I Picked Up My Father Who Left Home 06
Actually… even though it was brief, I had suspicions that the man might not really have amnesia.
It didn’t seem like he was lying, but that didn’t mean I could fully trust everything the man said.
However, just from his words, it seemed that the man had definitely lost his memory.
If not, there’s no way the entire imperial citizens wouldn’t know about Grandfather’s death.
“Grandfather passed away, about 2 days ago.”
Lia said with a composed face.
Her grandfather’s death still weighed heavily on her heart, but she didn’t need to show it to the man in front of her.
“So, for now who is the next head of the Duchy?”
The man stopped speaking at that point.
It was because a single question had come to mind.
Did the Duke of Sithran have a child to inherit the next headship?
It seemed likely that there was a child, given that the girl in front of him was the Duke’s granddaughter.
However, that was as far as he could think at the moment.
The man felt the memories in his mind getting tangled and the severe pain he had felt a little while ago trying to return. So, he stopped thinking.
He knew that if he tried to recall his memories any further, he would experience the same pain again.
In truth, that kind of pain didn’t bother the man.
They called it the most intense pain he had ever experienced in his life, but there was nothing he couldn’t overcome.
If he could just get through the pain, he might be able to find his memories.
However, the reason he didn’t do it was neither fear nor reluctance because of the pain.
It was simply because he didn’t want to make the girl in front of him worry.
He also didn’t want the girl’s already dark face to become even darker.
Anyway, it didn’t have to be done right away.
After having a meal with the girl, he could recall his memories when he was alone.
“Sir?”
Lia looked at him with a concerned expression, as he frowned instead of speaking.
Perhaps he was about to experience pain again, like a little while ago.
In reality, it was a very brief moment, but the color drained from his face.
“It’s nothing. Let’s go have our meal. The growling of an impatient stomach is quite annoying.”
Anyway, who could lack manners to the extent of resembling someone in such a trivial matter as a part of the body.
Instead of offering nice words to the lovely girl, he grumbled, making senseless remarks.
The man made an expression that didn’t please Lia.
“If you are hungry, then grumbling sound from your stomatch is a natural responds.”
“No, it’s just bad manners. So I’ll make sure to correct my manners firmly. I won’t do that in the future.”
Lia looked puzzled by the man’s serious words.
Do stomachs even have manners?
And can they be corrected?
It was a statement that Lia couldn’t understand based on her common sense.
However, Lia decided not to dwell on it deeply.
It wasn’t something she could understand just because she wanted to, and it was more convenient to accept that the man in front of her, despite the similar appearance, was simply a person with a different way of thinking.
“Shall we go for a meal?”
Lia said, feeling increasingly exhausted mentally as she conversed with the man.
Soon, the two of them headed to the dining room side by side.
After the meal, the two of them returned to the room where the man was staying.
Upon returning to the room, Lia immediately called for a physician.
She had regained her composure, but just in case, it seemed like a good idea to have another examination.
Since the man had no memory, it seemed wise to hear the doctor’s opinion about him.
Especially because the man experienced unexplained pain whenever he tried to recall his memories.
Unfortunately, Lia did not receive the answers she desired from the physician.
It was because even as a physician, they couldn’t pinpoint the exact cause.
It was only mentioned that the man seemed to have lost his memory due to a major shock from the injury.
The physician couldn’t assert prematurely how memory could be regained, whether it would return, and when it might happen.
Lia wore a disappointed expression, but it was an inevitable situation.
There was no way to force discovering the unknown.
She only hoped that the man would safely regain his memories and be able to leave the mansion as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the man, who had been staring intently at Lia, absentmindedly raised his hand above her head.
Then, he roughly stroked her hair.
“Sir?”
“The little angel’s head has been tempting me to touch it for a while now.”
In truth, he only said this to calm Lia, who had grown even darker, but the man spoke those words.
To be honest, he couldn’t understand what made him feel that way, so he wanted to comfort her.
“Well, after having a conversation with my stomach, now it seems like you can have a conversation with my head. But are you going to keep calling me by such a strange title?”
“I’m a bit versatile.”
