Chapter 49
Viscount of Delphinium (2)
Even as his father came right up to his face, spitting with passion as he lectured him, Bentley remained utterly uninterested.
“She’s just a girl anyway, right? If His Grace has any sense, of course he’ll adopt me, a boy.”
“Hah, you idiot. Do you think it’s that simple?”
Oliver ran a hand through his hair in frustration. His black hair, the same shade as Luke’s, slipped through his fingers.
“My brother loved Elodie deeply. If it were an illegitimate child, maybe—but since she’s a legitimate daughter, it doesn’t matter whether she’s a boy or a girl. He’ll pass on the title to her.”
“Then what do you want me to do?”
Bentley crossed his legs with a sulky look.
The boy, with black hair and eyes just like Oliver’s, furrowed his brow in annoyance.
“If Uncle’s not going to adopt me anyway, then it’s already over. What good is making a good impression even going to do?”
“I’ll handle that part.”
Oliver replied flatly.
“So you just do exactly what I tell you. If you do, you become the duke, and your younger brother becomes the viscount. Got it?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Answer once.”
“Yes.”
“And you already know this, but don’t let a word of this conversation slip out anywhere.”
“I got it.”
Bentley gave a half-hearted reply and turned to look out the window, clearly bored.
They must be nearing the southern region—the trees were growing noticeably denser. It was a heavily forested area, and they occasionally saw woodcutters with saws wandering the paths.
Bentley pulled a sandwich from the picnic box he’d packed in advance.
The viscountess had made it that morning, clumsily but with care, knowing her son was going on a trip.
He took a bite of the sandwich between the whole-grain bread. The combination of quality ham and fresh vegetables actually tasted pretty decent, though the shape was a mess.
‘I wanna go home.’
Unlike his father Oliver, Bentley didn’t really care about becoming a duke.
What he wanted was simple: to live peacefully in their quiet countryside estate, acting like a little king in his own domain, just as always.
‘I mean, sure, if they hand me the title of duke, I wouldn’t say no…’
He wouldn’t turn it down if it came to him.
But to get it, he’d have to be adopted into Uncle Luke’s household.
That meant leaving behind his beloved mother, and the servants he’d grown attached to back at the manor.
‘Honestly, I wish Morgan would go instead.’
Unlike Bentley, who found everything a bother, his younger brother Morgan was full of ambition.
But even so, their father always favored Bentley. Because he was the firstborn—and, truthfully, smarter and better-looking than Morgan.
While thinking about himself and Morgan, Bentley suddenly asked,
“Hey, Father.”
“What now?”
“Couldn’t Morgan have come with you instead? He looked like he was really interested in all this.”
“That again?”
Oliver frowned.
“He’s my son, sure—but that kid isn’t fit to be a duke. Do you know how many diplomatic responsibilities the Duke of Lysianthus has to handle?”
“…”
Well, I don’t want to either.
Bentley bit back the words rising in his throat.
Just as his father said, the Duke of Lysianthus was infamous across the country for his overwhelming workload and constant overtime. The mere thought of it gave him chills.
Even if Morgan liked studying, living buried in paperwork every day was a completely different matter.
Staring out the window, Bentley let his mind wander.
‘I miss Mom…’
It’s really hard to deal with Father sometimes.
****
“Your uncle will be visiting today.”
Upon hearing the duke’s words, Bonita blinked.
She didn’t quite understand what “uncle” meant.
Aria noticed this and offered an explanation beside her.
“He’s your father’s younger brother. Simply put, he’s your uncle.”
“Ooh, okay.”
Bonita nodded, then stared at Luke quietly.
Black hair, red eyes.
He looked a bit less scary when he smiled, but still—his face was the kind that could make children cry and run away at first glance.
And a body as big as a bear.
If his brother was anything like him…
“Is he also big and scary-looking like Your Grace?”
Bonita asked as her imagination began to run wild.
“I… look big and scary?”
Luke was quietly shocked by the child’s completely unfiltered words.
Bonita hesitated for a second before replying,
“Now that I think about it… you’re not that scary.”
It was a clumsy lie—worse than honesty.
Luke appreciated that his daughter tried to spare his feelings, but he couldn’t help feeling a little disheartened by his own appearance.
“Pfft, haha!”
Aria couldn’t help laughing.
She struggled to suppress a full-blown laugh and added with a smirk,
“His Grace does look a little scary, doesn’t he?”
Luke shot her a glare.
Unfazed, Aria gently patted Bonita’s head.
