Raising the Daughters to Overcome My Failure

Chapter 7. Isabel (1)

This happened five years ago, when Adel was ten years old.

Adel, who had descended upon this land with the goddess' revelation, was an innocent child who knew nothing of the world.

Though she appeared to be a 10-year-old on the outside, she knew next to nothing except for language.

After completing her basic education at the royal palace, Adel was sent to the hero's house in accordance with the kingdom's tradition.

It was customary for the child of the gods to be raised in the hero's house for generations.

On the day she headed to Rarc Village.

What caught her eye was this very flower.

“Wow! It’s so pretty!”

Adel, who had not yet received etiquette training at the time, begged for the carriage to be stopped.

As soon as the carriage stopped, she ran towards the flower field full of East Camellias without looking back.

And barefoot, at that.

Leaping and jumping as she savored her freedom, she became intoxicated by the scent of the flowers, lay down flat on her back, and looked up at the sky.

White fluffy clouds under a blue sky.

The sound of a murmuring stream.

Even the sharp mountain ranges that pierced the sky.

Everything was new and liberating.

On the other hand, life in the royal palace had been a series of suffocating rules.

She had to learn all sorts of knowledge, starting with history.

‘I think I can live a different life here.’

But that was a great misunderstanding.

Frank's training was far more severe than the palace education.

Days of hell that continued without a single day of rest.

The next time Adel saw an East Camellia was, ‘Five years since that day.’

She preciously held the flower her father had given her.

A warm sensation spreading from her fingertips.

She felt the wariness and resentment that had built up in her heart slowly melting away.

Adel silently looked at her father.

His gaze was endlessly affectionate and gentle.

An expression that could never appear without a sincere heart.

But one question arose.

‘How did Father know I like this flower? I’ve never told anyone.’

It did not take long for belief to turn back into doubt.

To Adel, her father was still a difficult being to trust.

She asked cautiously.

“Is there a reason you’re giving me this flower?”

At that, her father replied with a troubled face.

“It’s your favorite flower, isn’t it? Was I mistaken?”

“But… I’ve never told you? And you’ve never done this before.”

Her father's expression hardened.

Doubt soon turned into disbelief.

If he had someone investigate this behind her back, that would be truly, ‘The worst.’

Adel's expression hardened as well.

***

This was the intuition of a veteran player and gamer of PP.

‘It’s important to answer well here.’

In the PP system, the line that immediately followed a gift was the key.

Only by adding the perfect line to an appropriate gift would the favorability rating explode.

On the other hand, what if the gift was good, but the follow-up line was off?

‘The favorability rating gets slashed.’

He wouldn’t know how many times I had used the save-load trick for this one choice of words.

But this time, I decided not to use such tricks.

‘It’s probably important to convey my true feelings.’

If I said something just for show, it would obviously be counterproductive.

Because I was a person with no gift for gab.

“I heard from Elliot that you like this flower.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I heard it a very long time ago, and it suddenly came to mind.”

Adel's eyes widened as if in disbelief.

“Adel. I am regretting many things right now.”

“What do you mean?”

“It wouldn’t have been enough even if I had raised you all with love… I wonder if I treated you too harshly because of my own greed. That has been weighing on my mind. If only I could turn back time, I would want to go back to that moment and start over. I mean it.”

Adel's tightly shut face seemed to slowly be tinged with compassion.

She hesitated for a moment, then opened her mouth with difficulty.

“My heart feels complicated hearing your words, Father. Still, I’ll try. Because I sincerely want to get closer to you.”

“Thank you.”

We looked at each other and smiled silently.

Now I could finally see the face of Adel I remembered.

That pretty smile had returned.

‘Sincerity really does get through after all.’

My heart grew warm.

For some reason, it felt like I would be able to sleep soundly tonight for the first time in a while.

Moments like these were the real charm of PP.

‘This is the beginning.’

Adel might not have completely opened her heart to me yet, but I would make her accept me as her real father soon enough.

Because that was my reason for being here, my reason for existence.

But at that time, I did not know.

The fact that behind Adel, a young man was glaring at me with a suspicious face.

***

After Frank left.

Alvarez could not calm his heart.

‘What’s with that guy all of a sudden? That’s not his original personality, is it?’

He had known for a long time that Adel liked East Camellias.

Because his first meeting with Adel was at that very moment.

He still could not forget the innocent appearance of Adel back then.

‘She ran freely barefoot in the flower field where the East Camellias were in full bloom.’

In the young Alvarez's eyes, such an Adel looked like a goddess, and he fell for her at first sight.

His one-sided love that started then was already in its 5th year.

But he never had the courage to dare give her the flower.

There was the fear of Frank standing behind her,

but it was also because he was worried that the act might seem like a courtship.

‘If I had done it wrong, I might not have even been able to remain as her childhood friend.’

A sigh escaped him automatically.

