I'm the Only One With a Different Genre - Chapter 13

Chapter 13 – How to Win Without Lifting a Finger

“We have a guest coming today.”
“A guest? Should I prepare some tea and cookies?”
“Well, it would be nice to prepare something.”

Mia savored the thought of the cookies Lian had baked before. The cookies, studded with black chips, were so exquisitely sweet they could make her usual expression crumble.

‘Now that I think about it, what were those black bits?’

The fleeting curiosity was brushed aside just as quickly because Mia had no talent in cooking. Considering her adeptness in alchemy, it was quite peculiar.

And so, a day no different than usual began.

***

Ding -.
T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m ki ng mtl .o r g

The oven chimed happily to signal it had finished.

“Let’s see -..”

As I opened the oven, hot air rushed out. With a practiced ease, I pulled out the tray laden with cookies.

“Heh, baked to perfection.”

The kitchen table was piled high with cookies, thanks to considering the appetites of the children.

“Ah…”
“Wow…”

As the sweet aroma of cookies filled the air, children peeked their heads through the kitchen entryway, their eyes fixed on the cookies.

“I’ll give some to you after you’ve eaten your meal, so be good and wait, okay?”
“Uhhuh!”
“Yes!”

The children, who had just begun their education under Noah, could manage simple phrases already.

‘Now, shall I prepare something else before the guest arrives?’

There was a need to tidy up the space where I’d host the guest, and find some tea to serve. Muttering to myself, I grabbed the handle of the kitchen drawer.

“The tea should be in here -.”

As I murmured and opened the drawer, a glass jar filled with tea leaves greeted me.

‘Today is my lucky day.’

Th i s wa s c o p i e d fr o m k in g mtl . o r g
There are a few unwritten laws in the comedy world. When different objects are piled up, they’re treated as a single mass and appear in dull colors like brown or gray, and when one rummages through a mountain of stuff, objects that have never been seen before tend to pop out.

Just like now, if you hint that something is inside, an object that wasn’t there before can appear. It doesn’t always happen. It’s a matter of luck, really.

‘I thought it would take around 245 tries. Lucky me.’

Repeatedly opening and shutting a drawer like a madman is no easy task, but as someone from the comedy world, flinging doors open and shut with the speed of a gust of wind was child’s play.

‘The tea’s ready. Time to get the other things together.’

I set the tea aside and left the kitchen. I could see the children, who had been loitering around the kitchen, being herded away by Noah and Pia.

‘Heartwarming.’

It was gratifying to see children who were on the brink of starvation in prison now experiencing ‘ordinary’ everyday life. As I was wiping my nose with my forefinger, my waist began to feel heavy.

“…Jess?”
“Hmm.”
“What are you doing over there?”
“Playing with Lian.”

Jess answered, hanging onto my back and mumbling.

“Why…?”
“Protect Lian.”

T h i s w a s co p ied f r o m ki n g m t l . o r g
The words struck a chord within me. Is this what it feels like to raise a daughter?

“Alright, let’s stick together today.”
“Mhm.”

With Jess clinging to my waist, I began to clean. Jess, being a beastkin, was light enough that it was no strain to carry her.

“Phew, this should be good enough.”

Looking at the gleaming reception room, I wiped the sweat dripping down my face with my sleeve.
Th i s w a s co p i e d f r o m k i n gm t l . o r g

Whoosh, whoosh.

I could feel Jess, still attached to my waist, wagging her tail. Occasionally, the tip of her tail thumped against my thighs.

“Let’s go prepare for the meal now.”
“Mhm!”

Jess’s voice was cheerful as she looked up from where she was buried against my back.

Thump thump thump!

T h i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m king mt l . o rg
Her tail began to wag prolifically. I was so worried she might hurt herself with all that movement that I quickly headed towards the dining room.

***

There was a full-length mirror over 2 meters tall in one corner of the reception room. Suddenly, its surface began to ripple as if a stone had been tossed into water.

Ziing -..

Amidst the strange noise, the mirror’s surface wobbled more intensely until a shiny shoe tip emerged from the bottom.

Woong -.

It was as if the mirror stretched out, ejecting a person from inside.

“Haah, looks like I’ve arrived perfectly.”

Dovan emerged from the mirror, his cheekbones twitching with mirth. He waved the small wand in his hand.

His figure then became translucent. Admiring his perfect use of dark magic, Dovan then perused the room with a pleased smile on his lips.

“Ahh -..As expected, this place lacks beauty… Huh?”

Just as he was about to click his tongue at the rather basic set-up, Dovan’s eyes caught something sparkling on the floor.

