Chapter 02
The man, Alteira Clastar, looked down at the fainted child clinging to the hem of his trousers.
As his brow furrowed in displeasure, the orphanage director quickly bowed her head in alarm.
“I-I’m so sorry! I locked her up because she did something wrong, but I don’t know how she got out…!”
She tried to forcefully lift the child into her arms, but even in her unconscious state, the girl stubbornly refused to let go of the duke’s trouser leg.
“Tsk!”
When the director gripped the girl’s wrist and pulled hard, the child’s body finally separated from the duke.
But his trouser leg was still wrinkled where she had clung to it.
‘Damn brat, causing trouble to the very end!’
The director cursed inwardly and stole a glance at Duke Clastar’s face.
Though his expression was one of lazy amusement, she knew better than to trust it.
Alteira Clastar. The monster slayer obsessed with blood.
The Clastar family had once been a well-known count family in the Empire.
However, an evil dragon had killed off the entire family—except for the current duke.
Everyone had predicted the Clastar family’s downfall.
But the duke defied them all. With exceptional skills and cunning, he elevated the family to dukedom.
Perhaps because his entire family had been slain by monsters, his hatred for them—and for evil dragons—was infamous.
The incident where he singlehandedly killed 99 monsters on the plains of Navarra had shaken the Empire.
His navy-blue hair, soaked in blood, and his golden eyes gleaming with madness as he smiled—he looked like he took joy in killing monsters.
He was so terrifying that women stayed far away from him for quite some time.
And yet this morning, this very duke had appeared, saying he wanted to adopt a child.
‘If he adopted a child, we could’ve made a fortune… and this brat ruined it!’
The director glared fiercely at Ariel in her arms.
She had been planning to hand the girl over to Mr. Brown as soon as she recovered a little. Now the child had caused a massive accident.
“I’ll have a maid take this girl away immediately. If you’d like, I can show you another child—”
“No.”
The duke’s golden eyes fixed on Ariel, limp in the director’s arms.
The girl with long, pale blue hair clearly wasn’t in good shape.
Her flushed face showed signs of fever, and red and purple bruises covered her exposed arms and legs.
Her labored breathing made it clear she might not make it through the night.
Children dying in a place like this meant nothing to him.
But then—
‘I want to live…’
The fleeting glimpse of those red eyes burned with a desperate will to live.
That unrelenting desire to survive even at death’s door sparked something small within him.
As the maid reached to take the child, Duke Clastar spoke.
“I want to adopt that girl.”
When I came to, I was lying on a soft bed.
‘Did the orphanage even have beds like this?’
There was no mold, no holes in the sheets.
It even smelled nice.
‘A floral scent? How can blankets smell like this?’
I buried my nose in the sheet and sniffed. That’s when I heard a strange man’s voice.
“You’re awake.”
I turned my head—and saw a man with deep blue hair sitting at a table, drinking tea.
I froze on the spot in shock.
‘I didn’t sense him at all.’
He was so close, and yet I hadn’t realized someone was in the room until he spoke.
In the past, I would’ve noticed even before opening my eyes.
‘I knew my abilities were gone… but this is worse than I thought.’
It felt like I’d lost all my wealth in exchange for surviving.
Still, I couldn’t let my guard down.
The man suddenly stood and approached me.
I flinched.
Who was this man?
A new pervert?
I eyed the nearby lamp, wondering if I could bash him with it and escape, but then he sat on the chair beside my bed and said,
“I waited a full day for you to wake up.”
Only then did I get a proper look at his face.
“You said you wanted to live, didn’t you?”
His smile curved gently, and his porcelain skin looked almost too perfect—like a painting. But there was an undeniable pressure emanating from him.
His luxurious suit shimmered faintly, and the jeweled cuff buttons sparkled.
Suddenly, I remembered the glossy black shoes I had seen before losing consciousness.
‘No way…’
“I saved your life. So, what will you offer me in return?”
“…What do you want from me?”
In my past life, I could’ve been a powerful weapon.
But now, I was a helpless seven-year-old girl with no abilities to offer.
“Won’t you become my daughter?”
“You want to adopt me?”
Was he one of those types—well-dressed on the outside but twisted inside?
Seeing the suspicion in my eyes, he let out a soft chuckle.
“Ah, I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Alteira Clastar.”
Even someone like me, raised in a shabby orphanage, knew the name of Duke Clastar. That’s how powerful he was.
Hearing his name only made me more confused.
“Why would a duke want to adopt someone like me?”
He leaned back lazily in the chair.
“Just because. It’s annoying.”
“…Excuse me?”
