2. I Will Try to Save My Dad
‘I must save my dad.’
Hmph. I snorted toward the eagle statue that looked so high up.
My dad’s death was the result of one of our relatives colluding with an external force.
Unfortunately, the other version of me couldn’t figure out who among the relatives was the culprit or the identity of the external accomplice.
But I had a way to save my dad.
‘The estate competition that returns every 5 years!’
The Travel family followed a meritocratic system, selecting the most capable direct descendant as the successor to the family head.
And each of the family head’s children was given a separate estate, with the rank of successor determined by the jewel embedded in the eyes of the eagle statue above the front door.
1st rank: Diamond, 2nd rank: Sapphire, 3rd rank: Emerald, …, lowest rank: No jewel, commonly known as the ‘Stone House.’
‘Dad deliberately chose the lowest rank. He wasn’t interested in the position of family head and wanted to avoid anyone getting sacrificed in the power struggle. But…’
The separate estate was a symbol of power within the Travel family.
In my memory, when my uncle handed over the Diamond House to my aunt, he collapsed on the spot, foaming at the mouth, complaining of a severe headache.
‘If dad becomes the 1st rank, he won’t be able to go to war. That’s the rule of Travel.’
There were two estate competitions left. Based on my age, they would take place when I was 10 and 15 years old.
In the second competition, I would make sure my dad became the 1st rank successor to the family head.
‘Sly Uncle Hevan, hyena Aunt Marian, fox-like Uncle Yossel.’
Sorry, but in 8 years, my dad will become the family head’s successor.
I may hate the future, but knowing the future isn’t such a bad thing.
“Khehehe.”
I put both hands on my hips and laughed like a villain, drunk with the feeling of victory.
“Why are you outside without wearing a coat? You’ll catch a cold.”
“Oh, dad—. I was just thinking of something important.”
“Put your coat on.”
“Okay.”
Although I quickly ended up being carried back into the house by dad.
***
Now that I had a goal, I needed to make a plan. Of course, I couldn’t let it show.
“Ah, moisturizer. Please wait a moment. I’ll bring it right away.”
“Mmm.”
Sherry, who was helping me with my bath, left the bathroom to fetch the item she had forgotten. I crouched down on the floor, wrapping a large towel tightly around myself.
“Oh, the floor is warm.”
The Travel family owned many mines, and one of their specialties was a mineral called Heatstone, which generated its own heat.
A fist-sized Heatstone was worth a month’s salary for a common laborer. Just the bathroom floor alone was embedded with the equivalent of several months’ worth of wages.
In the house where I lived with Dad, you had to dry off quickly and get dressed right after bathing to avoid the cold.
But now, the entire bathroom felt as warm as sitting in front of a fireplace.
‘Is this why adults say that money is the best?’
And this is just the ‘Stone House.’
Uncle’s Diamond House or Grandfather’s main house must be covered with hundreds of months’ worth of salary, I suppose?
I think I’m starting to understand a little why my relatives are so obsessed with the successor position.
So it would be best to delay raising their suspicions as much as possible.
‘It’s better for Dad to remain at the lowest rank until the next estate competition, right? If we draw unnecessary attention, something troublesome might happen.’
This means we’ll have to quietly build up our strength for the next few years, but doing so in Travel, where everything reaches Grandfather’s ears, won’t be easy.
But still.
– Who would have thought? His Highness was with our family. I heard Uncle drove His Highness out when he joined as an apprentice knight?
– Yes, that’s what happened.
– Sometimes, I regret not becoming closer to His Highness back then. If I had, I might have had a chance to notice that the war Dad participated in was strange.
There’s a jewel only I know about~
Everyone else thinks it’s just a muddy stone, so there’s no reason for them to be wary.
“How do I get close~.”
“To whom?”
Sherry, who had just returned with the moisturizer, asked. I looked up and smiled mischievously.
Who, you ask—.
“To you, Sherry?”
“Oh my.”
Sherry, who would become the biggest connection and future ally in Travel.
