Dad Came Back from a Deserted Island Chapter 9

If it had been left behind by a dragon, then surely it would be another dragon, or a unicorn, or perhaps even a rainbow pheasant…

There were so many sacred, majestic creatures that came to mind when one thought of a divine beast.

But the monkey had a confident answer to that question, too.

Icantaketheformofanyanimal.However,ofalltheanimalsIhaveseen,monkeysseemedthesmartest.SoIchosetotaketheformofamonkey!I can take the form of any animal. However, of all the animals I have seen, monkeys seemed the smartest. So I chose to take the form of a monkey!

“He says he chose a monkey because they’re the smartest.”

“Is that so…?”

And this form seems quite convenient for grabbing food, too.

“Ah!”

Before Jean could stop it, the monkey snatched a sausage from the table and popped it into its mouth.

Delicious!Delicious!

Eek-eek. Watching the baby monkey laugh while clutching its forehead, Jean felt deeply troubled.

So that thing is… a divine beast of our country. A monkey that’s stealing breakfast from someone else’s house…?

It was far too small, cute, and… frivolous to be considered a sacred animal. There wasn’t a trace of dignity to be found.

Still, it had emerged from an egg, so it was undoubtedly some kind of mysterious being. Jean swallowed nervously, his entire body tense.

The monkey conveyed its wishes through Vivian.

“Daddy. The monkey says you have to make some food for it, too!”

“……”

Jean returned to the kitchen, prepared a dish for the monkey using the ingredients that remained, and brought it back out. As he watched the monkey happily squeak and empty its plate, his expression grew more troubled by the second.

He wasn’t even sure whether it was truly a divine beast rather than a monster. But more than anything, he was worried about whether it was safe to keep it by Vivian’s side.

Every monkey Jean had encountered on the island had possessed a nasty disposition.

Even as he looked at the tiny fingers of the adorable baby monkey, Jean remained grim.

It would be a problem if those little hands scratched Vivian’s face.

Little human. Your father’s gaze toward me is terribly disrespectful!

“He says Daddy is looking at him pitifully!”

That’s not what I said! …Sigh. Whatever. Never mind.

After finishing its meal, the monkey carelessly wiped its hands on the tablecloth—Jean let out an alarmed, “Hey!”—then climbed onto Vivian’s shoulder.

“You’re heavy!”

Consider it an honor, short human. The privilege of bearing my weight is not granted to just anyone.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

What an insolent human… Anyway, when are you going to give me a name?

“A name? I have to name you?”

course! You were the one who awakened me, and you’ll be serving me from now on. If you don’t name me, who will?

“I have to serve you…?”

That sounds like a huge pain.

She had only known the monkey for a week, but it was incredibly talkative, looked down on humans, and yet constantly stuck its nose into everything.

“Isn’t waking you up enough?”

Insolent human! Shameless human! You agreed to receive my powers, and now you’re going to abandon me?!

The monkey cackled and wildly messed up Vivian’s hair. When Vivian shrieked, Jean hurried over and separated the two.

“You mustn’t do that! You can’t, Divine Beast! How could you try to hurt a child?!”

I wasn’t trying to hurt her… Eek!

Unable to contain its frustration, the monkey ran around the dining room once. Only then, apparently having calmed down, did it climb onto Jean’s shoulder.

Once there, it began picking through Jean’s brown hair, as though trying to demonstrate that it meant no harm.

How did I end up meeting humans like these?

After finishing Jean’s hair, the monkey began fixing Vivian’s, which it had messed up earlier. Her disheveled hair gradually became neat again.

Little human. Hurry up and tell your father that I’m a good divine beast. Tell him not to even think about kicking me out.

“He says he’s a good little guy, so you shouldn’t kick him out.”

“Sigh… All right. We can’t exactly abandon a divine beast… sir. But how is Vivian able to hear your voice?”

“I don’t know. He says I have some kind of power!”

Jean’s brows drew together.

Vivian was an ordinary child. There had been no auspicious signs when she was born, and neither of her parents possessed any special abilities.

If she had some hidden power, she wouldn’t have met such a miserable end.

