Elodie’s disjointed words touched my heart. I hugged Elodie and stroked her dry, rough hair.

“You know, Elodie.”

“……Yes.”

“Let’s go home.”

“……!”

Elodie’s dark red eyes widened and then filled with hope.

“Right now?”

“Of course.”

I lifted Elodie up. She had gained quite a bit of weight, but she was still smaller and lighter than her peers, so it wasn’t difficult at all.

“We’re going to our home.”

***

A week passed.

As if the ‘Great Commotion of Finding Elodie’s Dad’ had never happened, Elodie and I returned to our usual daily life. The café regulars pried about where we had been all this time, but I just smiled. Now that Elodie had decided to live with me, there was no need or reason to tell them.

It was when we were having a late dinner together after closing the café. Today’s menu was crispy garlic bread, refreshing tomato salad, and potato soup with thick slices of bacon. Elodie, who had been eating enthusiastically, suddenly lifted her head.

“I think someone’s outside.”

“……?”

I blinked. I couldn’t hear any bell ringing or knocking on the door. That’s when it happened. There was a loud bang as the door was forcefully opened. A door that should have been locked!

“Elodie, hide.”

I told Elodie firmly and hurried towards the entrance. I didn’t forget to grab one of the self-defense clubs I keep around the house. If I’m lucky, it’ll be nothing, but if I’m unlucky…

‘Maybe it’s the remnants of that human trafficking ring from back then.’

In that case, I probably… I gripped the club tightly. If it really was a member of the human trafficking ring, I wouldn’t stand a chance. I was just planning to cause as much commotion as possible to get the neighbors to come running. But the moment I saw the intruder, I realized all my guesses were wrong.

‘……What the.’

The intruder was a man with a striking appearance. Jet-black hair, uncommon in this world, and dark red eyes similar to Elodie’s. A sharp jawline and high nose bridge as if carved from stone. A man who could pass for a classic movie heartthrob was glaring at me, breathing heavily.

But I couldn’t just stand there admiring his looks. His eyes were bloodshot, his face was pale, and his expression was menacing, making him look far from normal.

“……Excuse me, what brings you here?”

I spoke calmly, glancing at the shattered front door. If this was ‘that person’ I was thinking of, staying calm and responding calmly would be the best approach. Then everything would end well.

Elodie would find her father, and I would get compensation for the broken front door. After a moment of silence, the man’s threatening voice pierced my ears.

“You’ve been hiding like a rat in this backwater town all this time.”

What? What did he say?

Before I could sort out my confused thoughts, the man spat out his words.

“If you hand over the child obediently, I’ll give you a painless death.”

Before I could make any excuses, the man, no, Duke Baniche, twisted my wrist. The self-defense club fell helplessly from my hand. I sensed it. This person had already lost his mind.

‘Duke Baniche is mad. Not seven years later, he’s already mad…!’

Only then did the gatekeeper’s warning flash through my mind. He had genuinely been worried about me and blocked my entry. I tried to pull away, but Duke Baniche gripped my wrist tightly and wouldn’t let go. My tightly held wrist started to hurt more and more.

“Answer me. Where is my daughter?”

“Le, let…!”

I couldn’t even explain the situation, let alone say a proper word. I felt an overwhelming killing intent that seemed to choke the life out of me. Fear gripped me as I realized that if I remained caught like this, I might die by dark magic.

‘Then, Elodie…!’

Elodie would surely be hurt. She would probably never forgive the Duke. Her short, happy period shouldn’t end like this.

Just as I was struggling to break free from the Duke’s grasp, a small figure darted out like an arrow and rushed at the Duke.

“Don’t kill my mom!”

Elodie fought like a cornered alley cat. Her small hands and feet mercilessly struck the shins of an opponent much larger than herself. The startled Duke stopped moving, but Elodie didn’t cease her attack. The child scratched and bit the Duke’s arm that was holding me.

Thud. I collapsed on the floor, wheezing for breath. Perhaps due to the extreme tension being released, I couldn’t muster any strength in my body. When I lifted my head, I saw the Duke’s face wearing a dazed expression. The Duke’s mouth opened very slowly.

“Elodie…?”

“Mom!”

Ignoring the Duke’s words, Elodie leaped into my arms.

“Mom! Mom! Mom…!”

I instinctively hugged Elodie, but my mind was still frozen with fear. Duke Theodore Baniche had tried to kill me without warning. Thinking that I had kidnapped Elodie. That thought probably hadn’t changed even now that Elodie had called me mom.

‘He’ll probably think I’ve brainwashed the child instead.’

Elodie gently stroked my wrist, which would likely have visible marks.

“Does, does it hurt…?”

“It doesn’t hurt.”

I forced a smile for Elodie. It did hurt, but there was no point in telling the truth to a young child. That’s when it happened.

“Elodie…?”

The Duke’s trembling voice was heard.

“You… are you Elodie?”

If it hadn’t come from the mouth of the man who had just tried to kill me, it would have been a voice so poignant it could have moved me.

It seemed he really did love Elodie. Well, he had tried to kill me based on mere suspicion of kidnapping without any evidence, so he must love her. The problem was that this love wasn’t exactly welcome from my perspective.

The Duke bent his knees and reached out towards Elodie, who had her face buried in my arms.

“Elodie, my daughter. Let me see your face. Hmm?”

I blinked. It seemed a bit strange that he was already certain she was his daughter without even checking the mark on her leg.

But the moment Elodie turned her head to look at the Duke, I realized the reason. Elodie looked too much like the Duke!

Of course, Elodie was still too young to boast the same sculpted beauty as the Duke. But the identical red eyes, the prominent nose bridge, and the chiseled forehead revealed that Elodie and the Duke were at least closely related.

‘……’

I swallowed hard. I had found Elodie’s biological father that I had been longing for. One who loved Elodie terribly at that. But contrary to the expectation of feeling happy and relieved, all sorts of worries were squirming inside me.

‘This person is mad.’

At most, I had thought the current Duke Baniche would have secluded himself in grief over losing his daughter. But clearly, the eerie glint that appeared in Duke Baniche’s eyes when he tried to kill me was the kind you’d only see in a madman. Should I hand Elodie over to someone like this?

While I was biting my lip and mulling over these thoughts, Elodie shouted fiercely.

“I’m not your daughter, mister!”

“……!”

The Duke’s face turned pale. Seeing his elegant, long fingers, which had been reaching out to Elodie longingly, tremble, I felt a sense of satisfaction despite the serious situation.

“I’m Mom’s daughter. A bad man who tried to kill Mom isn’t Elodie’s Dad!”

Hmm, that might be a bit harsh. I patted Elodie’s back, trying to calm the child’s excitement.

“It’s okay, Elodie. Look, I’m safe thanks to you saving me, right?”

“……But……”

Elodie’s lips protruded in a pout.

“But, I don’t want to live with that man……”

The child’s voice began to mix with tears. I closed my eyes tightly and then opened them. I couldn’t ignore the presence of the man who had tried to kill me just moments ago, thinking I was hiding the child.

However, I also couldn’t push away this child who was clinging to me as if I were her whole world.

“……Your Grace.”

I called out to Duke Baniche as respectfully as I could. I noticed the Duke visibly flinch.