CH 11

Episode 11

After meeting Heint and telling him about my pathetic situation of having to live as his son, I was on my way back to my room.

“When is Floa coming, anyway?”

I felt gloomy again today, as it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to meet Floa.

“He said he’ll come soon, but it’s already been a few days…”

I was tired of waiting endlessly, but I didn’t dare to ask Persis when Floa would arrive, so I just waited anxiously.

I didn’t want to bother Persis by urging him about when he’ll arrive.

I arrived at my bedroom and grabbed the doorknob. At that moment, I was about to give up again.

“Well, he’ll come eventually…”

Then, a man who was sitting calmly and drinking tea came into my view.

Who is he? Could it be…

“Floa?”

Unexpectedly, Floa was waiting for me in my room!

He tilted his head and gave me a look.

“Did you enjoy your walk in the garden?”

Why is he here in my room without any notice?

I entered the room nervously and soon heard the door close.

“Are you really, Floa?”

“Yes, I am Floa.”

Floa smiled leisurely and lazily.

‘This person is Floa…!’

He looked like a man in his early twenties with white hair.

A man called the guardian of the family is before me.

I was so fascinated by his presence that I became excited.

“Can you use magic? Can you make a custard pudding as big as this?”

As I spread my arms wide and drew a big picture in the air, he flicked his finger as if it was nothing and created a custard pudding the size of my body.

The pudding wobbled from side to side and gradually stopped.

“Wow!”

As I touched the pudding with admiration and poked it, it disappeared with a poof!

“How amazing!”

“Well, it’s just the basics.”

He smiled and then quickly wiped the expression from his face, changing the atmosphere.

“… Do you have any questions for me?”

Questions? What kind of questions?

“For example, about why I released the magic I had agreed upon with Viche.”

“Oh, right. I was curious. Why did you release the magic so quickly? We wouldn’t have had to pretend to be a son if the magic had kept working.”

I expressed my disappointment to him.

“I almost went to an orphanage. Dad promised to solve it when he decided to raise me.”

It seems that in the original work, Floa also released mental magic around this time. Although the novel simply states that May and Persis coincidentally met in the front yard of the Duke’s garden, the circumstances were probably like this.

In the original work, May also met Persis for the first time when she was ten years old in the spring, and as a spirit who possessed May, I also met Persis for the first time when I was ten years old in the spring.

However, as can be seen from the original content and my situation, it is certainly not the case that Persis thought he would raise me.

So why did Floa release the mental magic?

“I just really wanted to tell you.”

Suddenly, the atmosphere became dangerously tense. The sunlight that had been coming in through the window disappeared, and the room became dark.

Floa put down the teacup he had been holding and stood up.

“It’s not like I released the magic because of a wrong decision.”

Gradually, he approached me.

As he got closer and closer, I reflexively took a step back.

He continued to approach until my back hit the door, and then he stopped right in front of me.

When I tilted my head up to meet his gaze, our eyes met.

I understood.

His dark gray eyes were filled with malice.

It was never a cute eye for a child.

His menacing voice fell on top of my head.

“I did it because it was bothersome.”

What did he just say? I doubted my ears. What was he saying? 

That he just did it because he was bothered? It was a matter of life and death for me.

“When Lady Viche first begged me, I thought it would be okay to maintain the magic for about five years.”

So far, Flotina’s blood has expressed the power of the family around the age of five, and no matter how much Persis hates you, he will not kick out the child who expressed the power of the family.

“But for ten years, the power of the family has not manifested. Of course, there is still plenty of time to become an adult….”

He twisted the corners of his mouth dryly.

“Do I really need to use magic for a child who may or may not be the blood of Flotina, and a child who may not inherit the family?”

Word by word, the hail of words struck my head and made me stupid.

Why is he doing this to me? Does he have any grudges against me?

Even when I got angry and protested, I couldn’t say anything because the situation was hopeless.

“Really, you just did it because it was bothersome.”

He wasn’t trying to torment the girl in front of him out of spite.

“Whether you go to an orphanage or not, it’s none of my concern.”

There was a bigger reason behind tearing apart the fragile heart of the little girl.

“As you know, I exist only for Flotina.”

His pupils flickered menacingly.

“I can’t let someone who might not be the blood of Flotina become the head of the family.”

