His Breeding Obsession Chapter 147 - Without Anyone Knowing

💫

 

At the closed doors of the Imperial Palace. Cautious steps approached.

Tap!

 

“High Lord, this is Hakan. I’m coming in.”

 

The door to the chamber opened. Shrouded in darkness without a single light, the chamber was empty, and only a chill drifted out of the open door.

 

With a click, Hakan closed the door and turned his head.

 

The waiting servant flinched at the irritated look in his eyes.

 

“Where is the High Lord?”

 

“Isn’t he inside?”

 

The question came back.

 

“Has anyone been in or out of here?”

 

“I’ve been keeping watch, but no one has come or gone.”

 

Hakan narrowed his eyes at the servant’s polite response.

 

“That’s enough. Leave.”

 

Hakan reopened the door to the chamber and lit the lantern, only to be greeted by the same empty space.

 

Hakan was frustrated.

 

“Where the hell are you?”

 

💫

 

By the time anyone thought it was strange, it was too late.

 

“…You’re pretty fast, for someone so old and frail.”

 

Mirania stopped talking.

 

Donnie, who had been listening to the story in a daze, felt her gaze on him and flinched.

 

A wistful stare. Donnie swallowed hard.

 

“I don’t know what’s on your mind.”

 

“That, uh… witch.”

 

Mirania, who had initially assumed he was distracted, raised an eyebrow as he continued to swallow and ponder.

 

“Tell me.”

 

Donnie hesitated for a long moment, then finally spoke.

 

“Do you believe in ghosts?”

 

“What, ghosts?”

 

Donnie realized he’d said something out of the blue. He scrambled to his feet, red-faced.

 

“I’m just going to go outside for a minute. Do you want to take a walk, witch?”

 

Mirania clicked her tongue, but she didn’t refuse the offer and slowly rose from her chair.

 

She’d been sitting for quite a while, and her body was stiff and sore from all the time she’d spent trailing a mouse.

 

“You’ve bloomed quite a bit.”

 

“Miss Wigenia takes care of them. She can’t grow anything tall because she doesn’t want to be seen, but she has lots of small flowers.”

 

As the largest mansion in the neighborhood, the garden inside the wall was quite large, with low plants blooming modestly beneath the wall.

 

The only problem was that the high fence shaded it.

 

Donnie chuckled a little, then fell silent again.

 

Another blank face. There was a gleam under his eye.

 

Mirania clicked her tongue.

 

‘Where the hell are you off to?’

 

Donnie was often sleep-deprived, with more than two bodies to keep up with in a day, whether he was studying at school or fishing outside.

 

‘We’ll have to give him more breaks.’

 

After a long walk around the garden, Mirania noticed a group of plants that looked particularly lifeless.

 

Their shriveled purple petals were wilted. She recognized the flower because it was frequently used for medicinal purposes.

 

Mirania reached down and swept her hand across the flowers and leaves.

 

‘Not enough water.’ 

 

Mirania fetched a bucket of water from the well behind the mansion and sprinkled it around the flower.

 

As she flicked the dampness away with her pale white hands, the petals of the marigolds came to life.

 

{Warm… delicious water. My roots are finally wet!}

 

Mirania smiled at the sound of the dazed marigold’s voice.

 

Donnie, who had approached, crouched down beside her. An exclamation escaped his slightly gaping mouth.

 

“Wow, beautiful.”

 

“…”

 

“Oh, by the way, I grilled this grass and fish together, and Master Donaty liked it. Now that I see it, the flowers are pretty, too.”

 

Mirania, who had gotten a little carried away, touched the flower next to her, and the slightly curled petals opened up like they were waking up from their slumber.

 

Donnie’s eyes widened at the mysterious transformation.

 

“Is this magic, too?”

 

“No.”

 

Donnie looked at the flower again, and the corners of his mouth turned up.

 

His cheeks, still puffy from not eating enough, twitched.

 

“It’s pretty…”

 

Mirania nodded, enjoying the peaceful moment she’d had in a long time.

 

“Yeah, she’s pretty.”

 

Donnie mumbled idly, “You’re pretty, too, Witch.”

 

“What?”

 

The blushing boy jumped to his feet in awe, as if surprised even more by his words than her.

 

“Oh, I, um, I, I’m going to go inside first!”

 

Mirania bursts out laughing, and her pace quickens. Tearing her gaze away from the disappearing figure, Mirania shook her head.

 

Even now, she couldn’t guess. Why Donnie had been so disorganized all day?

 

💫

 

Later that night, Professor Horus was giving the children a swordsmanship demonstration inside the mansion.

 

Donnie, who wasn’t particularly interested in swordsmanship, swooped in next to Mirania.

