She's Not Our Daughter! Ch 96

A Cute Little Bird

[Hanael] "Hanael is here!"

She stood majestically, but in contrast, her plump hands trembled. Sierra sprang to her feet.

[Hanael] "Huh?"

She blinked, looking at Sierra.

[Hanael] "Why?"

[Sierra] "No, Hanael. I told you not to use that power......"

[Hanael] "......But it keeps coming out!"

Hanael stared at Sierra with wide eyes. In fact, she couldn't control the mana flowing from her hands. She had always controlled her blue water mana perfectly until now......

[Sierra] "Hanael?"

[Hanael] "I want to stop it......"

She wore a miserable face for a long moment. Perplexity gripped Sierra as well. Why did the child suddenly lose control like this?

Sierra brushed her hair back. Martial law was about to be declared, so she couldn't leave Hanael behind at the ducal mansion.

Until now, leaving Hanael inside the mansion was perfectly safe because it was a time of peace, not war. During wartime, the imperial family could personally inspect the territories of the nobility. Until now, no member of the imperial family possessed the audacity to approach Duke Ideos' estate. However......

If I leave her at the mansion without Cassius, Hanael's identity will be exposed.

Expecting the Grand Madam to remain behind and protect Hanael without Duke Ideos was far too optimistic. Though she was famous in high society, she couldn't withstand a determined assault from the Crown Prince.

If the Crown Prince visits the mansion under these circumstances, he will definitely discover that Hanael possesses the blue mana.

Sierra narrowed her brow, falling deep into thought.

[Hanael] "Why?"

Sierra pressed her temple as she watched Hanael fail to hide the blue aura. It was strange. Why could the child suddenly no longer conceal that energy?

[Sierra] "I told you to hide this."

[Hanael] "I twied, I twied to hide it...... but it just suddenly became like this yesterday!"

She studied Hanael's eyes deeply. The child's eyes contained not a single trace of deceit. Sierra was Hanael's primary caretaker, so she would definitely know if the child mixed in even a small lie.

[Sierra] "My baby."

Hanael raised her plump hands to hide her face briefly, then uncovered it and grinned brightly.

[Hanael] "Uh-huh! Your baby!"

Her flawlessly clear green eyes left a nagging feeling in Sierra's heart.

[Sierra] "Wait, just a moment......"

She stared intently at Hanael.

Assuming disaster strikes if I leave Hanael here, what should I do?

No matter how much she thought about it, her only option was to take the child along personally. What if she disguised Hanael thoroughly to keep her identity hidden? It carried a potential danger. However...... Sierra recalled the training she had practiced extensively with her older sister.

Indeed, Amille had trained her as if she knew a day like this would come.

[Amille] "My baby, my Sierra."

[Sierra] "Yes, Sister! My sister Amille!"

[Amille] "Now that you've finished making all those medicines, shall we try making a potion that transforms people into animals?"

[Sierra] "But Sister, I'm scared of animals!"

[Amille] "You must do it anyway."

[Sierra] "Why?"

[Amille] "Because it's a task you absolutely must know how to perform."

Sierra closed her eyes, then opened them.

[Sierra] "Can't you do it, Sister? Do I really have to do it?"

[Amille] "Yes, I can't do it. My Sierra absolutely must do it."

[Sierra] "Wow, is there really something that someone as amazing as you can't do?"

When she said that, Amille had nodded with a grave, slightly somber expression.

Her sister's strict face remained vivid in her memory. Sierra quietly recalled her sister, who used to scold her terribly. For some unknown reason, Amille had insisted that she must master the animal transformation potion.

It isn't as if she foresaw a day like today.

Amille was no prophet, and magic and prophecy were fundamentally opposing fields of study.

Thinking back, many aspects were highly suspicious.

In truth, Amille frequently stood detached from the world. Yet, when teaching Sierra certain techniques, she acted as if failure would result in death.

Consequently, at this exact moment, Sierra easily brewed a potion that temporarily transformed a human into an animal. When a human became an animal, the flow of their mana altered to a certain degree. Thus, it would deceive the Crown Prince's eyes for a short while.

And so......

[Sierra] "Did it work?"

After feeding the flawless pink potion to the little child, Sierra clasped her hands together as if in prayer. This particular medicine absolutely had to be free of side effects.

A tiny baby bird materialized before her eyes in an instant.

[Hanael] "Cheep!"

A round body, snowy white feathers, sparkling eyes like black beans, and a yellow beak. The identity of this cute, tiny baby bird was none other than......

[Sierra] "My baby."

......Hanael.

Sierra stroked the soft feathers, staring at the tiny bird that chirped continuously.

[Hanael] "Cheep, cheep!"

[Sierra] "Now, sit here."

[Hanael] "Cheep!"

Sierra firmly tied the magical thread connected to Hanael's wing around her own wrist.

Any other animal would arouse suspicion, but a bird was a different story. Noblewomen participating in a war were rare. However, some noblewomen occasionally sent out messenger birds to gather high society gossip even from the battlefield. Thanks to this practice, bringing a messenger bird drew no suspicion.

