.｡.:✧ Chapter 64 ✧:.｡.

—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
—————————————————————–

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

 
Watching Michelle enthusiastically munch on spaghetti, twirling it around her fork and stuffing it into her mouth, I was filled with complex emotions.

‘I remember her table manners being impeccable back then.’

Perhaps due to her upbringing, she had managed to dine with grace even in the modest meals prepared in the demonic forest. Now, however, she was eating messily, getting sauce all over her face.

“Sigh.”

After wiping her mouth with a napkin provided by the restaurant, Michelle, as if used to the gesture, lowered her hands and shook her head in thanks.

“Thank you!”

Seeing her dive back into her meal with renewed vigor, I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle at her irrepressible nature.

“She’s adorable.”

“Right? She’d look amazing in something like a one piece dress.”

“……”

Rin looked at Michelle with eyes dripping with sweetness, while Hayun seemed ready to sew her a dress on the spot. Sen, however, watched Michelle with a complicated expression, likely because she had lived among the Chokugen Faction before enrolling in the academy and wasn’t used to interactions with such young children.

‘Sigh.’

It was somewhat painful to see the two of them together, making me wonder how their twisted relationship from a past life led them to this meeting and why Sen had gone to the Demon Forest to kill Michelle in the first place.

“Are you two dating?”

Michelle asked, pausing her vigorous spaghetti eating to take a sip of her drink.

Rin blushed at the question, but the other two flatly denied it.

“No.”

“Not interested.”

“Hey, ‘not interested’? I’m not interested either, you know?”

Sen glared at me in annoyance, continuing to delicately eat her salad with a fork.

Despite the awkward situation, Michelle seamlessly blended into our company without showing any signs of discomfort.

“So, you got rejected by everyone? Poor thing.”

Was she being too familiar?

“Don’t call me ‘brother,’ call me ‘mister.'”

“Huh? Mister? Isn’t that a bit much?”

Even though she had previously insisted on calling me “mister” because of the vibe I gave off, now she was changing her tune.

“Let’s just stick with ‘mister.'”

“Then should I call the ladies ‘madam’?”

“I don’t mind.”

“Umm, being called ‘madam’ at this age feels a bit off.”

“……”

Everyone but Rin seemed somewhat reluctant to embrace these titles. Michelle nodded in understanding and beamed at me with a bright smile.

“I’ll just call you ‘mister,’ then.”

“Alright.”

Her calling me “brother” felt awkward and uncomfortable.

The waiter then brought the pumpkin soup I had ordered. Ignoring Hayun’s question about what else I had ordered, I fetched another spoon and offered some to Michelle.

“I don’t eat this kind of stuff.”

“Don’t just stick to spaghetti. Try something that’ll warm you up a bit. You’ll like this, I promise.”

I had ordered it because she used to be susceptible to cold, often coughing, even though the current weather was more hot than cold, and she would shiver occasionally.

“Really, mister? I hate pumpkin…”

“It’s not that you hate it; you’ve probably never tried it.”

Michelle puffed her cheeks and tentatively tasted a spoonful, her eyes widening in surprise.

“It’s delicious! I guess I like pumpkin after all?”

“I told you you would.”

Remembering her delight in anything made with pumpkin back in the demonic forest, I was glad to see her enjoying the soup.

After finishing our meal and planning to return to the hotel, Michelle clung to us, unwilling to part.

“I want to play with you and the sisters!”

“……Alright.”

Unable to peel her away, I acquiesced, surprising the others. Perhaps because of my regret for not being able to protect her, I gave in to her wish.

Since we couldn’t show her the thieves at the hotel, we decided to take a walk, learning the streets under Michelle’s guidance.

“……!”

Suddenly, Hayun hid behind me.

Curious about her reaction, I noticed a portly man dressed in traditional clothing, flanked by two guards armed with swords, crossing our path.

“What’s wrong?”

Hayun clung to my back, whispering her reply.

“Heaven Len… that’s my uncle.”

“What?”

The same man who had forced Hayun to seduce Ares and, upon her refusal to continue following his orders, had disowned her from the family?

Watching the back of the waddling figure, I felt that Hayun didn’t bear much resemblance to him, but I glanced at her and signaled with my eyes.

