Chapter 30

Haniel will become a beautiful heroine in the future, and Lady Melloe was the perfect teacher for court etiquette and common sense.

“Selene, I know that you’re afraid of her, but….”

“I think it’s a good idea!”

“… Huh?”

Selene, who I thought would be devastated, had a positive outlook.

“I’m for it; I’d rather follow Lady Melloe’s steps Besides, since I’m a nanny, I support going to school!”

“…”

There’s something off about this.

I looked at her with wide eyes, but she was already busy adjusting her appearance. In the past, I would’ve persistently delved into it, but the princess was now looking up at me with tear-stained cheeks.

“Mom, where am I going?”

“No, no, Haniel. I’m not asking you to go anywhere.”

“Oh, Brother, am I going? Brother? Am I going to Brother?”

The white swanling turned pale and fell over again.

Mom knows how scary your brother is.

I forced the child to calm down, recalling the eyes of the emperor, who she had been choked with tears just by looking into them.

When she heard of him, her beak had been quivering so much that I felt there was no need any longer for her to go. She can just stay here.

“Haniel, no. You’re not going anywhere.”

“Really? Really? Not going anywhere?” …

“That’s…”

Until our Haniel is not afraid of anything anymore.

Until one day someone appears to protect her from loneliness besides me.

“Mommy will be there, Haniel.”

“But you’re not going to keep calling the princess by that name, are you?”

Selene broke in again as she swept away the faint white fur. She had feathers that looked like it’s finished trimming and looks more like her aunt rather than a nanny.

”No matter how little she knows about the truth, you should be more vigilant; she’s quick-witted.”

“Ah, well. I should.”

No matter how much I dedicated myself to Haniel, everything must remain a secret among us three.

Even if I sacrificed my life, the lake will still be a dangerous world. Even if everyone was caught by Lania and lived as a common animal, it is safer to keep her identity a secret since everyone is under Lania’s surveillance.

“Do you have a new name in mind then? You should let Lady Melloe know when she is registered.”

“….”

“If it’s a name….”

“She can just be ‘Swanling,’ just as you’ve been calling her all this while. Since she is white, it’s alright to call-”

“Then you’ll remain as her nanny forever and call her a swanling too?”

Even though Haniel was not her child, Selene’s still sincere.

Having dropped Selene close, I lowered my head to look at Haniel again. I was awestruck by her smile void of impurities.

Selene raised the child’s hands and put them on her face, laughing at Haniel’s facial expression.

“All right, I’ll ask Lady Melloe to name her. She’s an aristocrat, so her naming sense should be superb–.”

“Reina.”

“–Yes?”

“I’ll call her Reina.” The name word slid out smoothly from my lips.

Haniel was fortunate that she was not named closer to her original name “Haniel” since she was in hiding for the meantime.

“It suits you, my princess.”

“Well, it’s not bad.”

“So, you’re done with your plans now, right? She’s going to school tomorrow. In two days, we are throwing a party to celebrate our moving.”

Knock, knock.

Reina, who was delighted by the word ‘party,’ swiveled her eyes around.

“Ma-Madam!”

A knock on the door. Thump. Thump.

It was a soft sound that shouldn’t be heard here.

Lania and Rebecca were the only humans who came here, but they usually just opened the door rather than knocked.

“…”

Thump. Thump.

As the knock sounded again, Selene and Haniel hid in the corner.

I realized that my daughter was still here, and my uneasiness grew.

It can’t be them.

“Who-Who are you?” There’s no way anyone knows I live here.

However, the fact that they came here meant that they had come to visit me.

Since I lived in the duke’s most secretive villa, I was branded as the witch of the ducal house.

“Who are you?”

“We meet again, Duchess of Evendell.”

“…”

These words made it more clear than the naked sight of them.

As the door slid open, my teeth chattered and my jaw trembled.

I gazed at one of my daughter’s brothers, who stood next to a handsome, melancholic man.