Chapter 37
“…Take the children and leave.”
“Yes, my lord.”
The perceptive maid led the children away.
An oppressive silence fell over the extravagant birthday presents strewn about.
“What should we do? Your daughter says she won’t go back home…”
“Does Ruby prefer this place over home? I suppose we’ll have to burn it down…”
“Um, she can hear everything, you know.”
Father and daughter certainly shared some similarities. How to put it… They were both quite stubborn in their own ways.
“For now, allow me to try persuading her to come back.”
“Wait.”
As I headed upstairs, Chris blocked my path. What’s this about? Before I could ask, he spoke up.
“It would be better to try again tomorrow.”
“And leave Ruby here?”
Despite the Regent’s openly hostile glare, Chris remained impassive.
“Seriously? Didn’t you hear anything earlier? It’s not just a tantrum.”
He was right about that. There was a more fundamental issue between father and daughter. One that may have run deeper and longer than we realized.
Such a conflict wouldn’t be resolved with just one birthday party.
“Trying to take her now forcibly could backfire. This wasn’t a simple childish outburst when she was called a ‘little girl.’ Go back and think it over some more. I’ll keep an eye on her, so don’t worry.”
“…I suppose you’re right.”
The Regent nodded slowly and approached the door. But his feet seemed rooted, unable to actually open it.
“Listen. Our Ruby dislikes fish. She can’t even stand the smell. When sleeping, she needs two pillows. One to hug and one for her head. And also…”
These were details you’d only know by paying close attention.
Though misunderstandings had driven them apart, the father and daughter’s hearts clearly still yearned for each other.
“Don’t let that smooth-faced punk touch my daughter.”
“Understood.”
“Good.”
Though the Regent seemed to have more to say, but eventually, he returned to his dimension.
He must have realized staying any longer would only further fuel Rubiana’s anger.
“Now that it’s come to this, I’ll make sure to get her to say ‘I love you, Dad!'”
“Hey.”
As I psyched myself up to go upstairs, Chris interjected.
“What?”
“Even if you talk to her, you’ll just get the same result as before.”
Really? While I had dealt with many adults at the cocktail bar, I lacked experience with children, making this challenging.
“Then let’s devise a plan first.”
Though skeptical, I took a seat at the table with Chris.
“First, tell me what you planned to say to her.”
“I was going to encourage her to share her feelings about wanting to spend time with her father…”
“Your approach is all wrong. You’re thinking only from the Regent’s perspective.”
Caught off guard, I looked at Chris questioningly.
“That kid already made her feelings clear. You heard her, right?”
“You’re…you’re absolutely right.”
I readily agreed. Looking back, Chris had taken the lead earlier too. Perhaps he had a plan in mind.
“Don’t overthink it. Just remember what you wanted from your parents when you were seven.”
“When I was seven….”
I have vivid memories from when I was seven years old. Suddenly, a younger sibling was born, and I found out I was adopted.
What I wanted from my parents back then was…..
“Just take me to my real parents instead!”
Realizing my parents favored my sibling over me, I threw a tantrum instead of expecting affection.
Even though I knew my real parents had passed away long ago, I was still unreasonable.
Looking back, it made sense. How could a mere seven-year-old make such rational judgments?
‘Yeah, Rubiana is the same.’
To persuade Rubiana, I read “The Iron-Blooded Regent” with Rubiana as the focus.
In hindsight, the Regent always thought of Rubiana, but her actual presence in the story was minimal because the protagonist, the Regent, was always busy.
There were many small events like Rubiana coming during a meeting or the Regent carrying the sleeping Rubiana from the sofa to her bed.
Instead of events that required setting aside special time, like picnics.
“How frustrating must it be for a kid when her dad is always working at an age when she craves attention. Saving the world? It’s meaningless. If you ask kids to choose between a heroic parent and one who plays with them, they’d choose the latter.”
Somehow, Chris’s profile as he said that looked lonely.
He must have been reminiscing about his own childhood.
I suddenly wondered what his youth was like, but also felt it was a domain I shouldn’t pry into carelessly.
“That’s as far as I’ll go meddling. The rest is up to you. I’m going out to start a campfire.”
“A campfire, suddenly?”
“What kid doesn’t like playing with fire?”
