“Dad, I heard you called.”
“Yes. Come in”
My Father gestured toward the soft sofa and prepared the tea.
It was quite late for tea together, but I sat down without saying anything.
The distance between my father and me got closer.
‘I didn’t even know my father’s face in my last life…’
I examined the face in front of me with affection.
My father was more emaciated than expected.
He must feel heartbroken and guilty just for losing my mother, but he couldn’t find any physical evidence of the assassination.
‘Even if he sleeps, he will suffer from terrible nightmares.’
I couldn’t even spend a few days comfortably.
My body trembled as I kept thinking about the scene of my mother holding my neck while it was slowly hardening.
I was scared to pick up the food served by the waiter, but I forced myself to chew the food.
I have a lot of work to do in the future, but I couldn’t lower my stamina anymore.
‘I’ve collected quite a bit of information about Daniel Prause because I didn’t waste any time.’
Information such as the guardian of time and the bloodline of the head of the dragon was commonly known, so there was no value in using them.
The fact that he was a handsome man with an innocent face and an unusual body was not very important information to me.
‘I’m thankful that he’s handsome.’
Anyway, thanks to persistent research starting from the Imperial Palace Library, I was able to obtain the information I wanted.
After spending some time mourning my mother.
I met my father’s eyes and opened my mouth.
“Father, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What is it?”
My father’s voice sounded like he was very nervous.
The reason seemed obvious.
My father was powerful enough to build a villa to comfort his heartbroken daughter who received a pony as a gift for her twelfth birthday but fell ill.
Growing up watching that, I had better discretion than my father on the subject of money.
In the past, I thought it was natural even though I used the Emperor’s personal property lavishly, so I said everything.
‘It’s understandable that he is nervous when I say that I’m asking for something.’
When I poured tea, my father’s face showed that something was coming.
“Frey. It looks like you need something to overcome your sadness this time. Like Rivers Island in the south…”
Come to think of it, when I became an adult, I asked for Rivers Island as a gift.
An island bigger and more beautiful than Jeju Island, without hesitation.
“Um, not like that.”
“Then you must want to own the Ravelz Plain. Let’s see how long it will take to take over.”
The empire’s largest granary?
I felt it once again, but my father was on a big scale.
‘Sure, I’d love to get it, but–‘
Now that my mother is gone, I don’t want to burden my father anymore.
No matter what gift they gave me, it wouldn’t make the sadness of losing my mother go away.
‘Above all, for the sake of the future, I must not show my immature side.’
As I shook my head, the shadow on my father’s face deepened.
He seemed to think I wanted a bigger present.
I carefully got to the point before the misunderstanding grew.
“My mother talked to me almost every day. She married my father and said she was happy every day.”
Because she became the emperor’s lover, she had to be attacked from everywhere and suffered all the time.
However, she said that she was happy with her married life enough to endure all of that.
“So he always told me about the good things about marriage. How many times has dad introduced me to foreign nobles?”
My father looked a little sad as if he had guessed what I was going to say.
“Frey. You seem to be thinking about getting married. It seems like just yesterday that you said you would live with me in the imperial palace for the rest of your life…”
Seeing that he was slightly heartbroken but not jumping, he must have expected that I might bring up the subject of marriage.
So, I was able to speak boldly.
“If I get married here, it will be fine. You know who I’m thinking of.”
‘It’s time.’
My father had the same face this time.
“Frey. People have partners they are instinctively attracted to.”
‘I don’t think the good-hearted Grand Duke Prause will be attractive to you at all.’
It was as if I could hear my father’s true feelings filled with regret.
Well, after I showed interest in the Grand Duke at the funeral, he must have had a conversation with the loyalists.
‘No one would have said that the Grand Duke and I got along.’
I think so too, we are too different.
But there was no other way to change the future.
“Grand Duke Prause and I have completely opposite personalities, so there must be a corner where we get along.”
“Frey, I don’t think you’ve ever met Grand Duke Prause.”
The North was the only area not connected to the capital by a gate.
It was because undead monsters frequently appeared throughout the territory.
‘That’s why the speed of development is slow.’
So it was very rare for Grand Duke Prause, who lived far away, to come to the capital.
The only time I saw him was at Prince Tahar’s wedding.
Even so, the Grand Duke was popular, and I was a princess who shouldn’t have any presence, so I only watched from a distance.
I caught a glimpse of him for about 3 minutes with a cotton swab-sized view.
‘But I saw him.’
As I tried to answer, my father took my hand with a worried face.
“Frey. I understand your anger at the loss of your mother and your concerns about her future safety.”
“…”
“But I feel bad that you seem to think of marriage only as a means.”
