YDGMSF CHAPTER 20

Duke Adrian rushed to Rosette’s room while holding her. As he laid her on the bed, the children, hearing the commotion, rushed in.
“Father, what’s going on?”
“Is Rose sick?”
“What happened… Oh my god! Little one! What’s wrong with you? Why are you bleeding?”
Duke Adrian had no time to pay attention to the children. He knelt beside the bed and examined Rosette’s condition.
Her already pale face had turned ghostly white, and her lips, which were usually as red as cherries, were now blue. Her breathing was shallow, as if it could stop at any moment, and her body was burning with fever.
Duke Adrian swore under his breath, a rare sight, as he took Rosette’s hand.
Just moments ago, when the carriage exploded, he had barely managed to spread his mana in time to block the flames. He didn’t even have the chance to think about who had done this or how.
He was, after all, a knight, and couldn’t handle mana for long.
His mana had weakened, and in that moment, the flames began to engulf him. His priority was to escape safely.
However, even the carriage door seemed to be tampered with, as it wouldn’t open with force alone. He tried to break it down, but each time he did, his concentration would falter, causing the mana shield he created to start to fade.
Just when he thought he couldn’t hold out any longer, the flames miraculously died down. He had assumed it was Celine who had come to his aid.
Dad!

But then, what he heard clearly was Rosette’s voice. In fact, it was his beloved youngest who had opened the carriage door and entered.
Why was Rosette here? Before he could ask that, she collapsed.
Duke Adrian soon realized that it was Rosette who had extinguished the flames in the carriage. It didn’t seem plausible, even to him, but the circumstances pointed to that conclusion.
If that was the case, then what had happened to Rosette’s body?
Duke Adrian, frantic, had hurried back to the mansion, fearing something had happened to the small, fragile child.
“Rose, open your eyes.”
He whispered desperately, but there was no response from Rosette. Just then, the door opened, and the family doctor rushed in.
“What happened?”
“It seems the girl used magic, and after that, she coughed up blood and collapsed.”
“She coughed up blood?”
The doctor hurriedly examined Rosette. He gently pressed his fingers to the girl’s abdomen and carefully answered.
“It seems she sustained internal injuries. We’ll need a mage to come and help…”
“They’re here!”
At that moment, Celine burst in, gasping for breath. Having heard the situation from the Duke, Celine took Rosette’s hand and released her mana into her.
“Yes, it seems the young lady did use magic. Her internal mana is unstable. We’ll figure out what kind of magic she used later, but for now, we need to treat her internal injuries.”
Celine then placed her hands on Rosette’s abdomen and used healing magic. As yellow light seeped into Rosette, her breathing noticeably improved.
However, her complexion and color remained unchanged. The Duke, panicked, asked urgently.
“Is she okay now? When will she wake up?”
The family doctor examined her once more and responded.
“The injuries seem to have healed for now. If we wait a bit longer, she should wake up.”
However, Celine’s opinion was different.
“Miss’s mana is very unstable. It may not be easy for her to regain consciousness until her mana returns to normal.”
“Then shouldn’t we just calm her mana? I did that once before.”
Celine gently shook her head.
“This time, her internal mana is almost depleted. If we try to manipulate her mana carelessly, it could make things wOsser.”
“Then what should we do?”
“It would be best to wait until her internal mana replenishes and she stabilizes her mana on her own.”
“How long will that take?”
“At least a day. However, the more internal mana she originally had, the longer it may take.”
“A day…”
Duke Adrian looked at Rosette with a troubled expression.
“Is there a possibility she might not wake up?”
“Well…”
Celine carefully chose her words.
“In the worst-case scenario, yes, there is that possibility.”
Duke Adrian swallowed a groan.
“We must find a way for Rose to wake up, no matter what.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Before leaving the room, Duke Adrian looked back at Rosette.
But she still hadn’t opened her eyes.

