CH 103

“N, no!”

I screamed out of nowhere and ran to the edge of the bed to avoid Dad.

“Ah, where are you going? My princess, say ah—. Daddy will see it just once.”

“My teeth aren’t shaking!”

“Really? If you lie, a tooth monster will come at dawn and pull out all of our princess’ teeth?”

“….”

My Dad, who smiled insidiously, climbed onto the bed, grabbed me at once, and hugged me.

“Waaa!”

“Now, now. Princess, ah—say it. Show it to Dad once.”

I sat in my Dad’s arms and closed my mouth tightly with my hands.

“Just looking at it… promise…”

“Of course.”

I lowered my hand and opened my mouth cautiously.

“Oh. Oh my.”

Dad, who was pulling my mouth and checking my lower teeth, said.

“…I think I can pull it?”

“N, no!”

“Princess, you must want your strong new lower teeth to come out soon. I’m just pulling the lower teeth that were hurt now.”

“Dad, please.”

I clasped my hands eagerly.

“I’ll do it a little later…”

“Later? Then what if the strong lower teeth don’t come out and the princess becomes ugly?”

“That doesn’t make me ugly…”

“Hmm. Is it because it hurts when you pull it out?”

“Eung. Ah, can’t you wait until the lower teeth come out by itself?”

“But Dad can’t wait?”

“Dad, please.”

“Princess, have you seen Cheshire? Cheshire bravely pulled his teeth, which has made him suffer?”

“Cheshire is Cheshire, and I’m me….”

Dad grinned as he pondered.

“Okay. Let’s wait until the lower tooth comes out by itself.”

“Wow! Thank you!”

“Then Daddy will look at it one last time. Say ah—” 

I put my trust in Mr James Brown, who said he understood.

Dad, who seemed to be checking my lower teeth by pulling my lips with his index finger—.

Tuk.

―In one second, he pulled out my lower teeth. 

“….?”

It happened so fast that the pain hit a beat late.

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” 

It hurts! My screams echoed through the room.

“It’s done, it’s done! My pretty baby! Great job! It’s all right! It doesn’t hurt at all!”

“Aaaaaang!”

Dad quickly got up, ran to get me a tissue, and put it in my mouth.

“Now, stop the blood. Hap, keep it close.”

“Aaaang!” 

Even though I did as I was told, I couldn’t hold back my anger at my Dad, who betrayed my trust. 

I opened my eyes, which naturally grew cold, and glared at my Dad. 

“Ahahahaha!”

The liar, Mr James Brown, just laughs.

How could this happen?

I trusted my Dad and opened my mouth!

When the throbbing inside of my mouth became a little bearable, I threw my fist over Dad’s chest with all my might.

“Dad is stupid! Dad is a liar! Dad is the worst in the world! I don’t want to play with Daddy!”

“Uhmm. No, no! A princess needs to play with her dad forever!”

Dad giggled and removed the tissue from my mouth, checked the place where the tooth was pulled out for a long time, and then dived into the bed.

“Kya, my princess. When did you grow up so brave and pull out your teeth?”

“Wow.”

The anger hasn’t gone away yet.

As I was about to lie down with my cheeks puffed out, my Dad, who had covered me with the blanket, looked down at me happily with his chin resting on my side.

“My baby.”

“….” 

“You grow so fast.” 

What is it? The murmuring of Dad’s voice, for some reason, was depressing. 

So, after trying to stay angry for another 10 minutes, I relaxed and clung to Dad’s side.

“Isn’t it better to grow up quickly? What’s wrong with Dad’s expression….” 

“Oh, yes! Right! Of course, it will be great if my princess grows up!” 

Dad relaxed his expression and added.

“My princess, if you want to grow taller than now, let’s go to bed early. You need to sleep a lot to grow well.”

“Eung.” 

Dad kissed me on the cheek and immediately lay down.

I stared at my Dad’s profile.

‘Hmm.’

Why? I don’t know why, but Dad seems to be worried about something these days.

Was it after the revelation commotion happened?

The rapid rise of the old church must have been a good thing for Dad. 

“Daaad.”

“Eung?” 

“Is there something wrong?” 

“Eh.”

Dad turned to me.

“It’s the same today, Dad’s face looks dark these days…. Even on the day everyone in the temple got better, Daddy didn’t look very happy…’ 

“Huh.”

Dad smiled with wide open eyes and touched the tip of my nose.

“My princess, what’s up with your wit?”

“So there is something going on?”

“Eung. So it’s obvious from Daddy’s expression. It’s because Daddy is so tired these days.”

“Aha!”

Uhm, that’s right. He can be tired.

I nodded.

Dad’s business, which would normally have taken more than 10 years slowly, will progress much faster riding the current of the dominant old church.

