Chapter 168: Rare Species
{TL: By Creed}
"Am I strong?"
Aisha looked somewhat proud of herself.
Though she didn't quite grasp the situation, she seemed to understand that what she'd done was remarkable.
"Yes, Aisha-chan, you are strong, and above all else, you're adorable."
"Hug."
Sofia embraced Aisha tightly. She couldn’t resist the charm of her daughter puffing out her chest with pride.
"Is Aisha’s overwhelming magical power because she’s a beastkin?"
"Well, maybe..."
Lyra’s response was hesitant.
After a brief pause, she shook her head.
"No, even a beastkin wouldn’t have this much magical power. It’s impossible."
"Really?"
"I can use a bit of magic, so I can tell. This is truly out of the ordinary. Beastkin do have strong souls, but not to this extent... Ah, wait, there is one possibility..."
As if something had come to mind, Lyra stroked her chin with her fingertips.
"Maybe... this child is a rare breed."
"A rare breed?"
"Beastkin are already a rare race, but there’s an even rarer type among them. They almost never appear in public—there are only a handful of recorded sightings."
"Such a beastkin exists...?"
"They look just like ordinary beastkin, but their soul’s quality is extraordinary. It’s said they possess power tens—no, hundreds of times greater than an ordinary beastkin."
It was an unbelievable story.
Who would have thought Aisha had such a secret?
But it made sense.
With such immense power, it wasn’t surprising that the Dawn Alliance was targeting her.
Though their exact motives for seeking Aisha’s power remained unclear.
"These rare breeds are called ‘Shinko’—Divine Children."
"…Shinko…"
The term could mean "children of the goddess," but its true significance was unclear.
"So, in summary, Aisha is a precious child. Is that fair to say?"
Licorice made the comment.
It was blunt, but not wrong.
"…"
Suddenly, Aisha’s face clouded over.
What was wrong?
"What’s the matter, Aisha-chan?"
"…Mama…"
Aisha hesitated, opening and closing her mouth before slowly forming her words.
"Am I… scary?"
"Huh?"
"Because I seem like a strange beastkin… am I scary?"
It seemed learning about her status as a rare breed had made her anxious.
She was afraid of being disliked because of it.
But that was simply impossible.
"That’s not true at all."
"Fwah."
Sofia gave a gentle smile, like that of a goddess, and softly embraced Aisha.
She then began to gently stroke Aisha's head.
"Even if Aisha-chan is what they call a rare breed, it doesn’t matter. Aisha-chan is my dear, dear daughter."
"…Mama…"
"Yes, Sofia’s absolutely right. I love you, Aisha."
"…Papa…"
Aisha hugged Sofia back and buried her face in her chest…
"Uu…"
…and cried just a little.
Lyra watched over us warmly as we shared that moment.
――――――――――
"If we learn anything else, we’ll contact you."
With those words, we left Lyra's house.
"Mm~♪"
I held her right hand, Sofia held her left, and Aisha was in the middle.
With Licorice perched on her head, Aisha cheerfully hummed a little tune, looking very happy.
I was glad she seemed to be feeling better.
After all, a child’s smile is the best thing, right?
"…Fate."
In a voice that only I could hear, Sofia spoke softly.
"…About Aisha-chan..."
"…Yeah. We’ll need to look into it more, find out more details."
We learned that Aisha seemed to be a beastkin of the rare breed, but that’s all we knew.
We still didn’t understand why the Dawn Alliance was after her.
Until we figured out the reason, it would be difficult to ensure her safety moving forward.
It was something we had to resolve.
…But, it wasn’t just us who wanted to do something about it.
"Dad, Mom."
"Yes, what is it?"
"Um… I have a request."
Sofia and I instinctively exchanged a glance.
It felt like it was the first time Aisha had asked for something.
Of course, we’d love to grant her wish if we could…
But what could she be asking for?
"I… I want to learn magic."
TL Note: Aisha the magician.....
Prediction A: She'll get kidnapped at some point.
ReplyDeletePrediction B (Cooler): She learned enough magic to defend herself and the kidnapping fails. Would be happy if this happens because A happens just far too often in novels but we see.