Please Save My Child

Reina asked vaguely, looking at the Duke who was lost in thought alone.

 

“…Would you like to try making it? Miss Estelle will be happy if you give it to her as a gift.”

 

“…”

 

The Duke’s eyes wavered when he heard that Estelle would be happy.

 

“I wonder if the child will really like it.”

 

‘She might have wanted the wreath made by Reina rather than the wreath he made himself. What if I give Estelle something I made for no reason and disappoint her?’

 

The Duke, who was known to have nothing to be afraid of, was actually a shabby person who was afraid that Estelle would be even slightly afraid of him. Reina looked at the Duke quietly and said.

 

“She won’t hate it.”

 

“…”

 

“Lady Estelle is an intelligent and kind person who understands the truth.”

 

“…Then, let’s give it a try.”

 

The Duke quietly approached Reina. Reina was a little nervous at the sudden proximity and showed him how to weave a flower crown. The Duke messed up the wreath in a different way than the children. The man, who looked so perfect that a single drop of blood would not come out if he were stabbed, collapsed helplessly in front of the flower crown he was making for the first time. What was placed in front of the Duke was a distorted wreath. He stared at it with a serious face, as if handling a very difficult matter.

 

“…uh?”

 

While picking a beautiful flower, the children stood tall when they saw the Duke sitting on a gazebo weaving a wreath.

 

“Miss, the master says he will make a flower crown for you.”

 

“…!”

 

Estelle’s cheeks blushed when she heard that. Although he was awkward, she didn’t seem to dislike it. She didn’t know how the Duke understood Estelle’s silence, but she began to work hard at making the wreath again. However, the more he concentrated, the more his large hands strained and the leaves of the flowers in the wreath were crushed into an unsightly mess. The result was predestined. A pretty wreath made by Reina and a not so pretty one.

 

Reina laughed embarrassingly, and the expressions of the other three changed indescribably. The Duke looked at the wreath he had made with a sad face.

 

“…Just wait a moment, Estelle. I will buy all the flowers from the flower market.”

 

Reina realized that the Duke had planned to go to the flower market, buy all the flowers, and use them all to practice making wreaths. Estelle looked at the first wreath the Duke had made, wiggled her hands, lifted it, and put it on her head.

 

“…Well, I like this.”

 

At that time, the Duke’s expression changed strangely. It seemed like he was trying hard to hold back his expression that was about to relax. Reina guessed what the duke was thinking, but the two children couldn’t. Estelle, frightened by his strange expression, gathered all her courage and handed the small, crinkly wreath she had made to the Duke.

 

“…Well, um… It’s a gift… I received a flower crown from the Duke… That exchange?”

 

When the Duke finally picked up the wreath that Estelle had made, he looked at it for a long time with a slightly emotional expression on his face. The child looked at him with concern, wondering if the Duke was angry at her for giving him something ugly. Soon the Duke shouted.

 

“Butler!!!!!”

 

Not only Estelle, but also Reina and Bonita, who were sitting nearby, were startled by the Duke’s sudden shout.

 

“Quickly call a wizard! Someone who can use preservation magic!!!”

 

It was a historic moment when magic that required tens of millions of Theons was used for a humble garland.

 

* * *

 

The wreath made by Reina was placed on Bonita’s head, and Reina received Bonita’s wreath.

 

‘It would be good if the master expressed himself a little more softly.’

 

Reina herself was a person with an overwhelming appearance, but she sighed softly wondering what it would be like for the children who were much younger than her. The Duke called a craftsman to make a beautiful picture frame to store the wreath Estelle had made, and Estelle blushed as she watched the entire process. All the employees working at the Duke’s Castle praised Estelle for the wreath she made. They say that she was good with her hands, that she had a sense of choosing flowers, that she cared deeply about her father. And only Reina looked at Estelle with pity. The adults did not understand the hardships of a child who was a helpless child to everyone around him.

 

“Mom? What’s wrong?”

 

“Huh? No, it’s nothing.”

 

After experiencing confusing events all day, it was already late at night. Bonita seemed to like the wreath that Reina had made, so she kept wearing it on her head. Reina wasn’t rich enough to call a wizard and use his preservation magic, so she needed to think about what to do with the garland.

 

“Bonnie, should I dry this flower crown and store it?”

 

Reina was not as anxious as the Duke, but deep down she wanted to keep the wreath that Bonita had first made. Just because she was mild in her expressions did not mean that she loved the child any less than the Duke. The wreath Bonita had made failed to control her strength and some of the petals fell off, but she found Reina lovely in her eyes.

 

‘How did he get so good at arranging the flowers?’

