Chapter 28
Chapter 28
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: I Will Follow the Order
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"Star, your hair's really damaged. We should wash it tomorrow and put some oil in it."
As you can see, Daddy changed his clothes and came out, and now he's brushing my hair.
'Probably because he didn't like how I tied it myself. I tried doing bunny ears because they looked the easiest, but for some reason, the heights didn't match up on both sides. What was I supposed to do!'
Later on, I ended up being grateful just that both sides were tied.
"Daddy, but wasn't that bunny hair I did earlier kinda cute in its own way?"
"Hmm... Because you did it yourself, Star?"
'If I say I did it, he won't be honest with me.'
"No, Auntie Ik-seon did it for me. She won't get mad if I tell her, so be honest with me."
Once I said it wasn't me, Daddy's face relaxed a lot.
"If I had to put that hair into words..."
"Into words?"
"A rabbit with crooked ears?"
'...A rabbit with crooked ears? A rabbit's ears are its life! What if they're crooked?'
I was so shocked by Daddy's blunt assessment that I couldn't say another word.
"Star, why aren't you saying anything? So it was you who did that hair after all?"
"...I don't know."
"It was cute in its own way. Anything you do is cute, Star."
'Daddy, it's too late now.'
Still, it was true that Daddy found everything I did cute, so I decided to forgive him for his cold evaluation of my first earnestly tied hair.
"Doesn't it bother you to style my hair, Daddy? It takes a lot of work."
"How could it bother me when it's time I get to touch our Star's hair?"
'He really is my daddy, but even I can see he's an incurable daughter dotard.'
"What color ribbon should we tie it with?"
I subtly turned my head toward Daddy to check the color of his clothes.
"Same as Daddy's clothes—turquoise!"
"Sure."
Daddy looked like he found my insistence on matching the ribbon to his clothes utterly adorable, so he planted a light kiss on my cheek before resuming his work on my hair.
Just feeling Daddy's touch quietly made me feel like all the events of the day were slowly sorting themselves out in my mind.
'Both the Young Cult Leader and Five Elements—I have so many questions for Daddy, but I can't ask.'
In my frustration, one flashy face not affiliated with the cult popped into my head.
'Oh, right—Golden Immortal Lotus! Since he's not part of the cult, it should be fine to ask him.'
I might even learn more about the abilities of the flower seed he gave me through Daddy.
"Daddy."
"Yes?"
To my call, Daddy replied while neatly tying one bunny ear with a turquoise ribbon.
"You told me about that spirit beast called Golden Immortal Lotus before."
"That's right."
"Don't you have more stories about Golden Immortal Lotus?"
"Hmm... Not much is known about it, so I don't have much to say... Why the sudden interest in Golden Immortal Lotus, our Star?"
Daddy didn't seem suspicious of my curiosity about Golden Immortal Lotus, but no need to give a half-baked answer and raise doubts!
"Just, you said it was a golden lotus back then, and I imagined it—it must be super pretty in person, so I got curious."
'Didn't I just sound like a pretty convincing seven-year-old?'
While I was feeling proud, Daddy, who seemed to be pondering Golden Immortal Lotus with a little tongue click, finally spoke.
"Come to think of it, there was an incident where I wondered if you'd met Golden Immortal Lotus when you were little."
"You met Golden Immortal Lotus, Daddy?"
When I made an intensely curious face, Daddy chuckled softly and asked me.
"It's an old story that just came to mind. Want to hear it?"
"Yes, yes! I do!"
After finishing the other bunny ear too, Daddy picked me up and sat me on his lap.
"When you were very little, we lived in another region for a while."
'Is he talking about when we lived with the Tang Clan of Sichuan?'
"Where was that?"
"Hmm, a place with a big mountain? It's been so long, I don't remember the name."
'A big mountain... No way, the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains? That would be the cult.'
Well, the first place I met Golden Immortal Lotus was a cave in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
More than that, he doesn't remember the name? Daddy's the Heavenly Demon—he can't not remember the cult!
Daddy, total liar!
It irked me that he was lying to me, but since I was curious about the story, I decided to stay quiet.
"And?"
"I lost you once, and I couldn't find you no matter what. It was tough."
"You lost me too, Daddy?"
"There were a lot of enemies after me back then."
