Became the Villainess’s Guardian

“I heard your daughter has someone she’s seeing.”

These were the words I had overheard from Freyja some time ago.
Startled, I seized upon that casually uttered remark and inquired further.

“…Really?”

“Well, shouldn’t you be asking your daughter about that instead of me?”

Come to think of it, she was right, but since the topic had come up, I decided to probe deeper.

“No, no, wait a moment. I’m rather confused myself. What was the source of that information?”

“Why, my niece, of course. Didn’t your daughter mention it to you?”

“No, this is the first I’m hearing of it.”

So it seemed this was not a mere jest from Freyja to tease me, as that was not in her nature regarding such matters.
In other words, it could only mean that either Freyja’s niece Erine had misunderstood, or I had been unaware.

And while it was somewhat denting to my pride, upon further reflection, the latter seemed the only reasonable possibility.
As Erine was closely associated with Freugne at school, she was likely well-informed about such personal matters.

According to Freyja’s explanation, the sole basis was Erine’s direct testimony of having heard it with her own two ears.
However, given their status as best friends at school, it seemed more credible than exaggerated.

“There is a possibility Erine misunderstood, but… to be honest, I can’t say the likelihood is high. She’s an honest child.”

“I see……”

“Martop Head, the people we just turned away have returned!”

As I was stunned by this unexpected truth, an employee interrupted our conversation.

“Ah, yes. Tell them to wait a moment, I’ll be right there. Edan, what about you?”

“I’m feeling a bit dizzy, so I’ll rest here for a bit……. Good luck.”

Leaving Freyja to let out a mighty roar as she prepared to wrestle with the investors invading the Martop, I slumped into a chair, considerably shaken.

That I, of all people, had to learn of this from my workplace superior.

‘I cannot leave things as they are.’

This was undeniable proof of my lack of attention towards Freugne.

So it was only natural for this question to rise to the top of the conversation list I had prepared for her.

While a personal matter, it was nonetheless a cause for concern.
An adopted daughter was still a daughter in heart. Moreover, in this modern Londinium where the cliché of a husband disciplining his wife was prevalent, how could I not be worried?

“You have a boyfriend, apparently?”

“Well, about that…”

So I chose an appropriate timing after dinner and broached the subject.
When Freugne did not outright deny it, I silently heaved a deep sigh. I had been that negligent, it seemed, and it was something I needed to reflect upon.

“It appears I’ve been neglectful towards you.”

“No, really. I think there must be some misunderstanding-”

Freugne shook her head in denial.
Her slightly labored breathing and anxious eyes – having taken the daddy psychology course for years now, I could easily discern the unease they contained.

“Don’t be too embarrassed or anxious. It’s a common occurrence at your age. Unless it’s something egregious, I don’t intend to interfere, so you can rest assured.”

While I said I wouldn’t interfere, that was within reasonable bounds.
Freugne was intelligent enough to judge people well on her own, but what if she made a mistake due to her lack of romantic experience?

“However, if there was such a matter, you should have told me as well. There were times when you returned late from school, and I worried, you see. If that had been the reason, I could have understood.”

Seemingly embarrassed, stumbling over her words, Freugne hesitated briefly before approaching and embracing me when I opened my arms invitingly.

Why hadn’t she told me sooner?
Well, of course not – because it wasn’t the truth to begin with.

‘But for now, let’s just stay like this for a while.’

I didn’t want to ruin the current warm atmosphere by embracing her.

Having been invited into the embrace, Freugne nestled her face against my chest for a moment before lifting her head to meet my gaze.
Regardless, she had fully enjoyed the present moment, so there was a need to correct this misunderstanding. After taking one final, small breath, the lingering scent still present, Freugne asked:

“…Mr. Edan.”

“Hm?”

“How did you come to know about… that?”

“I overheard it in passing. I didn’t think a daughter could hide anything from her father.”

Freugne immediately knew who Edan had heard it from.
Unless she directly stated otherwise, the only ways the information could have reached him were through the foundation students attending the same school or Erine.

