Baby Squirrel Is Good at Everything-Chapter 67

“Huh?”

Execution?

Beatty's expression revealed her shock at such an unexpected severity. Interpreting her reaction in his own way, the Duke calmly and methodically explained why the Viscountess could not be executed immediately.

“Of course, if you wish, I could have her beheaded this instant. However, the only reason she’s still alive is because of the medicine she brought.”

“Medicine?”

“Yes. We don’t know what kind of tricks she may have pulled with it, so it’s under investigation.”

Naturally, trust in the Viscountess had plummeted to nothing after the way she dared to treat his child back in the capital.

That suspicious elixir she brought? There would be no argument if they were to dispose of it immediately.

‘But... if it really can cure her illness...’

A parent with a sick child—no matter how faint the possibility—could not bear to let go of even the slimmest hope.

If, by any chance, the medicine was truly capable of curing her illness, then they had no choice but to keep the Viscountess alive.

Was it really from the royal family as she claimed? If not, where had she obtained it? How was it made?

There was still information she might possess that needed to be uncovered.

With a solemn expression, the Duke turned to Beatty.

“If the medicine proves effective for your illness, I will hand the criminal over to you.”

Speaking with absolute sincerity, he promised that Beatty would be free to dispose of her as she pleased.

But faced with such a serious statement, Beatty only blinked in confusion.

“My illness?”

Ah, was he talking about the sudden fever she had?

But the doctor had said it wasn’t anything serious. And now, the fever had already gone down.

“I’m fine now.”

“...What?”

“Look, touch here. I’m perfectly fine.” 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Beatty took the Duke’s hand with her small fingers and guided it to her forehead.

“......”

For a moment, the Duke was at a loss for words.

Looking down at his young daughter, who gazed up at him with innocent eyes, his throat tightened.

“...No, not that illness.”

His voice came out hoarse. The sight of those clear, black eyes looking up at him /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ pierced him deeper than any blade.

‘To think she wasn’t even told about her own condition...’

A fresh wave of fury toward the criminal surged within him.

Grinding his teeth, the Duke carefully controlled his tone, making sure not to shock the child.

“Little one, you know you have a weak constitution, don’t you?”

“...I do?”

“In winter, you often lose consciousness, don’t you?”

“Oh, not really.”

“...I see. I did hear that you’ve been staying awake more often since coming here.”

The Duke nodded in relief at that much, though his expression remained complicated.

His daughter had been so fragile since birth. Unlike him or Carl, she hadn’t been able to break even a cradle, let alone wield a training sword—one of Aslan’s special training swords, reinforced with an iron core.

“When Carl and I shattered enough furniture to fill an entire room, you barely managed to make enough splinters to fill a single cradle.”

‘Isn’t that just because Father and Brother are absurdly strong?’

Something about that reasoning seemed off.

Tilting her head, Beatty decided to point out the strangest part of their conversation first.

“But you’re saying my aunt brought me medicine?”

Now that was the most suspicious thing of all.

‘There’s no way my aunt would ever give me something good.’

Nodding to herself in certainty, Beatty watched as the Duke, despite the conversation’s unexpected turn, answered her question with sincerity.

“Yes. They claim it’s the Second Prince’s awakened ability.”

“!”

The mention of Ritter’s name made Beatty’s eyes widen.

‘Wait... awakened ability?’

Unfamiliar with the term, Beatty asked what it meant. But instead of answering immediately, the Duke looked at her with mild surprise.

“You’ve never heard of beastkin’s unique abilities?”

It was something every beastkin should have learned through basic education.

Noticing the unease creeping into his daughter’s expression at his question, the Duke quickly reassured her.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about, little one. You’re at the age where you can ask about anything.”

“...Even so...”

Beatty hesitated, trailing off. But when the Duke offered to arrange a tutor for her if she wanted, she finally looked relieved.

“A unique ability is, as the name suggests, a special ability that each beastkin is born with. For example...”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

The Duke picked up a nearby iron plate decoration and crushed it effortlessly.

“Lion beastkin possess immense physical strength.”

As if handling nothing more than a piece of folded paper, he easily restored the iron plate to its original shape.

“Snake beastkin can secrete fluid from their fangs. Whether it’s poison or medicine depends on the individual.”

Beatty listened, her round eyes growing even wider in amazement.

‘I thought beastkin were special because they were descendants of the Celestial Beings, but they also have unique abilities like this!’

