Home/I Am the Youngest Granddaughter of the Monster Duke Family/ch 8

Chapter 8

"I will attend to the Perfect Form."

"Be careful not to break it."

At Callen's instruction, Morus smiled softly.

"Yes."

"By the way, have you still not found the servant who was taking care of the squishy one?"

"Actually, while you were at the imperial palace today, I looked into it thoroughly, but strangely, I could find no trace. No one in the annex even saw the Perfect Form."

"Hah, really."

When Morus added that he would investigate further, Callen shook his head.

"Enough. If searching doesn't yield results, that's the end of it."

Anyway, the squishy one would never return there. Callen rubbed the cheek of the slumbering squishy one.

"Morus."

"Yes, Duke."

"Process the adoption for the squishy one as Lars's child."

"Pardon?"

For a moment, Morus doubted his own ears.

"You never know. Maybe the squishy one will just take the successor position on its own. Since we have to go through with the adoption anyway, just put it down as that brat's child."

"Certainly... Lord Lars would have no choice but to come for the verification process."

Morus caught on to Callen's intention.

Though the adoption procedure wasn't simple, if the squishy one wanted it later, Callen intended to adopt it as his own child at any time.

"Then, shouldn't we first decide on the Perfect Form's name?"

"Ah, right."

He had forgotten the most important thing.

"A name, a name..."

As Morus carefully carried out the slime, which was even snoring, he failed to notice one thing.

That Callen, who hadn't named a child since his youngest son thirty-four years ago, had fallen into deep contemplation.

---

"What would be good? There's no name that is cute and lovely, yet also brave and beautiful. Tch."

'What is this?'

I craned my neck to see Callen buried among a mountain of books.

"Ah, squishy. You're here."

When he spotted me on Morus's hand, his hardened expression softened in an instant.

"Let's see. You seem bigger after just one day."

Callen's rough fingers poked at me.

"Duke, have you looked through all of these?"

Morus asked, flustered.

"Ha, yes. No matter how I look, there's no name that suits the squishy one."

Callen rose from his seat.

"This won't do. I need to go to the archive."

'The archive? That archive Irin mentioned?'

At the mention of the place I'd been so eager to reach, my eyes sparkled.

"Goo! Goo!"

"Yes, you want to go too, squishy?"

"Goooo!"

I nodded my head vigorously up and down.

"It's not that I don't want to work—the squishy one is urging me, so I have no choice."

Callen glanced briefly at Morus, who was organizing the accumulated documents, then placed me on his palm and quickly left the room.

"Duke!"

I heard Morus's urgent voice from behind, but Callen calmly muttered.

"I hear something, squishy."

I tried my best to memorize the path to the archive without even blinking.

'It's downstairs?'

Contrary to my expectations, Callen was going down the stairs.

'So humans hide important things underground.'

Callen descended further and further.

Going underground, Callen stopped in front of a somewhat shabby-looking but massive door.

When he placed his hand on it, a faint light seeped out and the door opened on its own.

"Goo-oo."

I couldn't help but marvel.

The archive was even more immense than I had imagined. It seemed even larger than the main building.

"Amazing, isn't it? It's enchanted with magic. The archive holds long history and very important things, so it couldn't be placed in just any specific location."

'Then where is this?'

As if reading my question, Callen smiled and continued.

"It's a subspace."

A subspace.

I'd seen that word in books too.

It's a virtual space that can be created with magic, allowing various objects to be stored in a very small pouch.

That's why creating a subspace is said to be difficult.

The larger the space, the greater the mage required.

So the person who created a subspace large enough to hold an archive must have been truly extraordinary.

Not only was the space large, but it also allowed people to pass through like this.

"Well then, let's start by lightly browsing the genealogy."

It seemed Callen was planning to take my name from Ruseman's genealogy.

He walked somewhere and stopped.

"This bookshelf is where the genealogy is kept. It contains everyone—direct lines, of course, and even collateral branches."

The size of the bookshelf was enormous.

"Why is this book here?"

Callen pulled out a brightly colored book that stood out among the monochromatic ones.

"It seems someone put it in the wrong place. By the way, can you read letters?"

I was about to nod, but Callen shook his head.

"No, of course you can't read letters."

'But I can...!'

Before I could explain, Callen opened the book and sat down.

"Now, let's see. This is a book about types of monsters. Finally, I get to read a book to my grandchild..."

Callen was grinning strangely, his nostrils flaring.

What is this?

'Is he trying to suck me in through his nose?'

I'm not that small, but remembering that Irin had once called me the size of a booger, I subtly moved aside.

Glancing at him just in case, I casually looked at the book and saw something familiar.

In that moment, as if possessed, I reached out and pointed at a certain spot.

"Do you want this name?"

Callen's surprised voice came from above.

"Hah, really. Is it because you're a Perfect Form? Fine, I'll give you this as your name."

---

"Contact came from Linok."

At his subordinate's words, a man raised his head. Meeting the sharp golden eyes through disheveled hair, the subordinate reflexively lowered his gaze.

In addition, a heavy stench of blood wafted from the man's slightest movement.

"Just the same tiresome message about coming back, I'm sure."

The man's voice was languid yet irritable.

Knowing the man was on edge from battle, the subordinate wouldn't have reported to him at this moment under normal circumstances.

If it hadn't been urgent.

"But this time... it seems something big has happened."

Sensing something amiss, the man frowned and extended his hand.

It was a hand drenched in beast blood.

Without hesitation, the subordinate placed what had come from Linok onto that hand.

"...Ha."

The man let out a hollow laugh mixed with disbelief.

"I have a successor daughter now... they say."

The man spoke lazily and turned his head.

There, a boy was mounted on the body of the last remaining beast. The boy raised his sword high and, without a shred of mercy, drove it down.

Thud.

The sound of flesh being pierced rang out.

The man fluttered the adoption papers that had come with Linok's letter toward his son.

"You have a little sister now, you know?"

The man, Lars Ruseman, chuckled and turned away.

"I'm returning to the mansion after five years. I should at least see the face of this suddenly appeared successor daughter."

---

Finally, I had a name.

'Athasia.'

It was the name of a hybrid born between a monster and a demon, the monster who gave birth to Ruseman's first duke.

Aside from the name, nothing else about it was known.

The World Tree was drawn small beside it, which is why I stopped there—but Callen mistakenly thought I liked the name.

'I have a name now.'

When I first read books, I had a question.

Did I, who was originally a slime, also have a name?

But even my forest friends had no names. There was no one to give us names.

'Athasia, Athasia.'

Rolling the name around in my mouth, a smile escaped me.

Athasia Ruseman.

That's how my name came to be.

'Anyway, since he even gave me a name, I suppose he judged that I'm needed for now, right?'

And though I couldn't be certain, it seemed I had become the successor of the Ruseman family.

There must be some purpose for placing me in that position, but at least it meant I was needed for now.

'I don't have to worry about dying immediately.'

I could rest easy for a while, right?

I squirmed from under the bed and cautiously poked my face out.

I stared intently at the door, but there was no sign of anyone coming in.

'Is Morus not coming today either?'

It had already been two days since I'd seen Morus.

That meant it had also been two days since I'd seen Callen.

After giving me a name, I hadn't seen Callen even once.

'Is he busy? He hasn't completely forgotten about me, has he?'

I was a little worried, but it wasn't a bad thing. However, whenever Callen called for me, I had to stay by his side until I fell asleep, which left no time to steal valuables.

'Today's my chance!'

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