I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter

Lupe shrugged his shoulders.

“I’ve always been good at playing the hated one, haven’t I? Ever since I was a kid.”
“It’s different now.”
Footsteps echoed from beyond the door.

“…That surname you were given—‘Ricoss’.”
Ferio, rarely speaking so sincerely, gave a solemn warning.
“It won’t be something the Emperor can overlook.”

Lupe engraved those words deep in his chest.
“Still, though.”
Just before the doors opened, Lupe muttered quickly,

“There’s something satisfying about watching that offended expression of his.”
“That’s true.”
“Please be careful too, Your Grace. No matter how hopeless he is…”

“…You’re going to tell me to maintain at least the minimum courtesy?”
Ferio took a brief breath and adjusted his expression.
“I suppose so.”

The sly smile that had curled across his face vanished, replaced by a blank, unreadable mask.
Perhaps because Lupe had grown used to the Ferio who smiled more often around Leonia, he now felt an almost chilling fear at seeing this face again.
This—this was the real Ferio.

The arrogant beast who scoffed at everything.
“His Majesty the Emperor bids you enter.”
The servant lifted his chin stiffly as he delivered the imperial summons.
But the moment his eyes met Ferio’s, he hastily lowered his head.

His voice trembled at the suffocating pressure that poured from Ferio’s presence.
Neither Ferio nor Lupe paid the servant any mind as they walked past.
“Duke Voreoti.”

The man seated alone on the sofa greeted them.
Golden eyes, the trait passed down through the imperial bloodline, were fixed on Ferio.
His well-groomed light brown hair, golden eyes, and robust build—

Some might call him a shining symbol of the glorious Empire, moved by awe and reverence.
But to the Black Beast of the North, it was unimpressive.
In fact, the golden energy that shone when Leonia activated her Fangs of the Beast was far more breathtaking.

“Your Majesty.”
Ferio swallowed his sneer and gave his greeting.
“Voreoti of the North greets the Master of the Empire.”

Let’s see how fun it’ll be to toy with you.
That way, when he got home, he’d have a good story to tell Leonia.
***

The conflict between the Imperial Family and the North runs deep.
It’s been that way since the founding of the Empire, and the animosity is so old that people treat it like common knowledge.
But very rarely—

As rare as a sprout in a drought—there were times when the tension between the two factions loosened.
The most recent example was the late Emperor and the former Duke Voreoti, who had passed away slightly earlier.
The two were a rare exception—close enough to be called friends, building a strong rapport despite their similar pride and arrogance.

Because of this, their children often saw each other from a young age, and the adults hoped they would get along.
But unfortunately, that hope was never fulfilled.
“What kind of idiot…”

Ferio Voreoti, one of those children, muttered as he pointed out the documents Lupe had brought.
“Let me briefly explain just how much of a fool they were.”
He then described the attempted illegal transaction involving monsters that had taken place in the North.

As the documents piled up and Ferio listed the names of those involved, one by one—
The complexion of Emperor Subiteo visibly paled.
Yet he struggled to maintain a calm expression.

‘Well, well.’
Ferio inwardly admired it.
The man who used to tremble in inferiority whenever they met… seemed to have finally learned how to suppress his emotions.

Lupe also seemed impressed, making a quiet whistling gesture.
It was still clumsy—but it was progress.
“…Ah. My apologies.”

Ferio suddenly spoke, his tone quiet.
“I got carried away and misspoke in front of Your Majesty. My words were too strong. Will you forgive me?”
And yet, his voice wasn’t agitated in the slightest—calm and cool as ice.

It was a small courtesy to an Emperor who had at least learned to manage his emotions.
Though, in truth, it was more like mockery.
“…Watch your words.”

Subiteo managed a barely passable smile, but inside, he was far from composed.
Ferio nodded politely.
“Then I shall continue.”

The papers laid out before them contained the names and evidence of all those involved in the current incident.
Including the Tabanus family, who had spearheaded the affair, along with three Northern houses and several Western noble families—among them, Baron Hirqus.
They had even obtained the guest list for those who had planned to attend the auction, had the illegal trade gone ahead.

