Saved by Crazy Stepfather! Chapter 1

“No..Mama, don’t die.”

Even at her desperate call, her mother didn’t answer.

Although she has seen her mother’s death nine times, she still can’t get used to it.

Tears dripped down the back of her dry and cracked hands.

“Mama..”

Her mother’s breath gradually faded with each plea.

The tenth life. And after today, as always, her mother dies. So while the knights who were supposed to watch them were briefly away, she crawled on the floor and removed a rug much larger than her body.

“Mama, hang on.. I’ll save you!”

Her mother’s breathing was so weak that she thought she was going to die soon.

While removing the rug, she ran to her mother and listened to her heartbeat.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

There’s a pulse.

But her mother, who has a boiling fever, did not wake up in the time she dragged herself to her mother’s side.

“Hang on..just a little..just a little more.”

Soon the rug was pushed aside and an incomplete magic circle appeared.

She took out a silver stone that she kept dearly in her pocket, then drew more magic lines.

“It hurts..”

Blisters could be seen on her hands from the stone that have become sharp here and there due to scratching the floor.

However, there was no time to relax.

Thud. Thud.

The sounds of footsteps coming from afar grew closer and closer.

It made her arm move more and more rapidly.

Contrary to her urgent heart, her dried and cracked arms could not move as she wished.

Blood trickled down from her hands whenever she held the rough stone to scratch the floor.

“Come on. Come on, Mama..I have to save Mama!”

With bruises all over her body, she looked at her mother sleeping on the floor using a curtain as a blanket.

Her hands hurt so much. It hurts to the point of tears.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Her hands were shaking today even though she knew she had to hurry.

“Get a hold of yourself. You need to get a hold of yourself.”

For the past month, she has been drawing magic lines every day for this moment. She can’t fall now.

A magic circle drawn under a shabby rug. She doesn’t have time. Her mother will die again after today.

“Mama.. I’m never going to lose you again.”

Tears were dripping down her eyes.

“Don’t cry like a fool. I can save her. I’ll save her this time.”

The feeling in her hands is already gone and the sound of footsteps coming is getting louder and louder.

“What, she’s avoiding me because she’s sick? Who does she think she is, the Empress? That stupid woman!”

“But your Majesty, she’s about to die. You should refrain yourself for now.”

“..Damn it. She was quite useful, but if so, we can still use the illegitimate child!”

The voice that gave her goosebumps all over. It was the Emperor. If he comes, he’ll hit her again. He was angry again this time, and his steps resounded more than ever.

Looking at her mother who has become white as a sheet, she put down the stone.

Instead, she rubbed her bloody hands on the floor.

Somehow, she just has to draw the magic lines.

“I-I did it!”

It was enough for her and her mother to enter the bloody magic circle. As she rushed to her mother’s side, she held her hand tightly with one hand and placed her other hand on the floor.

Then, a brilliant light enveloped them.

Boom.

Whether they noticed the disturbance or not, at this moment the door opened with a tremendous bang.

“W-what’s this..!”

However, it’s too late.

There was nothing they could do even if they came in.

It was after the magic curtain had already spread before the mother and daughter.

“You damn girl! How dare you go! You’re mine!”

“No! I’m my mama’s!”

“Damn it. Get them now! Get them! Get rid of the magic circle!”

In this imperial palace where all magic is nullified, a working magic circle was finally drawn.

Because of that, no one rushed at the pair after hearing the Emperor’s order.

In addition, they were helpless against the barrier of the magic circle.

“Grab them! Grab them! If you don’t want to lose your heads!”

The Emperor and the knights quickly reached out to them, but the only thing that happened was having their hands wounded when time and space began to break..

“That’s great. Get hurt all of you who bullied us!”

There was a strong force in her words, filling the surroundings like the wind and hurting those who were trying to grab them.

“You!”

“Goodbye now!”

She shouted at the Emperor, hoping to never see him again.

But deep in her heart she wanted to say she’d definitely come back for revenge! However, running away is her first priority.

“No!”

The voice of the Emperor, who had not given up until the end, was heard, but the once thunderous voice had become distant. Before she knew it, the space in front of her distorted.

It was a complete success.

She had finally escaped with her dying mother.

After closing her eyes due to the dazzling light, she opened them some time later to see that at last she had reached her destination.

It was different from the shabby room they were in a while ago.

The room they were in had nothing but a sofa with a broken leg, and because there was no blanket, they had to make due with the curtains, which invited the howling wind through the broken window.

