"If it's not that, then what other reason could there be? Knowing you, there's no way in hell you raised her like some precious little flower."
"……."
"The image in the video might have been an act to gain the child's favor. Everyone and their dog knows that you'd sell your soul for the family!"
Elisa's cold gaze pierced Calex, threatening to swallow him whole.
"So keep her by your side for a while and watch. You'll see as you observe. Whether she's worth using."
Rationally, it was understandable. There might be a secret with the child, or in the house they lived in together. Perhaps he was waiting for the right time to use her as a tool for the family.
'Use. Tool….'
But why did those words feel like thorns pricking at his fingertips?
"Gasp, Theo! He's getting sucked into the sofa gap! What should I do? Excuse me, do you have a baby chair here?"
"We don't have things like that."
"Ehh…."
Maybe it was because those little kids seemed too weak and pathetic to be tools, to be used and discarded at will.
Calex shook his head dismissively.
'I refuse to harbor excessive emotions.'
The weak 27-year-old Calex is already a dead man, whose funeral has been held. The 22-year-old Calex will be different. He has to be different.
'Anyway, I need to regain my memories, so keeping the brat around for a while wouldn't be bad. Come to think of it, it's better than her wandering around outside and blabbering unnecessary things, hmm, chattering.'
He finally opened his mouth.
"Alright. Kid."
"Huh?"
"I'll allow you to stay here for a while. But."
"……?"
"One month."
"What?"
Ririn tilted her head.
"If I don't get my memories back in a month, you're returning the ring and getting out of this mansion."
"I'm not leaving, even after a month..."
The child stared at the floor for a moment. But it was just a fleeting moment, and soon she replied with a cheerful face again.
"Anything is fine as long as I can be by Daddy's side!"
"Haa… Lay off the 'Daddy' stuff..."
He snapped irritably without realizing it, and the child laughed awkwardly.
"Ah, I guess it's a little weird, huh?"
No, why are you getting discouraged again?
Calex hesitated involuntarily at that sight and ended up saying, "You can call me Daddy...only three times a day."
"Wow!"
Her legs swung back and forth excitedly.
Calex stared at the small knee.
There was a large bandage on the knee where she had fallen yesterday. The problem was that it looked precarious, like it would fall off soon.
'Is that bandage filthy? It's practically falling apart.'
He unconsciously reached out his hand, then stopped.
'Memories of the body….'
Do they really exist?
Unconsciously taking care of the little kid must be a habit after all.
'…If I'm too nice, it might become difficult to kick her out later, so I need to stay sharp.'
So he put on the most rigid expression he could manage.
Now that the main point was over, he was going to tell her to get out of his sight.
"You, if you've said everything you needed to say, get yourself to the doctor's office, now."
"……?"
No. Why was the doctor's office being mentioned here?
Calex hoped, prayed, that the little kid with her amazing translation skills hadn't understood him. But.
"Yes? You're telling me to go get medical treatment right now from the Duke's highly skilled and knowledgeable doctor? Why?"
I don't think I said it that way.
'What excuse should I make?'
His blue eyes flickered slightly.
"…You said you'd become a maid, right?"
"Ah, right. Yes!"
"Actually, a medical examination is mandatory in the Winterwald family's maid hiring process."
"I see! A medical examination! Ah, can Theo get one too? Actually, I think he's had a bit of a runny nose since earlier…."
Calex slightly averted his gaze and muttered.
"One family member of an employee is also covered by our benefits package."
"Wowww! Amazing! I'll go then!"
Pitter-patter-patter.
Only a gust of wind remained where the child had disappeared.
Calex stared blankly at the empty space, then hung his head low.
'What am I doing?'
This is a problem. My body keeps betraying my brain.
Guided by Secretary Lusca, I went to the Duke's doctor's office.
There, I had a quick medical examination and received meticulous treatment for the wound on my knee. They had far better and more valuable medicines than any clinic outside.
Theo, whose nose was just starting to run, happily gobbled down the sweet syrup.
"I will guide you to your bedroom."
Under the glances of the servants who were openly observing me, I arrived at an incredibly large room.
"Wow…."
Is this really a room? It's bigger than our cabin!
'This is what it feels like to have a rich dad.'
