Chapter 2
2화
“Wow…….”
As Bunny tried to hop down from the carriage, Roden Hainer caught her dangling by the hand and safely set her on the ground. Her mouth fell wide open.
‘So white and fancy and shiny!’
It was a grand mansion with a towering structure that reached toward the sky, adorned with gleaming golden decorations that caught the eye.
Anyway, it was the biggest mansion Bunny had ever seen.
A pure white mansion!
“This way.”
With her eyes wide open, Bunny toddled after Roden Hainer.
Inside the enormous white mansion, there were unusually many people dressed in pure white garments. People clutching thick books passed by frequently, and there were plenty clad in shining silver armor.
“Gasp.”
Bunny, who had been staring intently, drew in a sharp breath.
“Baby, baby. You must never get close to anyone in white clothes. They might hurt you. Got it?”
It was the seventh in Luriel’s series of earnest warnings that sprang to mind.
‘White clothes, bad people! White things, bad things!’
As Bunny pattered along, she locked eyes with someone in flowing white robes holding a book and hopped in place in a flap.
Thud thud thud—
Tense as could be, Bunny tucked her neck in like a turtle and scurried right up to the knight’s side. She sneaked a sidelong glance at Roden Hainer’s attire and nodded in satisfaction.
‘Knight-nim wears black clothes! So he’s safe!’
Seeing Roden Hainer wrapped head to toe in a black robe, Bunny let out a sigh of relief and pretended to wipe sweat from her brow with her sleeve.
At the sigh that sounded far too profound for a child, Roden Hainer, who had been matching her stride to guide her, looked down at the girl with a puzzled expression.
As the child waddled along, moving her short little limbs with impressive determination, the limp arms and legs of the black Rabbit Backpack swayed on her back with every step.
Whatever she had crammed inside had turned the originally skinny rabbit into a bizarrely bulging, lumpy, puffed-up thing in places.
‘Like a muscular rabbit.’
The sudden thought made Roden Hainer chuckle softly before he caught himself.
Was being around a kid turning even his brain childish?
Maybe because she was so young? She stuck in his mind for no reason.
Though he hadn’t told Bunny, the ‘House of Trials’ was normally only open to those ten and older, but due to her special circumstances with no guardian, it had been decided to bring her straight here.
“Does the young lady have any questions?”
“Questions?”
“Yes. I’ll explain everything once we arrive, but feel free to ask first.”
At Roden Hainer’s words, Bunny pondered for a moment before shooting her right hand up high.
The orphanage director had said that when asking questions, you raise your right hand nice and high.
‘That’s the human rule.’
Of course, Bunny was going to be the Great Demon King, so she didn’t have to follow it, but human grown-ups liked good kids who listened well.
“Why do the white people have horns??”
“Ah. The people in white clothes are from the Temple.”
“Tem-ple……?”
“Yes. The Temple purifies monsters and exterminates demons to protect people’s peace.”
Roden Hainer knelt on one knee, adjusting to eye level so the child could easily understand, and explained calmly.
Thud!
At the same moment, Bunny imagined a massive boulder crashing down right over her head.
Her mouth fell wide open.
“Baby, among those guys in white clothes, there are some real damn bas…… no, ahem. Extremely dangerous people.”
“Dangerous people?”
“Yes. Temple people. So you mustn’t go near the Temple. Especially, the ones you absolutely can’t get close to are…… the holy knights dressed head to toe in pure white uniforms. Those guys have no blood or tears—they’d gobble up a tiny baby like you in one bite.”
The words of Luriel flashed in her mind, and Bunny’s eyes went wide as she looked up.
Come to think of it, as Roden Hainer leaned down a bit to explain, a glimpse of pure white fabric peeked from inside his robe.
Temple? Knight……?
Roden, holy knight?!
‘Bunny… in big big trouble……?’
If they find out she’s destined to be the Great Demon King, will they eat her?
Trembling, Bunny inched backward, putting exactly three steps between her and Roden Hainer.
Of course, to Roden Hainer, it was less than one step.
“Young lady?”
“Roden, Tem-ple knight?”
Roden?
Roden Hainer’s cheek twitched, but he barely kept his expression steady as he opened his mouth.
“No. I’m a knight of the Yudia Ducal Family.”
‘Phew, safe.’
Not Temple people, so safe.
Bunny completely safe!
Satisfied with the answer, Bunny beamed and plastered herself right back to Roden Hainer’s leg.
‘There are too many white-clothed people everywhere else!’
Roden Hainer couldn’t make heads or tails of Bunny’s repeated backing away and closing in, his expression tinged with bewilderment.
‘Maybe her legs hurt?’
After some thought, Roden Hainer awkwardly straightened up halfway before bending down again and asked carefully.
“Are you alright? If your legs hurt, shall I carry you?”
“No!”
Bunny hopped in place to show how sturdy she was and grinned brightly. Roden Hainer paused for a moment, then cleared his throat softly and spoke.
“Anyway, the Yudia Ducal Family has produced high priests, holy knight captains, saintesses, and more for generations. Not only that, it’s the one and only sacred house permitted to command the Divine Knights, who surpass even holy knights—a bastion of pure meritocracy.”
Huh?
Her eyes spun as difficult words poured out.
And well they might, for Bunny was a genius among geniuses who had perfectly mastered human language in just one year at the orphanage—though her pronunciation was clumsy and her grammar a mess—but she was still a young child who didn’t know big words yet. —Bunny’s thoughts, of course.
After mulling over the words for a good long while and fishing out a few, Bunny cautiously spoke up.
“D-Divine… mus-cle family?”
“No. A sacred house that prioritizes ability.”
“Mm.”
Anyway, they’re amazing, right?
Same ducal family, so there’s gotta be a super strong demon daddy here too?
Having heard of only one ducal family from Luriel’s stories, Bunny grinned wide and nodded vaguely.
At that, Roden Hainer spoke up, looking somehow proud.
“And it was the Yudia Ducal Family’s direct line who led the war against the demonkin to victory just a few years ago.”
Boom rumble crash—!
Flash!
Thunder and lightning crashed over Bunny’s head. —All in Bunny’s imagination, of course.—
‘The tongs… destroyed the demonkin?!’
The fearsome Yudia Ducal Family!
“Baby, if you ever get close to Temple people, you must never let them find out you’re the heir of the Great Demon King. Got it? Even in a tiger’s den, stay sharp and you’ll survive! Just do that and you’re totally safe! You know?”
“Safe and sound!”
“Yes. Our baby’s special, after all. As long as you hide it, hardly anyone will be able to tell. Perfect crime!”
No, even in a tiger’s den, stay sharp and totally safe!
‘I gotta become a fine tiger’s den too.’
