Chapter 79: The Insolent Brat
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 79: The Insolent Brat
“Tell me the truth. Please?”
“Di—Dia doesn’t kno-ow…”
“Sigh. There’s no way you could have made it all the way here alone in the middle of the night.”
“Uh…”
Dantalion sighed and knelt on one knee before me. Meeting my eyes, he wore a dead-serious expression.
But who told me? What does he mean by that?
Unsure of his intent, I simply let my eyes wander.
“There are secret passages in the Imperial Palace that only the Imperial Family knows about. Usually, only royals are supposed to know, but sometimes an old servant happens to find out by chance.”
“Ah.”
“Who told you about the passage? Hmm?”
“…”
So, Dantalion seemed to think a servant had revealed a secret passage to me, allowing me to sneak out.
Well, I suppose that suspicion made more sense than me making a contract with a demon.
I’d almost confessed out of guilt for no reason. I forced an awkward smile and opened my mouth.
“Umm, well…”
“Yes, who was it? If you tell me, I won’t scold you, Dia.”
“Ummm.”
This was a problem. There was no way anyone could have told me about such a passage. I had sneaked out with the help of the demons.
“I—I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“I don’t ’member.”
“Hmm.”
I couldn’t exactly point the finger at an innocent person and get them killed, so I just gave a vague excuse. Dantalion narrowed his eyes.
“Fine. Anyway, you must have been startled. I’ll take you back to your room.”
“Okay.”
“You come here too. It’ll be dangerous if you stay here.”
“…Yes.”
Nathaniel, who had been on guard, approached only after I nodded. Dantalion let out a short laugh at the sight of him, looking for all the world like an untamed cat.
“It seems word of you has reached the Temple.”
“…”
“Is your mind still made up about not going to the Temple?”
“Yes,” Nathaniel answered with a firm face, and Dantalion gave a satisfied smile.
“Good. Then let’s go.”
Dantalion led Nathaniel and me toward the center of the palace. Soon, Veronica came running toward us, her face ashen.
“My goodness, Dia!”
“Mommy!”
Veronica looked perfectly put-together despite it being the middle of the night. It was as if she had been meeting someone until just a moment ago.
She must have been having a secret late-night rendezvous with Dantalion. And they aren’t even married yet.
I shot a petty glare at Dantalion, who was standing a short distance away.
“What happened, Dia? Why were you with Niel at this hour?”
“Umm, well…”
“What were you thinking…!”
Veronica cried out, her voice thick with emotion. It was the first time I’d seen her this angry. I instinctively flinched.
“Berry, stop. Dia must be very shaken as well.”
“Sigh.”
Dantalion stepped in, wrapping an arm around Veronica’s shoulders to comfort her. I couldn’t say a word.
“There are too many eyes here. It’s best we go inside to talk.”
“Yes.”
Nathaniel was taken away by the knights for protection, and I was practically dragged to the Empress’s Chambers, which served as Veronica’s room.
“Dia, why did you do that? Hmm?”
“Well, I wanted to play with Niel more…”
“You played with him all day. Wasn’t that enough?”
“Umm.”
Thinking about it now, there really hadn’t been a desperate need to be with Nathaniel at night.
But when I saw those eyes of his—like a puppy left out in the rain—I couldn't help but go to him.
I kept my eyes glued to the floor as Veronica scolded me.
“Haa, I really don’t know what to do with you…”
“Berry, pushing the child will only have the opposite effect. Besides, Dia is still young. She probably went out without even realizing it was wrong.”
“Then what should I do?”
Veronica sighed and leaned against Dantalion. His hand naturally patted her shoulder.
“First, since it seems that boy, Niel, has become a target of the Temple, we’ll need to tighten security for the time being.”
“Do you really think the Temple did this?”
“We managed to capture one assassin, but it’ll be hard to dig out direct information. Still, we can at least send them a warning.”
“Phew.”
The two whispered in low voices. Of course, I could hear everything. I kept my ears perked from a distance.
“Since both the Lionels and the Temple are targeting those children, I think it might be better to keep them together. Dia seems to like the boy, anyway.”