“What, what’s this… Ahh?”

Th i s w a s c o p i e d f r o m k i n g mt l . o rg
He belatedly realized that the sparkling wasn’t limited to the floor but continued up the walls.

“How could this be…!”

Amazed, he took a step forward.

Snap!

“Ugh…!”

Dovan stumbled and toppled forward, crashing into the floor. The floor’s excessive slickness had made it frictionless, causing his foot to slip as if snagged by a hook.

Thud!
T hi s w a s c op ie d f r o m k in gm t l .or g

“Ugh…!”

Collapsed on the floor in a frog-like posture, Dovan clutched his chin as he stood up.

“That wench, she’s managed to set up quite a respectable trap.”

Dovan had the urge to immediately unleash his dark magic and blow everything to smithereens, but he repressed his fury.

‘Huff… I need to be patient to get the poisonous herbs.’

Th i s w a s co pi e d f r o m k i n g m t l . or g
It wasn’t his original plan to hide out in Mia’s residence. He had intended to provide Mia with quality ingredients in exchange for the poisonous plants he desired.

‘Curse that wench, what sort of experiments is she doing! She’s clueless about aesthetics!’

Mia had refused Dovan’s request because she wanted to experiment with the poisonous herbs on Lian.

Driven mad by constant experimental failures, Dovan planned to sneak into Mia’s stronghold and steal the poisonous herbs.

‘I just need to quietly steal the poisonous herbs and make a run for it!’

Sparkling, he slowly made his way out of the reception room.

Click.

He opened the door and peeked out. The first things he saw were the rich dark purple floor and beige walls. The house’s overall hue was a dark purple mixed with black, thanks to being built from expensive wood.

‘Luckily, it seems I haven’t been caught.’

Feeling relieved that no magical energy was detected, he stepped out through the door.

‘Keke, had Lania not chosen her, the wench would’ve been discarded. Thus, it’s no surprise there’s such a difference in our capabilities.’

Dovan smirked as he waved the wand in his hand.

‘Now, point me to where the poisonous herbs are.’

Only visible to Dovan, a black energy shot forward. He followed the glow and advanced.

“Let’s go there.”
“Okay!”

How long had he been walking, when he heard the stumbling voices of small children. Dovan’s eyebrows twitched as he mused.

‘Ha, pretending she has no interest in human experimentation, acting all haughty, but she was carrying them out in secret like a rat? Ridiculous.’

With a crooked smile, Dovan thought to himself.

‘Heh, now that it’s come to this, why not have a bit of fun?’

He clenched his fist lightly and then gripped it tighter. His hefty arm began to thrash about.

Parasites filled his inner arm, reacting to the magic and started to squirm. Dovan drew the parasites to his palm with magical force.

Then, his palm split slightly, and out wriggled something that resembled a black worm. It was about as long as an adult male’s middle finger and covered in a dried blood-like dark red liquid.

‘Planting this little guy here will sure make for some interesting viewing.’

Holding the writhing parasite in his hand, he walked clunkily towards the two children. The parasite squirmed nastily.

‘Go now -.’
T hi s w a s co p i e d fr o m k i n g mt l . or g

The moment Dovan attempted to cast the parasite toward the child, Lian emerged from around the corner of the corridor. He was on his way to the dining room, having just put away the cleaning tools used in the reception room.

Jess had been on Lian’s back but was taken away by Noah, who didn’t want Lian to be burdened, leaving him alone.
T h i s w as c op i e d f r o m k in g m t l . or g

“…! Yay!”
“Yay!”

The two children made happy faces and began to run towards Lian. Consequently, the parasite Dovan had launched fell smack onto the floor. The trouble didn’t end there.

The parasite, weakened and close to death if it remained outside a body for too long, desperately attempted to return to its original host. Thus, the creature flung itself off the ground and landed smack on Dovan’s face, who was grinning malevolently.

“Huh? What are you kids doing here?”
“Eating together!”
“Yay!”

The children mimicked eating with their hands as if sharing a meal, prompting Lian to nod and say,

“Were you heading to eat?”
“Yes!”
“Yay!”

The children, just beginning to learn how to speak, quietly showed their smiles but hadn’t yet grown accustomed to laughter due to their horrific past experiences.

‘Dang it! Cursed brats!’

Dovan clutched the parasite trying to burrow into his eyeball, flung it to the floor, and swiftly turned to look at Lian.

‘…!’

Capturing Lian in his sight, Dovan’s expression slackened dumbly. Before even dozens of seconds passed, his gaze was consumed by greed.