The Precious Baby of the Bandit Leader Chapter 7

I glanced at the entrance of the barracks.

 

At night, one or two bandits took turns keeping watch over me, like sentries.

 

However, they often took naps or left their posts, probably thinking that a newborn couldn’t possibly cause any trouble.

 

In other words, not only could I practice crawling out of sight, but if I did it well, escaping from this barracks might also be possible.

 

‘Alright. Let’s do this!’

 

It’ll get better in no time!

 

Having been a black belt in judo, kendo, and taekwondo, I was more confident in physical training than anything else!

 

‘I will definitely become the fastest crawling baby in this mountain before a month is up…!’

 

I shook my short legs once and made a solemn vow to myself.

 

I engraved my own new phrase, “A baby who crawls quickly can run far!” 

 

* * *

 

A week passed since then.

 

I started with five steps. After that, I crawled ten steps at a time.

 

I struggled, almost out of breath, and gradually increased the distance I could crawl.

 

After all that grueling effort…!

 

‘I did it…!’

 

I succeeded in crawling out of the barracks.

 

I was the one who came out, patiently observing the bandit guarding this place and timing it for when he left his post.

 

‘My luck was good. Amazingly, the door was open, so I was able to slip right through the gap.’

 

I savored the joy of my escape and looked around.

 

Swish—.

 

But for only a moment—soon, a biting cold swept over me along with the snowstorm.

 

But since my life depended on it, and even with a stroke of luck on my side, I never thought of giving up.

 

‘The chief’s barracks were over there, right?’

 

Now that I’ve made it this far, at least seeing his face would satisfy me!

 

“Abwa! (Let’s go!)”

 

Squeak, squeak—!

 

My knees were dirtied with snow and mud, and my palms stung as if they were raw, but I endured the pain and kept crawling steadfastly.

 

After barely making it about five steps, squeaking along, had I gone that far?

 

“W, whoo.”

 

Even though it was just crawling, it felt more exhausting and grueling than anything I had experienced so far.

 

‘No. I need to pick up speed. If the bandits notice me before I get there, it’s over.’

 

Thinking I had to camouflage myself, I stuffed a leaf I found behind my ear and crawled even more determinedly. 

 

That’s when the problem arose.

 

“Shh, ssshh!”

 

“…?”

 

Right in front of me, something started crawling quickly, making a strange noise.

 

‘What’s that…?’ 

 

A large, sleek body covered in dense scales.

 

It stopped for a moment, lifted its head, and stared at me intently.

 

Its thin, elongated black pupils glowed eerily, as if it were about to devour me at any moment.

 

Its thin tongue flicked constantly, hissing as it went.

 

‘A snake…?!?’

 

Snakes come out in the winter?

 

‘That’s strange.’ 

 

Logically, a snake that hibernates couldn’t possibly be roaming around right now.

 

Unless someone had forcibly awakened the snake and set it loose, that is.

 

“Shh, shh!” 

 

The snake slithered quickly toward me, closing the distance.

 

Startled, I quickly glanced around.

 

But the snake right in front of me opened its mouth wide, aiming to devour me…!

 

Smack—!

 

“Kkieeeek!”

 

At exactly that moment, a rock struck the snake’s head with a strong impact.

 

The snake, suddenly attacked, let out a hiss and coiled its body.

 

And I grinned wickedly, holding the stone in my hand.

 

‘Mhm. You picked the wrong person, you brat.’

 

I quickly raised another sharp stone in my other hand.

 

Thud! Thud!

 

Then I struck the snake’s head twice more, completely ending it.

 

‘I’m a 9th dan black belt with a combined rank.’

 

Phew. I clapped my tiny hands together to shake off the dust.

 

‘No matter that I’m a baby now, there’s no way I couldn’t handle just one snake.’

 

In my previous life, this was the same body that had caught every notorious criminal.

