When Lucia unfolded the unexpectedly extended paper, her hand trembled for the first time in her life.

After turning the paper to the other side to confirm the drawing, she eventually buried her face in the drawing, smeared with crayons.

A sentence that was written and corrected several times with clumsy handwriting.

How, how could one not like such a child?

For some reason, the paper covering her face trembled.

Lucia had never experienced such intense emotions.

And if this was what people referred to as that feeling,

“I like you the most in the world, Nia.”
As she mumbled with a tired tone, the child who had just turned her head finally ran to her mother.

“Ugh… Mommy!!”

As the child hugged her, Lucia’s face, with the paper lifted, revealed a dazzling smile, adorned with black crayons.

Even without the continuation of blood, perhaps they had become more unique than anyone else.

The two men who saw that appearance.

As they stopped their rough grip on each other’s collars upon seeing the mother and daughter, at that moment, all actions came to a halt.

“Heard that? Lucia…!”

“…That smile. It’s the first time.”

The next morning.

Lucia, with the children and the materials, sought out the head butler of the mansion.

Last night, the room was left unattended, and there were traces of someone searching through belongings.

Since she knew the count of the ledger and items, she confirmed that nothing was missing, but with the children present, there couldn’t be any laxness in their guard.

So until she grasped the information, she decided to hide in this mansion guarded by the faithful butler.

However,

“Gross.”

“…Habuji? …Haemoni?”

It was the reaction of the children upon seeing him.

Mia, still sarcastic, and Nia, hiding behind her, chuckling with their heads down.

He greeted them warmly, as it had been a while since he had seen young children, but soon retreated into a corner with a wounded look at Mia’s words.

Lucia sighed again at the extreme display, recalling one of the important reasons for coming here.
“Enough, please take a look at this child’s hair. Doesn’t it remind you of someone?”

Her words were an attempt to confirm if Mia, who resembled the Duke and Duchess’s hair, triggered any recognition.

However, looking at the child hiding in the corner, observing with a grim face, he calmly responded, “No, it doesn’t come to mind. The Duke has always spoken with dignity.”

“…What? Are you cursing me right now?”

Though unaware of the situation, Mia, with a ghost-like intuition, exposed her upper teeth as if threatening him.

It was only then that Lucia briefly explained to Mia.

Upon hearing the explanation, the child was almost triumphant.

“Ahaha! It’s not me. I grew up in a farm. My parents passed away, but I remember it clearly.”

“That’s correct. The Duchess would never bear such an unappealing child…”

“Hey, if you’re in your right mind, at least get my gender and details right.”

At Mia’s straightforward remark, his mouth moved in the air playfully.

Apparently, he might have uttered words that a child shouldn’t hear.

It was an obviously mismatched pairing.

However,

“I can’t help it. Since I’ve spent the longest time in the orphanage, I can gather some information. Let’s find out together.”

Without asking, the child instantly made a judgment and found something he could do.

He was always a clever child.

For Lucia, who originally intended to search with the children, it turned out to be an unexpected gain.
Sorting out the materials, except for the two deeply engrossed in decorating play, Lucia started organizing the information.

In the ledger, details such as age, physical characteristics, personality, place of origin, etc., were neatly recorded more than expected.

Especially, the personality section had a checkmark indicating whether the child was quiet or not, which was quite impressive.

Unfortunately, Nia’s profile, which was naturally discovered, was marked as a quiet child, while Mia’s profile had additional demerits marked in red letters.

Though it was written in a rough manner, the content itself was about the child’s dream.

“… Financial officer?”

“Ah! Th-that… What if you read that!”

“Why?”

“I-it’s embarrassing…”

“Is it? It seems like you could handle it just fine.”

Mia slowly lowered her hand, which had reached out in response to Lucia’s words.

Then she murmured, “It might sound arrogant, but I expected that. So when I was adopted by the Marquis, I wanted to become a financial officer and go straight to the royal palace. There’s nothing else. I just thought that if I could reach such a high position, I might be able to prevent the children in the orphanage from starving due to the low support funds. It might be difficult now since I’m a commoner, but…”

“…,”

Having listened to the child’s words to the end, Lucia was somewhat shocked.
I knew the child was smart, but to make such a wonderful plan for the future at such a young age.

Lucia, having experienced the orphanage environment and ignorant adults, was even more impressed by the dreams of a child that emerged from such a barren place.

And she wasn’t the only one moved in this moment.

Today, the one in a dress with fancy eyelashes exclaimed while fluttering them,

“Oh my! That such a child exists. Surely, that dream will come true! Definitely!”

“Enough. Stop cheering like a crazy old woman.”

“W-what, what did you say! I-I’m a respectable!!”

Though Mia spoke nonchalantly, her face turned red, and she lifted the corners of her mouth shyly.

Her embarrassment was evident in response to his praise.

Lucia, watching this, wished to support the child’s wonderful dream someday.

But looking at the straightforward nature of the child, it seemed challenging to offer help easily, making her feel a bit disappointed.

However, at that moment, Mia, as if she had discovered something, half-raised her surprised bottom as she sat.

“Nia, it looks like your parents wrote this for you! To hide something like this! You might really be able to find your real parents!”

“…?”

It was a letter with the same number written as the one in Nia’s profile.

However, the joy was short-lived as Mia saw the lady with the greatly sunken atmosphere.

With an awkward smile, her eyes were unfocused, portraying a face unable to grasp the situation.

What could be bothering the woman known as the Black Monster?
With her intelligence and quick wit, Mia guessed that perhaps that bewildered expression felt like a sad face.

An urgent sorrow that couldn’t let go of the child she had already fallen in love with, even in imagination.