Chapter 10 …
The Villainous Heir’s Daughter?!
Barely managing to walk step by step with the help of his cane, he suddenly strode toward the carriage, flung the door open, and yanked it wide.
At this rate, he felt like his heart might burst from sheer frustration.
Even now, his chest throbbed as if it were about to explode.
‘That bastard Leonardo… does he really intend not to apologize again this time?!’
Just as he was about to step onto the carriage,
a sweet, candy-like scent—distinctly belonging to a child—drifted over from somewhere.
“Let’s go, Gati! Haraburdi!”
“O-oh, what?!”
Where on earth had this bright, cheerful voice—like sunlight scattering—suddenly come from?
Schurman turned his head this way and that before finally spotting it.
Something like a round rabbit’s backside was sticking out beneath his right arm.
“W-who is it?!”
Startled, he stumbled backward several steps.
As Schurman blinked a few times, the mysterious creature sitting inside his carriage came into clear view.
Strange purple hair, styled like two round buns on either side of the head. Big, shamelessly wide eyes that sparkled like amethysts. Beneath them, plump cheeks like a full moon. And even if she stretched her legs all the way out, her small body was still shorter than the carriage seat.
“Y-you are…?”
No way. Impossible.
Where had he seen a child like this before?
Who was she?
He definitely knew her—but it felt like seeing her for the first time, as if he had suddenly developed amnesia.
The child patted the seat beside her with a fist like a kitten’s paw.
“Get in!”
“?”
Schurman, frozen in place from shock, shook his head.
“Get in? How dare you tell me, the Duke of Shablin, to get in?!”
“Mm! Hurry, get in!”
“!”
A massive shock.
Schurman staggered, clutching his chest.
‘No one has ever treated me so casually before.’
Except for Leonardo—no one!
And yet…
Strangely.
Incredibly strangely, unlike with Leonardo, he didn’t hate it at all.
Barely recovering from the bizarre shock, he pointed at the child.
“Y-you! Who are you?!”
“I’m Ersha.”
The child tilted her head slightly, blinking her large eyes.
Even that simple motion of opening and closing her eyelids struck straight at his heart.
Never in his life had he encountered someone who could act so wildly, yet instead of being annoying, made him want to dote on them endlessly.
It was an unfamiliar and bewildering feeling.
“E-Ersha?”
Unable to watch any longer, Nocturne and Evot hurried over to Schurman.
“Your Grace! That child is the Marquis’s daughter!”
“Miss Erusha Shablin! She just turned five this year!”
“That… is Leonardo’s daughter? Erusha?”
The Duke Schurman’s shout rang loud enough to reach the skies of the estate.
Erusha’s expression fell in disappointment as she murmured,
“Haraburdi… you don’t recognize me?”
Thud.
Didn’t anyone hear the sound of a grandfather’s heart dropping?
What was this?
How had he been completely unaware that such an adorable creature—one he’d want to treasure dearly—had been living in his own house?
Thump, thump, thump, thump.
Feeling his heartbeat go irregular, Schurman stammered,
“I-immediately remove that child from my carriage! Get her out at once!”
“Huh? Nooo~~”
Erusha was helplessly lifted by the servants, her legs dangling in the air.
* * *
Bang!
The carriage door slammed shut mercilessly.
With Erusha’s sudden appearance—no, intrusion—everyone who had come to see off Duke Schurman stood there, stunned.
At the same time, all eyes turned toward the small, round head of purple hair.
‘That’s Miss Erusha…?’
Very few people in the ducal household had ever properly seen Erusha. In fact, aside from Evot, almost no one had.
Everyone knew of her existence subconsciously, but they never really thought about it.
As the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind, Erusha had naturally faded from people’s awareness.
After all, there was already a maid assigned to take care of Leonardo’s daughter, and she had never caused any noticeable trouble.
‘But now she suddenly has this much presence?’
Could even the most dazzling debutante make such an impact?
Though puzzled, no one could take their eyes off her.
It was surprising enough that the child was Erusha Shablin—but her appearance itself was so striking that it held everyone’s gaze captive.
Briana and Diana were also adorably charming, but Erusha possessed a beauty incomparable to anyone else. It was enough to leave people speechless.
‘As expected, she’s the daughter of a father who could topple nations with his looks!’
“Depart!”
Schurman yanked the bell inside the carriage violently.
At the signal, the coachman pulled the reins, and the horses neighed as if ready to take off.
Neigh!
At that moment, Erusha dashed toward the driver’s seat as fast as lightning.
‘If I don’t go to the Colson County now, I’m dead!’
“Ersha wants to go too!”
“Miss!”
Gasp.
Startled, the coachmen briefly fumbled with the reins before quickly regaining control.
The words “Please get down” rose to their throats—but none of them could say it.
Sparkle, sparkle.
The small child who had suddenly invaded the driver’s seat was overflowing with irresistible cuteness.
* * *
‘Phew, luckily I made it in time.’
Holding onto the armrest of the driver’s seat, I felt the fresh air brush past my nose.
A vast foreign plain stretched before my eyes, with sheep grazing and picturesque trees scattered across the landscape.
The moment I heard this morning that Duke Schurman was heading to the Colson County, I thought, This is it.
A grand plan had formed in my mind on how to reveal the truth behind the assault incident.
A plan to slightly improve Father’s image in front of Grandfather—and at the same time crush Joseph Colson, who had already ruined his reputation even further!
Soon, the carriage stopped in front of the Colson estate. As Grandfather stepped down, he spotted me and was horrified.
“Y-you brat! You followed me all the way here?!”
As Duke Schurman waved his cane, I quickly hid behind the coachman.
“Ersha will stay quiet!”
Zip!
I mimed sealing my lips shut.
When Grandfather raised his cane as if to scold me further, Nocturne cleared his throat and intervened.
“It is time to go inside.”
“I-I’ll deal with that brat—”
Though glaring at me, Grandfather didn’t approach. Once he finally turned away, I let out a sigh of relief.
‘It seems Duke Schurman really doesn’t welcome me.’
He probably hadn’t seen Erusha since she was a baby.
Of course, I hadn’t expected a warm welcome—but I hadn’t expected to get scolded like this either.
Honestly, what I imagined was:
‘You’re Leonardo’s daughter? You’ve grown this much? So, how much have you studied? What? No tutor all this time? As expected, you’re a foolish child!’
…Well, that scenario also involved getting scolded.
Shaking my head, I quickly followed inside before the doors of the estate closed.
Whether or not Duke Schurman liked me wasn’t the priority—I had to reveal the truth that Father had been used.
Anyway, since he already had adorable granddaughters like Briana and Diana, I had no desire to take or share that affection.
I just needed to be acknowledged as part of the family—enough not to be kicked out.
Suddenly, a dark shadow fell over me.
Looking up, I saw Grandfather staring down at me with a stern expression.
“!”
“Why have you come here?”
“I—I want to apologize too.”
“You?”
“Mm. Since Daddy hit someone… even if I’m just his daughter, I should say sorry…”
“Hmm.”
Duke Schurman looked displeased.
“That’s enough. Bowing my head for that rascal’s misdeeds is something I alone will do.”
“But if Ersha goes, they’ll sign the contract again!”
“They won’t.”
“……”
Grandfather quickly walked ahead, but I still followed closely behind him anyway.