It was something he had kept only in his heart.

But to think there would be someone who would snatch this important moment.

What was even more absurd was the fact that the person was Frank, who usually tormented Adel as if he were catching a mouse.

‘What on earth brought about such a change of heart for him to do this?’

Alvarez's insides boiled with anger.

‘Unacceptable. Besides, he’s not even Adel’s biological father, is he?’

Frank was a man who became Adel's father simply because he was a hero.

Since they were not related by blood, who could know what was on his mind or how he viewed Adel.

What was most unbearable was Adel's reaction.

Even though a long time had passed since Frank left, Adel was humming a tune and looking at the flower Frank had given her.

Adel carefully placed it in a vase on the center of her desk, and then, as if it were a treasure, she did not take her eyes off the flower.

A fire raged within him.

He screamed in his heart as if pleading.

‘Adel, snap out of it! The person who gave you that flower is none other than Frank! The man who tormented you so much!’

But Adel was still smiling.

A gentle expression that she had never once shown him,

an expression that made her nickname, the Iron Lady, seem meaningless.

Alvarez gritted his teeth and made a resolution.

‘Frank, you cunning bastard. You must have some kind of scheme. I will never let you have your way.’

To him, Frank was no longer Adel's father.

He was just a wicked stepfather trying to separate him and Adel.

***

Meanwhile, at that time.

In Tournai, the capital of the Benedict Kingdom, a lavish succession ceremony was in full swing.

“Thank you so much for coming to such a humble place, Your Grace the Duke.”

“What a sad thing to say. You are the one who will make the Schwaben family prosper even more. I have no doubt you’ll do even better than Sir Jorge.”

“If you entrust it to me, I will do my best!”

A magnificent banquet with tables laden with so much food they seemed about to break.

High-ranking nobles filling the mansion.

But none of them mourned the death of the previous head of the family, Jorge.

They were just inwardly welcoming the appearance of a new cash cow after the foolish father.

Then, abruptly.

Marquis Moltke, who was among the highest in status among the guests who visited this place, brought this up.

“By the way. The last place Sir Jorge visited was Frank’s house, wasn't it? The investigation results say he has no connection to it, but my thoughts are different.”

“Hmm? What do you mean by that?”

As people showed interest, he began to make a forced argument with a sly face.

“Whether he is related to Sir Jorge's death or not, didn't Sir Jorge meet his end while visiting his house? In the end, this incident is as good as having happened because of a mere commoner.”

Despite the fact that this was nonsense.

The surrounding nobles agreed, saying he was right.

It was because they, too, did not like Frank, who was a new noble, not one by birth.

This aspect was even stronger because all the heroes of the past had come from noble families.

“That is true. In the end, Sir Jorge’s death is the same as dying because of a fake noble fellow.”

“Tsk. What is this country coming to.”

“This is by no means a light matter! Shouldn't we prepare countermeasures immediately?”

“That’s right! We must revoke his noble status and thoroughly block him from ever setting foot in this world again!”

Did this reaction provoke Bruno?

He squeezed so hard that the wine glass in his hand shattered into pieces.

As the gazes of everyone present focused on him.

Bruno spoke with force, his hand bleeding.

“That son of a bitch. I will definitely dispose of him myself! Because he has a debt to repay me.”

It was expected, but as his opponent fell for it so easily, Moltke smirked and nodded his head.

“Just as expected of the child Sir Jorge cherished the most! If you need any help, contact me anytime. Weren’t your father and I quite close?”

“Thank you, Your Lordship the Marquis.”

Most high-ranking nobles disliked Frank, but Moltke, in particular, did so.

This was because Baron Frank's domain was originally his territory.

Although it was a useless piece of land in the far north, for the greedy Moltke, having his territory pass into someone else's hands was an infuriating matter that he stewed over.

‘If I use this kid well, I might be able to deal a blow to that damn Frank.’

Frank was a commoner by birth, but he was the king's most cherished subject.

Besides that, he was under the protection of influential figures, including the Saintess and the Sage, and had the strong support of the people.

If a Marquis were to touch him carelessly, it might result in stirring up a hornet's nest.

But Bruno was different.

He already had a bad history with Frank and was nothing more than an immature child who knew nothing.

‘Hehe. I’m looking forward to seeing how Bruno will act.’

If he succeeded, it would be for the best, and even if he failed, there would be no problem.

He could just use this as a lesson to find a more thorough way to pressure Frank.

Moltke leisurely drank his wine, pondering how he could reclaim the stolen territory from Frank.

***

Is someone talking bad about me somewhere?

My ear was itching, so I dug into my earhole with one hand, and with the other, I wrote a letter.

I sent the letter written like that to the Royal Grand Cathedral.

Who on earth was the recipient that I wrote so politely?

Saintess Isabel.Since it was a letter to her, who held authority greater than the king, I had to show the utmost