As he explained the known abilities of various beastkin, the Duke’s gaze naturally drifted to Beatty’s wrist, where her black Signum was embedded.

“Squirrel beastkin must have their own unique ability as well.”

Blink.

Caught off guard, Beatty blinked her large eyes before hesitating. Then, she admitted honestly,

“I... don’t have any abilities.”

“That’s impossible.”

The Duke watched his daughter’s slightly dejected expression with an affectionate gaze, then added,

“You’re still too young, that’s all.”

“Too young?”

“The age at which one awakens their unique ability varies from person to person.”

Though it usually happened around ten years old, it wasn’t unusual for it to occur a few years later.

Gently patting his daughter’s head, the Duke spoke in a soothing tone, as if comforting her frustration.

“When you grow up a little more, you’ll discover your unique ability too.”

“......”

Hearing his warm reassurance, Beatty found herself unable to refute him.

‘But... even if I grow up, I won’t have one.’

She already knew what her future held.

She had grown all the way to the brink of adulthood in her past life.

And she had never awakened any unique ability.

A bitter taste filled her mouth.

Not wanting her father to see her expression, Beatty lowered her head.

***

That Night

Back in her room, Beatty leaned against the terrace window frame, gazing up at the night sky, lost in thought.

“The medicine...”

Poof!

So deep in contemplation, she didn't even realize that her ears had popped out from thinking too hard.

“My aunt brought a potion made from Ritter’s unique ability?”

Could that even be possible?

No, that couldn’t be right.

“This doesn’t make sense.”

“What doesn’t make sense?”

A voice suddenly cut through her murmuring.

“Huh?”

Startled, Beatty looked up toward the source of the voice—and saw a familiar figure she hadn’t seen in a while.

“Ahtel!”

Delighted to see her friend, Beatty greeted him with a bright smile. Then, a thought struck her, prompted by someone she had grown used to recently.

“Come to think of it, your name is similar to Prince Aether’s.”

Flinch.

Ahtel—no, Aether—gave a small start but quickly curved his eyes into a smile.

“...It’s a custom in the Eastern Continent.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Especially among dragon beastkin.”

“Dragon beastkin?”

“There aren’t many of us. So to strengthen our bonds, we tend to name ourselves in a way that resembles each other.”

It sounded plausible. But it was a complete lie.

Giving his little star the name Ahtel had been an impulsive decision on Aether’s part.

Since Ahtel was just a shortened version of Aether, of course, the names would sound similar.

“I see. That’s an interesting custom.”

Not much was known about the faraway Eastern Continent beyond the vast sea.

Beatty’s face lit up slightly with excitement at learning something new, thanks to her friend.

‘Will I ever get to visit someday?’

Imagining her future after gaining independence, Beatty suddenly thought of something and asked,

“Oh, by the way, Ahtel, do you know anything about unique abilities?”

“You mean the abilities each beastkin is born with?”

“Yeah!”

So it really was common knowledge among beastkin.

Her curiosity deepening, Beatty observed her friend’s beastkin form with keen interest.

“What kind of unique abilities do dragon beastkin have?”

“......”

Those pure, inquisitive black eyes stared at him without a trace of malice.

‘This is the first time someone’s asked me directly about my ability.’

A beastkin’s unique ability was usually only shared with close family or lovers.

For someone else to ask about it—depending on the circumstances, such a question could be met with a sword rather than an answer.

So under normal conditions, he should have been offended.

But...

“Hm. Should I tell you a secret that only my little star gets to know?”

“A secret? Yes! I won’t tell anyone.”

Strangely enough, Aether felt no irritation at all toward his little star.

‘Instead, I just find her sparkling curiosity... cute.’

Shaking his head slightly at his own thoughts, Aether finally spoke.

“We dragons are often born with abilities related to celestial phenomena.”

“Celestial phenomena?”

“Things governed by the sky. Rain, thunder, fog—we can control them.”

“Oh! So that’s why you can control clouds, Ahtel!”

“...Something like that.”

Beatty pointed at the dark clouds surrounding them as if she had perfectly understood, her face filled with realization.

Aether gave a vague nod in response.

‘It’s not just clouds, though.’

Lost in thought for a moment, Beatty suddenly asked,

“Then, Ahtel, is it possible for someone to have two unique abilities?”

“Multiple unique abilities?”

Hearing such an unexpected question from his little star, Aether’s expression shifted in surprise.