“I don’t want to get married. I don’t want a family. But the Senate keeps shrieking like monkeys stung by bees.”
“…”
“Now they’re throwing their children at me, demanding I adopt them. Even distant relatives are popping up, causing a racket.”
Well, of course they were.
If they could become part of House Clastar, all that wealth and power would be theirs.
“So, I thought I’d adopt you. Once I have a child, they’ll stop shoving their spawn at me.”
“But wouldn’t adopting a random orphan like me cause even more backlash? Wouldn’t that be a bigger hassle?”
“That’s only if I protect you.”
He crossed his legs and rested his hands on his knee.
“Let me be clear. I don’t care how you live or what happens to you. Whether you’re assassinated or poisoned on the street—it won’t concern me at all.”
So I was just a shield for him.
They’d say, “Duke, you need an heir!” and he’d reply, “I already have one. If you want to replace her, go ahead—just get past her first.”
“…Why me?”
The duke smiled in satisfaction.
“Because your will to live was impressive. You looked like someone who wouldn’t die, no matter how hard I tried.”
Well, he wasn’t wrong. I had, in fact, come back from the dead.
“So? Will you be my daughter?”
When Duke Clastar left the room, his aide, Orwell, rushed to follow him.
“What did she say? She’ll agree, won’t she? Of course she will! Going from an orphan to a noble lady overnight—what a jackpot! Not that she knows it’s a death sentence.”
As Orwell chattered on, the duke furrowed his brow.
“Quiet. She said she’d think about it, so I left the adoption papers.”
“What? Seriously? She didn’t sign them right away? She’s only seven! How is she so mature?”
“I did tell her she might face assassination attempts.”
“Still! Most kids would jump at the chance to be a noble! Asking for time to think—that’s unheard of! She’s really calm.”
“She was calm,” the duke murmured, recalling the girl’s response.
Her slightly slanted eyes and firmly set mouth had given her a feline sharpness.
“No one’s colder than you, sir. Using an innocent child as a shield just to avoid a little hassle.”
“Well, it’s better than that orphanage. I’m turning her from an orphan into a noble lady—she should be thanking me. If she survives, she could even become the Duchess of Clastar.”
“You think the Senate will just stand by and let that happen? You should’ve adopted the Senate chair’s grandson like I suggested! Then we wouldn’t have to deal with any dead bodies!”
The duke’s brow furrowed.
“No. I don’t like him.”
“Why not? If you don’t care who it is, what’s wrong with him?!”
“He’s ugly and rude. Just like his grandfather.”
The duke gave Orwell a chilling glare.
“Besides, I don’t plan on handing over more power to that old bastard. I don’t care what happens after I die, but while I’m alive, I’ll do things my way.”
“Then just get married! If you had a proper heir of your own blood, no one would meddle!”
“Oh? So now I’m just a stud horse? Didn’t realize I was keeping a scheming minister at my side.”
“Name him! I’ll eliminate him immediately!”
Orwell grinned, then hesitated.
“But seriously… are you really never going to marry? You never know—feelings could grow. Honestly, if you just softened up and smiled a bit, women would line up outside the castle. Is it still because of… what happened to your family…?”
“Enough.”
The duke’s voice was cold.
“…I’m sorry. That was out of line.”
Orwell said no more and followed silently behind. But his worried gaze lingered on the closed door.
I looked at the adoption document.
Next to my name was his: Alteira Clastar.
His signature flowed smoothly, without hesitation.
In contrast, I held the pen for a long time.
If I didn’t sign this, we’d go our separate ways and never meet again.
Objectively, there was no benefit in getting involved with him.
I wanted to live a long, quiet life—and being the duke’s daughter would only put my life in danger.
But then I remembered the cold touch of the sword just before I died.
“Sorry, but you’re the daughter of the Evil Dragon. I can’t leave behind a future threat.”
Regan had become the Pope.
He stole my credit and killed me to get there.
I deserved at least one stab to the heart for all those years I grovelled at his feet like a dog.
But as I was now, I couldn’t even get near him.
To meet Regan again, I’d need the status of a duke’s daughter.
I looked at the top of the adoption paper.
“I swear before the Lord to protect this child with love.”
If I signed this, he would become my third “guardian.”
In name only.
I was too tired to hope for affection anymore.
Still, considering he treated my wounds, he was already better than the last two.
Fine. As long as there’s no torture involved, I can manage.
He needed a long-lasting heir.
I needed status to reach Regan.
There was no better deal.
I made my decision—and signed my name beside his.
And just like that, I became Ariel Clastar, the only daughter of Duke Clastar.