‘Theon Phil Ixellona, the Crown Prince.’
My first plan is to bring him to our side.
“Dad!”
After applying the moisturizer and changing into my pajamas, I came out of the bathroom to find Dad entering my room.
I couldn’t be happier to see him, probably because I had been thinking about how to save him the entire time I was in the bathroom.
“Careful, you might fall.”
Dad caught me as I ran to him and lifted me up high.
I rubbed my forehead against Dad’s neck and said,
“Berry missed you so much.”
“What’s going on? You’re acting so clingy.”
The subtle scent of Cologne lingered around Dad as he spoke with a smile. He must have just finished his bath as well.
“Does my little Berry have something she wants from Dad?”
“Just because I’m happy to see you—.”
“Berry.”
“Yes?”
“You didn’t wash your face, did you?”
Gotcha. I reflexively looked up at Dad’s question, who was now acting like an investigator.
How unfair.
“Uh, no, I did!”
I stammered in surprise, which seemed to make Dad even more suspicious.
He narrowed his eyes and asked,
“Did you really wash it?”
“Oh, come on, Mr. Reytan. Are you really doubting your daughter?”
“Yes. Given her history, she’s done this quite a few times.”
“What? That’s so unfair! Ask Sherry!”
Sherry was the daughter of the nanny who had cared for Dad. Because of this, Dad, who was usually very cautious around people in the Travel family, trusted Sherry to some extent.
“She washed her face thoroughly,”
Sherry said with a chuckle, supporting me after hearing our conversation.
Even then, Dad’s suspicion didn’t easily disappear, so I had to demonstrate how I washed my face in the air.
“…Hmph.”
I could hear them laughing now and then, but I must have imagined it, right?
Because I was serious. No adult would tease a serious child. Right?
“My apologies for doubting you.”
“Yes, sir.”
With Dad’s apology, I finally cleared my name.
Phew, proving my innocence is tough.
It was already nighttime. Sherry bid us goodnight, saying it was time for bed.
“Why don’t you sleep with Master Reytan tonight? If you need anything, just pull the string beside the bed. My room is downstairs.”
“Okay! Goodnight, Sherry!”
“Sweet dreams, Miss.”
I bid her farewell while still in Dad’s arms.
Once Sherry left, it was just Dad and me in the room. Although Dad’s room was next door, he decided to sleep with me tonight, perhaps because he was worried about me sleeping alone in a new environment.
I tilted my head at an angle and met Dad’s eyes. I couldn’t help but break into a smile.
“This is exciting.”
“Why?”
“It’s been so long since I’ve slept with Dad! I’m so excited, what if I can’t fall asleep?”
***
It was a miscalculation.
The cozy bedding and Dad’s voice reading a storybook beside me.
For Berry, there was no better sleeping pill. Her eyelids grew heavier, and the bear picture in the storybook spread out over her stomach kept disappearing and reappearing.
After a short while, only the sound of soft breathing remained in the room. Reytan gazed at his sleeping daughter.
Her small hand tightly clutched Reytan’s clothes, as if worried about something. No matter how mature she seemed, Berry was still just seven years old.
‘We need to leave.’
They had to leave this place.
Berry was a smart child. She instinctively understood how money flowed. A beloved daughter who possessed the qualities that the Travel family valued most in a family head.
His siblings must not feel threatened by Berry. Beasts like them think it’s better to crush a cub before it grows up.
“……..….”
Reytan’s cold gaze drifted out the window.
He rose from the bed. As the sensation of his clothes slipping from her grasp registered, Berry whimpered.
When Reytan stroked her head, a smile quickly spread across her lips.
“Daddy will be right back.”
He whispered to his sleeping daughter before descending to the first floor and opening the front door. Under the dark night sky, a man with red hair stood.
“I was going to come to you, but you came first.”
It was Callet, the Travel Count’s aide.
Despite Reytan’s unkind tone, Callet calmly stated his business.
“The family head is asking for you.”
