I Became The Guardian Of The Future Villain

“A guardian, you say…?”

Albert, the head butler, slightly bowed his head toward Leonhard.

“It refers to someone who will take over the duchy for you, Young Master.”

“Although your situation isn’t common, it’s not unheard of, which is why the imperial law has provisions for it.”

If parents die, go missing, or lose their parental rights, and if their child under 15 years old is left without a legal guardian, someone can be appointed as their legal guardian.

If the parents did not designate a guardian in their will or if no legal guardian exists, the child must appoint a guardian themselves.

The guardian has to be an adult and needs to take care of the ward’s property like a responsible manager. They’re also responsible for looking after the ward until they grow up.

However, for noble children, only relatives of a recognized degree of kinship can be appointed as guardians.

This is the imperial law regarding guardians.

The reason only relatives are allowed to be appointed as guardians for noble children is to protect the minor nobles. If anyone could be appointed as a guardian, the young noble might easily be driven into poverty and cast out.

Of course, just because someone is a relative doesn’t guarantee they’ll act properly.

After hearing a general explanation, Leonhard realized that he truly had no one by his side.

“Wait, isn’t it too soon to appoint a guardian?”

At that moment, Derrick raised his hand to object.

“Too soon? Whether you appoint one now or later, you’ll have to decide eventually.”

“That’s true, but wouldn’t it be better for Sir Luciard to lead the duchy rather than selecting one of us as the guardian?”
At the mention of Icarus’s half-brother, the conference room buzzed.

Marlus cast a calm glance at Derrick, who met his gaze without backing down.

“Sure, Sir Luciard does have a claim to the inheritance, but… can we really trust him?”

“With such impure blood mixed in, how can he lead the ducal house?”

“Baron Harbor, you’ve gone too far.”

“Have I said anything incorrect? Honestly, if the Duke hadn’t taken him in, he might have been discarded by the family long ago.”

Derrick clenched his fists in discomfort at Harbor’s venomous words, but he was the only one in the room visibly troubled by them.

Though the others weren’t as blunt as Harbor, they all shared the same sentiment about Luciard.

“And besides, have you even been able to contact Sir Luciard?”

When Baron Harbor turned to Albert, the butler shook his head with a grim expression.

“Unfortunately, we have been unable to locate him. The last time we were in contact was three months ago.”

“You see? We don’t even know when we’ll be able to reach him or if he’ll even come here. It’s better to select one of us as guardian.”

“This time, I agree with Baron Harbor. Even if not immediately, we must appoint a guardian soon so we can all rest easy.”

With even Baron Greenwood, who had remained neutral, agreeing, Derrick found himself unable to make any further objections.

“Young master, what do you want to do?”

But no matter how much they debated, it wasn’t up to them to decide who would become the guardian.

The right to appoint a guardian belonged solely to Leonhard.

With a somber expression, Leonhard squeezed his eyes shut.

“…Please give me some time.”

They felt their hearts soften at the trembling voice of the child.

Malrus squinted his eyes before offering a kindly smile.

“In any case, we will all be here until tomorrow, so please take your time and think it over. If you’re tired, you may retire. We still have some matters to discuss.”

Though it seemed as if he was showing consideration for Leonhard but in reality it was essentially no different from asking him to leave.

Already emotionally and physically exhausted, Leonhard quickly stood up and left the room.

Albert chose to stay behind on Leonhard’s behalf.

Left alone, Leonhard’s pace quickened, and eventually, he started running.

Before long, tears welled up in his eyes.

Without thinking, Leonhard found himself in the garden filled with memories of his parents.

He hid his body next to the bushes, ensuring no one would find him.

Quietly, he drew his knees in and began to sob.

“Mother… Father…”

His parents had left with smiles, promising to bring back Luciard.

But a few days later, what returned were not their smiling faces, but their cold corpses.

To be honest, even when he was told that his parents had died, he couldn’t believe it.

But as the funeral processions continued, and as he saw their coffins being lowered into the ground, and as talks of appointing a guardian began…

‘…Ah, my parents really are gone.’

For the first time, it sank in. And the fact that his beloved parents were no longer by his side filled him with unbearable sorrow.

“Sniff… I hate this, I hate it all… I miss you, Mom, Dad.”

He resented the adults for talking about guardianship when his parents had just been buried.
He resented his uncle, who still hadn’t returned even after several days had passed since his parents’ deaths.
No, he despised him because his parents had died while searching for him.
Yet, paradoxically, Luciard was now the only family he had left, and that made him long to see him even more.
“Uncle, where are you…? Why aren’t you coming to see me…?”

To be honest, Leonhard didn’t have many memories with Luciard.

When he was just a baby, Luciard had gone off to the academy.

But even so, once or twice a year, Luciard would always come to the ducal residence and spend about a month with him.

‘Do you know how much Luciard loves our Leon? When you were born, he came to see you as often as he could.’

And the occasional stories his father would tell him made it clear how much Luciard cared for him.

That’s why Leonhard also loved and respected Luciard more than anyone.

He didn’t want to be left alone in this enormous castle.

