Belinda broke out in a cold sweat as she observed Leo, who remained motionless as if turned into a salt statue.

‘Does he not like it?’

Belinda bent down slightly to examine Leo’s face and froze.

Tears were beginning to well up in Leo’s large eyes.

‘My goodness, he dislikes it enough to cry!’

Flustered, Belinda blurted out names that came to mind randomly.

“If you don’t like it, we can use another name. So… D-Donald? Charles? Or maybe Jake?”

“It’s all g-good, sniff.”

Soon, Leo roughly wiped away the tears with his sleeve and spoke clearly.

“I like the name Leo more than anything else in the world.”

Despite Leo’s affirmation, Belinda meticulously confirmed Leo’s wishes until the very end and then placed a pen in the child’s hand.

What was needed for adoption was mutual consent.

Leo carefully wrote his name next to where his name was already written.

Belinda also wrote her name as the guardian below Leo’s name.

Immediately, a system window appeared before Belinda’s eyes.

Bzzt. Bzz-bzzt.

However, as if some error had occurred, the window cracked and filled with noise, making it impossible to see its contents.

‘Why is it doing this?’

Just as Belinda felt an ominous premonition, the noise in the window disappeared as if it had never happened, and multiple windows covered Belinda’s field of vision.

[‘Belinda Blanche’ is recognized as the official guardian.]

[Beginning the 38th update.]

[The mark of the ‘Star of Heroes’ is being engraved on the ‘Star of Heroes’.]

[Kingdom map has been downloaded.]

[Access to the Cash Shop is approved.]

[Access to the Skill window is approved.]

[Main quest has been updated.]

.

.

[Congratulations. You have become the official guardian of the ‘Star of Heroes’.]

The 38th update?

A strange sense of dissonance flashed through her mind when Leo’s slightly anxious voice was heard.

“Is that all?”

Belinda quickly closed all the system windows in front of her and knelt down to match eye level with Leo, who was looking up at her intently.

“Yes, that’s it. Very simple, isn’t it?”

Leo fidgeted with their clasped hands as if in disbelief, then asked again as if to confirm.

“Really? Don’t I need to overcome seven trials, or pluck the Morsenia flower that grows in the most dangerous place in the world, or provide some proof like that?”

Leo had expected that to become Belinda’s family, he would have to undergo arduous trials, like princes and princesses in fairy tales who face all sorts of tests to succeed to the throne.

But to think it would end with just writing a name on a piece of paper.

To Leo, the weight of the Blanche name felt as heavy as that of the royal family.

It wasn’t that he coveted the Blanche name; he just wanted to become Belinda’s family.

“I, I can do well, Lady Belinda. I’ll definitely succeed.”

As Leo spoke with enthusiasm, even clenching his fists, Belinda sighed reluctantly.

“I was going to tell you slowly so you wouldn’t be scared.”

He knew it!

Leo listened attentively with a serious face.

“First, when I ask for a hug, you must come running to hug me anytime.”

“…?”

“Second, you must exchange good morning and good night greetings with me every morning and evening. And that’s not all. Third, you must always have dinner with me, and fourth, if you have a nightmare, you must run to me first. Fifth, if there’s something you want, you must whine to me, and sixth, you may lie to others, but you must always be honest with me. The seventh and last one is the most terrifying and difficult to achieve. You must grow up healthy without any ailments. How about it? Can you overcome these challenges?”

“Th-that’s…”

“Then let’s start with the first task right away.”

Belinda spread her arms with a mischievous smile.

Leo’s face turned red as he realized he’d been tricked, and his lips formed a triangle, but he soon fell into Belinda’s embrace.

Belinda finally uttered the words she had wanted to say on the very first day she met Leo, a very long time ago.

“Welcome home, Leo.”

***

Before I could properly share a moment with Leo after completing the adoption documents, I was immediately led away by the maids to be adorned with all sorts of ornaments.

After consulting with Terry, it was decided that I would wear a pure white dress for the succession ceremony.

