Chapter 9
The vassals dared not even lift their heads under the crushing weight of the pressure. The dignity of the Empire’s one and only Grand Sword Master was, in every sense of the word, absolute.
"She is not just any child; she is Lephonia. Lephonia Kreitan. I believe I sent the announcement in writing, yet it seems no one here bothered to read it properly."
The Duke of Kreitan muttered as if grinding his teeth. He clenched his fist, the blue veins on the back of his hand standing out, and let out a sharp breath.
"I allowed this sudden visit out of the kindness of my heart, as I hadn't yet informed you of the birth of a new master. If I had known you came here to treat me like a seven-year-old boy, I would have sent you packing."
"Duke, we speak this way despite the risk of being branded unfaithful because we all cherish the Kreitan Family—"
"Those who wag their tongues loosely about the Lady—"
The Duke of Kreitan placed the sword at his waist onto the desk.
"Will pay the price."
Death.
It meant they should repent only through death. The vassals clamped their lips shut at the Duke’s firm demeanor, which brooked no further argument.
It was then.
*Knock, knock.*
A knock sounded at the door of the conference room.
"I thought I said not to let anyone in."
The Duke of Kreitan, his mood already sour, frowned and spoke with irritation. Despite his voice, which was filled with fury, the door to the conference room clicked open.
"Are your ears clogged? I clearly said no one was to enter... Ugh!"
The Duke of Kreitan, who had been shouting in annoyance, saw who had entered the reception room and clamped his mouth shut, cutting off his harsh words. The vassals tilted their heads in confusion.
"Duke."
A warm, cute voice, soft enough to melt the frozen atmosphere, wrapped around their ears. Everyone in the reception room turned their heads.
Standing there was a child who looked so much like the late Duchess that it was as if she had returned to life. The vassals exchanged glances. Their eyes showed they had realized this was the child the Duke had adopted, 'Lephonia.'
They finally understood why the Duke of Kreitan had suddenly decided to adopt and why he was reacting so strongly. The vassals looked at Lephonia with displeased, contemptuous eyes.
However, Lephonia did not care in the slightest.
*‘Hmm. As expected, they’re all glaring at me.’*
Lephonia, having received the stinging gazes of the vassals head-on, approached the Duke’s side.
"Ponya."
The Duke of Kreitan’s face, as he held his forehead, looked fiercer than ever. Of course, Lephonia remained unbothered.
"Why are you here? I specifically ordered that you be kept away from this area."
He hadn't intended to show the child he was playing "adoption game" with to the vassals before he eventually annulled it, and it seemed he was angry that Lephonia had come. But for Lephonia, this was a golden opportunity she couldn't pass up.
"Ha. No, never mind that. We are in the middle of a meeting—"
"Duke."
Lephonia cut through his low, murky voice and reached out with her short hand. She firmly gripped the Duke of Kreitan’s large finger. The Duke of Kreitan, having only a single finger held, flinched in surprise as if he had been subjected to severe torture.
"There are too many people I don't know."
*My tongue. I’m saying something important right now. Stay focused.*
"I want to stay with you for a while."
It was a sweet sentiment, but the voice Lephonia used to deliver it was dry and emotionless. The Duke of Kreitan stared at the small hand gripping his finger. Meanwhile, the vassals continued to glare with malice, clearly displeased by Lephonia’s attempt to curry favor with the Duke.
After a long silence, the Duke opened his mouth.
"Very well. I was wrong."
"Hm?"
"They don't hide their malice even in my presence, so it would surely be worse when I am not around."
The Duke of Kreitan reached out. He scooped Lephonia up with one hand and sat her on his lap.
"That’s right. Ponya, you would feel safest and most at ease by my side, wouldn't you?"
Lephonia, suddenly seated on the Duke’s lap, blinked as she faced the shocked vassals.
"Everyone, greet her."
The Duke of Kreitan, chin resting on his hand, stroked the hair of the child sitting on his knee. He had, in effect, granted Lephonia’s request.
*‘Good.’*
Lephonia secretly clenched her fist. Now that she had searched the entire mansion and failed to find the heirloom, the only person who knew its location was the Duke of Kreitan. She had been worried because she wanted to monitor his every move but lacked a proper excuse. But since the vassals had swarmed in and openly displayed their malice, she had found the perfect pretext.
She figured that if she acted scared and terrified, pretending she needed someone to rely on, the Duke would feel responsible and grant her requests.
"Nice to meet you."
Lephonia slowly scanned the vassals, memorizing every one of their faces. It might come in handy someday.
"I am Lephonia Kreitan."
The vassals, as if they had no choice, offered polite greetings in return. Once the round of introductions ended, one of them stood up.
"I do not believe this is a conversation to be held in the presence of the Lady. Let us discuss this later, Duke."
It was a way of saying they could not hold an internal meeting with an outsider present. However, the Duke agreed, perhaps feeling that discussing Lephonia in front of Lephonia was inappropriate.
"Everyone, withdraw."
Once they had all left, only the Duke and Lephonia remained in the conference room.