It had been less than two months since Ferio launched the raid on the site.
That they had gathered this much information in such a short time was due to their meticulous investigation that had begun during the monster hunt last winter.
“You’ve done thorough work.”

Emperor Subiteo finally opened his mouth, lips trembling.
“Your praise is generous.”
Ferio replied with practiced humility.

“Capturing those who threaten the Empire’s foundation—it’s no trouble at all.”
With the report concluded, Ferio leaned languidly against the back of the sofa.
As if this imperial reception room were his own domain.

“I’m simply glad to have been of assistance to Your Majesty.”
“……”
“So there’s no need to thank me.”

If anything, Ferio should be the one grateful.
Thanks to this, he’d finally landed a blow.
He hadn’t actually expected the Emperor to be directly entangled in this incident.

It had been possible, yes, but the Subiteo he knew was the sort to carefully avoid direct involvement.
He’d expected him to just piggyback off Consort Usia or House Olor and reap the benefits.
But instead, he turned out to be surprisingly hands-on—or maybe just plain foolish.

Either way, Ferio found that it slightly soothed the irritation he’d built up over the last three years of forced residence in the capital.
“It’s all thanks to Your Majesty.”
“I appreciate your hard work.”

The Emperor complimented him while casually crossing his legs.
Ferio gently tilted his head with his eyes half-lidded.
It was a gesture close to mockery—a subtle jab at an Emperor pretending not to bleed.

The Emperor’s fingers twitched anxiously on his knee.
Just as Ferio had expected, the Emperor’s insides were in shambles.
The documents laid before him choked the breath from his lungs.

Most of the accused were nobles aligned with him—and some, like Tabanus, were his most trusted allies and enthusiastic supporters of the operation.
The Emperor clenched his eyes shut.
Losing Tabanus was a massive blow.

The Tabanus family had long held close ties to the imperial household.
They had grown distant during the late Emperor’s reign, but Subiteo had received great help from them in ascending the throne.
“The one caught on-site was the heir of Count Tabanus, but the Count himself appears to have been deeply involved as well.”

The Emperor clicked his tongue sharply.
‘Useless fool.’
Unlike his father, the young heir had ambition and wit, and Subiteo had trusted him enough to connect him with the Empress’s family.

And yet, this was how he repaid him.
What a disappointment.
The true regret was not in the loss of loyalty—but in the loss of political utility.

“On top of that, they hired vagrants…”
The “vagrants” Ferio referred to were none other than the Imperial Knights.
They had been handed over at Consort Usia’s suggestion, saying the operation needed support.

But in an instant, those men had become nothing more than nameless vagrants—and were wiped out by the Gladiago Knights.
The Emperor was overwhelmed, unable to regain his composure under the assault.
Ferio gave him a sidelong glance, then moved on to the matter of punishment.

Most of the decisions were left to Ferio’s discretion.
By now, Emperor Subiteo’s mind was in tatters.
“…And so, I believe this level of punishment would be appropriate.”

Ferio was practically the only one still speaking.
“What are Your Majesty’s thoughts?”
“The heir of Tabanus…”

The Emperor barely managed to speak, his voice hollow.
“The heir of Tabanus… Where is he now?”
“He’s dead,” Ferio replied.

This translation is the intellectual property of .
“It was me,” Ferio said calmly.
Emperor Subiteo’s face flushed a furious red.

“How could you act without a proper trial…!”
“It wasn’t me.”
Ferio furrowed his brow slightly, as if troubled by such a premature misunderstanding.

“I imprisoned him in the dungeons with the other offenders to examine the charges. Unfortunately, he was killed during a monster attack.”
“M-Monster attack…?”
“There was one hiding in the shadow of Tabanus’ heir.”

Ferio named the monster that had killed them.
“It was an Inopaco.”
It looked harmless—like a wolf or a dog.

But as its name suggested, it was a savage creature that concealed itself in its prey’s shadow and attacked by surprise.
“We’re always on alert for it during winter monster hunts.”
It was a monster found deep in the Northern mountains. Ferio speculated simply as to why it might have been there.