“I wonder what it would’ve been like if Bonita looked like His Grace.”
“…”
A daughter who looked and acted just like him?
As the thought crossed Luke’s mind, a certain saying popped into his head:
“The first daughter in a matrilineal family usually resembles her grandmother the most.”
And at the same time, a horrifying image passed through his mind—Bonita with Catherine’s face.
“Hmph. Your Grace didn’t even know that?”
“No way!”
A nightmare… it was a full-blown nightmare.
No—honestly, even if she acted like that, she’d probably still be cute in her own way.
Still, Luke liked Bonita just the way she was now.
He pulled her into a tight hug.
“I’m glad you take after your mother’s side.”
“?”
Bonita, suddenly hugged out of nowhere, looked utterly confused.
****
As the sun dipped behind the western hills, a carriage adorned with an elegant floral crest glided into the inner courtyard of the Lysianthus Estate.
It carried Viscount Delphinium and his eldest son, Bentley.
Dalton, the gatekeeper, gave a respectful nod upon recognizing the crest.
“Good evening, Viscount Delphinium. And Young Master Bentley.”
“Ha ha, long time no see, Dalton.”
Unlike his stern older brother, the younger man had a gentle expression. Dressed smartly in a fine hat and suit, Oliver stepped down gracefully from the carriage.
He held out a hand.
Then, a black-haired boy—his hair still not quite fully grown in—jumped out of the carriage with a bit of a grumble.
“I could’ve gotten down by myself.”
“I just wanted to help, son. Don’t fuss.”
“Alright.”
Dalton smiled quietly as he watched Oliver and Bentley.
He was a longtime gatekeeper at the ducal estate—he had watched both Luke and Oliver grow up as children. And now, both of them had children of their own.
“My, how you’ve grown, Young Master Bentley.”
“Huh? Who are you again?”
“Dalton.”
He placed a hand on his chest and introduced himself.
“I met you when you were just a small child. You haven’t visited the ducal estate since you were three, after all.”
In truth, noble children rarely traveled by carriage.
This was an era when infant mortality rates were still high. Reaching the age of three meant passing a major hurdle, but children’s immune systems were still fragile.
If they caught a local illness while traveling to a different region, they could die without anyone knowing why.
So, unless it was within the capital region, it was an unspoken rule not to send children under five on long trips.
The fact that three-year-old Bentley had once visited the duke’s estate was quite an unusual case.
‘Back then… everyone thought His Grace was going to adopt Young Master Bentley.’
Right after the duchess’s death, the duke had declared he would never marry again.
His unwavering devotion was so well-known that no one questioned it.
Naturally, people began to assume that he would adopt one of his nephews—especially the smart and capable Bentley—as his heir.
When word spread that Oliver had come to the estate bringing only his son, it all but confirmed the gossip in many circles.
Dalton recalled that time with a faint, bitter smile.
‘Well… it’s all just a story of the past now.’
Whether or not the duke truly intended to adopt his elder nephew back then, no one knows for sure. But unlike the nobles of the capital’s social scene, Dalton—being a knight who had served the estate for years and earned Luke’s trust—knew a bit more than most.
At the time, the duke had been researching black magic—specifically resurrection magic, trying to bring back his deceased duchess.
It seemed he had ultimately failed.
‘Still, I’m glad he finally let go.’
Though he referred to it as “back then,” the truth was that the duke’s research had continued until recently.
Until Bonita appeared, he had been completely absorbed in dark magic.
That’s why Dalton liked the atmosphere of the estate now.
Seeing Luke wear such a terrifying expression all day long, as if he might kill someone at any moment, had been truly heartbreaking.
“Please, go on in. His Grace is waiting for you, Viscount.”
Finishing his thoughts, Dalton bowed respectfully.
“Of course.”
Oliver offered the perfect gentleman’s smile.
“Come along, Bentley. Let’s go in.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Answer once.”
“Yes.”
****
The distance from the main gate of the ducal estate to the mansion’s front doors was quite long.
Though it would’ve been fine to take the carriage, Oliver chose to walk instead, saying he wanted to enjoy the garden of his childhood home for the first time in a while.
Thanks to that, Bentley got to experience the duke’s garden up close and personal.
‘It’s totally different from our place.’
Of course, the garden at the Viscounty of Delphinium was also fairly well-kept and tidy—it wasn’t bad to look at.
But compared to the duke’s estate, it felt utterly shabby. Bentley’s gaze drifted to the fountain in the center of the garden.
He imagined how fun it would be to jump in and splash around. Bentley swallowed hard.
