People Aren't Meant to Be Fixed! (4 Chapters Left to Complete) - Chapter 176

“…….”

In a way, consistency isn’t bad, but while it was nice—generously speaking—that Jeff’s love for his daughter hadn’t faded, for some reason it felt a bit burdensome, as if thorns were pricking my backside, so I abruptly stood up from my seat.

When I was younger, I could accept it as him humoring a child’s innocence, but now that I’ve reached this age and he still acts so ridiculously, it’s killing the dignity of the Emperor! Dignity, I say!

“I’ll take my leave now.”

That wasn’t to say I was angry. It was simply that I couldn’t stand there any longer while numerous long rifles, invisible yet unmistakably present around Jeff, aimed at me and fired rounds of “paternal affection.”

To put it plainly: it was embarrassing and awkward.

“Leaving already?”

Seeing his expression sour immediately, Jeff reverted to his usual self and wore a look of disappointment. With that, I’d successfully discouraged any further fussiness from him. Now all that remained was to either finish my talk with Hecate or safely return to the audience chamber or my bedroom.

“Dad’s sad because ever since our daughter grew up, we’ve had so little time together!”

Just as I was about to catch my breath and say a few words to Hecate, Jeff suddenly acted out of character. He placed the duck plushie on the floor, dropped onto his belly, stretched both arms out, and grabbed the toe of my shoe with his hands.

I froze in bewilderment. Meanwhile, Poppy scurried over and showed interest in the duck plush Jeff had brought—probably because, despite the different color, it looked quite similar to another plush he owned.

“Dad feels neglected!”

Jeff, refusing to get up right away, started making whimpering noises while flailing his limbs like a hungry newborn lying in a crib.

Apparently, this was all because I no longer spent time with him as I used to in the past. He surely understood that circumstances had changed since then, yet expressing himself so childishly was truly awkward.

If he’d really been upset, it would’ve been better to sit down seriously and work things out calmly through conversation.

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