“Most likely, while they were transporting the baby monsters, one Inopaco slipped into the heir’s shadow.”
The more detailed his explanation, the drier the Emperor’s lips became.
Because that very monster… was one he had once expressed interest in keeping.

“In terms of danger level, it ranks among the top five.”
As Ferio finished explaining, a thought ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) occurred to him:
Maybe it would’ve been better to just let the monster eat the Emperor too.

***
That evening—
During dinner, Ferio shared what had happened at the Imperial Palace with Leonia.

“So Uncle Lupe didn’t get punished?”
Leonia asked as she gulped down her mouthful of food.
It just so happened Lupe was joining them for dinner that night.

“Is that… a good thing?”
“Well, yes, I suppose so.”
Lupe answered while slowly cutting into his meat with a knife.

“I’ve already been branded a ‘traitor’ to House Pardus, and now I’m inheriting a core Northern noble house. That’s sure to rub them the wrong way.”
“Dad, is that okay?”
Leonia turned to Ferio.

“There’s no reason it wouldn’t be.”
Ferio took a sip from his wine glass as he replied.
The dark red wine tilted smoothly in the round glass before slipping past his lips.

“The Viscountcy of Ricoss died out several decades ago, but records show a direct marriage between that family and the Marquis of Pardus.”
“My grandfather, in fact,” Lupe added, gesturing to himself with a fork stabbed into a piece of meat, smiling brightly.
“The Ricoss line has historically served House Voreoti. This title suits me better than any other.”

“Can you just… give away titles like that?”
“The so-called ‘core’ houses fall under Voreoti jurisdiction.”
Ferio explained.

At the founding of the Empire, one of the agreements made between the first Emperor and the head of the North was the North’s absolute autonomy.
One of those agreements granted House Voreoti the authority to bestow noble titles to specific families—now referred to as the ‘core noble houses.’
Considering that granting titles was otherwise an exclusive right of the Emperor, it had been a highly exceptional privilege.

Hearing this, Leonia recalled the three noble Northern houses that were punished in the recent incident.
Their properties had been confiscated and they were exiled from the North.
Yet—they still retained their noble titles.

That was because, aside from the core families, all other noble titles fell under the Emperor’s authority, not Ferio’s.
“I see.”
Leonia nodded in understanding.

No wonder the Emperor would be so bitter.
After all, it looked as though the Duke had taken a noble from the opposition and converted him into a core noble, thereby expanding House Voreoti’s influence.
The Emperor has an inferiority complex about the North.

Leonia recalled how the Emperor had been described in the novel.
As with most imperial rulers, Subiteo Aquila Bellius harbored an unexplainable, obsessive desire toward the North.
“So basically, Dad landed a huge blow, huh?”

Leonia grinned, proud. Her mouth was smeared with bright red sauce.
She liked the steak sauce so much she had scraped it clean with her fork.
Ferio wiped the corners of her mouth with a napkin.

“So those pieces of evidence,”
The little beast, sitting still as her father tended to her, seemed to be deep in thought.
“That illegal monster trafficking incident.”

She asked if they couldn’t use it to pressure the Emperor.
Ferio replied that they could.
“Then why didn’t you?”

“That was His Grace’s command.”
Lupe said proudly.
In truth, when they were gathering evidence and tracking those involved, the Emperor’s silent approval and subtle cooperation had been blatantly obvious.

It was so outrageous that Lupe had nearly stormed the palace himself, ready to grab the man by the collar and scream at him to wake up.
But Ferio had ordered all of it erased.
For two reasons.

The first was the Empire’s stability.
It had only been three years since the passing of the late Emperor, who had established what many considered the most perfect rule in imperial history.
There was no need to cause unnecessary unrest by exposing the current Emperor’s faults.

“Then,”
Ferio raised his hand.
Lupe, who had been rambling, instantly fell silent.

“What do you think the second reason is?”
Ferio asked, turning to Leonia.