Chapter 17

 

***

 

Melody immediately smiled brightly and let Loretta enter the room first, followed by a deep bow at the door.

“Thank you. Goodnight, Your Grace.”

“…?”

The Duke alternated his gaze between Loretta, clutching a pillow, and Melody.

Did he think that only Loretta needed protection?

“Where will Melody go?”

“I’ll sleep in my room. Loretta, no, Lady Loretta should stay by your side, Your Grace. Understand?”

“What about you?”

“Uh, I’ll be fine.”

Melody shook her head, but the Duke wasn’t keen on agreeing.

It was clear that Loretta would feel uncomfortable, and for another reason.

“But what about the other girl? She’s different, isn’t she?”

“The daughter of that filthy and lowly criminal, a slave trader, should not set foot in this sacred mansion!”

The elders harbored even more hostility towards Melody than Loretta.

However, he couldn’t just hold back a child insisting on returning to her room under the guise of ‘protection’.

“No!”

Just as the Duke hesitated, Loretta, who treated a duke like a mere purse, assertively exclaimed,

“Melody cries without Loretta. She cried last time too.”

And she even added a seemingly reasonable argument.

“So, Melody should stay too.”

Caught off guard by Loretta reaching out her hand, Melody felt a bit troubled.

“Melody… is scared?”

“No, it’s not that, but…”

Melody glanced up at the Duke, wondering if he might be uncomfortable, but he nodded his approval.

Loretta quickly pulled Melody’s hand, leading her into the room.

Thanks to the Duke kindly closing the door, Melody ended up staying between him and Loretta. She couldn’t dare open the door without the Duke’s permission.

Loretta then gave the Duke a thumbs-up.

Where she learned that gesture was unknown, but he returned it to her.

‘Something…’

The Duke felt a sense of camaraderie, like that born on the battlefield.

He remembered something Melody had said in the carriage.

“We’re kind of alike.”

“You and Loretta.”

Maybe they did have an unspoken understanding, and her words weren’t entirely wrong.

How Melody, upon first seeing the Duke, recognized a similarity between him and Loretta was a mystery.

“Duke, Duke.”

Loretta tugged at his clothes again. Leaning down to ask what she wanted, a big smile appeared on her face, finding it amusing to see his face up close.

“Can we climb onto the big bed?”

Loretta pointed at the Duke’s bed, and he willingly nodded.

“Feel free to climb up.”

His generous words seemed to excite Loretta. She pulled Melody’s arm, jumping into the bed.

The usually quiet and neatly arranged bed became instantly lively with the two children.

They curled up in the thick blankets, resembling real ‘little lambs’.

Is this why Mrs. Higgins calls them lambs?

But it wasn’t long before Loretta yawned lengthily.

It was well past bedtime, so it made sense she was sleepy.

“Let’s sleep now, we have to go to the temple tomorrow and it will be busy.”

The Duke said, sitting on the sofa, to which Loretta tapped the spot next to her.

“Here is the Duke’s spot.”

“Dukes don’t fall asleep with others.”

“Is it a rule to sleep alone if you’re a Duke?”

“Yes.”

“What if Loretta still needs to sleep with Melody when she grows up…”

The Duke couldn’t help but smile at Loretta’s concern, which sounded almost like she was planning to take over his role as the Duke.

‘She truly believes it.’

That she is the Duke’s daughter.

Without a single doubt.

Was it due to her innocence, or a perception he lacked?

Either way, it was good. Her straightforward nature had been a great help in brightening the atmosphere of the Ducal household…

‘I’m getting ahead of myself.’

He checked his runaway thoughts. It was like he was fantasizing that she was already his daughter.

“Um, Your Grace.”

After a moment of silence, Melody spoke in a hushed voice.

It seemed Loretta had fallen asleep.

“Thank you for indulging us.”

The child sitting on the bed bowed her head again.