With that, Chris swiftly left.
“Ah, to lure Rubiana out with the campfire!”
Realizing that, I stood up. The strategy meeting was over, so it was time to move to the real operation.
🫧
“Sniff, sniff.….”
Rubiana was crying under the covers.
She felt hurt and sad. Not a single person understood her.
The friends who used to look at her with envious eyes, saying how lucky she was to have a father who did everything for her.
The bartender who subtly took her father’s side, trying to persuade her.
Her father, who didn’t even apologize after hearing her innermost feelings.
They were all the same. Nobody understood her heart.
While showering her with expensive gifts, her father wouldn’t take her on picnics together.
Out of hatred for that father, she only hung out with friends.
‘I thought he would then suggest going on a picnic together…’
But all she got in return were just more extravagant gifts.
“Adults are so stupid. They don’t understand anything.”
Her tears had dried up. She had cried so much that her head ached.
Just then.
Knock, knock.
“Why!”
Rubiana raised her voice pretending to be angry, trying not to show that she had been crying.
Looking out the window, it was already night. She thought it was probably someone calling her for dinner, or to hurry and see her father.
Either way….
“Want to play with fire together?”
However, the bartender’s suggestion caught Rubiana off guard.
“Fire?”
“I started a campfire outside. As a noble lady, you must have never experienced playing with fire before.”
That was true. Rubiana had never even seen fire before, let alone played with it. She wasn’t allowed near the kitchen, being told it was too dangerous.
‘Really?’
Rubiana got off the bed and peered out the window. Flames were flickering over the stacked branches.
Opening the window, an appetizing aroma tickled her nose.
“Woah…”
She swallowed hard. Her stomach was starting to growl, having only eaten cake and madeleines at the birthday party.
But it felt a bit humiliating to go out just because she was hungry. So…
“I’m going to see the fire.”
Rubiana carefully wiped her face with a handkerchief and went outside.
Tap tap.
It was cold outside, but the fire was warm. As Rubiana stretched out her hands to the flames, skewers of grilled meat and marshmallows were offered from both sides.
“Ah, Boss. You have the nerve to offer that charcoal briquette marshmallow?”
“Charcoal briquette? Open your eyes properly. It’s not that burnt, you know?”
“You make great snacks, but you’re hopeless outside your specialty.”
“Chris!”
Watching the bickering adults, Rubiana accepted the skewer from the handsome prince, or rather the man called Chris.
When she bit into the nicely browned meat, juice burst out. The savory-sweet seasoning was a taste Rubiana had never experienced before.
“Yummy!”
“Slowly. You’ll burn your mouth.”
Chris commented nonchalantly.
“So what if I burn my mouth?”
“In a close fight, small things like that can determine the outcome. Take care of yourself.”
Rubiana opened her eyes wide at the nonsensical response.
“Anyway… Ah, it’s burnt again!”
“Boss, just stick to roasting marshmallows properly.”
“It’s not that hard…”
Rubiana picked up a skewer with marshmallows on it. Holding it to the fire, they gave off a fragrant aroma as they roasted.
“Ah!”
The marshmallows, which had turned a light brown, instantly blackened.
“Ugh… One more try!”
The second marshmallow ended up a disaster too.
In the end, Chris took over roasting the marshmallows.
On that night with the singing of cicadas, the three of them sat around the campfire, eating perfectly roasted, fluffy marshmallows.
“…Actually.”
Nibbling on a marshmallow, Rubiana brought up something that had been on her mind.
“Yes, my lady.”
“Why in the world did Father come out of that box?”
“The truth is, the Regent was today’s special gift.”
It was the expected answer, since the box Father emerged from was clearly a gift box to anyone’s eyes.
But at the same time, it was an unexpected answer, because….
“Why? Father is always too busy to spend time with me.”
“Perhaps he made time since it was your birthday?”
Rubiana fell silent at the response. She had been so angry that her father never spent time with her, but it turned out he was actually there to spend her birthday together.
He must have been waiting inside that gift box, wondering what expression of delight she would show when he came out.
But instead, she had lashed out with negative feelings out of anger.
“Father must have been upset. What if he hates me now?”
Rubiana muttered, hugging her knees.
🥂
Thank you for reading! ♡
