CH 7

“You keep telling me to give you a proper justification.”

The nobles of the Myo Clan, who were protesting with keen ears, shut their mouths all at once.

‘I heard that the law of the jungle applied thoroughly in the world of beastmen.’

The banquet hall, which was buzzing with chaos, became quiet as soon as Licht began to raise his voice.

Alice’s excited chattering voice not long ago scattered from my ears.

[Princess. Do you know this? In the Myo World, the succession battle of ranks is held once every 10 years, and it is said to be very spectacular. It was said that the last succession battle was 3 years ago, but I was terribly sorry that I couldn’t see it because I had a fever at that time.]

In the succession battle held three years ago, while the 19 families of the Myo World were watching, it is said that Licht took down the challengers with powerful force in a short time.

‘I think he is stronger than me.’

He already possessed mana, so why does he need me? What does it mean when he said that they need me?

The more I tried to think deeply, the more I felt like my underdeveloped brain would be overloaded.

‘Ah, but I can’t fall asleep right now.’

A baby’s body was too inefficient.

Even if I tried to keep my thoughts a little deeper, drowsiness came rushing in as if it had been waiting.

“The Duke of Avicinian.”

At Licht’s call, the elegant beastman with a white sword wrapped around his waist bowed his head.

“All preparations are complete, Your Majesty.”

Licht nodded his head, and from the shadow of the podium where the princes were gathered, a woman with white hem stretched out walked out.

Everyone’s eyes, including me, who began to nod sleepily, were focused on that direction.

“She’s a high priest, right?”

“Why is a high priest who can’t attend a worldly banquet here?”

The woman, who had not lost her gentle smile from the beginning, knelt down on her one knee in front of Licht. The hem of her pure white robe spread wide in a fan shape.

“His Majesty Licht el Persian, the one and only owner of the Myo World…”

The High Priest paused for a moment and looked up at me with clear green eyes.

“I see a noble Messiah who will save the Myo Clan.”

“…!”

I was looking at the High Priest as if she were possessed, and my body stiffened at the sound of ‘Messiah’.

It was so absurd that I didn’t know if it was a dream or reality.

‘You want me to save the Myo Clan? Me?’

Was this the meaning of being the Messiah of the Myo tribe?

“That’s weird.”

As Licht tilted his head, his soft silver hair that fell forward tickled me.

“It is said that human babies obviously grow slower both physically and mentally than beastmen.”

“…”

“Why do I feel like you understand all this situation?”

The hairs all over my body stood up at the low voice that only I could hear.

His cool fingers brushed my cheeks.

“Hm? Yernian.”

Contrary to the chilly voice, Licht’s hand softly rubbed my back. His hand made my already heavy eyelids lower even more.

‘Ah, you really shouldn’t sleep like this!’

I think there will be important information related to the Messiah…

Although I shook my head until my plump cheeks shook, I still couldn’t shake my sleepiness.

It was such a powerful drowsiness that I wondered if someone had secretly forcibly used sleep magic.

“What are you doing? Are you going to make me laugh again?”

I could feel Licht stroking my cheek with his hand, but I didn’t respond.

“3,980 years ago… .”

The High Priest’s calm voice suddenly began to move away from my ears.

My head, which had been staggering with a buzzing sound, was slammed into his hard chest.

***

Licht suddenly looked down at Yernian, who began to doze off like a sick chicken and fell asleep.

“Yernian.”

“…”

“Are you sleeping?”

Sleeping like this all of a sudden?

It was Mir who stepped forward in place of him, who was bewildered.

“Babies usually sleep a lot, Your Majesty. Most of them spend more than half of their day sleeping. Seeing her fall asleep so suddenly, she must have been under a lot of stress in an unfamiliar environment.”

“Can’t we just wake her up?”

“She will cry. Very sadly.”

Mir particularly emphasized the word ‘sadly’.

Licht nervously clicked his tongue, smiled vainly as he looked at the back of the High Priest, who was explaining the ‘Night of Prophecy’ to the nobles.

“You’re sleeping well.”

Since earlier, he could feel the damp texture of the robes that was touching Yernian’s face 

Mir, who was following Richt’s gaze, pretended to know again.

“It’s a natural occurrence as the salivary glands develop and teeth start to come out.”

“…I didn’t ask. It’s distracting, so get out of there.”

Contrary to his irritable voice, the hand rubbing Yernian’s lips was quite meticulous.

As the High Priest’s explanation continued, the nobles who nodded with serious expressions shook their pupils. They looked at each other, thinking the same thing at the same time.

‘What did I just see?’

Licht was known for his insensitive nature even before he got to the throne.

He was so tired about everything that they sometimes wondered if he was even bothered to breathe.

There was even a rumor among those beastmen that Licht was asexual.

He was now wiping the lips of a sleeping child on his lap. Directly, even without the use of his handkerchief.

“Ehm.”

It was the middle-aged beastman who first pointed out Yernian’s existence to clear up the chaotic atmosphere.

“If everything the High Priest said is true, is the recent rift in the Myo World also related to that prophecy?”

As soon as the man mentioned “the rift in the Myo World”, Yernian’s tightly closed eyelids fluttered.