The man, who pretended not to hear Lia’s last words, responded with a proud look on his face.
“…”
Lia was momentarily at a loss for words.
She hadn’t really praised him.
She hadn’t even thought he could actually have a conversation with her head.
Nevertheless, the man seemed to take Lia’s words at face value.
He was extremely proud of that fact.
He was certainly a person hard to understand in many ways.
Lia could be absolutely sure of that.
A person like him was probably a first in her life.
Moreover, there probably wasn’t anyone as hard to understand as him.
Plus, he was naturally ignoring the issue of titles.
“My memories, they will be found.”
With an indifferent expression, the man seemed to be trying to console Lia with those words.
“Is it that memories are found when you want to find them?”
“I can make it happen.”
No matter how impossible it may seem, he would make it possible.
His own memories couldn’t dare to disturb such an adorable and lovely child.
“Well, I hope it turns out that way. So, get some rest.”
“Are you leaving?”
“Yes.”
She entered the man’s room only briefly to check on his condition, not for any specific reason.
There were urgent matters to attend to.
Besides, there was nothing more to discover from talking to the man at this point, so using that time for other tasks was more efficient.
“They say a woman’s heart is like a reed. Even an angel baby is still a woman, right?”
“Huh?”
“It hasn’t even been a day yet, and it seems like I’m already trying to leave as if I’m tired of me.”
The man made a slightly hurt expression.
“Excuse me, sir?”
Wondering what this new turn of events was, Lia looked at the man with a puzzled expression.
The man frowned as if something didn’t sit right with him.
But even as a man, he couldn’t quite pinpoint what was bothering him.
Then, as if he suddenly understood what the problem was, he opened his mouth with a subtly satisfied expression.
“How about calling me ‘Dad’ instead of ‘Sir’?”
Strangely, it felt quite friendly, and the man, for some reason, endeared himself to the girl.
It was the first time in his life that he had felt such strong goodwill from someone.
‘No. Have I felt it before.’
Without his memories, even the man was confused.
But one thing was clear. Feeling such an indescribable closeness toward someone on the first meeting was extremely unfamiliar and rare for the man.
Maybe that’s why.
The man didn’t like the address “Sir” from the girl.
He wanted to hear a different address.
So, he chose the term “Dad.”
Father was also an option, but that sounded too formal.
“Yes?”
“As it turns out, my wish is to have a daughter like an angel.”
The man believed that the reason he wanted to hear the address “Dad” from the girl was because of that.
Otherwise, even to himself, wanting to be addressed as “Dad” didn’t make sense.
“Is it not too greedy to ask your savior, who saved your life, to grant your wish?”
Lia’s tone while saying this was sharp and pointed.
How could it not be?
A man who had just appeared, not to mention an unknown man, asking her to call him “Dad.”
Moreover, the term “Father” had a lot of complexity and meaning to Lia.
She had never seen his face.
Why she had entrusted herself to him, why he had never appeared in front of her until now – she didn’t even know the reasons. Without understanding the reasons,
Lia had to part with her father and live with her grandfather.
Since she had never seen his face, she thought there was no reason to miss him, and she had forgotten about his existence, but that didn’t mean she could truly forget.
That’s why, within Lia, the existence of a father was like a tangled knot that couldn’t be unraveled.
It was that part that the man in front of her touched.
She wasn’t particularly angry.
It’s not like she was sad or hurt.
It was just… a bit uncomfortable.
Especially because that “father” hadn’t revealed himself, she wondered if she was instructing her butler to investigate and find a guardian for her.
If her father had been with her, there would have been no need to make an effort to find a guardian.
On the other hand, the man made a subtle expression at Lia’s attitude.
He had simply said those words because he wanted to hear the term “Dad.”
However, looking at Lia’s attitude… it seemed like she had some reason.
Whatever that reason was.
“… I made a mistake.”
The man readily admitted his mistake.
It wasn’t something to be lightly said in a moment of impulse.
Whether or not she had a father, it wasn’t an easy thing for someone else to call another person “father.”
It wasn’t something to be brushed off as a joke.
Especially since the man and the girl weren’t close enough to exchange such jokes.
At least, not yet.
