Chapter 13

13

"Kant, wasn't a personal maid assigned to me?"

"No, at first a personal maid was assigned, but she quit halfway through. It seems that after her resignation, the handover was done that way."

Kant, the butler, explained calmly without any sign of disturbance.

He seemed to be middle-aged and had worked in this mansion for a long time, unlike the other maids who were terrified.

He appeared to know exactly what his master would and would not tolerate.

'Having such a subordinate would be convenient.'

Ultimately, with no way to escape, I crawled to a spot with a wall and sat down, leaning against it.

Leaning against the wall made me feel more comfortable.

I stretched out my legs and tapped my sore knees with my palms.

'Why does he keep staring at people like that?'

I glanced at Sharent Clown, who was still smiling, and frowned, turning my head away.

"Did you know that this child had made a hideout here?"

Nearly seven maids remained silent, holding their breath.

Only then did Sharent Clown's gaze, which had been fixed on me, finally move away.

'Creepy.'

I wished they would hurry up and finish or give me a chance to escape. Even a small hole would be enough...

'Huh?'

It was a small hole.

There was a small opening in the wall, seemingly created when the griffin had rampaged earlier.

I examined the area near the wall I was leaning against carefully. If I could squeeze through, I might be able to get outside.

'Creepy...'

Most importantly, while Sharent Clown was here, I needed to go to the garden and clean myself.

I glanced at Sharent Clown and Deshar Clown, who were distracted by the maids, and stuck my head into the hole.

"You all seem to have become deaf."

Sharent Clown said with a smile. His voice and smile were so gentle that anyone who didn't know him would have been captivated.

"No, no, I didn't know."

"I didn't know either."

"Me too..."

I heard the seven women answer while I wriggled my body hard.

I pressed my palms against the floor on the opposite side, but for some reason...

"Ugh..."

For some reason, I couldn't get out any further...

'Huh? No, that can't be.'

I shook my body with all my might, but it was stuck at my hips and wouldn't budge.

'No, my hips can't be that round!'

Giving up on moving forward, I tried to wriggle my way back, but I couldn't even retreat.

Being stuck was... unsettling.

"Since when was the last time you took care of Balian's child?"

Deshar Clown's voice seemed even heavier than before.

Regardless, if I couldn't get out of here, I might become a laughingstock for the rest of my life.

"Two... two months ago."

"About six weeks ago, I think."

"I... about a month ago..."

They answered, stammering.

I didn't know if they had a conscience or lacked the courage to lie, but their answers were honest.

'At least they're not lying.'

I gave up on getting out of the wall and slumped, thinking.

The wall pressed against my stomach, but it was tolerable when I relaxed.

Actually, I didn't blame the maids.

In a world of survival of the fittest, the weak are at fault for not surviving.

Small beings certainly need protection, but luck plays a role. It's natural for those who are eliminated without a protector in power and survival to die.

"Ah... sneeze..."

Damn, I really can't get out.

No matter how much I flailed my arms and legs, nothing changed.

I gave up cleanly.

Anyway, since they didn't seem to plan to starve me to death, they would probably pull me out if I stayed quiet.

"So, the last person to take care of this child, who just started teething, was about two weeks ago! You all must be completely insane!"

"Your Excellency, we have committed a grave sin. I apologize, Your Excellency!"

"No one has checked this place for two weeks?"

Sharent Clown, who usually had a soft voice, unusually interjected.

I couldn't see the inside, but the coldness in my lower body suggested it wasn't a good situation.

Why was he so worked up? Who was the one who abandoned me first?

'I'm hungry.'

I should have eaten more fruit earlier.

At least I had a couple of teeth, so I was lucky. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to chew such large fruits.

I practically had to stuff them in.

Similarly, I barely managed to eat the apple. I had to be able to eat it.

Crack!

At that moment, the sound of a slap echoed.

I stiffened involuntarily.

'Who did he just hit?'

It's really intense. Even if I was an illegitimate child brought in from outside with no name, the blood of a noble shouldn't be touched, right?

It's funny, but I can't laugh being stuck in the wall. Not because of any humanitarian reason... but because laughing would press on my stomach.

"Kant, as the butler in charge of managing the mansion, how are you managing it?"

"I apologize, Your Excellency."

"Then what did this child do for two weeks?"

"Th... that..."

Suddenly, it became as quiet as a graveyard.

With arms and legs, I could have found food. Even a child with only front teeth and gums can eat mashed food.

'Thinking about it, I must be pretty amazing.'

I wriggled, still stuck, and slapped the wall with my palm.

"Ow!"

It hurts!

'Why is this wall so hard?'

Being stuck is frustrating enough, but now my palm hurts! I'm hungry! My clothes are dirty and itchy!

"Huh?"

At that moment, my body slipped backward.

At the same time, my stuck hips felt relieved.

The moment I slipped out of the wall, many eyes turned to me.

"Keck-"

I turned my head to see who had grabbed the back of my neck, and there was the person I least wanted to see.

I scrunched up my face.

"Ugh..."

I don't know what my distorted expression looked like, but it must have been bad.

Sharent Clown, who always smiled, showed a rare emotional disturbance, his eyebrows twitching.

I turned my head away from Sharent Clown and looked forward.

Deshar Clown was there.

I didn't like either of them.

The fussy old man or the annoying man.

"If no one took care of this child, did he find food and eat it on his own?"

"He stole flowers and fruits from my garden several times."

Deshar Clown exclaimed in disbelief.

"Is this child about four years old? Kant, how old is this child now?"

If you're going to talk, at least let me go first.

It wasn't funny to be swung around like this.

Why should I be dangled in the air like a bell?

Why should I have to see the annoying maids and the Clowns in such a miserable state?

"According to my knowledge, he is about 11 months old."

"...11 months?"

"Yes, Your Excellency."

"An 11-month-old crawled out of this room, took those fruits and berries, and hid them to eat?"

Deshar Clown's voice was full of disbelief, and I wriggled my body.

It's good to talk, but what are you doing, grabbing my neck like this?

"...Yes. Balian, although he was light-hearted, was clever and quick-witted."

"Ahh!"

What do you know?

Why are you reminiscing about your failed lives in front of me?

'Sharent Clown's son was talking about Sharent Clown's failed honeymoon...'

As I screamed and wriggled, Sharent Clown put me down on the floor, looking annoyed.

"Behaving so vulgarly."

"Argh!"

I screamed, and Sharent Clown looked even more annoyed.

I stood on all fours, wondering where to go, when a shadow fell over me.

Deshar Clown bent down and reached out his hands toward me.

Ha, do you think I'll fall for that again? I snorted and quickly backed away.

The speed of my backward crawl on all fours was impressive even to me.

Indeed, my reflexes, honed from moving out of sight, were sharp.

Thanks to that, Deshar Clown's hands swiped through the air.

His eyebrows arched in frustration.