Chapter 8
Ten minutes before we ran away from the pretty witch lady.
“Say hello. She’s my daughter.”
Daughter? But Mister isn’t my daddy.
“(I’m not your daughter, Mister! I’m my daddy’s daughter!)”
I wildly swung my feet, which were dangling in midair, but the mister simply smiled brightly and said,
“Yeah, yeah. I know. Let’s get something delicious to eat later.”
“(Why are you saying I’m your daughter? I’m not!)”
“Mmm, sure. I’ll buy you a drink, too.”
“(Nooo! I’m telling you, I’m not your daughter! We don’t even look alike!)”
I was so annoyed that I narrowed my eyes into sharp little slits and glared at him.
But the mister didn’t even bat an eye.
After glaring at him for a while, I decided to unleash my ultimate attack to express my anger.
Smack! Smack!
I slapped the back of his hand!
āI-Impossible!ā
I’d hit him with all my strength, but not only did his skin fail to turn red, he didn’t even seem to notice he’d been struck.
Could this monster mister actually be a real monster?
I was so shocked that I was about to examine him more closely when my eyes met the pretty lady’s.
Her gaze was so terrifying that my entire body froze.
“…Your daughter?”
The mister gave the pretty lady a cheerful, sly smile.
“What do you think? She looks exactly like me, doesn’t she? They say the first daughter takes after her father, and it turns out they’re right. Ahh, she’s so pretty because she inherited my looks.”
His enormous hand roughly rubbed my face.
“Ueeek!”
He was so strong that a strange noise escaped my mouth.
“You were married?”
“Well, not exactly. I just got a little ahead of myself and had a kid before getting married.”
“What? It wasn’t enough that you’ve been fooling around with so many women, and now you even have a child…?”
The pretty lady’s eyes flashed dangerously.
And at that very momentā
“(UWAGYAGYAGYAGYAK!)”
“Aaagh!”
The mister suddenly grabbed me tightly and began running like a madman.
Over his shoulder, I could see the pretty lady.
“(Gasp!)”
The lady who had looked as beautiful as an angel now had her hair floating and writhing in midair.
Black light began gathering around both her hands.
“(A-a wicked witch?!)”
“CASSIAN CALYPSOOOO! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”
A mass of pitch-black light shot toward the mister and me.
As it approached, the darkness transformed into sharp, pointed thorns.
“Damn it! I forgot she was a mage!”
Those thorns looked like they’d hurt so much that I’d never be able to get back up if they pierced me.
Just before the black thorns struck, the mister twisted his body slightly.
The thorns slammed into the ground instead.
CRAAACK!
The ground split open and shattered into pieces.
“(WAAAAH! I DON’T WANNA DIE! MOMMYYYY!)”
Terrified, I wrapped my arms tightly around the mister’s neck.
“Gack! Stop strangling me! I can’t breathe!”
“(UWAAAAH! THE WICKED WITCH SHOT MORE THORNS! HURRYYYY!)”
“H-Hey! Squirt! I said I can’t breathe! Gaaack!”
“(RUN FASTER! I’M SCARED!)”
The mister had such long legs that whenever he ran, the wind roared past us like a storm.
And because of that, I couldn’t help tightening my arms around his neck again and again.
“STOP RIGHT THERE! CASSIAN CALYPSO!”
The wicked witch came flying through the air toward us.
Whoosh!
But she didn’t even have wings!
How in the world is she flying?
With her hair whipping wildly in the wind, she looked just like the monster under the bed.
The mister was very good at dodging the thorns flying at us from every direction.
But there was one problem.
We’d reached the end of an alley, and there was nowhere left to run.
“Ah. We’re screwed.”
The mister scratched his head.
I was so frightened that a little snot trickled from my nose.
“(Huuuwaaaah…)”
“Hey, hey. Don’t cry. It’s okay. Mister’s really good at hiding.”
“(UWAAAAH! MOMMYYYY! TEACHER ANNE-MARIEEE! I DON’T WANNA DIEEEE! WAAAAH!)”
Beyond the alley, I could see a shadow with long, writhing hair.
The shadow descended onto the ground.
Step. Step.
Footsteps echoed through the alley.
At the same time, an angry voice rang out.
“How dare you be so handsome when you already have a child?! I should have you stuffed and mounted in my castle! Your insides can disappear, but I’ll keep your beautiful exterior forever!”
W-wait…
She’s not going to stuff me and hang me on a wall too, is she?
My heart thumped wildly.
I was just about to burst into terrified sobs whenā
The mister opened the lid of a trash can tucked away in the corner.
Then, still holding me, he squeezed his entire body inside.
He carefully closed the lid above us.
“Shh!”
His voice whispered through the darkness, telling me to be quiet.
I wanted to sniffle and suck my runny nose back in, but I did as the mister told me and held my breath.
It was smelly, dark, and terribly cramped.
I hated it.
But strangely, I didn’t feel dirty.
