/
“Right. I didn’t even know you had that kind of power.”
“Are you trying to compliment me?”
He nodded. Seeing him looking at me kindly gave me a strange feeling.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
The Grand Duke’s large hand gently stroked my hair. As of today, my mother’s image overlapped with his appearance.
I thought my mother was the only person in the world I could trust, who was kind and loved me, but I changed my mind slightly.
There are only two adults I can trust in the world.
‘No… Cecilia is reliable too. And Theo is reliable too! There is also the maid Anas. Oh, the kitchen staff are all reliable.’
As I folded my fingers one by one as my expression turned serious, the Grand Duke opened them one by one.
“Who are you counting besides me?”
“Huh?”
“It’s like every time your eyebrows wiggle, they fold up one by one.”
When he said that, he looked at his hands, and his fingers were all stretched out like a maple leaf.
“Bebe, you pretend not to be, but your expressions show what’s in your heart.”
“…No I don’t!”
“Yeah. It wouldn’t be if it weren’t for you.”
He showed a smile I hadn’t seen before, as if it somehow tickled my chest.
“Uh… It’s not like that.”
“Right, anyway Bebe, let’s find out what you said. Come to think of it, it’s the season when the number of demons increase so vassals are entering the castle.”
“Where are the vassals usually?”
Suddenly curious, he looked out the window.
“Usually, grand dukes from other countries are recognized as one small country by their very existence. That’s why they build strong castles and the nobles live in them. But this place is different. It’s a funny story.”
“Right. Shouldn’t you know?”
The Grand Duke’s body trembled momentarily.
“Yeah… Anyway, that’s why I’m trying to be a really good grand duke for my children. An independent country like other places is not a place where vassals want to do whatever they want.”
“Right.”
“Huh?”
“Yes!”
At that, he shrugged his shoulders and nodded his head.
“It’ll be a name under Xenox Avelant.”
I nodded my head and looked at him for a long time.
Perhaps the gaze was embarrassing, but the Grand Duke groaned and then hurriedly turned his gaze to another place.
Then, as if thinking of something, he looked at me not long after that.
“So, isn’t it time to talk?”
“Huh?”
“The reason for crying earlier.”
For a moment, I was startled and shook my body.
“Huh? Crying?!”
“Did you think I didn’t know, Bebe?”
He was so sweet, such a nice guy, I licked my lips.
“…I didn’t cry… Just… I was just thinking.”
“Your eyes were as red as a rabbit.”
“I had something in my eye!”
Never tell anyone anything that could be a weakness. That was why I kept my mouth shut, even with the Grand Duke.
“Is that so? Do you have any worries?”
“Worries?”
It was then that he smiled as he looked at me quietly.
“Yes.”
“Well… it’s not… it’s not that big… you know. The good lie… I mean.”
“Huh? Ah, you seem to care about that time. The thing is…”
“No, it’s not because of that. It’s just… do all adults just tell good lies?”
“What happened?”
I chuckled awkwardly.
“What happened? I was just curious.”
For a long time, he was speechless. As he was thinking about getting up from his seat as if he said nothing, he slowly opened his mouth.
“Honestly, saying a good lie is a cowardly excuse for adults.”
“Huh?”
“It’s because I don’t want to be a bad person.”
I don’t understand adults because I’ve never been one. I don’t understand, but the Grand Duke’s expression looked particularly sad.
“Bebe, in fact, where in the world is there such a thing as a good lie? In the end, it would be a lie to the person who suffered.”
“Ah…!”
“But I mean… just think of the reason why you had no choice but to tell a good lie. You can resent and hate that lie, but think about it.”
It was crude, yet sounded warm.
‘My mother lied to me… but how did she feel about lying to me?’
He pursed his lips and bowed his head. Then a large hand touched my head. His hand gently stroked my hair, as if trying to comfort me.
“Sp Bebe, if you can feel that feeling a little later, ask me why. Then I will tell you for sure.”
“Can you tell me…?”
