Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Meeting the Tiger Grandmother
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Dad’s voice brimmed with affection, and his sturdy arms felt like they were warmly supporting me. It was a peaceful, serene sensation—but this wouldn’t do.
I shook my head back and forth and said,
“I’ll pwotect you, I said!”
Listening to Dad’s voice, I thought it was truly strange.
Our pure and kind Dad, whom I had to protect, was such a mysterious person. He wasn’t a swordsman, yet blue veins bulged on his hands.
Maybe it was from years of farming? Or perhaps it was the incredible physical prowess of the Mirmod family that he’d inherited.
I pressed down on the vein in Dad’s hand and grinned widely.
Dad, who had been silent until then, spoke again, emphasizing his words.
“Our daughter. Can’t even speak properly yet.”
The reason I couldn’t speak properly was simply because my physical abilities lagged behind other kids my age.
But I couldn’t say that to Dad. I sighed deeply inside and shook my head.
That was when it happened.
“Yeah, Sien? Isn’t it?”
Laughter crept into Dad’s voice. He seemed to be enjoying this situation.
He was so frustrating. I pounded my little chest with my tightly clenched fist and shouted,
“Th-that’s... other kids awe da same. Anyway, I’ll pwotect you!”
I shook my head back and forth in response. With each shake, my fluffy sweet potato cheeks jiggled.
Squeeze.
Dad, standing behind me, pinched my cheek and said,
“Our daughter should just live happily like a normal kid.”
I leaned my head firmly against Dad’s solid back and let out one more sigh. Watching it scatter made me envision our pitiful, wretched future.
No. This was a villain family, so our kind Dad couldn’t protect me.
Our innocent Dad—how would he survive in this harsh world? I looked up at him with eyes full of worry. But Dad still seemed serious.
“Got it?”
“Hu...”
In the face of Dad’s passionate voice, I had no choice but to nod.
If I didn’t act like a child, Dad wouldn’t show it outright, but he’d look a little downcast. He probably found it hard to see me losing my innocence.
For example, once when I refused to eat carrots and was picky, Dad got really upset and gave each carrot a name. Then he made me say goodbye to the ones being thrown away. In a teary voice.
“Goodbye, carrots. Bye!”
“......Do I hafta?”
“Yes. If you don’t say hi to the carrots, they go ‘ouch,’ you know.”
“Huu... It’s hawd. Cawwots, hi-bye.”
Recalling that dark history where I, an adult in a child’s body, said hi to carrots to protect Dad’s innocence, I unwillingly opened my mouth.
“Uuung.”
“How pretty, our daughter.”
That was the moment we were sharing our conversation.
The door, shrouded like a dark curtain, quietly creaked open, letting in a sliver of light. I blinked and looked toward the opposite door.
Who’s that?
The person who entered was a middle-aged woman with a beautifully sculpted face, like something carved by a master craftsman. Stray white hairs peeked through, beautiful even as if snowflakes had been personally scattered by the gods.
Without a word, she sat in the chair opposite us with a stern expression.
Then, in a voice as cold as a glacier, she whispered,
“You’ve come.”
“It’s been a while, Lady Mother.”
Dad replied politely. I rolled my eyes. Lady Mother—Dad’s real mom? Just as curiosity struck, she spoke.
“So you do think of me as your birth mother.”
“Shall I call you Duchess Lukela instead?”
A strange murderous intent made my tiny body tremble, but only for a moment. Their back-and-forth conversation made me widen my eyes.
From the context, she seemed to be his birth mother. But Duchess Lukela...!
I shuddered.
If things followed the original story, she was being treated like a backroom elder now. But she had once been the head of this villain ducal house... If she was Dad’s real mother, blood kin, it’d be good to stay on her good side? And maybe get her help...
Lost in my thoughts, the conversation continued relentlessly.
“Now that you’ve returned to the family, you know you can’t leave on your own power.”
“......Huh?!”
“Sien.”
I yelped loudly at that moment. Luckily, Dad soothed me gently, but my mind was already in full panic mode.
I had planned to win over this tiger-like grandma to leave the castle. But...
“I know. Become the heir, or get exiled as a fugitive, or die. One of the three.”
Shocked by my shattered plan, I nearly fainted, but I barely pulled myself together.
Even if you’re caught in a tiger’s den, keep your wits and you’ll live.
I gritted my tiny rice-grain teeth, ground them audibly, and glared with all my might.
Duchess Lukela’s cold voice reached my ears.
“Good that you know.”
Even with her curt remark, Dad just lowered his eyes. While gripping my hand tighter.
Too cold.
For a reunion between mother and son after so long, it was excessively chilly, the atmosphere like an ice block.
When Dad wrapped his arms warmly around my shoulders, I could finally look ahead.
Duchess Lukela’s icy blue eyes met my round glass-marble ones in midair.
“What’s that?”
“Nye?”
As our eyes met, she scowled fiercely and said,
With a look of utter disgust toward me, she opened her mouth.
“What’s that honey jar wrapped in rags?”
Honey jar wrapped in rags...
I’m not some honey jar. And it’s not rags—this is what Dad prettily sewed for me.
I quietly recalled memories with Dad.
“Dad sewed pretty clothes for our Sien, how’s it?”
“Fun!”
