Translator: Nox

Chapter 11

<12화>

“…Excuse me?”

It felt as though time had frozen for a moment.

Thinking I had misheard him, I stared at him with wide eyes. He simply gestured toward the paper with a tilt of his chin.

No way. Is this for real?

Startled, I remained in his arms as I read the document.

“An application for direct lineage…”

To be precise, it wasn’t an adoption form, but an application for direct lineage.

Was this the equivalent of a family registry in my old world?

I reached out as if possessed and touched the paper.

A pleasant chuckle rumbled above the crown of my head.

“Sign it. You’re no ordinary brat, but I’m doing this because I can handle you.”

I felt like I was walking on air.

I guess the gardener really did run away with me.

To save me.

“Mister—!”

I sprang up and threw my arms around his neck, nearly choking him.

“…There we go.”

One might have been startled by my sudden frog-like pounce, but he simply picked me up and held me light as a feather.

“Just grow up like this. Don’t go hiding anywhere.”

His large hand stroked my back.

“Sniff. Yes, yessir! I’ll be a very dutiful daughter!”

“…What does ‘dutiful’ mean?”

“It means I’ll be your golden seed, Mr. Gardener.”

In truth, this wasn’t exactly a wise choice.

By running away with me, he had suddenly put himself at risk of being hunted by two great houses.

But the important thing was that he had adopted me.

‘I need to grow up quickly and gain enough power to protect him.’

“Well, if you’re going to be something, be something big. An S-class mercenary wouldn’t even satisfy me.”

“Hic. I understand.”

Still held in his arms, I signed the contract.

“I signed it. So, you’re my legal guardian now, right?”

I clenched my small fists and steeled my heart.

Mister—no, Father.

I don’t know where you’ve run to, but we’re going to live a good life.

With Father’s experience as a gardener for the Crost family and my skills trained as a spy, we should be able to make a living anywhere, shouldn’t we?

“Now that the signature is done.”

It was then.

His red eyes, as he rested his chin on his hand, stared at the paper before he suddenly pulled out a small bell and rang it.

Tinkle—

“I suppose it’s time for a formal introduction.”

“…A bell?”

Isn’t that what nobles usually use to call their servants?

Just as I sensed something strange and tried to sit up—

“Did you call, Your Excellency?”

The massive doors, which I hadn’t even noticed, swung wide open.

From beyond them, a crowd of people dressed in various types of magnificent clothing poured in.

They lined up before us and knelt on one knee with solemn expressions.

“……?”

Is this a dream? Am I having some kind of weird nightmare?

I scanned their faces with a dazed expression.

The Head Maid. The Lady-in-Waiting. The Chef. The Knight Commander. And even Knox.

They were all people from Crost.

“Your Excellency.”

It was then.

As they raised their heads after greeting the gardener—

“…Your Excellency, the mask!”

The people gasped in shock, their gazes trembling.

“He—he took off the mask…”

“What on earth happened?”

“I took it off. It was getting hard to breathe.”

He answered their frantic questions with a nonchalant tone.

I looked at him, still utterly bewildered.

“A mask? What does that mean? Are you having trouble breathing, Mister?”

Ignoring my question entirely, he lifted me up.

“This child will be raised under me from now on. Treat her with the respect befitting her position.”

“!”

“!”

“!”

At his sudden declaration, the gazes that had been fixed on him shifted toward me.

“Understood.”

“It is an honor to meet you, Lady Aisha.”

“We look forward to serving you.”

“…Huh?”

Something was wrong.

This man was supposed to have run away from the Crost Duchy.

So, Knox, the Knight Commander—none of them should be here in front of us.

Yet, at his proclamation, they all bowed their heads in unison.

As if they were obeying the command of the Head of the House.

“…….”

Wait a minute.

The strange sense of dissonance I had been feeling finally began to coalesce into a sense of dread.

Why was a mere extra, a gardener, so exceptionally handsome?

Why was his bedroom as luxurious as a nobleman’s?

…And why wasn’t I dead?

“Mister.”

“What.”

Hiccup—

I let out a nervous hiccup and stared at him.

This man.

Suddenly, he felt like a stranger.

“…Mister, who are you?”

---

The quiet Crost Duchy Castle was turned upside down.

This was because Duke Calips, who had insisted on wearing a mask for five years, had greeted his people with his bare face.

