Home/The Seven-Year-Old Village Chief of Exile/ch 9

Chapter 9

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Right next to the exile camp was Aunt Daliss's family home.

'That's way too suspicious.'

My instincts flared strongly.

'If we visit the Deste territory, maybe we can find out more detailed information. Like the more fundamental reason why the exile family was framed...'

I now understood that the exile family had been framed.

But would the nation really go to such lengths just to make them mine ores?

'That alone is hard to accept.'

Before leaving the primeval forest, I called Libby.

I hid the fact that our destination was the Deste territory, just in case, and told her we were going to check out the situation outside the forest.

Libby saw us off, telling us to come back safely and not to worry about things here.

"Put these on."

Verity brought out three cloaks of invisibility.

These too were obtained through my wishes. It was a measure to reduce the cost of my nosebleed that was keeping the demons working overtime.

"If you pull the hood attached to the cloak all the way down over your head, it will erase not only your appearance but also your presence."

"Wow...!"

I quickly wrapped myself in the cloak.

"How much money could we make if we sold this...!"

"You've got a serious case of greed, my Lady. That's incurable, you know."

The three of us, cloaked, carefully watched the area outside the primeval forest.

Outside the forest was filled with heavily armed knights. They all wore swords at their waists. There were also large, wheeled cannons.

There were people who weren't knights too. Ian muttered, "Even court mages are here."

"What about those people in white?"

"Priests."

Click.

And then another click.

More skillfully than three days ago, I opened the barrier of the primeval forest, and we finally stepped outside.

The knights didn't notice us with our hoods pulled down.

Thanks to that, we could eavesdrop on their conversations up close.

"I heard the barrier inside the primeval forest was released and the exile camp was devastated..."

"They say that was a monster summoned by the dead Clavis with their own lives—to take revenge on the Emperor."

"So that's why the Emperor went down to his southern villa?"

"I heard only the guard's head made it out..."

"What's going to happen to the Clavis fortune? Are the Emperor and the nobles going to split it? No news yet?"

From the knights' conversation, I picked up on an important fact.

'The imperial family was jealous of the Clavis.'

If so, the Clavis might have been framed too.

'And it feels like the Clavis knew but still went along with it...'

Just then.

"......"

"......"

Our eyes met with someone's.

Amidst the bustling crowd, a lone man standing still was quietly staring in our direction.

'Wh-what?'

Could he see us?

Then the man began to walk toward us.

His steps were quiet but heavy, stopping right in front of my nose.

Ian quietly pulled me into his embrace, and Verity looked at the man with an intrigued gaze.

Black hair, a teardrop mole under his right eye.

A dark purple coat draped over his shoulders.

A face that was hard to age.

The knights who had been chatting just moments ago snapped to attention and saluted.

"Ch-Chief Chamberlain!"

"Sorry for interrupting your rest."

"N-not at all...!"

"Exchanging information during patrol..."

"Then I must have been mistaken. I thought you were making such a ruckus because you were resting."

Wow.

'What a savage burn...!'

I admired it silently.

"It seems Knight Commander Rashid has found out something about the primeval forest. I believe he's looking for you all as well."

"Ah, thank you for letting us know!"

"Excuse us!"

The knights fled as if running away.

The Chief Chamberlain, who had worn a gentle smile, wiped it off in an instant and turned away.

"...Let's get going too."

As I followed Verity and Ian, I kept glancing back.

The Chief Chamberlain's back remained perfectly still, as if he were once again staring intently at something.

Outside the primeval forest, which I was seeing for the first time, a green plain stretched endlessly to the horizon.

This vast plain made the primeval forest standing tall in the center look like a mountain.

I couldn't enjoy this magnificent view.

"Wow."

Verity looked at my forehead with round eyes.

"You're sweating so much? Is it because you're a baby with good metabolism?"

"I'm twenty-five, not a baby."

"Hebenia, you're seven. And you really are drenched in sweat."

Ian showed me the back of his hand, which he'd used to wipe my forehead.

It was covered in sweat.

'...I was scared.'

I don't usually get scared easily. I've often been told I lack a sense of danger, that I've lost the ability to feel fear.

Even when the guard choked and hit me, I was angry, not scared.

I quickly got used to hunting monsters too.

Yet just seeing one person made me react like this.

I placed my hand on my chest. My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might break my ribs.

"Ian oppa."

I asked.

"What does the Chief Chamberlain do?"

"He's the Emperor's closest aide. Hmm, like a secretary?"

"Is he strong?"

"I don't know for sure. But rumors say he's strong."

"I see."

But Ian's words didn't end there.

"But..."

Ian gazed at the primeval forest.

"He doesn't seem just strong."

