The Baby Villain Dreams of Conquering the World

Chapter 32

Episode 32

'So that noise woke me up.'

Flora roughly smoothed her disheveled hair and let out a big yawn.

'If the carriage stops, they'll probably start unloading soon, right? If that happens, I'll be discovered in an instant. Since we haven't been gone that long, if I'm found, I'll be sent straight back to the city.'

Then there would have been no point in secretly boarding the carriage while avoiding everyone's eyes.

Flora, stifling her continuous yawns, decided to jump off the carriage as soon as it stopped.

And soon, the carriage stopped.

Before anyone could approach, Flora quickly slipped out of the carriage and hid her body towards the forest.

As soon as she hid in the grass, a knight headed towards the carriage she had been hiding in.

'Whew, that was close.'

Flora let out a sigh of relief and patted her chest.

It was a sudden plan, but it was going very smoothly.

"Ugh, what kind of carriage runs without even resting?"

The subjugation team, which had run for a full day with little chance to rest on the journey to the Demon Forest, only began to set up camp and rest after the sun had set.

It was nothing short of a forced march.

Flora tapped her stiff shoulders and stretched.

Her body was tired, but her mind felt clear from the forest's demonic energy.

'Hmm, yes. This is it, this is it.'

Flora smiled a satisfied smile at the forest's scent, which was murky to others but utterly clear and refreshing to her.

"But it's a good thing we didn't stop in a village. It would be a disaster if we stayed in a village and got noticed for no reason."

A humming sound escaped her lips.

'Now, shall we begin the thrilling exploration of the northwestern Demon Forest?'

Flora stepped into the deeper part of the forest with cheerful steps.

Since the subjugation team said they would set up camp here tonight and stay, she could just sneak back into the supply wagon at dawn.

Just as she was vowing to skillfully avoid people's eyes from now on, a rustling sound came from the left.

'What is it? A monster?'

It wasn't a loud sound, so if it was a monster, it would be a small one, and if it was a person, it was better to hide quickly.

'Just hope it's not someone from the Ducal House.'

As Flora watched the moving bushes with a pounding heart.

"What the?"

A flustered voice came from behind.

'It was behind me.'

Not being able to sense a single presence properly is disgraceful for a Great Demon.

'I guess I got too excited.'

It seemed she had lost her composure from the demonic energy flowing in the natural environment after so long.

Flora scratched her head as if expressing embarrassment and turned around.

And the person she faced was someone she had never imagined.

"You, you!"

"Huh?"

It was the boy, Basilian, whom she had met the day she fled to the back mountain to escape the tedious Athanas. The boy who was almost killed by a monster and sent to the afterlife but survived thanks to Flora's arrangement was standing right behind her.

"How are you here?"

"That's my line! How are you here!"

"Why are you yelling!"

Flora, feeling unnecessarily guilty, raised her voice, and Basilian looked at her with a disbelieving expression.

"Do you even know where this place is?"

"Uh, uh..."

It seemed Basilian had come here knowing this place was the Demon Forest.

But unlike him, Flora had to brazenly pretend not to know.

After all, she was the one who had secretly followed.

She needed to end this reunion as quietly as possible.

She couldn't risk causing a commotion and getting caught by Athanas and Benio.

"Ah, Dad."

"What?"

"I followed Dad!"

"...What kind of madman brings his daughter to the Demon Forest? And you were from the orphanage... weren't you?"

At the sharp question, Flora just laughed. In times like this, laughing it off was the best strategy.

"...Stop laughing and answer me."

Although he said that, Basilian's face was slightly flushed red.

It meant the laughter was working.

"No wonder when I went to the orphanage to look for you…"

"You came to look for me?"

"I promised, didn't I?"

Basilian's face became even redder than before.

In a situation like this, he would probably believe any excuse she made perfectly.

"Dad went out without me."

She had succinctly expressed that she couldn't join the journey that only Athanas and Benio were taking, but to Basilian, who didn't know who her father was or her circumstances, it sounded like this:

'My Dad is trying to abandon me again.'

"...Who is your Dad?"

"Hmm, can't tell."

If she told the truth, she might be dragged back.

Flora wisely kept her mouth firmly shut.

"Is he a mercenary? So his temper is fierce... Is he no good?"

'No good?'

Even though Athanas was a Lucifer, objectively speaking, he wasn't someone with a bad temper.

"That's not it, but don't tell."

"I guess so."

Basilian let out a big sigh, rubbed his head roughly, and glanced back.

"...If you have nowhere to stay, you can stay with me for a while."

"Is that okay?"

"What else can I say to a lost child?"

"Here?"

"...Let's just gloss over that."

A lost child in the Demon Forest.

It would be a miracle if they weren't treated as monsters or demons themselves.

"What if people say I'm a monster?"

"Who would look at you and say that? You're clearly a fairy, what nonsense..."

"Ah, I see. To your eyes, I looked like a fairy."

"What I said a moment ago was nonsense!"

Basilian raised his voice, perhaps out of embarrassment. But since his true feelings had been slightly revealed, it wasn't scary at all.

"What kind of fairy did I look like? A flower? Spring? Summer?"

"Ah, I don't know!"

To escape an awkward situation, either bursting into laughter or cutting off the conversation by raising your voice is the best method.

Basilian used the second method and turned his head away sharply.

'Doing that won't make your red ears disappear, you know.'

Flora giggled, amused by Basilian's ticked-off appearance.

"Stop laughing!"

"Okay, okay."

As Flora nodded, she naturally took Basilian's hand, causing the boy to jump up in surprise with a start.

"Wh-what!"

"If you don't hold my hand, I might get lost, you know?"

"Ha, seriously."

Basilian shrugged as if he found it ridiculous, but he didn't let go of the hand he was holding.

'He's cute.'

He was different from the orphanage siblings or the Lucifer family, who expressed their affection for Flora generously.

Even though it was obvious he liked Flora, his attempt to hide his feelings was something she was seeing for the first time, which made her feel strangely pleased.

'Do I want to be friends with him?'

Come to think of it, Flora knew Basilian's name, but Basilian didn't know Flora's name.

He said he would ask when they met again, and he was glancing at her and moving his lips as if he was curious but too shy to ask.

"Aren't you curious about my name?"

So she mustered up the courage to ask him first.

"Huh?"

Basilian seemed a little flustered by the sudden question and was about to nod.

"But I can't tell you that easily."

"What?"