The Male Lead I Raised Is Obsessed With Me

Episode 48

The Chaot Territory was a small peaceful territory near the capital.

But one day, strange things began to happen.

The first to disappear was the son of an ordinary farmer.

At first, people thought he had been attacked by a wild animal or a monster.

But a week later, another child disappeared.

This time, it was the child of an administrator working in the castle.

From then on, people began to feel odd.

When a child disappeared for the third time, villagers started to keep their child by their side and never separated from them.

But another child disappeared.

By the time the number of children who had disappeared exceeded 20, the Duke of Valfruga and his troops arrived at the village.

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“I read it in the report, but it’s much more peaceful than I thought.”

Usually, when a monster appeared, the village was often burned down and would be in ruins, but here, sheeps were grazing in the field.

“Perhaps it’s an intelligent monster.”

Luc, sitting on the opposite side of the carriage, said.

“Ones that imitate humans?”

“Yes. There are only a few of them, but those are more tricky. Unlike ordinary monsters, they can think for themselves and know how to disguise themselves among people. But in this case, it might be better than a pack of monsters.”

“There are ones that move in groups and ones that don’t, right?”

“Yes. It’ll be hard for me to deal with a lot of monsters alone. So this type of monster is better for me. One that usually moves alone.”

“Let me know if you need any help! I’ll do it secretly, but I’m here to help!”

The knight with a red bull crest from the Duke of Summerhield said.

“Ha, what do you mean secretly? You’ll get caught. I’ll tell the Duke of Iswed right away.”

This time, it was the knight wearing a blue eagle crest from the Duke of Iswed who spoke.

“What’s your problem, birdbrained?”

“You doofus cow!”

I looked at the two knights who were sitting in front of me with a look of contempt on their faces.

They were the knights who were sent out to monitor whether we were receiving any help from others during this test.

‘At this point, it seemed as if one side was only thinking of how to help out, while the other was busy trying to find fault in everything……’

The knight of Duke Summerhield looked at me and winked.

I nodded my head, indicating that he was doing good.

For fairness, two families sent out a knight, but I asked for him to do just one thing before we left.

‘Make sure to catch the attention of the knight from the Iswed Duchy.’

The more the knight from the Duke of Summerhield showed signs of assisting, the greater the knight from the Duke of Iswed would be on his nerves.

‘That way, it’ll be more effective for us to make our move.’

I touched the item I held in my arms.

It was a letter from Marquis Reholas.

The contents of the letter were as follows.

[Soon, the Duke of Valfurga will head to the Chaot Territory. Summon the monsters at the right time and kill the Duke of Valfurga.]

Of course, it was not actually sent by the Marquis himself, but it was a well-forged letter.

I had no intention of letting Marquis Reholas go, after sending us all the way here.

If we timed it correctly and placed it where the monster was summoned, we would be able to fully eliminate Marquis Reholas.

‘Of course, we’d have to kill the monster and survive before that.’

When the carriage finally arrived at the Chaot Territory, the lord, Viscount Chaot, welcomed us.

“Haha, I heard of the news. I heard that solving our territory’s issue is part of the Duke’s test?”

Viscount Chaot looked at the knight accompanying us and said.

“Are you offended?”

He shook his head at Luc’s question.

“How could that be? It would be fortunate if you can solve the problem of our territory like this.”

We decided to meet a man who claimed that he witnessed the monster.

Shortly after, a man with a grim look was called to the drawing room.

His name was Garun.

He runs a mill in the village and is the father of the fourth child who disappeared.

“I saw it with my own two eyes. There was someone who took him.”

He began to tell his story with a sad expression.

“After three children had gone missing, all the villagers had their children sleep next to them. It was the same for our family. With our child in the middle, my wife and I hugged our child tightly on both sides and fell asleep. If someone were to take our child, there’s no way we would miss it.”

The man’s voice began to tremble slowly, as if it was difficult to recall the situation at the time.

