The Youngest Daughter Of The Great Wizard Of The Famous Swordsmanship [EN]: Chapter 22

22. My Name is Bbibbi, Rosette’s Familiar (1)

November 22, 2023

Rosette slowly opened her eyes to find Adrian’s face filling her vision.

His platinum blonde hair shone brighter than anything she’d ever seen, and his purple eyes looked down at her with warmth.

When their eyes met, Adrian’s widened in surprise before softening into a gentle smile.

Unlike the agitated demeanor he’d displayed while pressing Celine and the doctor, he was now calm.

He simply asked in a low, soothing voice, “Did you sleep well, baby?”

It was as if he were speaking to his own daughter, just awakened from a peaceful nap.

He gently stroked Rosette’s cheek as he had done in the past to comfort her when she cried, and she could only blink, struggling to distinguish between dream and reality.

“You must have had a sad dream.”

Only then did Rosette realize she was crying and that Adrian, who had died in her hands, was now alive and well before her.

“Ugh.”

Rosette contorted her face and threw her arms around Adrian’s neck.

‘Dad, Dad, Dad,’ she wanted to say, but no sound escaped her lips.

Adrian carefully returned the hug, cradling the small girl and stroking her hair.

“Yes. Daddy’s here.”

“Ugh.”

“Thank you for holding on, Rose. Thank you for waking up.”

‘Thank you for being alive, Dad,’ Rosette repeated silently in her heart.

It had been exactly ten days since she had collapsed.

* * *

Rosette sipped the warm water, her eyes fixed on Adrian’s expression.

In stark contrast to the gentle kindness he had shown moments ago, his face was now set in a slightly hardened expression.

Adrian’s three siblings, who had rushed in upon hearing that Rosette had awakened, were also watching the Duke’s face with apprehension.

Daniel attempted to break the awkward silence.

“Still, it’s a relief that Rose woke up safely. Isn’t that right, guys?”

Lucas nodded vigorously.

“Yeah! I’m so happy!”

Isabelle chimed in with primness.

“We don’t have to worry anymore.”

Daniel added, “And thanks to Rose, Father was able to be safe too…”

However, Adrian’s expression remained unchanged. It was the same look he wore when he rarely scolded the children, a look reserved for when they had done something dangerous.

Like what Rosette had done a little while ago.

The three siblings, well-versed in interpreting Adrian’s expressions, exchanged nervous glances and quietly slipped out of the room. Before closing the door, Lucas mouthed, “Fighting!” [A Korean expression of encouragement, like ‘Good luck!’]

‘What did I do wrong?’

Rosette rolled her eyes, completely bewildered, as the Duke, sitting on the edge of the bed, asked sternly, “Rose, do you know what you did wrong?”

Rosette shook her head. The Duke sighed softly.

“You almost got into big trouble this time. You might not have woken up.”

“……”

“There were plenty of people who could have helped Dad, even if it wasn’t you. So don’t do anything that dangerous in the future. Do you understand?”

Rosette felt a pang of injustice.

She hadn’t acted for praise. She had saved Adrian for her own sake, so she didn’t care about receiving accolades.

But she certainly hadn’t expected to be scolded like this.

Rosette pouted her lips in dissatisfaction, and only then did Adrian’s expression soften slightly.

“You have no idea why you’re being scolded, do you?”

Rosette hesitated, then nodded.

Adrian completely relaxed his expression and gently stroked her hair.

“What did Daddy say? I said a child should be like a child.”

When Rosette nodded again, he patted her head as if she had done well.

“Children shouldn’t worry, and they shouldn’t do dangerous things. You can leave that to the adults.”

Rosette forced a voice and protested.

“But…”

‘If I hadn’t been there, Dad would have been in trouble. I might never have seen you again.’

As if he understood the words she hadn’t even uttered, Adrian explained calmly.

“Yes. I might have been seriously injured, or something might have happened to me this time. But Rose, conversely, you almost got hurt because of me.”

“……”

“This Daddy is more afraid of you getting hurt than of Daddy getting hurt.”

Rosette’s eyes widened.

‘Do adults also have things they’re afraid of?’ As she asked with her eyes, Adrian smiled.

“Of course. Adults also have things they’re afraid of.”

“……”

“So let’s promise not to do anything that dangerous in the future.”

He held out his pinky finger.

But Rosette couldn’t readily link fingers. If a similar situation arose, she would naturally want to save her precious person.

“Rose.”

When Rosette pouted and looked away, Adrian said sternly again.

“Rosette Adrian.”

Just then, a knock sounded like a savior. Rosette quickly raised her hand and pointed to the door.

Adrian sighed once and said, “Come in.”

The person who entered was Celine. She quickly approached Rosette and wiped away tears.

“I’m so glad you’re safe. I was so worried.”

“Can you check if Rose is okay?”

“Of course. Miss, excuse me for a moment.”

Celine carefully took Rosette’s hands and infused mana into them.

After a moment, she let out a sigh of relief.