“It feels like it’s been forever since I’ve seen His Excellency’s face.”

“I know, right?”

Resa, a maid who had been listening to the veteran servants’ conversation with a face that looked like she was still dreaming, spoke up.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever seen the Duke’s face. Why did he wear a mask for five years when he’s that handsome?”

It was true.

Without the mask, Duke Calips was the embodiment of the North he ruled.

His skin was as pale as a snowy field.

His black hair provided a sharp contrast, and combined with the blood-red eyes that had been hidden behind the mask, he gave off an impression that was both decadent and chilling.

A gaze so cold it sent shivers down one’s spine.

Yet, even that coldness only added to his artistic beauty.

“The Duchess and the young lords all went missing. He likely wore it to hide his grief.”

I see….

Anyway, it’s great to see a handsome face!

While the servants whispered with blushing faces, the Head Maid’s expression was particularly dark.

“…What on earth could have changed the Duke?”

She wasn’t the only one wondering.

Everyone in the castle was curious.

Especially the Chef, the Knight Commander, the Head Maid, and the Butler.

Those who had dedicated their lives to the castle could not simply stand by and watch this situation unfold.

So, they made a decision.

“But… isn’t it a bit rude to watch them like this?”

“The Crost Duchy is about to fall into the hands of a commoner brat. Are we supposed to just watch?”

“I suppose you’re right….”

They had decided to keep an eye on Aisha, the child who had changed the Duke.

Secretly, from behind a window!

A group of people huddled together by a slightly open window.

Outside, Duke Calips and the blonde little girl were walking through the snowy field.

“…His Excellency is in a very emotional state right now.”

“Exactly. We have no choice but to step in.”

“Setting aside the mask, that child is a fraud. Why on earth did he take her into the direct line?”

“Has he lost his mind?”

“Maybe he’s just lonely.”

“The young lords are all still missing. And you think His Excellency adopted a child just because he’s lonely?”

No, absolutely not.

They shook their heads with firm expressions.

What kind of man was Calips?

The hero who saved humanity from monsters.

The ruler of the North. The Head of House Crost, who commanded the Duchy behind a black mask!

“That brat definitely approached the Duke with an agenda. We should have known it was a lie the moment she claimed to know the Lady’s whereabouts…!”

It was then.

“Brat.”

At the Duke’s low voice, the onlookers lowered their heads and pricked up their ears.

They peeked out just enough to watch the scene through the window.

“How many days are you going to stay sulky?”

Calips asked as he followed behind Aisha through the white snow.

Pitter-patter. The child, who had been trudging through the snow on short legs, stopped.

“This adoption is a scam! I didn’t know you were the Duke!”

She screamed at the top of her lungs.

‘How dare she speak to the Duke like that…!’

‘Calling the Duke a scammer…?’

As the observers’ eyes sharpened at her lack of etiquette—

“Then you should have read the contract properly before signing it.”

They were shocked by Calips’ villainous retort.

‘Read the contract properly before signing?!’

‘Is that something you say to a five-year-old?!’

‘Who exactly am I looking at right now?!’

Their master was supposed to be someone gentle with children. Such words did not suit him at all.

As if echoing the onlookers’ thoughts, the child’s blue eyes widened.

“…Is that something you say to a five-year-old right now?!”

“Who brought up the contract in the first place? Didn’t you say you wouldn’t sign unless it had the seal of the Head of the House?”

“Mis—ter!”

“Brat. Look at this.”

It was just as the child’s voice grew louder.

Calips knelt down to meet her eyes. What he held out before her was a top-quality steak.

Sniff, sniff.

“…!”

The child’s nostrils flared as she caught the scent of meat.

“I heard you’ve been fasting for days as a protest?”

Calips spoke in a serious voice.

“If you live with me according to the contract, you can have steak for all three meals a day.”

“…….”

“Orange juice, was it? I can buy you an entire orange orchard. But if you don’t accept it…”

“Hmph.”

He threatened her with a solemn voice.

The child glared at him with sharp eyes as if resentful, but—

Twitch, twitch.

Her stubby legs began to move slowly.

“Good girl.”

“Huff, puff.”

“Come inside the castle like that.”

“Grrr.”

Even at the child’s ferocious growling, Calips remained as calm as the ruler of the North should be.

As the Duke and the child disappeared into the castle—

“…….”

The people gathered by the window couldn’t find the words to speak.