The Tyrant Won’t Let Me Go Chapter 133 - Side Story 17

 

Wait a second. When you think about it, this is Cedric at twelve, with no memories of being with me.  

 

‘Hmm, he is my husband, but…’  

 

Still, it’s hard to consider him the same person as the Cedric I’m married to now.  

 

‘A twelve-year-old calling me big sis with such a big age gap… Isn’t that a bit shameless?’  

 

While I was lost in thought, Cedric gently tugged at my sleeve again.  

 

“Big sis, by any chance—”  

 

“Hmm?”  

 

“My, my legs hurt really bad…”  

 

Frowning slightly, Cedric carefully cradled his knee, visible beneath his shorts, as if in pain, and hesitantly spoke.  

 

“Is… is it okay if you hug me for just a little bit…? Just a tiny bit…”  

 

He looked genuinely in pain, his expression strained. Seeing tears slowly welling up in those big red eyes, I quickly answered.  

 

“Of course. You can stay in my arms as long as you want.”  

 

“Really? Wow…!”  

 

His red eyes sparkling with joy, Cedric happily spread his arms toward me.  

 

‘Ah, he’s just too adorable…’  

 

Is this what they call a heart attack?

 

Just as I was thinking that and reaching my arms out toward Cedric—  

 

“Stop!!”  

 

At Paul’s shout echoing through the room, I flinched in surprise and turned around.  

 

“I can’t just stand by and watch any longer.”  

 

“Huh?”  

 

“Your Majesty the Empress, His Majesty the Emperor is merely acting right now.”  

 

Paul, who rarely ever got worked up, raised his voice in agitation.  

 

“Only his appearance has reverted to a younger state—his mind is still the same as before!”  

 

Right then, Cedric’s face—which had been nothing but sweet and angelic—twisted into something sinister.  

 

“What?”  

 

I immediately turned back to Cedric, only to see him glaring at Paul with murderous intent.  

 

Noticing my gaze, he swiftly reverted to the innocent, angelic expression he’d worn just three seconds ago.  

 

But it was too late—I had already seen his true face.  

 

In the end, I lowered my arms, which I had been about to happily wrap around him, and said,  

 

“…Paul is right. Only your appearance has changed—you’re still the same inside, aren’t you?”  

 

“Wh-what are you talking about, big sis?”  

 

“Stop pretending and confess the truth.”  

 

Only then did the twelve-year-old Cedric flash a sly grin.  

 

“Caught me already?”  

 

“Definitely. The twelve-year-old version of you would never have made such a crafty, smug face.”  

 

“Wait, ‘crafty’? That’s harsh.”  

 

“Look in a mirror, and you’ll agree.”  

 

At my words, not only Paul but even Rukia nodded in agreement.  

 

‘Even though his face reverted to when he was twelve, his expressions are exactly the same as now.’

  

Thinking that, I poked Cedric’s cheek—he still looked disappointed at failing to deceive me till the end.  

 

“You wouldn’t have been able to keep it up for long anyway. Honestly, I found it strange from the moment you called me big sis.”  

 

The twelve-year-old Cedric I knew wasn’t the type to casually call someone he’d just met, sister. He was far more likely to address them formally or by their last name.  

 

“Yeah, I knew you’d suspect me. But I still wanted to try calling you that at least once.”  

 

Cedric smiled meaningfully, covering his mouth with both hands before whispering in my ear,  

 

“Admit it, Ciel—you liked it too, didn’t you?”

 

When no answer came to the question, Cedric stepped back and began to chuckle mischievously.  

 

Though his face was the same, if he had once looked like an untainted angel in his youth, now he seemed closer to a little devil who wouldn’t hesitate to play mean tricks.  

 

Seeing the smug curl of his lips, as if satisfied with teasing me, made my blood boil.  

 

So, without thinking, I pressed my index finger firmly right in the middle of his beaming face—specifically, between his eyebrows.  

 

“Ow, wait, Ciel—”  

 

Cedric tried to turn his head, likely because it stung a little, but it was no use.  

 

“This is your punishment for teasing an adult.”  

 

“H-Hold on, alright, I’m sorry!”  