“I’m sorry. I failed.”
One of the subordinates, wrapped in black, knelt before Baron Shanye, bowing his head deeply. Baron Shanye, who had been on edge the entire time, slammed his fist onto the table.
“How could this happen? Didn’t Duke Adrian travel in the carriage that had been sprayed with the poison?”
“Yes, that’s correct, but…”
“But what?”
“Duke Adrian returned safely to the mansion.”
“Ha…”
Baron Shanye roughly messed up his hair. At that moment, his subordinate cautiously spoke.
“I’m not sure if it will be helpful, but Duke Adrian brought a pink-haired girl back with him when he returned to the mansion.”
“A girl?”
“Yes. According to our informant, she is the youngest adopted daughter of the Duke.”
“The youngest daughter was with the Duke?”
“Well, they aren’t sure. They’re still looking into whether she was in the carriage from the start or if she chased after the Duke later…”
“Are you telling me that? You couldn’t even find that out and reported it like this!”
“I’m sorry.”
Baron Shanye wiped his face with his large, thick hands.
“I have no face to show ‘him.’”
“…”
“Still, it’s fine. That child is still in our hands.”
Baron Shanye smiled grimly. He now imagined the blonde child sleeping in the villa he had purchased under a false name.
“Was it Melody Osser? That one is quite a find.”
“But, sir, shouldn’t we deal with that child now?”
“Deal with her!”
Baron Shanye shouted angrily.
“If you send that child to him, this matter might be forgiven. So keep her well. Do you understand?”
“Understood.”
“No. First, let’s go see the child.”
Baron Shanye stood up and immediately headed toward the villa. Without knocking, he opened the door and entered, startling the child who was sleeping in the room.
“Who…?”
Melody, upon seeing the large figure, wrapped herself in the blanket and trembled with fear. Baron Shanye approached her.
“Shh, good girl.”
He grabbed Melody’s face and turned it this way and that, smiling with satisfaction. Melody, with a trembling voice, asked,
“When… when will my brother come?”
“Your brother will come soon. So, wait quietly a little longer. Don’t even think about trying to escape.”
“I understand.”
Baron Shanye left the room after telling the knight waiting outside to keep a close watch.
Once alone again, Melody got out of bed and walked toward the window. Looking at the rising sun, she made a wish.
“Brother, come see me soon.”
I miss you.
The child’s green eyes filled with sadness.
It was a lonely morning.

The entire Duke Adrian’s estate became eerily quiet.
Duke Adrian stayed by Rosette’s side for a while before leaving to investigate the truth behind the incident. The three children of the Adrian family, putting everything aside, stayed by Rosette’s side.
The three siblings didn’t know exactly what had happened. They only knew that Rosette had used magic to save her father and collapsed afterward.
“I’ll go see Father. Contact me when she wakes up.”
Daniel, who had remained silent, left the room.
“I need to go too. The mansion is too chaotic, and I need to calm the servants.”
Isabelle left the room with heavy steps. The only ones left in the room were Rosette and Lucas.
Lucas, holding back his tears, finally burst into sobs and grabbed Rosette’s hand.
“Hey, kid. Wake up.”
There was no response.
“Wake up, you fool. Do you think I trained you for this? You’re so weak. I’ll make you train harder from now on.”
[Peep, peep.]
Lucas mumbled to himself, then turned his head toward a sound coming from somewhere. A white bird was sadly chirping in front of the tightly shut window.
He moved toward the window to shoo away the noisy bird, but when he saw the tiny eyes of the unknown bird, his heart softened. For some reason, it seemed like the white bird was crying while looking at Rosette.
“Did you come to see the youngest?”
[Peep!]
It sounded almost like the bird was responding with a “Yes, yes!” Lucas hesitated for a moment, then opened the window wide. The bird fluttered and flew up, landing on Rosette’s head.
“Hey, don’t do that.”
Lucas flailed his arms, trying to catch the bird. The bird dodged him, soaring high before flying in circles above his head.
[Peep, peep.]
Lucas didn’t chase away the bothersome bird but left it alone. The bird seemed to hesitate for a moment, then flew over to sit on the headboard of the bed.
“Fine, stay there. Don’t bother the youngest.”
[Peep…]
Talking with a bird… what’s wrong with me? Lucas sighed deeply and stayed by Rosette’s side with the bird.
Thus, the first night passed as Rosette slept.

Duke Adrian looked down at Joseph Osser, who was kneeling flat on the floor in front of him, his face pale. Though he tried to hold it back, a murderous intent that hadn’t been fully contained seeped out from the Duke.
Joseph was an aspiring knight with promise, but still a mere child who hadn’t even reached adulthood. He had never faced this kind of killing intent before, and his body trembled uncontrollably.
“Tell me what happened, Joseph Osser.”
Earlier, Duke Adrian had received a brief explanation from Sebastian. Joseph and Rosette had suddenly come to him with news that the Duke was in danger.
Given the urgency, Sebastian had not heard any other details. However, with that short explanation, the Duke quickly grasped roughly what had happened.
“Did you try to betray me and the Adrian family?”
Duke Adrian’s voice was low and menacing as he asked again.
He had cared for Joseph. Despite being young, Joseph was hardworking and skilled in swordsmanship. It was also pitiful that he had to take care of his younger sister on his own, without parents.
When his sister got a little older, the Duke had planned to support her and send her to the academy.
He didn’t feel personally betrayed. After all, as the head of a noble family, especially a Duke’s family, no one could be trusted, and suspicion had to be constant.
So, it wasn’t surprising that a young boy like Joseph might betray him.
What enraged him, however, was that he had almost lost Rosette because of this.
“I…”
Joseph, trembling like a leaf, did not explain but instead apologized.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Duke.”
But the Duke didn’t flinch at Joseph’s tears.