Dad's Knees
“Leo Valentine! Is Leo Valentine here?!”
A mounted knight arrived at Leo's workplace. He was a guard from Lenz Academy. A former knight himself, he'd been sent because he knew how to ride. He must have come in a real hurry—the horse was panting with its tongue lolling out, and the rider was gasping for breath. He pushed right into the site, wildly scanning the surroundings.
“What's goin' on?”
“Ain't you staff from Lenz Academy?”
“Hold on! Everyone, stop work for a sec!”
The foreman hurriedly halted operations and approached the knight.
“What brings you here?”
“Is Leo Valentine here?”
“He is. Shall I fetch him?”
“Yes, please, hurry.”
The foreman was quick on the uptake. He swiftly brought over Leo, who had been hauling a cart full of stones. Leo looked utterly baffled at being suddenly summoned.
“What's this about?”
“Just get on first. I'll explain on the way.”
The knight reached out to help Leo mount, but there was no need. Leo hopped on with practiced ease—more skillfully than the ex-knight himself. But there was no time to marvel. The knight spurred the horse's flank and sped away from the site.
“Tell me what's going on. What happened to my daughter?”
“Well... your daughter assaulted someone.”
“...What? She wasn't the victim—she did the assaulting?”
“Hear the details when we get there.”
The knight clenched his jaw and galloped at full speed. Thanks to that, they arrived in under a few minutes.
The main gate of Lenz Academy was in chaos. There were several carriages and automobiles that screamed nobility, and even knights in sight.
“...That's him?”
“A real manual laborer, huh.”
With no time to change, Leo was still in his work clothes, covered in sweat and dirt. People whispered as they saw him. The one who'd brought Leo apologized profusely to them before leading him into the academy, gripping his wrist tightly to prevent any escape.
Leo didn't care. He was just worried about Elizabeth.
The campus was eerily quiet. Not even the sound of insects could be heard. Leo had no clue what could have happened. Elizabeth committing assault? That sweet girl? She'd never hit anyone—she was the type to take a beating, not dish one out.
“...Please, go in.”
They stopped in front of the principal's office. Principal's office. The gravity of the situation hit him like a punch to the gut.
Leo knocked lightly, then cautiously opened the door.
Straight ahead, Principal Felix stood gazing out the window with a grave expression. But what really caught the eye was an elderly noblewoman. Draped in luxurious silk and fox fur around her neck, her stern presence alone was suffocating.
Beside her, a female student with a swollen cheek was sniffling. Around the seats sat what looked like her family, glaring fiercely at someone.
The target of their stares...
...was Elizabeth.
Elizabeth stood ramrod straight, facing all their gazes head-on.
“You've arrived.”
The noblewoman spoke as she looked at me.
“Ah... Mr. Valentine.”
“Principal. I came straight from work, so I have no idea what's going on. What happened?”
“Hah! Work. Yes, work. You certainly look like you came from it.”
Someone seated sneered at my sweat- and dirt-stained clothes.
“You really don't know? Take a look around. You'll see.”
The noblewoman snapped her fan shut and gestured left and right—to the girl with the swollen cheek and Elizabeth right in front of her.
“...You're saying my daughter did that?”
“You catch on quick. Yes, that's right. Your daughter slapped the cheek of Beatrice Waldeck, second daughter of the Waldeck Marquis family, multiple times.”
Thud. My heart sank with an audible crash in my ears.
Please. Please tell me it's not true. You wouldn't do that. My good girl would never hit someone.
I looked at Elizabeth. She avoided my eyes.
“I am Sylvia Waldeck, grandmother to Beatrice Waldeck. Enough introductions—I'll tell you why we called you here.”
She sat in the head seat, a subtle sign she was the matriarch of the Waldeck family.
“I don't strike my own granddaughter. She's too precious, too beloved. So how do you think I feel seeing her come home like this? Leo Valentine.”
“...I'm sorry.”
“I understand a father's love for his daughter is touching. But humans are rational beings. Even if you're angry, does that mean hands should fly first? Especially ruining a young girl's cheek like this.”
“...I'm truly sorry.”
“Kneel.”
The noblewoman pointed her fan at the floor.
“Given your family's circumstances, compensation would bankrupt you. We won't press charges. But in exchange, we'll take your honor and pride. Kneel and apologize.”
I started to kneel. At that moment, Elizabeth, who had been silently clenching her jaw, spoke up.
“Don't.”
“Ellie.”
“Don't kneel.”
“Elizabeth.”
“I said don't kneel. Doesn't Dad have any pride?”
The Waldeck family watched us impassively. The noblewoman's eyes were bored—do it or don't, she seemed to say.
If I didn't kneel, our lives would become hell. And since she'd hurt someone else's precious child, an apology was only right.
“What are you doing? Get up already.”
As I moved to kneel, Elizabeth grabbed my collar and yanked me up. I swung my hand.
Slap!
Elizabeth's head snapped to the side, her hair whipping around. It didn't hurt much physically, but the emotional blow must have been far worse.