 

Suddenly, he chuckled and squinted at Mirania.

 

“You should have told me if you liked the flowers.”

 

“What flowers?”

 

Mirania’s languid gaze followed Donnie’s to the window.

 

“These. Didn’t the witch pick them?” 

 

Donnie pointed. A pile of flowers lay on the window sill, the moonlight blocked by a heavy black cloth.

 

The marigolds and yellow allamanda she’d recognized from her morning stroll through the garden.

 

Mirania raised an eyebrow. The abundance of flowers was not exactly a welcome sight.

 

“Tsk, tsk, I barely kept them alive. Someone’s been cutting down something so pretty to look at.”

 

Donnie swallowed hard, about to say pretty.

 

“It wasn’t me.”

 

💫

 

The following day came.

 

As people wandered in and out of the dining room, they looked at the window and said something.

 

“Oh, flowers. Who put them there?”

 

Looking back around at the others, they all shook their heads. The kids shook their heads, as well.

 

Truke shrugged in bewilderment, then frowned at Mirania as she slowly walked over.

 

“Why are you looking at me like a puppy that needs to poop in the morning?”

 

Mirania frowned at him, her pale face changing color.

 

“No.”

 

Truke muttered as they passed.

 

“The flowers are pretty.”

 

“Huh?”

 

What flowers?

 

Mirania felt strange eyes on her. The people who had been awkward with her coughed in surprise.

 

Mirania turned her gaze to the center of attention.

 

The window sill, where yesterday’s bunch of flowers had been placed, is now arranged in a clear glass vase.

 

Flowers in a desolate school. Everyone smiled, even if it was just a small smile.

 

Only Mirania shook her head.

 

“…I didn’t do that.”

 

💫

 

My stomach rumbled.

 

“You’re hungry.”

 

Wigenia made an apologetic expression.

 

“We’re out of food, so you’ll have to wait a while. Minella and Truke are out hunting, but they’ll be back soon.”

 

Mirania shrugged and clamped her mouth shut.

 

The Resistance was always short on funds.

 

It needed money to feed its members, to provide food for its schools and shelters, and to rescue the occasional half-breed or human held in slavery.

 

Most of their food came from hunting and fishing, which was rarely plentiful.

 

Unable to help herself, Mirania sipped from the teacup Wigenia had brought her.

 

‘At the palace, we used to drink chocolate like water.’

 

The golden eyes grew wistful.

 

‘Of course, I can drink as much as you want. They’ll give me a cup when I enter the palace.’

 

But she didn’t feel like it, so Mirania filled her belly with the fragrant but flavorless tea and rose to her feet.

 

“Wigenia, do you have a fishing rod at home?”

 

“A fishing rod? I’m sure it’s in the shed, why?”

 

“I’ll make us full.”

 

Just as Wigenia was about to make her way confidently to the shed, footsteps thudded closer.

 

“It must be Truke.”

 

Wigenia, worried that the floor of the old mansion was going to give out at this rate, turned to see Donnie.

 

“Donnie, what’s wrong? I thought you said you had to work and wouldn’t be back for a while?”

 

Donnie, looking a little out of breath, nodded.

 

“Well, that’s right, I came to return the book I borrowed, and you know what I found on the way?”

 

Donnie held up a convex sack big enough for a small child. He doesn’t hold it for long, as if he’s struggling, and then sets it down on the floor, where it makes a heavy thud.

 

“What is that?”

 

Wigenia approached, curious, and opened the lid of the package and stood still.

 

A group of people slowly gathered around, sensing something was wrong.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

“I smell food.”

 

Donnie grinned and flung the door wide open.

 

“Look!”

 

Inside the seemingly insignificant sack was an assortment of food.

 

“Wow!”

 

Those who were hungry anyway let out a cheer.

 

“It’s time to eat, isn’t it? Come on, people!”

 

Amidst everyone’s rejoicing, Mirania was cautious as she peered inside the package.

 

One by one, she inspected the roast turkey, which was somewhat mashed and muddled but still intact, the layers of meat pie, and the crusty white bread smeared with pie sauce.

 

“Huh?”

 

Her outward doubt was drowned out by the squeals of delight from the children who had belatedly descended to the first floor.

 

Just as she was setting the table, Truke and Minella returned with two pheasants.

 

“What? What is this?”

 

After hearing the story, they were dismayed at the lack of interest in their hard-earned kill, but it didn’t take long for them to join the group, scooping up the food.

 

Minella picked at the meat on the ribs and raised a belated suspicion.

 

“I wonder if someone poisoned it for us, and it’s times like this that a professor would be a good judge of character.”

 

“Nothing’s wrong, it’s delicious.”