"Why were they after you?"
Was I so absorbed in the story that Daddy let a fact slip carelessly?
Daddy seemed quite flustered by my question but soon composed himself and continued.
"I was really envied."
"Why so much envy?"
Daddy stopped mid-sentence, picked me up, and sat me facing him.
"Because I'm so handsome."
'Saying it himself makes him a bit obnoxious, but since it's true, I'll let it slide.'
"Daddy is handsome. So they kidnapped a little kid for that?"
"Yeah, those rip-'em-apart..."
"Rip?"
"No, I wanted to rip out their evil intentions. That's what I meant."
'I already saw the killing intent in Daddy's eyes.'
Still, his effort was admirable, so I let it go.
"So how did you find me?"
"I tracked down all the kidnappers, but couldn't find you. Countless people were mobilized to search."
'Sounds like the cult members were mobilized.'
Listening to Daddy's story, I started filtering it myself now.
"Oh, the villagers were really kind. They adored you a lot too. So they searched eagerly, but still couldn't find you."
Daddy belatedly patched up his words.
But I was more curious about something else.
'If even the cult members and kidnappers didn't know where I was, where on earth was I?'
"So who found me?"
"Me."
'As expected of Daddy—I believed in you! But what's this about you meeting Golden Immortal Lotus?'
"Where did you find me, Daddy?"
"I heard your crying. From inside a small cave in a big mountain."
'A small cave—does he mean the one where Golden Immortal Lotus was?'
"I followed the sound inside, and there you were, crying on top of a fully bloomed golden lotus. So I picked you right up and came back."
'That means I met Golden Immortal Lotus way back when?'
It was a pretty interesting story for something I started listening to without much expectation.
"What about Golden Immortal Lotus?"
"Unfortunately, I didn't know about it back then. And my mind was all on you, so I didn't have a chance to pay attention to the lotus."
"Still, it was a spirit beast. What a shame."
"Later, when I learned about Golden Immortal Lotus and went back to that cave, it was gone."
'Huh? Did the cave move? But the small cave where I found Golden Immortal Lotus was also in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains... Weird.'
"Can caves move too?"
"It's a spirit beast—what can't it do?"
"Amazing."
'So I ended up with the flower seed Daddy might have gotten.'
"Yeah, amazing story. A spirit beast protecting our Star."
'Oh no, now I know I owe Golden Immortal Lotus from when I was a baby.'
I wasn't sure if it was a good thing, but it was fascinating that we'd been connected in the past too.
"Is that the end of the story?"
"Yes, that was the last time I saw Golden Immortal Lotus."
'Too bad.'
Daddy didn't seem to know anything about the flower seed either.
"More than that, our Star, you look sleepy. Your eyes are half-closed."
'Going back and forth from the cult in half a day would drain anyone's stamina.'
"Yeah, I'm sleepy."
"Shall we sleep then?"
"Yeah..."
Daddy held my drowsy body and patted my back.
It felt like a lullaby, and I fell asleep in no time.
Imagining my first meeting with Golden Immortal Lotus that Daddy told me about.
"If you don't want to become a snack for my sword."
Red Cloud knelt before the Heavenly Demon with an unflinching face.
'If hiding Seol Cheon-seong is a sin against the Heavenly Demon, I'll gladly offer my life.'
To Red Cloud, the Heavenly Demon was a being worthy of that level of loyalty.
"Red Cloud."
"Yes, Heavenly Demon."
"If you had to choose between doing something for me or Star, you must stake your life to do it for Star. Understood?"
'I thought he'd ask for a report on Cheon-seong's recent status...'
The words from Dang Hwi's mouth were something entirely different.
'Perhaps the Heavenly Demon...'
"Why no answer? Is it against your will?"
"No. I will follow the Heavenly Demon's order."
"One more thing."
Dang Hwi sheathed his sword and looked at Red Cloud.
"If you and Five Elements judge it to be for Cheon-seong's happiness, follow Cheon-seong's will. Even if it goes against my orders."
Dang Hwi's gaze toward Red Cloud was sincere.
"Yes. For the Heavenly Demon's order, Red Cloud will stake this life to follow it."
The moment their eyes met, Red Cloud thought.
'Ah, oh. My lord truly is...'
An utterly hopeless, pitiful daughter dotard.