I didn't know this feeling because I've never had a rich dad before.
I cleared my throat and looked around the vast bedroom with Theo.
"Then, let me introduce myself again. I am Lusca Higgins, Duke Winterwald's head secretary."
Lusca had already changed into a luxurious jacket and was back to being a capable aide.
"Miss Ririn will be treated as a guest of the Duke's residence. Of course, if there is anything you would like to do, you are free to do so within these walls."
"Yes! I'm Ririn Valt. I'm eight years old."
"Euh."
"This is Theo Valt. He just turned three, and he's saying 'please' and 'thank you'."
At my super-translation, a questioning look suddenly appeared in the secretary's eyes as he looked at Theo.
"But I've been wondering since earlier, hasn't Theo learned to talk yet...?"
"Aaaaaah!"
I quickly covered Theo's ears, who was standing next to me.
"M-Miss Ririn?"
"Shhh! Theo is deliberately! Not speaking!"
When I whispered while glaring as much as possible, Lusca shut his mouth tightly.
"Don't say stuff like that; it'll hurt his feelings! And don't even think about saying 'abandoned'!"
I mouthed the word 'abandoned' just in case Theo might hear it.
"Hmm… I see. My apologies."
Secretary Lusca apologized cleanly and stepped back. The expression on his face as he looked back and forth between me and Theo was somehow strange.
I took a bewildered Theo and went to the window.
I rummaged through my bag and handed him the last remaining steamed potato, and Theo happily nibbled on it little by little.
Beyond the window, the vast scenery of the Duke's residence was visible at a glance.
'When I saw it from afar, it looked like a dark and gloomy demon king's castle.'
Even up close, it looked like a dark and gloomy demon king's castle.
"Look, Theo, look! There are so many pretty buildings beyond the Duke's residence fence, right? It's quite different from here. Ah! Look, the sunset! It's the same color as our Theo's hair! Wow, is it because the leaves are bathed in the sunset light? They look like they're blushing. What do you think?"
"Woo!"
As I was chattering away as usual, I felt a strong gaze from the side.
When I turned my head, I met eyes with the secretary, who was staring intently at me.
"I see. A good strategy."
"Pardon?"
He flipped through one of the books he was carrying, piled up on his side.
"I don't know much about childcare… but it says in the book that the surrounding environment is most important for a baby's language development. Isn't that why Miss Ririn is so talkative?"
Huh? Is he low-key calling me noisy?
'Jeez.'
But looking at the secretary's serious expression, he didn't seem to have any ill intentions.
"Come to think of it, Miss Ririn speaks very well for an eight-year-old. Of course, this book also describes the average language development level for eight-year-olds."
I laughed awkwardly, "Haha," and turned my head away.
'I can't exactly say it's because I became a bit smarter than my age after seeing the future.'
"The reason I chatter so much is because I learned it from my dad…."
"Daddy… Are you referring to His Excellency?"
The secretary asked back, very awkwardly.
"Yes. And Daddy said it's important to talk to Theo a lot like this…."
I stopped there and shut my mouth.
'Come to think of it, why did Daddy become so talkative and outgoing? Compared to his current personality, it's almost like a different person.'
Even if his personality changed after living in a mountain village for five years, isn't the gap too big?
'Ah.'
At that moment, something Aunt Marsha had said to me a long time ago came to mind.
"Ririn, you were also slow to speak when you were little, just like Theo. You hardly expressed any emotions; honestly, even more so than Theo… It was worrying."
"Really?"
"Yes. Then there was a time when you went missing… You were trapped in the closet and didn't cry or make a sound, so we couldn't find you for hours, you know?"
"Whoa!"
"Mr. Alex seemed to be very shocked at that time. Your dad becoming talkative and more expressive probably started then. He was probably afraid that you would grow up just like him, being taciturn and quiet."
"Right…."
My lips parted involuntarily.
'Daddy changed like that because of me.'
The Calex in my dreams was the epitome of an aristocrat, obsessed with himself, his pride, and his image. But Alex Valt, who I lived with in the green-roofed house, was different.
'Daddy was trying hard too.'
He sacrificed everything, willingly changing himself just to raise me well. Thinking about it that way made my heart ache.
"Mr. Lusca, where is Daddy?
