My Daddy Hides His Power Chapter 281 - Side story Part 1 Chapter 21
* * *
The class system must be abolished.
“Honey, I learned a lot from this time travel.”
On a night when everyone was asleep, in the greenhouse garden.
While I was out with Cheshire to see the tomatoes, I spoke.
“Master is truly an amazing person, with the Dos and Lord of the Wizard Tower, but… I’ve never seen him wield his rank, so I never even dreamed of it.”
The class system really must disappear.
Otherwise, a seven-year-old kid would end up rewriting the academic regulations of an institution with a history of several hundred years to suit his own tastes—a complete disaster.
“He just stayed quiet because it was a hassle, but Master already knew very well how to abuse power since he was a kid!”
“Haa!”
Cheshire sighed as he watched me, completely drained of all my fighting spirit after failing to persuade the headstrong Oscar.
“The situation got complicated, but we can’t just sit back and do nothing. We need to come up with a new plan based on the changes.”
“Yeah… I’m glad at least you still have fighting power left in you…”
I mechanically took the note out of my pocket and handed it to Cheshire.
“Here, take it.”
“What is this?”
We were running out of time, and when a good opportunity arose, we had to pass on the magic formula without hesitation.
“These are the rules of conduct for when we hand over the magic formula to Oscar, so keep them in mind.”
- Do not show it to anyone, and if possible, do not open it yourself. Ask him to keep it safe for about 20 years.
- Tell him to open it only in a truly desperate situation—at a critical moment when no solution comes to mind, no matter how hard he thinks.
- While conveying the above message, even if you can’t reveal our true identities, give Oscar a hint that would make him suspect, ‘Those kids were special in some way.
“You should only say things at the level of points 1 and 2—no more than that. If you say anything more detailed, who knows what might happen.”
“…Okay.”
Cheshire’s expression looked blank.
Today is exactly the 5th day since we met Oscar.
He’s still 7 years old.
We, with a bond lighter than dust, tell a little child who doesn’t even know what a useless spell is, “You don’t need to understand what this is, just keep it safe”?
…This mission seems utterly hopeless.
“Lilith, what if we fail? What if Oscar throws away the magic formula or forgets about it…?”
“We’ll know right away whether we failed or succeeded the moment we return to the present. If, when we go back, Oscar’s restriction is still there…”
…I don’t even want to think about it. I shook my head, shaking off the negative thoughts.
“No. That’s exactly why I came up with number 3. We can’t reveal our identities and disrupt the past, but we can drop some hints within reasonable limits.”
I got up.
“Now, let’s get some sleep for tomorrow—Ack! Honey!”
What is this! My heart sank in surprise.
“Why?”
I grabbed Cheshire’s cheek and he blinked.
“What’s wrong?”
“Blood! A nosebleed! You’re having a nosebleed!”
“…Ah.”
“What’s going on? Why is this happening? Why….”
Cheshire averted his eyes slightly, wiping his nosebleed with his sleeve as if it was nothing.
“You…”
Why would he suddenly get a nosebleed?
There’s only one answer.
Cheshire was currently using his brain 24 hours a day to maintain the appearance of the two of us as children.
“I can’t believe this. I’m so sorry. Really, I’m sorry, honey.”
I’m an idiot!
“I was too careless. I knew it was a magic that put a strain on the brain, but…”
I don’t know the feeling of manifesting a magic formula in my mind or the sensation of consuming mana.
I’ve only ever heard about how magic strains the body and how burdensome it can be… but I’ll never truly experience it myself.
‘Hicc… I should’ve at least checked my boyfriend’s condition! You idiot!’
The guilt was indescribable.
“I’m fine.”
“What do you mean you’re fine?! We can’t just stay like this—let’s go to the capital and spend the night there. Undo the magic and get some proper rest.”
“Lilith.”
“You remember the coordinates of the inn where we left our luggage, right? Let’s use teleportation magic…”
Teleportation magic? What else are you going to ask someone who’s already bleeding from the nose?
“No. I’ll just go there…”
I was trying to look at the bracelet, but Cheshire raised his hand to block it.
“Lilith.”
“Mhm?”
“I can’t go to the Capital.”
“Why?”
“That… there’s a problem.”
“Problem? What problem?”
Cheshire hesitated for a moment, then let out a sigh and finally spoke.
* * *
The Capital, Seraph Street.
Enoch Rubinstein and Axion Schneider, who are investigating the “Dos impostor.”
The two secretly met with a witness of the impostor in the basement of a certain inn.
“It seemed like a man and a woman were traveling together. They looked like a couple…”
This was the fourth witness.
Nobleman, Baron.
His rank was Octava.
He looked like a greedy man with rings hanging from his fingers.
‘The witnesses all sound oddly similar. A man, Octava, a noble…’
Enoch roughly guessed the intention of the impostor after meeting several witnesses who said they saw the red cloak.
At least… he didn’t show off his military uniform to abuse innocent people.
“I only caught a glimpse of the woman’s face, but for the man, I only saw his eyes. They were red.”
“Ha, everyone’s eyewitness accounts are the same.”
Axion, with his arms crossed, looked at the nobleman displeased and clicked his tongue.
“The woman had silver hair, right? I saw her face a little. But the man, I don’t know much about him.”
“Ah, that’s right!”
“I looked into it, and it seems like both of them are deliberately hiding their faces. But every single witness says they managed to catch a glimpse of the woman’s face.”
“….”
“You like women that much? Why were you trying to peek under a random woman’s robe on the street?”
The noble, who had been hit with a direct blow, shut his mouth tightly.
“Let’s go now.”
Enoch waved his hand dismissively, having no more questions to ask. The noble hesitated for a moment before standing up and leaving.
