C 6
".... It's amusing."
Erno Etham looked out the window at the back of the slowly walking girl.
The voice he heard while passing through the hallway for a moment, as he had business to attend to, was enough to stop him in his tracks.
"That girl obviously..."
He properly thumped Duke Miriel on the back of the head.
"She was incredible from the moment she arrived at the library and looked at the list of orphanages, but..."
Erno Etham let out a low laugh.
Usually, if you're born into the Etham family, many people try to cling to the Etham family until the end.
Descendants of the Etham family are precious, so many want to give birth to many offspring.
However, he was very surprised when he saw the girl from a collateral family take a peek at the list of orphanages and dare to leave the house.
A little curiosity arose, and Erno Etham didn't let it go to waste.
So he deliberately dropped the ring.
If the girl hadn't brought back the ring, that would have been the end of his curiosity.
The girl has nowhere to go.
That's what he thought of the round-headed girl, who clung to the book without asking for help and read it stutteringly.
Then, he thought that if the girl brought back the dropped ring, he would give the little thing a place to return to for a while.
If she hadn't picked up the ring, it would have ended there.
A simple game for fun.
"I did, but I never thought she was actually preparing to leave home."
Erno Ethan chuckled.
"Besides, the power I felt from that ring was definitely..."
Though it was only for a moment, he felt a refreshing sensation, and the symptoms of his madness, which always made his head ache, were alleviated.
It may have been an illusion, but that didn't quell his curiosity.
He was going to do something quite interesting this year as well, but the meeting was interrupted halfway.
Erno Etham stared at the empty bench.
["How am I supposed to play with a girl who has no home? Mom and Dad tell me not to play with homeless kids because they're lower."]
["Don't you have parents, a home, a surname, or even friends? Then what the hell do you have?"]
["If you hit me, you'll have to pay, you know? My mother said you have to give compensation money after hitting someone!"]
Sometimes children's words are sharper and more painful.
It's because children are honest, unpretentious, and don't know how to hide their malice.
The girl, with her head down, seemed dejected and thought she would soon burst into tears.
"Pfft..."
He lightly hit the wall, bursting into laughter.
He didn't expect her to lift a rock the size of her face, wobble, and throw it.
"Well, I'm curious about something, so let's give her a reward."
He resumed his slow pace.
"Those who couldn't even properly raise their children should be punished."
There was no time to figure out why the small body that clung to her knees and the small round head tilted occasionally shone in his mind.
* * *
Exactly one week after the meeting was suspended, the New Year's meeting was held again.
"You."
"Yes!"
"Come here."
I swallowed my saliva and carefully descended the stairs, standing in front of Duke Miriel.
"Yes, I only heard about your plans back then. Let's hear the reason why you want to leave this place.
"My birth secret..."
"Yes, didn't I ask you to tell me?"
Somehow today, the audience... no, the meeting room felt warmer.
"Is it my illusion that there are a few more people?"
It's like the ladies who came to see the next episode of the last drama they were enjoying...
I shook my head at the trivial thought that came to mind.
"Still, I'm fully prepared to leave the mansion."
I've also hidden some jewels that a lizard can carry in case humanization is released.
If I had to escape safely, I was thinking of collecting all the jewels and wrapping them in a bag.
"I'm sorry, actually..."
It was then that a shadow stretched out behind me.
"Actually, that girl is my daughter. It's time to clear this up. Isn't that right, daughter?"
"Yes, that's right... My father... What?"
I was so nervous that I followed the words I heard, but I felt something strange belatedly and stiffened.
When I turned my head to the sound, Erno Etham was approaching with his characteristic slow steps.
Is this what it feels like to be prey that will be devoured by a hungry beast walking in the meadow right in front of you?
"Ah, my daughter, you have to say it correctly. Tell them I'm your father."
He said completely absurd things with a soft voice.
"I'm sorry, but if I say that, will I be able to see the sun tomorrow morning?"
I tried to suppress the words that seemed to explode at any moment and opened my eyes wide.
"Quick."
Do you really want me to say that?
I closed my eyes tightly in the face of his sharp gaze and firmness. I have no power, so I have to do it.
"Yes, he's my father..."
"Pftt, hahaha!"
His laughter resonated loudly upon hearing my weak voice.
My face turned red.
"Stop making bad jokes and step back. Do you think this is your place?"
Goosebumps rose on my skin at the somber voice of Duke Miriel.
Despite being the subject of a terrifying gaze, Erno Etham's mouth drew a gentle arc.
However, his eyes didn't smile.
