Make the Holy Knight of the Senoa Temple Mine].