Episode 56

 ‘Well of course one would be surprised about the blood dripping instead of focusing on eating. ’ 

Even Dietrich, who seemed uninterested in everything I did, stood up awkwardly. I stood in front of a big mirror on the wall and began to examine myself.

The blood from my mouth trickled on the white bib, leaving a strange red mark, but it wasn’t that surprising.

‘They’ve never seen a child’s teeth fall out before.’

The settings of this world didn’t mean that there was no concept of baby teeth and permanent teeth.

I pulled out the napkin I was wearing with my bib and wiped my mouth in a casual manner.

“Are you alright?”

Before I knew it, Dietrich approached me and grabbed my cheek, turning it from side to side.

“Tas enouf.” (That’s enough.) 

I hated that he was worried about me now, so I shrugged his hand off.

“Open your mouth. We have to check if you have eaten poison.”

He didn’t seem fazed at my rejection and grabbed me again, but I snorted and stepped back.

‘What poison are you talking about.’

It had now become a faded memory, but this wasn’t something I hadn’t done once or twice in my previous life. I remembered I was the kind of person who would pull my teeth by hand because they could be easily pulled out.

I boldly opened my mouth wide in front of the mirror and grabbed my loose front teeth. 

‘This should be enough to pick.’

My front tooth was already pulled out halfway from chewing the hard carrot. I pushed my front teeth without being scared.

As if finding my behavior unfamiliar, Dietrich couldn’t do anything to stop me. I felt a strange sense of triumph seeing his stiff face.

‘You said I was being a kid, right?’

Where else would there be such a mature kid? I pull my teeth out by myself. (So to Anissa, pulling out teeth on your own is a sign of maturity. Lolol.)

“Haak ptu!” (sound of spitting)

I spat out my front tooth rolling in my mouth on the floor, then wiped the blood on the corners of my mouth roughly with my sleeves.

‘Huu. I must’ve looked so chic just now.’

You’re not the only one who’s cool. I’m cool too.

“Aigoo.”

I heard Baal mutter quietly from behind, but I couldn’t hear him properly.

“Princess, do not throw it away.”

“Hwhy?”

“Because you have to sell it to the tooth fairy.”

“Hwas tha?” (What’s that?)

It sounded a little suspicious because the word fairy came out of Baal’s mouth. When I narrowed my eyes and doubted him, he smiled and raised his index finger.

“It is a demon who would pay for a kid’s tooth.”

“Hmoneh?!” (Money?!)

As my eyes sparkled at the word money, Baal clicked his tongue and shook his head.

“You already love money so much. What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Well, I’m trying to become an adult who will put in a lot of deposit money.

While I was pondering over Baal’s question, Dietrich got up and left the room without saying anything.

“Where are you going, Princess?”

“Me chu, hay’ll he hright hack!” (Me too, I’ll be right back!)

As I watched Dietrich leave Dahlia from a distance outside the window, I bit my lips and started running down the hall towards him.

The wind coming through the missing front teeth was cold, but I could tolerate this much.

He rarely explained anything to me.

If he leaves Dahlia, I’ll never know what he’s doing, or when he’ll be gone and for how long.

‘If so, I have to ask directly.’

I tried not to talk to him anymore because of his cold attitude, but his face, which went pale from the blood coming out of my front teeth, gave me courage.

‘But he still seemed to worry about me.’

“Dehurich.” (Dietrich.) 

I caught his sleeve as he was quickly leaving the garden and gasped for air. He was so fast that it's hard to catch up even if I ran, but he looked back at me with a fresh face as if he was just sitting down.

“Why?”

I frowned at the sun shining over my cold pale cheeks.

I gave a squeeze to the hand that held his sleeve. He looked down at me, uncaring of the wrinkles on his clothes.

“Hwhere ha hyou gowing?” (Where are you going?)

It looked like he understood my airy pronunciation, but instead of answering, he shook his head.

“You don’t need to know.”

I shivered at the slow but cold answer. In the corner of my mind, I always thought of Dietrich as the villain in the novel, but he’s still my family.

‘There’s no need to suddenly be shocked about this.’ 

He’s not trying to kill me, so this much should be fine. 

These days, I was only surprised by the warm atmosphere in Dahlia that didn’t suit Lagrange.

‘That’s how you used to be in the past.’

I raised my head, suppressing my desire to be a little sad.

At that moment, something sparkled under the sun near Dietrich’s chest.

It was a much darker brooch than the triplets’ necklace. It was thick as if it was made of coagulated blood.

As though I was possessed, I grasped Dietrich’s collar.

“Hwhere hid hyou het hthis? Hwhat his it?” (Where did you get this? What is it?)

I got goosebumps when I held the brooch that exuded a light smell in my hand.

Standing crookedly, Dietrich, who was grabbed by me, shook me off and glanced at the brooch.

“This is the sealing stone of the demon Vassago.”

“. . . . . Vassago?”

‘It’s not the curse of Asmodeus?’

If Asmodeus was a demon god, and Baal was the king of the demons, then Vassago was an exile who tried to seize the throne.

