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「I'm Having a Baby」So My Husband Told Me

The Demon Child

Translated by: S3

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

Horns like a cow's growing from both sides of the black hair. Non-human ears were pointed like an elf's, and the most extreme difference was the tail growing from the hole in the back of its trousers.

I turned around, expecting Zen, but an unexpected tiny being was holding my hand.

It was not human; clearly not human. Yet, its form was very close to human, and if one ignored the peculiarities, it could easily be mistaken for a person.

The child's eyes shone brightly, proportional to its young body. Stars seemed to float in their jet-black darkness.

「Well, um...」

「Get out of the way!」

「Eh!?」

A shock ran through my bewildered body. As I hit the ground on my backside, I realized I had been shoved.

「Nonnalie!?」

「This one is a demon! Get away!」

Ah, so that's what it is. That was my first thought. Or rather, a feeling of understanding. It certainly looked like one, but since I had never seen a demon in person, I had thought there might be a human-like race with such features. After all, some Beastmen have horns like this.

However, Beastmen do not have a human-like appearance. Although bipedal, they are more accurately described as talking beasts.

In contrast, the young child before me, apart from the horns and tail, had a perfectly human appearance. Even a half-breed of Beastman and human wouldn't be this close to human.

Furthermore, the possibility of such a race existing in this location is extremely low. This is the Demon Forest. A place where Ma (demons/magic) resides. It is a place where not only humans, but even seasoned Beastmen, wouldn't dare to enter.

For a child to be here is simply inexplicable.

But, then again. The precedent of Zen is here right now. There is a human child in a place where they shouldn't naturally be. Perhaps it isn't so strange for a child of some other race to be here, either.

The very fact that I'm considering this means my thought process must be scattered and on the verge of exploding.

In short, my mind isn't working rationally. Therefore, I have no choice but to accept Nonnalie's words at face value.

I squatted down to meet the eye level of the child with horns and a tail.

「Are you a demon?」

「Melissa, don't talk to a demon without caution! Get away!」

「Non, you’re noisy, please be quiet for a moment.」

「Wha—...」

Nonnalie fell silent, looking shocked by my words. Good, just wait there until the conversation is over.

I looked at the child again.

「What are you doing this deep in the forest? Where are your mother and father?」

「...They're over there.」

Oh, they answered. The face is androgynous, and the black hair is longer than the shoulders. Since the voice is that of a child, it's impossible to tell the gender. Although wary, the child who held my hand seems to be feeling even greater anxiety now.

The hand gripping mine is trembling slightly.

「Don't you need to go back?」

「I got separated while playing. There are ghosts in this forest, so I was scared...」

It seems they wandered away from their parent while playing (I’ll ignore the question of "in a forest this dark?"). They were too scared to move, and they approached us when they saw us.

「Alright, I’ll take you to where your parent is.」

「Hold on a minute!?」

Nonnalie called out in surprise at my suggestion.

「What are you thinking!? That child's parent means a demon!?」

「I assume so.」

「Seriously, you have zero sense of danger! If we go to their parent, we might be killed instantly!?」

「Well, I can put up a defensive wall with Light Magic...」

「That's not the point!」

In the end, Nonnalie said weakly, pressing her forehead as if exhausted.

「I know it’s dangerous. So, Non, please stay here with Zen. I will guide this child to their parent and return immediately.」

「...Do as you please.」

「I will.」

Believing it was useless to say anything more, Nonnalie looked exasperated, and leaving her and a worried Zen behind, I headed deeper into the forest with the demon child.

「Are your Papa and Mama over there?」

「Yeah. Mama's not here, just Papa.」

「I see.」

To not have a mother at such a young age—although I don't know the age of demons, they look about like a human 5-year-old—must be lonely.

Suddenly, I thought of Arthur. He is an infant without a mother, yet his mental age is 18—what must he be thinking? Is Arthur also lonely without a mother? If so, I must return quickly.

I acted as his mother's replacement because I didn't want him to feel lonely. Zen and the village children are important, and so is this demon child. But ultimately, the most important person to me is Arthur.

My feet yearned to move faster, wanting to see him soon, but they moved frustratingly slowly to match the child's pace.

「Over there.」

「Over there? Is it close now?」

「Yeah.」

We headed in the direction the child pointed. If it weren't for my magic, the depths of the forest would be pitch black. Did this child really play here, in such darkness? They must truly be a demon.

Suddenly, we broke through the thick trees and emerged into a wide-open space. In the center of the clearing was something too small to be called a lake, so a pond seemed more appropriate. Sitting by the pond was that person... no, that demon.