Chapter 146
Emperor Leopold was sinking into bitter regret when someone quietly approached him.
“Tourist, right? Is this your first time in Lohas?”
“Ah….”
“Here, take this.”
“…….”
Knowing that refusing would only bring more hassle, Leopold reluctantly took the flyer the promoter handed him. Soon, a thick stack of flyers was piling up in his hands.
They really don’t give you a moment to breathe.
He had no idea why they were handing out casino promotion flyers along the Uptown shopping street. Feeling the overwhelming grandeur of the continent’s largest tourist city, Leopold skimmed through a few flyers, hoping to find somewhere he could take Nina.
“Need an escape from a tiring, boring routine? The spark with your spouse has long faded, and your children only bring trouble? At RG Hotel, all courses are ready to soothe your exhausted body and mind! First-time visitors receive one night’s stay free, and with your first game play…”
“Welcome to OME’s women-only club! We’ve prepared everything because we don’t know what you like! Employees with 99% resemblance to famous stage actors, opera singers, notable socialites, and top contemporary athletes are here to fulfill your dreams…”
Leopold’s eyes shook violently as he stared blankly at the flyers.
To promote something like this so openly in broad daylight…
The overwhelming, shameless advertisements made him dizzy, something unimaginable in the capital.
So when the sender of the note finally appeared, the emperor faced a reunion far different from what he had imagined.
“Father.”
A sweet voice rang from below, and his shoulders jerked upward sharply.
“Ah… Nina.”
He stuffed the flyers haphazardly into his coat pocket and turned around.
Nina misinterpreted his reaction.
“Didn’t expect me to come out…?”
“…….”
Leopold was at a loss for words, staring blankly at her.
Nina, dressed in cheerful, modern children’s clothes and a large ribboned straw hat, looked both adorable and full of life—almost unrecognizable compared to the days she dragged along floor-length dresses like Anna had.
“……No, I knew.”
His voice barely left his lips, trembling faintly. He desperately held back the urge to kneel and open his arms like in a dream, feeling ridiculous for suppressing it.
He had never hugged this child when he could have…
“Did you come alone…?”
“For now, yes.”
Nina answered vaguely, bouncing on the tips of her shoes.
Leopold glanced around quickly. The city was essentially a gang’s territory, so there would be watchful eyes, but Lavian didn’t seem to be nearby.
Did she come out without Lavia knowing?
The thought gave him an unearned sense of triumph.
“I see… thank you for coming to meet me like this.”
Not for you, though.
“Have you done any sightseeing?”
Nina asked innocently, responding only in her thoughts. Leopold hesitated for a moment but recovered instantly.
“Huh? Ah… no. Not yet… Is there anywhere you want to go?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure.”
She didn’t have a specific destination in mind, but she had a few places she thought of visiting. Either way, they needed to move quickly. If anyone familiar saw them loitering outside, it wouldn’t end well.
Finally, she stopped pretending to hesitate and said softly,
“I haven’t been to the zoo yet.”
On a weekday afternoon, the zoo was quiet.
While Leopold paid for tickets and drinks, Nina sat on a nearby bench waiting. The thought of wandering Lohas with the emperor felt utterly surreal.
I never thought I’d come here with him…
When she was younger, naive, and ignorant, she had often dreamed of outings like this. Sometimes she imagined going on trips as a perfect little family with her father, mother, and little sister.
Ironically, in the present, with part of her childhood imagination realized, the person wishing Nina were beside her wasn’t “Father.”
Why now…?
Reasoning rationally, Nina saw no reason for Leopold to feel affection for her. After all, she wasn’t his biological child.
Moreover, if truth be told, he had been kinder than her birth mother, Diana.
So there was no reason to harbor resentment or attachment for the past six years. The one appearing clingy wasn’t Nina—it was Leopold.
He had always acted this way. Only after Nina fully closed her heart did his attitude change completely.
It was a mystery, perhaps stubbornness.
If you had been merciless like Mother… it would have been so much easier for both of us.
As for the emperor, he was struggling because he couldn’t be ruthless to the end.
“Do you have cash instead of a check, sir?”
“Oh, cash… I have some here…”
The store clerk groaned at the sight of the 1,000-darc note Leopold handed over. Even for a noble, this was unusual.
Is this his first outing?
“Do you have smaller change?”
“Change? Money is money—what’s this about ‘change’?”
“…….”
It was clear Leopold didn’t understand the concept of small change. Finally, Nina stepped in and pulled coins from her small handbag, borrowed from Messy just in case.
“We’ll use this.”
“No, I have money too…”
“Buy me something else later.”
“But…”
Ignoring his protests, Nina paid. There was no way the zoo clerk could give change for a 1,000-darc note on a quiet weekday.
After receiving the tickets and drinks, Leopold finally understood.
“I see. Sorry, it’s my first time at a place like this…”
“That’s okay. But how did you manage before, when buying clothes or other things?”
Nina asked, genuinely curious. His clothing wasn’t cheap, but it wasn’t high-end custom wear either.
“Oh… this isn’t mine. The captain of my guards got it for me before we came here.”
Nina recalled the guard in her memory—was it Sir Reborns?
“The captain must know you’re here.”
“Yes.”
“Does Mother know?”
A mischievous glint shone in her blue eyes. Leopold flinched, as if punched.
“Well… your mother…”
He seemed unsure how to respond. ‘Your mother’ sounded almost absurd to him.
Suppressing rising cynicism, Nina moved on.
“How is Estella?”
“Huh? Oh, she’s fine. Lately, she’s been so lively she keeps getting hurt here and there…”
Leopold’s voice faltered. Talking about Estella to Nina this way felt wrong.
Because he had discriminated between Nina and Estella all this time.
To casually speak about them like a normal family, after treating them differently…
“Father?”
Nina, a few steps ahead, turned and looked at him.
Father. Not Dad, but Father.
And calling him that now might be the last time.
Leopold swallowed dryly.
“Hand…”
“Pardon?”
“I think I should hold your hand…”
“…….”
“This city isn’t exactly safe, and you might get lost…”
