The Softest And Cutest Of The Dukes - Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Duke Panteur, still holding the chewy texture in his hand, frowned at his aides.

“It is not possible for a baby to suddenly fall out of the sky; either that or sent by those who are against us.”

The unspeakable had happened, and it had happened in the presence of a man not even the Emperor feared.

“Does that mean the child is a villain?”

She didn’t look like a villain at all. Above all, she had golden eyes like the sun and silver hair like the moon crushed and scattered of someone’s childhood.

“She could be a villain of the highest order, deceptive by her appearance, so why don’t we keep her to our side for now while we investigate?”

Count Carlos Benjamin, head of the Ministry of Intelligence, said, flipping back his dark hair. 

Duke Panteur smirked.

“The villain of the world… I wish this entire country would fall into hell. Let’s end the meeting with this.”

With that, Duke Panteur rose from his seat, and his aides bowed.

Leaving them behind, Duke Panteur went to his office and went about his business.

He stopped his pen midway.

“What is that child doing now?”

He wanted to go over and ask her something. Judging by the greeting, communication was possible.

“I heard she’s sleeping after eating her soup.”

Oscar, Duke Panteur’s butler, bowed slightly.

“What kind of child eats and then goes to sleep?”

“It is a child.”

Duke Panteur, who had children of his own, one girl and one boy, raised his brow and frowned. He shook his head and went back to work.

A few moments later, a snack arrived, and the Duke’s expression changed. 

As he looked at the roasted glutinous rice cake and sweet syrup, the image of a dirty, fallen child came to mind. Glancing at the clock, Duke Panteur realized he could no longer postpone his work and headed toward the room where the child was.

Once there, the Duke saw something he hadn’t seen before.

“My aide is going crazy.”

Vance, holding a rattle of unknown origin, waved it teasingly in front of the child.

* * *

Nerves or whatever, my instincts took over and I fell asleep without realizing it.

I felt something touch my face. I debated whether or not to open my eyes, and then I did.

‘Vance Christopher?’

Vance waved to me on his way out the door, but his hand was clutched with something strange. 

It was a rattle. I don’t care how much of a child I am, I’m not reacting to something like that.

I’m not even a baby.

“Hey, baby, here’s a toy.”

“…….”

Vance shook the two rattles and something inside clinked and made a noise.

My hand reacted to the sound of the crystal-clear beads.

I reached out and made a face asking for the rattles. Vance thought it was funny.

“What do you think, is it fun?”

“Yes…….”

Observing the continuous shaking, I could tell that what was inside that rattle was not a typical bead.

After 18 years of being a princess, the beads inside the rattle now looked like pearls to my eyes.

White, black, and pink. When I saw the rattle filled with colorful pearls, I immediately thought of something.

It was money that could protect me. 

With money, I could buy a house and even hire guards for my protection. Although this place was not my home, I felt the need to gather as much money as possible. That way, I could ensure a chance to grow up safely and seize an opportunity to return to my brother.

When Vance saw me reaching for the rattle to save my life, he stood up and moved a little further away from me.

As he motioned for me to come closer, I quickly tried to run to him. However, my short and unsteady legs and feet refused to move as I wished.

After a few stumbling steps, I stumbled forward.

“Baby, are you okay?”

Alarmed, Vance quickly picked me up and brushed my dress off with his hand. 

In response, I grabbed the rattle he’d placed and bit down on it. I have to crack the shell to get to the pearl.

As I bit and sucked on the rattle, Vance shook the remaining rattle again.

“What are you doing here?”

The stern voice echoed as I froze in place. It seemed like he had caught me red-handed, just as I was about to hide the pearls.

Duke Panteur’s blue eyes seemed to have ice in them. 

However, Vance casually got up from his seat as if nothing was amiss and spoke.

“I was just playing with the baby. I shook the rattle. She wants to get it and was throwing her hands up in the air. It was so cute.”

No, it wasn’t the rattle I liked, it was the pearls in the rattle.

But I didn’t feel like fixing that, so I gave a disapproving look and took a few steps forward.

“Do you want this?”

“…….”

“Here.”

I held out the rattle I was holding. I’m a good girl, so I can give the Duke one even though neither rattle was mine.

Of the two rattles, I held out the one that seemed to contain fewer pearls.

Duke Panteur did not take it. 

“Pft! Hahah!”

As I held the rattle out to Duke Panteur, Vance’s shoulders went into a good jerk and he bit his lip tightly. But that didn’t stop a giggle from bursting from escaping his lips.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Hmmm, she keeps looking at you, Duke, which is a sign that the baby is giving you a rattle.”

Duke Panteur’s brow furrowed as Vance correctly interpreted my words and actions.

“Please accept it. Babies love it the most when you receive what they give.”

As Vance held back his laughter with maddening patience. The Duke’s gaze once again fell upon me as I muttered,

“Here. Here…….”

