Home/The Seven-Year-Old Village Chief of Exile/ch 35

Chapter 35

---

'The village chief gets no rest.'

Even after coming back, there was work right away.

I sped up my beloved scooter. The crude pinwheel attached to the front spun faster.

'Flora must have made it.'

A cheerful hum escaped me.

My first stop was Aunt Elva's house.

"Could you make a truth serum? I'd like to serve it to our guests."

"Hmm, I know how to make it, but..."

"You're hesitant because of side effects? Then don't bother. It's not urgent."

"It's because I don't have the ingredients."

The tools had been procured when Bleached Demon visited, but she lacked the herbs and other materials needed to make the serum.

"And what if there are side effects? You're going to use it on that bastard Livus anyway."

"That's the plan for now."

"Hmph, he's the one who framed our Ian!"

Aunt Elva, who had been fuming that he deserved it, belatedly checked my reaction.

"Keep this a secret, okay? Ian's so careful about your emotional education."

"Hehe! I'll keep it a secret!"

I noted down the required herbs and materials.

'Hmm, should I do a second supply run while I'm at it? Now that I have a way to move directly to the Deste territory...'

The wheels of my scooter rolled slowly toward the next destination.

'Shouldn't our village start building a source of income soon?'

It was a shame to give up the rare herbs we'd found, but we had to.

'Aunt Elva wanted that too, and with the situation as it is, there's no helping it. Instead, I need to find other ways to make money.'

I wouldn't come up with anything on my own, so I decided to bring this up at the next village meeting.

My second stop was our house.

"You have something for me?"

Libby, who had been reading a basic magic book she'd bought in the territory, tilted her head with wide eyes.

"Is it a surprise gift?"

"Hmm, it might be meddling, but..."

I glanced around the room that only the two of us shared.

Then I said in a small voice.

"Your little brother seems to be safe."

"......!"

I gently took Libby's hand as she froze.

"Yesterday, I asked the priests if they could get me a recent list of the Holy Knights. They gave me this year's list."

"Ah..."

"Your brother's name is Olive, right?"

I remembered from hearing it many times.

"Our little brother was born with divine power. He was also physically strong, so he'd been receiving offers from the Holy Knights since he was young."

"He was a trainee, and he was about to have his knighting ceremony soon."

"If he hadn't been expelled because of me, he would have become a full knight by now..."

I handed Libby the list Priest Saker had given me.

"He's here."

[Holy Knights - Red Hound Unit - Olive]

Libby's hand trembled as she held the list.

I pretended not to see the tears falling onto it.

"I also asked if any trainees had been expelled recently. Fortunately, there haven't been any in the last few years. So it must be your brother..."

Before I could finish, Libby pulled me into a tight embrace.

"......"

Libby murmured something in a tearful voice. But it was so wet and muffled that I couldn't make it out.

Instead of asking again, I stretched my short arms as far as they'd go and hugged her back.

"Unnie, I'm so glad."

"Sob, sniff..."

"Let's go see him sometime. He's a knight now, so if I ask the priests I've gotten close to..."

"That's okay."

Slowly pulling away, Libby roughly wiped her soaked face with the back of her hand.

"I can't meet him right now."

"Wh-why...?"

I didn't understand.

"D-don't you want to see him? Even I, with no memories of my family, sometimes want to see their faces..."

"The Red Hound Unit."

"What about it?"

"Red Hounds are the symbol of the Inquisitors."

"In-Inquisitors...?"

Inquisitors deal with heretical cults that harm people.

"...Ah."

I stared at Libby, speechless. Meeting my eyes, Libby smiled.

"My aptitude is Archmage Blessed by a Demon."

"Unnie, that's..."

"And I live with the help of the demon Lords."

"If that were a problem, the Clavis would have been destroyed ages ago."

"Now that you say it, that's true."

"Right? So don't worry unnecessarily..."

"Still, you never know. There's no harm in being cautious. It's not that I'll never see him. I definitely want to when the opportunity comes."

"Libby unnie..."

"So for now, just knowing he's alive is enough."

There was no trace of deceit in Libby's smile as she said it was fine.

"......"

The gift I'd prepared to make Libby happy had only made things difficult for her.

I felt sorry for having meddled.

---

"Oh, that's not your fault."

Back at the village hall, I told Verity and Ian what had just happened.

For the record, the three of us were reviewing the village report that Uncle Modi had organized while I was away.

Uncle Modi had gone out to get some documents he'd prepared separately for me.

