The child giggled as she gently stroked Thunder’s mane.
Luce was momentarily taken aback by the sight.
Thunder was usually so temperamental that even Luce had never experienced such a close, affectionate gesture from him.
“What’s with this suspicious little kid?”
As Luce narrowed his eyes in suspicion, at that very moment—
“Exactly! Suspicious!”
The child straightened her shoulders proudly, like a puppy that had just won a game of hunting.
Then, she pulled a tiny thorn from her pocket, so small it was barely visible.
“I have something to say! I’m the one who healed Thunder!
“… Who are you?
“I’m Coco! Here, I even have the thorn as proof!”
“… Coco? Why does that name sound so familiar? Anyway, let me see it.”
Coco quickly held out her hand, trying to hide her pounding heart.
“That thorn’s from the distant plains. I must’ve gotten it stuck while eating something in a hurry. The shape is pretty unique—Luce will recognize it when you show it to him.”
Just as he had said, Luce’s eyes widened the moment he saw the thorn.
“Huh? This thorn…”
It was exactly as Thunder had claimed.
“This kind of thorn doesn’t grow anywhere around here. It only comes from a rare flower that grows on the plains near the region where Luce studied abroad.”
Just as she recalled Thunder’s words.
Dot examined the inside of Thunder’s mouth with a magnifying glass and let out a brief sound of admiration.
“The baby miss is correct. There’s a very fine wound on Thunder’s tongue, as if he’d been pricked by a thorn. And…”
Thunder was sticking close to Coco, clearly showing they had formed a bond.
“Anyone can see that the baby miss really did heal Thunder.”
Patricia’s face turned pale as the situation swiftly slipped out of her control.
“No need for excuses now.”
Under Luce’s unyielding gaze, Patricia quickly fell to her knees.
“I-I’m so sorry!”
“What exactly are you sorry about?”
“I just wanted to be praised so badly that I…”
“Ho…”
Luce tilted his head with a mischievous grin.
“You, you lied to me. You’d better be ready to pay the proper price for that.”
“I-I’m sorry…”
Luce stared coldly at Patricia, then turned his gaze to Coco.
“Shut up. More importantly, you, your name’s Coco, right?”
“Yes! I’m Coco!”
Coco quickly looked away from the trembling Patricia.
‘I have no choice. If I want to see Sister, I have to act like a bad puppy!’
That’s what Thunder had told her.
People wouldn’t believe her if she simply said, “Coco healed Thunder.”
So Coco and Thunder had put their heads together.
They came up with a mischievous plan, just the kind a bad puppy would think of.
“Hmph, such ambition. So, who exactly are you? A maid? A veterinarian?”
The air suddenly grew tense at Luce’s question.
He tilted his head and gave Dot a nudge on the shoulder.
“Why are you making that face? What, is she your daughter or something, Dot?”
At that moment, Dot finally broke his silence, muttering softly.
“Um… Lord Luce. I’m sorry to say this, but…”
“Huh?”
“Um… the baby miss standing here is neither a maid nor a veterinarian. And she’s not my daughter—I’ve never even been married.”
“Then who is she?”
“… The baby miss is the youngest daughter of this family.”
Luce’s face turned bright red.
“… No way, crazy. That old man… he’s completely lost it. A stubborn, crazy old man. A-at his age… h-having a kid…?”
Dot quickly waved his hands in a panic.
“No! That’s not it! Lord Luce, you’ve only been back for a week after ten years studying abroad. I guess no one had the chance to tell you yet!”
“What? Then explain it properly.”
So Dot laid out the situation in full detail.
By the time he finished, Luce’s mouth had dropped so wide open that his bright pink uvula was clearly visible.
“Come to think of it… I think I did hear something like that. But I must’ve forgotten, it didn’t sound important at the time. So you’re telling me this scruffy little kid is supposed to be the future youngest member of our family?”
Coco shook her head.
“No, I’m not!”
“Then what’s your story?”
“Well… I don’t have a divine mark, so I’m probably getting kicked out soon!”
“… What?”
“But that’s not important! I achieved something amazing today!”
Luce clicked his tongue, as if putting the pieces together.
“Ah, I get it. You saved Thunder so you wouldn’t get kicked out of the family. Am I wrong?”
“…”
“Looks like you’re pretty clever, but pulling out one little thorn isn’t enough to get adopted. I’m not married, I have no authority, and honestly, I’m the family’s biggest troublemaker. Adoption’s something only Father and the council of elders can decide.”
But instead of looking disappointed as Luce had expected, Coco’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
In the end, she even planted her hands on her hips and looked up at him with bold confidence.
“Um, I don’t want to be adopted!”
“Huh? Then what do you want?”
“My wish is… to meet Lady Chloe!”
Luce’s mouth dropped open in shock.
“… Huh? Did I hear that right? Who?”
Who was Chloe Ardoth?
She was the third daughter of the Duke of Ardoth.
But among the people, she was widely known as a notorious villainess.
Largely because of her harsh personality and the fact that she had manifested as a dark mage, someone who wielded the forbidden powers of darkness, shunned by the empire.
And to make matters worse, about a year ago.
After the death of her beloved dog, she completely lost her mind.
She even shrouded her entire residence in darkness.
And yet…
“They said if I did something great, I could meet a direct family member!”
“No, I mean…”
“So please, let me meet Lady Chloe!”
… This tiny little kid wanted to meet that dangerous Chloe?
Coco puffed out her round belly proudly,
like a little wool doll perfectly colored in with pencils.
* * *
A few hours later.
Luce rubbed his tired eyes as he stepped into Dot’s examination room.
“Dot, did that scruffy little kid make it to Chloe safely?”
“Yes, a maid just took her there.”
“Man… she’s one impressive scruffy kid. I don’t know why, but she just walked straight into danger like it was nothing.”
Chloe, widely known and acknowledged as a notoriously difficult troublemaker.
Lately, she’d even begun showing signs of ability overload.
“You, if you keep going like this, you’ll die. More than half of your mana core is already destroyed.”
For ability users, if their mana core was severely damaged from overusing their powers, they would eventually lose control and die.
There’s no way Chloe didn’t know that. And yet, she did nothing. She simply lay there, as still as a corpse.
“So… What does that have to do with you?”
“Hey. I know we’re not exactly close, but I’m still your brother. I’m worried…”
“Do me a favor and back off.”
He sighed inwardly and shook his head.
“If Chloe kicks that scruffy kid out, I guess I’ll have to pick her up.”