Completely unaware of the complicated feelings in her father’s heart, Vivian hugged the monkey—which was surprisingly docile in her arms—and began thinking about a name.

“Hmm, a name. A name… I’ve never named anything before.”

Do not worry, human. It will be my first name, too.

“Usually, your first name is your last name, Monkey. Hmph. You don’t even call me by my name.”

That’s because you keep calling me things like ‘egg’ or ‘monkey’! Fine. If you give me a name, I’ll call you by yours, too!

“Hmph, you’re acting like you’re giving me some great gift. Hmm, then… Kkikki? How about Kkikki?”

Keek!Keek!

At the monkey’s unmistakably strong reaction, Vivian buried her face in her hands again.

“What about Kiki?”

What’s the difference?

“Kiki is cuter than Kkikki. And Daddy calls me Vivi. Kiki sounds similar, so you’d be just like my little brother.”

Keek! Why would I be your little brother?!

“Because you were born today. You’re younger than me, aren’t you?”

Kyaaaak!Kyaaaak!

Although the monkey kept cackling in protest, its expression wasn’t displeased at all.

That is, assuming the expressions a monkey made meant the same thing as those of a human.

Very well. From now on, you may call me Kiki!

“Okay! Um, I hope we get along?”

Indeed. Make sure you serve me well from now on, Vivian!

 

***

 

Jean, dressed in his going-out clothes, appeared in the hallway where Vivian and Kiki were running around and playing.

At the sight of her father, who was ready to leave, Vivian abruptly stopped running. She stared at him with trembling eyes.

“D-Daddy! Are you going out? Where are you going? I want to come, too!”

The fact that he was dressed so formally meant he was going outside the village. Vivian’s voice trembled.

Jean smiled reassuringly and picked her up.

“Of course, my Vivi can come, too. I was planning to take you with me from the beginning! There’s no one else in this house. Do you think Daddy would leave his princess all alone?”

Vivian gave him a deeply reproachful look, and Jean hurriedly averted his eyes.

I did leave her alone. Well, not exactly alone. But what I did was even worse than leaving her alone.

After a brief bout of self-reproach, Jean forced himself to speak in a cheerful voice.

“We’re going to the neighboring village to buy our princess some new clothes. Daddy also has a few things to look into, and we need to hire some new servants. We’ll have to hurry if we want to get back before sunset. Let’s get you changed first!”

At those words, Vivian’s eyes lit up.

“The neighboring village? Wow, I’ve never been there before! Kiki, we’re going to the neighboring village!”

What’s so special about that?! As someone who serves me, you must maintain your dignity, Vivian. You mustn’t make such a fuss over something so trivial!

“The neighboring village has a really big shopping district, too! I don’t even know what a shopping district is yet. I’ve never seen one! It’s your first time, too, right, Kiki?”

Of course, Vivian couldn’t hear him over her own excitement.

And no wonder. She had spent her entire life in this tiny village. How could she not be excited about her very first outing?

“Let’s see… What clothes does our Vivi have…?”

Fortunately, when Jean searched through the storage room, he found clothes she had worn when she was five. The sleeves were a little short, but they weren’t so ill-fitting that she looked strange.

She probably hasn’t grown much because she hasn’t been eating properly.

Swallowing his bitterness, Jean straightened Vivian’s clothes, then left the house with her and Kiki.

House Lambert had two carriages. One was the one they had always used, and the other was the one Jean had driven home when he returned.

He had driven the latter so recklessly along the road that it was now in a condition that called for scrapping it. Even the original carriage looked far from satisfactory to Jean. Before his regression, he had helped a merchant and ridden in several fine carriages, so his standards had changed.

Jean mentally calculated the value of the jewels he had brought along to trade.

“That should be enough. We’ll buy a new carriage in the village, too. Vivi, the ride there might be a little uncomfortable, but can you bear with it?”

“A carriage? We have lots of money now… right! I’m fine with it, Daddy!”

Clatter, clatter.

As expected, the carriage—which they had bought at a considerable discount—offered a rather uncomfortable ride.

But for Vivian, who was leaving the village for the first time, even the jolting felt exciting.