He wasn’t sure why this non-demanding child was thanking him like this.

“And, thank you for the ribbon too.”

Melody touched her hair where the ribbon had been.

“I was happy it was green. The color of the Baldwin family, right?”

Her statement surprised the Duke, prompting him to ask how she knew.

“Well, the decorations in the reception room are mostly green, and the carriages and your letters have green emblems too.”

The color of the ribbon was an effective way to show others that he was taking care of the two children.

He hadn’t expected her to notice that.

Such keen observation from an eleven-year-old.

“You have a good eye.”

“Uh, not really. I just noticed because the pattern was on the card that came with the gift.”

Melody bowed again.

“Thank you for extending your kindness to me too.”

“It’s nothing.”

The Duke put down the book he was holding and looked towards the small child in the faint darkness.

“It’s okay to accept it.”

He felt his emotions entangling in a complex way.

Strange indeed.

He had just given a gift and received thanks. Yet, he felt uncomfortable.

“It’s not a big deal.”

“I really liked it.”

“…”

“That’s why I wanted to thank you.”

The child added softly that she was sorry if she had made him uncomfortable.

What was there to apologize for?

She was usually so lively around others, but in front of him, she kept repeating apologies.

Was he handling the child wrongly? The Duke pondered but couldn’t find a clear answer, so he stood up.

“Sleep now. It’s not a time for a child to be awake.”

“Yes.”

Melody quickly snuggled into the bed. He neatly spread the blanket over the children and turned off the light.

In the perfect darkness, he waited for his eyes to adjust.

“Your Grace.”

Melody’s soft voice called from near the bed.

“Yes.”

After a brief reply from the Duke, there was a rustling of blankets.

“Goodnight.”

“I hope you have pleasant dreams.”

After responding into the darkness, he returned to the sofa and sprawled out.

Since meeting these mischievous children, he realized he was changing gradually.

This change was more apparent when he objectively reviewed his actions.

And the rumors subtly circulating implied a change in him too.

…Thus, the Duke felt.

Regardless of tomorrow’s outcome, he might not be able to give up on these two children.

Even putting aside the complex issues that might arise.

He gazed at the round silhouettes of the two children, barely visible in the darkness.

In the small, cute, and peaceful scene, the Duke couldn’t help but smile.

Of course, he had completely forgotten that just a short while ago, he had mused:

“Is there really such a foolish person in this world who blissfully stares at his sleeping daughter’s face?”

 

***

 

The next morning.

As Loretta and Melody followed the Duke out of the room, they were met with the disappointed faces of the elders. They must have been frantic searching for Loretta late into the night.

Melody secretly chuckled, imagining how frustrated they must have been.

Of course, when one of the elders caught her expression, she quickly erased her smile and pretended not to notice.

Thus, without any overnight crisis, Loretta safely made her way to the temple.

‘I guess I’ve removed at least one of the novel’s complications.’

Melody felt a sense of pride. Today, the Duke and Loretta would prove their blood relation, officially sealing their bond.

Melody waited in her room, reading a book and feeling good about Loretta’s return.

When the two of them return with good news, perhaps there might even be a party that lasts all night.

Soon, Claude, who is studying at the academy, and Jeremiah, growing up in the mage tower, will likely return to the Ducal household.

To meet their newly found youngest sibling.

And so, Loretta’s world will continue to expand.

Melody, as she had done the day before, will watch over her happily, ensuring she stays out of danger.

As Melody was indulging in these happy thoughts, chin in hand and smiling broadly, there came a knock at her door.

Could it be Butler Higgins? He promised to be the first to inform her of the temple’s verdict.

Melody quickly got up and opened the door wide.

“Is the result out already?!”

Her face beamed with a bright smile as she eagerly asked.

But soon, that smile vanished completely.

It wasn’t Butler Higgins who had come to visit. To be more precise,

“Yes, the result is out.”

The visitor was someone Melody did not particularly like.