Chapter 1 - Chapter 1

Translator: Nox

Chapter 1Chapter 1

“So, you see…”

Peach-colored cheeks looked ready to pop at any moment. Tiny lips fumbled, searching for the right words.

Brown hair was braided into pigtails, adorned with hair ornaments made of petals, each decorated leaf by leaf with jewels. Her dress featured a lovely design, with frills and ribbons boasting their presence to the fullest.

Finally, there were those lovely blue eyes, looking as if large sapphires had been embedded right into them, shimmering with a determined light as if she had made a firm resolution while looking this way.

This was Bibi Lutein El Castline, the protagonist of The Baby Lady is the Little Treasure of the Villainous Duchy.

She was the only precious treasure of the Castline Duchy, a family said to have neither blood nor tears. A lovely young lady whom they wouldn’t trade even for a magic stone mine.

The very youngest daughter for whom three new brothers and the heartless, villainous Duke would do anything. A girl famous for being spirited, affectionate, and clever beyond her years.

In truth, she wasn’t the Duke’s biological daughter, yet the blood of the ducal house still flowed through her—a bold young lady hiding various secrets, including the secret of her birth.

“U-um, well, you see.”

That very girl was blushing in front of me, agonizing as she searched for something to say. Having no inkling of what was on her mind, I scanned the table before me.

Croquembouche, tarts, eclairs, macarons… all sorts of desserts and black tea boasted their brilliant appearances.

The behavior of my companion—fidgeting with those favorite desserts right in front of her, flexing and curling her fingers, and biting her lips while staring this way—was quite concerning. I cautiously opened my mouth.

“Um, Bibi. Perhaps…”

“P-please don’t break off your engagement with my oppa!”

“…What?”

Slip. My finger holding the teacup twitched, causing a bit of tea to spill. It was a sunny spring day, and at her insistence, we had just set up the tea table in a scenic garden.

“O-of course, my big oppa is very blunt. And he cuts people off. And he doesn’t stay in touch no matter where he goes. And whenever he opens his mouth, he seems like he has no interest in anything but my stories, but still!”

“…….”

I froze as if someone had cast a freezing spell on me. To me, this girl—who looked as cute and lovely as a living, breathing doll—began to pour out words as if she had memorized them.

“But I hate it if Tia unnie isn’t my sister-in-law!”

“…….”

I just stared blankly at the tiny girl shouting at me, her blue eyes burning with passion.

…Don’t break off the engagement now? The seals have already been pressed on the documents, and only the public announcement remains. It’s an absolutely essential move for both the Castline Duchy and my own future.

Just in case, I turned my gaze toward the knight and the maid who never left the girl’s side no matter where she went.

The two of them were well-known Bibi-obsessives. In particular, the escort knight was a former royal from a fallen kingdom whom the girl had personally rescued from a slave market, and the maid had a history of the girl saving her youngest sibling’s life.

Was the escort knight a male lead candidate, and was the maid a former assassin?

At any rate, if they were this loyal, they would surely point out the error in Bibi’s words without hesitation, even in front of me, a member of the imperial family.

With that hope, I looked at them…

‘…Why aren’t you stopping her? Why are you just nodding?’

A black-haired boy who seemed indifferent at first glance but never missed a single move Bibi made, and the kind-faced maid beside him. Those two betrayed my expectations.

Far from stopping her, they were in their usual state of: ‘Everything our young lady says is right.’ It was a lost cause.

“Um, Bibi…”

“M-my big oppa is handsome.”

“Ah, that’s true.”

My mouth reacted to the truth before I even had time to think. As soon as she heard me, Bibi’s eyes sparkled.

“And the Duchy has lots of money!”

“Mm, that’s also true…”

I agreed with a hesitant voice.

In The Baby Lady is the Little Treasure of the Villainous Duchy, the Imperial Family is just a hollow shell.

The Duchy is the one responsible for the Northern Barrier that protects the Empire and the Magical Beast Frontline.

The Duchy is the one holding immense history and actual power that puts the Imperial Family to shame.

The Duchy is the one possessing enormous wealth by monopolizing the distribution of magic stones, the cores of the magical beasts.

The Imperial Family was merely a background used to highlight the position of the Duchy, who were the ‘actual number ones of the Empire whom even the Imperial Family could not treat lightly.’

It was also a position that provided the Duchy with its own share of hardships through a few villains, steeped in inferiority complexes, who acted out relying solely on their status as royalty.

And one of those few villains was me.

There were three children of the current Imperial Family in total.

The eldest son born to the 1st Imperial Consort from the Marquis Rand family. The second son born to the current Empress. And me, the daughter born to the 2nd Imperial Consort from the humble County of Bradley.

As a means to somehow establish a connection with and keep a check on the Castline Duchy, the Emperor engaged me to the Young Duke of Castline as soon as I was born.

Naturally, the Castline Duchy had been grinding their teeth, waiting for any opportunity to break this unilateral marriage contract.

The only Imperial Princess of the current Imperial Family—it sounds like a wonderful title if you only look at it that way… but in reality, it was a hollow honor.

