Safety is the top priority, so I should keep an eye on these seemingly innocent uncles without letting go of my suspicions—. Perhaps I might even have to protect these rough-looking uncles. It was a matter that even the heavens would lament.

“Well… They all like cute things…”

And so, I ended up becoming a little head of the household, taking care of not only our Mirmod family but also my father’s friends who had become the Count of Rochern…

But it’s okay.

‘I proved that I’m very powerful through today’s hunt.’

With a long sigh, I opened my mouth.

“Good. I’ll bring something even more impressive for the next hunting competition.”

“Would something like a chickadee do, Sien?”

“No. A lion or a dragon! Try harder to catch them.”

It was nonsense.

There was no way these pure-hearted uncles, who were only tall like beanpoles and would run away at the sight of magical beasts after barely catching rabbits, could bring lions or dragons.

‘But if I say this, they might at least be on their guard.’

The uncle with a rough appearance but a tender heart, who had been sniffling while looking at me earlier, said in a loud voice.

“Lions or dragons? Oh, that’s my specialty—”

“Ah, it’s noisy.”

Father, who cut off what the uncle was trying to say, pressed my steamed bun-like cheek.

And while bringing meat to the plate in front of me, he said,

“Sien, eat a lot. That’s how you’ll grow tall. You shouldn’t even think about scary things like lions or dragons, okay?”

‘I think Father is underestimating me too much.’

A small stature compared to peers and a mumbling speech. An impression that looks even smaller than a five-year-old.

In fact, it’s an external aspect that’s quite lacking to become a villain.

I objectively acknowledged my capabilities.

And holding a fork in my left hand and a knife in my right hand in a combative manner, I said,

“Ung! I’ll eat a lot first!”

As Father said, I eagerly tore into the roasted rabbit leg.

I could hear the uncles letting out exclamations of admiration as they watched me eat enthusiastically.

I tore into the meat savagely, bones and all. Chomping and gnashing, baring my front teeth and imitating the uncle’s fierce expression from earlier!

Of course, only to the extent that my baby teeth, just the size of corn kernels, wouldn’t shake.

And as I put the bones down on the plate, I thought.

By now, the atmosphere at the table was cheerful.

As if no one knew about the spy’s intrusion earlier.

‘Come to think of it, I should tell them about what happened earlier. Father seems to trust everyone too easily.’

“Oh, right. Earlier, when Father wasn’t here, a spy came?”

The atmosphere that was just about to heat up and seemed to be loudly chattering suddenly subsided.

“…Is that so? I thought I heard something.”

“Ung, don’t be scared. I chased them away.”

I was about to mention the artifact but bit my lip. Father didn’t know that I had received a magic tool from Grandmother, and I was planning to keep it a secret for now. I smiled brightly and grabbed the maid sister’s collar behind me.

“Ung, no. It wasn’t Sien, but the maid sisters who chased them away.”

Hearing my words, Father remained expressionless and silent.

I patted Father with my tiny hands, as white as a cat’s front paws. Because from the moment he heard the word ‘spy’, Father’s face had somehow turned pale. He must have been scared.

Well, for a fragile father who had just become a count, a spy’s attack would be a terrifying thing.

I spoke solemnly.

“There are many bad people in the world. So don’t trust people too much.”

Still, the frozen atmosphere didn’t improve.

Instead, Father spoke in a warm voice.

“From now on, such things won’t happen, Sien.”

Stopping mid-meal and standing up abruptly, Father came to my side, hugged my shoulders tightly, and patted me just as I had done earlier.

“Were you very scared?”

I remembered the spies’ eyes, looking at me resentfully as they left, bleeding profusely.

I shouted with a smug face.

“No, not at all. Father, listen carefully.”

“Huh?”

“We’re in a state of emergency now. This is a very terrifying family, you know.”

“Haha… How did you know, our daughter…”

Seeing Father’s brow furrow, I spoke solemnly.

“So instead of spending time catching rabbits, we should train more and do more bad things.”

I pressed the wrinkles on Father’s forehead that had formed as he contorted his expression, and said loudly.

“Sien, baby. Our baby only needs to think happy thoughts.”

“…”

“Father will make all the people of the Mirmod family good, so don’t worry.”

Unfortunately, Father’s head was still a flower garden.

I sighed deeply and thought.

‘Let’s focus on becoming more wickedly strong for now. Reforming Father… I’ll have to give up on that for the time being.’

I thought with blazing eyes.

First, I need to investigate who sent the spy.

It was time to find out who this ‘beautiful person’ was who sent the spy.

***

Meanwhile, Delphia was sitting idly in the tent.

The hunting competition was about to end, but the spy she had sent to the forest hadn’t arrived. Neither had Sien, Matthias’s daughter.

She yawned while checking the documents sent by her vassals.

Everything was essentially boring beyond compare.

‘I don’t know Matthias well, but he was quite unique.’

Now in her mid-twenties, she had only seen a few of the evil deeds Matthias had committed.

Since the children of the family never became close anyway, she and he weren’t well acquainted.

‘Still, in my hazy memories, Matthias was quite an interesting character…’

Since she hadn’t received any news from the spy yet, she thought calmly.

“Ah, no news at all. I guess they all died.”

She rolled her glass-like blue eyes here and there.

It seemed that quite interesting things would happen in her ordinary life when Matthias returned. Of course, for now, it was just her speculation.

“If it keeps going like this, I want to go myself.”

The documents also contained information that the war-maniac Axel was quickly wrapping up the war.

And that he was expected to return to the family within a month at the latest.

