PFLWPL 10

CHAPTER 10………………………………

Yubara, startled by the sharp jab that hit the mark, blamed the child instead, wiping away the sweat that had soaked the back of her neck beneath her hair.

“That was close.”

Still, it was fortunate she had managed to stop the girl from rushing straight to the acting head of the house.

If that mutant went to babble in front of him…

A chill ran down Yubara’s spine, and fresh sweat beaded on her skin.

Whatever the acting head’s true feelings were, if that mutant—the only direct bloodline of the Pegasus family—reported that a mere herbivorous beastkin like her had spoken carelessly, things would not end well.

Shuddering, Yubara forced herself to erase the chain of horrifying thoughts from her mind and focused on something else.

She retraced the situation, trying to find where things had gone wrong.

“She brags about awakening some ridiculous psychic power, makes up weird words like ‘gaslighting’….”

Yubara hadn’t believed a single word about seeing the future.

She’d just gone along with it to win the child’s favor.

“Could someone else have put strange ideas in her head?”

Yubara’s eyes glinted sharply as she reached the most likely conclusion.

How hard she had worked to build her position by serving that ominous little mutant!

And now—someone shameless enough to try and take her honey pot without even calculating the risks?

“After all the pandering I’ve done, they think I’ll just step aside? Not a chance.”

Pegasus or not, that mutant was closer to one of the common deer beastkin seen everywhere. Yet Yubara had treated her like a noble lady.

And she’d even indulged the child’s habit of locking herself in her late mother’s study, pretending to be some little genius.

Tending to a creature said to bring misfortune had drained Yubara’s strength to the limit.

So wasn’t it only fair she should now receive her due reward?

“Now, where was it… the ones who wanted that mutant…”

She mentally listed those who had previously tried to sound her out.

Until now, she had only been testing the waters—seeing who would offer the highest price. But it seemed the time had come to start serious negotiations.

Defects aside, Lyn Pegasus was the best card in her hand.

All that effort—isolating the child with prejudice against mutants and making her completely dependent—had been for this very moment.

It wasn’t as though Yubara harbored ambitions to control the future head of the house.

She didn’t expect Lyn to live long enough to inherit anyway. Mutants always died before that.

The best way for her, as the child’s caretaker, to profit was to sell that proximity.

The vacant throne of House Pegasus—

For those aiming to claim it, Lyn Pegasus was a living crown.

Though the current acting head was powerful and intimidating, if someone could secure legitimacy through Lyn Pegasus…

An ambitious branch family could marry their child—or themselves—to her and thus seize the title of family head.

“In any case, she’s a golden ticket. I’d better use her before she slips out of my hands.”

A sly, greedy light flickered in Yubara’s eyes as she plotted how best to profit.

At that very moment, while Yubara was lost in her grand schemes in her room,

Lyn was walking down the corridor, lost in thought.

“Nanny’s hugs felt nice, but… it’s time to take some distance.”

Since her nanny had spent the most time with her, Lyn would have once listened to her every word.

But after learning on Earth about the dangers of bad words, Lyn sensed something off about Yubara and decided it was better to keep her distance for a while.

Contrary to Yubara’s self-satisfied belief that she was isolating the girl perfectly, Lyn didn’t feel any deep attachment to her nanny.

The affection of a six-year-old could be surprisingly cool.

If Lyn hadn’t gained knowledge from her power—and had listened to the nanny’s words for a few more years—who knew what might have happened?

“Kinda a shame, though.”

That was about all Lyn felt now. She briefly recalled her nanny’s warm embrace and then brushed the thought away.

“All right, all right! I’m a busy kid—no time for this!”

Mimicking the tone of adults she’d seen bustling around the estate, Lyn bounced lightly along the hallway until she arrived before a certain door.

The innermost room on the floor where the family’s direct line resided.

“Here we go!”

Thanks to the magic placed on the massive door, even Lyn could open it easily.

In truth, it was the mana doing the work; her tiny hands merely provided the gesture. Still, the little chant of effort made her feel accomplished as she eagerly looked around the room.

“Ahh… the air feels nice.”

Bookshelves filled the walls all the way to the ceiling, and all sorts of magical instruments were scattered throughout the space.

This was her mother’s magical workshop and study.

Not only her research records but also her personal writings were all stored here—making it Lyn’s favorite place in the world.

While other children played in nurseries, Lyn spent her time here tinkering with magical tools or reading books.

“Ah, Mom’s diary! I should put it back.”

She spotted her mother’s diary, left open where she’d last been reading, and hurried over.

Before she knew the original story, she had always felt small and uneasy—afraid of running into those cold, judging stares.

Whenever that happened, she would flee here and read her mother’s notes. Reading her mother’s words made her feel loved.

But she knew she couldn’t keep doing that.

“Staying alone in your room isn’t good for your health!”

With a lingering touch, Lyn caressed the page before resolutely closing the diary and returning it to its place.

“Fresh air, sunlight, and socializing with people—that’s the foundation of a healthy life!”

Humming what Earth doctors had always said like a refrain, Lyn walked deeper into the room toward a raised platform.

Click.

With the help of a child-sized step, she placed her hand on the magic sphere atop the platform and recited the activation chant.

“Come out, Tinker Tinker!”

—Did you call for me?

The voice that answered from within the light belonged to Tinker, her mother’s artificial spirit.

Lyn’s mother, a great and famously gifted magician, had delighted in creating magical inventions that had never existed before—and Tinker was one of them.

Residing inside the magic sphere, Tinker was extremely intelligent, remembering every book in the vast library and capable of accessing all the information her mother had programmed.

“Tinker, show me how to get healthy.”

—Searching for ‘ways to get healthy.’ Searching… Found 32 related books in the library. Recommended for your age group: “Jack Who Grew Like a Tree,” “I’m Curious—”

“Wait, wait! Slow down a bit!”

Lyn hurriedly grabbed a pen and paper, jotting down the titles as Tinker recited them.

“…Okay, got them all. Tinker, where are these books located?”

—Providing the locations of each volume.

Following Tinker’s directions, Lyn lugged over several books and stacked them high on her desk.

“Phew.”

It had been hard work, but the sight of the piled books filled her with confidence.

“All right. Time to organize what I need to do next.”

Recalling the things she had seen in the original story, Lyn held her pen thoughtfully.

“First, spoilers from the original story… I probably shouldn’t go spreading those around.”

She’d already told Uncle Theo, since she felt she had to warn him, but—

It seemed her ability consumed energy not only when she saw something, but also when she told others about it.

“So, if seeing the ‘original story’ is a passive skill, then talking about the future I saw is an active skill?”

Scribbling notes as she spoke, Lyn began organizing the rules of her strange new power.