Beth shyly interjected.
"Your skin is so smooth and beautiful, so a pure white dress will look good on you."
Since there was no disagreement, the tailor checked it last.
"Then the other two are pink and white? Now, let's choose a piece of cloth."
The tailor's assistants diligently unfolded the fabric.
Suziebethel sneered excitedly
"Wow! This is a damask. It's so pretty!"
It would be warm if I decorated my shoulders and chest with this thick wool.
"Please make one coat out of fur, Baby gets cold a lot."
The first person to lose patience in the face of the endless feast of textiles was Theodore.
He stood up and made excuses.
"I need to go to Caliph."
Theodore left, and I stood awkwardly in front of everyone, arms outstretched.
As the tailor eagerly measured the length of my short limbs, the door opened once more.
"Your Excellency!"
The tailor quickly bowed his head, and Alseid nodded as if he could see it.
"Do what you have been doing."
For what... Why did you come?
Dorian demanded from the tailor.
"She'll grow taller, so fold the bottom hem in."
Dorian didn't feel uncomfortable with the Grand Duke watching her, but I didn't.
My throat was tense and my throat was tight, but the tailor was also calm.
"Yes. You'll wear enough until next year."
Shion jumped up and said,
"You also need fur boots, a raincoat, and gloves."
Was it still quiet, trying to figure out if I had left anything out?
Dorian grinned.
"I'm knitting the gloves, so it's fine."
I was thrilled for a moment and looked down at my hands.
In Lausanne, my hands were covered in wounds from training, so I got a clunky leather glove.
Then, the tailor's assistant grabbed one of my feet, and I came to my senses.
"Now, let's measure the length of your feet, shall we?"
The tailor with the tape measure was impressed.
"Oh my God, your feet are as beautiful as a doll. I'll make it with all my heart so that you can only get a good place, baby."
Pretty feet like dolls.
The rough and calloused feet of my previous life came to mind again, and Alseid spoke up.
"I'll make comfort and warmth my top priority."
"There is no question!"
The Grand Duke replied to the tailor's cheerful voice.
"It's quite a hassle to make my daughter's clothes."
However, contrary to the word that it was troublesome, seeing the smile on his mouth made my memories of Alseid Halias completely confused.
They said he was cold-blooded without blood or tears, and he was laughing even though he spent a lot of money on his adopted daughter, right?
***
Late at night, I heard the urgent sound of horses' hooves outside the castle.
Tick, click, click.
If you look at the sound of horses' hooves overlapping slightly, it sounds like two people running.
I fell asleep and opened my eyes.
In fact, even during the sad funeral of my parents, I waited for news from outside the castle.
"I am troubled by the fact that someone kidnapped the Princess that night. Send the crows to keep an eye on them."
Theodore had said that, and I know the competence of the bird-catching Halias's scouts.
I lay down, pricked up my ears, and listened to the sounds outside.
If it were urgent news, it would be delivered to the lord right away, and luckily, my room faced Alseid's room.
Sure enough, after a while, I heard an unfamiliar voice.
"Your Excellency, this is the 1st Scout Leader."
Immediately, I heard the sound of the door, and his voice became quieter.
"He said he was definitely a scout leader."
I carefully pulled back the blanket and got up.
The nanny also went to sleep, and there was only I and the red-eyed doll in the room.
After I became a baby, it was difficult for me to move quietly, but fortunately, there was no sound on the carpeted floor.
I approached the thick wooden door and listened closely, and fortunately, I heard the sound of words.
"You're late."
Alseid must not have slept yet. He reprimanded the scout leader in a clear voice.
Then I heard the captain's voice.
"I'm sorry, sir! Unexpectedly, the crow didn't come back, so it was late."
Alseid asked coldly.
"Isn't the crow coming back?"
"It is true. Six of the best-trained dogs were taken, but none of them returned. I wanted to sneak in and investigate the cause, but I didn't get permission in advance and came back empty-handed. Please forgive me."
Alseid replied after a moment of silence.
"...It was good that he didn't infiltrate the company in a hurry. If someone who interfered with the search had set a trap and waited, they would have stepped on their tails, but if they had captured the crows instead of killing them, I would know they were our birds."
"We removed all the dog tags and sent them to us, but there are a few places where you can train crows as much as our castle."
When Alseid fell silent again, the scout leader asked cautiously.
"Shall we go back and search again?"
"No, you don't. Do not move lightly, but keep quiet about this matter for the time being."
"Yes, my lord."
"Go back and rest."
After the scout leader finished greeting, there was a sound of the door opening again.
