Chapter 114
“Thank you for making time despite being busy with the event preparations.”
“Count Oklin!”
Hestia’s face lit up when Kenneth approached.
Even in the midst of her hectic schedule, she took time to discuss matters regarding the refugees with him. Because of that, they were able to exchange ideas that were difficult to convey through letters. Melvin also joined in, making the discussions even more fruitful than expected.
“And this gift—you chose my favorite brand of tea leaves. It seems different from what you gave to others. Did you prepare something special just for me?”
Hestia’s shoulders flinched slightly.
Indeed, she had specially prepared this gift only for Kenneth, as he was someone she deeply respected in her past life.
“Rather than that, I tried to prepare gifts for each guest. Do you like it?”
“Of course, I do. Events like these are usually exhausting, but thanks to you, I had fun. See you next time.”
“Yes, Count. Until next time.”
After bidding farewell to a few more guests, the only ones left were the Frost family.
“Mom and Dad, are you staying the night?”
“Yes, we plan to leave after lunch tomorrow.”
“You worked hard preparing for two consecutive days. Get some good rest tonight.”
“See you tomorrow, young master!”
“I want to play at the playground once more before leaving!”
“Okay! See you tomorrow!”
The Frost family and Melvin waved as they departed.
With the guests gone, the once noisy mansion suddenly became quiet.
Leonhard rubbed his eyes, as if his tension had finally eased or fatigue had set in.
“I’m going to bed now…”
“Yes, let’s go in.”
“But first, you have to check your gift.”
“Gift? Can’t I check it tomorrow…?”
“No, not that. You haven’t received our gift yet.”
Hestia and Luciard smiled meaningfully, leaving Leonhard blinking in confusion.
“What is it? I can’t see anything, and it’s making me nervous.”
Leonhard stood awkwardly with his eyes covered by Hestia’s hands as she guided him into the room where the gift was prepared.
“We’re almost there. If you see it beforehand, it won’t be a surprise.”
“Okay, I’ll wait a bit longer.”
“Keep your eyes closed, okay?”
Hestia removed her hands from his eyes, and Leonhard obediently kept them shut.
As he waited, he could hear some rustling behind him.
“Alright. Now turn around.”
Leonhard did as instructed but kept his eyes closed.
Luciard chuckled. “You can open them now, Leon.”
Leonhard hesitantly opened his eyes.
Before him stood a large object, nearly as tall as he was, covered with a cloth.
“What is this?”
Unable to guess, he tilted his head in curiosity. Hestia and Luciard simply smiled and held out their hands.
“Shall our young master unveil it himself?”
“Here, Leon. Pull this.”
Following their lead, Leonhard grabbed the cloth tightly and pulled.
Whoosh!
The cloth fell away, revealing the gift.
Leonhard’s eyes widened.
“Well? Do you like it?”
“Do you like the gift we prepared?”
Tears welled up in Leonhard’s eyes.
Seeing this, Hestia and Luciard gently patted his back.
And then, as if a dam had burst, his tears spilled over, and he started sobbing.
“Huwaaah…! Mom, Dad…!”
His cries made Hestia and Luciard tear up as well.
They knelt beside him, gazing at the gift they had prepared together.
It was a painting.
A portrait of Leonhard, along with his late parents, Icarus and Flora, looking happy together.
“Hic… How did you even make this…?” Leonhard sniffled as he asked.
“We hired a skilled artist.”
“Luckily, there was already a portrait of your parents to use as a reference.”
“Remember when we had your portrait painted a while ago?”
“Mm…!”
A month ago, while searching for a meaningful gift for Leonhard, Hestia had noticed a portrait of Icarus and Flora in his room.
She later learned from Daisy and Luciard that Leonhard often talked to the portrait.
That was when she knew—this was the perfect gift.
“So we painted you first, then used the old portrait as a reference to recreate your family together.”
Though they had a reference, the pose needed to be adjusted. Hestia and Luciard had secretly acted as stand-ins for Flora and Icarus during the painting process.
“This is the first time you three have been painted together since you were little, right?”
“Yeah! I love it! It feels like Mom and Dad are really here! This is the best gift ever!”
Expensive jewels, heartfelt presents, and fun moments with his friends were all precious to Leonhard.
But among all the gifts he had received, this one was the most special.
“Can I look at it up close?”
“Of course. Take your time.”
Leonhard approached the painting carefully, gazing at his smiling parents standing behind him.
‘Leon.’
‘Our dear son!’
It was as if he could hear their gentle voices in his ears.
Tears welled up again, and he wiped his eyes.
“Hehe… Do you think Mom and Dad are smiling like this in heaven too?”
Hestia felt a lump in her throat, and Luciard barely held back his tears.
Luciard patted Leonhard’s head.
