The Precious Baby of the Bandit Leader Chapter 36

The Chief had taken off his upper garments, and his back was tightly wrapped in clean cloth.

 

‘As expected, he was hurt…!’

 

Heuk—!

 

I bit my lips tightly, my eyes stinging, trembling as I tried to hold back the tears.

 

‘I thought he might not come.’

 

Of course. There was no reason for him to come. Logically, it was truly a foolish thing to do.

 

Risking his life twice for a nameless baby he had picked up in the mountains.

 

Even though Joanna’s a villain, she seems kind of cute and like she has some flaws, makes me curious about her character ㅋㅋ

 

I’m not even his biological daughter… in fact, I’m the daughter of his enemy.

 

And yet, the Chief risked even the possibility that the bandit group might split if this truth were revealed.

 

He was struck by arrows and once again risked his life to save me.

 

Above all, even though he knew better than anyone that the enemy was chasing me.

 

‘I… had no other choice.’

 

My fight was one where I had no choice but to gamble on that threadlike sliver of hope.

 

So I was angry at my own weakness. And just as much, I felt mortally sorry toward the Chief and these people.

 

“Keung!”

 

I braced my legs and pushed myself up.

 

Tap tap tap tap—

 

Then I moved my little feet as quickly as I could.

 

One step, one step.

 

The more I moved, the blurrier my vision became.

 

As I approached with my arms spread wide, the Chief bent his knees and lowered himself.

 

He awkwardly adjusted his posture to meet my eye level, and without a moment’s hesitation, I snuggled deeply into his arms.

 

“Hng…” 

 

Feeling his familiar warmth, a soft sob escaped from me.

 

‘Damn this baby instinct!’

 

This time, I simply couldn’t hold it in.

 

I tried to suppress it to the very end, pursing my lips, but in the end, the tears poured out uncontrollably.

 

“I’m sowwy, I’m sowwy.” 

 

“….”

 

“I… it hurts. It hu, hurts… I’m sowwy.”

 

I carefully reached out my small hand and gently brushed the cloth wrapped around his shoulder.

 

It was still vivid.

 

The moment the arrow flew and struck his back, an overwhelming wave of emotions surged through me.

 

Sshk.

 

The Chief gently lifted me from his arms, my face streaked with tears and snot, and met my gaze.

 

“It doesn’t hurt.”

 

He said calmly.

 

“Right now, I could jump under a waterfall a hundred times, even a thousand times, and come back after swimming. I could even show you.”

 

“Habu? D, dat’s…”

 

That doesn’t seem right…

 

“So don’t cry. Hmm?” 

 

At his gentle words, I sucked in a breath and swallowed my sobs.

 

Then the Chief let out a light sigh, reached out, and pulled me tightly into his arms.

 

“Alright. Don’t cry. If you cry, I won’t know what to do.”

 

Pat, pat.

 

He patted my back as usual and asked softly.

 

“You were really scared, weren’t you?”

 

“….”

 

Sssrk, sssrk.

 

The Chief gently brushed down my soft hair, which had grown enough to reach my shoulders.

 

“I’m sorry for letting you cry and tremble alone in a place like that.”

 

His voice, coming through with difficulty, trembled ever so slightly.

 

His words, carrying the sincerity he had held in for so long, made my heart ache for no reason. 

 

“I don’t know why he kidnapped you… but when I realized you were gone, countless thoughts ran through my mind. And I decided to ask you myself.” 

 

“?!”

 

“How would you feel about staying here?” 

 

It was a question no one could have anticipated.

 

Not only did I react, but the expressions of the bandits shifted moment by moment as well.

 

Some covered their mouths in disbelief, glancing at each other, while others muttered quietly that it was impossible. 

 

A few others covered their mouths and laughed, unsure whether it was a good thing that I had received such an offer.

 

I glanced around nervously and then asked hesitantly.

 

“Heww…?” 

 

Seeing me unable to answer easily, the Chief spoke again.

 

“Living in the mountains won’t be easy. It will be hard to play with the others, and there will be times when you have to run and escape. But I promise you this.”

 

“….”

 

“I will protect you… so that something like this never happens again.”

 

The Chief never once avoided my gaze.

 

Just like so many adults in my past life, he didn’t turn away from me.

 

And he didn’t try to unilaterally decide my life or wield control over me.  

 

He respected me… a child only 17 or 18 months old, as an individual.

 

And I…

 

My mind went completely blank from the confusion.

 

‘Honestly, I had never once imagined that the Chief and the bandits would become my family.’

 

The bandits I had known before were simply criminals.

 

But now, remembering the original story, I came to know their true identities.

 

[“They weren’t just ordinary bandits. They were a righteous group gathered around the deposed crown prince.”]

 

[“They distributed rice and valuables to the people oppressed by the Anseong Park clan, and because of that, countless people supported him. That was exactly what the enemy was wary of.”]

 

The truth was that they weren’t a bandit group, but a righteous group. 

 

Come to think of it, even when I watched them hold their meetings, there had always been something puzzling about them.

 

“The things we brought last time, we distributed them all.”

 

“We left them stacked in the villagers’ storehouses at night without being noticed, so don’t worry.” 

 

Even as I dozed off, I vaguely remembered hearing those words.

 

At the time, I thought maybe I had misheard.

 

Now, looking back, I understood everything.

 

‘They aren’t criminals. The real bad ones are…’

 

“Please spare me! Please spare me! Please!” 

 

A sudden thought occurred to me.

 

The helpless villagers, being mercilessly trampled by the government soldiers in the marketplace.

 

They were clearly nothing more than powerless old men and women.

 

And yet, the government soldiers threw them onto the cold earth and mercilessly trampled them underfoot.

 

Was that all?

 

We hadn’t shared any warm feelings, but Eonnyeon, who had been looking after me for the past six months, died. 

 

She was innocent.

 

Simply because she had protected me and followed the orders of her master.

 

And finally…

 

‘Park Dohyul.’

 

“You’ve been limping quite badly since earlier… are you alright?”

 

At the Chief’s words, I quickly leaned forward to check.

 

I, too, realized that he was having difficulty moving. The problem was…

 

‘He was fine until he spoke to me.’

 

It was that this happened after he faced the enemy. It felt as if a puzzle in my mind was finally falling into place.

 

The easiest way to gaslight and condition a child.

 

‘Violence.’

 

My chest clenched tight with crushing anger, and I squeezed my eyes shut.

 

I left him behind like that. Young Park Dohyul would not be able to escape that pain for quite some time after I was gone.

 

“I wiww come back. To you, again.”

 

I promised that I would come back to Park Dohyul.

 

I wanted to keep that promise.

 

How much courage he had mustered to save me, 

 

I realized just how difficult and heavy that courage must have been.

 

Because I knew it better than anyone.

 

‘I want to protect him. Me too.’

 

In my past life, I had spent my whole life doing work to protect people.

 

But back then,

 

Rather than purely wanting to care for and protect someone, I just wanted to be acknowledged.

 

But now, for the first time in my life, I truly wanted to protect someone.

 

The reason I’d changed so much was…

 

Flash—!

 

I opened my closed eyes.

 

And I looked at the Chief’s hand extended before me.

 

The hand that supported me for the first time when I was about to fall.

 

The person who said he would protect me like a father, even though I had been a burden that everyone avoided. 

 

Srrrk.

 

I carefully reached out and placed my hand on top of the Chief’s. 

 

Then, with a firmer gaze, I looked up at the Chief.