CH 37

When their eyes met, the Duke smiled gently and laughed. The Duke of Superion’s cheeks were aching in the last few days, perhaps because he didn’t usually laugh.

Nevertheless, when he saw Lelia, he had no choice but to smile.

He smiled consciously, albeit with some regret.

He did not want Lelia to be afraid of him.

“Well… where are we going?”

The Duke of Superion stopped in front of a shop without answering Lelia’s question.

“…….”

Lelia, who had been watching the carriage driver following them, glanced at the signboard in front of her.

This is a children’s clothing store. It also looks very luxurious.

Lelia gulped down her saliva.

“I’d like to buy you some clothes before you reach the territory.”

“…I’m all right.”

“But I can’t have you arrive in a robe.”

When Lelia heard his words, she looked down at the robe.

It was a very nice robe that Sir Tess had bought her.

[Come to think of it…]

When they reach the Superion’s territory, she will meet everyone.

Maybe even that person, whom she met in her mother’s hut.

“…….”

When she remembered that time, she was so nervous that her toes curled up and her throat tightened.

In the first place, Duke Superion will not reveal Lelia’s identity. No one would believe it anyway.

[I must tell him before I reach his territory.]

Lelia made up her mind and followed the Duke.

***

After some time passed.

Unlike when Lelia walked into the store under her own power, she came out of the store on the driver’s back.

She had changed her clothes so much that she was exhausted.

The knights, who had followed Lelia into the store, came out with their hands full of shopping bags.

Although they claimed to be shopping helpers, the faces of the knights were full of laughter.

Even without the Duke of Superion influence, the knights really liked Lelia.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“Are there any errands you need me to run?”

“Driver, can I get you some water?”

A little person followed them and asked them for work. It made them smile.

There was nothing for Lelia to do, but they had to give chores so that she wouldn’t turn sullen.

The knights exchanged glances with each other while watching Lelia proudly completing her missions.

[Cute!]

[Cute!]

They were very different from the maids in the Imperial castle, whom Lelia had left behind. Perhaps because the knights were not the servants of the Imperial Castle, Lelia looked like a doll to them.

When they first saw her, she felt too small and thin. How surprising it was to know that she was ten years old!

They felt proud to see her gain weight and her skin glow.

They felt like they were turning an abandoned puppy into a puppy loved by all.

“You don’t have enough clothes,”

The Duke of Superion stroked his chin.

They have to leave the city tomorrow for their territory, so all the clothes he bought were ready-made. When the Duke of Superion reached his territory, he intended to summon all the most famous seamstresses in the Superion territory.

“Not many, after all,”

“Yes, I have more clothes than this.”

“Still, they look good on her.”

The knights joked in response to the Duke’s words.

The Duke of Superion sighed a little when he saw Lelia on the driver’s back.

He was convinced that this child was Elizabeth’s daughter.

The world is ironic.

Maybe she isn’t from Elizabeth’s bloodline, but at this point, it didn’t really matter.

It was true that the child looked like Elizabeth, and the mere thought of Elizabeth as this child was a great comfort to him.

‘Someday she’ll open her mouth and say it herself.’

The child hadn’t even told him her name yet, but the Duke had no intention of forcing her.

It was obvious that the child was hiding some big secrets.

When he saw her being chased by the Imperial guards, he was sure something had happened. She doesn’t have to worry about the checkpoints anymore, but there was still some anxiety.

Every time they crossed a city’s border, an inspection would happen.

The Duke of Superion would identify her as his granddaughter.

The Duke of Superion’s children are known to the world, but little was known about how old his grandchildren are.

As a result, the soldiers in the cities that carried out the inspections allowed them to pass without much difficulty.

They could not doubt the head of Superion, a noble and the grandfather of the princes.

“Why on earth is Emperor Perseus searching for this child?”

The Duke of Superion wanted to ask the child immediately, but he decided to wait until the child spoke up.

***

Fortunately, the wait was short.

It happened a few days later. It was just after the carriage reached the edge of the Superion territory.

“…So,”

Sitting across from the carriage, Lelia began to speak carefully.

Seeing this, the Duke of Superion felt the time had come, and in fact, he had been tapping his fingers anxiously for a while.

Lelia swallowed her saliva and murmured.

“I have something to tell you,”

[I have to at least tell the Duke of Superion the truth.]

In fact, in the last few days, Lelia has been worried about what to say.

Because when he would ask how she knew Elizabeth was her mother, she had no answer.

[I can’t say I’ve been reincarnated into a novel.]

So she tried to think up all kinds of excuses and imagined all kinds of scenarios, but nothing appropriate came to mind.

They were all such ridiculous excuses that they seemed suspicious. Nevertheless, Lelia decided to do her best.

[But perhaps…]

She felt that even if she didn’t tell him the reason, he might still believe her.

The Duke of Superion and his knights have been friendly to Lelia throughout.

The gentle manner of the adults was a rare thing.

If you don’t confess the truth and believe that everything about the Duke of Superion is a lie, then everything I’ve seen so far will disappear anyways.

[I’m sure I’ll get kicked out.]

[Of course, there must be a way.]

The life of a fugitive wouldn’t be so bad. Besides, Lelia has her mother’s necklace.

Lelia hesitated for a variety of reasons but began to speak firmly.

“I’m… officially Princess Iris’ daughter. My name is Lelia.”

“Princess Iris…”

The Duke of Superion wrinkled his brows at Lelia’s words. He knew that Princess Iris bullied Elizabeth.

“But… my biological mother is Queen Elizabeth.”

“…….”