Lord Baby Runs A Romance Fantasy With Cash [EN]: Chapter 90

☆ Episode 91 ☆

‘Me?’

‘With this guy?’

Your expressions are an open book.

“If you don’t want to, that’s fine. If you’re going to fight, Lulu will sleep alone.”

In the end, our five family members lay side by side on Dad’s bed, which was the size of a playground.

Huff, I protected the house with my cuteness again today!

As I lay still, staring at the ceiling, I felt the warmth surrounding me.

‘Something feels strange.’

The feeling of our whole family lying together so peacefully tickled my toes.

“Good night.”

“Sleep well.”

“See you in my dreams, my little sister.”

“Sleep.”

“…Good night.”

My heart swelled after hearing Zeon’s soft whisper in my ear.

Ah.

This is happiness.

It was a happy night even without cocoa.

The last season of my fifth year was coming to an end like that.

* * *

This is a dream.

I realized it as soon as I saw the spring before my eyes.

No, it was a scale that could no longer be called a spring.

I stared at the spring, which had become quite a large pond, and reached out my hand.

The cold water tickled between my fingers, and ripples spread across the pond.

Splash!

The water defied gravity and poured towards me.

The world turned upside down, and a new landscape unfolded.

The sacred altar, like the ancient ruins I had seen before.

When I first saw it, it was partially destroyed, but now it has been largely restored.

In that magnificent and majestic scenery, the demon stood.

He looked taller than when I had met him before, and his clothes and accessories had become more extravagant.

“Long time no see, Reader.”

The demon smiled brightly.

“How is it? Now that I’m taller, I’m quite all—”

“What happened?”

I cut to the chase because he was about to say something useless again.

I couldn’t go back without hearing the important things because time was running out.

“What are you referring to?”

“Wasn’t I born as an ordinary child without magic? What exactly is my ability?”

“Why do you think you were born into that family, Reader?”

“Isn’t it just because I have a golden spoon [born into wealth], a handsome dad, and handsome brothers?”

Because that’s the promise.

“There are many families with dads and brothers.”

“But there aren’t any dads and brothers as handsome as my family elsewhere.”

I put my hand on my hip and puffed out my stomach.

“…That’s true.”

The demon said somewhat awkwardly.

“But listening to what you’re saying now, it seems it’s not just because of that.”

“That’s right. How do you think you can summon novels and borrow the heroine’s abilities, Reader?”

I thought it was just because I was scammed into a contract.

It seemed like this was wrong too.

“If you were really an ordinary person without any abilities, you wouldn’t have been able to awaken at all.”

“Are you saying that I was able to awaken my powers because of the Paeraton bloodline?”

“That’s right.”

“So, me being born into this family wasn’t a coincidence?”

The demon’s eyes sparkled as if he had heard something interesting, and he smiled.

“A coincidence? Everything is an inevitability derived from karma, Reader.”

“……”

“The only exception is the path you walk.”

I’ve heard similar words several times.

The only one who can walk the limits of causality—.

“Believe it or not, I’m quite sincerely betting everything on you, Reader.”

“Wait a minute.”

As I was talking, I realized a very important fact.

“So, from the beginning, I was supposed to be born with a golden spoon, a handsome dad and brothers, and even abilities?”

“Huh? Well… isn’t that right?”

“But you’ve been acting like you gave me those conditions? Those were options that were already there?”

“Ah, haha, is that how it seems?”

“Come here. Let’s just get one hit in!”

“No way!”

The demon flapped his wings and flew up.

The sight of his large, pure white wings cutting through the sky made him look more like an angel than a demon.

‘That scammer!’

“So, what kind of power do I have instead of magic? It’ll be good for you too if I know my powers well.”

“I can’t tell you that right now.”

“You’re betting everything on me, and you can’t even answer that?”

“The day will come when I can tell you. Or you may realize it yourself.”

Tap, the demon stepped onto the altar and smiled brightly.

“Congratulations. You’ve completely taken over the Paeraton Duchy, so you’ve overcome one big mountain for now.”

The demon said with a rather serious face.

“It takes time for the power you’ve gained to ripen properly. Prepare for that day by strengthening your inner self.”

The demon spread his wings wide on the altar.

The sunlight collided with his pure white hair and pure white wings, shattering dazzlingly.

“The change you’ve caused is already becoming a whirlwind.”

Kugung!

“Whether that wind will be a tailwind to help your voyage, or a headwind.”

The world was shaking.

As I was sucked into the familiar swirling space, I looked at the demon with an indifferent expression.

“It’s up to you to turn the bow according to the direction of the wind.”