One of the evil demons who was rejected even among his fellow demons.

Vassago was as strong as Baal, but he was left as a legend because he could not be handled as he didn’t use humans as a medium.

“Does your head not hurt?”

Whether it was Asmodeus or Vassago, the pieces of the curse containing the ether or essence of a demon had an adverse effect on humans in some ways.

'If you kept these things on your body, there’s no way your body wouldn't hurt.'

Unlike the black aura that was mixed in the triplets’ aura, the aura of Vassago only hovered in the jewel, so it’s not something that’s worrisome but I tiptoed and reached for his forehead. 

“Don’t touch me.”

Dietrich backed away to avoid my hand. Not hiding my disappointment, I pucker my lips.

‘He doesn’t even remember the milk bottles I fed him.’

“Hat Bhooch, hon’t carry hit wif hyou.” (That Brooch, don’t carry it with you.)

“Why?”

“. . . . . hif Dehurich telfs me hwere he’s going, hay’ll tell hyu.” (. . . . . if Dietrich tells me where he’s going, I’ll tell you.)

Although I didn’t sound so prim because of my vague airy pronunciation, Dietrich turned his back on me without answering, not even curious about my question in the first place.

‘You didn’t tell me not to follow you.’

I followed him to the opening of a road connected to the gate. There’s no way he didn’t know that I’m behind him, but he never looked back.

“Humu.”

The road that Dietrich entered was familiar.

‘You’re going to work again.’

How long has it been since you came back to Lagrange? I wonder if a villain can be this diligent.

Having already been here with Veronica and Yuric a few times, I noticed that Dietrich’s destination was Saint-Dena before we arrived.

A tall man standing in front of a bar in a dirty alley greeted him.

“Young Master!”

I ran and stood next to Dietrich in fear of him leaving me alone.

“It’s difficult to let the child enter.”

The man who found me hiding behind Dietrich's waist and with my face peeking out opened his mouth with a troubled look.

I stared at him in absurdity.

‘Isn’t Dietrich also a child?’

That’s when Dietrich finally looked back at me and let out a light sigh. 

“Why are you following me?”

I swallowed to make a clear pronunciation to respond to the question.

“Because I miss you.”

I really wanted to tell you these words. I mumbled softly while I held the edge of his sleeve.

“. . . . .”

“I miss you.”

Dietrich's expression, who was still listening to me, became strange.  At first glance, he had an indifferent face like before, but I found him wavering a little when his brows flinched.

“This place is dangerous.”

“But haym with Dehurich.” (But I’m with Dietrich.)

It meant that I had no doubts in believing that you would protect me. Dietrich let out a long sigh contrary to his sigh earlier and held my hand that was holding his sleeve.

“It’s a kid I brought. Show me around.”

At Dietrich’s order, the man opened the door like he couldn’t help it.

It was still early in the afternoon, but drunk people were already lined up.

From the big table in the middle, you can hear the buzzing noise of gambling taking place.

‘I don’t sense discomfort.’

Dietrich walked past them, already familiar with the sight, and sat at the bar. He looked self-important, but maybe because of his tall height, it fits him like a painted picture. 

‘As expected, he’s a gangster.’

I grabbed the stool to sit next to Dietrich.

‘Why is this so high!’

Maybe because the bar table was higher than my height. So, the chair was so high that I couldn’t get seated easily. Jumping was also useless.

“Hyup.”

Seeing me struggle, Dietrich got up from his seat and put his hands between my arms.

Soon, my body floated in the air and I was seated safely on the chair. I was a little embarrassed so I lowered my gaze.

“I-I could habb done hit ahone.” (I could have done it alone.)

Even though it’s been a while since I’ve seen you being cold, you’re still kind at times like this.

I glanced at him holding a cup of water on the table without giving an answer. There didn’t seem to be any major injury, but fatigue was evident on his face.

The man who met  Dietrich earlier came out with a thick document and a black bag. 

‘In movies, there’s always money being carried in a bag like that.’

Why was there money in a bag that was obvious to anyone, and why was it that they kept it and then shortly met a thief after? I had such a question.

“As Young Master suggested, I ran the bar and the sales have tripled.”

“The underworld will need a deal.” 

I couldn’t hear the man’s voice properly because he whispered as though he’s conscious of me, but it appears that Dietrich has created a place to integrate back-door dealings taking place in Saint-Dena.

I pretended not to be interested, but I strained my ears up.

‘He’s doing a lot of things for a 12-year-old kid.’

“This girl is messing with me again!”

At that moment, there was a loud noise from the gambling table. I turned around in surprise at the shouting.

‘Charlotte?’

Although it was a little far away, there was no mistaking that the girl with an uncommon silver hair was Charlotte.

“You were the one who cheated first! You said if I win the bet, you’d pay for my journey back to the temple—kyaa!”

Due to the sudden disturbance, Dietrich, who was having a secret conversation with the man, also found her.

‘Oh, am I witnessing the first encounter of the main characters?’

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