 

Only after Cedric apologized did I lift my finger from between his brows.  

 

A faint red mark remained on his otherwise pale forehead. Watching him rub the spot and complain about the pain, I sighed and turned my gaze toward Rukia, Professor Dalton, and Paul.  

 

“So, how did His Majesty end up cursed with this kind of magic?”  

 

Finally, Rukia resumed the explanation—interrupted earlier by Cedric’s ‘big sister’ remark—about why the Emperor had suddenly transformed into a child.  

 

“Ah, so this is the legendary camouflage magic I’ve only heard about.”  

 

I glanced at Cedric, who was now sitting quietly beside me, and spoke.  

 

The moment our eyes met, he grinned again.  

 

Almost as if he was trying to appeal to me with his cuteness. To avoid that intense gaze, I forced myself to look back at Rukia.  

 

“Whoever made that stone is quite skilled. To change one’s appearance so perfectly—I can’t spot any awkwardness at all.”  

 

Camouflage magic was not only complex to prepare but also difficult to execute flawlessly.  

 

Even if the foundational potion was perfect, errors often occurred—like only parts of the body changing into the desired form or transforming into something entirely unintended.  

 

“Honestly, just looking at the appearance, anyone would believe he’s really grown younger.”  

 

“Right.”  

 

Cedric nodded in agreement.  

 

“I was shocked too when I first got hit by the magic. My whole body turned perfectly into that of a child—no sense of incongruity at all.”

 

Cedric stretched both hands out, staring at his now-tiny palms in fascination before suddenly narrowing his eyes and glaring at Paul.  

 

“So you thought even Ciel would be completely fooled, huh?”  

 

His tone suggested that if Paul hadn’t spoken up, he would have succeeded in getting Ciel to embrace him.  

 

Not one to back down, Paul retorted, “How could I stay silent? When you think about it, this behavior is still deceiving Her Majesty the Empress, isn’t it?”  

 

“Paul, don’t you think you’re being too harsh?”  

 

Cedric crossed his arms, wearing an expression of displeasure.  

 

“I just wanted to take advantage of my younger appearance to receive a little more love and attention from my Empress, that’s all.”  

 

“No matter your intentions, you still lied,” Paul countered calmly, smiling.  

 

“As a member of the imperial household, how could I stand by and watch my liege deceive his own wife for personal gain?”  

 

Every word Paul said was undeniably true.  

 

Without thinking, I nodded in agreement. Cedric, who had been listening to Paul with his chin propped up in a tilted posture, looked at me in shock.  

 

“Ciel? Are you agreeing with Paul right now?”  

 

“Yes, because everything he said is correct.”  

 

“So there’s not a single person on my side here? Ah— Ciel, that hurts!”  

 

When I flicked his small forehead lightly, Cedric yelped and covered his head with both hands.  

 

“I did that because you were being shameless. Do you have any idea how scared I was when I heard something had happened to you? And yet, all you were thinking about was tricking me like this?”  

 

Finally, Cedric wore a guilty expression and spoke up.  

 

“I’m sorry… Wait, Ciel!”  

 

“Reflect on what you did.”  

 

I pinched his soft cheek and stretched it out before letting go, satisfied after a good, long pull. 

 

Then I asked, “By the way, in this state, it must be difficult to handle official duties, right? You’ve canceled all your schedules, haven’t you?”  

 

“I already did. I’ll just handle paperwork where no one can see me.”  

 

Cedric rubbed his pinched cheek as he spoke.  

 

“At most, it’ll take two days for you to return to normal, so there’s no need to stay away for too long. You’ll just have to endure a little discomfort for now.”  

 

Rukia observed the shrunken Cedric as she spoke.  

 

“At most, two days.”  

 

Cedric’s eyes sparkled upon hearing those words.

 

💫

 

Sunlight streamed through the window, broken by the panes, and stacks of documents towered high.  

 

It was a scene no different from any other day—  Except for the fact that the person smoothly writing with an elegant pen was not a sturdy man in his twenties, but a small, twelve-year-old boy.  

 

“…Would you like some cookies?”  

 

I asked from beside him as I organized the knights’ training logs.