Daughter-Fool Dad
Daughter-Fool Dad
News from the main house was delivered to the entire villa.
It was a declaration that the three-year apprenticeship period had officially ended. Along with it came the news that personnel would be selected to accompany Renoa to the Duchy.
From that day on, the villa became a scene of bustle and confusion.
From apprentice knights to servants, those who were to leave packed their bags early.
This included those like Bern, who bragged about receiving a recommendation letter from another family, and others who felt the limits of the wall known as Edelheid and chose a realistic path.
Helena was among them.
"Where are you going to go?"
"I'm planning to return to my home for now. Lance-gyeong said he would write me a recommendation letter, but I'm going to take my time thinking about what to do next."
"I wonder if I said something unnecessary...."
Helena shook her head with a bitter smile.
"It's okay. I know you said it for my sake, and this is a conclusion I reached after plenty of thought. Just like Irion said, I might be able to get into a better place."
"If it's Helena, I'm sure you can do it."
"I'll write to you once I arrive home. You must stay safe until then."
"Yeah."
They shared brief goodbyes with the remaining peers and left for their respective destinations without lingering regrets.
"Heo-eoeong, to think our Irion is leaving...!"
I also shared my farewells with the maid nunas.
Only the minimum number of staff to maintain the mansion would remain, while the rest finished their contracts and went their separate ways.
Since this wasn't a world with cell phones, it wouldn't be easy to meet again.
"You have to stay healthy, okay? Make sure to eat well."
"Don't worry."
And so, everyone who was supposed to leave had left.
The mansion, which was already quiet due to the lack of people, became even more deserted. To the point where just looking at it made one feel a sense of desolation.
"What are you doing standing there blankly? Hurry up."
Renoa, who had already boarded the carriage, was staring out the window.
She lived here her whole life, yet she doesn't seem to feel any emotion.
Even I, who stayed for only three years, feel a bit sentimental now that it's time to leave.
"I'm coming."
I shook off my lingering attachments and mounted my horse.
"Depart."
At Renoa's command, the coachman cracked the whip. The two-horse carriage began to move, distancing itself from the mansion.
I reflexively looked back at the mansion one more time before finally turning my head away completely.
The procession heading toward the Duchy finally crossed the boundaries of Alderin.
The dense forest cleared away, and an open plain with a straight highway stretched out before their eyes.
The cramped underground arena, the blood-scented sand floor, and the training ground of the mansion where he had been stuck for the past three years.
To Irion, who had only circled around controlled areas, the sense of openness filling his vision felt quite foreign.
The blowing wind was exceptionally cool.
'Not bad.'
Irion took a deep breath and looked to his side.
Beyond the open window of the carriage running alongside him, Renoa was staring at the scenery with her chin resting on her hand.
Her gaze was fixed on the distant horizon beyond the plains.
"Have you ever been to the main house before?"
"No. It's my first time."
Renoa's answer was indifferent.
Born as an illegitimate child, she had lived her whole life confined in this remote Alderin as if abandoned.
Far from visiting the Duchy, she had never even seen the face of her father, the Duke.
If Florencia hadn't visited occasionally, she wouldn't have even known she was of Edelheid blood.
"But why did he suddenly call for you, Renoa-agassi?"
"Who knows. Maybe he wants to throw a party to celebrate me becoming an adult."
"Do you think so?"
"I just said it. Do you really think he would?"
Though she didn't say it out loud, Renoa knew better than anyone that there was some ulterior motive.
It was the reason why she couldn't leisurely lose herself in sentimentality despite stepping out of the cage for the first time in her life.
Whatever it was, it likely wouldn't be a pleasant matter for her personal well-being. It was no different from moving to another cage.
Even knowing this, there was nothing Renoa could do.
If told to die, she must die; if told to leave, she must leave; and if told to become a slave, she must become a slave.
Because that was her fate.
However.
"......."
Renoa took in the side profile of Irion, who was riding his horse alongside her.
In the fate of being an Edelheid illegitimate child where she possessed nothing, he was the only possession she could truly call her own.
The slave, Irion.
Three years ago, when she first picked him up from the arena, he was a boy smaller than herself.
That Irion had grown up so much before she knew it, to the point where she had to tilt her head back to look up at him.
In his gallant figure, no trace of his past wretchedness could be found.
Depending on how Irion performs in the future, the position and power Renoa would occupy would be determined.
It was the reason Renoa could harbor a sense of relief in a corner of her heart.
'For some reason, if it's you, I feel like you might perform even better than I expect.'
It was a relief born of expectation.
The journey was smooth without any incidents.
It was a move so peaceful it was almost boring, without even a common band of mercenaries or a monster attack.
And so, several days passed.
Finally, beyond the plains in the distance, the Edelheid Duchy revealed itself.
An overwhelming majesty befitting the reputation of the continent's greatest family.
The massive castle walls, stretching out as if to flaunt their arrogance, filled the group's vision.