“Let’s follow him.”

“What? Why?”

Hayun was surprised by my suggestion, not expecting me to propose such a thing, but Sen took the lead and started tailing him without hesitation, while Rin grabbed Michelle’s hand and said with a smile,

“Sister, wouldn’t you like to play spy with us? We’ll secretly follow that man.”

“That sounds fun! I love it! I’m really good at secretly following my dad all the time!”

“Just a moment!”

With Sen’s skilled guidance, we began our unexpected tailing mission.

Heaven Len’s guards seemed competent, but Sen, with her training from the Chokugen Faction, was a step ahead in concealing her presence, allowing us to follow them without much difficulty.

“Ah, why?”

Hayun sighed, still puzzled, but my intention wasn’t solely for her sake.

Bethel seemed to have become a gathering point for various individuals:

– The Tudogs.
– Sen’s Chokugen Faction.
– Heini Rosales, the royal inspector.
– And now, Hayun’s uncle, Heaven Len.

As we continued to follow him, intrigued by the unusual situation, we eventually reached a large mansion where he stopped. We peeked from an alleyway to gauge the situation.

“Is he visiting that mansion?”

“Why would my uncle personally visit someone? He’s too proud for that.”

“Wait, that mansion is…”

“Michelle, stay here with your sister.”

“But I want to see too.”

Rin took Michelle into the alley, preemptively deciding it was safer in case something happened.

Sen frowned briefly before a tall man with long hair tied back emerged.

“That’s Mikael Portren’s mansion?”

“My uncle came to see Portren?”

Mikael Portren was associated with the Tudogs, and now Heaven Len, Hayun’s uncle, was visiting him.

‘Something’s definitely happening.’

“Sister, did you know? This is near our house!”

“Just a minute, Michelle!”

Ignoring Rin’s attempt to hold her back, Michelle dashed out of the alley, past us, and towards Heaven Len and Mikael Portren, exclaiming in surprise.

“Dad!”

“What?”

The situation was unexpectedly chaotic.

Michelle ran up to Mikael Portren and threw herself into his arms.

“Oh, my little princess! Did you go exploring the streets again?”

“Yes! Today I played and ate with some pretty sisters and a mister!”

“A mister?”

Mikael Portren frowned, worried that his daughter might have been playing with a strange man, even in the presence of Heaven Len. He noticed us standing awkwardly behind and asked,

“Did you all play with my daughter?”

‘Running away now would look even more suspicious.’

Noticing Hayun, Heaven Len glared at her in surprise, but there was nothing to be done.

We approached them naturally, smiling and introducing ourselves,

“Hello, we are students from Aios Academy. We’re on holiday, and we happened to meet Miss Michelle and spent some time playing with her. She’s really adorable.”

“Yes, our Michelle is quite charming.”

“Dad! This brother is actually a mister! He told me to call him that, even though he’s a brother! Isn’t that funny?”

“Haha, really?”

I was anxious, worrying Michelle might mention our tailing of Heaven Len, but fortunately, the conversation shifted thanks to the female students who followed.

“Now that we’re here, let me offer you a cup of tea inside. It seems you’ve treated our daughter to a meal and played with her.”

“Right, sisters, mister! Let’s play at our house!”

Considering the relationship between Hayun and Heaven Len, the logical choice was to leave, but Hayun intervened.

“We’ll be honored to accept your hospitality for a short while.”

She held onto my clothes, her gesture reminiscent of a small animal trembling before a predator.

‘She’s gathered her courage.’

This unexpected opportunity to gather information about the Tudogs and Mikael Portren was too good to pass up, and inwardly grateful to Hayun, we entered the mansion.

Heaven Len looked annoyed but didn’t acknowledge Hayun, perhaps not wanting to introduce her as the disowned niece of his deceased sister in front of Mikael, who appeared to deeply value family.

‘The pieces are coming together.’

Michelle Portren.

Her father, Mikael Portren, was involved with the Tudogs, likely leading to his downfall, forcing Michelle, his remaining kin, to flee and ultimately be hunted by the Chokugen Faction in the Demon Forest.

“……”

Knowing this bitter truth, I followed them into the mansion, my heart heavy with the knowledge that I alone possessed.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