6

“What are you doing, Annette? Your mother is ill today, so…”

“Mom!”

I approached the Duchess with both hands holding a cup, like an innocent child.

“Mom, please drink this. You’ll get better soon.”

As I offered the cup, Duke Aubrey suddenly gripped my shoulder tightly.

“You!!”

His thunderous voice made my shoulders reflexively tense.

“What are you doing!”

His shout echoed throughout the room, his tense face startling me.

I paused for a moment, then smiled broadly, seeing him angry like this for the first time.

Duke Aubrey hesitated briefly because of my expression.

“It’s okay, Father. I’m just being a genius like you!”

“Annette… *cough* Come here, give it to me. Our daughter.”

A hoarse voice interrupted from behind, prompting me to turn around quickly.

“Yes, Mom. Here.”

“Rosana…”

“My daughter, my child gave this to me for the first time, how can I refuse?”

The Duchess smiled gently and without hesitation, she drank from the cup.

“Mmm, it’s sweet. A bit bitter.”

“Yes, it’s nice, isn’t it? Well, I’ll leave now. Get well soon, Mom.”

“Of course, I hope for a speedy recovery. Let’s go for a walk and shopping together.”

“Yes.”

I nodded briefly to Duke Aubrey, who looked somewhat displeased, then bowed and left the room.

Thud.

After closing the door, I leaned against it and took a deep breath.

The tips of my fingers trembled slightly.

“You!!”

“What are you doing!”

I tightly clenched my hand.

‘It’s okay.’

This isn’t some mad scientist’s laboratory. Even with minor mistakes, I won’t be experimented on.

‘I’m fine, not hurt.’

This place is peaceful, with no punishment for small mistakes.

After a moment of silence, I slowly lifted my head and saw Mary and Gold looking at me in surprise.

‘Oh…’

I made a mistake.

I smiled innocently like a clueless child, pressing my lips tightly with my index finger.

“To be honest, it’s the first time I’ve been scolded by an adult.”

That’s a lie.

I’ve been scolded plenty at the orphanage and in the mad scientist’s lab.

“This is our little secret, okay?”

With a soft murmur and a smile on my face, I led Mary and Gold back to my room.

***

“But why did you get so mad at our daughter who went through so much trouble to find you?”

“…I was just momentarily upset because she was trying to give you something strange.”

“Even so, that little girl brought you something with good intentions, right? Even if you’re not used to it because you haven’t seen her for so long, try not to be so harsh from now on. That’s a bad habit of yours.”

“…Alright.”

As Rosana gently scolded him, Shakol Aubrey responded in a soft voice.

“…Rosana, your cough has stopped, and your body seems to be fine?”

Shakol’s words made Rosana’s eyes widen.

“Eh? You’re right, breathing doesn’t hurt anymore, and I’m not coughing. My body feels warm, so I don’t think I’m cold.”

Rosana said this while rubbing her body a few times, as if she couldn’t believe it herself.

‘Could this medicine actually be working?’

Shakol Aubrey frowned.

He told the child that Rosana was sick, but he hadn’t specified what illness she had.

After all, it’s an incurable disease.

‘I’ve never seen medicine with effects like this before.’

How did she manage to get it so quickly?

‘Is it just a coincidence?’

“No, it’s not that. This child claims to be a genius. Seems like she’s quite confident about it.”

With a furrowed brow, Shakol Aubrey flicked his fingers dismissively.

“Pedro.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“Bring Mary and Gold, the ones who prepared this drink for Annette.”

“Understood. I’ll get them.”

Shakol sat on the edge of the bed and gently held Rosana’s hand.

“Sleep when your body is comfortable, Rosana.”

“Yes, please apologize to Annette for me…”

“…I will.”

As expected, Rosana quickly fell asleep, likely due to her exhaustion from the day.

Shakol slowly brushed the loose strands of hair from her face.

“Anisha…”

Shakol’s gaze deepened as he looked down at Rosana, now sound asleep.

His decision to adopt Anisha had been made the moment he saw the photo.

Rosana’s health had been deteriorating day by day.

Though it might seem harsh towards the child, his main concern was to save his wife. To achieve that, stabilizing her physical and mental state was the top priority.