The noblewoman's eyes widened, and the Waldecks were speechless. Even Beatrice looked shocked. She'd expected Leo to coddle Elizabeth, chuckling even if she disrespected him. But here he was, slapping his daughter's cheek—with a stern face.
“Elizabeth Valentine.”
Leo recited his daughter's name coldly, syllable by syllable. The atmosphere in the principal's office grew subtly chillier, heavier. The Waldecks unconsciously swallowed.
“What the hell do you think you're doing?”
“...”
Elizabeth's cheek flushed red, her face frozen in shock. Trembling pupils, slack jaw. Seeing this new expression on my daughter, I suppressed my aching heart and spoke.
“At least own up to what you did. You slapped someone else's face—why act so brazen? What, you thought you were untouchable?”
“...”
Elizabeth hung her head.
“I've spoiled you rotten. I thought you were smart enough to handle things on your own, so I trusted you. But this? Explain yourself, Elizabeth Valentine. What makes you so damn bold?”
“...”
Drip, drip. Crystal tears fell. Her face seemed broken, emotions mismatched with her expression as she poured out thick tears like a chick's.
I sighed deeply and knelt before the noblewoman. These were knees that had never bent even before the emperor. Casting aside pride and honor, I sincerely apologized to her and her family.
Pride? Honor? I'd resolved to discard them the moment I decided to raise Elizabeth.
“Don't...”
Elizabeth's words scattered emptily. Ignoring them, I bowed deeply from my kneeling position.
“I'm truly sorry. I failed to raise my daughter properly—my deepest apologies. It won't happen again.”
“...Very well. We'll forgive this once, for your resolve as a father. But not twice.”
* Sylvia Waldeck granted forgiveness. And Principal Felix did not expel Elizabeth. She was too valuable a talent to lose—top of nearly every subject, with impeccable character. Felix gave her one more chance. The noblewoman didn't object.
Sylvia was the mother of the Waldeck marquis family head. While her son managed the house, she handled external politics and social affairs. A true powerhouse. If she'd wanted, she could have ruined our family.
Leo and Elizabeth left the academy and walked home.
“...”
“...”
The way back was suffocatingly silent. The world around them buzzed with streetcars, hoofbeats, and daily clamor, but between father and daughter, it was like another realm. Neither spoke first—they both knew it wasn't the time.
Leo watched Elizabeth's fragile back as she walked ahead. Head down, shuffling along. He wanted to see her face but couldn't.
...Was I too harsh?
He glanced at his hand. Rough and scarred. This had struck his daughter's cheek. A handprint lingered on her soft, pale skin.
He clenched his fist tight.
“...Ellie.”
He called her name softly. But Elizabeth didn't respond. She kept walking without stopping.
“Elizabeth.”
I grabbed her hand. Elizabeth whipped her head around, glaring at me fiercely. Her beast-like eyes brimmed with tears.
Facing that look from my daughter froze me solid.
Whoosh! She yanked her hand away roughly.
“Do you know what that girl said about you, Dad?”
“...What'd she say?”
“Called you a bastard. Said you could just earn with your hips! I could've overlooked anything else. Even your job. But that... it was too much.”
Elizabeth bowed her head. Her shoulders trembled like a chick's.
“It was too much. I just... lost it without thinking... sob.”
“Sweetie.”
“I'm sorry. Because of me... because of me, Dad had to kneel.”
“Doesn't matter. It's just knees—what's the big deal? They don't even wear out.”
“They do wear out!”
Suddenly lifting her head, Elizabeth glared at me, sniffling fiercely.
“They do...”
She mumbled, then buried herself in my arms and sobbed.
Leo stroked Elizabeth's hair soothingly.
“Doesn't matter. You're more important than my knees, Ellie. So don't cry too much, okay?”
Leo's casual dismissal—that it was no big deal—only made Elizabeth feel more hollow. The father who'd always seemed so towering now looked pathetic and small. She wanted to stop him from kneeling, but she lacked the power.
She didn't regret the slap. Beatrice hadn't just insulted her—she'd insulted Dad. That was unforgivable. She had to set it right.
...And this was the result. One moment of impulse had forced Dad to his knees. In front of everyone.
“Hic, sob.”
“There, there. It's okay.”
Back home, Elizabeth shut herself in her room and collapsed onto the bed. The moment Dad's always tall, sturdy back had bent. The instant those unyielding knees touched the cold principal's office floor.
Elizabeth's world crumbled.
Strangely, no more tears came. Burning emotions tangled with icy guilt, gnawing at her chest.
As night deepened, something solid grew in her heart. Not sorrow, not anger—something else.
“I'll never... let Dad kneel again.”
It wasn't just a promise. It was a vow to the world.
Elizabeth clenched her fist. Nails dug into her palm, but the pain only fueled her resolve.
And it stirred the bloodline dormant within her. In her blue eyes, the Omangseong Blessing flickered into view and faded away.