Brushing off the dirt from my skirt, I slowly made my way to their front and spoke in a shaky voice.
“Rune, what are you doing, there.”
“Hmph. Aste!”
Rune, in the Duke’s arms, waved a hand in greeting.
Duke Anais looked up at me, his eyes softening into a smile.
It was a weary sort of smile.
“Duke, ah, hello…”
“Yes, please have a seat.”
I did, and sat down, facing the Duke for once.
When he warned me of the dark shadows that had fallen upon our family, I had to keep my heart from breaking.
But what if he, too, could be the final dark villain?
The rate at which my barriers were crumbling became too much.
“Astel.”
“Yes.”
I listened to him, keeping my eyes down.
“For a start, I’ve dealt with anything in the Duchy that disrespects humans.”
“Dealt with?”
“Ah.”
The Duke blinked slowly and then spoke again, “To the people. I kindly explained to them that they should not disrespect humans.”
…What the hell was a kind explanation? I don’t think I want to know.
Beyond that, the Duke said he wanted to make sure I was well taken care of during my stay at the castle.
“Do you want me to forbid anyone from even mentioning Astel in the future?”
That was a bit much, to say the least…
“Well, um…”
My face turned as red as a tomato as I listened.
Seriously, you seem to have changed. I wondered if he’d suddenly had a change of heart.
Unless…
“I…”
Before I could finish my sentence, the Duke’s misunderstanding took another turn.
“You must have been startled by those rude people.”
The shock was from the Duke’s overprotection…
Without realizing it, the Duke snapped the magic tool in his hand in two.
Despite his dignified appearance, his eyes were like those of an animal.
I felt a little frightened.
But the Duke continued, “I don’t want you to be anxious.”
“What?”
“I’m worried that you’re being taken advantage of by some scumbag.”
By some scumbag, he meant Bazel, right? But you’ve already taken care of that guy…
I shook my head, not sure who he was referring to.
But the Duke was the first to speak.
He grinned brazenly and held out an answer.
“I must remain at Astel’s side.”
It sounded ridiculous.
Still, when the Duke said it in his trademark heavy tone, it sounded like a strict law that had to be obeyed.
With that ruling in hand, he set down Rune, who had been sitting on his lap and playing with the tableware, beside him.
“Well, there. Isn’t the Duke busy, too?”
At my words, the Duke frowned again.
I don’t remember him being this way when I first saw him, but he seemed to have gotten quite emotional at some point.
“…Astel, you have expressed your intention to reject me.”
I shuddered a little.
“I rejected…?”
Did I say no to what?
“Yes.”
He immediately glanced at the flowers on the table, his eyes searching and sad.
“…Yeah.”
…I did?
“I can’t stand by and watch you getting taken advantage of.”
So… who am I being taken advantage of by?
I guess he was referring to the incident with Sam or Bazel or something, but he seemed pretty bothered by it, even if it all worked out okay.
I spoke up, cautiously.
“…Oh, yeah. Well, thank you.”
As we talked, I felt like I was solving a mystery.
“The child. Rune.”
“…Uh, yes?”
“I intend to take very good care of him.”
The moment those words were spoken, the Duke’s eyes suddenly turned fierce.
With that look… How could you possibly be nice?
I think all the children are going to cry…?
But Rune, sitting next to me, was giggling and rubbing his cheek against the Duke’s head.
“Daddy!”
…Being her brother’s son, after all, Rune’s affections for the Duke were immense.
More than that, did he just say Daddy?
In the past, I’d tolerated Rune’s frequent mistakes in calling me mom, but this time, I was afraid it might be rude to the Duke.
“You have a different father!”
For the first time in her life, Rune merely pouted curtly.
Instead, the answer sprang from the other side.
“No.”
The Duke said toward me, his face brimming with energy.
“I have agreed to be the child’s father.”
What? Suddenly?
“Rune has a real father…”
At my carefully chosen words, the Duke stared at me with intense eyes.
“You mean Cassian Gray?”
I swallowed as hard as I could against the hiccup that momentarily rose.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Before I could ask, ‘What matters,’ he declared, his voice clearer than ever.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re Rune’s biological mother or not.”
“…?”
What are you talking about, Duke…?
My heart dropped at the out-of-the-blue remark, but the Duke did not stop speaking, as if vomiting up long-held resolutions.
“I don’t care about any of it.”
“You’re…?”
“So… let it be our child.”
“What does that mean…?”
The look on the Duke’s face gave me a hunch. There was a slight, no, a major misunderstanding.
Before I could sort out what it was, the Duke whispered low in my ear.
