The idea of being adopted into a noble family still terrified her. But her desire to change the future outweighed her fear.
Even if Duke Adrian took her in and made her do worse things than the Marquis of Dallas, she would protect him.
Selfish as it might be, Rosette wanted to atone for her past this way.
Duke Adrian, the head priest, and Daniel all looked shocked. Duke Adrian was the first to recover.
He walked over to Rosette, knelt on one knee, and carefully pulled her into a hug.
“Alright.”
He gently stroked her head.
“Welcome, Rosette.”
* * *
The servants at the Adrian estate had been busy since dawn. They had just received orders from the Duke to clean up the room next to Isabella, the only daughter of the estate.
The south wing of the third floor was reserved exclusively for the direct lineage of the Adrian family. Why would they suddenly need to clean a room here, and not even a guest room?
Though puzzled, the servants couldn’t question the head butler’s orders. They worked quietly but swiftly to tidy the room, careful not to wake the precious Lady Isabella.
By the time the room was spotless after hours of cleaning, Isabella, now dressed, came to inspect the room.
“Is the room ready?”
Isabella Adrian had the signature platinum blonde hair and purple eyes of the Adrian family.
At eleven years old, Isabella was more dignified than cute.
Her sharp, cat-like purple eyes slowly scanned the room. The most senior maid bowed before her.
“Yes, my lady. We’ve just finished.”
“Good, it looks like it. Well done.”
The maids exchanged glances.
Isabella knew how to separate public and private matters, but she wasn’t a cold employer. She often engaged in some conversation with the maids.
The maids were confident that Isabella wouldn’t get angry if they asked questions.
The maid at the front cautiously spoke up on behalf of everyone.
“Um, my lady.”
“Yes?”
“Are we expecting guests?”
“Ah.”
Isabella answered as if commenting on the nice weather.
“It seems I’m getting a new sibling.”
“Young Master Lucas?”
“No. A new sister.”
The maids, still unsure of what this meant, exchanged glances again. The head butler approached Isabella.
“My lady, the Duke and the young master have returned.”
“Really?”
Isabella adjusted the shawl on her shoulders and gestured to the maids.
“Let’s go.”
“Huh?”
“It seems my sister has arrived.”
Still clueless, the maids followed Isabella. As they reached the front of the estate, a large carriage bearing the Adrian family crest came to a stop.
As soon as the coachman opened the door, the Duke stepped out. The lined-up servants bowed in unison.
“Welcome back, Your Grace.”
“Yes.”
The Duke, smiling, greeted them and then reached into the carriage to help someone out. It was a girl, smaller than Lucas, the youngest of the estate, with adorable pink hair.
The girl rolled her round blue eyes, cautiously observing her surroundings. The Duke smiled affectionately at her and then announced to the servants.
“Let me introduce you. This is Rosette Adrian, who will now be a part of our Adrian family.”
The girl shyly bowed her head.
“Nice to meet you.”
The servants silently screamed.
Oh my, she’s too cute!
* * *
The very next day after declaring she would become Duke Adrian’s adopted daughter, Rosette left the orphanage at dawn. The reason was that Duke Adrian and Daniel could no longer leave the estate unattended.
“Sniff, Rose. Take care of yourself, okay?”
Jane, who had seemed composed about sending Rosette off, was now crying, tears and snot streaming down her face as she hugged Rosette tightly. In contrast, Rosette only teared up but didn’t cry.
After deciding to change the future of the Adrian family, she had resolved to act maturely.
‘I’m not a child.’
Though her body was that of a seven-year-old, her mind was that of an adult. She couldn’t keep crying and lamenting the past forever.
Now was the time to move forward.
Instead of crying, Rosette smiled and bid farewell to Jane.
“I’ll write to you, unnie.”
“Sniff, you don’t even know how to write.”
“I’ll learn.”
Actually, I can write really well now. You don’t know it, but I learned it the hard way at the Dallas household.
“Then you have to write, okay?”
“Yes. You have to write to me too, okay? Don’t cry.”
“Okay.”
“Come visit. I’ll ask them to make lots of delicious food for you.”
“You don’t have to invite me, just live well there.”
“Okay, I will. I really have to go now.”
Rosette gave Jane one last tight hug, then picked up her bag and headed toward Duke Adrian.
“Finished saying goodbye?”
“Yes.”
“You don’t have much luggage.”
“No. I don’t have much.”
What little she had was so worn out that she wasn’t even sure if it was usable anymore. In her past life, the Marquis of Dallas had thrown away her belongings in front of her, calling them trash.
Duke Adrian carefully took the bag from Rosette.
Is he going to throw it away? Rosette tensed for a moment. But instead, he placed the bag inside the carriage.
“This won’t be enough. We’ll get you what you need when we get to the estate.”