That was because the mister was holding my head tightly against his chest and wrapping his body around mine, so hardly any of the filthy garbage touched me.
Thump! Thump!
I could hear my heart pounding.
No, wait.
Was that the mister’s heartbeat?
“What? Where did he go?”
The wicked witch’s voice echoed outside.
Flinch!
I trembled, and the mister slowly stroked my back.
He wasn’t as soft and comforting as Mommy or Teacher Anne-Marie.
But he was unusually warm.
And for some strange reason, that warmth gradually made me feel safer.
Little by little, my fear faded.
Soon, it started to feel as though we were playing hide-and-seek.
My terror disappeared, replaced by nervousness and a thrilling sense of excitement.
āIt’s like we escaped from the candy house and are hiding from the wicked witch!ā
My heart began pounding with excitement.
Step. Step.
The footsteps stopped directly in front of the trash can.
Now my heart really felt like it was going to explode.
I heard someone grab the trash can lid.
I squeezed my eyes shut and held my breath.
No! Please don’t open it!
Perhaps my prayers had been answered.
“No way. There’s no chance the great Cassian Calypso would hide in a trash can. He’s a war hero, after all.”
The footsteps gradually faded into the distance.
Even after the wicked witch had gone far away, the mister and I remained hidden inside the trash can for quite some time.
I rolled my eyes around in the darkness.
Eventually, the mister kicked the lid open and climbed out.
“Haaaah! It stinks! Ugh, this is disgusting!”
Fresh, clean air brushed against my cheeks.
Pieces of garbage that had been resting on the mister’s head fell to the ground.
Plop. Plop.
āThat was actually kind of fun.ā
Maybe…
Maybe this mister is a pretty fun person after all?
Why?
Just a moment ago, the little squirt had looked ready to burst into tears.
Yet now her eyes were sparkling brightly.
āWas the shock too much for her?ā
Cassian grabbed the little girl’s face and gently turned it from side to side, examining her.
She didn’t seem to be injured anywhere, but…
“(Mister! That was kinda fun!)”
“Are you okay?”
“(Yup!)”
“Tsk. I think you might’ve been frightened out of your mind.”
“(It felt like we were playing the best hide-and-seek in the whole world!)”
“Hmm. Well, whatever. As long as you’re okay.”
Then again, he had been the one carrying her while running, and he’d also been the one dodging the magical thorns.
There was no particular reason the little squirt shouldn’t be perfectly fine.
The problem was that he couldn’t take her to the orphanage looking like this.
His entire body reeked of garbage.
Even if he proudly waved his certificate confirming his impotence in their faces and raised his voice, he’d only make a fool of himself.
It would be better to wash up properly and go tomorrow.
“Haah. What a miserable life.”
Still, going straight home now would feel like a waste of the trip.
So Cassian decided to continue with his originally planned schedule.
“I always knew this day would come.”
The tattoo artist clicked his tongue as he looked back and forth between Cassian and the little squirt.
“She’s not my kid.”
“What are you talking about? She looks exactly like you.”
“Ah, I told you she’s not!”
The tattoo artist studied the two of them sitting side by side.
Upon closer inspection, there were plenty of differences between their features.
But at first glance, they looked so alike that anyone would have called them the spitting image of each other.
“Same hair color, same eye color, and even your jawlines are so similar that it’s hard to explain unless you’re related by blood. Not to mention the swirls in your hair, your earlobes, and even the shape of your fingers. They’re exactly the same.”
Even the way they were sitting was identical.
“Who’s the mother? Emma? Evelyn? Lauren? Odelle?”
“Say one more word. I dare you.”
Cassian warned him with a sharp glare.
Then, while still seated, he casually pulled off his shirt.
The moment he did, the tattoos covering his shoulders, chest, and sides were fully revealed.
His body was so densely covered in ink that it was almost surprising the tattoos hadn’t reached his neck.
Intricate designs covered both the front and back of his torso.
There was only one place left untouched.
The left side of his chest, directly over his heart.
A massive scar occupied that spot.
Even someone with no medical knowledge would immediately recognize that it must have come from an extremely serious injury.
“I’ve decided to go with the design we discussed last time.”
“Wouldn’t it be better not to do it today? I mean, you’ve got a child with you.”
“Do you think I came all the way here today just to hear you say that?”
Cassian frowned.
His already fierce face became even more intimidating.
Apparently, the rumors about him being a war hero weren’t exaggerated.
The tattoo artist was so overwhelmed by that single glare that he couldn’t bring himself to either refuse or agree.
He could only swallow a sigh.
And just thenā
“Huwaaaaaah!”
The little squirt, who had been happily drinking the beverage the tattoo artist had given her, finally noticed Cassian.
Her mouth dropped wide open in astonishment.
When her eyes met Cassian’s, she slowly raised a hand to cover her mouth.
And then…
Scooooot.
She discreetly shifted her bottom sideways, putting a little more distance between herself and him.
“Oh, you’ve got some nerve.”