—Haha, how amusing. When was the last time I was called to the front when the patriarch was alive?
—How long has it been since you were released on parole...?
"Ah, they say that taking light notes in a notebook is also quite good for improving memory, Patriarch," Erno Etham said in response to Duke Miriel's words.
My 20 years of life experience tell me that he's saying it a hundred percent right.
In terms of Rofan, it's an elegant and dignified way of speaking worthy of high society.
What he just said is that he has a bad memory...
"Erno Etham...!"
"Even if you don't call me very affectionately, my hearing is quite good. You shouldn't think of it based on your own standards, Patriarch."
And this is a noble way of saying that he's not deaf like him.
The tendons bulged from Duke Miriel's clenched fists.
It's as if boiling lava is flowing over the exposed tendons.
Erno Etham was a man who truly fit the word crazy.
With a smile on his face, he responded with a soft voice, but there were underlying meanings behind every word.
"Here we go again. No wonder last week's New Year's meeting was so peaceful."
"It's because it was interrupted halfway."
"Yes, that's right. The new year wouldn't have started if something like this didn't happen. Erno-nim does something like this every year..."
"It seems that girl is the target this time."
"I guess so."
"I just feel sorry for that girl. She'll tire of her in less than a year."
"Let alone a year, she'll be lucky if she lasts half a year."
When the two started to discuss seriously, the buzzing around them could be heard quite clearly.
When I turned my head a bit, I saw people who were quite far away from me talking.
"I think my hearing has strangely improved since I possessed this body."
Is it because I'm away from modern civilization's gadgets? It just seems a bit odd.
However, something like this didn't happen just once or twice.
"Well, it was obvious from just looking at the novel's description..."
I used to explain Erno as the crazy psychopath of the world, so it wouldn't be normal.
In <Adopted>, Erno Etham accidentally adopts the female protagonist as his adopted daughter, but unlike other parenting works, it wasn't very sweet.
Rather, the people around him were more impatient with the heroine.
Well, it felt like a business relationship, where they used each other as needed.
"Half a year? Well, I say three months. I heard that Erno-nim practiced sodomy last year and brought a man with him to the New Year's meeting. The patriarch lost control, and the meeting room was devastated. After all, it lasted for four months, right?"
"Yes, the patriarch passed out, and there was a commotion."
"Still, I heard that the money Erno-nim gave the man when he fired him was enough to buy a small island."
It was a story that made my ears prick up as I still listened.
"Ah, so this is an act to mess with the duke."
It was only now that I could understand his sudden eccentricity.
I let out a long sigh as I felt my heart bursting.
"If I act like a fake daughter for his greed, won't I be kicked out immediately and be able to get money and leave later?"
At most half a year?
This is too...
Amazing!
Didn't they say the money given was enough to buy an island?
"I'm still young, so even if it's only half of that..."
There won't be any problem eating and living for the rest of my life.
I heard people's conversations as they watched the situation as if they were familiar with it, with bright eyes.
"So, guess what that man did? He said he didn't need all that money, he just asked him to stay by his side, despite the strong opposition from the family..."
"But I actually understand. How kind Erno-nim was at that moment. He searched for everything he needed, even fruits that were out of season. Honestly, was there anyone who wasn't fooled at that time? Certainly not in my case."
Oh?
He seems to be quite a romantic person.
Well, even in <Adopted>, he always used people like that when he needed them and then threw them away lightly.
Where else did the psychopath material come from?
"Ahem, well, compared to what he's done in the past, this is much better."
"In fact, if he were nice to me with a face like that, I think even I could be fooled by him despite knowing his personality."
I nodded.
If a crazy psychopath like this is only kind to me, I have no choice but to fall for it too.
"Of course, years of living with my damn brothers have helped me develop a special ability for that fake affection."
After all, at some point, they were kind, but at crucial moments, they deceived me and laughed at me.
Thanks to this, I have distrust of humans.
"So you're not going to listen to my plan?"
Even when I was listening to the interesting conversation behind me, it seemed like there was a constant fight at the front.
"When did you give me the right to speak?"
"Isn't justice and equality the direction the patriarch is pursuing? As I mentioned before, the custom of taking notes in a notebook..."
He really was a man with a great talent for scratching people's guts.
He was truly a talent.
"Shut your mouth!"
"I guess you could say that my plan for this year is to be a good father to my daughter, whom I met after a long time."
Erno Etham stood firm, and without the slightest change in his expression, he recited his plan.
"Be a good son, idiot!"
"Well, apparently, he failed in raising his own son."
That smile of his was even more refreshing than a glass of lemon juice.