As he said, he wouldn’t care if I went to an orphanage or was raised in a duke’s house.

‘Cause I’m a daughter anyway.’

Because I am a daughter, far from continuing Flotina’s legacy.

However, from his perspective, if May, who may or may not be of Flotina bloodline, were to be raised as a son, things would change.

What if May wasn’t of Flotina’s bloodline? What if she were vying for the seat of the duke? What if Persis gave her the seat?

He must have had those thoughts.

Floa is taking a stand to give everything to Flotina for the sake of Plasabia, the duchy of Flotina.

As he said, he would not have any interest or care whether I went to an orphanage or was raised at the duke’s residence.

It would be absolutely unacceptable for a person who did not inherit the blood of Plasabia to become the head of a family in a world where she has to live for Flotina for the rest of her life.

He kneeled down and matched my eye level.

At the same time, he grabbed my neck without hesitation.

“Make a pact with me. If you are not of Flotina blood, leave this place before receiving the title.”

There was no force in his grip, as if he did not intend to kill me. However, I could feel a chill from his cold touch.

It was as if he could kill me at any moment.

Dare to look down on the seat of the duke, and you will die by my hand.

“…”

“Make a pact.”

A gentle but threatening tone echoed in the room.

I understood why Persis described him as cruel.

Floa is truly an existence for Flotina, no, Plasabia’s bloodline. Everything else seemed to be irrelevant.

“…”

I chuckled while admiring Floa’s beautiful face.

So, all I have to do is not look down on the seat of the duke, right?

“What else?”

“…?”

“Can I make a promise?”

I let go of his hand around my neck, manually bending his fingers and hooking my pinky finger around his.

“What are you doing right now…?”

He looked at me with shock, even though I wasn’t afraid and was acting nonchalantly.

“Even if you give me the head of household, I won’t take it. When I’m older, I’ll get out of this house and live freely!” A promise.”

Then, I opened my fingers one by one and made a sign on my palm.

“A sign.”

Finally, I pressed my palm against his to copy it.

“Copy.”

The promise couldn’t be simpler.

When I let go of his hand, it fell weakly to the ground. I looked at him with determination, as if to say that I would definitely keep my promise.

“I will never overstep my bounds in Flotina. Never!”

Floa still looked shocked and whispered softly.

“Why aren’t you scared…?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why aren’t you afraid?”

Despite the threat to kill me, I am not afraid, even though I know he could kill me.

From Floa’s perspective, my reaction might be surprising enough to leave her stunned.

In the original story, Floa is depicted as someone with powerful magic and an expert in mental magic, capable of inflicting unimaginable pain and killing anyone if she wants to.

In fact, it was said that no one dared to face death at his hands.

But it might be surprising that a mere ten-year-old like me isn’t scared.

“Why aren’t you afraid of me?” he asked.

I answered innocently, “Because I trust that you will keep your promise.”

If he keeps his promise, he won’t kill me.

“But didn’t I just threaten you by grabbing your neck?”

“But you didn’t exert any force,” I replied.

He seemed to be at a loss for words. She wasn’t afraid even though he didn’t put any force into the grip.

Well, Floa might be able to crush my neck without lifting a finger.

“Do you know who I am?” he asked.

I looked at her blankly, not understanding the meaning behind her question.

“You’re Floa.”

He remained silent.

“Why? Was that not true?” I asked, pretending to be a clueless puppy.

As if there was no bad intention, I tried to act innocently and reassure him that he was not a dangerous person.

Fortunately, Floa lowered his tail.

“… Floa is right.”

“As expected?”

I smiled at him.

“Still, I’m glad you’re not a bad person, Floa.”

“…. How do you judge whether I’m bad or not?”

“If you didn’t like me, You could have used mental magic to manipulate my dad and send me to an orphanage, but you didn’t.”

“I don’t use mental magic recklessly.”

“That’s right. So you’re not a bad person.”

I reached out my hand to him as a sign of a handshake.

He didn’t want to become my guardian, and I didn’t want one. 

Therefore, we won’t be enemies!

“Nice to meet you, Floa!”

“….”

Floa shook my hand with a hesitant expression.

As I shared my warmth with him, the sun suddenly shone brightly on us.