“Cassian Gray will be no longer in this world…”
Wait. My brother would disappear?
Before I could process the implications, an even worse bomb was dropped.
“You will never be his bride.”
“What…? I’m not his. Bride…?”
I asked urgently, wondering if I had heard wrong.
If I became Cassian Gray’s bride, did that mean we were next of kin?
I hiccuped and threw up my hands, but it didn’t stop him from continuing.
“You like…”
I heard the sound of grinding teeth.
“…Cassian Gray.”
Oh, no, I mean…
Sounds like there’s a huge misunderstanding here…
As much as I love my brother, I’ve never, ever, ever thought of him in those terms!
All sorts of questions arose as to how exactly he knew that Rune was my brother’s child, but for now, I had to figure out how to explain it.
Because the moment I reveal that Cassian Gray is actually my brother, the stealth spell protecting the two of us breaks.
“Daddy”
There was a chilling silence between me and the Duke, with the child’s wailing in the background.
Finally regaining my composure, I hastily clenched my fists and spoke up.
“I— I never thought of Cassian Gray that way, and if I liked him, what a horrible… disgraceful… word…” I said, hoping I sounded sincere.
“Yeah.”
The Duke spoke slowly, looking as if he didn’t believe me at all.
“In the future, it will have to remain nonexistent.”
My mouth dropped open as I saw his jawline harden through clenched teeth.
“Taking money from you.”
…No, he didn’t. My brother gave me some pocket money, a lot of it.
“Leaving your child and running away.”
….He didn’t run away. I forced myself to leave the child.
“Forget about Cassian Gray.”
No…
I mean…
I stiffened, lost for words.
My frozen state must have looked pitiful in his eyes, because he whispered, his eyes dying of pity.
“I’ll be there for you from now on.”
Wrapping his arm around my shoulders, he whispered in my ear.
“So from now on, trust me, not him. Astel.”
…His tone and whisper were too dark to be entirely trustworthy.
“Mommy!”
Rune shouted on my behalf.
The child, the unwitting cause of this whole debacle, looked back and forth between me and the Duke, giggling hysterically.
What the hell… where did this go wrong?
The Duke’s declaration of war, or lack thereof, left me in a state of great confusion.
And…
After the bomb, he really went off the rails.
Brushing off the dirt from my skirt, I slowly made my way to their front and spoke in a shaky voice.
“Rune, what are you doing, there.”
“Hmph. Aste!”
Rune, in the Duke’s arms, waved a hand in greeting.
Duke Anais looked up at me, his eyes softening into a smile.
It was a weary sort of smile.
“Duke, ah, hello…”
“Yes, please have a seat.”
I did, and sat down, facing the Duke for once.
When he warned me of the dark shadows that had fallen upon our family, I had to keep my heart from breaking.
But what if he, too, could be the final dark villain?
The rate at which my barriers were crumbling became too much.
“Astel.”
“Yes.”
I listened to him, keeping my eyes down.
“For a start, I’ve dealt with anything in the Duchy that disrespects humans.”
“Dealt with?”
“Ah.”
The Duke blinked slowly and then spoke again, “To the people. I kindly explained to them that they should not disrespect humans.”
…What the hell was a kind explanation? I don’t think I want to know.
Beyond that, the Duke said he wanted to make sure I was well taken care of during my stay at the castle.
“Do you want me to forbid anyone from even mentioning Astel in the future?”
That was a bit much, to say the least…
“Well, um…”
My face turned as red as a tomato as I listened.
Seriously, you seem to have changed. I wondered if he’d suddenly had a change of heart.
Unless…
“I…”
Before I could finish my sentence, the Duke’s misunderstanding took another turn.
“You must have been startled by those rude people.”
The shock was from the Duke’s overprotection…
Without realizing it, the Duke snapped the magic tool in his hand in two.
Despite his dignified appearance, his eyes were like those of an animal.
I felt a little frightened.
But the Duke continued, “I don’t want you to be anxious.”
“What?”
“I’m worried that you’re being taken advantage of by some scumbag.”
By some scumbag, he meant Bazel, right? But you’ve already taken care of that guy…
I shook my head, not sure who he was referring to.
But the Duke was the first to speak.
He grinned brazenly and held out an answer.
“I must remain at Astel’s side.”
It sounded ridiculous.
Still, when the Duke said it in his trademark heavy tone, it sounded like a strict law that had to be obeyed.
With that ruling in hand, he set down Rune, who had been sitting on his lap and playing with the tableware, beside him.