"And Libby-nim isn't saying she'll never see her brother. She probably made that decision after considering many things."

"What many things?"

"Hebenia, have you forgotten?"

Ian said.

"Even though we were framed, we're still technically heinous criminals."

"Ah, right."

I recalled a fact I'd forgotten.

"Her little brother is a Holy Knight, and if it got out that he's an Inquisitor in the Holy King's direct unit, the damage would be immense."

At Ian's cold assessment, my shoulders slumped.

"By the way, Libby-nim's brother is no ordinary person either."

"Becoming an Inquisitor before the age of twenty..."

The conversation between Verity and Ian was significant.

'Is an Inquisitor more than just a group that catches and punishes heretics?'

Noticing my question, Ian explained.

"As I said earlier, Inquisitors are the Holy King's direct unit."

"Holy King?"

"The Holy King is the head of the state religion. Since they take direct orders from the Holy King, Inquisitors wield considerable power."

"Wow, Ian oppa knows a lot!"

"I was a former knight, after all."

He said he had a decent grasp of the various military organizations in the Empire.

"Inquisitors are selected only from among the most accomplished Holy Knights."

"So they only hire experienced people?"

"Exactly. That's why Libby-nim's brother is remarkable."

Verity's eyes sparkled like a talent scout.

"Libby-nim is eighteen now, right? Then her brother must be even younger—to have become an Inquisitor at that age means he's no ordinary talent."

"He's definitely not ordinary. I'd love to spar with him."

"Oh dear, Inquisitors are known to be ruthless."

I listened silently to the two older boys' conversation.

'So basically, Libby unnie's brother is a genius?'

Like Verity, I coveted that younger brother.

'It would be great if he could join our side.'

Then Libby could live with more peace of mind.

We could plant an informant in the temple, right in the central headquarters where the Holy King resides.

It might even be a huge help in opposing the Emperor.

'The temple hasn't been bad so far.'

The priests I'd befriended this time—Saker and Chel do—were conscientious.

'The temple side also seemed troubled by the Emperor's oppression. If we can use this situation well, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.'

Knock, knock.

Just then.

"Hebenia, are you there?"

"Uncle Modi!"

Uncle Modi entered, carrying a thick stack of documents under one arm.

'...Huh?'

I couldn't believe my eyes.

'Why is there so much?'

I'd only been gone a week! How was this much even possible? Without a computer or keyboard? All handwritten?

While I was in a daze, Uncle Modi explained the documents.

"This is a training schedule reflecting the villagers' opinions, compiled from the suggestion box two days ago."

"The one where we learn each other's hobbies and skills?"

"Yes, Ian. I've tentatively arranged the days and times. I got confirmation from the villagers. I also sketched out a plan for your swordsmanship class..."

There were also proposals for village welfare facility locations, village facility management notices, and housing solutions anticipating future population growth.

'Wow, it's perfect...!'

He'd even drafted a plan for pet care.

"Wow, Uncle Modi is amazing!"

"Did you do all this alone?"

Verity and Ian were equally impressed.

Blushing at the praise, Uncle Modi looked embarrassed.

He scratched the back of his neck, which made him look much younger than usual.

"I actually used to do similar work outside."

"Come to think of it, you said you worked at a government office?"

"Well, yes..."

"Wow, with this level of skill, shouldn't you be the village chief?"

At that, I flinched.

"M-my dignity as village chief...!"

"You never had any to begin with."

I gave Verity's side a firm pinch.

'Even though Bleached Demon forced this title on me, I still had some pride in it...!'

My pride was wounded.

But I'm a twenty-five-year-old who's lived a tumultuous enough life not to be shaken by something like this.

'Of course I can't run the village alone. I need the adults' help—especially someone with this kind of experience!'

And with this skill, he'd do a great job as the acting Viscount Deste.

'Better than Molle Livus, anyway.'

For that reason.

"Uncle!"

"Y-yes?"

"You know I love you passionately, right?"

"O-of course not...?"

Uncle Modi tried to step back, but I wouldn't let him—I grabbed him and pinned him against the wall.

And I trapped him in my arms so he couldn't escape.

"Wow, what a sight..."

Ian muttered regretfully that it looked like a weird dream you have when you're tired, but I ignored him.

"If you don't know my love, I'll engrave it on your body right now."

"He means he's going to throw Uncle Modi into the primeval forest immediately and train him until he awakens his aptitude and becomes useful."

My demon butler Verity translated my confession without a shred of romance.

Back   Next