What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 697

Subdue Your Breath in the Animal Forest (6)

That dawn, Gaine had a dream.

It wasn’t quite a nightmare.

With the Palace Lord nearby, it was impossible to suffer from such things.

‘-Kkiuung.’

So, the figure that appeared in her dream was, as always, the lovable Divine Beast.

The one with the white tail tip hugged a small peach with its front paws and shook it wildly.

Chuckling, she looked again and saw it was a meeting place for the animal youngsters.

Demi sat at the head of the table, and around her, other Divine Beasts and sacred objects were seated in a circle. It was quite a sight in many ways.

Gaine, thinking she shouldn’t disturb them, quietly curled up, and Demi, who seemed to be the chairperson, solemnly spoke.

‘-Kkiaaa, kkiung.’

Normally, she would never have understood the cry, but because it was a dream, she could understand the meaning.

No, perhaps the meaning should be seen as ‘read’ in her eyes. So, that just now was······.

‘So, what will happen here from now on?’

That was roughly the meaning.

Then, from directly across, GuGu tapped the rock she was sitting on with her tail.

It was an action without even a voice, but Gaine instantly read the child’s body language as well.

It was truly a bizarre dream.

‘As the esteemed one has arranged. The spirits led by the flow will look into the affairs of the strange land here, and thus, they will obtain new clues.’

‘-Aeoooong.’

Lopi cried sharply in response. Gaine was startled and raised her eyebrows.

The meaning of that child was also clearly imprinted, line by line, as if written in front of her eyes.

‘I cannot understand it at all. How can such a peculiar fate follow us? Even if we cannot look into the detailed circumstances, we can feel the shadow of the finale.’

‘-Kkiuuu.’

This time, Rea immediately took the word. Translated, it was the following sentence.

‘An inevitable task befalls the bloodline of the sacred Lord.’

‘New encounters and farewells are also the destiny of that one, teacher.’

‘-Kkiu, kkiueung.’

Peri immediately agreed with that statement.

‘That is right. Our calling is to protect that one as the messenger of the Lord, and to watch over that one’s history.’

‘The children of the battlefield will also turn the wheel of fate.’

‘-Arrrreureureu.’

At the unexpected sound, Gaine flinched and turned her head.

Tite, wrapped in swaddling clothes, was making a long sound in her throat.

But for some reason—perhaps because the baby was too young—this time, the Divine Beast’s words were not properly read in Gaine’s eyes.

She didn’t know what the mochi-like baby [referring to the baby’s soft, round appearance] had said, but a chaotic atmosphere spread among the little friends.

‘-Kkurrureureut.’

Demi tapped the floor with the peach as if wielding a gavel.

Gaine’s amazing divine eyes once again deciphered the Divine Beast’s meaning.

‘Silence! The resurrection of that paladin is not our concern.’

‘The water poured from the sea was mixed with the water of the dead, and it was contained in one vessel like the Lord’s whim. Verily, the origin of life was so······.’

‘The future of that soul will also be made together by the blessed soul.’

As soon as the declaration fell, all the animals in that place turned to look at Gaine at once.

She felt goosebumps all over her body and jumped up.

*

-Bbippippoo—!

“Heok! You’re awake! Sis, you’re awake!”

When she opened her eyes, a coffee-colored butt filled her vision.

Gaine floundered several times on the not-so-wide floor before realizing that Dduksoomi was sitting on her forehead.

She barely caught the wren, who was wiggling its plump rear, with both hands, and groggily got up with her hair disheveled.

A blanket with holes all over it was tangled messily with one of her legs.

-Bbippippi

“Aigo, I don’t need to cover myself with a blanket. Mother is really······.”

She had a body that didn’t need heating supplies for her entire life, but Isabel couldn’t accept the sight of her daughter sleeping naked.

Gaine mumbled with a hoarse voice and firmly took out the heat-generating magic stone stuck in her waist.

Unless her divine power suddenly disappeared one day, this body would always be cold.

But that didn’t mean her mother would stop borrowing other people’s mana to heat up stones.

······Is ‘Mom’ originally like that?

“Aww, my back hurts. What time is it, cough, what time is it.”

-Bbippippippi

Seeing Dduksoomi pecking back, it seemed the sun was high in the sky.