Traditionally, white symbolizes loyalty to others in the kingdom.

That’s why nobles often send white bouquets as congratulations when someone they support achieves a political victory.

Today’s succession ceremony is for the Crown Prince.

By wearing white clothes that symbolize loyalty and wearing the crown bestowed by the Crown Prince, I could metaphorically convey my intention to side with the royalists to the nobles gathered there.

And above all else.

“Everyone will be wearing colorful dresses to attend the spring ball, so a pure white dress will stand out even more.”

As Terry said, it would definitely stand out.

‘Fortunately, my hair is red.’

I nodded with satisfaction as I checked my appearance in the mirror one last time.

Despite being completely white—from the delicate lace covering my shoulders to the pearls adorning the dress hem and the hair ornaments—it didn’t look plain, partly due to the intricate details of the clothes and accessories, but also because of my red hair.

After saying goodbye to Leo, I boarded the carriage heading to the royal palace.

As always, Sir Penadel took charge of my escort.

How long had it been since the carriage departed?

“In the north, you can occasionally see white auroras. The sight is so beautiful that some people stare endlessly at the aurora and freeze to death.”

Sir Penadel began with a rather abrupt statement.

Unlike his usual concise manner of speaking, this introduction was uncharacteristic, so I tilted my head and listened attentively to his words.

“I have also seen that aurora, but couldn’t feel any emotion. Therefore, I might have thought the people who froze to death while staring at the aurora were somewhat foolish.”

What is this? Is he telling me a fable?

As I was tilting my head, unable to understand his intention.

“But now, looking at you, I think they must have been enraptured even in their moment of death.”

“What…”

“You are extremely beautiful, Lady Blanche.”

“…!”

I quickly opened my fan to cover the lower part of my face.

What? Did he just compare me to the beautiful white aurora of the Arctic?

‘Sir Penadel? The AI that can’t utter anything beyond what’s been inputted?’

Unable to compose my expression, I hid my entire face behind the fan and took deep breaths.

My heart was pounding because it was such a shock to hear such words spoken in a solemn voice by a man who never utters a single honeyed word.

Then suddenly, I recalled the advice I had given him on the day of the monthly meeting.

“I understand your appreciation, but next time, when a woman asks like this, answer in detail about what is beautiful, how it’s beautiful, and how much.”

Could it be that he remembered my words from back then…

“Ahem, Sir.”

“Yes.”

“Your skill at complimenting women has improved greatly.”

“Thank you.”

His voice remained impassive, but beneath the mask, his lips formed a slight curve.

I fidgeted with my hands on my lap before speaking.

“I know that the Grand Duke has given me a truly precious person. And that His Grace is very different from the rumors.”

I had originally planned to say this after the succession ceremony while handing over the ownership documents for the mine, but somehow I couldn’t bear the momentary awkwardness and blurted it out.

When I reviewed the family business documents as the acting head of the family, I confirmed that the mining of magic stones at the Herrington Mine had been suspended for several years.

I thought the magic stones might have been depleted, but that wasn’t the case.

The Baluasten family was simply paying a penalty to the Blanche family each year, equivalent to the amount of magic stones they were supposed to mine, stating that they couldn’t proceed with mining for some reason.

I couldn’t know what the story was, but there must have been a desperate reason to accept such losses for years.

If the Grand Duke were as greedy as rumors suggested—enough to kill his entire family to take their place—he wouldn’t have proposed a political marriage to me.

Rather, he would have commissioned my death from other nobles who held grudges against me, waited for my dowry to be returned to society, and then purchased the mine when it came up for auction.

Despite that being quicker and simpler, the Grand Duke deliberately accepted losses and proposed a deal to me.

“I also think, as you said on the first day, that he is a very upright person.”

As I praised the Grand Duke’s character, Sir Penadel denied my words.

“Please… don’t say that.”

“What?”

“He is a coward… a pathetic man who knows what’s wrong but fears speaking the truth.”