It was a rattle that happened to be covered in my saliva.

“I don’t need it.”

“You don’t need it, huh?”

Upon hearing the remark that he wouldn’t have the rattle, I felt an unexpected surge of relief, as if the jester within me was ascending.

Thank you, Duke. You are unexpectedly a good person. 

However, his gaze towards me remained sharp and stern. At this moment, I felt the need to be seen by him.

“By the way, where did you get this?”

“I retrieved it from the storage where items used by the young lady and the young lord are kept.”

What the hell? It belongs to this family, then. I shouldn’t have taken it. The two rattles.

I swallowed hard, and saliva trickled out of my mouth. Vance wiped my mouth with his handkerchief.

“What brings you here, by the way, for your information, I’m done with my work.”

Vance said confidently, and Duke Panteur glared at me.

“Interrogation.”

Damn, I never thought I’d be interrogated as soon as I woke up. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have fallen for the rattle temptation and just stayed lying down.

I regretted it, but it was too late. I don’t know what the hell to do in this situation.

But first of all, I was a baby. In this state, if I told him I was eighteen, he wouldn’t believe me.

I felt like I was going to be treated like a crazy kid and kicked out, so I decided to be the perfect baby.

Vance scooped me up in his arms and held me at eye level with Duke Panteur.

It hurts my neck to look up.

“Where are you from?”

I couldn’t answer the first question. I couldn’t say that I lived in Korea until the second year of middle school and then was reincarnated as a princess in the Benedict Empire of the continent.

Instead, I tilted my head and grinned.

“Hee hee, don’t know.”

Duke Panteur’s eyes narrowed slightly at the smile.

“What is your name?”

“Oomph? Name?”

When I shook my head and didn’t answer, Duke Panteur’s eyebrows furrowed.

“And your age?”

Giggling and laughing, I didn’t respond. Duke Panteur’s eyebrows twitched again as if he was about to say something but stopped.

“Perhaps an angel who has descended from heaven.”

“There’s no way an angel could have dropped a kid like a baked sticky bun without freezing to death.”

“Maybe it fell and stretched and became a sticky rice cake?”

No, Vance, stop. If you say any more, I’ll turn to dust and disappear.

The fair face of Duke Panteur, who saw me casting know nothing, lives on.

“Big brother, you’re a handsome boy.”

At the mention of the handsome boy, the air around me instantly turned frosty. Then I took responsibility for it and shook the two rattles. I could hear the pearls rolling around.

As if to reward me for holding and shaking an inappropriate toy for my age, Vance pressed his cheek against mine.

“Ha, how is it possible for such a texture to exist? I want to get married and have a child soon. Little lady, when you grow up a bit, would you consider marrying my child?”

Duke Panteur, who was looking at Vance, who looked as if he were going to die of pleasure, suddenly

snatched me away.

“What is the matter with you all of a sudden?”

“To prevent my aide from becoming a criminal.”

Duke Panteur’s eyes clouded slightly.

Vance shrugged.

“Now, let me ask you again. Where the hell do you come from? You’re not going to tell me that you live in heaven, right?”

I had a sincere wish to experience living even just once in heaven. However, the place I lived was nothing but a garbage dump, filled with human trash. 

Although I died, I had never even come close to the threshold of the so-called heavenly realm that people often talk about. Just as I escaped from my devil-like father, I encountered an even greater devil.

Just when I thought I could live a little more comfortably, a rebellion broke out within my fiancé’s household. And to make matters worse, the very person who professed his love for me and asked me to marry him stabbed me with his sword.

Finally, I thought I would step foot at the threshold of paradise, but instead, I ended up here. Why? My mana was completely depleted, and although I was stabbed by a sword, there were no visible wounds, and I had turned into a child.

I shook my head in disbelief, then suddenly noticed the necklace around my neck.

It was a necklace my brother had given me for my eighteenth birthday, saying it was imbued with mystical power.

‘I wonder if this necklace is the reason I fell to the other side alive.’

There’s no way to know what the power of this necklace is. It was purple when my brother gave it to me, but now it’s gray.

I looked at the necklace and saw Duke Panteur. The handsome man with black hair and blue eyes glanced at me and his expression hardened.

I couldn’t afford to be driven out of here at the moment. As a young child, leaving now would mean certain death. I did not know this world, and without the ability to work and earn money, I was completely helpless.

I don’t want to die in vain. I must stay here until my body is restored to its original state.

Therefore, I tried to act my age.

‘What would a child of this age say to a handsome man?’

I had no memories other than the ones of being abused by my father in my first and second lives. 

As I let out a deep sigh, I caught sight of the milk that Jenny had brought. As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I tugged at Duke Panteur’s sleeve and asked, 

“Brother, would you like to talk while we drink milk?”

To survive, observation was a necessity and flattery was an option.