Home/The Seven-Year-Old Village Chief of Exile/ch 21

Chapter 21

Since the village was full of empty houses, I chose the largest and best-located building as the village hall.

And on the sunny first floor, I set up my own office.

Verity, dressed in a tracksuit, was pulling out items from the list I'd written, one by one. The cost, of course, was covered by my wishes.

"My Lady sure likes to have all the trappings, doesn't she?"

"People need to have at least the bare minimum to feel motivated. It's like buying a diary every New Year."

"I think it's different. But anyway, my Lady."

Verity asked.

"Why are you installing a karaoke machine?"

"It's not a karaoke machine—it's an audio system."

"Isn't that the same thing?"

"They're distinctly different."

A village chief should be able to deliver announcements like, "Ah, yes, the youngest grandson of Ms. Kim Hyun-sook from the persimmon tree house has been accepted into a prestigious university—she'll be handing out celebratory rice cakes."

So an audio system was essential.

"Aha, so it's performative governance!"

Verity nodded as if he understood.

While we were alone, I decided to ask something I'd been wanting to ask.

"What is the Emperor's real aim?"

"Hmm, well..."

Verity, who had just finished installing the audio system, tilted his head side to side.

"A wish? Or just a question?"

"A wish!"

"Then I will answer with all sincerity."

The demon butler bowed respectfully.

I started with the first question.

"What exactly is that ore we mined as forced labor?"

"It's called a 'void stone.'"

"Void stone?"

"Literally, an empty stone."

Verity took a black stone from his pocket.

I recognized it at once. It was the very stone that I and the exile family had been sweating over just a while ago.

"It looks like an ordinary rock on the outside, but the inside is transparent, as if it's completely hollow. Here, look."

Verity cut the stone like a banana to show the inside.

The inside was literally empty.

But looking closely, it was filled with a transparent substance.

Verity gently shook the void stone, and the transparent interior rippled like waves.

As I watched in fascination, I asked.

"What can you do with this?"

"Absorb."

"Absorb?"

"It absorbs power like magic or divine energy. If this void stone is exposed to nature for a very long time, it becomes precious minerals like magic stones or holy stones."

"Oho."

Then my hypothesis might be somewhat correct.

Seizing the opportunity, I shared my theory with Verity.

"I think the Emperor is trying to conduct some kind of forbidden experiment."

"Whoa, really?"

"He framed innocent people to mine ore, and he's buying up herbs under the excuse of his daughter. And then demons..."

"Sigh, that bastard is the one giving demons a bad name."

Verity slapped his own forehead and made a sad face.

I nodded in agreement.

"But with just this, I can't be sure of the Emperor's intentions."

"Right. Nothing has been definitively revealed yet."

"It's clear the Emperor has quite an inferiority complex toward the Clavis—could it be related to that? For example, he coveted my power..."

"That's certainly possible."

"......"

"Huh? Why the face, my Lady?"

Verity spread his hands as if to say to continue. It meant he was listening attentively.

But I had already caught on to Verity's game.

"Don't just listen—give me answers! What's the point of just echoing me!"

"My Lady, there are no set answers in life."

"Don't spout bullshit philosophy with that wistful voice!"

"I am answering with all sincerity."

"Aish..."

I just let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.

That cunning school-uniform demon had interpreted my wish in his own way, giving me nothing but sincere answers.

'Oops.'

Wishes must be stated as specifically and clearly as possible.

So the demon's subjectivity wouldn't interfere.

'I messed up.'

But from what I'd observed, Verity wasn't the kind of demon who would exploit such loopholes.

'Is this information he's not allowed to tell me directly? If so, then my guess that the Emperor has some scheme is almost certainly right.'

He might have been indirectly telling me that.

I asked Verity more politely.

"Is there some reason you're not allowed to tell me?"

"Eek! Don't grab me by the waistband with that innocent face!"

Whether my desperation got through to him, Verity adjusted his pants and explained.

"Unfortunately, there's a prior petitioner."

"Prior petitioner?"

"A wish that says if you wish to know about the Emperor's schemes, don't grant it. Quite sneaky and unlucky, isn't it?"

"Don't tell me..."

Suddenly, someone came to mind.

I don't know his face, but I do know his relationship to me.

"Clavis...?"

"Yes."

Verity readily revealed the prior petitioner's information.

"It was the request of the head of the Clavis family—your grandfather."

That's why I said they're such insufferable bastards, Verity shrugged.

---

A few days later.

Daliss moved to the house next door with Flora.

The biggest reason was that she could no longer impose on them, but Flora was also quite anxious. The mother and daughter needed time alone together.

