I Became the Male Lead's Adopted Daughter-Chapter 98

“Woooow......”

Out on the balcony of the banquet hall, Carnis let out a breathy, incredulous laugh.

“That’s the first time I’ve ever felt my knees go weak from a seven-year-old.”

He confessed, sincerely, that he had nearly wet himself like that attendant earlier.

“She really is a Voreoti.”

Abipher rubbed her chilled forearm, trying to shake off the goosebumps.

Even though they had come all the way outside the banquet hall, even though they had shut the doors behind them, Leonia’s Fangs had reached them here, unmistakably.

It hadn’t gone so far as to stop their hearts, but they could tell that a fear beyond description had just barely missed devouring them.

It was terrifying enough to leave them drenched in cold sweat.

“Is everyone alright?”

They then turned to check on the others who had fled the hall alongside them.

Each person had been someone Leonia had handed a candy to—thanks to that, they had been lucky enough to escape.

Even thinking about it again made their skin crawl.

<Fangs of the Beast will be used, run to the balcony.>

If not for the note inside the candy, they too would’ve collapsed inside that hall, trembling in the face of a fear that stabbed straight through the throat.

Even that thought alone was horror itself.

“Don’t tell me all of this was planned?”

Marquis Ortio’s husband asked his wife in a frightened voice, whimpering like a frightened pup.

“You heard the young lady of Voreoti’s greeting earlier, didn’t you?”

“You’ve got good ears.”

“Thank you, dear.”

Blushing at the compliment, the marquis’s husband awkwardly cleared his throat and gave a shy reply.

“I admit, I was shocked too.”

It had all been orchestrated.

Leonia had pretended to be a harmless child on purpose.

She had roamed around alone, gathering the Emperor’s attention.

She had driven them out, removing anything that might get in the way of her unleashing the Fangs.

And then, she had pointed those Fangs directly at the Emperor.

“She completely exceeded our expectations.”

Marquis Ortio said as she gently patted her husband. Even in this moment, she found him unbearably adorable as he leaned into her for comfort.

She, too, wanted to leave the banquet as quickly as the Voreoti pair had.

“Her Majesty the Empress...!”

But Marquis of Hesperi was worried about his daughter.

“You needn’t be concerned about that.”

Count Urmariti replied calmly.

“I saw her leave the banquet hall.”

“Y-You did...?”

“Yes, I was the last to enter the balcony.”

He looked up, as if confirming, and explained in detail that he had seen the Empress slip away with a lady-in-waiting.

Only then did visible relief settle over Marquis Hesperi’s face.

In truth, it had been the Marquis of Pardus who had warned her ahead of time and helped her escape.

Only Count Urmariti knew who the Marquis of Pardus really was.

Since the relationship between House Voreoti and House Pardus was a closely guarded secret, it was not something to be disclosed lightly.

“Still, she really caused a ruckus, didn’t she?”

Countess Bosgruni laughed with clear amusement.

“It’s nothing to laugh about.”

Viscount Kerata was worried that something bad might happen to Leonia because of this.

After all, the person she went up against was the Emperor of the Empire.

“Don’t you think His Grace the Duke will handle it?”

Countess Bosgruni replied casually, telling him not to worry too much.

“Well, yes, but still...”

Viscount Kerata couldn’t help but wonder—how exactly was Ferio going to deal with all this?

***

On their way out of the banquet hall.

“Dad, there really weren’t any pregnant women invited to today’s banquet, right?”

“None.”

“And no one seriously ill either?”

“Lupe evacuated all of them to the balcony.”

“There really wasn’t anyone hurt except for the people who wet themselves because of my Fangs, right?”

Leonia went over the list, one by one, to make sure no one had been seriously harmed by the chaos she caused with her Fangs.

Right after coming up with the whole ruckus plan, she’d asked Ferio to check if there were any pregnant or frail people on the guest list.

Because the Fangs of the Beast could truly threaten a person’s life—one misstep could have ended badly.

“If you were that scared, maybe you shouldn’t have used them.”

Ferio, growing tired of the questions, patted her back a few times.

“Hey, Dad, you know...”

“What now.”

“Just now, I, um... spoke informally to the Emperor.”

Leonia giggled.

In truth, she hadn’t used a single respectful word when addressing the Emperor.

She had slipped in casual speech and teased him with it.

“You little sly fox.”

Ferio praised her.

“But what are we gonna do now?”

How are we going to clean up the mess I made?

She had stirred things up, trusting that her father would handle the aftermath. Now she was curious how he planned to do it.

Leonia leaned her head on Ferio’s shoulder and asked. Now, sleepiness was starting to wash over her.

After throwing a tantrum with her Fangs, she was exhausted.

“His Grace will take care of it, don’t you think?”

“Why are you giving such a half-hearted answer, Uncle Lupe?”

Usually, he’d be the first to explain in detail—but now he seemed totally drained.

“Well... how could I not be?”

Born the youngest son of the Marquis of Pardus, Lupe had gone through a lot since forming a connection with Ferio and becoming his secretary.

But today topped it all.

She had pointed the Fangs at the Emperor.

Lupe had honestly thought his heart was going to leap out of his throat.

“Making money for others is never easy.”

Leonia sympathized, pretending to pat his back with her short little arms that couldn’t quite reach.

“Young Lady...”

Lupe was deeply moved that the Young Lady understood his suffering.