Amidst the fluttering scenery, the demon stood tall and majestic alone.

“Everything depends on you.”

Soon, even the demon’s figure was completely engulfed in darkness.

…It was quite dramatic.

So, what you’re trying to say this time is to diligently complete the quests, right?

Heesh, he shouldn’t be making such clumsy appearances unnecessarily.

Is it because he’s a demon? He has a severe case of chuunibyou [a Japanese term for someone who acts like they have special powers or knowledge].

Chapter 20. Have We Met Somewhere Before?

“Ah!”

My body swayed.

Azzle, who was next to me, grabbed me tightly.

“Thank you. I’m not used to being taller yet.”

At those words, Azzle gave an apologetic smile.

“I’m sorry. The head merchant said he would only deal with you if you came in person. If I hadn’t been caught…”

Last time, I pretended Azzle was the head merchant and sent him, but he was immediately caught.

“It’s okay. We had to clash once someday. He’s a really troublesome opponent.”

How much did I suffer for the past 5 years?

A chase with each other’s identities on the line.

There were times when we almost found out each other’s identities, and times when we almost got caught.

The most difficult opponent in Ruatisha Paeraton’s life.

The leader of the Echesis Mercenary Group.

Sometimes I admired him, and sometimes I got so angry that I woke up in the middle of the night and kicked my blanket.

Then, a negotiation was dramatically arranged.

By mutual need.

‘It’s quite unsettling for me to go in person, but if I think about it the other way around, it’s a perfect opportunity to find out that guy’s identity.’

You can do it!

I’ll find out his identity first and get back the value of the blankets I’ve kicked!

“This way.”

Guided by Azzle, I checked the mask I was wearing again.

The large mask completely covered my face, making it impossible to even guess what I looked like underneath.

After pulling the hood of my robe down once more, I stepped inside the building.

I passed through a dimly lit long corridor with night-shining stones embedded in it and went through three doors.

‘Hmm, I thought this was a place temporarily prepared for today’s negotiations, but I guess not?’

The three doors only opened after Azzle inserted the tokens he had received from the mercenary group in advance.

It was too much effort for a place that would only be used once.

‘Judging by the security, it’s one of the mercenary group’s hideouts.’

Does that mean they don’t care if I find out the location of their hideout?

Or is it because they’re confident that the negotiations will go well and we’ll be on the same boat?

When the last door opened, a wide-open space appeared.

Silk wallpaper, antique furniture, delicately engraved tea tables and chairs.

The tea set was from Pombertel, and a vase with abundant flowers was placed in the center.

It felt more like a private room in a rather elegant teahouse than a mercenary group’s hideout.

I was a little surprised because I had been imagining a rough image.

“Welcome, Head Merchant Anseur. I never thought I would meet such a valuable person that even the Emperor hasn’t met.”

A man with a bandit-like physique greeted me.

Even though he had hidden his identity so well, he wasn’t wearing any disguise.

I frowned.

And I turned my head and spoke to the man leaning against the wall.

“I should be the one saying that. To think I would directly see the famous leader of the Echesis Mercenary Group, whom even clients who pay billions haven’t met.”

At those words, the man’s gaze turned to me.

The moment our eyes met, his brown eyes seemed to waver slightly.

Was it my imagination?

At that moment, the bandit man burst into a hearty laugh.

“Haha! You’re the first head merchant to recognize the leader at once! As expected, the eye of a great merchant is amazing. Everyone else mistakes me for the leader.”

That’s understandable.

This bandit man looked like a perfect warrior just by looking at him, and the aura he exuded was extraordinary.

But that man looked ordinary no matter how you looked at him.

He didn’t look like a member of an S-class mercenary group at all, so you could mistake him for an office worker.

‘I’ve been stalking… no, tracking the leader of the Echesis Mercenary Group for the past 5 years.’

I don’t know his face or name, but I could know his personality through his past actions.

He wasn’t the type to act without restraint at the first meeting.

The leader of the Echesis Mercenary Group was a very cautious and meticulous person. Annoyingly so.

“Finally, we meet.”

The leader said as he walked towards me.

His tone was a bit unique. As if he had been waiting a long time to meet me—.

‘Well, he’s been tracking me for 5 years.’

The way he looked at me was so sharp that my face tensed up even though I was wearing a mask.

‘Is he really the leader of Echesis, even though he looks ordinary?’

We sat down and explored each other.

The leader was an ordinary-looking man with black hair and brown eyes.

He looked like he was the same age as ‘my’ current appearance.

‘I’ll have to see if that appearance is real.’