“But that night, I felt something cold in my back instinctively. When I opened my eyes, the spot where my child slept was empty. I woke my wife up to look for our child, and I saw her standing outside the window. When I was about to shout her name…”

The man’s tanned face turned white in an instant.

“At that moment, she just disappeared.”

“Are you saying that it was the work of a monster simply because she disappeared?”

He shook his head at Luc’s question.

“No. It can’t be. It’s impossible to do that unless it’s a monster. The shadows were dancing. It was as if the shadow of the trees around the child were excited……Then, it suddenly rose up and swallowed that child. What else could it be if it isn’t the work of a monster?”

A shadow……

Suddenly, I recalled that Blackie said there was something strange living in Luc’s shadow.

I looked at Luc’s shadow.

It was the shadow of a normal person.

After sending the man out, only the two of us were left in the room and Luc made a grim look.

“I’ll start by finding that monster first. It could be hiding somewhere, but it’ll be troublesome if they mix among the villagers.”

“Perhaps it is someone who works in the castle.”

Luc asked in response to my words.

“Why do you think so?”

“Look at this. It’s a map of where the children were living so far.”

I pulled out a thick report I had looked into beforehand, and flipped to the part about the missing children.

“Notice that most of them live close to the castle? The farther it is from the castle, the less trouble there is.”

I traced the castle and its surroundings in a circle with my index finger.

“The missing children were between the ages of five to ten. It’s the age where they’re too young to go out alone. The monster probably lives around here while searching for targets.”

“Then, it could live near the village. Is there any reason why you’re so sure it’s from the castle?”

“A child of an administrator working in the castle has also disappeared.”

As if realising something, Luc’s eyes gradually widened.

“As you know, administrators usually stay in the castle. And so, an administrator’s child would also live in the castle.”

“They might have been from the village.”

“That could be, but if it’s a monster that is smart, I don’t think they would do that.”

“Because they don’t know what’s inside the castle?”

“That’s right.”

I nodded and continued.

“They don’t know how strong the knights in the castle are, and if they sneak in to take the child, it could expose their identity. In that case, it would be better to give up the child living in the castle and aim for the child of a farmer without any knight guarding them.”

Luc said in an eager tone.

“Then it must be someone who can freely travel between the castle and village. Most of the children disappeared from the village.”

“Yes. In particular, three people were recently hired this year since the kidnapping.”

I turned over the report again and pointed to the part about the Chaot territory.

“A hunter, a knight and the viscount’s doctor.”

“Then we should investigate those three first. You’re amazing, sister! How did you come up with all these ideas?”

“I’ve seen it before somewhere.”

I never thought what I picked up from documentaries before transmigrating would be so helpful.

“But putting it into practice is different! As expected, sister is the best in the world! I didn’t it would be this easy to narrow down to a suspect! I was worried when you said you would follow me, but……In the end, I feel relieved when sister is here.”

“It would be all in vain if the monster doesn’t show itself and just hides. Blackie, do you have the ability to detect monsters?”

Blackie poked his head out of the pocket on my lap.

[I could instinctively feel it, but…]

“Luc can’t understand if you speak in your dragon form.”

When Blackie jumped out of the pocket, white snowflakes flew in the air.

When my vision came back, I saw Blackie who turned into his human form.

He stood on two legs and spoke.

“I could roughly feel them, but it’s not accurate enough to point out who is the monster. This whole village has a strong demonic energy.”

But Luc rose up from his chair with a terrifying look.

I thought that he was wary of the stranger who suddenly appeared, so I stepped up and introduced him.

“Oh, right. Luc has never seen Blackie’s human form, right? After feeding him gems, he is now able to turn into a human too! Isn’t that amazing?”

However, that might have not been the case. Luc, who was normally cute like a fairy, glared at Blackie with a terrifying look.

“You…You could have been a human being too?”

Before I knew it, Luc held a sword in his hand.

“……You wicked thing. You must have been lying this whole time to stick by sister’s side, right?”

