Becoming the Villain’s Family - Chapter 356
Chapter 356
Maya struggled to understand the child’s words but her eyes widened at the last word.
“Wait, are you saying your brother was kidnapped…?”
“Yeah, kidnapped!”
She gasped and swallowed hard.
The word ‘dragon’, an unrealistic term, was naturally ignored in her mind.
It made sense—though dragons had once existed, they lived among themselves and were hardly ever seen by humans.
“When did you get separated from your brother?”
“Jus now.”
“Oh, no…”
It felt strange that a well-dressed child, who seemed to radiate wealth, was standing alone in the middle of such a deep forest.
It was hard to believe they could have made it here without any harm.
But if he had been kidnapped along with his brother, thrown into a slave caravan, and managed to escape alone, that would make sense.
‘It seems like he wasn’t captured. They probably underestimated him because he’s so young.’
Of course, this was a far-fetched conclusion.
The reality that his brother was a dragon who flew here, and that another dragon showed up to kidnap them, was something no one would expect.
Astin sniffled and said,
“I miss Brother.”
“…Right, you’ll definitely see him again. Do you want to come with me for now?”
Maya felt an uncomfortable sense of guilt as she said what felt like a kidnapper’s line.
“I’m not a bad person.”
It sounded even more suspicious!
She sighed inside, but Astin giggled and hugged her neck tightly.
“Yeah, okay. I like you.”
“Ha, you’re something else.”
She squinted, feeling a little out of place with how forward the child was being.
Until now, Maya had only ever seen children burst into tears after a brief exchange, most likely due to her somber expression and deathly pale complexion.
Even adults would flinch and hold their breath when she made eye contact and gave the three-whites stare, but he said nothing…
“Wat yor name?”
She should have introduced herself first. She didn’t want to prove that she had less social skill than the child, but now it felt inevitable.
She felt like banging her head against the wall as her cheeks flushed.
“…Maya.”
“Me, Astin!”
“Alright, Astin. Shall we head home?”
Maya tried to lift the child in her arms, but only tried.
Her arms trembled uncontrollably, so she immediately gave up and grabbed Astin’s hand.
“Um… Sorry, I should have cleaned up the house.”
Maya said embarrassedly, taking off her dark hood.
Her snow-white hair cascaded over her shoulders.
Astin, who had been looking around the dusty old cabin, poked his head into every corner.
“What this?”
“Ah! Be careful! Don’t touch the pot. No, that bottle too! Ugh, it’s going to spill!”
The desk was covered with colorful bottles filled with liquid, and books were stacked everywhere, teetering on the edge like they might fall at any moment.
Moreover, a black cauldron was filled with a thick, unidentifiable liquid.
In this place, it wouldn’t be hard to see why people would call her a witch.
Maya, growing more anxious because of Astin’s mischievous curiosity, pointed to the bed.
“Stay here until I’m done cleaning.”
And so, Maya began her first cleaning of the year.
Astin sat quietly for a moment, then started swinging his legs back and forth, asking questions.
“Maya, why alone?”
“Why do you ask such painful questions out of nowhere…”
This is exactly why children are difficult. They speak without malice or consideration, and yet say things like that.
Of course, if you ask adults, they’re no better, but…
Maya paused to reflect on herself for a moment, then responded in a downcast tone.
“Well, I ran away from the village.”
It was probably because it was a child’s innocent question, but Maya answered honestly.
She doubted the child would understand or even remember what she said.
Maya began gathering the bottles stacked on the desk, and as she did, she started her story.
“The year I was born, a prophecy was made. It was said that a child chosen by God would be born in the village.”
As expected, that child who was chosen by God, was Maya herself.
She was born with a symbol of God engraved on her back.
It would have been fine if it had ended there. After all, it’s rare to have to expose your back to others in life.
“But I guess God took a liking to me.”
Maya continued, her voice lowering and becoming faster.
“As soon as I was born, everyone in the village knew who the chosen one was. Of course, if a baby with white hair, so unlike the brown-haired parents, is born, they’re bound to stand out.”
In fact, humans being chosen by God wasn’t unusual.
The popes and cardinals throughout history had all received that ‘choice.’
But did Maya get selected smoothly, get good education and was revered in the Great Temple?
If that were possible, she wouldn’t have had to run away from her village and live in isolation.
The popes and cardinals of history, although scattered across the world, were all royalty, nobility, or highborn.
How could this be possible?
Did God only bestow love and blessings upon those with blue blood? Was Maya a mutant?
That couldn’t be.
In reality, Maya was the only one who had been ‘chosen,’ and everyone else had been manipulated and fabricated.
That was the truth known only by the high priest who had received the prophecy that day.
He had once worked in the Great Temple, but after being implicated in corruption and nearly killed by a cardinal who had connections, he barely escaped and ended up in a small village.
He had lived comfortably in the mundane world, considering his own life the most precious.
For someone like him, the conclusion was obvious.
“I wouldn’t be the only one who would suffer. It was that simple.”
Maya wasn’t born into a powerful family. She was the daughter of a poor serf.
What if this fact were to get out to the Great Temple?
No, even without reaching the temple, what if the local lord found out?
The lord would drag her away and offer her as a sacrifice at the temple, taking the benefits for himself.
And those with vested interests, knowing of Maya’s existence, would eliminate everyone in the village who knew about her to erase the evidence.
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