“It probably wasn’t meant to be misused.”
Judging from the situation, the impersonator was the one who was being tyrannized by the nobles.
Impersonating Dos to get away from the nobles who were picking a fight.
“I can guess their circumstances, but we can’t just let it slide. If they keep impersonating Dos like this, it’ll only cause bigger problems.”
“I’m most curious about how he stole the military uniform.”
Axion spoke as if he found it absurd.
The rank embroidered on the cloak was gold, a mark that could only be stamped by the imperial family.
So, not only can’t they make a fake, but when we investigated the Dos who returned to the capital the day before yesterday, they didn’t leak it either.
“We should catch them and ask them.”
Enoch got up.
“It doesn’t seem like there was any ill intent, so I don’t plan on making a big deal out of it, but… just the two of us might not be enough….”
“What, should we gather the kids?”
Enoch nodded his head as he pondered when Axion asked.
“Yeah. Let’s try to resolve this quietly.”
* * *
The sky was getting brighter in the morning.
Oscar opened his eyes a little early.
‘What’s going on? Has the little guy not arrived yet?’
James, who hadn’t been seen since last night.
When he woke up, his bed was still empty.
‘What is he doing and where is he?’
At that moment.
The door opened carefully and James came in quietly.
Oscar lay on the bed and watched him quietly.
‘What the heck, that kid?’
Red cheeks and ears, as if embarrassed.
His lips twitched as if he was laughing.
His expressionless face that was so boring somehow looked cheerful.
Moreover, his complexion, which was always dull and tired, now looked full of life…
“Where have you been?”
“…!”
James turned around with a start at Oscar’s soft voice.
“…Oscar. Didn’t you sleep?”
“Wouldn’t I have? I just woke up.”
“Did I wake you up? Sorry.”
“No, I was awake. Where have you been?”
“….”
“Hmm, what is it?”
Oscar got up and approached James. He rubbed his chin like a detective and examined his face.
“Why is your face like this… What is it…? Does it look sinister?”
“What, what?”
“Why are you stuttering?”
“….”
“What did you do?”
James… no, Cheshire tensed at Oscar’s sharp gaze.
Of course, he couldn’t tell the truth.
Instead of going to the Capital, he warped to a secluded southern territory, released the transformation magic, and recovered his body…
And, with Lilith, who went with him…
Uh, so Lilith and…
No.
Anyway, he couldn’t say it.
Moreover, Oscar Manuel is the great founder of the ‘Teleportation Magic’!
If he found out that his daughter, Lilith, and he had done something so outrageous with the magic he had created…!
“There was no such thing.”
As if it was his survival instinct, he immediately spoke politely.
“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”
Oscar frowned.
“It’s so suspicious? Just like that…”
“Ugh, heuk…”
At that moment.
A groan came from Oscar’s upper bunk.
“Erich!”
Startled, Oscar immediately climbed the ladder. Erich was tossing and turning in a cold sweat.
“Hey, are you okay? Huh?”
“M, mhm. I… am okay, cough!”
Blood poured out of Erich’s mouth as he grabbed his chest and got up. His white clothes and blanket quickly turned red.
“Get out of the way!”
Pushing away Oscar, who was dazed, Cheshire supported Erich and lowered him down. He carried his skinny body on his back.
“Infirmary! Where is the infirmary?”
“….”
As he rushed out of the room, he noticed that there was no sign of Oscar following him.
When he turned around, he was just standing there with his eyes downcast.
“What are you doing… ah.”
Cheshire, who had been puzzled, realized.
No medicine or magic meant anything to Erich anyway. No matter where he went, there was no cure for his incurable condition.
* * *
Erich was moved to the infirmary, but that was all.
As always, he barely made it through the crisis.
“Oscar… go back to sleep…”
“Forget it. I can’t sleep.”
With his arms crossed in front of his chest and his short legs crossed, Oscar continued to stay by his side.
“You’re always out there for so long just staring at those damn tomatoes! You fool!”
“No… I only looked at the tomatoes for a bit after dinner, and… it didn’t really hurt much until just before bed…”
“Shut up!”
Erich smiled as if he was used to it, even though Oscar was yelling at him irritably.
“That’s right, Oscar. Speaking of tomatoes, it just reminded me. The other day, I was looking at tomatoes with Anna… and I asked her about something back then…”
“What.”
Erich was still panting, as if he was still in a lingering pain.
“She’s the first person you said was smart… so she can enter the Wizard Tower, right?”
“Why are you talking about that all of a sudden? Hey, and when did I ever say she was smart? I just said, well, she wasn’t bad…”
“That’s what I meant. You’ve never said that to anyone.”
“….”
“You know… Anna wants to go to the Wizard Tower too. After she graduates, please accept her into the Wizard Tower as well…”
Erich weakly smiled at Oscar, his eyes welling up with tears as he looked at him.
“Oscar, I…”
Both Erich and Oscar knew that time was running out, but neither of them had ever said it out loud.
“I wish you had a friend besides me….”
But Erich spoke for the first time.
“Even without me… I wish you wouldn’t be lonely…”
His own death.
And Oscar after he died.
“Oscar, let’s write about what we want to do before spring ends.”
Even though Oscar was young, he knew why Erich wanted to do those things together.
Building a rabbit house, looking at the ocean, growing plants…
All of that was probably for the sake of writing his last wish.
“Make at least two new friends!”
A kind child who could feel sympathy for small animals.
A good child who smiles without getting angry at harsh words.
A foolish child who thinks of others more than himself.
Everyone must like you for who you are, so why would it be difficult for someone like you to make friends?
So that wish was only a request for me, who would be left alone.
“….”
Oscar bit his lips tightly.
He didn’t want to cry like an idiot.
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