Of course, my Dad will be busy and there will be a lot of things to be tired of.

“My princess!”

“Ung!”

Dad hugged me and patted me on the back.

“You know.”

“Eung.”

“Dad will work hard in my business so that my princess can live happily without worrying about anything. Do you trust me?”

“Eung! I trust you.”

“Daddy…Daddy will protect the princess no matter what. So my princess doesn’t have to do anything.”

“….”

“Just eat a lot of delicious food and play hard with your friends… Just wait a little bit like that. All right, princess?”

Is he distracted by business preparations?

For some reason, I also became sullen at my Dad’s voice, which kept sounding melancholy.

*****

Softly.

Enoch, who smiled at his daughter who fell asleep without knowing the world, quietly left the room. 

When he lit up the dark room toward the office, his exposed face was pale.

“….”

Even the staggering steps were also at stake.

‘Lilith…’

His daughter has grown up a lot.

Was it after she went to the training center?

Growing up slower than her peers, so the father was worried.

“Haa…”

His hands trembled as if he was frightened. Enoch took a deep breath and opened and closed his fists.

Nevertheless, his feelings didn’t calm down.

‘Primera…’

Enoch doesn’t know what the Primera is like.

He just knows that they are the closest to God, possessing omnipotence.

What kind of thoughts do they have?

What kind of providence do they know in this world?

There was no way to understand it.

However, one thing was clear.

“Let’s not run away and go back to the capital.”

“I’m going to follow Dad to the capital as well. I’ll go, enter the training center for powerful people, and get a badge for powerful people.”

Back to the capital.

Duke Enoch Rubinstein, listen!

This country needs to change!

He decided to be willing to take up the sword.

Come to think about it, the starting point of everything that moved him was his daughter.

“Dad! Do you remember this kid?! The Marquis invited him too!”

“Huh? This pendant? When I went out to play last time! I said it was pretty and brother Theo bought it for me.”

Cheshire, a special child who can be free from Primera’s rule. Who saved him—

The thing that instantly cured his nephew Theo’s incurable disease—.

It’s all Lilith.

Was it all a coincidence?

No, he wanted to believe it was a coincidence.

Until the end, Enoch just wanted his daughter to be a little smart and quick-witted, an ordinary existence.

That’s how he brainwashed himself.

Like a fool.

“There are wars invading other countries. A war in which people who are living happily take away the land and kill them.”

“….”

“Daddy don’t do that, right?”

His daughter would have known.

A father who was willing to give up his faith to protect his daughter.

“Octava…? You…?” 

“Eung, I’m sorry. Because it is not a good class.”

And.

And what she has to do to keep her father’s faith.

“Ah, haa…” 

He was suffocated.

Enoch clenched his collar, staggering closer to his desk.

The statue of Primera appeared.

“Why…” 

He fell to his knees in front of it. 

It was during this revelation incident that he became convinced. 

The eyes of Zadkiel, the priest who received the revelation, were clearly lying.

What was difficult about recognizing such a pure child lying and scared? 

“Because the priest is a good man, the real God must have given him a miracle. So don’t worry, let’s go see the priest tomorrow.”

However, what his daughter said about not worrying was true.

Perhaps that ‘miracle’ was something she intended to make herself.

On the day they first visited the Seraph Temple.

The back of his daughter, who was secretly leaving the barracks with Zadkiel while glancing at her father from afar—.

Enoch remembered clearly.

“Lilith…”

He has no intention of asking his daughter.

After all, that angelic child hates making her Dad worry the most and will eventually lie.

But now he can’t pretend he doesn’t know anymore.

“Why…” 

The collapsed Enoch raised his head and looked at the Primera statue.

He was born in a God-fearing Empire with strong abilities blessed by the Gods. 

He had never, never prayed sincerely.

To the God who granted the power to the royal family that had rotted to its roots.

Because he thought it was as ugly as the imperial family.

But, at this moment.

Enoch prayed very earnestly for the first time.

“Please…” 

Tears welled up in his bloodshot eyes.

It is understandable that God turned away from the filthy royal family and gave a new bloodline to save the world.

But.

Why? 

“Why…”

Why must it be my child? 

Enoch remembered the Emperor.

His greedy eyes. 

He will do anything to make this country follow his own dirty justice.

An evil and infinitely strong being.

If he learns the identity of his daughter, Lilith—.

“A, ah.” 

A terrible imagination terrified Enoch.

The man, who had nothing to fear, was feeling for the first time. 

Extreme fear.

“Oh God.”

A hand that clasped eagerly.

Enoch pressed his forehead to the floor and wept and begged.

“Please…” 

Please, to me.

In the end, gave me the strength to protect the child safely.