~Chapter 35~
“Y-your Grace, the Grand Duchess!”
I heard a loud voice.
It seemed what I had been waiting for had arrived.
I stood up and walked leisurely toward the butler, who was panting.
“It looks like they’ve sent a carriage from the Imperial City.”
“…How did you know?”
“I called them, so of course, I know. If they came all the way through this snowstorm, they must have brought a divine beast.”
I glanced at the parchment on my desk and then rolled it up in my hand.
If they brought a divine beast, it must mean they are in a real hurry.
“Your Grace, if the Emperor has other intentions…”
“Don’t worry. Sir Caven is here, and I have friends who will protect me. But let me meet with my father alone. If he finds out my secret, it could be troublesome.”
The butler nodded and quickly dismissed the others.
The Grand Duke’s mansion became so quiet it was as if no one was there.
Only those within the mansion knew that Cedric had disappeared. And Isabel was not here either.
If my father found out, he would try to scheme to take control of the North.
I couldn’t let that happen, so I made sure to give the impression that I had left the mansion to check on the people in the village.
But I made sure there would be no one to greet him.
If my father could roam freely through people’s minds, it would be a problem.
I had already warned the butler.
I told him not to let anyone from the mansion get involved, no matter what happened.
I walked gracefully toward the entrance to greet my father.
When I swung open the door, my father stepped out of the carriage, frowning at the sight of me.
‘I never thought I’d see a divine beast with my own eyes.’
A dragon spread its wings and looked at me.
“Grrr.” (I hate those golden eyes.)
Well, I don’t like them either.
I shrugged at the dragon and stepped in front of my father.
“Welcome, I expected you would come right away, but you’re later than I thought.”
“I’ve come to take you to the Imperial City. Get in.”
“Hmmm, that won’t work. Come inside. I can’t leave the Grand Duke’s mansion.”
“You know there’s no point in talking.”
Of course, I knew. He was someone who wouldn’t hesitate to drag me by force. But I took a step back and gently shook my head.
“If you force me, you won’t get what you want.”
“…You’ve become so arrogant. Talking back to me now.”
He reached out to grab my arm.
“I’m not lying. Father, you can’t even read my thoughts.”
“…How do you know that?”
“Maybe because I’m from a humble background and had to be quick to notice things. Didn’t you always say? I had to be quick to survive. I’ll show you the way, so follow me.”
With confidence, I opened the door and led him inside.
I headed straight to the drawing room and looked back to make sure my father was following me.
He must be in a real hurry, judging by the murderous look on his face as he stormed past me into the room.
Finally seated at the table, we just stared at each other, neither of us speaking.
As I said, the one in a rush will always make the first move.
“Explain.”
And just as expected, the one in a hurry wasn’t me—it was my father.
He was the first to speak.
The killing intent he exuded filled the drawing room, making my whole body feel prickly.
“What should I explain?”
“How to stop Isabel.”
“You don’t even trust me, yet you ask how to stop her?”
I smiled lightly and sat down. It felt good to see my father’s face twist in anger.
‘Narkas must not be sitting still.’
He was probably trying to read my mind, but it was pointless.
My father couldn’t read my thoughts.
Knowing that, I could think whatever I wanted freely.
“There’s no one around the mansion.”
“Well, with the heavy snow, there have been many issues in the North. Everyone’s busy.”
My father nodded as if he understood.
“…I’ve heard you’re with a child. Are you feeling well?”
“Of course, His Grace the Grand Duke takes great care of me.”
Since when did he care so much about me? Saying things he didn’t mean with that murderous expression.
What a cruel man.
It was obvious what the cruel Emperor was thinking.
“I’ll give you what you want, so stop trying to marry Isabel off to the King of Narkas.”
“Ha. So you know what I want.”
“If you don’t promise, I can’t tell you how. I can’t afford to lose my husband, after all.”
“You’re really in love with the Grand Duke.”
“We got married by chance, but I have no regrets.”
Isabel, on the other hand, might have some regrets.
I smiled as I handed my father the contract.
