Chapter 85
Back when I was keeping my distance from the Duke…
It was around the time I was sneaking into the temple to get close to Seraphina and ended up receiving the ability to see ten seconds into the future from the Lord. Or when mana pearls appeared and I ran away, fearing the Duke would devour me down to my bones.
Later, the misunderstanding was cleared up, but back then, the Duke had said nonsense like, “Ah, you’re going through puberty,” or “You must get annoyed just seeing your father.”
“Anyway… do you know what your father did when he was worrying?”
I had a feeling it was going to be embarrassingly ridiculous.
“Brother, do I really have to hear this?”
“Why? You don’t want to?”
It’s embarrassing!
I glanced at Elber’s expression. If he had a playful look like, ‘Was Sol rebellious?’, I’d twist his cheek to tease him.
…but I was wrong.
“Sol, I want to reassure you.”
Elber is an angel.
“In what sense?”
“Even if you ran away, your father wouldn’t harm you.”
“…That’s true.”
On the day I thought he had come to capture me, the Duke didn’t bring ropes or anything to tie me up. Instead, he brought a dreamcatcher to hang by my bedside.
I finally nodded.
“Tell me. While I was away, what did Father do?”
“Alright… though you might be disappointed it’s just this. A while ago, I went into Father’s study and found some strange books. The covers had no titles at all.”
Suspicious books. Hopefully, they weren’t… that kind of book.
“Well, they’re definitely Father’s books… but they looked so unusual I opened one, and the titles were like this.”
“What titles?”
“Understanding Adolescence, What Rebellion Is, On Mental Growth, How People Left Alone Raise Children…”
I was truly speechless.
The villainous Duke read books? He raised his children halfheartedly, and now… this!
“This is impossible…”
“I thought the same. But when they changed the covers, I saw traces of ice. The corners of the books were wet and stuck together.”
“….”
“Father read them.”
“For… me?”
“Definitely.”
I could see the effort, but… the direction of that effort was a little strange, wasn’t it?
Still, I couldn’t believe the Duke was trying to understand me—even like this. Moreover… it wouldn’t have been difficult for him to find me by force and demand, “What are you thinking?”
Elber smiled wryly.
“Strange, isn’t it? Even you think so?”
“…Yes.”
“Well, he also made dad-jokes like a high-ranking official, asking, ‘I heard kids like this these days. Why don’t you laugh?’ even after reading such strange books.”
“….”
“I warned him never to do that again, so you won’t hear it in the future.”
“Thank you so much.”
Apparently, even this world has the terrible phenomenon called dad-jokes. Don’t ask what kind of joke it was.
“I see… while I was busy with my own matters, Father was making an effort too…”
Gratitude lingered briefly, but a feeling of guilt began to rise.
He didn’t make any effort when his own children ran away and he suffered.
Wouldn’t Elber feel hurt? Betrayed? And then some random girl just shows up—
But at that moment, Elber gripped my hand tightly.
“I’m fine. No, rather, I’m really grateful that he became someone capable of making an effort.”
“You guessed what I was thinking?”
“Yes. It’s not the first time. Haven’t you blamed yourself before?”
“I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay. You can worry as many times as you want.”
Elber’s smile was beautiful.
“Both I and Father, and even Brother Bennen, will tell you as many times as needed. That you changed all of us.”
“….”
“Someday, when you stop worrying and truly consider our home as your own, we will certainly…”
Elber’s final sentence broke off in his mouth, but I heard it clearly. What that gentle voice meant to say was—
“…We will be a happy family.”
For some reason, my eyes got a little wet. I buried myself in the blanket to hide it.
“Sol, are you sleepy?”
“…Yes.”
“I’ll turn off the lights then. Good night.”
“…Thank you, Brother.”
“Thank you for listening to me, Sol.”
After blowing out the bedside and table lamps, Elber left the room without looking back.
But the door closing and the fading footsteps took quite some time.
Was he waiting in case I couldn’t sleep and tossed and turned?
“Really, what a villain’s household this is…”
The silly Duke. The kind Elber. The hardworking Bennen. Even Ignatz, who lives his own life away from home but still helps me.
…Just remembering them made me feel like I’d have a good dream tonight, even without the dreamcatcher.
Sunday morning.
The maid, whose voice I was getting used to, woke me up.
“Milady, please get up quickly.”
“Ugh… yes?”
Curious if something happened, I peeked out of the blanket—and froze when I saw a basin prepared under my chin.
