The Baby Fairy Is A Villain [EN]: Chapter 14

It was a gold candlestick, crafted with elegant, beautiful curves.

The candlestick, normally a beautiful ornament when mounted on the wall, became a weapon in Kiernan’s hand.

Kiernan grinned, a look Chesha thought of as his “candlestick murderer” smile.

Chesha, knowing that he smiled especially well when he was angry, found his appearance very unsettling.

With Kiernan poised to strike with the candlestick at any moment, Hylone calmly replied.

“I just had something to ask.”

“Oh, after stripping off all your clothes?”

Honestly, that wasn’t the case.

He had only taken off a little bit on top.

Of course, it wasn’t something to do in front of someone else’s baby.

Kiernan laughed mockingly at Hylone’s excuse.

As if he didn’t need to hear more, he was about to swing the candlestick.

Then, Kiernan stopped his hand.

He had seen the flower pattern engraved on Hylone’s skin.

“That pattern.”

His long eyes narrowed slightly.

“It’s the mark of a sorceress.”

Hylone did not respond.

He simply straightened his clothes silently.

The skin that had been briefly exposed was once again hidden beneath the uniform.

However, what had already been witnessed could not be erased.

“The mark of a sorceress on the body of a noble holy knight.”

Kiernan was genuinely dumbfounded.

“Why don’t you erase it? I thought holy knights would cut off their skin to get rid of the symbols of heresy.”

Instead of reacting to the sarcastic remark, Hylone calmly asked in return.

“Do you know the sorceress Richezia?”

“Is there anyone who doesn’t know her?”

Kiernan, who had guessed the situation from the short exchange, narrowed his brows as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Don’t tell me… you did that kind of thing to my daughter, asking about the whereabouts of the sorceress?”

“That’s right.”

Kiernan let out a hollow laugh at the absurd answer.

Having lost the will to fight, he threw the candlestick carelessly.

The candlestick, which fell on the uncarpeted marble floor, made a loud noise.

“My daughter has nothing to do with the sorceress. Don’t test my patience any further, sir.”

Hylone did not answer.

He simply brought up another matter.

“A guard knight will be assigned to each child participating in the Minor Saint Prayer Meeting [a religious gathering for young potential saints]. I have been assigned as the guard knight to the Basilian County.”

“…Ha!”

“I will safely escort you to the Holy Empire.”

“I suppose it’s not escorting but surveillance.”

“Think of it as you wish.”

Hylone moved slowly.

He stopped right in front of Kiernan.

“You’d better be careful, Count Basilian.”

“…….”

“There are many who are watching.”

The eyes, forming a stark contrast, met.

In their gazes, invisible swords were aimed at each other.

The chill of the blades seemed to be felt by Chesha as well.

However, neither Kiernan nor Hylone crossed the line.

They sensed that the other was not someone to be dealt with carelessly.

“I will see you again on the day of departure to the Holy Empire.”

With those words, Hylone left the audience chamber.

The blue cloak draped over one shoulder fluttered, and soon the door closed.

Chesha turned her gaze to Kiernan.

Kiernan was expressionless.

She had expected him to have at least a distorted smile.

His quietly closed lips were drawn into a firm line.

“Daddy.”

Even when Chesha called out, he stood there for a moment, then looked over a beat late.

Chesha deliberately stretched out her arms to him.

Then Kiernan immediately came over and picked Chesha up.

Chesha brought up another story to distract him.

“Did you see the Emperor?”

“Yes, I saw him. I met him quickly because I thought Chesha would be waiting.”

It seemed like he had been summoned for something incredibly important, but the audience ended in an instant.

He had even emphasized that he should bring Chesha with him, even mentioning treason.

Come to think of it, it seemed like he had been summoned because of Hylone.

‘If he’s the Emperor of the Palen Empire, he’ll know that Hylone is the head of the Inquisitors [an organization focused on suppressing heresy].’

If so, the reason why he urgently issued an imperial order at Hylone’s command to summon Count Basilian was also understood.

‘He must have thought the Count had caused some trouble and called him in surprise.’

He was worried that the Inquisitors would involve the Palen imperial family and shake them down.

