The attendant rushed immediately. The Marquis’s breathing was now as thin as a thread. His wide-open eyes lacked vitality. However, only Cedilloi’s hand, holding onto him, stubbornly refused to move.

“I’m begging you… Please. My child…”

“Menéo, don’t worry. I promise to protect Swan. So, for now, think about yourself. Stop talking. Take the medicine and rest.”

The Marquis didn’t respond. However, it wasn’t that he didn’t speak, but rather he had lost consciousness.

Cedilloi momentarily placed his hand under the Marquis’s nose. It was very faint, but his breath was still there.

“Your Excellency.”

At that moment, a trembling voice echoed from the door. It was Swan. The boy stood there, tears streaming down his jade-colored eyes, trembling all over, unable to approach.

“Father… by any chance, is he…?”

Cedilloi quickly shook his head.

“No, Swan. He’s fine. He’s just sleeping. The attendant will bring the medicine, and when he takes it, he’ll get better.”

Tears fell from Swan’s eyes. After wiping away the cold sweat on the Marquis’s forehead, Cedilloi approached Swan and sat down in front of him.

“Don’t cry, Swan. You have to be strong. Understand? I promise to protect you. So, you have to be strong in your heart.”

“Yes…”

The fist rubbing his eyes was trembling. With a pitiful expression, Cedilloi looked at the boy, then reached out and stroked his head.

Menéo had helped Cedilloi a lot even after the death of the senior Duke couple. Living together with young Berbo in the royal palace, whenever Cedilloi was lost and wandering without knowing what to do, Menéo appeared, taking him out for a ride or suggesting sparring sessions.

At that time, Cedilloi couldn’t understand why the man ten years older than him kept coming to find him and take him around. It wasn’t until he had grown up a bit that he realized Menéo’s caring nature.

Even though the royal children, the princes and princesses, had cared a lot for Cedilloi, Menéo was like a close brother to him. Until he fell ill, they had been colleagues working together for the country.

Could Cedilloi refuse such a desperate plea from someone whose life was hanging by a thread? Should he just hand over this child to greedy people like Huzzle or Dupré and watch without doing anything?

“Don’t worry.”

Cedilloi said while gently patting Swan’s head.

As the afternoon approached, Ariante’s mood seemed to improve as if she had just woken up.

Running around the mansion, she played pranks as usual. Although she refrained from tearing tapestries due to Meiana’s words, she did leave graffiti on the walls.

“Lady!”

Carrying some remaining firewood from an unknown place, Ariante’s hands and face were covered in soot. As for the white walls…

Vainty rolled her eyes in irritation.

“Lady! What are you doing graffiti like this! Seriously, this can’t be erased! Give it here, come on!”

However, Ariante, after scrutinizing Vainty from top to bottom, turned her head with a snort. Then, she continued with the graffiti.

“Oh, really! Lady!”

Then it happened. Ariante abruptly turned her head and stared intently at Vainty.

“Why can’t you draw on the wall?”

Vainty, taken aback by the sudden—and seemingly obvious—question, momentarily lost her words.

“Because… the wall… is not a place for drawing, of course!”

“Then is there a place where you can draw pictures?”

“There’s paper! Note… somewhere like that to draw pictures! Who draws on the wall?”

At that moment, Ariante chuckled with an annoying smile, crossed her arms, and turned her head, continuing her graffiti.

“Ah, really! Lady!”

Then Ariante suddenly turned her head and stared at Vainty.

“Why can’t you draw on the wall?”

Vainty looked blankly at Ariante, who wore an annoying smile with soot on her cheeks.

“Cave walls?”

“Yeah, I read it in a book. People who lived a very long time ago drew animals on the walls of the caves they lived in. And they also drew what they were doing.”

“But… Lady… you’re not an ancient person!”

“You said, ‘Who draws on the wall?’ So I just answered. Ancient people drew on the walls!”

The annoying little brat! Vainty cursed inwardly. This is why kids are insufferable! That’s what she thought.

Before working in the Duke of Westminster’s mansion, she was born in an ordinary household. Despite all the fuss about Meiana and being a noble’s child, in reality, the place where Vainty was born was just a bit closer to the capital; it was still a rural area.

Not just her younger siblings, but even the children of relatives… dealing with noisy and incomprehensible little kids was unbearable. So, as soon as she turned fifteen, she went out to find a job…

“This little one is going to handle the work of twenty people alone! Really.”

Then Ariante drew a line on the wall below with a piece of firewood. When Vainty tried to wipe it away in horror, Ariante glared at her, as if warning her not to come closer.

“Don’t touch it! You can’t erase it!”