Chapter 22
The night at the Marquis of Godell’s estate…
To be honest, I just couldn’t sleep at all.
The doctor had slathered plenty of painkillers on my arm, so the pain had subsided, but the burning sensation remained.
I wanted to grumble about how uncomfortable it was, but lying in the next room was that villain who might explode at any moment.
That man is definitely going to throw me away the moment I become useless. No—if throwing me away is the worst he does, I’d consider myself lucky. He’ll probably strip me down to my bones.
…Wait, speaking of bones, something came to mind.
Mana Pearl—doesn’t it come not only from the ground but also from people? That’s why <Rank 99> started conducting human experiments!
I shot up from bed and stood in front of the mirror. With trembling hands, I picked up the loupe.
The reflection staring back at me in the mirror…
“…Whew.”
No sign of a Mana Pearl.
While I was at it, I checked on the maids cleaning up the banquet hall across the way. There was no pearl-like glow of mana. So, it really doesn’t come from just anyone.
“Well, at least I don’t have to worry about being a test subject…”
The Duke said that because of his dragon power, he can see Mana Pearls with the naked eye, right? Ugh, to his eyes, people must not even look human.
Just meat. Useful humans. Humans to be used for Mana Pearls. I bet he sorts people into those three categories.
“Soul?”
“EEK!”
I turned around to find the Duke looking at me with disbelief.
“Were you staying up playing with that thing?”
No, I couldn’t sleep because of the villain next door.
…Not like I could say that.
“No. I was checking possible escape routes in case I got accused of stealing the Mana Pearl Detector!”
“…”
Would he believe that?
“That’s a magnifying glass, not a telescope. Don’t waste your time.”
Damn it. I should’ve just said I couldn’t sleep because I was in pain.
But then the Duke casually stepped next to me and looked out the window with me.
“Still, that kind of mindset is commendable. Since we have time, let me teach you a trick to sneaking into other people’s parties.”
“…Okay.”
“First of all, I spiked the wine with a sedative.”
You villain.
“The key is to use just enough to make them drowsy. If it’s too strong, the old folks will pass out and make a scene.”
“That’s a very helpful tip… Uh, but how did you spike it?”
Marquis Godell had pulled the wine out of something like a secret agent’s briefcase. He’d even bragged about how rare it was and poured it himself.
Hmm, in a movie I once watched…
“Did you coat the inside of the glasses…? No, but there were too many of them…”
“Good deduction, but wrong. The drug was in the decanter.”
“The decanter?”
“It’s a tool used to aerate the wine before pouring, to improve its taste.”
“Ah! That explains why he was putting on such a show with the wine!”
“Show…? Anyway, there are countless ways to misdirect people’s attention. Just choose one that fits the situation. Got it?”
“Thank you…”
Where the heck am I ever going to use this? No wonder all his sons ended up twisted in their own unique ways with a father like this.
Ugh, just hearing all this is exhausting.
“You look tired. Go get some sleep. The journey home tomorrow will be long.”
“Okay. Yaaawn…”
“But before that, can you teach me one thing?”
“Huh? What is it?”
“…How to gently pat someone on the head.”
“Why don’t you try it first?”
The Duke looked between his large hand and my head, then placed his hand on top of my head. And then—pat, pat, pat. Three light thumps with his palm.
…That’s it? Are you kneading dough?
“Um, have you ever patted your son’s head before?”
“I don’t recall.”
“Did you ever raise a dog? Or at least a cat?”
“No.”
“Have you ever played with slime…? No, of course not.”
“That monster doesn’t live in the north.”
Right. Expecting a warm past from someone like you—my mistake. Well, if you can’t do it with your head, use your body.
“Kneel on one knee in front of me and place your hand on the crown of my head.”
“Kneel?”
“Yes. Meeting eye level is the basic gesture of respecting a child!”
It might be meaningless in a world that doesn’t even recognize basic human rights, but surprisingly, the Duke knelt on one knee without complaint.
His ocean-blue eyes swayed like waves, now right in front of my face. Soon his hand rested gently atop my head.
“Now gently tap with your palm twice.”
“…Done. Can I stand now?”
“Yes. You can even apply this. When you’re scolding me or comforting me, start by matching eye level, and you’ll earn at least 80 points!”
“Don’t children usually want to be at adult eye level? They want to sit at the same table.”
“But tables are made for adult-sized bodies. Sitting at the same height doesn’t make things equal.”
