I’m the Youngest Daughter of the Serpent Family
Chapter 29
Chapter 29
* * *
At that time.
Karma was watching Irene’s movements with utter seriousness.
Possessing the greatest stealth skills among his peers, he had been chosen to guard Irene exclusively.
No matter how fast an enemy might be, Karma’s extraordinary dynamic visual acuity allowed him to subdue any opponent in an instant.
Karma thought to himself as he watched Irene waddling all over the place the moment the banquet began.
‘Lethal.’
With her white hair tied up tightly, Irene was bustling about on her short little legs.
Finding her very first banquet utterly wondrous, Irene couldn’t close her agape mouth, drawing the gaze of everyone in the hall.
“The youngest lady of Astrophel seems to find this place quite fascinating.”
“It’s about that age for her.”
“But she has white hair, doesn’t she? Aren’t members of the Astrophel family supposed to have black hair? Besides… she’s tiny.”
“Judging by her pheromones, she doesn’t seem to be a Black Mamba. There must be a story behind it.”
“Her eyes are red, though. That must be why the Head of the Astrophel family made the official announcement.”
“Regardless, she’s exceptionally lovely and cute. …Our family doesn’t have a child that small.”
Nodding in agreement with the last comment, Karma caught the eye of Mesis, who was nodding at the exact same remark.
Mesis had recently become the person most requiring supervision.
He had claimed it felt great being back home, but along with that, his damn common sense seemed to have reverted to the past as well.
Mesis had been marked as a person of interest not long after returning to the mansion.
Squeak. Squeak. Squeak.
While walking down the corridor, Irene got distracted by looking elsewhere, and her legs wobbled as she lost her balance.
Just as she was about to fall, Irene safely planted her hands on the floor and beamed brightly.
“I’m otay. Iling didn’t fall down. Phew.”
That fleeting moment.
He still couldn’t forget how Mesis had shot straight toward Irene.
The tale of Karma grabbing Mesis by the collar at top speed and leaping straight out the adjacent window was already legendary.
Irene remained oblivious, but every Black Mamba passing through the corridor had witnessed the scene.
“I told you never to reveal yourself unless it’s an emergency.”
“What else was I supposed to do when I want to get on Lady Irene’s good side? I knew you’d stop me, but I had to give it a shot.”
Brushing off his grabbed collar, Mesis had flashed a broad grin.
Spouting words that made one's blood boil with such an unbothered attitude, his face was extraordinarily cheerful.
Karma shot a warning glare at Mesis, who had already lost his mind once before.
It meant that no matter what happened, he must never take the initiative.
And just as Karma turned his gaze back to Irene…
“Wanna pway wif me?”
‘When did she get all the way over there?’
Her voice drifted over from quite nearby.
She had mentioned wanting to make friends, and it seemed she was already putting it into practice.
Feeling an inexplicable sense of pride, Karma checked to see who Irene had picked as her prospective friend.
It was a boy with soft-looking, deep blond hair and vivid azure eyes.
Unlike the other young beastmen huddled together in clusters, the boy stood off by himself.
Had she approached him to look out for him?
‘Lady Irene truly has a warm heart.’
Karma was moved.
It was a heartwarming sight rarely seen in the wild world of Black Mambas.
Yet something felt strange.
…What was this sense of déjà vu?
The boy kept catching his eye.
Karma slowly scrutinized the blond boy once more.
Sharp, distinct features, lustrous golden hair, and blue eyes.
An unusually large physique compared to the youthful pheromones wafting around him.
“Wait a minute.”
Karma recalled a special notice that had been passed down to him.
“I heard the Tiger clan is attending this time as well.”
“A cub was born in their family recently. Apparently, they brought him along to survey the state of the world.”
The moment he remembered, Karma’s eyes widened.
The boy, who possessed the most distinct traits among any tiger seen in recent years, was scanning his surroundings during his very first outing into the outside world.
As if guarding against anything beyond his territory.
His low-rolling pheromones were warning the other young beastmen not to approach within a certain distance.
In other words, contrary to Irene’s misunderstanding, the boy was actually an object of terror to the other young beastmen.
And just now, the two of them seemed to have become friends.
“…How on earth am I supposed to explain this to the Head of the family?”
Sure enough, Mesis was also frozen in place with bewildered eyes.
‘Shouldn’t we stop that?’
Mesis mouthed frantically. He looked ready to intervene at any moment.
Karma shook his head.
To his comrades awaiting the next order, Karma spoke in a low voice.
“For now, all personnel stand by.”
A headache was coming on.
Blond hair and blue-tinted eyes.