The guards protecting the castle gates checked the crest engraved on the carriage and bowed their heads, opening the path without a word.
The grand mansion they reached after crossing the bustling streets.
A massive residence rivaling a palace, which couldn't even be compared to the villa in Alderin, welcomed the group.
"Wow...."
Irion momentarily stared blankly at the magnificent exterior. When Renoa gave him a sharp glare, he awkwardly straightened his expression.
From the moment they entered the Duchy, it was no different from stepping onto a battlefield. He must not show even a single opening.
From among the servants waiting at the main gate, a white-haired old man approached.
"You have worked hard on your long journey, Renoa-agassi."
"Who are you?"
"I am Howard, the head butler in charge of the general affairs of the Edelheid main house. I have been anxiously waiting for your arrival, Agassi."
"Anxiously waiting for my arrival, you say......."
Renoa scanned the panoramic view of the grand mansion. Aside from the servants, no knights or other clan members were in sight.
"It's quite a modest welcome for a homecoming."
Howard didn't change his expression even at Renoa's sarcasm and immediately delivered his business.
"Currently, all the major figures of the family are gathered in the audience chamber. There was an order to bring you there as soon as you arrived. I will guide you."
The group followed behind Howard, passed through the corridor, and arrived in front of a certain door.
A massive arched double door.
There, Howard stopped his steps and turned around. His indifferent gaze fell upon Irion and the apprentice knights following behind Renoa.
"The escort ends here. Only those of Edelheid blood and vassals may enter the audience chamber. As apprentices who have not yet received formal appointment from the family, you cannot enter."
"But......."
Irion looked at Renoa with an uneasy gaze. Renoa also stared at Irion for a moment.
"Wait here."
"...Understood."
Renoa stood alone before the door. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
She tried her best to suppress her pounding heart.
"Renoa-agassi is entering."
Soon, following the butler's hand signal, the soldiers guarding the door opened the heavy doors to both sides.
Renoa slowly walked inside. The sound of the door closing with a Kung behind her back echoed throughout the audience chamber.
Renoa kept her head straight and only moved her eyes to scan the surroundings.
The gazes of the vassals and legitimate children lined up in long rows on both sides were all fixed on her.
Contempt, curiosity, or blatant hostility.
Taking in the gazes pouring from all directions with her whole body, Renoa looked toward the highest point of the dais, the central throne.
Duchess Florencia, looking down at Renoa with eyes like frost.
A familiar face she had experienced before, one who had once despised her like a bug.
But what captured Renoa's gaze was not the Duchess, but the man sitting beside her.
'That person is.......'
Renoa's green eyes sank low.
Her biological father, who had sired her and left her abandoned in the Alderin villa for her entire life, Duke Pascal Edelheid.
The pinnacle of Edelheid, the continent's greatest magic family, and the one who held the title of Archmage.
Befitting that prestige, the pressure he exuded was on a different level from the others.
Brilliant blonde hair without a single speck of dust.
Handsome features that had sublimated even the traces of time into elegance.
He was an incredibly handsome man, to the point where his middle-aged status seemed irrelevant.
However, what caught Renoa's eye within that dazzling appearance was none other than his eyes.
Green.
Deep, cool green eyes that were eerily identical to Renoa's own.
Those eyes proved in an instant that Renoa was of his blood.
-Ttogak ttogak.
Amidst the suffocating silence, Renoa advanced to the center of the audience chamber with unwavering steps.
Dozens of pairs of eyes were frantic to find a mistake in her, but.
"Renoa Edelheid. I have just arrived at the Duchy. I greet the Family Head-nim."
Renoa showed her respects toward the dais with grace and discipline.
However, no matter how long she waited, no answer came back. Only a heavy silence weighed down on the audience chamber.
Renoa waited endlessly with her head bowed.
Was this some kind of trial?
It might be an intention to make her a laughingstock by ignoring her.
Nevertheless, Renoa stood firm and waited with her head lowered.
At that moment, Duke Pascal, who was sitting on the throne, slowly stood up. He began to walk down from the dais.
And then, the Duke stopped right in front of Renoa's nose. Just as Renoa was waiting quietly, even forgetting to breathe.
"My daughter, you're finally here~!"
A bright smile, like a flower in full bloom, spread across Pascal's face.
Opening his arms wide, he began to make a fuss as if the pressure he was exuding just a moment ago was a lie.
"Do you know how long Daddy has been waiting? My goodness, you've become unrecognizably beautiful!"
"......Pardon?"
At a reaction she hadn't even imagined, a dazed sound escaped Renoa's mouth.
As she reflexively raised her head to look at the Duke, her face was full of a stupid, bewildered expression.
Renoa wasn't the only one surprised.
The eyes of everyone lined up below the dais widened as if they were about to pop out.
Even the haughty Florencia couldn't manage her expression and bit her lip hard.
"You look just like me! Could there be anything more beautiful in this world? Hahahaha!"
The first impression of the Duke that Renoa faced was that of an utterly unpredictable eccentric.