If You're Being Held Hostage, Wiggle the Carrot! - Chapter 99
But with the mansion protected by a barrier, a spirit shouldn’t have been able to follow them inside. Even so, Ruby searched the garden with quiet urgency, hoping the little one would return before they were lost to their mother for good.
As she scanned the area, Julia finally broke the silence with a polite voice.
“If you’re searching for something, my lady, please allow me to assist. I’ll find it for you.”
Ruby responded without much weight, almost offhandedly.
“I’m the only one who can search.”
“Huh, if you could just tell me what it is, I’ll…”
“I don’t know either. I don’t even know their name, or whether they’re a boy or a girl.”
“Are you looking for someone? If it’s beyond my ability, I’ll pass the message to the head butler. But even so, a description of some kind would help. Could you at least give me a brief description?”
“I don’t think you would recognize it.”
No matter how closely she looked, Ruby couldn’t see a trace of the spirit. Perhaps it had wandered off somewhere during that momentary distraction.
She was still debating what to do when the sharp cry of an infant echoed from somewhere nearby.
Without hesitation, Ruby turned toward the sound and began walking.
“My lady?”
Julia hurried after her. As they moved, Ruby casually voiced something that had been nagging at her.
“I won’t claim to know every servant in this estate, but I’ve at least seen most of their faces once or twice.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“But this is the first time I’ve seen you.”
She came to a stop and turned to face Julia, her gaze calm but sharp.
“Were you perhaps on leave due to illness or something of the sort?”
“…How did you know that?”
Julia’s eyes flickered with subtle unease, betraying her surprise. Her weak reaction made Ruby click her tongue softly.
Even Ruby, who normally avoided meddling in the spirits’ personal affairs, had her limits. There were certain things she could never overlook — ancestral duties passed down through her bloodline like sacred law.
“We need to go a little further. I can hear the sound, but I don’t see anything yet.”
“What?”
Julia was quietly baffled by Ruby’s cryptic remarks, but she didn’t let her confusion show. The head butler had warned her in advance before assigning her to Ruby’s care.
She’s a bit peculiar, he’d said, and sometimes says things that won’t make sense. Best not to question her too much.
So Julia did exactly as instructed, following silently as Ruby wandered through the garden’s many paths. Just as they rounded a corner, Ruby came to a halt, her ears catching a familiar voice.
‘Big sis!’
Beneath a spindly apple tree in a quiet corner of the garden, Jack stood waving both arms.
‘Waaah—waaaah!’
‘Big sis, she won’t stop crying! What do I do?’
Cradled in Jack’s arms was a newborn baby barely a few days old by the looks of it.
“Jack. Where did you find that baby?”
‘I found her near the back gate. She was squirming there all alone.’
“You brought her here yourself?”
‘Yeah. That place is crawling with spirits, so it’s dangerous. The Duke came outside for a second and got so spooked he went right back in.’
“Did he, now?”
‘Uh-huh. I couldn’t feel big sis’s presence out there for once, so everyone got all excited and swarmed him. The ones who still have lingering attachments — they’re all hanging around that area. If this tiny thing had stayed there, it wouldd have disappeared in no time.’
“You did well.”
‘Really? Hehe.’
Ruby stepped closer and reached out to ruffle Jack’s hair. His cheeks flushed pink as he shyly shuffled his toes against the ground. Each time he glanced up at her, his wide eyes sparkled with quiet pride.
“Yes, it’s only natural for those with a similar scent to help each other.”
‘It smells like me?’
“Mhm.”
She’d been uncertain when she first met Jack, but now, standing beside this infant, it was clear.
The fortunate ones, who had been granted the mercy of the heavens, were given the rare opportunity to be reborn right here.
It was usually babies and young children who were chosen for such a fate.
