The Baby Sprout Who Bloomed in the Villain Duke’s Family
Chapter 22
Chapter 22
***
Rustle.
Clover, who had been sleeping with her face buried in the blankets, sat up.
Her eyes were swollen and puffy from sleeping so much. Her hair was a total mess, too.
Yet before she could even rub the sleep from her eyes, Clover fumbled around her surroundings.
Where was it?
“Seewd……”
As Clover mumbled in a half-asleep daze, Lucky hopped up and down next to her pillow.
[It’s over here!]
Turning her head toward Lucky, she saw the seed resting on the nightstand.
It was the Seed of Heart she had made yesterday from Khalid’s feelings.
“Hehehe……”
Thinking about it made her feel good all over again. A seed made from Papa’s heart.
Just what kind of wonderful thing would grow from it?
Somehow, she felt like this time it wouldn't wither away in three seconds and would grow strong instead.
“My Lady, are you awake?”
Just then, Belze approached and gently lifted Clover into her arms.
She cradled her tenderly, patting her back so the sleepy child's head wouldn't roll backward.
“Yeah, 'm 'wake.”
Clover nodded, holding up the seed to show Belze.
“Tada……”
React! Praise Clover!
Filled with anticipation, Clover peeked open her heavy eyelids and gazed at Belze's face.
“That's the seed you made yesterday, isn't it? It's simply magnificent, my Lady!”
Having already heard from the servants who had accompanied Clover on the picnic that 'the young lady made a seed,' Belze beamed and showered her with praise.
“Our young lady is so young, yet you already use your Authority so brilliantly. When you grow up, you will surely become a truly wonderful person.”
At Belze’s praise, Clover buried her face into the maid's chest and burst into giggles.
The exact reaction she wanted!
Belze was the absolute best!
Her mood instantly getting 'even' better, Clover whispered softly to Belze.
“Beljye, it’s a secwet.”
“Yes, my Lady.”
“I made dis with Papa's.”
“Lord Khalid’s?”
“Yeah, with Papa's heawt……”
Because she wasn't fully awake yet, her words came out slightly slurred. But Clover pressed on determinedly.
“So next time, I'll make one for Beljye too.”
“Oh my goodness……”
“A super big and cool one.”
Clover mumbled with a smile. And with those parting words, she tipped her head back down and fell right back asleep.
Belze did not know exactly what it meant to make something from someone's 'heart.'
‘Our precious young lady……’
When such a tiny lady offered to do something for her, how could she not be touched to the core?
Rustle.
She softly stroked Clover's thin, tender strands of hair.
Clover nestled in her arms felt so small. Like a tiny tuft of down. No, like a freshly sprouted seedling.
She was like a pea, a sprout, a tuft of fluff…… resembling every small, soft thing in the world.
Belze moved as carefully as possible so as not to wake her precious young lady from her light sleep. Knowing how sweet this little bit of extra slumber was, she had no wish to wake her further.
***
Presently, Clover's room was known as the 'Sprout Room.'
It was a nursery Khalid Claudian had prepared right after sending the newborn Clover off to the Demper family.
Crafted to heavily reflect Elysia's tastes, the room was packed with small, charming items, making it utterly delightful.
However.
“We are redoing it.”
He was going to redecorate Clover’s room.
Puzzled by Khalid's sudden order, the estate's head butler, Cerenio, looked at him and asked,
“The young lady seems quite fond of it as it is. Why do you wish to redecorate?”
“I was the one who designed it, not the child. No matter how young and small she may be, she must have her own tastes.”
Khalid pictured Clover’s beaming smile. The corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably.
“Ahem, hmph.”
Barely forcing his lips back under control, he turned his gaze back to Clover’s room.
Indeed, reflecting the child’s personal taste was merely an excuse.
He wanted to buy her mountains of things she liked, just to see that bright smile on her face again. Clover's room was simply being used as a pretext.
Having overheard Khalid’s plans, Demian and Arwin poked their heads into Clover’s room.
“I think it’s cute right now.”
“Yeah, I like this wallpaper, and I like that pink blanket over there too.”