“Interesting. Where did you learn all this?”
Ack, is he getting suspicious?
Just… from life experiences…
…No.
“…I didn’t learn it. They’re just things I wish I had received.”
Every time I learned something in life, it came with a wound.
People told me education was important while demeaning my academic background. They said never to co-sign for anyone, all while mocking the times I got scammed.
Couldn’t they have just told me those things plainly? Did they have to look down on me every time they ‘bestowed’ their wisdom? They didn’t even have to meet me at eye level…
“Soul?”
“Yes!”
Lost in thought again. I snapped back to reality at the Duke’s voice. His hand once again rested on my head.
It was warm. And then—
“You must have gone through a lot.”
“…”
“It’s not easy to learn from pain. Thank you for sharing such valuable experience.”
Oh… I think the Duke just said something really good. That first sentence—”You must have gone through a lot”—hit me like a blow to the chest.
…Yeah. I really have. Over and over again.
I’ve talked about it to people. But no one ever said, “You must’ve had a hard time.”
They’d say, “Hardship builds character.” “You’re just unlucky.” “You’ve got to be smart in this world.” “And you still trust people after all that?”
They all just talked at me. So why is it only now, finally…
“Hrk…”
“Uh, Soul?”
“Hu…huuwaaaaa…”
The tears came pouring out.
Maybe the Duke had said it just to be polite. So I should have responded politely, like, “Oh, it’s nothing.” That would’ve been the adult thing to do.
But just one pat on the head and I turned into a child again…
“Waaaahhh!”
“Why are you suddenly crying?!”
“Because life! This shitty life! It makes me cry!”
“Did the infection in your arm spread to your brain? Should I call the physician?”
“I’m surprisingly in peak condition!”
The Duke fumbled around, flustered. That won’t do! Not as a fake daughter-fool or as a grown adult!
Through my tears, I declared:
“Your Grace! Let’s make this a training exercise! What do you do when a child cries?!”
“If you’re calm enough to talk, stop crying!”
“If you’re going to talk about conscience, Your Grace, make sure your heart has stopped beating first!”
“…What did you just say?”
“Is that really important when a child is crying? What did you do before when your kids cried?!”
Maybe it was because I was crying, but nonsense flowed like a river. The Duke was briefly stunned by my brazenness, then finally answered.
“…I left them alone. Until the emotions ran dry.”
“You didn’t even stay by their side, did you?”
“…”
Bingo.
I raised my tear-streaked, blotchy face with pride. I had to say this—for Elbert’s sake.
“That’s not leaving them alone. That’s actively pulling away.”
“…”
“Even if the child isn’t crying because of you… If a child cries, please stay with them.”
Don’t teach them that crying makes you lonelier. Show them someone can stay.
I remembered how Elbert used to act at the orphanage. Most kids left in an institution won’t admit they’ve been abandoned so easily.
But Elbert had given up quickly. He looked half-dead under his eyes, muttering, “All nobles are garbage.” How many things must’ve happened with his father before he got to that point?
Rattiger Alt Schleyger, you really are…
As that wave of sorrow surged again on Elbert’s behalf, the Duke suddenly knelt on one knee in front of me.
It wasn’t to apologize. Just with an awkward, slightly embarrassed expression, he looked into my eyes.
Wait… Is he seriously applying the “get down to eye level when comforting a kid” advice I gave earlier?
I almost laughed from the absurdity.
Still, since he was actually putting what I taught him into practice, I bit the inside of my cheek and forced myself to hold back more tears.
“Sniff… You did well, Your Grace…”
“…Thank you.”
“Next time… no, just go to bed now.”
I wanted to ask him to do the same for Elbert, but judging by his soul-drained face, this was the limit for today. Well, dealing with a sobbing, non-stop-talking kid isn’t easy.
As I wiped away my tears, I fulfilled my duty as a ‘fake daughter-fool instructor.’
“Oh, and Your Grace. A classic daughter-fool move is growling, ‘Who made my daughter cry?!’ It’s very effective.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
With those final words, the Duke headed to his bedroom. But just before the door shut, without even turning around, he spoke:
“This time… is it me you’re scolding?”
Ha.
So you can joke, huh? A smile crept across my face.
“I’ll let it slide!”
I replied with a joke of my own.
He didn’t respond, but I saw it—his faint smile reflected in the mirror before it disappeared.