He wished Luciard would be by his side.

Thinking that, Leonhard wiped away his continuously falling tears.

How much time had passed?

Rustle—

He sensed someone’s presence.

Breathing heavily, Leonhard looked up with tear-filled eyes.

Before him stood was a woman with golden hair.
She, too, looked like she had been crying, and as she wiped away her tears, she froze.
An awkward silence hung between them as they stared at each other for a long moment.
“Young master! Where are you? Young master…!”

In the distance, someone was calling for Leonhard. It was Malrus.

He had stopped a passing maid and was asking for Leonhard’s whereabouts.

For some reason, Leonhard felt a surge of aversion and quickly hid his body in the bushes again.

It was only then that he realized the woman had seen him.

‘If she tells them I’m here…!’

“Um…”

Unable to hide his unease, Leonhard carefully spoke to the woman.

She glanced at him briefly before giving him a small wave.

‘Does that mean to stay still?’

He was momentarily puzzled, but then Malrus’s footsteps drew closer.

Trembling, Leonhard anxiously waited for him to pass by when suddenly, the world went dark.

The woman had quietly approached and hidden his small body beneath the fabric of her black dress.

Blinking with his tear-soaked eyes, Leonhard looked up at her.

“Greetings, Count Humphrey.”

“…Ahem. Lady Frost. Have you seen the young master?”

“I’m sorry. No one has come this way.”

“Is that so…?”

Malrus looked around suspiciously but saw no one but her.

In the end, Malrus regretfully turned and left the garden.

“You may get up now.”

Leonhard, who had been covering his mouth with both hands, trying to muffle his presence, stood up awkwardly at the woman’s words.

“Th-thank you…”

“It’s nothing. Well then…”

“A-ah, wait…!”

As the woman turned to leave, Leonhard instinctively grabbed the hem of her skirt. She paused and looked back at him.

“Is there something you need?”

“Uh, well… um…”

‘Why did I stop her?’

He didn’t even know why he acted on impulse, so he couldn’t find a reason for his own actions. While Leonhard fumbled for words, the woman sighed softly and sat down beside him. Despite the risk of dirtying her dress, she didn’t seem to mind at all.

Leonhard found himself staring blankly at her profile.

“Were you crying?”
For a brief moment, he feared he had acted too informally as someone destined to carry the name of Winston. But that worry was short-lived.
“Cry as much as you need to. It would be sad if you couldn’t cry after losing your only parents.”
“…Is it really okay for me to cry?”

“If you don’t cry, who will cry for you? Even I… feel this sad.”

The woman forced a weak smile as a single tear rolled down her cheek. That tear acted like a spark, causing Leonhard’s eyes to well up again. Without thinking, he leaned into the woman’s arms, seeking comfort.

The woman hesitated for a moment but then gently stroked his head, though a bit awkwardly. The wall Leonhard had built up since learning of his parents’ death crumbled all at once. His sobs showed no signs of stopping.

After some time passed, and once he had somewhat composed himself, Leonhard sniffled through his puffy, tear-stained eyes. The woman handed him a handkerchief.

“Sniff! S-sorry…”

“It’s fine. The dress can be washed.”
Even though her dress was black, his tear stains were clearly visible, which embarrassed Leonhardt.
Seeing the expensive handkerchief now ruined with his snot also made him glance at her awkwardly.
“Do you have something to say?”
The woman asked, noticing his hesitation.

Leonhard flinched slightly. But then, the warmth in her gaze made him blurt out his question before he even realized it.

“What should I do from now on?”

The woman’s eyes widened slightly.

“Have they spoken to you about a guardian?”

“Oh, yes. How did you know?”

“I overheard some people talking.”

“They’re telling me to choose a guardian by tomorrow… but I don’t know who to pick. If only my uncle were here, I’d choose him…”

But in reality, he would have to choose one of these distant relatives he barely knew.

“The only person I know well is Baron Frost…”

The woman’s eyebrows twitched slightly. She hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.

“Don’t trust anyone.”

“…What?”

Leonhard looked up at her, startled.

“Don’t trust Baron Frost, don’t trust Count Humphrey, don’t trust anyone.”

“But… I have to choose one of them.”

“Even if you must choose a guardian, always remain cautious and guarded. Don’t give away everything, or you’ll lose what’s yours.”

It was the first time he had heard anything like this.

Until now, people had always told him to trust them, to lean on them for help, offering their hands in support. This woman was the first to tell him to be cautious.

“…What’s your name?”

“Hestia.”

“Hestia…”

There was no further conversation after that.

“I should get going now.”

Hestia stood up, seemingly uncomfortable with the situation. Only then did Leonhard realize he still had her handkerchief. He wanted to call out to her, but she had already disappeared into the distance.

“Wait… Didn’t Count Humphrey call her Lady Frost?”

If that was the case, then she was the daughter of Baron Frost…

But why had she told him not to trust her own father? Leonhard couldn’t understand.

[Translator Note: Hi readers, Are you liking my project? If yes, Can you please drop some comments to motivate me? Thank you]