“Of course. They must be at peace, knowing you are well.”
“I hope so. I love it when Mom and Dad smile!”
Just like in the painting.
“Uncle! I want to hang this in my room! Can I?”
“It’s your gift. You can do whatever you want with it.”
“I’ll have Gallion move it to your room.”
“Yay!”
Wasting no time, Hestia called the servants to relocate the painting.
Leonhard eagerly followed them, watching as the old portrait of his parents was replaced with the new one.
He looked at it proudly, then suddenly turned to Hestia and Luciard with an expectant gaze.
“What is it?”
“You said you were sleepy, right? Want to take a bath and sleep together?”
Leonhard looked at the two of them, his eyes filled with warmth.
They were as loving and caring as his parents had been.
He glanced back at the painting, then at the two of them, and said,
“Someday, let’s get a painting together too!”
“What?”
“You two are really important to me. I want us to be in a portrait together!”
Hestia and Luciard blinked in surprise.
Then, they smiled and nodded.
“Alright, Leon. Let’s do whatever you want.”
“We’ll set a date and have our portrait painted.”
“Yay! You promise, right, Tia?”
“…Huh?”
Hestia suddenly froze.
Leonhard’s cheeks turned pink as he shyly looked up at her.
“Can I call you Tia? You’re Uncle’s fiancée, and we’re close now!”
Leonhard had always been envious of how the others called Hestia by her nickname.
“Tia, you can call me Leon too! Is that okay?”
His eager eyes were too adorable, and Hestia couldn’t resist hugging him.
“Of course! I should have realized sooner. I was so slow, wasn’t I, young master?”
“No! Call me Leon!”
His bright, sparkling eyes made Hestia laugh.
“Alright, young master Leon! I look forward to spending more time with you.”
“Hehe. Uncle, you should call Tia by her nickname too. She’s your fiancée, after all.”
At that, both Hestia and Luciard froze.
They exchanged awkward glances, both recalling the events of the previous night.
Luciard hesitantly looked at Hestia, his lips trembling slightly.
“T-Ti…”
‘Is he really going to say it?’
Though her family had called her that countless times, for some reason, it felt different now.
As Hestia looked at Luciard expectantly, his face turned even redder.
“…I’ll do it next time.”
“Aw, come on!”
Leonhard looked disappointed, while Hestia let out a sigh of relief.
But somehow, it still felt a bit disappointing…
‘No, why would I feel disappointed? And what does it matter if they call me by a nickname or not?’
Luciard and Hestia hardly had time to rest after putting Leonhard to sleep. Because now they were gazing at the pile of gifts that had to be organized.
“Phew, when are we going to finish organizing all this?”
“Still, it makes me happy to see that Leon received so many congratulations.”
“That’s true. Gallian, did people other than the invited guests also send gifts?”
“Yes, some couldn’t attend due to circumstances, and others weren’t invited but still sent their congratulations from afar. I’ve organized a list of the gifts here.”
“Hm… Then, shall we start opening them?”
Hestia quickly checked the list and moved toward the gifts.
“Shouldn’t we let Leon open them himself?”
“I’ll leave the ones from close friends, but I want to open the smaller ones in advance. There’s no way he can handle all of this on his own.”
“Well… That’s true.”
“Alright, let’s do this!”
“Um… Would it be okay if we helped?”
As Hestia and Luciard rolled up their sleeves, the door opened slightly, and Lavio peeked inside. Behind him, the Blaze Mercenaries appeared one by one.
Seeing them, Hestia’s face lit up.
“Of course! If you help, we can finish much faster.”
When Hestia gladly nodded, Lavio and the Blaze Mercenaries stepped inside and joined in organizing the gifts.
Before unwrapping each one, they checked who had sent it and whether the name matched the list.
At the top of the list was none other than the Emperor. When the gift had arrived, Gallian had reported it separately, and they had set it aside for special attention.
“We should be grateful. He really didn’t have to go this far.”
During the Milky Way Festival, Sylvester had asked to be informed about Leonhard’s birthday. So, when sending invitations to others, they had also sent him a letter.
Since he was the Emperor, he likely wouldn’t be able to travel all the way to the southern Duke’s estate. So, the letter had been filled with polite phrases like how, thanks to the Emperor’s grace, they could hold a wonderful birthday party.
But now, he had actually sent a gift.
“I’ll send him a reply first thing tomorrow.”
“Should we let Leon open this one himself?”
“Yes, I think that would be best.”
While Luciard set aside Sylvester’s gift, an unexpected name caught their eye.
“Wait, isn’t the Grand Duke Florence a high-ranking noble?”
Brina had noticed the familiar name on one of the gifts. At that, both Luciard and Hestia frowned.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Freya• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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