Gaine washed her face with clean water, brushed her teeth simply, and washed her hair (“Eugh, so refreshing.”).

Her shoulders and back ached from sleeping in a hard place, but she was used to it by now.

Judging from the bustle outside the tent, everyone seemed to be awake and moving around busily.

Far away, beyond the ether [a hypothetical medium formerly believed to fill the universe] of the paladins that hung like a curtain, she could feel the Palace Lord’s cozy ether. The playful energy of the Divine Beasts was also vivid, as if she could grasp it.

“Has everyone had breakfast? I’m hungry. Dduksoomi, didn’t anyone come to wake me up?”

-Bbippippo?

“Really, no one came? Traitors······. Did you order Rose Tteokbokki [a popular Korean street food: spicy rice cakes] again without me······.”

Gaine chuckled while acting out a nonsensical situation alone.

She had already completely forgotten the absurd sight she had seen in her dream.

She had rested well overnight, but from today on, she had a lot to do again.

That was the conclusion she had reached in the meeting that had continued until dawn.

She busily put on her outerwear and put on her long boots.

“Go out and fill my stomach, check the situation here. Gather information about the Raso Lord’s Castle. Take care of the Palace Lord so he doesn’t stray off the path. Patrol the surroundings as planned at dawn······. Oh! Dduksoomi!”

-Bbit!

‘That thing on your ankle!’ Gaine trembled like someone struck by lightning.

The wren, who had been sitting on the crumpled blanket, was startled and flapped its wings.

A ribbon embroidered with the Liester Imperial Family crest was tied around the little one’s ankle.

Wow, damn it! That’s right!

“Ham Ddukbaegi, did you forget to tell us about this? Isn’t this a letter sent by His Majesty or Her Highness Orelly? What if it’s urgent?”

Instantly, her heart felt like it was plummeting to the 6th basement floor.

‘We’re dead now.’ ‘The war is ruined because of us, damn it.’ Gaine muttered like crazy and hurriedly tried to untie the ribbon.

-Flap!

“Surprise!”

“How long are you going to sleep? Are you a bear?”

“Ah, so what, give me some warning!”

Jibril Diop, who had eaten manners for breakfast [meaning he has no manners], walked in, pushing aside the tent entrance.

The man began to scan every corner of the space with his eyes, whether Gaine glared at him or not.

“What are you looking for? Say it.”

-Bbippi

“Hat.”

“What hat.”

“A baby hat. The Palace Lord is nagging because he’s cold.”

“Why are you looking for it here.”

“Doesn’t the mother of the child know that?”

“Ah, who’s the mother. I didn’t give birth.”

Gaine, who reacted sharply to the joke, focused on the wren’s ribbon again.

Jibril looked down at her with a puzzled look for a moment.

“······That, I already checked the contents at dawn, so leave it as it is.”

“Huh? Dawn, when.”

“When was it. While Lord Rambouillet was shocked by the word ‘Mom’ and collapsed first?”

“······.”

Her fingers paused, and finally, she slowly untied the ribbon.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him, but Gaine wanted to check the contents with her own eyes.

Dduksoomi lifted one leg and cooperated with all her heart.

An elegant floral scent wafted from the folded silk.

‘By the time you read this, you will have settled somewhere.’

······The unique delicate handwriting and kind tone were definitely those of Her Highness Orelly Boutier.

Gaine felt her mind, which had been dizzy, calm down as if by a lie as she read the following letter.

She even had the illusion that Her Highness’s voice was reaching her ears.

‘We are communicating with other cavalry units with the help of carrier pigeons. Everyone has settled in the corner of the Heavenly Road, especially the 31st Cavalry Regiment is heading southwest of the royal capital······.’

“Bring a water bottle when you come out. The baby only drinks your water.”

“Why are you so good at taking care of kids?”

Suddenly, a question popped out that she hadn’t even expected herself.

She clearly thought her mind and body were calming down, but she didn’t know how her emotions had jumped.

Not only Jibril but even Dduksoomi tilted her head.

Gaine pursed her lips for a moment.

Words that seemed foolish and childish to her poured out.

“You’re unmarried. You don’t have kids. Your sibling is a twin. You change women every day. But how are you so good at taking care of kids.”

“······I don’t know what you’re talking about all of a sudden.”