I ran to the bed and lay down under the covers.
My parents died in a fire in the castle, and the crows who went to scout the castle never returned...
Six of Halias capable crows never returned.
An ominous feeling crept over my skin.
***
The next morning. Alseid sat at the dinner table and had a nonchalant face.
He looked at me with a slightly sorry expression.
"I'm sorry. But I have to postpone the Princess's reception for a while."
Theodore asked carefully.
"Is there anything else important?"
Alsayid replied slowly.
"Yes."
Then, without adding any explanation, he looked at Caliph.
"Caliph."
"Yes, father."
"When the preparations are finished, we will leave after breakfast."
"Of course, father."
After a moment of silence, Shion spoke out cautiously.
"Where... Are you going?"
Alseid replied as if he were going for a morning walk.
"Yes, Shion. Since I couldn't attend Meridy's funeral, I'm going to pay an apology visit."
There was a strange silence again.
Theodore asked quietly.
"Is this an official visit?"
"Yes, I sent you a letter in advance."
Whatever excuse Alseid made for Meridy's visit, Meridy's name made me feel uncomfortable.
When I stopped eating and stared at him. Alseid let out a small sigh.
"Liana."
"...Yes?"
"It will be difficult to go to Meridiy while living under the name of Halias."
I know that if I follow him with the body of a three-year-old, it will only get in the way.
However, when I received the facts, I was unknowingly disappointed.
As I lowered my head and pursed my lips, Shion whispered to me, holding out a piece of chocolate.
"I'll give you mine! I'll give you more later!"
He was afraid that I would cry again.
"There's a weak corner..."
Looking at him, Shion added, his silver eyes twinkling.
"Really! I'll ask the chef separately!"
For a moment, Alseid's attention shifted to another place.
"Theodore."
He called out, and Theodore jumped up.
"Yes, father."
"While your brother and I are away from the castle, you are the acting lord of the castle. I hope you take good care of your younger siblings."
"Yes, father."
"Please refrain from children going outside the castle."
"Of course, father."
Alseid, who had finished his business, got up first and ordered us to continue eating.
It takes four days to drive from Halias to Meridy without stopping, or more than a week to make a round trip.
If you cross the strait to avoid going through the royal estate, you have to time the tide, and the influence of the weather cannot be ignored.
If you take a break on the road, go to bed, or search at Meridy, it will take at least half a month.
"Grand Duke Halias is leaving the castle to investigate the fire in Meridy?"
Alseid, whom I had seen in my previous life, had built a huge fortress in the far north, but he never left the castle without being relieved.
Meridy's fire is a sensitive issue that reveals his true nature.
I wondered if he had investigated Meridy's fire in my previous life, but I shook my head.
At that time, he would have cooperated with the royal family without knowing that the Princess had survived.
Then, after 16 years, I met him in the dungeons of this castle...
Ugh... I nibbled on the piece of chocolate Shion had given me to my nightmare again.
Then I interfered uselessly.
"Melt it down, you idiot!"
***
When I returned to my room after eating, I was unexpectedly waiting for Alseid.
Dorian bent down in surprise.
"Master, do you need anything?"
Instead of answering, Alseid blurted out something wrapped in cloth.
Thanks to this, Dorian put me down and accepted it.
"It is a portrait of the late Duke and Duchess Meridy's. Even though I got it in a hurry, my child should keep it."
"Yes, Master."
Dorian cherished the portrait of my parents.
Alseid, who was about to leave the room, stopped again.
"I ask for the children while I leave the castle."
Dorian smiled softly.
"There's Master Theo, but there's nothing wrong with it."
I hesitated, then mumbled softly against the back of him as he left.
"Master..."
Even a small voice that he would not have heard like any other person stopped his steps.
I bent my neck for a long time, barely looking up at the dark gray eyes that were heading toward me, and whispered softly.
"Pull your feet up. (Please reveal the death of Mom and Dad.)"
He took a moment to recognize what I was saying, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
A large, gloved hand touched the top of my head for a moment.
"I'm going to commemorate the death of an Academy classmate."
My mom was a classmate of the academy? Is it just an academic motive?
I pursed my lower lip, thinking I had made a mistake, but then I remembered the voice of the scout leader from last night.
"Shall we go back and search again?"
Would the Grand Duke, who refused to ask such a question, really empty his true nature for the sake of remembrance?
It can't be.
So I bowed down and bowed.
Even if he doesn't admit it, I want to ask him and bow my head a hundred times and a thousand times.
I asked him to reveal the death of my parents.
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