"Didn't you know before?"

Verity asked.

"Yes. I'd never met him before, so I just thought, well, that's what they say..."

Ian's gaze as he looked back at the primeval forest was peculiar.

"Perhaps the rumors don't fully capture his strength."

Now cold sweat was beginning to form on Ian's forehead as well.

---

After walking for a full hour from the exile camp, we reached a small village, and then took a carriage for about thirty minutes to arrive at the Deste territory.

It was like a fantastical magical world straight out of a fairy tale or novel.

'So this is what they mean by a whole new world.'

As I stared in awe, unable to close my mouth, a small train running along the ground came into view.

The train circulated through the territory on tracks embedded in the ground, picking up and dropping off many passengers.

"It's a magic-powered surface train—called a tram."

"Tram..."

"The Clavis family developed it and spread it across the country. See that?"

Ian pointed to the lock-shaped emblem painted on the train.

"Yeah. A diamond-shaped lock."

"That represents the Clavis-affiliated subsidiaries. The Clavis symbol is a key, so all related businesses and foundations use a lock as their mark."

"One of the inheritances my Lady might have received someday."

"Ugh, Mom and Dad! Why did you commit such crazy acts and leave your only daughter destitute?"

"Hebenia, you're not an only child. You have an older brother."

"I had a birth secret too?"

"It's not a secret..."

I kept watching the tram until it turned the corner and disappeared, until the lock on its body was out of sight.

Clavis.

Even during my labor in the exile camp, I'd asked the adults from time to time and gathered what information I could.

'Though they were all utterly unreliable.'

An arrogant family that gave away their noble title to their pet dog.

Meritorious subjects greater than the Emperor.

Ridiculously wealthy people who had too much money.

An evil clan that even demons served.

And yet, in the end, they were traitors who had their entire family wiped out for attempting to assassinate the Crown Princess.

'...They seem like they'd be alive.'

Just as I had a mysterious power, other Clavis members surely had tremendous power too.

Even I, who had only recently awakened my power, had survived like this.

I had a strong conviction that the other Clavis were hiding somewhere, happily watching all of this unfold.

"By the way."

While Ian was securing the inn, I waited outside with Verity, quietly watching the passersby.

For the record, our cover story was that we were three pitiful siblings who had come all the way to the border to find our father who had abandoned us.

"Verity, do you know anything?"

"About what?"

"About the Clavis. You seem to know something."

"Hmm..."

After a moment of thought, Verity said this.

"Bastards of the highest order?"

"Oh dear..."

It seemed even here, I had no luck with family.

If even a demon spoke that harshly of them, it was over.

'Well, I wasn't expecting anything anyway.'

I consoled myself that it was a relief my expectations had dropped so low—there was no point getting hurt by hoping half-heartedly.

Just then, Ian, who had finished paying for the lodging, came out.

"It's been a while since I talked to a stranger..."

Ian's face was filled with lingering tension. It was because he was unfamiliar with the 'ordinary life' and 'freedom' he hadn't felt in a long time.

The exile family waiting for us in the primeval forest would feel the same.

'The Emperor really must not be forgiven.'

Personally, I didn't have any particular grudge against the Emperor. Regardless of his intentions, everything that happened because of him had actually worked out positively for me.

But after seeing Ian's expression just now, I would never forgive him.

"...Let's come out often."

I took Ian's hand and said.

"Go sightseeing, and visit our families."

"......"

"We can do it. I'll help you."

"Without you..."

Ian's voice trembled slightly.

"Really, what would have happened to us?"

"We'd have been killed by the guards. Or become monster food."

"Hahaha."

"What's so funny?"

Feeling embarrassed for no reason, I lightly kicked Ian's leg with my foot.

"Let's get moving."

We had a lot to do.

"We're going to the herbalist first, right?"

At Verity's words, I nodded.

Before leaving the village, Aunt Elva had given us some Dulcevia to sell, in case we got hurt.

'We'll check the current market price and also get a sense of how the world is doing. And while we're at it, we can use the money from selling the herbs to buy things.'

"Aunt Elva said it's an incredibly expensive and rare herb."

Ian muttered.

"How expensive could it be?"

"Maybe the herbalist will propose marriage."

"Haha, that's ridiculous."

"You never know."

I shrugged lightly.

"It's such a valuable herb—maybe he'll propose to you to monopolize it."

---

The herbalist was an old man with a long, stiff beard.

"Marry me."

After appraising the Dulcevia, he proposed to Ian.

"Pardon...?"

"Brother, congratulations on your engagement!"

"See, I was right! Welcome, new sister-in-law!"

At the congratulations from his insane siblings, Ian felt dizzy before his eyes.

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