“Good. You’ve fully recovered your mana. We don’t have to worry anymore.”

Her expression held a mixture of emotions: relief, joy, and astonishment.

‘Why is she surprised?’

Rosette tilted her head, unable to understand the reason, when Celine continued.

“By the way, it took ten days to recover. That’s amazing. I knew you had great talent when I saw you before…”

Her voice began to rise slightly.

“As expected, you are amazing…!”

[Bbi, bbi?]

Celine’s words were interrupted by the sudden sound of a bird.

Bbibbi, who had been bringing wildflowers again today, spotted Rosette and his beady eyes widened even further. His small beak opened, and the wildflower fell to the floor.

[Bbiit!]

Soon, Bbibbi cried sadly and flew towards Rosette at full speed. Tears welled up in Bbibbi’s eyes as he rubbed his cheek against Rosette’s cheek.

Celine’s eyes widened as she watched.

“Could it be… a familiar?” [A magical creature bonded to a witch or wizard, often providing assistance and companionship.]

[Bbiit!]

Bbibbi, who was enthusiastically expressing his joy to Rosette, puffed out his chest as if to say, ‘Ahem, I am Rosette’s familiar, Bbibbi!’

Celine rubbed her eyes repeatedly as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

“Oh my gosh, it really is a familiar?”

There was a good reason for her surprise.

Rosette summoned a familiar so casually that it seemed easy, but in reality, not just anyone could create a familiar.

First of all, you needed sufficient mana and tremendous mental strength to maintain communication with the familiar.

As a result, only high-ranking wizards could create familiars, and even then, familiar summoning was possible only in their late teens at the earliest.

But now, Rosette, who is only eight years old and hasn’t even learned magic, is summoning a familiar?

“That’s impossible. How is this possible? Miss, how did you do it?”

Adrian, who had been watching Rosette communicating with Bbibbi with a pleased expression, asked subtly, “Is that so surprising?”

“Of course!”

Celine shouted excitedly.

“There are only a few wizards in this empire who have familiars. I barely made one when I was seventeen! And even I was called a genius.”

“Then?”

“You are an incredible genius! A genius who is born once every few hundred years! At this rate, you will become a great wizard! No, you already are a great wizard!”

Celine began to piece together the things she had been wondering about.

“How could you use such magic with this small body? It must have been thanks to this familiar.”

“Is it different if you have a familiar?”

“Yes. If you have a familiar, you can use mana explosion. It’s a way to amplify the surrounding mana and use magic… Anyway, it’s incredibly amazing. I don’t know how you, who haven’t even learned magic, used it.”

Celine shrugged as she explained.

“How can a mediocre person understand a genius? A genius like you seems to be able to use it as naturally as breathing.”

“Then…”

“Yes, that’s right! A great wizard has been born in this family! In this Adrian family, which was full of sword masters! Finally!”

Adrian made a surprised expression, then smiled slightly.

“So, our Rose is a genius. That’s something to be happy about.”

He didn’t show it outwardly, but he was very happy.

[Bbit!]

Bbibbi also puffed out his chest and shrugged. No one but Rosette understood that he was boasting, ‘Our Rosette is very amazing. She’s Bbibbi’s owner!’

“But Rose.”

Adrian composed himself and said sternly again.

“You must not use magic until Celine says it’s okay to use magic.”

When Rosette pouted again, his eyes narrowed.

“You have to listen to Daddy.”

Rosette reluctantly nodded.

In any case, Rosette Adrian, the little wizard who would cause a great stir in the empire, returned to her family’s embrace.

* * *

“Is Bbiak really such a great bird?”

[Bbit!]

Bbibbi, who had already become close to Lucas, sat on his shoulder and cried.

When Rosette nodded slightly, Lucas muttered in disbelief.

“This small and insignificant Bbiak?”

[Bbiit?]

Bbibbi began to bite Lucas’s hair. A few strands of platinum blonde hair were actually pulled out.

“Ouch! Hey, Bbiak, you!”

[Bbit, Bbiit!]

‘My name is not Bbiak, it’s Bbibbi! Who are you comparing me to a chick that can’t even fly!’

Rosette, who was listening to Bbibbi’s words, burst into laughter. Lucas, who barely managed to get Bbibbi off, asked, “Why are you laughing?”

Rosette barely squeezed out a voice.

“Bbi… Bbibbi.”

“Bbibbi?”

Lucas looked at Rosette nodding and pondered for a moment before asking with a face filled with betrayal, “Could it be that his name isn’t Bbiak, but Bbibbi?”

[Bbiik!]

Bbibbi chirped happily, and Rosette nodded. On the other hand, Lucas seemed to have lost his words and opened and closed his mouth.

Rosette tilted her head, not knowing what was going on, when Lucas questioned Bbibbi.

“Why did you answer when I called you Bbiak! I thought you liked that I gave you a name!”

[Bbit? Bbiit!]

Bbibbi started pulling Lucas’s hair again.