“Uh? H-hey…”
“I’ll wash you.”
“Eh? I can wash myself!”
“Close your eyes.”
“….”
A sponge soaked in warm water touched my face. I’m not a child… why suddenly this?
“Do you have somewhere urgent to go today?”
“No, milady. Tomorrow morning, Master Elber will take you to school on horseback.”
“Then why the sudden rush…”
“Because, others need to come in a hurry instead.”
“…Huh?”
The meaning became clear within ten minutes: wash, eat, brush hair and teeth.
A line of women had formed outside my room. The first held a notebook and charcoal, the others various fabrics and measuring tapes.
I had seen this before… about six years ago…
“We’ll make a splendid dress for you, Lady Schleiger.”
Of course!
I couldn’t step out of the room and was measured on the spot.
“Relax. Height 160 cm, shoulder width…”
“Could you raise your arms? Yes, perfect.”
“You’ll lift your right and left foot.”
I can’t levitate!
Two assistants lifted me by my armpits while the others measured my legs in the air.
“Weren’t the legs measured earlier?”
“The length changes when floating versus standing.”
“…Will I be floating?”
“You’ll dance at the ball, won’t you? Surely a gentleman will lift you then, so we need the perfect dress length for the silhouette.”
“…Did the Duke order this?”
“Yes. He contacted us urgently yesterday. He wants the results to be impeccable at all times, never ignored by anyone.”
“…Duke, why overdo it?”
I’m not the ball’s main star—Seraphina is! She wouldn’t dress extravagantly anyway. Won’t I just be compared to her?
The tailor seemed to read my worry and smiled.
“Don’t worry. We won’t overdo the lady just because her parents requested it.”
“Oh…”
“Spring balls are for amateurs to add decorations. Let the garden flowers provide the brilliance.”
Indeed, the fabrics placed under my chin were plain, though the subtle sheen suggested they were expensive.
“I’ll take this one.”
“Pale sky blue. Excellent choice. Anything else?”
“No—oh, just one! Keep it a secret from my father!”
“Of course. We’re good at subtly emphasizing the waist or neckline without the parents noticing! How would you like it?”
“Please don’t make it look too fancy for me…”
“Excuse me?”
The tailor frowned. Did I just get into trouble?
“Milady…?”
“Yes.”
“This request is familiar. Young ladies, unused to adorning themselves and disliking mirrors, often ask this when dragged to balls.”
“….”
“But!”
“Gah?”
The tailor put his arm around my neck and the assistants positioned me in front of the mirror.
“Why avoid your reflection, milady? Uncomfortable?”
“…Yes.”
Since Han Se-yul’s time.
The orphanage had few mirrors. Spending time in front of them meant teasing by boys, which was annoying.
After becoming independent, I hated seeing my red, tear-streaked face.
After possession, looking in mirrors was terrifying for another reason.
No matter how minor the role, it was painful to see an innocent girl lose her body to me.
And… I didn’t want to confront that Han Se-yul had disappeared.
Sometimes, just checking for something on my face or brushing hair briefly.
But the tailor was relentless.
“Look in the mirror!”
“Ugh…”
I clenched my fists and slowly opened my eyes. In the unusually clean mirror…
“Ah…”
After reuniting with Eugene, he had said I resembled my former self.
Indeed, my reflection now resembled my high school ID photo—like a subtly enhanced version of myself.
Did good sleep and meals really reflect on my face?
As I stared in shock and admiration, the tailor smiled.
“I think there’s nothing more to say.”
“Ah…”
“We’ll make a dress fitting for a lady as beautiful as early summer.”
“…Thank you.”
Everyone smiled warmly, and I felt lightheaded sitting in the chair, ready to welcome the others.
Later, the tailor must have met someone in the corridor. Elber’s voice rang out.
“Oh, are you here to make my sister’s dress? I’ll leave it in your hands.”
Where did the tsundere act go? Of course, the tailor, unaware of the concept, responded amicably.
“Yes. We were just choosing fabrics.”
Would he show the pale sky blue fabric? At first glance it looked like Seoul Smog Grey, but when draped it revealed a subtle beauty.
Elber, clueless about fashion, would probably just nod. I left the room to look at him.
But surprisingly, he gave a serious and unnecessary response.
“It’s really dull… This is the fabric you rejected, right?”
Hey! Elber!
As the tailor flustered, my feet touched the corridor and the assistants’ eyes widened.
…When Elber realized his mistake, I couldn’t resist yelling.
“Dull little sister appears!”