Hebenia, Libby, and Ian respected her decision.

The move took place the very next day.

Hebenia and Verity provided furniture and daily necessities, and Libby, Ian, and the other exile family members helped with various things.

Thanks to them, Daliss and Flora's front yard now had a nice vegetable garden, flower beds, and a beautiful outdoor table with four chairs.

That night.

Daliss spoke to Flora, who lay in her arms.

"From now on, let's live here together with Mommy."

"What about Daddy...?"

Flora asked in a fearful voice.

"Is Daddy... still there...?"

Holding Flora's trembling hand tightly, Daliss said.

"There's no more daddy. There are no more bad adults who hurt us. It's just Mommy and Flora, the two of us living in this house."

Only then did Flora relax and fall into a peaceful sleep for the first time in a long while.

The next morning.

"Good morning, sister."

Ian came to visit around the time breakfast ended.

"I was thinking of showing Flora around the village today. Hebenia said she's preparing the village hall—I thought she might enjoy seeing it."

"Oh my, what a wonderful village chief."

"Flora, do you want to go see Hebenia unnie?"

"Okay..."

And so the three of them set out for a walk and a tour of the village.

The adults, who were working on their morning farming, recognized them and straightened their bent backs.

"Oh my, where are the three of you off to together?"

Flora avoided their gaze and fidgeted, quickly hiding behind Daliss.

While Daliss comforted Flora, Ian returned the greetings.

"Hello. We're going to the village hall."

"Speaking of which, we just installed these earlier."

Modi adjusted his straw hat and pointed upward.

On each lamppost hung a square box-like object with small holes.

The boxes were all connected by black wires, and their terminal was the village hall, which was being decorated with flowers.

"According to Verity, it's a magical tool for announcing village affairs—Hebenia wanted performative governance."

"Thanks to our village chief, our village is becoming state-of-the-art."

Just as they were about to leave after greeting.

"Oh, hello..."

Flora shyly waved her hand. She couldn't even finish her words out of shyness, but it was a greeting squeezed from all the courage she had.

"Hehe! Yes, see you again later."

"Take care."

The adults also waved back at Flora.

"I, I said hello...!"

Flora's face blushed with pride at her success.

Ian praised her, saying she was great. Daliss gently stroked her daughter's head.

When they arrived at the village hall, the doors were wide open.

The three of them entered and couldn't close their mouths.

The first thing that caught their eyes was the luxurious carpet and the marble table in the center. A glass vase with bright roses welcomed the villagers.

The chandelier hanging from the ceiling, which rose as high as the second floor, sparkled.

During his time as an imperial knight, Ian had visited noble mansions several times.

'This is much more luxurious than any place I've seen.'

Though small in scale, it had an overwhelming elegance that made up for it.

"Huh? Ian oppa, you're here?"

Hebenia came out of a closed room. In front of the door hung a lavish sign that read 'Village Chief's Office.'

"Aunt Daliss, you're here too! Welcome! Flora, hi! Did you sleep well? Did you eat breakfast?"

"Good morning, Hebenia."

"Hello..."

Hebenia grinned at their greetings.

"How do you like the village hall? Well decorated, isn't it?"

"It's well decorated, but it looks too much like a noble's mansion."

"This oppa says such ignorant things."

Hebenia snorted.

"The village hall is the village's identity."

Although they were in exile under false charges, they had to constantly prove that they were nobler and more precious than anyone else.

"Even if we don't start a revolution, we'll eventually go outside and expose our innocence. How do we need to be to piss off the Emperor?"

"By... living well?"

"Exactly!"

Even though the Empire had betrayed us.

We needed to show that we were living more happily and cheerfully than anyone, and protect our proud dignity that they couldn't break.

"To live well enough to piss off the Emperor, don't we need to live more lavishly and elegantly than the nobles?"

Since the topic came up.

Hebenia shared her development plans.

"I'm going to build a village where everyone can enjoy cultural life to the fullest! First, I'll build a library, then a theater for screening films. After that, facilities for exercise like a swimming pool or gym, a multi-purpose room available for rent anytime, a meditation room, a table tennis hall..."

Ian didn't understand even half of what Hebenia was saying.

But he could clearly tell she had put a lot of thought into the village.

'Anyway, she's amazing.'

Ian understood.

That all of this was a miracle that started from Hebenia's kindness.

Hebenia could summon and command demons, and she had enough power to kill monsters.

If she wanted, she could have escaped this terrible exile camp right away.

Yet she stayed.

To help the exile family who would be left behind.

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