I’m the Youngest Daughter of the Serpent Family
Chapter 14
I was certain. Seth did not like me.
Even while thinking it made sense since I wasn’t a fellow snake, part of me still felt hurt.
I curled into a ball.
Even though I told myself it couldn’t be helped since not everyone could welcome me, I still felt down.
I hid the colored paper I had intended to give as a present behind my back.
“Irene-nim, please don’t be so disheartened. You can still become close with Young Master Seth.”
“Ppiii.”
“Do you want to get close to me?”
Seth tilted his head expressionlessly. I poked my head out just a little.
If I say I want to be close, will you accept this?
The half-folded butterfly was crumpled. But this was all I had.
“What a strange kid. You’re a bird, yet you don’t seem afraid of me.”
“That is Irene-nim’s charm.”
“Everyone else is always trembling and busy running away.”
Seth took a stride forward and held out his open palm. Watching his expression nervously, I handed him the colored paper.
“Since you’re giving it to me, I’ll take it for now.”
“……Ppi.”
“Still, I’m not particularly pleased to see you. I’d prefer if you stayed out of my sight from now on. If you want to keep living, that is.”
As the atmosphere took a disturbing turn, Rosaria’s expression hardened.
“Young Master, if you say any more, I will have no choice but to report this to the head of the family. Please watch your boundaries.”
“Ah, right. Guess I should stop here, then. It would be troublesome if Father found out.”
An arrogant smile that closely resembled Kaid’s curved on Seth’s lips.
Held in Rosaria’s arms, I watched Seth.
About to turn away, Seth lowered his gaze to my leg and spoke disdainfully.
“I was wondering where that smell of blood was coming from. Looks like you fell and hurt yourself.”
At Seth’s words, Rosaria checked my leg.
It hadn’t been a bad fall, so there was only a tiny scratch, but her face turned pale white.
“Irene-nim, where did this injury……? Did you get this when you tripped earlier?”
“Ppi.”
For some reason, it seemed to throb again in hindsight. Maybe it was because my tension had eased.
It stings, Rosaria. Blow on it for me.
Watching me being fussed over, Seth furrowed his brow.
“As expected, I have no use for a dongsaeng like you. Getting injured from a mere stumble. You’re utterly frail.”
With those words, I had been reduced to nothing more than a pathetic, frail baby bird.
That was how the outing came to an end.
After returning to the room and washing up briefly, Rosaria applied medicine to my leg and carefully placed a bandage over it.
It hadn’t been a particularly long time, yet it felt as though ten million years had passed. I lay in bed, hugging my pillow.
“Ppi……. Ppii.”
Since my feelings were still hurt, my chirps sounded low and subdued.
“Irene-nim, are you still very upset?”
Stroking my head as I lay there, Rosaria asked.
I slowly nodded my head.
The lingering impact of that intense first encounter in the garden didn’t fade easily.
I stared up at the ceiling, blinking with wide, clear eyes.
Even though it was naptime, sleep wouldn’t come easily.
“Why can’t you fall asleep? Shall I draw the curtains for you?”
“Ppii.”
I shook my head. I didn’t think making it darker would put me to sleep.
For some reason, all my senses felt keenly heightened.
Perhaps it was because I had been affected by Seth’s pheromones earlier.
Even the subtlest movement from Rosaria put my nerves completely on edge.
I tossed and turned, whimpering softly.
“Irene-nim?”
Hearing my sudden groaning sounds, Rosaria called out to me.
But without answering, I burrowed deeper into the blanket.
“Ppii……. Ppii.”
Because for reasons unknown, my heart had begun racing.
Why is this happening?
While I tilted my head in confusion, Rosaria worriedly lifted the blanket.
“Are you feeling unwell anywhere, Irene-nim?”
“Ppi…….”
That’s not it, but……
I fiddled with my soft, downy feathers. Somehow, a cozy, hazy warmth seemed to spread through my entire body.
Feeling as though I had to find a comfortable position immediately, I pulled the blanket tight around myself.
As I rolled around, tossing and turning, Rosaria patted my back.