What a relief.

Now, only the task of fully protecting Hanael remained.

---

The vanguard camp preparing to depart for the base camp was assembled rapidly.

Sierra yawned, rubbing the dark circles under her eyes. From any angle, she presented a sickly appearance. In truth, this stemmed from spending the entire night agonizing over whether decapitating the Crown Prince was her only option to rescue her sister.

Sierra rubbed her eyes, slumping her shoulders. Yet, she accomplished something rewarding. She let out a low chuckle, looking down at the tiny white crow-tit perched on the back of her hand.

[Hanael] "Cheeeep!"

Several maids around Sierra gasped in admiration.

[Maid] "Oh my, what an adorable bird!"

[Maid] "It's a messenger bird, right?"

Sierra tapped the bird's beak and chuckled softly.

[Sierra] "Ah...... Isn't she cute?"

[Maid] "Yes."

[Hanael] "Cheeeep!"

Of course, to anyone else, it sounded like mere chirping. To Sierra's ears, however, it translated clearly. She smiled and gently stroked the messenger bird's bright yellow beak.

[Hanael] "Cheep, cheeeep! (I'm not a chatty messenger bird! I'm Hanael!)"

[Sierra] "Is that so?"

She pretended not to understand, casually smoothing the bird's feathers.

[Hanael] "Cheep! (Hanael is a genius!)"

Sierra wore a happy expression upon hearing the cute chirps.

So cute, you little silly.

She understood Hanael's words perfectly now. She had secured the bond firmly. She could cradle the bird in her embrace when sleeping.

It would only last for about two days, so everything would be fine. She believed this with absolute certainty. However......

......Her flawless expectations were completely shattered.

Only a few minutes prior, Sierra, who joined the expedition under the guise of a healer, unpacked her luggage. She touched the messenger bird tied to her wrist.

[Hanael] "Cheep! (I'm bored!)"

Sierra spoke in a low voice, audible only to Hanael.

[Sierra] "......Let's return quickly. We only need to finish the scouting mission."

She paced around quietly, taking measured steps. The doctors, pharmacists, and healers inside the tent looked puzzled by her behavior, but nothing more came of it. Sierra differed from ordinary pharmacists; she commanded Cassius' total favor. She even occupied a completely separate tent......

Sierra stepped outside the base camp briefly to fetch drinking water. Although Cassius told her not to perform such menial chores, she needed to play the part since she accompanied the force as a pharmacist.

However......

I took a wrong turn.

She froze, looking down at the trickling stream. Small, earthworm-like creatures began to emerge from the intensely blue water. Stepping back hesitantly, she slipped her hand into her inner breast pocket. She planned to release the poison contained inside.

But Hanael proved to be an unexpected variable. She spoke to Sierra in a tiny voice.

[Hanael] "Cheep, cheep, cheep! (They keep staring at me!)"

[Sierra] "It's fine, I'll kill them."

Yet, the monsters moved faster than she could spread the poison. They gathered around her as if offering worship. However, they didn't intend to threaten her. No, they were not approaching Sierra at all. The monsters surrounded the messenger bird—specifically, Hanael—as if worshipping her.

Sierra held her breath sharply and looked around.

[Hanael] "......Cheep! (What is this!)"

Hanael panicked, and Sierra felt equally bewildered. Looking into Hanael's tiny, bean-like eyes, Sierra also wanted to demand an answer from someone. Why on earth did these monsters follow Hanael?

[Sierra] "What in the world is this......"

Sierra wore a bewildered expression. She wiped her face with her free hand, looking down at her surroundings. Initially, she assumed the monsters attacked Hanael. Looking closer, however, the monsters clearly followed her.

[Hanael] "Cheeeep! (Should I tell them to go away?)"

[Sierra] "What did you do? Huh?"

[Hanael] "Cheep! (I don't know! I just did it!)"

Sierra looked around in bewilderment. Yet, Hanael grew excited that the monsters obeyed her so well, chirping continuously to drive them away. With a single flap of her wings, the monsters scrambled to fly outward.

Sierra let out a short sigh, looking at the bizarre creatures.

[Sierra] "Right......"

At her faint tone, Hanael flapped her wings excitedly.

[Hanael] "Cheeeep! (Go away!)"

It was a cute, chirping voice. Yet, the impact of those words was anything but cute. Several monsters gathered around Hanael turned sharply and fled. Left alone, Sierra gaped in sheer disbelief.

Hurrying into the tent, Sierra summoned Cassius.

[Sierra] "Cassius."

Sierra grabbed his cravat as if seizing him by the collar. Cassius quietly lowered his posture to match hers. They stood so close their noses almost touched. As their breath mingled, she whispered in a dangerously low voice.

[Sierra] "Could the reason the monsters gather specifically around Hanael be because of......"

Sierra gasped, addressing Cassius.

[Sierra] "......the blue water mana?"

Was the blue water mana Hanael possessed the key to drawing the monsters?

If so......

The pieces of the Crown Prince's conspiracy were falling into place one by one.

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