“Are you back, Miss? Did you enjoy your time in the capital?”

“…It was quite tiring, but I think everything worked out in the end.”

Having used the excuse of visiting the Count’s and then the Duke’s households over the past few days, Delrina had to resolve various matters rather than enjoying her time. As she returned to the Duke’s mansion, Felik greeted her warmly.

“Squeak!”

“Ah, yes. I’m happy to see you too… I’ll play with you later.”

Upon seeing her, the monkey seemed to want to play. She weakly declined and continued walking down the corridor. That’s when Felik called out from behind her.

“If you’re tired, would you like to have your meal later? Or I can have food brought to your room.”

“I will. For now, I need some sleep.”

“Would you like to? Although we have a guest, you can greet them later.”

“What?”

It was a moment that disrupted Delrina’s plan to go to bed as soon as she returned to the Duke’s mansion. Upon hearing the word ‘guest’, she turned around.

“Could it be that this guest is related to Callis?”

“Yes, that’s correct. Have you already heard? He’s a distant relative of His Highness and also Callis’s biological father.”

“He’s here now?”

“Yes. He’s probably talking with His Highness at this moment… Miss, where are you going?”

“To Callis!”

Delrina could immediately spot him from the window. Callis’s name, unusually bright.

Can’t I just have a little break, please!

Upon her immediate return to the Duke’s mansion, Delrina hurriedly crossed the corridor, swallowing back her tears. As she rounded the corner, her body was forcefully pushed aside. She sat down on the floor.

“……!”

“Sorry. Are you okay?”

Grimacing at the pain she felt on her buttocks, Delrina heard a voice in front of her. She quickly gathered herself and stood up.

“No, it’s my fault for rushing…”

She paused mid-sentence as she met the gaze of the man in front of her.

‘His Highness?’

The man resembled Bellion in appearance. Delrina’s eyes widened. The difference was that the man had entirely red eyes.

“Should you get checked out? You look like you’re in pain.”

Despite her saying she was okay, the man looked worried. Even then, Delrina stared blankly at his face.

“When did you come?”

Bellion appeared behind the man. Seeing him, Delrina mumbled.

“It really is His Highness.”

“?”

“No, I mean… Who is this?”

Bellion looked at her, then at the man, who asked,

“Who are you, Bellion? You don’t look like a servant.”

“Jester.”

“Jester?”

‘Aaaaaah!’

At Bellion’s words, Delrina hastily spoke.

“My name is Delrina Floren. I’m currently living here at the Duke’s mansion with His Highness’s support.”

“Ah, I see. Nice to meet you. I’m Dior. Dior Bourbon.”

‘Bourbon?’

As Delrina tilted her head at the unfamiliar name, Dior continued.

“You probably don’t know me. I’m not from the Helium Empire. I went as a son-in-law to a family in another country.”

“Ah, I see.”

‘So this man is Callis’s biological father…’

He looked quite like Bellion and Callis, but his demeanor and expression were entirely different. A gentle smile floated on Dior’s face. Delrina was disoriented by that unfamiliar face.

‘In that case, His Highness and Callis look more like a father and son.’

“Do you and Callis play together? You seem to be of the same age. Is Callis doing well?”

“Huh? Ah, well, about Callis…”

Flustered, Delrina darted her eyes here and there as Dior looked at her with great interest.
“He’s really good with the sword. Even better than regular adults. And he’s a bit shy… so he doesn’t talk much. But they get along well.”

“Really?”

At the mention of Callis getting along well, Dior’s face brightened.

“That’s good to hear.”

Dior, who had said this, looked back at Belion, who was standing quietly behind him.

“Still, I think we should take Callis back.”

“……”

“People from the Bourbon family have also been asking when we’re bringing Callis back, and I agree. Callis is my son, so I should be the one to raise him.”

‘He’s taking him back?’

Delrina’s eyes widened at the talk of taking Callis back and she eavesdropped on the two men’s conversation. Meanwhile, Delrina waited for Belion’s reply.

“No.”

Belion firmly refused, causing Dior to back down.

“I heard that Callis had his debutante ball this time.”

“……”

“You initiated this debutante ball. I never thought you’d really raise Callis as the heir to the Wolfreim Duke’s family.”

“Yes.”

The atmosphere turned strange for a moment. Even Delrina, who was in between, felt it. At Belion’s unequivocal reply, Dior sighed softly.

“Fine. I knew you weren’t very interested in marriage, but Callis is still my son and the only heir to the Bourbon Viscount family.”

“……”

“So, in the end, I should be the one to…”

“What’s the point if the kid won’t even come out of his room?”

‘What?’

Startled by the talk of Callis, Delrina stared at Dior. As if he couldn’t deny it, Dior’s shoulders twitched.

“That’s… because he hasn’t seen me in a long time and it’s awkward.”

“……”

“I don’t intend to force him to do anything. I have to wait and see. After all, I’ve neglected him and left him here; that’s my fault.”

Dior’s face darkened as if truly distressed. Looking at him, Delrina’s expression became complex.

The night at the Duke’s house was quiet. At some point, the footsteps of the servants disappeared one by one, and only a suffocating silence lingered in the mansion. Beyond the empty corridor, behind a firmly closed door, someone was sitting curled up, holding their breath. It was Callis.

“……”

Staring at the dark night sky, Callis realized that much time had passed. Yet he showed no sign of movement. He only stared at the tightly closed door. Just then, someone knocked on the door.

“……!”

Startled by the knock, Callis hesitated and stepped back. The knock repeated a few more times, followed by a voice.

“Are you asleep?”

It was Delrina’s voice. Realizing who was outside, Callis’s complexion returned to normal. However, he still did not open the door. Delrina spoke from outside.

“If you’re awake, eat something. You haven’t eaten anything all day.”

Aware that Callis was awake, Delrina continued to talk. Callis moved closer to the door. Then Delrina’s voice came again from outside.

“If you open this door now, I’ll show you eating ten desserts.”

“……”
“If it doesn’t open by the count of ten, just go. Now, one…….”

Before Delrina could even shout, the door slowly opened. The eyes of Callis, who was subtly opening the door, met with those of Delrina, who was holding a basket of food outside.

“Coming in?”

Delrina, who had given Callis a sly smile, entered the room. Callis hesitated momentarily but didn’t stop Delrina from coming in.

“I specifically asked Betty to fill it with things you like. How about it? Looks delicious, doesn’t it?”

Delrina took out a variety of desserts from the basket. Each one looked lavishly delicious, but Callis tightly closed his mouth and backed away.

“Why? Not eating?”

“…….”

“Ah, you want to see me eat from the ten plates first?”

“…….”

“Alright, but I’ll only show you once, so pay close attention. Got it?”

With a resigned air, Delrina started taking out each plate she had put in the basket. Callis watched Delrina intently, his eyes lighting up. However, just as Delrina was about to pop a dessert into her mouth, her action was interrupted.

“Callis…….”

The door opened just then, revealing Dior.

Suddenly, the attention of both Callis and Delrina was focused on Dior. Yet, Dior’s gaze remained solely fixed on Callis.

“Our son… has grown up so much.”

Dior exuded a markedly different vibe compared to when they had met earlier. The warmth and kindness were nowhere to be found. Soon, Delrina realized why: a strong smell of alcohol emanated from Dior.

“Let’s hug for old time’s sake, shall we?”

“…….”

However, upon seeing Dior, Callis’s expression was far from normal. His face turned pale and he became rigid. Delrina also looked at Dior with a very tense expression.