“Shall I sing you a lullaby?”
“Ppi.”
“Please let Irene-nim fall fast asleep. The stars and the moon are fast asleep, too.”
“Ppii.”
Rosaria pulled the blanket up to my chest.
At the cozy sensation wrapping around my body, my eyes, which had been so wide open just moments before, grew heavy.
I forced my eyes open with effort, but they fluttered shut again under her gentle patting.
I nuzzled my head with a soft whimper.
“Why are you having such trouble falling asleep today? Could it be because of what happened earlier? It’s time for sleep.”
“Ppi-ppi-ppi-ppi.”
“Yes, yes.”
“Ppi-ppi-ppi…….”
Under the steady, rhythmic pats, my consciousness gradually drifted away.
In the dark of the night, when everyone had begun to fall asleep.
Rosaria anxiously checked Irene’s condition.
Irene had not woken once and had been sleeping all day.
Having prepared a meal in time for when she should have woken, Rosaria paced restlessly.
“Why is she sleeping for so long? She needs to eat dinner, too.”
It wouldn’t matter if she simply had a deep, restful sleep, but if she woke in the middle of the night, her day and night cycle might be flipped.
Wanting to avoid that very outcome, Rosaria fell into deep thought.
Should she wake her up now?
“Could she have been that exhausted? ……I might need to go see Hestia.”
What if Irene woke up while she was away looking for Hestia?
She wouldn’t do anything dangerous on her own, but she might get frightened if she realized she was alone in the dark.
If Irene tried to climb out of bed while she stepped away for a moment, disaster could strike.
Because Irene could not fly yet.
In truth, it was unexpected.
Usually, once their tail feathers began to grow, they showed an interest in flight, but Irene’s growth rate was a little slow.
Part of it was also due to her environment.
Had she had her original guardians, Irene might have grown much faster.
“……She needs to grow up without any issues.”
It was said that among young beastfolk, there were rare cases where they failed to grow properly and remained stuck in animal form.
Since Irene had already experienced the growing pains of her first awakening, there was no chance she wouldn’t be able to achieve human form, but Rosaria still couldn’t shake her worry.
Because even a single minor symptom could impact her development.
Nothing was known about the developmental process of the Bird Clan.
Not only were the developmental processes kept secret within each clan, but the Bird Clan’s domain was primarily the sky, leaving few opportunities to encounter them.
“Haa…… What should I do? If I had known this would happen, I should have tried to build closer ties with them at the border.”
Recalling the Bird Clan guarding the eastern border region, she let out a sigh tinged with regret.
If she had done so, she might have been able to ask for help now.
Rosaria looked down at Irene, who was fast asleep, oblivious to the world.
Irene, who had never slept through the entire day before, lay slumbering without even the slightest twitch.
What if this was a premonitory symptom affecting her second awakening?
Any abnormal sign appearing before a growth phase could not be dismissed lightly.
Rosaria’s brow furrowed.
“This won’t do. I really must go see Hestia.”
She rose from where she had been sitting.
Grasping the doorknob to leave the room, Rosaria turned back once more and spoke softly.
“……I will be back in just a moment, Irene-nim.”
Rosaria opened the door with utmost care to make no sound and stepped out.
A moment later, the corners of the sleeping Irene’s eyes began to tremble faintly.
“Ppi, ppii…….”
As if seeking a safe haven, her tiny body fumbled with her wings.
Soon, she began burrowing into the blanket, a cozy place to hide.
The corner of the blanket where Irene had nestled swelled into a small, gentle mound.
Visible through a tiny gap in the blanket, Irene was still sound asleep, breathing in soft, even puffs.
Her body, which had been curled tight for a moment, began to relax comfortably as though nothing had happened.
The blanket left only a tiny breathing hole open, just enough for her to breathe.
And it was at that very moment.
A soft, hazy pheromone began to waft from around her small, white body.
It was a sweet scent, enough to tickle the tip of the nose.
Like a guardian watching over Irene, it hovered around her without dispersing. Until she opened her eyes. All through the night.