 

So, holding the stone again, I tried to crawl along the ground, squeaking as I moved, when…

 

Sshk—!

 

A massive shadow fell over my head.

 

I raised my head. 

 

And I came face to face with a man standing there.

 

‘This man…’

 

A slender man with a tall build.

 

A man with bright brown hair and eyes.

 

His crimson lips, like blood splashed on pale skin, were unrealistically beautiful—like a painting in ink on rice paper. 

 

Snowflakes clung to his long eyelashes, sparkling every time he blinked.

 

Along with his striking appearance, the small beauty mark under his eye made his fair complexion stand out even more.

 

In other words… a truly exotic and indescribably handsome man.

 

‘This person is Gaon.’

 

Although the last time I saw him, his face had been covered by a mask.

 

To anyone, it was clear that he was drawn in a completely different style from the ordinary bandits.

 

Judging by his unique eye and hair color, I could be certain.

 

‘The important thing is…’

 

The person who insisted that I should be returned to the place where I had been found.

 

“That doesn’t mean we have any reason to take care of the bloodline of our enemy!”

 

And after learning that I was of royal blood, he was the one who even raised his voice fiercely at the chief.

 

‘Wh, what should I do? Am I going to be dragged back into the barracks?’

 

I bit my lip in despair. Yet strangely, the man didn’t grab me; he just stared at me intently.

 

Sshk.

 

For a moment, feeling a sense of strangeness, I averted my gaze from his face.

 

‘A sword…?’

 

And he was clutching a sword in his right hand.

 

Swoosh—!

 

I noticed his hand tightening.

 

As if he was about to swing at me at any moment.

 

“!”

 

I was so shocked that I couldn’t do anything but tremble.

 

Slash—!

 

And the next moment, Gaon raised his sword with such speed that it was almost invisible.

 

* * *

 

Tightly.

 

I squeezed my eyes shut, expecting to die at Gaon’s hands.

 

“…What the heck?”

 

That is, until I heard his single whispered word.

 

I lifted my head and looked at him. Fortunately, he was staring intently at me, the blade of his sword pointed toward the ground.

 

His gaze seemed to drop, then landed on my hand.

 

Oh no, I was holding a rock in my hand. It was covered in snake blood.

 

“How…?”

 

Huh. He chuckled, his eyes shining with amusement.

 

“Waaaang!”

 

I didn’t miss that opportunity.

 

Before he could attack me again, I let out a loud, desperate cry.

 

‘This guy’s a psychopath!’

 

He was definitely going to toy with me and attack again!

 

‘Please, the chief has to hear this.’

 

Given the circumstances, the only person who could stop this man was the chief.

 

Of course, whether he would take my side was still uncertain.

 

In this situation, the method with the highest chance of survival was ultimately this: to scream with all my might.

 

“Waaah! Aaaah!”

 

As I screamed at the top of my lungs toward the chief’s barracks, Gaon’s face went pale, looking utterly startled.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

And at that very moment.

 

The voice I had been desperately hoping to hear reached my ears.

 

‘It’s the chief!’

 

The moment I confirmed that my plan hadn’t gone awry.

 

Desperately, I waved my hands toward the chief and began crying even more pitifully.

 

“Waaa!” 

 

Yeah! They say you give one more rice cake to a child who’s already crying!  

 

Anyone who likes children, whether friend or foe, will come and pick them up if they’re crying!

 

As if to prove that my prediction was correct, the chief began striding toward me.

 

He quickly reached out and lifted me into his arms.

 

Only then did I stop crying… and Gaon, still looking as if he found me strange, couldn’t take his eyes off me.

 

“Explain.”

 

When the chief asked with a sharp gaze, Gaon, who had been staring at me the whole time, lowered his head. 

 

“That… I had taken the child out for a bit of fresh air, but we ran into a snake… and it seems she got frightened.”

 

Sshk, the chief’s gaze finally shifted toward the snake I had killed.

 

“…A snake in this winter.”