Chapter 4
The Imperial Family.
That word kept coming up, yet it still felt so unfamiliar.
What did the Imperial Family have to do with my adoption?
It was all too difficult to understand.
All I’d done was answer when they asked if I could hear.
That single “yes” changed everything.
Should I have lied and said I couldn’t hear when that noble came?
But just now, I’d clearly heard the whisper of the wind spirit—
so I knew I could hear them.
The voices of spirits.
‘I’m not someone who’s welcome here.’
No tears came. My mouth just closed shut.
The wind spirit kept watching my face anxiously.
I wanted to smile to reassure it—Don’t worry, I’m fine—but I couldn’t.
“…What’s a marriage alliance?”
<It means marriage.>
“The Duke’s marriage alliance has fallen through.
Does that mean he can’t get married?”
<That’s not necessarily true, Adele.>
But…
I didn’t know much, so my thoughts didn’t go far.
Anyway, I’d been told nobles were incredibly high-ranking.
And dukes were said to be even higher among nobles—
the highest of the high.
Yet, somehow, by becoming the Duke’s daughter,
it felt like he had lost something.
Nobles needed heirs. So of course, they had to marry.
A duke had to have a duchess—so he could have a son,
and a daughter too.
I wanted a mother.
I’d been disappointed to learn that the Duke didn’t have a wife.
But thinking about it now, I wasn’t sure if a new mother
would even like me anymore.
‘Would the future duchess hate me?’
The thought slipped out of my mouth.
“I want to be loved.”
<Of course, everyone will come to love you.>
That was the firmest thing the spirit had ever said to me.
It almost sounded… meaningful.
But back then, I was too young to understand such nuance.
After standing blankly for a while,
I slowly released the doorknob I’d been gripping tightly.
The marks stayed pressed into my hand.
The carpet beneath me was black.
And beautiful.
Moonlight was still lonely, and the lamplight still soft.
Among such precious things, I alone felt lacking.
I walked carefully,
climbed onto the bed with a bit of a struggle.
The blanket was so soft I almost burst into tears—
but I held them back.
‘Don’t cry.’
Only once a day.
Good children don’t cry.
I closed my eyes.
If I kept them open, they would sting—
and I’d start crying again.
My cheeks felt warm. Something was shining on me.
What was it? It felt so warm…
‘Sunlight.’
Sunlight?
“Are you awake, young lady?”
Where was I?
The orphanage dormitory didn’t have windows.
At the sound of the voice,
I slowly lifted my eyelids.
Even after staring for a moment,
I couldn’t recognize the person.
But then I realized instantly.
It was Sarina.
“Ah, hello.”
“…The Duke will be returning soon.
You should get dressed and go greet him.”
Sarina scared me.
But since I didn’t know what else to do,
I just let her handle me as she pleased.
‘…The Duke.’
Her words sank in late.
The Duke was coming back.
‘Father?’
I hadn’t seen my family since the day of the adoption,
so I grew nervous for a moment.
Before I could even gather my thoughts,
I was dressed in a different gown than yesterday’s—
a brand-new one I’d never seen before.
Sarina’s hands were gentler than last night’s,
but because I’d overheard the servants’ conversation,
I couldn’t stop glancing at her face.
Other maids helped her, bustling about the room.
They washed my face, brushed my teeth, combed my hair.
It was all so busy.
The dress was yellow—
a bright, gentle yellow,
like forsythia blossoms or baby chicks.
“Um… how do I greet him in the morning?”
“For now, just stand in front of him, my lady.”
Sarina and the other maids guided me briskly.
Even Lady Noel, the head maid I’d met yesterday, was there.
We carefully descended the stairs
and walked a long way until we reached a huge gate.
Someone softly pushed me forward—
so I ended up standing at the very front.
‘She said to just stand here.’
Above the sharp iron gate,
two crossed swords fluttered on a flag in the wind.
Beside it, an emblem of a black eagle biting a pearl.
The morning sunlight was dazzling.
I clenched my hand unconsciously.
Behind me stood all the servants I’d seen yesterday.
‘So this is how people welcome a Duke home.’
The red carpet from last night flashed through my mind.
Soon, a group appeared from afar.
Ten knights and horses emerged
through the deep, green forest.
At the very front rode a man
wearing a lion-shaped helmet.
His gaze landed on me.
Something in it froze me in place.
He halted his horse mid-stride.
The black steed pawed at the ground,
digging up dirt as dust rose in the air.
“……”
The man stared at me for a long while,
then lifted his helmet.
What I saw most clearly
were his eyes—red as blood,
and hair as black as night,
swallowing and trapping the sunlight.
Duke Alcibiades.
The unmarried man who, as of yesterday,
was supposed to be my father.
“Ah.”
As if realizing my existence just now,
the Duke opened his mouth and took a short breath.
His horse’s muscles and tendons stood out vividly.
The smell of iron drifted on the breeze, tickling my nose.
I knew that smell.
‘Blood.’
The Duke leapt lightly from his horse.
The fur cloak draped over his shoulders
was clean, yet carried a cruel air—
like the trace of a hunt.
The nine knights dismounted behind him,
tall and imposing.
They left their horses
and began walking toward me—
long, heavy strides.