“A person who tells a good lie cherishes the person who told the lie more than anyone else. That’s why I’m lying like that. So I’ll wait for you to ask me.”
For a moment, I turned my head and made eye contact with the Grand Duke. His friendly eyes somehow made my heart race.
“Daddy… Daddy too? While telling a nice lie… Do you want to ask your dad?”
“Yes.”
He nodded as I watched him speak without hesitation.
Right. He wanted me to ask him because he told a good lie like my mother. I had a strange feeling.
“Me too. I want my children to ask but we must have come too far for that.”
The Grand Duke, who suddenly mimicked my posture, raised his head and looked only at the sky.
He looked up at the sky for a long time, seemingly worried.
For some reason, it felt like I was the only one comforted and I smiled brighter.
“Yes, I will, Dad, because you’re a better dad than anyone else. You’re so warm and friendly.”
“…Does it look like that?”
“Yeah! So do it like that to me as well.”
At that, the Grand Duke chuckled.
“As I do to you…”
“Yes, my dad is a really, really nice guy, but he seems to only be nice to me.”
You couldn’t know that unless you’re an idiot, especially since how different he was to my pony brother. I looked at him more firmly than ever.
“Why are you only nice to me?”
I blurted out my question.
“Huh?”
“That’s right. You have real children… Why are you being so nice to me?”
“That…”
But perhaps my question was quite difficult. The Grand Duke was silent for a long time.
“Is it… because I’m a poor kid?”
“It’s not like that, and you’re not pitiful. There have been many things in the past, but now you are the most precious princess. From now on, I will cover all of your bad memories with good enough memories to make you forget them all.”
With those words, the memory of me standing in the Imperial Palace, which had been stuck somewhere in my chest, came to mind.
“I feel sorry for you… Or maybe I’m not doing it out of admiration. I just… I just want to do anything for you when I’m with you.”
“Ah…”
“Harris came here to be Ellinson’s last child, but I had a feeling that she wasn’t. It’s like… being drawn by blood. Just… if I can’t see you, I wonder what you’re doing. If I look at your face, I wonder if you’re doing well today. I should finish my work quickly so I can go back and play with you. That’s how I feel.”
“Huh?”
“Even then, maybe I won’t feel burdened because I’m not the real father… I’m also worried about that.”
He made a face that I didn’t understand after he said it. Then, he scratched his head and smiled in disappointment.
“These are very strange words. You are not my daughter… but I keep thinking about it.”
“I know… strange…”
“Come to think of it, does Bebe remember your father?”
“Uh… I think I remembered it well in the past, but I can’t remember it now. I think he was a good person.”
At my words, he brushed his hair.
“Right…”
“I mean, I briefly wanted to be raised by a real dad, so when I heard my dad lost a child, I had very little expectations.”
It was a really weird night. As if he was telling the story quickly, words that had never been spoken before naturally came out of my mouth.
“Is that so…”
“But no matter how hard I think about it, I can’t be your daughter. Bebe has a mother.”
“That’s right. I’ve never met your mother before.”
I nodded at the Grand Duke as I spoke firmly.
“Yes, so you’re not my real dad.”
But I changed my mind a little this time. No, from now on.
I watched him quietly and grinned as wide as possible.
‘I’ll be your real daughter!’
I’m going to make this sweet man my dad.
‘I feel like I’m being robbed of my mom, but… for my mom…’
The Grand Duke’s eyes looking at my mother were extraordinary.
I jumped out of my seat and put my hand on my waist.
‘Fake-Dad-Real-Dad-Making Project- no… Marry-My-Mom Project!’
I clenched my first.
“Huh? Bebe?”
“Yeah? N-Nothing, hehe! But what does Daddy think of my mom?”
“Adelaide? Well… what do I think of her? It’s so sudden.”
“Don’t worry. My mom’s not here. Just confess your feelings to me.”
“Is there anything to confess? Adelaide is just…”
“What about Adelaide?”
“Love…”