Then he lifted Rosette into the carriage. Rosette was so surprised that her mouth hung open.
The Duke, sitting across from her, asked curiously.
“What’s wrong?”
“I, uh, I’m dirty… No, I mean, I’m heavy.”
When the Marquis of Dallas had taken her in, he had yelled at her to get into the carriage on her own.
In fact, he hadn’t even liked the idea of her riding in his carriage, but he had no choice due to appearances.
Daniel, sitting next to her, chuckled softly. It wasn’t a mocking laugh but a bright, citrus-like smile.
“What do you mean, heavy? You need to eat more. John will love that. Oh, John is our estate’s head chef. He loves fattening kids up.”
“Fattening up…”
“Sadly, the three of us Adrians just build muscle… But you’ll be fun to fatten up.”
Rosette puffed out her cheeks.
“Are you making fun of me now?”
“Oh, did I get caught?”
Daniel laughed out loud this time. Rosette shot him a quick glare but then realized that his personality was slightly different from what she remembered.
‘He’s surprisingly lively.’
Maybe it was because of his physical condition. In her past life, he had been more sarcastic than kind, keeping a certain distance from people.
But the Daniel in front of her now was just lively and pure.
She wanted to protect this side of him too.
And besides…
‘I don’t mind it.’
This kind of attention wasn’t bad. Rosette lowered her head, her cheeks slightly flushed.
Duke Adrian and Daniel, noticing this, smiled warmly, but she didn’t realize it.
* * *
The carriage rode on and on, and before they knew it, they arrived at the Adrian estate in the capital. Once again, Rosette was carried out by Duke Adrian, and she was left speechless by the sight before her.
‘There are so many people.’
When she was adopted into the Dallas household, no one had welcomed her. Naturally, there had been no formal introduction to the servants.
She had expected the same this time. But now, so many people were staring right at her.
Rosette flinched and tightly gripped Duke Adrian’s arm. The Duke patted her back reassuringly.
“Let me introduce you. This is Rosette Adrian, who will now be a part of our Adrian family.”
Rosette recalled what she had learned in her past life and bowed her head.
“Nice to meet you.”
Technically, she should have spoken informally to the servants, but that was something she could adjust to over time.
Fortunately, the Duke dismissed the servants, saying he would have them formally introduced later.
But there was still something left. The Duke had said he would introduce her to the family.
Rosette followed the Duke into a luxurious drawing room. Inside were the Duke, Daniel, and two children—a girl and a boy who looked a couple of years older than Rosette.
“This is Isabella, and this is Lucas. They’ll be your older sister and brother.”
Isabella was staring at her with her arms crossed, while Lucas was wide-eyed, staring intently at her.
Rosette swallowed hard.
In her past life, she hadn’t been involved in much social activity, but she knew about these two. Isabella and Lucas weren’t Sword Masters, but they were skilled enough to serve in the royal knight order.
Lucas was said to be friendly and sociable. Isabella, on the other hand, was known to be somewhat prickly and avoided contact with people, likely due to the discrimination she faced as a woman wielding a sword.
But judging by the look in her eyes now, it seemed her natural personality was quite haughty.
Rosette was wondering if she should introduce herself when Isabella spoke first.
“She’s younger than I thought.”
Rosette mumbled.
“I’m not that young.”
Duke Adrian took her side.
“That’s right, she’s not that young. She’s seven.”
“What?”
Isabella raised an eyebrow haughtily and circled Rosette once. A look of dissatisfaction appeared on her face.
“At most, she looks six. She’s at least a hand shorter than me.”
Rosette was indeed smaller than her peers, but Isabella’s robust growth also played a part. Everyone in the Adrian family was large-framed.
Rosette clenched her fists.
“I’m not small. You’re just tall, Isabella.”
“What.”
Isabella frowned in disbelief. Daniel, standing next to Rosette, covered his mouth, his shoulders shaking with laughter.
Though he didn’t show it, Duke Adrian also lowered his head and swallowed dryly. Only Lucas, the youngest—or rather, the former youngest—laughed out loud without restraint.
“She’s right! You *are* tall, unnie!”
“Quiet, Lucas.”
Isabella snapped, and Lucas covered his mouth with both hands.
“So why did you bring her here?”
“Isabella.”
Duke Adrian tried to calm his daughter, but she continued firmly.
“If you needed a skilled knight, we’re here. You already have three children. Was it really necessary to adopt someone?”
“Rosette isn’t a swordsman. She’s a mage.”
“A mage?”
Lucas’s eyes widened. Rosette found him quite likable. Out of the three siblings, she felt she’d get along with him the most.
But Isabella wasn’t satisfied with that explanation. She crossed her arms and pressed further.
“Then you could’ve just sponsored her.”
