Prologue

I’m Aika de Valliart.
And I have a mysterious power.

I’ve been walking on eggshells for days.
But it was my own choice to be here.

“Phew…”

The loud sigh full of annoyance made me flinch.

“Is that old man out of his mind, telling me to take care of this?”

I quickly looked away and stared out the window, trying to avoid the scary glare directed at me.

Even without looking, I could feel the heat on my cheeks.
Ugh, stop staring! If you’re going to stare, at least do it nicely!

I wanted to say it out loud, but I kept it to myself.
That person was the scariest one my mom ever mentioned—
Even scarier than the Emperor, the so-called sun of the Empire.

“Hey.”

“….”

To make things worse, I was sitting on the floor carpet while he sat comfortably on a soft sofa.

He crooked a finger at me in a rude way, calling me over.
I glanced at him and turned away, pretending I didn’t see.
That was my small, quiet act of rebellion.

Seriously,
What’s the point of being handsome if you have a nasty personality?

Mom… sob.

No, wait, this isn’t the time for that.
I can’t forget why I’m here.

I tried to smile and act cute to make things better between us, but it didn’t last long.

“Hey, peanut.”

“I’m not a peanut!”

I couldn’t hold it anymore and snapped.

“Then fun-size. Come here.”

“I’m not fun-size either!”

“Then what?”

Ugh, do I have to say it out loud?

I looked down at myself.
No matter how mean he was being, I wasn’t that short!

My mom said I was the prettiest and coolest girl in the world!

“…Maybe, like… 4-heads tall?”

I mean, I’m at least four-heads tall! That’s fair, right?

I clearly heard him snicker.

I turned around completely and sat with my back to him, huffing in anger.

“I’m calling you nicely. If I have to come over there, you’ll regret it.”

Ugh, seriously.
His threats didn’t sound like jokes.

I puffed up my cheeks in protest, stood up with a pout, and walked over to him.

Even though I barely reached his waist, I looked up at him with a fierce glare.

“I have to live with you now.”

“….”

“I don’t like raising kids. So stay quiet and out of my way. Got it?”

“….”

Hmph, I don’t like raising grumpy grown-ups either!

I hugged my stuffed animal tighter and just pouted at him.

“Answer me.”

He was 18 years older than me, yet acted so mean to someone that much younger.

So mean. So scary.

But it’s not like I could just leave and live somewhere else.

Even if I wanted to tell Mom, I couldn’t anymore.

“…Okay.”

I had a ton of thoughts running through my head, but I gave a quiet answer.

“Then go ask someone for food. Don’t hover around in front of me.”

“But I already ate…”

“Eat again. You look like you stopped growing halfway.”

He stood up and roughly ran a hand through his hair,
Then shoved his hands in his pockets and stormed past me out of the room.

“Whew…”

I plopped back down.

That felt like a storm just passed through.

If it wasn’t Mom’s last wish, I wouldn’t be living with him either.

Grandpa clearly likes me way more anyway.

He’s the one who’d be doomed without me, but look how he treats me!

One day, I’ll totally prove him wrong!
Even if he begs me to stay, I won’t forgive him!

“Pssh.”

So, who is this jerk who treats me like trash?

He’s the person I now have to live with—
My only uncle, Cassel de Valliart.

The Mad Dog of Valliart.
That’s what people call Cassel de Valliart.

Also known as Cassel de Requior.

I first met him at my mom’s funeral.
It was a sudden accident.

Mom was a really busy person.

She worked more than she rested, and even after having me, she continued working at the royal palace.

There were many mornings when I’d wake up and she was already gone.

She never explained exactly what her job was, but I knew she was the Chancellor of the Empire.

“Chancellor, here’s the report.”

“Please help us, Chancellor!”

I heard her staff call her that all the time.

But I never hated her or felt upset.
She loved me more than anyone, and I loved her just as much.

I don’t know who my dad is.
Mom never told me.

“Mom, what’s my dad like?”

One time I asked her, and she only said he had something really important to do.

Since he never visited me, he probably wasn’t a good person.
I stopped asking because I didn’t want to make her sad.

One day, Mom had to leave the capital for work.
She said she’d be gone for about two weeks.

Even though I was used to staying home alone or with maids, I begged her to take me along.

Normally, I was fine on my own even if she was gone for a week.

But that day, I just had to go with her.

“Mom! I want to go too!”

“You want to come with me?”

“Yeah! I’ll be good and stay quiet! Please take me?”

“Hmm…”

“Just this once! Mom, just this one wish!”

She finally said yes.
It was the first time I ever went on a trip with her.

On the way back home after her work was done,
We were in the carriage, and she was reading me a storybook when we were suddenly attacked and the carriage flipped over.

“Aika!”

Mom hugged me so tightly that I couldn’t breathe.
Thanks to her, I wasn’t hurt badly, but I hit my head and passed out.

When I woke up, she was already gone.

Grandpa told me they didn’t find me in the wrecked carriage, but in a nearby forest.

But I hardly remember anything about the accident.

My memory is all jumbled, like torn pieces of paper.
Some parts I can’t even recall at all.

They said the palace is investigating what happened,
But no one would tell me anything.

I only heard that the Emperor was furious.
Some even said he lost control.

I could guess why.
The Emperor had been Mom’s friend for a long time.

He probably got really mad and sad because he lost his old friend.
Plus, Mom was super smart and good at her job, so losing her must’ve been a big deal.

Her funeral was grand.

I cried so much I couldn’t see who came,
But later Grandpa told me almost everyone from the palace was there.

And many nobles too.

That’s when I met my uncle for the first time.

“…Mom?”

He had the same red hair and golden eyes as her.
His chin was a bit more defined, and his features a little sharper, but he looked so much like Mom that I thought she had come back to life.

While everyone else cried and looked sad,
He just stood there staring at the casket and the people with eyes sharp enough to kill.

“…Mom…”

I stopped crying and clung to him.
For days, I stuck to him and wouldn’t let go.

But by the last day, while I was asleep from exhaustion,
He disappeared.

After that, I lived with Grandpa for a few months.