I Picked Up My Father Who Left Home

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I Picked Up My Father Who Left Home 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lia, who arrived with Cassian at Castle, looked at the Castle with a complicated expression.

 

She had been to the Castle only once before.

 

It was a place where my estranged grandfather, who had been missing for so long, introduced her to the emperor.

 

Although young, Lia knew the weight of the emperor and couldn’t help but be nervous in front of him.

 

However, her grandfather introduced Lia proudly with a relaxed expression, as if he had met an old friend.

 

How affectionate and warm was that gaze.

 

Even Lia, who was nervous about the endless boasting of her granddaughter, felt embarrassed.

 

When she recalled that memory, she missed her grandfather again.

 

Once again, the absence of her grandfather hit her hard.

 

Cassian, who noticed Lia’s expression, casually opened his mouth with an unreadable face.

 

“Do you want it?”

 

“Yes? What do you mean?”

 

Suddenly, Lia made a puzzled expression as if wondering what he was talking about.

 

“That Castle.”

 

“Huh?”

 

“If Lia wants it, it’s not that difficult to give you the Castle.”

 

Even though Cassian knew that the meaning of Lia’s expression was not what it seemed, he pretended not to know and said so.

 

It was his own way of comforting.

 

And indeed, he felt that Lia deserved much more than a duke position.

 

For the angel baby, she should be given the very best, and the absolute best.

 

So, Castle seemed like a suitable place for Lia to stay.

 

Even that seemed a little disappointing, though.

 

“Castle is where the emperor resides. But how can you…?”

 

Initially, it wasn’t something she wanted, but his attitude made it seem as if she could have it whenever she wanted. So, Lia asked in disbelief.

 

“I’ll figure out the way. If all else fails, I can just slit the emperor’s throat.”

 

Even though the emperor mostly granted his requests, he probably wouldn’t just hand over Hwangseong.

 

“Isn’t that… rebellion?”

 

No, even if the person in front of her wasn’t the Grand Duke, if he talked about killing the emperor just to give her a place, it would be insane.

 

Of course, he might be crazy even if he were the Grand Duke.

 

“For my angel baby, what can’t I do?”

 

In his heart, he wanted to make the entire empire kneel before her, not just Castle.

 

“I’ll decline.”

 

Somehow, in front of this crazy person… no, Cassian, it felt like she might really say that.

 

“Why is that?”

 

“I didn’t want it in the first place.”

 

What would I do with a place like that Castle?

 

The reason she momentarily got lost in thought here was because of the memories she had with her grandfather. She had no particular desire or interest in the Castle.

 

“Well, Castle and the like have no value to the already noble angel baby due to humans.”

 

Cassian simply accepted Lia’s words.

 

Lia made a complex expression, as if she didn’t know how to react to that.

 

But at least she prevented rebellion.

 

Even though she didn’t have much loyalty to the emperor yet, in front of an apparent rebel, she couldn’t just act like she didn’t know.

 

“But didn’t we agree not to call me the angel baby from now on?”

 

Trying to change the subject, Lia pointed out the address she had been finding annoying.

 

“That’s instinct.”

 

“I’ve never heard of such instinct.”

 

“Well, it’s obvious. Lia is the angel baby, so she’s naturally ignorant of human instincts.”

 

“No, I’m not an angel baby! And humans don’t have such instincts in the first place!”

 

Lia looked bewildered as if saying, ‘What nonsense are you talking about?’

 

“No, they do. I can feel it.”

 

Despite Lia’s protest, Cassian confidently spoke as if that were an immutable truth.

 

Lia let out a deep sigh at his attitude.

 

He was not a reasonable person to persuade.

 

Persuasion should be based on common sense.

 

Thinking about it, she couldn’t understand how such a person became the Grand Duke.

 

“It’s amazing that the Grand Duke is still in power.”

 

If he’s so reckless, he probably won’t do his job properly.

 

But maybe that’s not the case.

 

After vaguely hearing rumors about the Grand Duke, he seemed competent in his own way.

 

In the end, Lia gave up trying to persuade Cassian this time.

 

Trying to make the impossible possible would only give her a headache.

 

Lia decided to let go of the issue of the address and turned the conversation back to the Castle.

 

“But it seems you’ve been to the Castle often.”

 

Looking at Cassian, who was walking without hesitation even though there was no guide, Lia said.