My mother, the second daughter of the Bradley family, Elaine Austin von Bradley, had been famous in society for her beauty since her days as a maiden. Famous enough that even the Emperor, known for being a lecher, took an interest.

So, the County of Bradley forcibly threatened my mother, who already had a lover, and offered her to the Emperor. For the safety of her lover, my mother entered the Imperial Family, obediently followed the Emperor’s words, and conceived me.

However, the family had already secretly disposed of my mother’s lover.

When she later learned the truth, my mother fell into shock and gave birth to me prematurely. Thanks to that, I was so sickly in my childhood that people said it wouldn’t be strange if I died at any moment.

Though I became somewhat healthy after turning ten, my mother had absolutely no interest in me. The Emperor also turned his attention away from my secluded mother and focused only on the 1st Imperial Consort.

In the midst of that—that is, the me before I regained the memories of my past life while on the verge of death…

Swallowing a sigh that threatened to escape, I shook my head.

‘…I was pitiful, miserable, immature, and selfish.’

It was a past that made a sigh leak out even now just thinking about it.

A young princess who grew up neglected, receiving no attention from her parents. If there was any merit, it was her beauty—striking platinum blonde hair inherited from her mother and vivid green eyes.

As long as she stayed quiet and kept her mouth shut, she was the very image of a fantasy princess raised gracefully in the Imperial Palace.

A child starved for affection, who had received neither the love of her parents nor a proper education, fell in love at first sight with her fiancé—who was handsome, capable, and from a great family that even the Imperial Family could not ignore.

The princess, who had grown up in the palace with no grasp of reality and nothing but pride, began to cause all sorts of trouble from then on.

She followed him around blindly, threatened him not to even speak to young ladies from other noble families, and threw petty tantrums.

And when she still couldn’t get his attention, her pride was wounded, so she insulted the Castline Duchy with every word she spoke.

Since the marriage contract between the Imperial Family and the Castline family couldn’t be broken over a mere child’s tantrum…

Let’s see, in the original story…

As Bibi began to stand out in various ways, the Emperor set his sights on her as well.

Furthermore, the 1st Imperial Consort, whose eyes were bloodshot with the desire to put the First Prince on the throne, used various schemes to set Bibi up as her son’s partner.

One of those was the attempt to break the engagement between Princess Titania and the Young Duke of Castline.

The Princess already had no real power to speak of. Even her biological mother, the 2nd Imperial Consort, had withered away and died by that point.

It would have been one thing if her relationship with her fiancé, Raymon, had been good. But because of the misdeeds she had committed, their relationship was at its worst.

It was enough to leak a rumor to the Princess, who was desperate with anxiety, that the Imperial Family would nullify her engagement and push for a marriage between Bibi and the Prince.

‘…So she really stupidly tried to poison Bibi.’

Without any tricks or anything, she ignorantly invited her to tea and pushed a cup laced with poison toward her.

Naturally, she failed.

The Emperor threw the Princess to the furious Duchy, telling them to do whatever they wanted, whether they killed her or not.

—I did it because I loved you!

And there, Titania clung to Raymon’s feet and pleaded pathetically.

—I, I, I loved you. I really loved you… B-b-but you, you looked at me, you looked at me like I was a bug!

She threw away her pride as a princess and clung to him, but naturally…

—I am merely glad that you have finally realized why I have looked at you like a bug all this time.

There was only chilling contempt in return.

—I am simply pleased that you have finally understood.

Looking into those cold, icy eyes, Titania falls into true despair.

Knowing such a bone-chilling future…

I looked at the protagonist, who was counting off on her cute, dainty fingers to persuade me, with troubled eyes.

“And besides my dad, my big oppa is the strongest in the whole world!”

My cute and lovely protagonist, this is the Imperial Palace, for starters…

Please don’t say so boldly that the Duke of Castline is number one in the world in the place where the inferiority-ridden Emperor lives…

Though I agree with the fact that the Duke of Castline is likely practically stronger than the Emperor.

“So no matter what happens, he can save you, Tia unnie!”

It’ll be a relief if he doesn’t take the lead in throwing me away…

A bitter smile leaked out involuntarily.

Still, it seems the current me is doing reasonably well. To hear such words even from the original protagonist.

“Bibi.”

“Yes, Tia unnie!”

“First of all, thank you so much for thinking well of me.”

“Hehe.”

“But I can’t.”

“Why, why, why…?”

In an instant, those large, deep blue eyes welled up as if she were about to cry. Ugh. I almost clutched my chest without realizing it. However, pretending to be calm on the outside, I met Bibi’s eyes and spoke kindly.

“Bibi, the Castline Duchy is precious to you, right?”

“Yes. Of course.”

“…There is nothing good to be gained from the current Imperial Family and the Castline Duchy being entangled.”

“B-but…”

“Kind Bibi.”

It wasn’t a forced smile; a genuine laugh came out. I quietly reached out and stroked Bibi’s brown hair.

“You were worried about what would happen to me after the engagement is broken, weren’t you?”

“…….”

Bibi fell silent.