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Chapter 42
“What about interrogating the Song Family Head?”
“Jo-young is handling it, but I don’t know what method was used because he refuses to open his mouth. I need your help.”
Ju Jeokseo said as he slipped the flower ring onto Baekyeon’s finger. The flower ring fit a little loosely on her tiny finger.
However, the baby snake didn’t even have time to be happy about the flower ring and swallowed nervously.
‘Lord Song.’
The man who had brought Ahee to torment her.
For what purpose had he brought Ahee? Wasn’t the very act of bringing Ahee here because of her?
If that was the case…
‘Does Lord Song know about Mother?’
If the Song Family Head knew that the White Serpent was Myeongyeong’s daughter, then perhaps he also knew something about Myeongyeong.
To Baekyeon, that felt slightly more important than the flower ring. The little girl fidgeted with her fingers while sitting in Ju Jeokseo’s arms.
Hwanya stared intently at her as though observing her.
Seeing that, Hwayeong immediately shouted and stepped in front of the baby snake.
“Why are you looking at her like that? The baby snake will wear out!”
“Hwayeong, you want to get hit one more time, don’t you?”
“No violence! Against violence!”
Hwayeong stuck out his tongue with a bleh and subtly shielded the baby snake from view.
At that sight, Hwanya shook his head and sighed.
“Hwayeong, this isn’t the time for you to be playing around with Father.”
Hwanya spoke in a cold voice.
“You haven’t forgotten what I told you before I left, have you? I’ll be checking your homework this evening. Come to my quarters.”
“…Th-that’s…”
At the words “homework check,” Hwayeong’s eyes trembled anxiously.
He looked as if he had just heard a bolt from the blue.
However, Hwanya paid it no mind.
“Doeui, same goes for you. Come together later.”
“Yes.”
Doeui nodded.
Hwanya looked at Hwayeong, Doeui, and Baekyeon one after another before turning his gaze away as if he had lost interest.
“Then I’ll rest for a bit before going to see the Song Family Head. The longer someone stays in the prison, the worse their condition gets, and the less information we can extract.”
He slowly lowered his eyes.
Tap.
Something very small touched the hem of Hwanya’s pants.
‘Tap?’
Puzzled, Hwanya lowered his gaze.
There was a small, round head there.
It was Baekyeon.
When their eyes met, Baekyeon flinched in surprise and slowly retreated back into Ju Jeokseo’s embrace.
Then she held out a flower petal pinched between her tiny fingers.
“There was a flower petal stuck to your pant leg, Lord Hwanya… I wanted to remove it for you.”
The baby snake, who had practically collapsed onto the grass, smiled brightly.
Seeing that expression, Hwanya frowned.
Then he brushed off the hem of his pants with a sharp flick.
“It’s natural for flower petals and leaves to stick to you when standing in the grass. There’s no need to bother.”
“Hehe…”
“I’m busy, so I should get going. Little one, I’ll see you again next time.”
Hwanya extended a large hand toward the baby snake’s round head.
However, just before touching her, his hand hesitated and withdrew.
Having already adapted to the Vermilion Bird family, Baekyeon had naturally assumed that he would pat her head. She tilted her head in confusion.
‘Is he a little uncomfortable?’
That could be the case.
After all, this was Hwanya’s first time meeting her.
“…I’ll be going.”
Hwanya immediately turned around and left.
He was always accustomed to walking quickly, but today his steps seemed particularly hurried.
“What a personality.”
Ju Jeokseo muttered quietly.
Watching Hwanya’s retreating figure, Hwayeong shook his head.
“I’m doomed…”
Baekyeon asked cautiously,
“Because of… the homework check?”
“Exactly! Big Brother is seriously too much! Does he think everyone in the world is a genius like him?”
“Still, I don’t think he’ll scold you too much. He must have realized that some things simply aren’t possible.”
“Maybe when it comes to studying! But the ability examination…”
At those words, even Doeui fell silent.
Baekyeon asked carefully,
“What do you mean by ability examination?”
“…He wants to see how much my beast transformation has progressed. Normally, members of the Vermilion Bird clan can naturally produce flames from their bodies once transformed.”