“Clover probably likes it the way it is now too, Father.”
“Is it really okay to just change a baby's room however you want~? Isn't this just Father's own greed?”
Arwin kept cheekily prodding until he inevitably earned a sharp knuckle to the crown of his head from Khalid.
Thump.
“Ow!”
However.
“Hmm……”
Thinking his two sons weren't entirely wrong, Khalid stared at the room with a thoughtful expression.
Just as Arwin and Demian had said, Clover might truly love this room.
Young children took a long time to adjust to new surroundings; if Khalid rearranged the room on a whim, she might become shy and guarded again.
‘Still, I want to buy her something……’
Perhaps a wider new bed, or a cute little tea table set made specially for toddlers. He wanted to buy things suited to Clover's tastes and watch her light up with joy.
After a brief moment of deliberation, Khalid nodded slowly and muttered,
“Then I shall ask Clover. I will ask if anything is uncomfortable, or if there is anything new she wants.”
Having reached that conclusion, Khalid pivoted around to face Cerenio.
“Where is Clover now?”
The tiny mistress of this room, who was supposed to be breathing softly in slumber inside, was nowhere to be found.
Where had she gone off to this time?
When Khalid asked, Cerenio politely gestured toward the direction of the gardens and answered,
“From what I heard moments ago, she is near the garden.”
“Near the garden?”
Why did she go there?
“Yes. Shall I go fetch her?”
“No, I will go myself.”
“However, Lord Khalid, Count Sidu is scheduled to visit this afternoon……”
“I am aware.”
Count Sidu was a vassal whom Khalid had been preparing to purge ever since circumstances came to light linking him to illegal businesses alongside the Demper family.
His reason for coming was obvious. He was undoubtedly seeking mercy.
Naturally, Clover was vastly more important than an appointment like that.
Khalid strode forward.
“Ah, Papa! Wait for us!”
“Father, I am coming too.”
The two brothers scampered after him. Khalid paused for a brief moment to let Demian and Arwin catch up before continuing on his way.
***
‘Let's plant the seed!’
A round, little seed.
Humming a little tune as she marched briskly out to the garden carrying a trowel, Clover plopped right down on the ground.
“What will grow if I plant a seed, I wonder~”
Of course, she only had a single memory of something actually growing after planting a seed.
Yet this time, she had a strangely good feeling about it. It felt like something extraordinarily marvelous would sprout the moment she planted it.
‘So excited.’
Dig.
Scooping up a spadeful of garden soil with her trowel, Clover suddenly froze.
Wait.
She patted and felt the dirt ground with her hands. And sure enough.
‘I don't feel any power.’
She could not feel any life in the earth. Just as she had seen upon first arriving at Claudian, there were no Seeds of Crystal.
Nothing would ever grow properly when planted in soil like this. The plants here should have all withered and died long ago, surviving only through the gardener's tireless, relentless efforts.
Clover snapped her head up to look at Lucky.
“Lucky, dere's none here, wight?”
[Crystals? Yeah, there are none.]
“Den I hafta make one.”
Clover declared boldly.
She couldn't plant a precious seed in lifeless earth.
Her plantings had a bad habit of dying anyway; planting in dead ground was no different from throwing the seed straight into the trash.
She couldn't allow that. With a look of solemn determination, Clover tucked the seed safely into her pocket.
“Lucky, hewp me.”
Before planting Papa's seed, she pressed both palms firmly against the ground.
[Such a high-maintenance kid.]
Lucky fluttered upward, hovering gently above Clover's hands.
Then, the summon lent its power to Clover.
At once.
Flash—!
A faint glow seeped out from beneath her tiny hands. Clover felt her Authority draining out.
Even so, it was fine.
It wasn't her first time doing this.
‘I twied it at Demper too.’
A green light stole outward bit by bit. Clover pressed her lips together tightly and focused her Authority. Before long, the light gradually sharpened until……
“It's wowking……”
Pop!
A small, solid lump popped right out from within.
However, that green lump was not the only thing that popped out from the ground.
“Huh?”