Unaware of the heater in the room, she realized the smell of this place was completely different than where she had been.

And strangely enough, other than the smell of books, there was a peculiar woody smell.

“Ah..!”

A warm rug was laid on the floor and the crackling sound of firewood emitting warmth could be heard.

Finally, she arrived at this place.

“Who are you?”

She turned her head to the sudden voice.

As if very surprised by them who appeared in a flash of light, the master of the room narrowed his eyes.

“Ah..!”

She was mumbling as she stood up.

Looking at them in bewilderment was a handsome man as if made in the image of God.

A man with black hair and large build. At a glance it looked like he had a bad night’s sleep.

She pointed her finger at him, who was wary of them in a different sense than the Emperor.

“Grand Duke Avelon! It’s you.”

A smile came to her face when she saw him nodding heavily instead of answering.

“I made it in time. The search is over. My papa candidate!”

“..What..? Papa candidate?”

“Yes! Please raise my mama and me!”

Tucked in a shabby curtain, she held her sleeping mother tightly in her arms.

“If you do, I’ll make you emperor!”

“Ha..?”

“Because I’m strong!”

“This situation.. How am I supposed to take it?”

“Once I grow up, I’ll make you emperor..because that’s what you want. You’ll need me for that..”

Unfortunately, her mind blanked here.

Her mana could be called the best, but due to her small body, she will collapse after one spell.

But it was okay.

Because she and her mother are finally free from the fake father who abused them. So, she calmly closed her eyes, knowing that a new future awaits them the next time she opens her eyes.

In her dreams she felt as if she was floating on a bed.

For the first time after her father was killed, she felt the warmth of a bed and was so happy that she didn’t want to open her eyes.

When she or her mother would fall asleep, the knights used to take turns making noises. It was natural for a person to get sick if they couldn’t eat or sleep.

And yet, to them, we ‘deserved’ it.

Their abuses were natural since her fake father, who is the current emperor, abused them as well. The current emperor, Dory, openly ordered them to be bullied.

But today, she slept for a long time and wasn’t kicked either.

“Hmm.., good.”

She clasped a blanket around her gently.

A warm feeling.

However, to her, this luxury was out of place.

The moment she recognized this fact, her eyes suddenly opened.

“Ack!”

Bad things happen whenever she feels at ease, so she had goosebumps all over her body.

“Huk..Huk..”

What she saw as soon as she opened her eyes was a ceiling fully covered with wallpaper.

It was different from the cracked ceiling with cobwebs she was used to.

“This is?!”

She got up as soon as she saw the unusual scenery.

The scenery she saw was tranquil. It was warm, and the atmosphere was soft.

Antique wallpaper and undamaged things in places.

“Why are you so surprised?”

In front of her is the gaze of a man staring at her intently. The unfamiliar voice made her flinch.

“Ah..!”

Her sense of reality returned belatedly.

She thought she was having a pleasant dream, but it was not. The man in front of her is Grand Duke Avelon.

She tried to warp here, and before she closed my eyes, she thought she saw this man, and now it turned out it wasn’t a dream.

“It wasn’t a dream! I did it! I’m awesome!”

“After appearing like that, did you think it was a dream?”

The man, who was sitting in a chair with his legs crossed, smiled and leaned forward.

“Interesting.”

His eyes, cold as ice, gazed at her. The blue eyes were as fierce and sharp as a butcher’s.

She flinched at his gaze, but tried to straighten her chest as if nothing had happened.

“So now that you’re awake, do you have anything to say to me? Miss ‘thief who made a splendid home invasion.’”

Even though it was a home invasion, she didn’t think she was a thief.

In a book she secretly read it said, ‘You should never be intimidated in front of other people.’

Especially when making a deal. Otherwise the opponent will look down on you.

So she straightened her shoulders and raised her chin.

“Bebe is not a thief! Just.. I came here to make a deal!”

“A deal.”

“I’ll offer myself. Please be my family in name. In turn..Mama and me..Uh..!”

She tried to spit out all the words that were on her mind in one breath, but there was nobody beside her.

“Uh, mama! Mama!”

She hurriedly looked around. She was laying on a bed, so she thought her mother would be lying next to her, but her mother was not.

“As expected, the woman who came with you must have been your mother.”

“What did you do to her! Give me my mama!”

She got up in a hurry.

However, unknowingly, her clothes had been changed and it was longer than she had expected. Because of the loose dress, her body almost fell forward.

“Be careful.”