*‘Can I get down now?’*
Lephonia, who had never sat on someone else’s lap in her life, hesitated. Since coming to the mansion, she had been eating three full meals a day and two snacks to her heart's content. Perhaps because of that, she could feel for herself that she had gained weight since arriving.
*‘He must be heavy.’*
Lephonia squirmed.
"Ponya."
A puzzled voice descended from above her head. When she turned her head, she met the eyes of the Duke of Kreitan, who was still resting his chin on his hand.
"I heard you’ve been eating well lately—"
It sounded as if he were asking how long she intended to stay seated there, so Lephonia hurried to get down. However, she was caught by the Duke of Kreitan’s hand, leaving her in an awkward position.
"Is there a problem with the reports I’ve been receiving?"
*Hmm?*
*‘Does he mean I’m heavy?’*
The Duke of Kreitan tilted his head in genuine concern.
"I heard you were eating well, but are you really eating as much as they say?"
Lephonia swallowed hard.
"How much do you eat?"
He even went so far as to ask her. It was such an absurd question that Lephonia didn't know how to respond. What on earth was the intention behind this question? A man of the Duke’s stature wouldn't ask something without a reason. Asking if she was eating well and how much she ate was...
*‘As expected, I must have become too heavy.’*
She had been eating quite a lot lately.
*‘Maybe it means the food supplies are running low because I eat too much.’*
Even though nobles lived in abundance, resources like food were limited, so he might feel it was a waste to spend them on an adopted child. Or, if that wasn't it...
*‘Is it because I’ve gained weight and look unsightly?’*
She had heard that some nobles, even as children, had their weight and proportions managed from a young age. There were only three possibilities she could infer...
"You’re too light, tsk."
*Too light?* Was he being sarcastic? Lephonia tilted her head, trying to deduce the motive behind the question.
"Seeing as you don't answer, it seems someone reporting to me is lying."
The Duke of Kreitan’s face grew increasingly cold. Startled by the sharp killing intent felt at such close range, Lephonia shook her head.
"I eat vewy well."
The fact that her pronunciation was slurring wasn't important right now. She had to answer first. Lephonia, having no idea why the Duke was suddenly angry, hurriedly added:
"Is that so? How many times a day do you eat?"
Lephonia wiggled her fingers. She hesitated, worried she might be scolded if she said she ate too much, and the Duke of Kreitan’s eyebrows furrowed.
"I eat three times a day, and two snacks."
Her face burned with the shame of confessing a sin. She regretted not turning down that one dessert.
*‘Will I be scolded?’*
She might even be hit. The Duke of Kreitan’s hands were large and hard; it would hurt a lot if she were hit in her five-year-old body. Lephonia tensed her muscles, bracing herself so she wouldn't be sent flying if he struck her unexpectedly.
But what returned was not a slap, but a serious voice.
"That’s not enough."
"Hm?"
"Your brothers ate four meals a day and two snacks at that age. Not to mention midnight snacks, they would even wake up at dawn to raid the kitchen."
*Is that even human? That’s a beast.*
Lephonia forced herself to swallow the words that had risen to her throat and reassessed the situation. Was he serious because he thought she was lacking compared to his two sturdy children? No, perhaps he just hated seeing her look frail.
Lephonia said hurriedly:
"I’ve been raiding the Duke’s food storage."
"That is excellent."
She had told him she was raiding the storage, yet he praised her. Furthermore, for some reason, the killing intent that had been swirling around him calmed down. She didn't understand it, but since the killing intent had subsided, that was all that mattered. Lephonia let out a sigh of relief.
"By the way, your original pronunciation comes out when you’re in a hurry."
"Huh?"
"Ponya, at your age, there are many cases where you can't pronounce things as you wish. You’re always worrying about it."
That was because it was shameful to have a lisp.
"Ponya. Your second brother, Pretes, babbled until he was five."
*Isn't that a bit too late?*
The Duke of Kreitan stood up, holding Lephonia securely in his arms.
"It was quite late at the time, so the scholars were very worried, but he speaks well and is growing up healthy now. Just as there are children who are slow, there are those who are fast, so you don't need to worry about such things, Ponya."
If it was the second brother...
"The brother who hasn't been able to graduate from the Academy for three years?"
"…Now that I think about it, he isn't exactly growing up well right now, either."
The Duke of Kreitan frowned.
"Regardless, speak however is comfortable for you. I will be the one to understand."
That she didn't need to worry about being slower than others. It was the first time she had ever heard such words. The Pope had always said that one must not fall behind, and that only death awaited the slow. He said that everyone except her was a competitor, a being to be surpassed, so she must watch her behavior and never let anyone find a weakness.
Yet...
*‘My feelings are strange.’*
Lephonia glanced at the Duke of Kreitan. Perhaps feeling her gaze, the Duke lowered his eyes. Their eyes met.
"Ponya."
"Hm?"
"I heard you’ve been wandering around to look at the mansion lately?"
It seemed he was receiving every report related to the real Lephonia.
"Stop wandering around now."
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