You can never be too sure in situations like this, so I always relied on solid evidence.
“What do you think you’re going to achieve with this silly piece of paper?”
“I’m creating a valid reason for you, something you’ll like. A reason to keep your promise to me.”
“…You’ve really changed. You’ve gotten quite clever.”
He had always thought I was dumb, just trying to survive quietly. But even if I could go back, I would act the same way.
If I had challenged him earlier, I wouldn’t have survived.
“What are you going to do?”
“How can I trust you and sign this?”
“Once you see this, you might change your mind. When I thought about why you want to ally with Narkas, the answer became clear.”
My father’s golden eyes gleamed.
He was frustrated, unable to read my thoughts.
So I had prepared a little taste to show him my hand.
I slowly unfolded the parchment.
It was part of a blueprint for a warship.
“…This is!”
“That’s right. It’s part of a design of a sailing ship. Has that changed your mind?”
“How on earth did you get this? Since you left the castle, you’re impossible to predict.”
His eyes scanned me quickly, almost as if he was reassessing my value.
“Promise me that you’ll cancel Isabel’s marriage. And I also want you to stop interfering with the North.”
“Stop interfering with the North?”
“Please stop dragging the Grand Duke into war.”
“You’ve really grown up.”
“Father, people keep growing. However, as we get older, we shrink. But I’ll probably shrink slower than you.”
I smiled brightly and tapped the place for him to sign.
“Don’t think you’ve won. You know it’ll all be over in a week anyway.”
“I know. Even though I don’t have powers, I’ve heard enough about them to get sick of it.”
Father signed the contract.
He was probably holding back his desire to kill me. But as long as I had the ship blueprint, he couldn’t act rashly.
“How did you know I needed a ship?”
“It was simple. I heard that the Divine Beast ran away, and you must have thought there was no proper place to keep it.”
“It’s like you can read my mind.”
“I think the only reason I’m still alive is because of my sharp instincts.”
Father’s face twisted again.
Tilting his head, he spoke.
“This is as far as I’ll tolerate your arrogance. Now, bring me the ship blueprint.”
“The blueprint is already on its way to the capital. You’ll see it when you get there.”
“You’ve done something quite amusing.”
“I’m glad you’re enjoying it. That makes me happy as your child.”
If only you hadn’t let Isabel do whatever she wanted, this wouldn’t have happened.
If you’d followed the original plan from the start, none of this would have come to pass.
“Make sure you keep your promise. You said the Emperor’s word is as good as gold.”
“Isabel has no way of knowing about this, so how will you handle that?”
“It’s simple. There are many ways to make sure Isabel finds out. By the way, the prison in the imperial city seems quite poorly guarded.”
Father’s eyebrow twitched at my comment.
The Divine Beast escaped, Isabel escaped.
And I also escaped from Father’s prison.
Although I wasn’t physically locked up like the others, I did manage to escape from lendsa Castle, so it’s similar, isn’t it?
“I was already planning to tighten security. But how can I trust that the blueprint is in the capital?”
“You’ll have to trust me. And if you go back and it’s not there, you can come and drag me away.”
“So you’re saying I’ll have to make the trip twice.”
“We’ve signed a contract, so we should trust each other a bit, don’t you think?”
I shrugged.
Father laughed loudly, then suddenly hardened his expression and stood up.
“Yes, I hope the blueprint is in the capital. It would be sad if there were a bloody fight between a father and daughter.”
“Don’t worry. That won’t happen.”
Father stood up.
I smiled as if nothing was wrong.
His golden eyes scanned me, sending chills down my spine. But I kept smiling, refusing to let him see my discomfort.
“Don’t get too full of yourself. The fact that I can’t read your thoughts is why I can’t take my eyes off you.”
“I’m always concerned about your well-being, Father. What could I possibly do? I’m just the Grand Duke’s wife, and I don’t even have any powers. I’m a useless daughter, so you don’t need to worry about me.”
“Yes, I hope you stay that way.”
Father grabbed my shoulder tightly, smiling.
Both our lips were curled up, but our eyes weren’t smiling at all.
