Theodore regretted not making marriage a condition when he passed the dukedom to Kaien.
He had thought Kaien would marry when the time came, but even at 27, Kaien had neither a fiancée nor a lover.
Theodore, who had two children at that age, naturally started to worry. He wasn’t concerned that Kaien might choose to live without marriage.
He feared that revenge might be the only thing left in Kaien’s life.
Theodore and Natasha had also wanted revenge against the Empress when their child died. But they had vassals and family to take care of.
With hundreds, even thousands, of lives at stake, they couldn’t act recklessly.
But Kaien was different.
Kaien had spent a quiet ten years sharpening the blade of revenge.
Theodore and Natasha feared that one day Kaien might eliminate the Empress and Winston, then hand the dukedom to Liazell and leave without a trace. They worried he might leave without any regrets.
But now, Kaien has changed.
“Philome, more stew?”
“Just a little more, please. You should eat quickly too, Duke. It’s good for warming your body.”
“Don’t worry about me; take care of yourself. You’re not getting frostbite, are you?”
“Duke, have you forgotten I was only in the carriage?”
“You get cold easily.”
As Philome and Kaien whispered to each other, they turned their heads at the feeling of being watched.
They realized Theodore and Natasha were staring at them blankly, prompting Kaien to clear his throat.
“I plan to finish my meal and then visit the snowy fields. I’ll go with Kei, so you stay here, Father.”
“Yes, go ahead.”
Theodore nodded. Kaien’s skills were excellent, and with the knights deployed in the snowy plains, there was no need to worry.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
After the meal, everyone except Kaien gathered in the reception room.
In front of them, each had a cup of warm milk mixed with sweet honey. Steam was rising from the clear, milky liquid.
Liazell was already munching on cookies.
Meanwhile, Philome introduced Harnen to Theodore and Natasha.
“This is my business partner, Harnen.”
It wasn’t enough to simply bring Harnen here just because he was a business partner.
Before any confusion could appear on their faces, Philome added, “And he’s a spirit mage and a half-elf.”
They had just finished discussing Harnen’s identity in the carriage.
Harnen took off his thick robe, revealing his unique long green hair and pointed ears.
“I formally introduce myself; I am Harnen.”
“Nice to meet you, I’m Natasha.”
“Theodore.”
After a brief exchange of greetings, Harnen spoke.
“It seems I will be needed in the North. You’re having trouble finding drinking water, right?”
“That’s right. The weather makes it difficult.”
Harnen snapped his fingers.
With that, water materialized in the air, glowing faintly.
Liazell, distracted by alternating between cookies and milk, exclaimed with a bright smile, “Undine!”
“Right, you met earlier, didn’t you?”
The water droplet-like Undine looked around curiously, as if exploring a strange place.
“I can summon all kinds of spirits. I thought Undine would be a great help in the North, so I insisted on joining the group.”
Philome quietly marveled at Harnen’s calm demeanor.
It was completely different from the way he usually whined and relied on her.
Theodore and Natasha, who had been blankly staring at Undine, turned to Harnen simultaneously.
“You really came at the right time.”
“That’s exactly the ability we need right now.”
“Dear, I’m going to take Harnen outside for a bit.”
Natasha suddenly stood up, seemingly ready to rush out to fetch drinking water.
However, despite her eagerness, she hesitated and bit her lip.
“Liazell, want to go see the castle together?”
Liazell, with milk smeared all around her mouth, rolled her eyes and nodded, carefully getting off the sofa.
Naturally holding hands, the three of them left the reception room.
Theodore raised the steaming cup of milk and asked Philome, “Aren’t you going to join them?”
“The Duke insisted that he would show me around himself.”
This was said when they were sending Kaien off to the snowy fields after the meal.
He insisted on showing her around the castle, so much so that she had to push him out the door.
Recalling this, Theodore chuckled.
Seeing Kaien’s face in that smile, Philome found herself unable to look away from him.
“I’ve raised that son for 27 years, but I’ve never seen him like this.”
Kaien had always been oddly independent since he was young. He hadn’t received special education or been influenced by his surroundings.
He was simply born that way.
The fact that he kept insisting on introducing the castle was a refreshing shock to Theodore.
“The Duke has changed a lot.”
Philome recalled Kaien from a few months ago.
When they first met, Kaien had been much more cynical than he was now. If he had offered to show her the castle back then, she might have thought there was some ulterior motive.
But now, Kaien seemed like a child eager to introduce his favorite toy.
‘To think there would come a day when I see Kaien as a child.’
Philome was surprised by her own thoughts.
“Honestly, when I heard that Kaien was engaged, I wondered if there was some sort of contract between them.”
Philome snapped back to reality at Theodore’s words.
He was comfortably leaning against the sofa, but his gaze was sharp.
“After Kaizen died, Kaien lost the capacity to love someone.”
The old Kaien had been independent, but he wasn’t cruel or devoid of love. He just expressed it in a way that was somewhat blunt and hidden compared to others.
However, after Kaizen’s death ten years ago, he had changed.
His life was filled solely with revenge, and naturally, he no longer had the luxury to love someone.
So, Kaien suddenly getting engaged made Theodore’s suspicions very reasonable.
“But today, I saw how Kaien looked at you, how he treated you, and how he spoke to you.”
Theodore smiled slightly.
“He resembles his brother. He’s the same when he’s in love.”
Theodore had looked into Philome as soon as he heard about Kaien’s engagement.
Of course, he wasn’t trying to confirm whether their relationship was a political marriage; he was simply curious about the person who had made Kaien decide to marry.
She was a noble with a sad background, but upon meeting her, Philome struck him as exceptionally intelligent and clever.
To Theodore, she felt like the second smartest person after Natasha.
“My child, who is lacking and has many shortcomings, I entrust him to you.”
“No, Theodore. It’s me who…”
Philome, who had been listening blankly, tried to continue urgently, but Theodore clicked his tongue.
“Tsk. Calling me Theodore? Why so stiff? Just call me Father. Call Natasha Mother.”
His serious demeanor made it too earnest to dismiss as a joke.
Philome was taken aback, not expecting to skip to such a familiar title so quickly.
“Go on, speak.”
“Um, well…”
Philome was sweating nervously.
Theodore’s gaze, fixed intently on her lips, was filled with subtle anticipation, making it awkward to refuse.
“Ah…”
Just then, as her lips were about to part.
“Enough. Are you going to make her uncomfortable like you did to my sister-in-law at that age?”
“Duke!”
Philome smiled brightly as if she had found a savior and welcomed Kaien.
Kaien burst through the door, took her hand, and led her away.
“Father, please stay with your wife. I will be with Philome.”
With Theodore clicking his tongue softly for the last time, the reception room door closed.
“You’re back quickly?”
“Yes, I wanted to show you around as soon as possible, so I hurried back.”
Kaien smiled and adjusted his grip on her hand.
“I’ll formally show you. Welcome to my winter castle, Philome.”
thanks for the chapter