Chapter 7

I can’t reach! Were babies always this inflexible, or was I still just too short to have a full-length spine?

Why can’t I bend my waist? From where I was sitting on the bank, I couldn’t reach the water with my short arms. If I bent too far, the weight of my head would cause me to tip forward. If I fell into the pond, that would be game over. I wouldn’t be able to concentrate underwater and use my levitation spell.

It’s already hard enough to concentrate. I squinted in focus. This was my one chance to clean the pacifier. I had to come up with a solution. It wasn’t like I could hold onto something for support wherever I went. Maybe I could make a collar to wear that would support my body so I could walk around with outstretched arms, but that didn’t sound feasible either.

As I sat staring at the pond with my short arms and legs stretched out, a solution suddenly came to mind. If sitting didn’t work, then perhaps I should lie down. I’m so clever! How could an infant come up with such an idea?

I quickly held the pacifier in my mouth again and rolled onto my stomach. I couldn’t let it get too far out of my reach. I had to suck on it occasionally to maintain my thoughts. Lying down on my belly and stretching out my short arms, I finally managed to reach the water.

“Abwah!” Yes! I made it!

I took the pacifier, and firmly holding onto it, vigorously rinsed it in the pond. Even though I got completely soaked, I didn’t care. Finally, I would have a clean pacifier.

It’s not getting clean? How long has it been caked with dirt? I cried out in frustration.

I repeatedly wiped the pacifier on my hand. It was hard to keep my grip on it since my baby hands were so weak. As much as I tried to scrub it clean, it didn’t get much better. Still, the fact that I had gotten it wet gave me some relief.

“What’s that?” A voice came out of nowhere.

“Bwah!” Startled, I spread my little fingers. The pacifier flew up in the air.

“What was that noise? It sounded like a pig squealing,” the voice said.

Oh no, my pacifier! The last thing on my mind was an approaching enemy. The important thing at the moment was that my pacifier was flying through the air. Earlier, I couldn’t even toss things in an arc on purpose!

I leaped into the air toward the spiraling pacifier, which had started to fall back to earth. There were two adult-sized legs standing tall before me, but I couldn’t care less. This was a matter of survival.

With a soft patter, the pacifier fell to the ground and bounced a couple of times. I rushed forward and grabbed it. As a wise sage once said, if you pick something up within three seconds, it’s like it never even touched the ground. I got it in two seconds, so I had nothing to worry about.

“Hey, who are you?” I heard a stern, young-sounding voice. With the now less smelly pacifier safely tucked in my mouth, I blinked and tilted my head back.

Hmm? It was a boy who looked familiar. Those piercing eyes and that dark hair—they were just like Charente Klaune’s. Come to think of it, I thought I had heard once that Charente had a child… maybe.

Hey, you little snot-nosed brat. Charente’s son was just a kid. He might be older than me, but I would definitely become a grown-up faster. Judging by his looks, he seemed to be about five years old. By the time I had reached that age, I had already mastered low-level circle magic, blown up an annex or two, and faked my own death.

“I’ve never seen you before. You’re not part of the direct line, are you? You shouldn’t be here if you’re not. You’ll be in big trouble if my father finds you,” he said.

Perhaps he’s a bit kinder than his father? He didn’t seem cold-blooded enough to be Charente’s kid.

Charente was known as the “Iron-blooded Demon.” It was as if his blood had been replaced with cold steel. He didn’t hesitate to cut enemies, or even allies if required.

He didn’t ignore me when I was the Great Magician Hela, of course, but he probably wouldn’t have even bothered with me if I had come from a low-ranking family. That was how he was. He believed that only his equals in both lineage and ability had the right to speak to him. If you had the blood, but not the skills, he would ignore you; if you had the skills, but not the blood, it was the same.

So that was why he sent such awful maids to care for me. When I first saw a maid lose her temper with me, I realized Charente had sent her.

A jerk with nothing inside him, no heart, not even a tear to shed… I shuddered at the thought of being related to such a man.

“Aboo.” Mind your own business and go your way, boy! I waved my hand dismissively at the little boy who resembled Charente and crawled back toward the pond.