At that moment, the nobles gathered in the banquet hall stared at Yernian, holding their breath without realizing it.

“Mmm…”

A child who monopolized the head of nobles’ laps was seen rubbing her eyes as if she were trying to shake off her sleepiness.

“Wichth.” (Licht.)

The corners of the lips of the nobles twitched at the same time as the voice of a child full of sleepiness. On the other hand, Licht was still looking down at Yernian with an indifferent face.

“Why, Yernian.”

Yernian, who seemed to be hesitating about something, opened her mouth.

“Thhe Myo Wowwd, ish ith wuined?” (The Myo World, is it ruined?)

The atmosphere of the banquet hall suddenly became mysterious at the innocent child’s question.

Licht’s eyebrows fluttered up, and coughing was exploding here and there.

“It’s not ruined yet.”

At the cool touch on her cheek, Yernian blinked her transparent pale pink eyes.

He looked down at Yerniian with eyes that seemed to measure something, raised the corners of her lips.

“Later.”

“Uh?”

“When you grow up. I’ll tell you in detail then.”

***

I pouted my lips in disappointment.

‘Just tell me now.’

As I yawned while pressing my cheek to Licht’s robe, I pondered the words I had just heard.

‘I asked if the rift in the Myo World had anything to do with prophecy.’

It seemed that there was a problem in this space where the people of Myo Clan lived together.

So, does the purpose of Licht bringing me here have something to do with the rift of the Myo World?

‘What is the exact content of the prophecy about I am the Messiah of the Myo people?’

All I knew was that on the prophesied night when the twin red moons rose, a child with vast mana was about to be born.

‘That child was me.’

At that moment, Licht, who held me in his arms, slowly got up.

“I think this is enough to explain the prophecy night when the Messiah was born.”

Not enough. That’s not enough!

Regardless of my inner scream, Licht continued.

“You would have felt it if you weren’t wearing your brain as a decoration.”

“…”

“There is a traitor in the Myo World.”

Licht’s chilly blue eyes slowly skimmed over the nobles gathered in the banquet hall.

None of the beastmen who had hardened their expressions dared to refute his words.

‘A traitor?’

Holding my breath, I listened intently to Licht’s story that followed.

“Except for the High Priest who can’t betray the royal family, on the line of dragons. It is said that one of you guys joined hands with the recently missing chief priest to steal the prophecy.”

The murmur of the nobles intensified.

“That…!”

As they glanced at each other with distrustful eyes, a cold smirk came to Licht’s lips.

“Or who dares to steal the Messiah of the Myo people?”

A suffocating silence followed between the beastmen who shut their mouths again. Licht let out a slow breath.

“… I think there’s enough justification for me to accept and protect the Messiah as a Persian. What do you think? Duke of Siam.”

A middle-aged beastman who seemed to be the chairman of the elders bowed his head in a manner different from before.

“Even though she isn’t from the Myo Clan, it is a different story if she is the Messiah in the prophecy that the High Priest has confirmed. The Senate will respect Your Majesty’s will.”

“I will respect you.”

The other nobles who followed the instructions of the Duke of Siam bowed their heads at the same time.

Licht looked down at them with an expressionless face and turned around.

So, to sum up, someone stole a prophecy that had only been passed down to the head of the Myo Clan, right?

Did they get their hands on the leaked prophecy and come to me?

If so, it meant that within the grave system, there was a force that was trying to fight the Persians by joining hands with the humans of the continent.

‘I thought that here would be the safest, but then I found out that I was in the middle of the enemy camp.’

Having stiffened my shoulders, I grabbed Licht’s robe with one hand as if I was on my lifeline. It felt like hiccups were about to burst if I did something wrong.

He felt my touch and lowered his head. As our eyes met, his lips twitched softly.

“Congratulations on being part of the Persians, Yernian.”

I trembled at that smile that somehow felt eerie.

“Then choose now.”

“…Huh? Whath?” (…Huh? What?)

I raised my head a beat late and looked at Licht with suspicious eyes.

“Which of them do you like best?”

The place where Licht, who took a relaxed posture, pointed with his chin, was the table where the Third Prince had been unable to take their eyes off of.

A table with no common things, such as yarn, swords, fountain pens, hourglass, and pendants, arranged in a row.

Mir, who returned after seeing the High Priest, let out a loud sigh.

“Your Majesty. First of all, you have to put Her Highness the Princess on the table. Those who have gathered at the banquet have already made their choices about what Her Highness the Princess will choose.”

…Huh? Is it a choice?

I stared at the table lined with various items with skeptical eyes.

Licht lifted me up gently, snorted.

“What did you eat to be so suspicious?”

“Whath ish thhath?” (What is that?)

“Gamble.”

He set me down on the table and raised a corner of his lips. At the sound of ‘gamble’, my expression trembled in an instant.

“Your Majesty. Please, why don’t you cover your words in front of Her Highness the Princess?”

“I’ve covered it enough.”

“Isn’t that raw?”

“So you want to be buried on the continent today?”

As I overheard the meaningless fight between the two of them through one ear, I met the eyes of the Fourth Prince who was sitting under the podium.