Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 13
Chapter Title: A Father's Name
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My tail, which had started to grow into a proper shape, now helped me keep my balance even on uneven ground.
Oof.
"Cheep."
"You walk well."
"Cheeep."
As I climbed onto his palm, the master of the house gently tapped my beak.
I notice it every time, but he seems to have a thing for my beak.
"I heard you'll be able to take human form soon."
"Cheep!"
"I can't see where you've grown."
He murmured, holding me up and inspecting me from all angles.
That's not true. I'm growing very well. I can even eat a lot more than before.
I glared at him, channeling my silent indignation, and he let out a dry chuckle. It was clearly a scoff.
"Or has everything you've eaten just turned to fat?"
"Cheeeep!"
"My lord, Lady Aileen is growing very well."
As I bristled, Rosaria intervened, bringing over a white wooden board as evidence.
It was the board we used to measure my height every morning.
Along its edge, a series of red lines were marked at short intervals.
"What is this?"
"It's a record of Lady Aileen's growth."
Rosaria smiled proudly, showing it off for everyone to see.
Everyone in the room turned their gaze to the wooden board in her hands.
"She's definitely getting bigger, isn't she?"
In the empty space left after marking my height, my footprints were also stamped, dated accordingly.
The growth was minimal, but it was definitely there.
When I flapped my wings as if to say, "See?", the master of the house readily admitted the truth.
"I see."
"Cheep!"
"She certainly is growing. But..."
At this rate, when will she ever grow up?
Everyone looked at Hestia with questioning eyes.
As the most knowledgeable person here, her eyes sparkled as she looked at the board before clearing her throat.
"You shouldn't try to understand her on the same level as a fast-growing individual. Lady Aileen is different from us."
"It will take a while at this pace."
"She's different from the young masters, who grow differently every day. Black Mambas become independent quickly. It will take a little longer for Lady Aileen."
"Is that so?"
Listening to Hestia's explanation, the master of the house seemed to find that prospect more to his liking and smiled with satisfaction.
* * *
I had expected the master of the house to leave after a short visit, but he stayed for quite a while.
Thanks to him, my carefully hidden cleverness was completely exposed to everyone.
"None of you know just how smart Lady Aileen is, do you?"
That one comment was enough to recapture the interest of the master of the house, who had been starting to look bored.
"What do you mean?"
"She's been learning about the other clans lately."
"What a troublesome and pointless thing to do."
Despite his words, he gestured with his eyes for her to proceed.
Inside the box were pictures of various animals.
It was one of the things Rosaria had recently purchased for educational purposes.
Rosaria took one of the wooden pictures from the box, held it up, and asked.
"Lady Aileen, what is this?"
"Cheep cheep!"
Roar!
I raised my tail straight up and puffed out my body.
It's something super scary.
I remembered because she had emphasized how scary it was several times.
"Very good!"
Rosaria clapped her hands. Hestia, who had been eating snacks, stared at me with her mouth agape.
The master of the house and Baon didn't show much reaction, but I could feel them stop what they were doing and focus on me.
None of you thought I was this smart, did you?
Excited, I clapped with my wings.
The master of the house, who had been watching me intently, nodded at Rosaria to show me another one.
"Then, Lady Aileen, what is this?"
"Chee-eep."
Mooo.
When I chirped to imitate a cow's moo, Rosaria clapped a hand over her mouth.
Her reaction was so dramatic that I felt a little embarrassed.
To be honest, Rosaria praised every little thing I did, so I was getting used to this kind of atmosphere.
I'm a baby bird who can do this sort of thing with ease.
"How can you be so smart! You must be a genius!"
Sure enough, Rosaria began to shower me with praise.
"You've never even seen the other clans before, this is amazing, Lady Aileen."
Hestia chimed in from the side, agreeing. I felt my cheeks grow warm and pretended to look elsewhere.
Just as Hestia pulled out a new animal picture to show me, something else caught my eye with a powerful pull.
Hmm. I want a cookie, too.
I plopped down and stared at the cookies on the table, and the master of the house picked one up.
"You want this?"
"Cheep."
"Should I give it to you?"
"Cheep."
"Then, what am I?"
"Cheep?"
The master of the house subtly urged me to imitate him. You're the master of the house, aren't you?
But he also gave me the name Aileen and said he would make me his daughter...
I'd kept calling him the master of the house because it felt awkward, but I knew that wasn't right.
But it's so embarrassing and awkward. What should I do?
I pressed my beak shut and fell into serious contemplation, and the room grew restless.
"Could it be that she doesn't know who the Gaju is?"
"Well, we never formally explained it to her."
"...She knows this one, though?"
Hestia, who was whispering with Baon, pointed to an animal character.
The longer my silence stretched, the quieter and more subdued the atmosphere in the room became.
Soon, I found myself face-to-face with the master of the house's chilly expression.
The moment his brow furrowed ever so slightly, I stealthily averted my gaze.
"A fool for all her smarts."
The master of the house pulled back the cookie he was about to give me.
"Ungrateful little bird. Kaide."
"Cheep?"
"Repeat after me. Kaide."
"Cheep cheep cheep."
When I repeated his name, he sighed and gave me the cookie.
Nom, nom.
It had been a month since I came to live in this house. For the first time, I learned the master of the house's name.
"Cheep cheep cheep."
"Yes."
"Cheep cheep cheep!"
"Yes."
As the frozen atmosphere began to thaw, a flustered Rosaria quickly tried to smooth things over.
"It seems our Lady Aileen didn't know the Gaju's name! Right?"
"That's understandable. It's a relief she knows now."
At those words, Kaide gave a chillingly languid smile. His red eyes seemed to pierce right through me.
"Don't tell me you don't even know that I'm your father."
...I did know, but it never felt real, so I never had a chance to process it.
I sucked in a sharp breath.
If I'm too slow to answer now, the displeased master of the house might completely take back his decision to adopt me.
Grab.
I quickly grabbed his finger. Kaide's eyebrows shot up.
"What are you doing?"
"Cheep cheep cheep."
"Yes."
"Chee-"
Tap.
I gently tapped my beak against him. The tip of Kaide's finger twitched.
"Oh, my! The young lady is showing her affection for the Gaju, telling him she likes him."
Hestia seized the opportunity to quickly explain.
At her explanation, Kaide's hardened expression softened.
"I see."
My anxious heart settled down.
"Cheep!"
Phew, what a relief.
* * *
It was a sunny afternoon. My body had recovered enough for an outing to the garden.
"Shall we play with a ball today?"
"Cheep!"
Rosaria rolled a large ball, the size of my body, onto the lawn.
Though, it was only as big as Rosaria's palm.
She said it was a ball specially made for me.
Boing.
A cheerful sound echoed from the air-filled ball.
As I looked around, Rosaria laid out a few rules.
"You have to play only around this area. Understood?"
"Cheep!"
"You can't go beyond the fountain. It's dangerous for you to go into the forest alone, Lady Aileen."
"Cheep!"
I practically used my whole body to roll the ball and scurried after it.
It didn't roll very fast on the grass, but it had been a while since I'd done anything active, and my body wouldn't move the way I wanted it to.