Hwayeong cautiously glanced at Ju Jeokseo.
“But I…”
He quickly rolled over once.
Poof!
With a small explosion, a little bird emerged from the white smoke.
It was the same small, fluffy bird form as when he had first become friends with Baekyeon.
Though parts of his tail and feathers were tinged red, there were no flames coming from his body.
“Chirp, chirp…”
Hwayeong brought his wings to his eyes and lowered his head, pretending to sob.
“Ah, Brother. Don’t cry.”
Startled, Baekyeon carefully picked up the tiny bird with both hands.
Holding him gently against her chest, she said,
“You can practice together. Lord Hwanya probably won’t scold you too harshly…”
“He’ll definitely scold me. Hwanya succeeded when he was five years old.”
Ju Jeokseo replied casually, as though it had nothing to do with him.
At that, Hwayeong, who had been pretending to cry in Baekyeon’s palms, hopped up and down angrily.
“Chirp chirp!” (Father!)
Ju Jeokseo chuckled and lightly tapped Hwayeong’s beak.
“But everyone has their own pace. If your brother scolds you too much, tell me. I’ll scold Hwanya for you.”
“Chii…” (You have to keep your promise…)
Hwayeong collapsed weakly into Baekyeon’s hands.
Seeing that, smiles naturally appeared on everyone’s faces.
Though this little bird couldn’t produce flames from his body, he seemed capable of warming the hearts of those around him.
‘Brother Hwayeong is so warm… I hope Lord Hwanya doesn’t scold him too much.’
Being scolded because of one’s abilities…
The baby snake felt a slight sense of kinship.
With a worried expression, Baekyeon brought Hwayeong’s tiny body against her cheek.
Thump, thump.
She could feel his small heart beating very close to her.
“What do you think?”
Hwanya asked the guard standing beside him.
The guard tilted his head.
“What do you mean, Young Master?”
“If you came home after a long time and suddenly found out you had a younger cousin, how would you feel?”
“Ah, you mean Lady Baekyeon.”
The guard recalled the tiny young lady bustling about the estate and smiled faintly before nodding.
“It would be nice to have an adorable younger cousin. Moreover, isn’t Lady Baekyeon the daughter of Lady Myeongyeong, who had disappeared? I would be very happy to meet her.”
“Right?”
Hwanya muttered.
“Then I guess I’m a little strange.”
“Pardon?”
“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it.”
At Hwanya’s words, the guard blinked before speaking again as if he had remembered something.
“Young Master, that little snake lady… I heard she possesses an incredible ability.”
The guard sounded somewhat excited.
“I heard from those who were at Jeoksan Mountain during the Divine Beast Festival that her ability is ‘Absorption.’ Apparently, she can even absorb contamination! They all clearly witnessed the entire area becoming purified. Perhaps…”
“So?”
Hwanya tilted his head.
“Pardon?”
“Do you really think that tiny baby snake can purify the entire Southern Land?”
“Uh…”
Faced with Hwanya’s question, the guard hesitated before swallowing hard.
Even in the guard’s opinion, the baby snake had been incredibly small.
If not for the testimonies of those who had seen it firsthand, he never would have believed that the baby snake had absorbed all the contamination from an entire pond.
A child so tiny that she couldn’t even finish a bowl of rice properly—how much could she possibly absorb?
Reading the confusion on the guard’s face, Hwanya sighed and said,
“Half-hearted hope can become poison. No matter what kind of ability that little one possesses, abandon the hope that she can eliminate all the contamination in the Southern Land.”
Standing before a mirror hanging in the hallway, Hwanya stared intently at his reflection.
“That kind of hope isn’t good for that child, nor for the beastfolk of the Southern Land.”
And not for me either.
‘It’s not good.’
As Hwanya blinked, for a brief moment, his eyes and hair reflected black in the mirror.
His beautiful crimson hair took on a dark reddish-black hue for an instant before gradually fading away.
Staring silently at his reflection in the mirror, Hwanya spoke as if throwing the words away.
“I wished for Aunt to return.”
“Young Master…”
“Not the child Aunt had with the Emperor.”