Chesha gently tugged on Kiernan’s sleeve and asked.

“But do I have to see the Emperor too?”

Since the imperial order mentioned Chesha, she thought it would be right to have an audience together.

However, Kiernan just chuckled.

“There’s no need for that. Why would Chesha meet an old pig?”

“…?”

“Chesha should only see pretty and good things.”

Did she just hear something incredible?

Did he just call the Sun Emperor of the Palen Empire an old pig…?

Chesha’s head was filled with question marks.

However, Kiernan was just smiling brightly, as if he had never said anything like ‘pig’.

“Shall we continue touring the Imperial Palace with Daddy?”

At the words that flowed like water, Chesha nodded her head in a daze.

Kiernan, who smiled broadly at the sight of the small head nodding, kissed Chesha on the nose.

“The Imperial Palace garden isn’t too bad. It’s worth seeing.”

He said as he walked to the garden with Chesha in his arms.

“If there’s anything Chesha likes, tell me, and I’ll make it the same in the castle.”

“Yes!”

As Kiernan said, the Imperial Palace garden was worth seeing.

One flower in the garden was much more pleasing than the splendid and glittering interior decorations of the Imperial Palace.

Chesha took a deep breath.

The fresh scent of grass filled her inside.

Even though she had a twisted power because she was a bloodline of a crazy fairy, Chesha was also a fairy after all.

She felt most comfortable when she was close to nature.

In particular, Chesha liked flowers the most among various plants.

‘There aren’t enough flowers in the Snake’s Castle.’

She thought she could ask him to plant flowers later.

Kiernan strolled leisurely so that Chesha could see the garden.

He stopped under a large tree full of small pink flowers and asked casually.

“What did you talk about with the knight?”

“He asked if I had a puppy.”

“…A puppy?”

Kiernan tilted his head to the side.

He seemed curious about what she meant, but she had no intention of telling him the details of the conversation she had with Hylone.

Either way, there was no information he would want.

‘Kiernan already knows that Hylone came for surveillance purposes.’

Chesha knows what Kiernan is anxious about.

He needed a child who could attend and win the Minor Saint Prayer Meeting.

That was impossible for an ordinary child.

It shouldn’t look like she was adopted for the prayer meeting.

Since they had to look like a real family, the child had to have a personality that could blend into the Basilian County without any problems.

It was by no means an easy condition.

If she properly revealed her energy, even a grown man wouldn’t be able to meet Kiernan’s gaze.

That’s why Kiernan wandered around several orphanages.

That’s how he met Chesha.

She was the ‘child who wasn’t afraid of him’ that he wanted, and she even resembled the dead Countess.

There was no child more perfect than this for Kiernan.

He would never want to miss her.

That’s why he was so good to her.

‘Right now, he’s probably worried that I won’t attend the prayer meeting because of Hylone, or that I’ll have a bad impression of the County.’

Has she become a little fond of him?

Seeing the arrogant man being anxious made her feel a little sorry for him.

She felt like she had to reassure Kiernan first.

Even if he didn’t pretend to be, Kiernan was the owner of a very sensitive and unstable mind.

It wasn’t because she was worried about him.

Chesha comforted him so that she could live comfortably.

“Don’t worry.”

Kiernan, who had been lost in thought, smiled slightly and looked at Chesha.

It was a habitual smile.

Chesha stretched out her hand as much as she could and stroked his head.

The black hair swept softly under her palm.

“Chesha is on Daddy’s side.”

“…….”

The smile disappeared from Kiernan’s face.

He didn’t say anything.

Swaaa.

In the breeze, the leaves rubbed against each other, making a wave sound.

Light pink petals fluttered everywhere, filling the view.

The red eyes stared blankly at Chesha.

The face, where only a mask-like smile had been, was completely broken.

He licked his lips.

The hesitation that he couldn’t bring himself to utter was long.

However, as if pushed by an irresistible force, he finally made a listless voice.

“…Even this.”

Kiernan smiled.

Chesha, with a face she had never seen before, whispered painfully as she smiled.

“You don’t have to resemble even this…….”