“I should arrive faster than Axel.”

Delphia closed the documents and tied the shawl around her neck as if strangling herself.

“It seems like it will be fun.”

‘I wonder what the child looks like? Maybe half my size.’

Delphia had never experienced a ‘real’ childhood. One day she suddenly opened her eyes in the endless hell and found herself going through the coming-of-age ceremony.

“Ah, should I go tomorrow or next week?”

Delphia flipped her snow-white hair and grinned.

The day when the ‘saint’ would descend to earth was not far off.

Of course, she had all the information. This generation’s saint, Melodia, was predominantly evaluated as benevolent, sponsoring orphans and such. However…

‘She’s excessively, obsessively clean.’

Considering the frequent rumors about her being the political partner of the crown prince and such.

‘We can’t completely rule out the possibility of the temple getting involved in the succession battle.’

It was clear that both the temple and the saint would do their utmost to prevent Matthias Mirmod, who had rumors related to demons, from succeeding to the top of the family. If so, she might be able to gain some benefit in between.

‘Things are going to get quite interesting.’

Looking at this situation, Matthias doesn’t hesitate to kill spies. He was eager to spread his influence here and there.

Matthias or Matthias’s daughter.

Axel.

Even the saint.

It seemed like quite an interesting chaos would unfold.

“I want to watch.”

By all means, Delphia had no intention of participating in that chaos.

A playful observer, isn’t that just perfect?

A thick smile spread across Delphia’s lips.

***

The hunting competition to boost the morale of Father, who had become the heir of the Mirmod Duke family and the Count of Rochern, and his close associates, ended safely.

‘I’m bored because Father disappeared somewhere in the middle.’

Father held my shoulders tightly and said he would get rid of everything that bothered his daughter, but it wasn’t reassuring at all. Still, I nodded.

I mumbled something through my teeth and then Father vanished somewhere.

Right after that, I arrived at the room in the mansion and recalled Father’s close associates I had met today while looking at the darkened sky.

“Lady Sien, what are you thinking about while looking at the night sky?”

I was about to say I was thinking about Father’s friends, but I turned away from the window and flopped down weakly on the sofa.

No matter how I thought about it, the capabilities of Father’s associates were hopeless.

They were just like our Father. Far from having any villainous aspects, they were just very weak, sensitive, and fond of cute things…

As if to confirm my thoughts, the sisters suddenly pulled out small stuffed animals.

“Ah, Matthias’s associates have brought rabbit dolls!”

“Would you like to check them?”

The sisters handed me a rabbit doll that looked like it would fit snugly in my arms, smiling proudly.

‘What is this? A cursed doll?’

It was a rabbit doll, but it wasn’t a rabbit doll.

I’m not sure what I mean by this, but the doll’s round black eyes were asymmetrically attached, and the rabbit ears were covered with tangled threads that had burst out.

“They said they made it themselves!”

Ah…

I nodded.

‘Those uncles must have sewn the rabbit doll with hands as big as pot lids.’

Imagining them struggling to sew with their clumsy hands made me even more worried.

‘Will I be able to support all those foolish uncles too?’

I slumped my shoulders and sighed.

What is this feeling of prickliness in my heart, as if I’m wearing hemp clothes even while sitting on soft bedding?

“Lady Sien, why are you sighing?”

The good thing is that I have reliable maid sisters.

“It’s nothing…”

“Ah! Is it because of those spies we discovered then?”

It wasn’t exactly because of those spies that I sighed, but I nodded.

“…There must be something about the spies.”

“Yes. We looked into it, and it seems they’re dead.”

No matter how much I thought about it, their purpose was a mystery.

‘Why did they try to kidnap me at the hunting competition? Who on earth ordered it?’

It was then, when severe doubts were being kindled, that the maid spoke.

“We’ve secretly put in a request to the Press family.”

“The Press family?”

“Yes. It’s a family that Bench here was briefly associated with. They’re quite skilled at digging up information.”

“According to them, they seem to have some ideas.”

We’ll probably find out more if we dig deeper.

“I see, that’s good. But…”

I blinked at the maid sisters standing in a line in front of me.

Come to think of it, I was so busy trying to survive that I hadn’t asked for their names or families.

“So, the sister on the left, your name is Bench?”

Bench, the maid sister on the left with slightly more bulging muscles and a blue bridge in her hair, answered firmly.

“Yes. I came from the Press Viscount family.”

As I nodded, the sister next to her with pointy bangs continued.

“Ah, I’m Dedri from the Pft family. It’s an honor to introduce myself like this.”

Listening to them, I paused.

Wait, I think I passed over this too naturally.

‘Isn’t it too quick to reveal their names?’

When a noble family’s maid becomes a maid, she gives up her name and just takes on a title like ‘close maid’ or ‘dressing maid’.

So for maids to directly reveal their names to their master is like a declaration that they will serve that master for life.

To say such a thing so easily.

I teared up slightly, touched.

“Bench, Dedri. I look forward to working with you!”

“Yes! When we catch the spies, we’ll snap their necks like chicken necks!”

“Loyalty!”

Sometimes the sisters’ violent words and actions can be scary, but I’m going to be a villain, so I had to get used to it.

And honestly, the sisters’ rough misdeeds were more reassuring than the rabbit doll given by Father’s friend uncles.

“Good, let’s first find out where the spies came from!”

The sisters nodded.

“By the way, Lady Sien, didn’t you say you had an appointment tomorrow?”

At their words, I slapped my knee. Come to think of it, I was still in the middle of an important mission. A mission to make one more ally before finding the spies.

It was the quest .