The man let out a hollow breath.

“I may look like this, but I’m royalty. I’ve met hundreds more little ones with precious blood mixed in.”

“······.”

“Sometimes I skip events because it’s annoying. Are kids any different? They all like me when they see my face.”

‘Of course, so do women.’ The playboy raised one corner of his mouth slightly, then gently picked up the fur hat that was stuck in the corner of the tent and went out.

Gaine was now really in a bad mood.

Dduksoomi, holding the untied ribbon in her mouth, was pecking and looking at her.

“Ha······. Let’s go to work for now. Let’s go out and fight and win······.”

-Bbippii

“I’ll tie it again, sorry. Sis, my personality is really bad today.”

So, as she left the tent with Dduksoomi, Gaine had the feeling that everyone in the world except her liked the baby in question.

“Gaine, did you sleep well? You looked tired, so I came out first. Dduksoomi woke you up. Baby, say hello too.”

“······Hello.”

-Bbitppippi

“······.”

Of course, Ham Gaine, who had a poor and unhappy childhood, didn’t necessarily ‘hate children.’

She swore that was definitely not the case.

Rather, she could confidently say that she was quite friendly to children.

She had been called ‘pretty aunt’ by the neighborhood kids for a long time.

So, it’s just this kind of······.

“······Uh, uh. Hello?”

This kind of sudden······.

“You are still holding both hands on the carotid artery. Is he perhaps trying to kill you?”

“Your Highness!”

‘What are you saying to the baby!’ The Palace Lord scolded, covering the baby’s ears with a pale face.

Gaine belatedly realized the existence of the tall man standing next to him.

Normally, she would have been aware of him first because the fire attribute energy was annoying, but today, because Lynn was there, she was several beats late.

The bewildered water-colored eyes slowly observed the man’s fire-colored eyes.

······No, wait a minute. Looking at his attitude now······?

“It is said that it takes a whole village to raise a child. Lynn is a baby with almost no memories of her past life. Even if she is not our bloodline, once we have decided to take care of her······.”

“I presume the scale here will be insufficient.”

“Ah, why are you so prickly today. Weren’t you quite friendly just yesterday?”

The Palace Lord, unable to listen any longer, handed the baby to Marquis Francois.

Meanwhile, Lynn, who was wearing a fur hat, turned to look at this side with moist eyes.

On the other side, the children, led by Kobe, were rushing over here.

Gaine stared blankly at the Crown Prince’s sullen profile and then······.

She made eye contact with him.

“······.”

-Bbippo

“······.”

······Now I get it.

You little rascal. Still, we have something in common at times like this.

*

Kobe, who had volunteered to be the guide for the group early on, took us here and there, introducing us to the tent village.

Meanwhile, Isabel and Duke Diop had already gone on patrol for the umpteenth time.

-Thud, thud, thud······

“Most of the kids here are sick. I’m lucky to be on the healthy side, though.”

“Sick?”

“Where?”

I widened my eyes, stopping to avoid the clotheslines hanging in front of me.

Duke Raso, who was diligently following, also looked greatly shocked (he ended up hitting his face head-on with the clothesline I had left. “I’m sorry!” “Ah, no. I was being clumsy······.”).

Somehow, the children we had encountered so far all looked listless.

Even though Kobe had given us a heads-up in advance, the wariness in their eyes as they looked at us was particularly noticeable······. Was that the reason?

People become weak when they are sick, and weak bodies naturally become sensitive.

“Then, the friends I saw last time······. The ones wearing masks?”

“They’re healthy kids like me. There aren’t many of them.”

“I see.”

“So, we manage the hunting traps and catch small monsters or animals. We also pick berries. We take care of sick animals ourselves too.”

“Good heavens······.”

Francois swallowed a low sigh.

The tent village was not small, but it was not very large either, so we were soon able to arrive in front of Kobe’s tent.

The child continued to speak in a gloomy voice.

“······The sick kids sleep for twenty hours a day. There’s not much they can do besides sleeping. They’re in too much pain when they’re awake. Because there’s no medicine.”

“······.”

“So, the Duke abandoned us. That person must think we’re wasting land here.”

“That······.”

My heart sank. It was a very familiar symptom that I had heard many times before.

I hurriedly turned to look at Sir Johann.