However, it had been at least two weeks since Edan’s last visit to the foundation’s student dormitories, ruling out that hypothesis.
She was well aware of his daily routine, so the possibility of him being misinformed was non-existent.

Therefore, the sole remaining possibility was that, while Erine may not have directly told Edan herself, she had indirectly conveyed it through Martop Head Freyja.

“It seems Erine told you.”

“Yes, you guessed right. To be precise, I heard it from the Martop Head, but still.”

“Whatever Erine said, it was a lie.”

“Very well, let’s go with that.”

“No, it really was a lie. In fact, I don’t have a boyfriend or anything like that.”

“Then why did you lie?”

“…To refuse the confessions from other boys at school.”

Edan furrowed his brow, seemingly perplexed.
Truth be told, she herself was equally puzzled.

Since it had been a lie intended to deceive everyone from the outset, there was no particular reason to hide it from Edan as well.
And yet, she found herself elaborately explaining the circumstances that had compelled her to do so, as if making excuses to him. It was peculiar.

And the following day,
upon entering the school gate, Freugne immediately charged towards Erine.

Erine, who had been waving in greeting, instantly sensed something amiss from Freugne’s formidable approach and cautiously inquired:

“…What’s wrong? Your face is all flushed too.”

“Erine, did you perhaps tell someone that I have a boyfriend?”

“Ah, well. My aunt asked if anything interesting was happening at school, so I mentioned it. Was I not supposed to? The boys at our school probably already know by now.”

Freugne had nothing further to say on the matter.

While it was understandable for the information to have spread to some degree, as she had received no further confessions after the initial refusal.
And since it had been her original intention, the widespread dissemination should not have been undesirable.

Still, nonetheless.

“But not to Mr. Edan!”

This was what Freugne had wanted to say.
As if understanding, Erine clapped her hands and remarked:

“Ah, could it be that Mr. Edan dislikes the idea of his child being in a relationship?”

“Well… not quite, but…!”

Recalling yesterday’s words, they seemed to imply she should handle such matters herself.

It was a rare attitude in Londinium, where patriarchs commonly dictated their children’s future careers, from inheriting the family business to becoming a mage, even handpicking their marriage partners from affluent widows in the entertainment districts.

Rather than outright neglect towards his child, given that he sponsored her education and showed interest in her activities, it seemed more accurate to interpret it as encouraging her to pursue her desires.

Having run out of words, the only recourse left for Freugne was blunt denial:

“Ah, in any case, it’s not acceptable!”

“Alright, I’ll be more careful from now on.”

“But spreading rumors within the school is perfectly fine. I only ask that you prevent it from reaching Mr. Edan’s ears.”

After all, whenever she recounted school happenings to Edan, she frequently brought up Erine and Sithe as well.
So it was not a matter of violating privacy that prompted her to make this request. If so, it would be a double standard.

“But may I know the reason?”

“Mr. Edan might develop strange misunderstandings.”

“But it doesn’t seem like he would particularly mind, does it? Would anything really change if he thought you had a boyfriend?”

“Well…no, I suppose not. Yes.”

What was this? Why was she acting like this?
She should have provided a logical rebuttal, but examining the instinctive words tumbling from her mouth, she was simply stubbornly insisting it was untrue, without any justification.

It was then that Freugne slowly began dissecting, one by one, the thoughts tormenting her mind.

Why did she need to hide her romantic affairs?

‘Because he’s my father.’

Yes. Then why had she hidden it?

‘…Because I disliked it.’

Disliked what?

‘The idea of Edan thinking I already had someone I liked.’

A contradiction.

If he was her father, she should not have minded him knowing, and yet she had wanted to conceal the very fact of liking someone.
If she had been embarrassed about having a boyfriend, a vague excuse might have sufficed, but she had already spread the rumor throughout the entire school.

So perhaps, just perhaps, this could be the real answer.
Freugne decided to venture into a realm she had never explored before.

Something she had never deeply contemplated, having taken it as an absolute premise thus far.

Then.
Was she truly regarding Edan as a father in the first place?