“You’re right. Now that I think about it, Your Majesty, separating them might cause more trouble.”
Veronica nodded and turned back to me. I quickly lowered my head, pretending to be deep in reflection.
“Dia, do you know what you did wrong?”
“I’m sowwy…”
“What did you do wrong? Hmm?”
“Going out at night… and playing with my friend…”
“That is a very bad thing to do. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
I trembled slightly as if I were terrified by Veronica’s stern tone.
Completely fooled by my acting, Veronica let out a long sigh and pulled me into a tight hug.
“My heart nearly stopped, Dia. Don’t ever do that again, okay?”
“Okay.”
Fortunately, the incident of sneaking out at night was settled. I even gained the unexpected bonus of having my room moved closer to Nathaniel’s.
And on top of that…
“Greetings. I am Demia Rook of the First Knight Order. I have been assigned as your guard starting today.”
From the next day, I had a guard knight attached to me. And not just any knight, but one from the First Knight Order, which was under the Emperor’s direct command.
I stared blankly at the knight, who had neatly trimmed mint-colored hair.
Is she a woman?
At first glance, she looked like a man, but looking closer, her features were incredibly pretty. Moreover, her build was smaller compared to other knights.
It seemed they had intentionally assigned a female knight, thinking I might be afraid of adult men.
It’s fine, though. I wasn’t even that scared of Raven.
In fact, Raven was the one who had avoided me at first, fearing I’d be scared of him.
Still, I didn’t dislike Dantalion’s consideration, so I put on a bright smile.
“Hehe, a knight!”
“Yes. Please call me Demia.”
“Since you’re Demia, you’re Mia!”
“Pardon?”
The knight’s expressionless face twitched slightly. I beamed at her bewildered expression.
“Mia, you don’t like it?”
“Ah, no. I like it.”
Demia quickly shook her head. Her flustered expression vanished in an instant. As expected of a veteran knight, she seemed accustomed to hiding her emotions.
But a five-year-old is an unpredictable creature. To play the part of a child well, I felt like I’d have to surprise Demia quite often.
I offered her a silent apology in my head.
“Kyahaha!”
“My—Little Lady! It’s dangerous!”
I ran around the room like a wild pony. From a distance, Sophia watched Demia and me playing tag with a pleased expression.
Sophia probably felt like she’d suddenly been given a vacation. I chuckled to myself.
“Oof!”
“Little Lady!”
Because I was running while looking backward, I couldn't see what was in front of me. I bumped into something and almost tumbled backward, but Demia caught me just in time.
“Goodness, Little Lady. Are you alright?”
“Umm.”
A startled Sophia came rushing over. I nodded to reassure her.
The floor of my room was covered in a plush carpet anyway, so it wouldn't have hurt much even if I had fallen.
By the way, what did I hit? The moment I looked up with a curious face, I heard a sneering voice.
“What’s this? This little pipsqueak is the Ducal Lady’s daughter?”
“…?”
A child with an arrogant expression was looking down at me.
He looked to be about ten years old. Yet, he bore a striking resemblance to Dantalion.
With short blonde hair and blue eyes, he radiated the symbols of the Imperial Family. I blinked blankly at him.
Is this Nicholas Agrabain?
Nicholas Agrabain.
The heir to the Agrabain Grand Ducal House. A member of the Imperial bloodline with the highest claim to the throne after Dantalion and the Grand Duke himself.
Since the previous Emperor and Empress only had Dantalion, the Agrabain Grand Ducal House descended from the Emperor before that.
To Dantalion, Nicholas was his cousin’s grandson—his first cousin twice removed.
In the novel, he was portrayed as a mean-spirited character who bullied Marianne, who was around his age. Even at a glance, he looked like a total brat.
“Hey, pipsqueak. I’m asking you. Are you really the Ducal Lady’s daughter? Huh?”
He even nudged me with the tip of his foot as he spoke. Just then, someone came running over in a frantic rush.
“Young—Young Lord! Oh, heavens!”
A woman who appeared to be a maid was trembling, her face pale with fright.
That side seems to have it rough, too. I let out a deep sigh inwardly.