 

To others it may have seemed like a poor crown, but to Reina, it was a beautiful crown comparable to the yellow crown worn by the Emperor. Bonita seemed reluctant to accept Reina’s proposal.

 

“…The one I made is ugly. Mom, this is your first time seeing such a pretty corolla? When I say pretty wreath, I’m talking about the wreath my mom made!”

 

In order to refute her words, Bonita suddenly pushed the flower crown she was wearing towards Reina. When she placed the two flower crowns side by side, the difference was stark. Bonita was embarrassed by the wreath she made, thinking it was shabby, but Reina’s eyes were still fixed on the wreath Bonita had made.

 

‘What will my child become when she grows up?’

 

What did Reina want to become when she was young? She said she could have dreams, but she had never lived a life as rich as she could. Until she was 14, she helped her mother with the housework, worrying that she would get sick tomorrow, but after that she struggled to make her life on her own. Reinahad lived a poor life and had learned nothing, but she wished Bonita had lived a better life without inheriting her poverty.

 

“I’ll make it prettier later, so…”

 

Bonita fidgeted with her as she tried to persuade Reina, who was still looking at the sloppy wreath she had made.

 

“The wreath I made later is not the same as this one.”

 

The sound of being the first makes people feel special. As a parent, she didn’t want to miss out on all of your child’s first moments.

 

“Don’t do it…”

 

And children did not always understand their parents’ actions. Bonita muttered and eventually hugged Reina tightly and muttered softly.

 

“…Then let’s stop Mom too.”

 

“Is that so?”

 

“Yes. It would be shameful to leave only what is mine.”

 

Reina didn’t know what was meant about that, but she knew, and she stroked Bonita’s head. It was difficult to guess what was going on in this little child’s head. In the end, the two wreaths were hung side by side on the wall. The large and small wreaths placed side by side looked exactly like mother and daughter. Bonita lay in her bed and glanced at it even before she fell asleep. Perhaps she seemed to like drying the wreaths. Even after turning off the light, the child looked at the corolla hiding in the dark for a long time and then snuggled into Reina’s arms. It was a warm, lovely, comfortable night.

 

* * *

 

The wreath that Estelle gave to the Duke of Winternight was preserved in a frame and stored in its original state thanks to a preservation spell. The Duke looked at the document once, then raised his head and looked at the wreath. He signed the document and fixed the frame again, saying it seemed crooked. Peter, who was watching the peacock move around aimlessly, unable to concentrate, sighed and let out a sigh.

 

“Sir, please calm down.”

 

“…No matter how you think about it, my daughter is a genius.”

 

He wasn’t that kind of person originally. Just hearing the name Duke of Winternight filled people, regardless of age or gender, with fear. The owner of that name was a complete fool right now.

 

“What if my daughter wants to open a flower shop? Look at the flowers used in the wreath like this. Has there ever been a child in this empire who knows how to choose such harmonious flowers?”

 

“…”

 

“I guess I have to open the largest flower shop in the empire. I’m running it under my daughter’s name, but it’s smaller than everyone else’s.”

 

“…How about asking the young lady’s doctor first?”

 

The Duke didn’t seem to have any intention of listening to Peter. He looked happily at the flower crown in front of the picture frame and talked about Estelle’s loveliness. It was lovely when Estelle took the wreath he made, saying she liked it. The Duke could not understand how such a lovely child could be his daughter. At the same time, it made him sad that he couldn’t see her child’s growth and full affection.

 

“At what age do children usually start talking?”

 

“Since when do you start walking?”

 

Was she dead or alive? Her daughter was found, but she disappeared without leaving any trace. He remembered making all kinds of fuss when his wife had the child. He wanted to be a good father and he studied many things, and when his wife said she wanted something he got whatever she wanted. When she suddenly complained of stomach pain in the early morning, the Duke’s immediate council members were called in and they were harassed. On the day she felt the birth of her child, he shed tears of joy. If it was a daughter, he would name her Estelle, and if it was a son, he would name him Benjamin. He and his wife thought about the best name to give the child every day. However, everything disappeared in vain for eight years, and all the Duke could do was fill the empty time with his imagination.

 

Since Peter was a man without a wife, let alone a child, he had no particular answer to the Duke’s questions.

 

“…I’m going to get some fresh air.”

 

“Please come back.”

 

The sky outside was dark and only the cold moonlight shone. Since the Duke always preferred to walk alone, Peter replied that he would be in his office sorting out the remaining work. All but a very few employees were asleep. The Duke, who always walked quietly, rang loudly as he walked. The Duke may not have intended, but the place he was heading to was Estelle’s room. As he neared Estelle’s room, he noticed that the door was open. His heart sank as he heard the faint sound of a child whimpering.

 

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Translator Note: