The Little Demon King is Too Bothered by Her Brave Dads - Chapter 83

 

***

 

 

 

Grandfather wrapped me tightly in winter clothes, and as if that wasn’t enough, he put on a big woolly hat on me before heading to the greenhouse.

 

 

 

“Haah.”

 

 

 

I took a deep breath.

 

 

 

Was it because I hadn’t breathed fresh air in so long?

 

 

 

Strangely, breathing felt more comfortable than when I was in the ducal mansion.

 

 

 

“Aren’t you cold?”

 

 

 

“Mmh, no.”

 

 

 

I smiled broadly.

 

 

 

I’m wearing so many layers of clothes and even a hat. Wouldn’t it be strange if I felt cold?

 

 

 

Yet, Grandfather couldn’t hide his worried expression.

 

 

 

“Still, if you get cold, make sure to tell me, understood?”

 

 

 

Seriously, he sounds like someone else.

 

 

 

He looks just like Siegfried, right down to the nagging worry.

 

 

 

Grandfather headed towards the greenhouse across the garden.

 

 

 

From the moment we entered the greenhouse, I felt warm and humid air that was completely different from the air outside.

 

 

 

“Wow, it’s so beautiful.”

 

 

 

With twinkling eyes, I looked around.

 

 

 

The various rare plants that were already present at the Orlean´s Manor were intriguing, of course, but I was more drawn to the flowers that seemed to have been recently planted.

 

 

 

Red, yellow, orange, white, pink…

 

 

 

Vibrant colors that children would love, and even adorable signs with the names of flower varieties written on them.

 

 

 

It was so clear that he had prepared everything for me with great care.

 

 

 

“…….”

 

 

 

I felt a bit choked up.

 

 

 

At that moment, my grandfather, seemingly nervous, started talking to me.

 

 

 

“Baby, why do you suddenly have that expression? Huh? Does something hurt?”

 

 

 

“No, nothing hurts at all.”

 

 

 

I stopped myself from shaking my head as a habit.

 

 

 

‘Wait, just a moment.’

 

 

 

In an instant, I was astonished.

 

 

 

‘Really, nothing hurts at all?!’

 

 

 

The turmoil that had been boiling up on its own inside me was suddenly calm.

 

 

 

The pain that felt like thousands and thousands of needles poking at my insides, and the buzzing tinnitus that had been in my ears, all vanished.

 

 

 

‘What’s going on?’

 

 

 

Even during the periodic moments of relief in the ducal mansion, the turmoil had never completely subsided.

 

 

 

It had only weakened.

 

 

 

But now…

 

 

 

‘It’s as if… the turmoil has completely settled down.’

 

 

 

I struggled to contain my astonishment and rapidly turned my thoughts.

 

 

 

Comparing the moment before and now, the only thing that had changed was the place.

 

 

 

‘I’ve been sick all this time. This is the first time I’ve been out of the Ducal’s mansion.’

 

 

 

In retrospect, I think I felt like I could breathe easier right after I left the main building.

 

 

 

So, did the mansion have some kind of influence on me that made my demonic energy run wild?

 

 

 

What’s in the mansion?

 

 

 

I thought back to the time of my illness and what had changed in my surroundings.

 

 

 

‘On the day of my illness, I met with the head of the Lintz merchant group. ‘

 

 

 

He had mentioned sending goods to the duchy early in the morning.

 

 

 

And he gave me a doll…….

 

 

 

‘No way.’

 

 

 

At that moment, I felt my mouth go dry.

 

 

 

The doll wasn’t by my side.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

I immediately went in search of Siegfried.

 

 

 

Meanwhile, as soon as I entered the mansion, I felt the demonic energy in my body rise again.

 

 

 

‘Ha, really.’

 

 

 

I let out a bitter laugh.

 

 

 

“Tatiana, what’s going on?”

 

 

 

Siegfried, who was with the doctor, turned to look at me.

 

 

 

Seeing the array of medicinal herbs on the table, it seemed they were discussing something about my medicine…

 

 

 

My heart swelled up once again.

 

 

 

‘No, now is not the time to be moved.’

 

 

 

Gathering my resolve, I walked over to Siegfried.

 

 

 

“I have something to tell you.”

 

 

 

“To me?”

 

 

 

“Yes. I want to talk with First Dad alone.”

 

 

 

Upon my response, Siegfried turned to the doctor immediately.

 

 

 

“Could you step away for a moment?”

 

 

 

“Yes, of course.”

 

 

 

The doctor nodded and stepped back.

 

 

 

Once we were alone, I explained to Siegfried what I had noticed.

 

 

 

I mentioned that when I first fell ill, it was during the early hours of the morning, and the time when new items were brought in from Lintz was also during the early hours of the morning.

 

 

 

That as soon as I left the mansion, my demonic energy calmed down instantly.

 

 

 

I even told him about how I usually carried the doll that the head of Lintz had given me as a gift, but I left it behind when I visited the greenhouse.

 

 

 

Despite the doubts of a child of only eleven, Siegfried listened to my story with a serious expression throughout.

 

 

 

And then.

 

 

 

“So, you’re saying that the items from the merchant group Lintz are suspicious?”

 

 

 

Siegfried asked me with a serious face.

 

 

 

I nodded vigorously.

 

 

 

“Yes.”

 

 

 

“Understood. You just rest for now.”

 

 

 

Siegfried gave my head a gentle pat and walked out of the room.

 

 

 

Some time passed.

 

 

 

People began to wander around the ducal mansion.

 

 

 

It was a very secretive move, perhaps because they were concerned that the Lintz merchant group would find out.

 

 

 

‘…… Oh my gosh.’

 

 

 

I watched with widened eyes as people hurriedly pulled out items in a chaotic manner.

 

 

 

The servants, following Siegfried’s orders, were starting to retrieve all the items supplied by the Lintz merchant group.

 

 

 

And then.

 

 

 

“……ha, was it this?”

 

 

 

Having completed the inspection of the items, Siegfried let out a bitter laugh.

 

 

 

In front of him were a few items.

 

 

 

An elegant flower vase adorned with butterflies and vines, a desk clock, a palm-sized frame…

 

 

 

Among them, my doll, now in Siegfried’s hands.

 

 

 

“Incredible.”

 

 

 

“Among the demons, were there still individuals capable of creating items like these?”

 

 

 

“What on earth is happening? Huh?”

 

 

 

My grandfather, who had belatedly joined us, asked in bewilderment.

 

 

 

Siegfried retorted sharply.

 

 

 

“These items have been touched by the hands of demons.”

 

 

 

“Touched by the hands of demons? What on earth are you talking about?!”

 

 

 

My astonished grandfather widened his eyes.

 

 

 

“But I don’t sense any demonic energy from them…!”

 

 

 

“That’s because they’ve cleverly hidden the energy.”

 

 

 

Siegfried explained in a low voice.

 

 

 

“That’s inevitable. The enchantment was carefully crafted to mask the presence of it.”

 

 

 

“What is that…… No, more than that, how did you notice that?”

 

 

 

“I’ve poured in magic power beyond the limit to break the enchantment.”

 

 

 

“…….”

 

 

 

“…….”

 

 

 

At that moment, my grandfather and I momentarily forgot the gravity of the situation and were left in a slight daze.

 

 

 

That’s right, it’s an ignorant method that only Siegfried, who has an enormous amount of magical power, could do.

 

 

 

A moment later, my grandfather composed himself and spoke.

 

 

 

“I never imagined such an enchantment could exist.”

 

 

 

“Neither did I.”

 

 

 

“…You too?”

 

 

 

My grandfather hesitated and looked at Siegfried.

 

 

 

Siegfried was one of the three heroes who slayed the five demon lords and saved humanity.

 

 

 

If even he didn’t know that.

 

 

 

“Yes.”

 

 

 

Siegfried nodded firmly as he met my gaze.

 

 

 

“Perhaps only someone like Kirios among humans could create such an enchantment.”

 

 

 

“Only… to that extent?”

 

 

 

“Yes. Father, you, and even my senses, weren’t they deceived? Such enchantments are extremely rare.”

 

 

 

Siegfried clenched his teeth.

 

 

 

“I barely noticed it was an enchantment that could deceive my senses.”

 

 

 

“Then…”

 

 

 

“We haven’t figured out the criteria for deceiving the senses, nor do we know the function of these items.”

 

 

 

“If you, with all your abilities, can’t figure it out, then it must be an impressively powerful enchantment.”

 

 

 

My grandfather’s face grew complex.

 

 

 

Siegfried sighed deeply and muttered to himself.

 

 

 

“Frankly, it’s surprising that demons capable of implementing such enchantments still exist. I would have thought that such abilities were limited to the Five Demon lords…”

 

 

 

Siegfried’s response convinced me once again.

 

 

 

‘The one who implemented the enchantment was probably someone of the Bartoloa clan.’

 

 

 

A super-high-ranking demon tribe that is not lacking even when compared to the three heroes.

 

 

 

The eternal second-in-command of the demon realm, the Bartoloa clan.

 

 

 

At the same time, Siegfried glanced at me briefly.

 

 

 

Our eyes met.

 

 

 

He spoke up again.

 

 

 

“It’s likely that Tatiana was affected by the demonic energy, which might have been the cause of her illness these past few days.”

 

 

 

“Really?”

 

 

 

“Yes. For one thing, it’s unlikely that the demonic energy would have a good effect on a human body…….”

 

 

 

With that, Siegfried gave me a moderate pat on the back.

 

 

 

“A healthy person would be able to withstand that kind of weak energy, but Tatiana was already weak, so I think she might have been affected.”

 

 

 

I subtly observed my grandfather’s reaction.

 

 

 

Thankfully, it seemed he believed it without any doubts.

 

 

 

“In that case…”

 

 

 

My grandfather, who had been hesitating for a moment, gazed intently at Siegfried.

 

 

 

“If we remove these items, Tatiana won’t experience any more illness, right?”

 

 

 

“…….”

 

 

 

Siegfried, who had been silently studying his father, nodded as if to reassure him.

 

 

 

“Yes, based on my assumption, that should be the case.”

 

 

 

“…Thank goodness.”

 

 

 

Upon hearing that answer, my grandfather’s expression visibly eased with relief.