“I’m not wearing a mask, but you are, isn’t that unfair?”

“There was no rule saying I couldn’t wear a mask.”

“Yes, but I’ve changed my mind. I need to see that face.”

“The price?”

“Does there need to be a price for showing your face?”

“It’s a face that no one has ever seen. It’s quite expensive. I’m a merchant, so I need to be accurate with my calculations.”

“Indeed, that makes sense. That face is definitely expensive.”

Huh? ‘That’ face?

That’s a strange thing to say.

As I paused, he added.

“It’s a face that even the Emperor hasn’t seen, after all.”

“…What will you bet?”

“100,000 Shyren flowers.”

What?

I’m glad I was wearing a mask.

Otherwise, my flustered face would have been visible.

The bandit man also looked at the leader with wide eyes, as if he hadn’t expected it.

“Are you serious? Shyren flowers are the reason we’re here today.”

“I think it’s worth it.”

“My face?”

He grinned.

I thought he was an ordinary-looking man, but the way he slightly raised the corners of his mouth as he smiled was quite striking.

“What if we proceed with the negotiations as is, with you wearing the mask? We can pay as much as you want for the commission fee.”

“Well, should I accept a deal that isn’t fair from the start?”

Hmm, I’ve pushed enough.

If I take it off too quickly, it’ll be obvious that it’s not my real face.

‘Besides, 100,000 Shyren flowers for free is a great deal.’

To awaken an empty—or rather, a sleeping mana stone and turn it into black gold, there were several necessary ingredients.

The most important of these was the Shyren flower.

The Shyren flower wasn’t a particularly difficult flower to obtain.

It wasn’t used for ornamental purposes or as a medicinal herb, so it wasn’t a profitable flower, and there were no places that cultivated it.

However, large colonies were spread across the entire vast plain, so you could just procure them from there.

The scale was so large that the entire vast plain was covered with Shyren flowers, so much so that it was called the Shyren Plain instead of its original name, the Pelloan Plain. Can you imagine the scale?

But.

The problem was that the ruler of the plain, who had been sleeping, had awakened.

Why else would they have left the useless flowers to cover the wide plain?

They would have reclaimed it and had people live there.

It was because the ruler of the plain, Aktrakerken, was sleeping in that land.

‘I was sucking honey thanks to it, but now I’m screwed [enjoying an easy benefit, but now in trouble].’

Now that the notorious spirit beast has awakened, it’s impossible to procure Shyren flowers like before.

People’s lives could be in danger right away.

I tried to get them from other places, but there were limits.

In the first place, no one cultivates Shyren flowers, so you have to dig them up from their natural habitat, but unless you’re planning to wipe them out, does it make sense to pluck all the dozens of flowers on the mountain?

And in the process, I realized something.

Ordinary Shyren flowers had no effect on awakening sleeping mana stones.

Only the Shyren flowers of the Pelloan Plain had that effect.

It seemed to be influenced by the spirit beast, Aktrakerken.

No wonder 〈It Was There, But It’s Gone〉 specifically mentioned ‘Shyren flowers from the Pelloan Plain’ on the road to money.

‘Because of that, I also rejected growing them myself.’

In the end, I had no choice but to borrow the power of a mercenary group with strong force.

Various S-class mercenary groups were on the list, but who knows what secrets might leak out due to this request.

In that case, I judged that it would be better to have someone who already knew some of the secrets of the Anseur Merchant Group.

We also knew some of the secrets of the Echesis Mercenary Group, so I calculated that it would act as a safety pin.

Coincidentally, the Echesis side also requested a deal to supply us with a certain amount of black gold for 3 years.

“150,000. I’ll take off the mask for 150,000 flowers.”

“Okay.”

Huh?

I thought he would definitely say no, but the leader of Echesis nodded very readily.

I wasn’t the only one surprised.

“Leader! Is it necessary to spend that much just to take off that woman’s mask? This is no different from shitting blood for free [a Korean idiom meaning to make a huge sacrifice]!”

“I decide the value.”

“It’s also impossible to procure 100,000 flowers without being noticed by Aktrakerken! But 150,000 flowers!”

“Do you think I can’t do it?”

The leader tilted his head and asked quietly.

It wasn’t a particularly threatening tone, nor did he emit any killing intent.

But the bandit-like man immediately wagged his tail and backed down.

“I, I misspoke.”

“This should be enough to pay for taking off the mask.”

The leader didn’t even look at the man and asked, looking at me.

His gaze, which didn’t blink once as he looked at me, had a strange heat swirling in it.

A gaze that somehow made me tense up.

I swallowed hard and put my hand on the mask.