I instinctively tensed my toes,
my stomach tightening.
“Welcome back, Your Grace!”
All the servants shouted together,
bowing deeply.
I just stood there, staring blankly.
Not because I forgot to bow—
but because I had no idea what to do.
The Duke stopped near the iron gate
and looked down at me.
He held out a hand.
“Handkerchief.”
Michael immediately offered him one.
The Duke wiped a streak of blood from his cheek—
carelessly, like a man used to it.
The blood smeared long and dark across the cloth.
I was frozen, unable even to blink.
The closer he came,
the stronger the metallic scent grew.
Yet, unlike when I’d first met him,
there was no killing intent this time.
“…So, what do you do when you suddenly have a daughter?”
“You treat her kindly, sir.”
The knight replied.
The Duke, still looking into my eyes, said:
“Do you want to spar with me?”
I stiffened.
Was he… talking to me?
“Have you lost your mind, Your Grace?
Treat her kindly, I said!
A duel with the young lady?”
“Lost my mind? That’s insolent talk.
And what’s wrong with a duel?
There are mountains of knights begging to spar with me.”
“The young lady is delicate.”
“How delicate could she be?”
Hmm.
The Duke pondered for a moment,
then suddenly—without warning—
knelt on one knee right before me.
I flinched in surprise.
So did everyone else.
All eyes turned to me.
He was too close.
But still—he was my father.
‘Even if it’s just for a moment, he’s my father.’
I didn’t look away. I met his eyes.
The Duke arched a brow slightly,
as if impressed.
A faint smile touched his red lips.
Since I was standing and he was kneeling,
our eyes were almost level.
“…Did you sleep well?”
His voice was gentle—
awkwardly so, as if it didn’t fit him.
“…No.”
“Why not?”
“…”
“It was her first night, Your Grace,”
Michael answered for me when I stayed silent.
From this close,
I could see the small cut on his cheek.
The smell of blood,
the depth of the wound,
the damp cloth streaked with red,
and the untouched drops still clinging to his black hair.
I didn’t ask what had happened.
‘It must be grown-up business.’
That’s what the orphanage director used to say
whenever I asked too many questions.
Still, I couldn’t help but worry about his wound.
“…Are you hurt?”
“…Huh? Well, yeah.”
It wasn’t our first meeting,
but it was our first conversation.
I hesitated, then cupped my hands,
blew warm air into them—
and said,
“Adele’s breath is medicine.
All your pain, go away.”
I brought my warm hands close to his cheek as I said it.
A moment later,
the Duke’s face went blank in disbelief.
When I used to fall and scrape my knees,
my older sister would do the same thing.
The key was to repeat it like a little song.
It always worked like magic—
the pain would fade,
and I’d stop crying and start smiling again.
The Duke’s expression was… odd.
His brow twitched,
his face unreadable.
“…You just… healed me.”
“…”
I nodded.
“Hmm. Thank you.”
His words were clumsy,
his tone awkwardly soft—
the way people talk to a child.
And I was a child,
so I didn’t mind.
Later, the Duke told me
he’d been startled in that moment—
by how something so pure could shine so brightly.
He’d thought his world was nothing but faded grey,
but for that instant,
I had been blinding.
After a battlefield soaked in death,
he hadn’t expected to see
something so small and alive.
“Are you hurt anywhere else?”
“Huh? I was, but it’s all better now.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really.”
“But you’re still bleeding.”
I pointed at his hand.
Half dazed, he replied,
“Doesn’t hurt at all.”
A few knights couldn’t hold back and chuckled.
But only they laughed.
The servants stared in shock—
as if this were something unthinkable.
Yet the Duke stayed focused on me,
his expression strange, unreadable.
“How old are you again?”
“Eight.”
“Your name?”
“Adele. …And you, Duke?”
“…? …Eisen.”
He looked genuinely surprised
that someone had asked him his name.
Apparently, my own father
had forgotten both my age and name.
But I decided not to feel hurt.
Instead, I focused on what I’d learned.
‘My father’s name is Eisen.’
Eisen Alcibiades.
A handsome name for a handsome face.
Unfortunately, the conversation ended there.
The Duke stood up—
and suddenly, he seemed enormous,
blocking out the sky above me.
Whatever softness he’d shown vanished in an instant.
He returned to that cold, composed look—
as if regaining his senses.
When his gaze met mine again,
his eyes were sharp,
like blades.
‘I’ve seen that face before.’
It was the same look
the hungry kids at the orphanage had
when they caught a rabbit.
That cold, calculating stare—
hesitant, yet fixated,
deciding whether or not to kill it.
And the rabbit always died.
I held my breath.
The warmth from hearing his name
was gone in a blink.
The Duke turned away from me at last.
I exhaled quietly.
He muttered, almost to himself,
“Eight years old…?
She looks five, if you ask me.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
The Duke furrowed his brow,
then gave a small nod.
The servants avoided his eyes.
Killing intent.
I realized it then.
He kept it away from me,
but the air around him was steeped in it.
The knights seemed used to it,
but the servants trembled.
“I’m tired. I’ll rest now.”
The servants bowed deeply
and stepped aside to clear his path.
The Duke walked forward,
each step leaving faint trails of blood behind.
I only saw his back—
he never once looked back.