Those were indisputably the distinct features of the tigers ruling the North.
* * *
“Have you heard of hide-and-seek?”
“I know what kind of game it is.”
“Wanna pway hide-and-seek wif me? Over there.”
While wondering what we should play, hide-and-seek came to mind.
It seemed like something the two of us could enjoy together.
I remembered having lots of fun every time I played it alone with Rosaria.
Since the banquet hall lacked proper room, I pointed toward the garden, and Seiji smiled softly.
“Sure. Then you hide, Irene.”
“Is Seiji gonna be ‘it’?”
I liked hiding better, but since Seiji was a guest, I had planned on conceding the turn to him.
When I asked again, Seiji agreed and walked toward a tree.
“Yeah. I prefer catching.”
“I see. Then Iling will hide!”
Turning his back, Seiji began to count.
“One.”
Where should I hide?
Should I slip between the bushes? I could hide well there, but my clothes might get dirty.
“Two.”
Then would behind a tree be better?
I tiptoed on my heels. A spot with a nice mix of lush bushes and trees had caught my eye.
“Three.”
He won’t find me easily here, right?
There was a rounded hollow inside the tree, allowing me to conceal myself without trouble.
Curious about what number Seiji had reached, I pricked up my ears.
“Ten.”
Having counted all the way to ten seconds, Seiji slowly turned around. I could see him looking around before walking further inward.
Watching Seiji search in completely the wrong place, I giggled quietly.
I’m hiding right here, but Seiji can’t find me.
Just then, a gentle breeze blew. At the same moment, the moving Seiji came to a halt.
“Ah. I can’t find you.”
I rolled my round eyes.
What should I do?
If he really can’t find me, should I just come out?
While I was deep in contemplation, Seiji’s presence vanished.
“Huh? Where did he go?”
Don't tell me he got bored and left? Feeling anxious, I was just about to stand up.
“Just kidding.”
Rumble.
Thud.
“…Huh?”
“Irene.”
“…”
“Found you.”
I stared blankly at the tree that had crashed to the ground. A languid smile formed on Seiji’s face.
His lowered blue eyes flashed as they locked straight onto me.
“Th-this was hide-and-seek…”
“I know. There’s a similar game in the North. It’s a game where you practice hunting in advance, right?”
No, it’s not.
Somehow, the hide-and-seek I knew and the hide-and-seek Seiji knew seemed a bit different.
“…It’s otay. Iling has seen a lot of stuff like this. Iling wasn’t scawed at all!”
My heart was pounding.
Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
Taking a deep breath, I stood up. Now it was my turn to be “it.”
“Now Iling is ‘it,’ so go hide!”
“If you say so.”
“One!”
I covered my eyes tightly and counted.
“Twoo.”
But what if Seiji hides really, really well?
“Thwee.”
Wiggling my fingers, I parted them slightly. Sunlight filtered into my tightly shut eyes.
No. I’m not a cheater.
Putting my fingers back together, I continued counting the rest of the numbers.
“Fouur.”
And finally, when I had counted all the way to ten, I popped my eyes open.
“Iling is gonna find you! Seiji, are you done hiding?”
“Yeah. I’m all hidden.”
“…Huh? No! You’re not supposed to answer that!”
Even while saying so, I turned toward the direction of the sound. I thought the noise had come from around here.
Where could he be?
I peeked around the spots I had taken note of while hiding earlier.
“He’s not here either?”
Did he sink into the ground, or shoot up into the sky?
Placing my hands on my hips, I fell into thought.
…Wait. The sky?
Thinking no way, I raised my head. And my eyes met Seiji’s as he looked down at me.
“Seiji, what are you doing up there?”
“I was hiding. Aren’t you going to catch me?”
Sitting with his back against the tree branch, Seiji reached an arm downward. I looked up helplessly at his arm hanging far out of reach.
“Iling can’t weach.”
“Then you can’t catch me, right? Since the game only ends when you catch me.”
“Seiji is mean. That’s cheating.”
“Then I win.”
Seiji hopped down lightly.
Now’s my chance!
I threw my arms out and snatched Seiji just as he landed on the ground. Losing his balance, Seiji wobbled and fell to the ground.
“You…!”
“Hehe. Iling caught you~”
Tightly hugging his arm so I wouldn’t lose my grip, I beamed radiantly.
I caught him!
The corners of my mouth curled into a wide, uncontrollable grin. Staring intently at me, Seiji silently brushed off his clothes.
“Seiji, are you mad?”
“No.”
“Then why aren’t you saying anything?”
“Let’s play again next time we meet. I won’t let you catch me then.”