 

Maybe he refused the guide because he already knew the layout, considering he found out his true identity at first, his memory might have returned, so there was a possibility that he remembered the layout of the Castle..

 

“Well…”

 

Cassian gave an ambiguous answer to Lia’s question.

 

He didn’t know exactly where he was going.

 

He was simply walking according to his feelings.

 

“Well, given his status, it wouldn’t be his first time in the Castle.”

 

Among nobles, the Grand Duke was like a legendary figure, but not to the emperor.

 

The relationship between the emperor and the Grand Duke was not that bad.

 

However, Lia’s thoughts would change shortly.

 

Lia thought that Cassian was heading there so confidently because he was well aware of his position in reality.

 

But why? No matter how much I walked, I couldn’t reach the desired destination.

 

At times, I retraced the path I had already taken.

 

By that point, even Lia could tell.

 

Cassian doesn’t know the way.

 

“…Hah, sir…, no, *Khal.”

 

(TL/N : 칼 means Knife.)

 

“Call me again.”

 

With the affectionate nickname called by Lia, Cassian spoke with a faint smile.

 

Lia cleanly ignored Cassian’s words.

 

“I think someone else might be needed.”

 

“Already tired of me?”

 

Cassian put on a sulking expression.

 

“Huh?”

 

“I just wanted someone to guide me to reality.”

 

“Is there really a need for that?”

 

“I’m in a hurry, and you’ve been wandering around the Castle for so long.”

 

Since she also didn’t know the layout of the Castle, it was better to get help from a maid.

 

“There’s a way for that.”

 

“What… a way?”

 

Perhaps due to a lack of trust in Cassian, Lia felt more unease than reassurance from his words.

 

“May I touch the angel baby’s body for a moment?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“As expected, Lia would allow it.”

 

Cassian confidently embraced Lia, ignoring the question mark after ‘huh’.

 

In any case, the important thing was the answer ‘yes’.

 

“Wait, I was just asking… Aah!”

 

Suddenly embraced by Cassian, Lia wanted to protest, but she could only scream in the following situation.

 

That’s because, after embracing her, Cassian opened any random door and threw himself out the window.

 

“If you’re going to die, please die alone!”

 

Anticipating the impending situation, Lia closed her eyes tightly and screamed.

 

She was just twelve years old, and now she had to resign herself to her fate.

 

Even though her grandfather had passed away and she was sad, it didn’t mean she wanted to follow him in death!

 

In response to Lia’s cry, Cassian silently thought.

 

Indeed, my angel baby is so lovely and cute even when she’s angry.

 

Even her voice was like a gift from the gods.

 

Fortunately, the situation Lia had anticipated didn’t unfold.

 

Cassian had indeed opened the window and thrown himself out, but it wasn’t to fall down, but rather to go up.

 

Realizing this belatedly, Lia still couldn’t relax.

 

In a situation where she was in someone else’s arms and climbing the Castle wall, how could she feel safe?

 

A slight misstep here could mean falling to the ground and into the afterlife.

 

How anxious must she have been?

 

Once Cassian arrived at a certain place, he carefully set Lia down on the ground.

 

“You darned uncle! You said your nickname was ‘knife,’ did that mean it’s a knife that kills people?”

 

Lia, who had briefly experienced the boundary between life and death, couldn’t contain her anger and shouted.

 

“Oh, I didn’t know my nickname had that meaning.”

 

Cassian genuinely marveled at Lia’s words.

 

Indeed, he wasn’t an ordinary human; he possessed extraordinary deductive and reasoning skills.

 

He never imagined that his nickname could be interpreted in that way.

 

“It’s not a compliment!”

 

“Don’t worry. Lia is the angel baby, even if it’s called a knife that kills people, it won’t hurt you.”

 

“I’m not so sure…”

 

Even though she was the angel baby, the recent situation had shaken her trust.

 

Just for a moment.

 

Lia mumbled softly, still feeling her racing heart.

 

“Really, darned uncle.”

 

“If my angel baby wants it, I’d gladly become the darned one.”

 

It was a muttered comment out of sheer disbelief at such a reaction. But the response was unexpected.

 

Lia had nothing more to say, so she remained silent.

 

Eventually, Lia decided to ignore Cassian’s presence and looked around to figure out where they were.

 

That’s when she noticed a middle-aged man.

 

He exuded an unmistakable aura of an emperor.

 

Before long, the middle-aged man and Lia’s gaze met directly.