“Well, there. Isn’t the Duke busy, too?”
At my words, the Duke frowned again.
I don’t remember him being this way when I first saw him, but he seemed to have gotten quite emotional at some point.
“…Astel, you have expressed your intention to reject me.”
I shuddered a little.
“I rejected…?”
Did I say no to what?
“Yes.”
He immediately glanced at the flowers on the table, his eyes searching and sad.
“…Yeah.”
…I did?
“I can’t stand by and watch you getting taken advantage of.”
So… who am I being taken advantage of by?
I guess he was referring to the incident with Sam or Bazel or something, but he seemed pretty bothered by it, even if it all worked out okay.
I spoke up, cautiously.
“…Oh, yeah. Well, thank you.”
As we talked, I felt like I was solving a mystery.
“The child. Rune.”
“…Uh, yes?”
“I intend to take very good care of him.”
The moment those words were spoken, the Duke’s eyes suddenly turned fierce.
With that look… How could you possibly be nice?
I think all the children are going to cry…?
But Rune, sitting next to me, was giggling and rubbing his cheek against the Duke’s head.
“Daddy!”
…Being her brother’s son, after all, Rune’s affections for the Duke were immense.
More than that, did he just say Daddy?
In the past, I’d tolerated Rune’s frequent mistakes in calling me mom, but this time, I was afraid it might be rude to the Duke.
“You have a different father!”
For the first time in her life, Rune merely pouted curtly.
Instead, the answer sprang from the other side.
“No.”
The Duke said toward me, his face brimming with energy.
“I have agreed to be the child’s father.”
What? Suddenly?
“Rune has a real father…”
At my carefully chosen words, the Duke stared at me with intense eyes.
“You mean Cassian Gray?”
I swallowed as hard as I could against the hiccup that momentarily rose.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Before I could ask, ‘What matters,’ he declared, his voice clearer than ever.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re Rune’s biological mother or not.”
“…?”
What are you talking about, Duke…?
My heart dropped at the out-of-the-blue remark, but the Duke did not stop speaking, as if vomiting up long-held resolutions.
“I don’t care about any of it.”
“You’re…?”
“So… let it be our child.”
“What does that mean…?”
The look on the Duke’s face gave me a hunch. There was a slight, no, a major misunderstanding.
Before I could sort out what it was, the Duke whispered low in my ear.
“Cassian Gray will be no longer in this world…”
Wait. My brother would disappear?
Before I could process the implications, an even worse bomb was dropped.
“You will never be his bride.”
“What…? I’m not his. Bride…?”
I asked urgently, wondering if I had heard wrong.
If I became Cassian Gray’s bride, did that mean we were next of kin?
I hiccuped and threw up my hands, but it didn’t stop him from continuing.
“You like…”
I heard the sound of grinding teeth.
“…Cassian Gray.”
Oh, no, I mean…
Sounds like there’s a huge misunderstanding here…
As much as I love my brother, I’ve never, ever, ever thought of him in those terms!
All sorts of questions arose as to how exactly he knew that Rune was my brother’s child, but for now, I had to figure out how to explain it.
Because the moment I reveal that Cassian Gray is actually my brother, the stealth spell protecting the two of us breaks.
“Daddy”
There was a chilling silence between me and the Duke, with the child’s wailing in the background.
Finally regaining my composure, I hastily clenched my fists and spoke up.
“I— I never thought of Cassian Gray that way, and if I liked him, what a horrible… disgraceful… word…” I said, hoping I sounded sincere.
“Yeah.”
The Duke spoke slowly, looking as if he didn’t believe me at all.
“In the future, it will have to remain nonexistent.”
My mouth dropped open as I saw his jawline harden through clenched teeth.
“Taking money from you.”
…No, he didn’t. My brother gave me some pocket money, a lot of it.
“Leaving your child and running away.”
….He didn’t run away. I forced myself to leave the child.
“Forget about Cassian Gray.”
No…
I mean…
I stiffened, lost for words.
My frozen state must have looked pitiful in his eyes, because he whispered, his eyes dying of pity.
“I’ll be there for you from now on.”
Wrapping his arm around my shoulders, he whispered in my ear.
“So from now on, trust me, not him. Astel.”
…His tone and whisper were too dark to be entirely trustworthy.
“Mommy!”
Rune shouted on my behalf.
The child, the unwitting cause of this whole debacle, looked back and forth between me and the Duke, giggling hysterically.
What the hell… where did this go wrong?
The Duke’s declaration of war, or lack thereof, left me in a state of great confusion.
And…
After the bomb, he really went off the rails.