Even though I picked up the pacifier within three seconds, I still felt unsure about it. I’ll go clean it once more, just to be safe. It seemed like the smell went away the more I washed it.

I got back down on my belly, dipped the pacifier into the pond, and shook it with all my might.

“You shouldn’t be here. My father hates children like you,” the boy said.

Tsk… I’m sure there’s nothing good on the horizon for you, kid. I’m sure growing up with such a cold-blooded dad naturally leads to such thinking. I lightly ignored him.

“I’m telling you! You’ll get kicked out! Last time a servant wandered into Father’s garden without permission, they cut his hamstrings and put him out on the street.”

“Aboo?” Cut his hamstrings? Just for mistakenly entering the garden? What kind of crazy son-of-a…

Rumors about Charente Klaune’s unhinged actions spread even to the remote Sylopia. It reached a point that whenever there were diplomatic meetings between our nation and Hayren, a huge number of my representatives dropped out due to Charente’s participation. Whenever he opened his mouth, most magicians would shut theirs. Anyway, dealing with the Klaune family had always been a headache for me and Melane.

Nope, I’m not going to start thinking about him. It makes me depressed. Melane was the one I had to get revenge on. I had to strike him down with my own hands. I had raised him, so it was my job to destroy him.

“You’re still a baby, so you probably don’t understand. But my father is really scary. You can’t get caught. Only authorized people can come here. My father tends to the garden personally.”

That cold-blooded man tends to this garden? It did seem like a high-class hobby, but… Still, it doesn’t quite match the flawless and clean-cut image he portrays. He was refined yet flashy, with a hint of glamour and a peculiarly old-fashioned, aristocratic touch. Getting his hands dirty in a garden didn’t quite seem to match that.

“My mother loved this garden,” the boy added. He had a slight lisp.

Yeah, got it. Why are you suddenly telling me your life story? Can’t you see I’m just a baby? I don’t need to hear you talk about your feelings. And with that ridiculous lisp.

“Ee-dee.” Idiot. I responded rather clearly. If he were Charente’s son, he would end up being the one to fight against Sylopia when he grew up. There was no need to treat him kindly.

“My father said he fought with Mother. That’s why they got divorced.”

I really don’t care. What is this, a reading of Charente Klaune’s relationship journal?

I turned to face the pond. My reflection in the water was far from adorable. My arms and legs were dirty, and the pacifier was all gray. I felt a bit ashamed of myself for looking like such a mess.

“I love my mother. I miss her.” The boy suddenly choked up.

I stared blankly at the mini-Charente, who was now sniffling with teary eyes. I rolled around on the ground and faced him. The kid’s round eyes seemed to droop downwards.

Parents always make their children weak-minded, huh? It appeared that Charente was not raising his child as strictly as I had assumed. Incapable parents were worthless. It seemed he still didn’t know that being affectionate toward someone could be a weakness.

He’ll realize it soon enough. Maybe that’s why he cut ties with his wife.

Whatever. I had no idea how to comfort an unhappy kid, and consoling him probably wouldn’t work anyway. I’d be lying if I told him everything would be alright. I started crawling past him.

“Hey, where are you going? What if you get caught?” he said.

I glanced at the mini-Charente and just passed him by. I should get back early today. I don’t want to get grabbed again.

Thump, thump, thump.

The sound of someone’s heavy footsteps approached us. I realized it was too late to crawl away.

I rolled over, falling into the bushes. As I peeked out from the foliage, I saw the familiar figure of Charente Klaune. He was walking with such a disciplined stride that one might think he was a military man.

“Bwah.” I let out a sigh of relief. I almost got caught. I wouldn’t want my underdeveloped hamstrings to be severed.

I watched Charente stomp away and hurriedly crawled out of the bushes, whipping my arms and legs around.

I felt like someone was watching me from behind as I desperately crawled away. Feeling a sense of unease, I pushed myself even harder.

My hands and knees hurt. I’ve probably got bruises now. But I wouldn’t get used to it if I didn’t endure it, so there was nothing I could do. I was probably going to be stuck crawling for a while, so I needed to figure out how to do it faster and less painfully.

Sucking on the pacifier, I embarked on the long journey back to my room.