The Baby Who Regressed Refuses Childcare - Chapter 16
“Sometimes people lose their lives over simple verbal mistakes.”
The Crown Prince, after saying this, suddenly grabbed his opposite hand.
‘Wow, is he really going to hit me?’
Instinctively, I tightly closed my eyes.
However, I felt no impact.
When I cautiously opened my eyes, I saw him closing the door with the hand he had raised.
Soon, without understanding a word, I was led inside by him.
The Crown Prince stood me next to the bed, went to the window to check outside, closed the curtains, and returned.
“How old are you?”
“…Huh?”
“How old are you.”
I hesitated for a moment and then answered,
“Uh, I’m…four.”
Tian, the Crown Prince, sighed and touched his forehead with one hand while the other rested on his waist.
It was a somewhat cute pose, if it weren’t for his strikingly handsome face.
“To whom did you say that?”
“…….”
“The talk about being dethroned…?”
I widened my eyes.
“You shouldn’t say that to anyone, you know? Isn’t there anyone teaching you? If you make a mistake, even a kid like you could face execution!”
He lowered his voice.
“Of course, I know. People are gossiping that I won’t last long on the throne. But I’m still the Crown Prince. So, you should be careful. Even a five-year-old could be executed, ha…”
I was confused at first, but then I realized why the crown prince was telling me this.
‘He can’t be talking about…?’
“If a young kid like you were executed, people would be delighted. Huh? I would feel great too.”
I slowly parted my lips, utterly bewildered.
I heard that he was dethroned because he was unruly and revealed a woman.
The crown prince in front of me…… looked a little different from those rumors.
* * *
“So, you were planning to go to the kitchen because you were hungry, right?”
“Yeah.”
Chewing on the dried meat he offered, the Crown Prince nodded.
He smirked somewhat awkwardly and cleared his throat.
“I guess you were thankful for the snacks I gave you.”
I stared at him blankly.
‘What is this? Is he trying to act casual after giving it to me?’
Nevertheless, the Crown Prince looked quite pleased.
It seemed to bring him great joy to see me enjoying the food he possessed.
‘How could a child like him grow up to be a tyrant?’
By this point, it seemed more reasonable to assume that there was another reason Tian was dethroned in my past life.
After contemplating for a while, I raised my head.
There was something I had been wanting to ask for a while now.
“By the way, why am I here?”
Crown Prince Tian, who had been crouching, turned his head toward me.
Then, he closed his mouth.
After hesitating for a while, he finally spoke in a low voice.
“Well, it’s nothing much….”
My ears perked up.
“No, Your Highness! What on earth are you doing here?”
As the door burst open, an old man rushed into the room.
He was dressed in the attire of the Imperial Courtier.
“There is not a single room that hasn’t been thoroughly searched, from the East Chamber to the West Chamber! Just because you received a minor scolding, you shouldn’t impulsively run away!”
Approaching swiftly, he grabbed the Crown Prince’s arm beside me and forcefully lifted him up.
With widened eyes, I looked up at the scene.
“Do you know how angry Empress Caryn is?! How much more disappointed will the Emperor be when he finds out, huh?!”
My jaw dropped involuntarily.
“Come here at once! Because of you, I’ve got another scolding!”
“Wait, wait a moment.”
Finally, I spoke up.
The Imperial Courtier froze in his place as if just noticing me.
I turned my gaze, assessing the frozen expression of Crown Prince Tian beside me.
The face that had blushed a little while ago after giving me jerky showed no traces of embarrassment now.
“How did this situation come about?”
Crown Prince Tian was four years older than me.
So he must be eight now.
‘It was three years ago that the Empress passed away…….’
My mouth dropped open in disbelief.
I quickly squeezed between the servant and the crown prince.
I frowned and said.
“Old Man*, what are you doing?”
[TN: The original was “할아버지” which is “Hal-abeoji” which is often translated to “grandma” or “grandpa,” but calling someone grandma or grandpa in Korean would indicate a sense of familiarity with the person. In this case, I decided to translate it as such, since this is the first time they’ve met.]