For a long time, his rough hands pat my hands affectionately.
I felt the warmth and thought.
If I said I was getting married for revenge and personal protection, my father’s heart would collapse.
He would never be able to forgive himself for being unable to prevent the assassination that day.
‘Because my father always did his best to love my mother and me.’
People in the world did not like my father very much.
It is said that he was an emperor who had almost no magic power and was overwhelmed by the Duke of Gelon in every way except for his superior divine power.
It was true.
However, he has always been the best father to me.
‘I can’t make you worry.’
Now I realize how lucky I am to have met such a father.
So, I spoke like a shy girl in love.
“I’ve seen him, Grand Duke Prause.”
“Huh… when?”
“At the wedding of His Highness the Crown Prince. It’s been a long time since Grand Duke Prause opened the gate himself and came to the capital. The Holy Knights temporarily took over the northern guard.”
“I didn’t see him up close, but I knew it then. That I fell in love with him at first sight.”
“…?”
My father’s eyes widened.
As if he didn’t know that I would confess that I fell in love with Grand Duke Prause.
I had to seize this momentum.
“What woman wouldn’t be thrilled by Daniel Prause? He has a handsome face, perfect personality, and remarkable ability.”
“Yes, he does, but… .”
“I know you’re embarrassed by my sudden confession. But now that my mother has been assassinated, I don’t want to hide my greed anymore.”
I had already thought of what would be the best scenario for persuading my father.
That is:
1. I’ve had a crush on grand duke Prause for a long time.
2. However, I had no choice but to hide my feelings because I knew that the empress and the prince were trying to get the grand duke on their side.
3. But they touched my mother first.
4. Now I’m going to do whatever I want without hiding my feelings because this is for myself.
It was an idea that an ignorant princess in a corner of a room could come up with.
When I added the unfounded confidence that if I put my mind to it, Daniel Prause would reciprocate my feelings, my father’s expression twisted strangely.
“I know you are concerned about my safety. When I become Grand Duchess Prause, you won’t have to worry about that anymore.”
“It’s true but….”
“Also, if I take the position of Grand Duchess Prause, the Empress’s aides will not be able to connect with Grand Duchess Prause.”
It’s a bonus that Evelyn Vliette, who is convinced that she will marry Daniel, will be disappointed.
In addition, if Prause and the royal family, which had a neutral tendency, married first, they could keep the empress and the prince in check.
The only problem with this scenario is…
“Frey, to be honest, I don’t know if Grand Duke Prause will show interest in this marriage. I’ve heard that he has rejected all marriage proposals he has ever received.”
Okay… That Daniel Prause may not show any interest in me.
All the composed and wise ladies were rejected, and the cowardly princess and hysterical couldn’t catch his eye.
‘But that’s when you want his love.’
If like me, I needed the position of Grand Duchess and time to build my power, there was a way.
I put down the teacup and met my father’s eyes.
“Dad… I read in a book that there is a pact between the ancestor Grand Duke Prause and the Emperor.”
When I calmly stated it, my father’s eyes were greatly shaken.
“According to the records, Grand Duke Prause promised to absolutely obey the command of the emperor who possesses divine power once in a generation.”
The absolute right of submission.
That was the only weakness of Grand Duke Prause, who could build an independent empire if he wanted to.
The first Grand Duke Prause had promised to obey the emperor’s orders just once in a generation, in exchange for some kind of help from the emperor.
‘My father’s generation hasn’t used the right to absolute obedience yet. Since Tahar has no divine power, he cannot be used even after he ascends the throne.’
Usually, a person with divine power became the crown prince and then ascended the throne as an emperor, but Tahar did not have divine power, so it was out of the question.
Generations of emperors knew the value of absolute obedience.
The authority to subdue the family that inherited the dragon’s blood must have been very precious.
So was my father.
“Frey. I’d rather give you an island and a granary. The right of absolute obedience should not be used in this way.”
As expected, my father was very strict.
if Grand Duke Prowth rebelled, it would be too much to use the power to order self-determination for his immature daughter’s unrequited love.
“Daughter, even if I hand over Grand Duke Prause to you using the right of absolute obedience, that marriage will not be happy.”
“…….”
“Even if you win the love of your husband, the north is not the same as the capital. It is not a place to go to after experiencing one-sided love.”
My father’s eyes were full of sincere concern for me.
I knew very well.
That there was no one in this world who cared about me as much as my father.
So I needed to be more determined.
“Give me time and I will prove it.”
“Frey….”
“It is a wise choice to make the Grand Duke my husband by using the right of absolute obedience.”
To jeden z najlepszych ojców o jakich czytałam.
♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️