In truth, the entire ordeal had been her fault—but he had already completely forgotten that part.

“But where are we?”

Leonia looked around.

This wasn’t the path they had taken when entering the banquet hall.

Through the colonnade made of marble pillars, a summer garden emerged, the sound of insects buzzing faintly.

It looked like something out of a painting.

“A shortcut.”

Ferio replied.

“Marquis of Pardus told me about it before.”

“But originally, only members of the Imperial family are allowed to pass through here.”

Lupe explained, and Leonia nodded. This clearly felt like a secret they must never reveal to anyone else.

“Because somewhere around here...”

“Your Grace?”

A youthful voice interrupted.

A silhouette appeared from behind one of the colonnade’s pillars.

Startled by the unexpected arrival, Lupe instinctively reached for the source of the sound—but quickly calmed down.

Ferio, having sensed the presence already, didn’t so much as flinch.

Leonia was the same.

“Did you come from the banquet hall?”

But when she realized who the person hiding behind the column was, she gasped in surprise.

“Your Highness the Princess.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Ferio was surprised too—so much so that, unusually, his voice rose a pitch.

Princess Scandia was a beautiful girl who resembled her mother, Empress Tigria, to a striking degree.

Her long, silver hair shimmered under the moonlight, and her delicate, cautious movements evoked a powerful urge to protect her.

“Your Highness, Princess Scandia.”

“Mm. Duke Voreoti.”

“Have you been well?”

Ferio greeted her with a deep bow, even more {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} formal than the one he had given to the Emperor.

“And what brings you here, if I may ask?”

“I was worried about Mother...”

Princess Scandia replied with a hesitant voice, pointing toward the brightly lit building in the distance.

It seemed the banquet had resumed. The noisy clamor of the event carried all the way to where they stood, even though they had walked quite far.

“I heard the Imperial Consort was there too...”

She had secretly snuck away because she was worried about Empress Tigria, who would be with Consort Usia.

The fact that she was barefoot—completely barefoot—was proof of her haste.

“Did you come alone?”

A question whose answer was obvious.

“Yes.”

As she nodded, Princess Scandia self-consciously tucked her right foot behind her left.

“...Is that the Duke’s daughter?”

Princess Scandia turned to look at Leonia. Startled, Leonia climbed awkwardly down from Lupe’s arms and bowed politely.

“Hello, I’m Leonia Voreoti.”

“I’m Scandia Aquila Bellius.”

“It’s an honor to meet you.”

“I’m glad to meet you too.”

After exchanging greetings, the two children looked at each other for a long moment.

“...Lupe.”

Ferio, who had been silently watching, gently picked up Princess Scandia in his arms.

“I’ll escort Her Highness back. Take the young lady to the carriage.”

“Yes, sir. Come on now, young lady.”

Lupe picked up Leonia in his arms. Even after being lifted into the arms of adults, the two girls couldn’t take their eyes off each other.

“Babba.”

Leonia waved her hand first. Princess Scandia blinked.

“...Babba?”

“It’s a farewell between friends,” Ferio explained, telling her it was a phrase friends used.

At the word friend, the princess’s eyes widened. She looked down at her own hand in silence.

“...Ba, babbaaa.”

She waved back.

Leonia smiled softly.

And with that, the two children went their separate ways.

Leonia was carried to the carriage in Lupe’s arms, while Princess Scandia returned to her palace.

“You’re very sleepy, aren’t you?”

Once inside the carriage, Lupe gently set Leonia down.

Leonia nodded with a yawn. Lupe chuckled quietly and let her rest her head on his lap.

Then he draped his coat over her.

“You know, Uncle...”

“Yes, young lady?”

“That princess earlier...”

“You mean Her Highness, Princess Scandia?”

“She was pretty...”

At her honest comment, Lupe nodded.

“She greatly resembles Her Majesty the Empress.”

“Mmh...”

“Of course, you are beautiful too, young lady.”

“I know...”

You do? Lupe was briefly flustered.

“Why was she wearing a dress...”

But Leonia didn’t finish the sentence.

She closed her eyes.

So Lupe never heard the rest of what she meant to say.

***

“Why was she wearing a dress?”

Ferio asked Princess Scandia as he carried her back.

“Mother told me to wear it.”

She fiddled with the hem of her skirt as she spoke.

“She cried.”

“...”

“She said she was sorry.”

“There’s nothing she needs to apologize for.”

“Mm...”

Princess Scandia nodded.

She thought so too. Her mother had never done anything bad to her. She had always wrapped her in love and genuinely cherished both her and her brother.

“I know that too.”

“Then that’s enough.”

Ferio gently set her down.

In front of them stood a small palace—the residence of the second prince and the first princess.

There was some commotion at the gates. It looked like people were out searching for the missing princess.

“She doesn’t cry when she sees me anymore.”

Duke Voreoti said as he watched the searchers.

“I’m nine now. When winter ends, I’ll be ten.”

She was saying she wasn’t a little kid anymore.

Yet the way she mumbled with a slightly sulky tone made her look every bit the child.

Unconsciously, Ferio smiled gently.

She reminded him of Leonia.

“...Then I’ll go now.”

Just as she had done with Leonia earlier, the princess waved to Ferio and said, “Babba.”

Ferio waved back.

But he didn’t say “Babba.”

Even so, Princess Scandia’s eyes widened.

A bright smile spread across her face.

It was the exact same smile as Empress Tigria’s.