“Next time, I’ll learn to use the sewing machine. Mrs. Isabel said she’d teach me.”
“Ung! Pwomise!”
Those fluffy memories with Dad made me feel a bit wronged, so I glared at her. Then Duchess Lukela glared back coldly.
“This isn’t wags. Daddy made it fow me.”
She coldly eyed my earnest appeal before turning to Dad.
Wasn’t he scared of those tiger eyes? His hand seemed to tremble slightly. But unlike his shaking hand, Dad continued calmly and bravely.
“My daughter. Sien, say hello.”
Greetings should be polite! Without a word, I blinked and bowed my head politely.
“Hello!”
But in my head, info on Duchess Lukela was spinning wildly.
Three seconds for my thoughts to conclude.
I bit my lip.
Not being able to leave on our own was despairing, but one thing was fortunate.
That the first person we met in this villain ducal house was Duchess Lukela.
Because she was Dad’s real mom and my real grandma...
I read about how to win over Duchess Lukela in the original novel ‘Melodia’s Life’!
If I could get on her good side, life in the ducal house might get easier.
In this dark and dangerous villain family, the woman once called the Empress of Darkness—Duchess Lukela.
She was extremely dangerous, but she had one... not quite weakness.
That was...
While I pondered hard.
Duchess Lukela coldly gazed at me and Dad. Her stare was intimidating enough to silence any ordinary person.
Anxious, I swung my legs dangling as usual.
Looking at me, she spat out bluntly,
“Why’d you bring that along?”
“I wanted to show Sien to you, Lady Mother.”
Dad’s voice was as polished as a bead.
“Send that thing out and let’s talk. About the heir situation. First, the trial for the demon incident in Guido that you caused—”
“—Better to discuss that later.”
At the words “Guido demon incident,” my ears perked up.
But before my curiosity could be sated, Dad cut off the duchess sharply. Naturally, her expression turned ferocious.
She, who had been expressionless, now looked thoroughly pissed.
Since Duchess Lukela was the first person Dad met upon entering the castle, it was just my guess, but she seemed to have lifted his exile and allowed his return.
Yet he interrupted her mid-sentence. Even I’d be mad if I were her.
Dad cut off Grandma mid-sentence. When we should be sucking up!
Worrying and fidgeting, Duchess Lukela glanced sideways and muttered,
“Still as insolent as ever.”
I swear I heard an illusion of ‘I want to kill him.’
I clenched my chubby hands tightly.
Dangerous.
Death flags were already up!
Duchess Lukela was steadfast to her allies but mercilessly killed anyone who annoyed her. Defying her mood was unthinkable.
Are Dad and I going to die the moment we enter the ducal house?
But Dad remained utterly carefree.
Ignoring Duchess Lukela, Dad stroked my head affectionately and said,
“Sien. Shall we go see the maid sisters?”
Dad gently and kindly petted my head. I nodded, but felt special measures were needed.
No matter how I looked at it, this grandma hated both Dad and me intensely.
Her cold gaze, which could freeze warm water in an instant, swept over us.
I resolved myself seriously.
Alright, time to use the Duchess Lukela conquest method!
“Ung, Daddy. Sien just a sec!”
Watching Dad and Grandma converse, I grabbed the twin braids Dad had carefully tied and steeled myself.
Dad’s too pure and clueless for sure. So I have no choice but to step up.
I hopped down from Dad’s lap.
“Call a maid and get out.”
Grandma haughtily scanned me. At that moment, I toddled over to her side with my tiny feet.
“Sien?”
“What are you doing.”
Dad and Grandma’s voices rang in my ears, but I ignored them and stood right next to Grandma’s chair. Since I was a bit shorter than the desk, Dad could only see my round head from behind.
Time to target Duchess Lukela’s weakness!
To protect my one and only family, Dad, I stood before the villain grandma.
A little—no, very scary, but no choice. I planted my round rice-cake arms at my sides and glared up at Grandma.
Duchess Lukela looked down at me annoyedly and asked,
“What?”
“Gwanny!”
Sparkly eyes, fire!
With the mindset of unleashing my ultimate move, I gazed at Grandma with starry eyes. Clasping my plump, bouncy hands in front was a bonus.
Grandma scowled and said,
“What did you say?”
I could see her gaze hardening coldly.
But I opened my eyes even wider, firing sparkly eye beams, and said,
“Sien’s Gwanny, wight? Missed you!”
I deliberately dragged out the end super cutely. Like a cute, harmless kid!
There was a reason for this.
In the novel, during the thief guild massacre, Duchess Lukela had let all the children go despite the risk.
Because, surprisingly, she didn’t hate kids—she liked cute things.
Of course, all kids feared Duchess Lukela. Even the villain family kids saw her as an evil sorceress and ran away screaming.
Even now, in her fallen backroom elder status, it was the same.
Her once-world-ruling tiger image still lingered.
So I was targeting the niche market! I bet Duchess Lukela had never seen a cutely coquettish toddler. I kept my eyes wide and monitored her expression closely.
“Does Gwanny not wanna see Sien?”
I puffed my cheeks like seasonal shrimp and smiled cutely.
Scary Grandma, pretty please! Don’t kill our pure Dad. That was my expression.
Grandma, meeting my sparkly eyes, wore an inexplicable, subtle expression.