Her health, though slightly frail, had been relatively good until she suddenly fell ill ten years ago after losing their child in an incident.

About ten years ago, the Empire faced a wave of anti-nobility sentiment.

This stemmed from the incompetence of the previous emperor’s rule.

The previous emperor was the worst tyrant in history, indulging not only in luxury and pleasure but also in warfare. Every day, he conscripted soldiers from among the common people.

When he ran out of money for wars and pleasures, he continuously raised taxes and seized money from the nobles.

The nobles, in turn, had to increase taxes on their subjects to cover the shortfall.

The anger of the Empire’s citizens, who had lost their children, parents, and families due to endless wars and poor governance, eventually exploded.

Whenever they saw a noble, they threw stones at them.

Even when nobles threatened with swords, the Empire’s people were no longer afraid, having lost their loved ones.

If the nobles tried to intimidate by beheading, it only fueled their anger further, leading them to raid the noble estates.

Rebellions erupted everywhere, and this was met with brutal retaliation.

One of the events that arose from this was ‘child abduction.’

The vengeance for losing their own children manifested in abducting the children of others.

Soon, the children of noble families began to go missing more frequently. Duke Aubrey had to tighten security around his estate and only allowed carefully chosen individuals to guard the children.

Yet, he still failed to protect them.

Yes, Shakol Aubrey could not protect his daughter.

He never imagined that a loyal nanny, after losing her own child, would harbor such vengeance.

Meanwhile, the only child of a respected Marquis was kidnapped and found brutally murdered.

The Marquis, who had lost his child, wept in deep sorrow. After that, nobles whose lives were threatened and those who had lost their children suddenly took up arms, led by the Marquis.

The rebellion, led by a young prince barely in his teens and the heir to the empire, resulted from combined anger from the common people and the nobility.

The rebellion succeeded in overthrowing the tyrant.

After the tyrant was gone and the country began to stabilize, the missing children started to return one by one.

However, some children could not be found.

His daughter and the child of the Argo family, rulers of Qing, were among them.

Fortunately, the Argo family recently managed to find their child.

However, Shakol Aubrey discovered a young child, burnt to a crisp with the family crest around her neck, not long after the rebellion ended.

He couldn’t tell anyone.

Especially not his wife, who still believed their child might return someday.

‘So, I just brought her home.’

A little girl with green hair, about the same age as his daughter.

“Nice to meet you, Your Excellency. My name is Anisha.”

When they first met, Shakol truly felt as if the child had grown up and returned.

‘If she had grown up safely in my care, I imagined she would smile like that and speak with that expression.’

“Ah…, are you really my mother? My mother… right?”

Crying,

“Yes, yes…”

Shakol felt awkward and uneasy.

‘If I managed to find her and bring her back safely, I thought she would be just like this.’

“Just meeting my parents makes me feel like I’m in a dream. Thank you for not giving up and finding me.”

‘So, I was surprised.’

Shakol never expected the child to say words he had only heard in his dreams.

“This is ridiculous, it’s all just an illusion.”

‘The child is a fake.’

That was a fact he must not forget.

Rosana might not remember because of her post-birth recovery, but Annette’s eyes had a faint purple hue similar to his.

‘Unless there was some kind of experiment, eye color shouldn’t change.’

Shakol shook his head lightly.

 Knock Knock

The polite knock was heard.

“Come in.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“What about the tea?”

“Oh, it’s tea made from ground dried lerya flowers mixed with sugar. Miss said it would be very good for the lady…”

“She said that?”

“Yes.”

Mary bowed and answered.

Given the specific instructions, it seemed unlikely she would have acted without knowing anything.

‘Is it some kind of home remedy?’

Shakol thought he might have been a bit too sensitive.

“How’s Annette?”

“She’s resting in her room now.”

“…I see.”

Even after the words were finished, there was no command to leave. Mary, looking surprised, let out a small exclamation.

“Ah! It seems like Miss was scared. It was her first time being scolded…”

Shakol’s eyes flickered slightly.

“Tsk, troublesome. It can’t be helped.”

He muttered irritably, adjusted Rosana’s blanket, and then stood up.

“You.”

“Yes, sir.”

“…What do children like?”

Shakol Aubrey asked with his usual indifferent tone as he left the room.