“Calm down, Luc. Blackie is just a divine beast.”

“T-That’s right. I don’t have the slightest bit of interest towards the Master.”

Blackie said, hiding his large body behind me.

Then, Luc said firmly.

“You’re lying to reassure me, aren’t you? There is no one in this world who has no interest towards sister.”

Luc, just how great do you think of me?

My cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

“But Luc, Blackie is truly like a pet.”

“That’s right. My real body is a dragon, so I’m an animal. I’m not a human.”

Blackie gave up his human rights with a desperate nod.

But Luc continued to glare at Blackie with a cold face.

“After all, you’re my husband. It’s not like I’m going to have an affair with Blackie.”

Luc’s expression softened at my words.

“But……”

When I stretched my arms out, Luc threw his sword to the ground and rushed towards me.

And he sat on the floor and hung on my waist.

“What are you so angry about?”

As I gently brushed Luc’s soft hair, Luc puffed his cheeks out.

“But I’m jealous.”

“Blackie is just a pet.”

“Then I’ll be your pet too.”

Luc looked up at me.

And his white cheeks flushed slightly.

“Woof.”

I melted.

It was so adorable that I kissed Luc on the cheek as if it was a real puppy without realising.

Luc’s face turned red.

“…You don’t like it?”

Well, even at the age of five, everyone says they hate kissing.

Luc shook his head vigorously and slowly stuck out his other cheek.

“Do it here, too.”

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That night, Blackie stared at Lucius sleeping next to Felia while swinging his tail wildly.

‘I can’t sleep because I’m worried at the thought of you sleeping together alone. From now on, can Luc sleep with sister everyday?’

That sly fox Lucius glanced at him and made a request.

Thanks to that, his bed was changed from a soft bed to a hard table.

Fortunately, Felia was worried about him and gave him a pillow and blanket.

Blackie, who had slowly fallen into a dreamland, felt someone grab him by the neck.

‘Who……!’

He tried to use his powers, but he couldn’t lift a finger.

When he came back to his senses, he was buried in the garden behind the castle.

Blackie blankly blinked his eyes and saw the criminal who kidnapped him.

It was Lucius.

With his back facing the moonlight, he dug the ground using the sword he held and spoke.

“I told you. I’ll make you into a soup.”

The pale face that shone under the moonlight looked innocent.

Had Felia seen it, she would have admired how Luc was pretty even at night, but unfortunately, it only enhanced Blackie’s fear.

His red eyes glowed brightly in the dark.

Blackie lowered his eyes to avoid Lucius’ gaze.

At that moment, he noticed Lucius’ shadow on the ground.

“Since sister kissed me, I won’t turn you into soup, but I’ll warn you again because animals are so stupid.”

It was a beast with black fur and red eyes that he had seen the other day.

‘Again……!’

It was not an illusion.

This time, he was looking straight into his eyes, giving a warning.

Lucius spoke with eyes identical to the beast.

“If I find you near sister’s bed again, then……”

Lucius’ voice lowered menacingly.

“I’m really going to neuter you. You said you were a beast, so you won’t have any complaints, right?”

[Master! Help me!]

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When I woke up in the morning, Luc was beside me, resting on his chin while looking at me.

“Luc, did you not sleep?”

“No, I slept, but I woke up early because I missed sister.”

Luc said, burrowing into my arms.

“Did you sleep well, too?”

Blackie nodded his head desperately.

It felt like his scales were less shiny today……

After washing up and eating breakfast, we decided to meet the suspects right away.

The first target was the viscount’s doctor.

When I met him in the clinic, he seemed to be easily liked by people with his smart clothes and compassionate expression. 

“My name is Xaril. I heard the news from the Viscount. I heard you wanted to see me for this monster case?”

“Yes, I thought we might be able to get some help from you.”

“I don’t know much about monsters, but if there’s anything I can assist with, I’ll be happy to help.”

“Really? I’m glad you said so.”

I took a step back, widened the distance and said.

“Luc, kill him.”