As I returned from my walk, I saw the Grand Duke of Norhart already seated on a bench overlooking the garden’s vegetable patch.

For the first time, he was dressed in light formal attire.

‘Did he remove his armor because of what I said yesterday?’

Seeing this handsome man try to appear more comfortable for his daughter warmed my heart.

“Your Grace, you’re here? Good morning.”

“Yes, I’m la—”

His voice trailed off. The Grand Duke barely finished his sentence, his expression suddenly turning severe.

‘Is he angry because I kept him waiting?’

No matter how much time passed, I could never get used to his overwhelming presence. Instinctively, I pulled Mathias’s arm and positioned him behind me.

“Stay behind me.”

At that moment, his golden eyes, even darker than Angie’s, gleamed ominously.

His gaze seemed to land precisely on my hand, which had grabbed Mathias…?

Striding toward us with long, deliberate steps, he loomed over Mathias and spoke chillingly.

“Hand over my daughter.”

“Y-Yes, Your Grace!”

He practically snatched Angie away from Mathias, yet Mathias still responded with something like awe.

“Huueh… Ang…”

The moment Angie instinctively tried to cry, the Grand Duke, perhaps recalling what he had observed before, adjusted his posture and securely held her in one arm.

As expected of the Black Knight of the Ice Wall, he quickly learned anything physical.

“Where are you coming from?”

“I went for a walk…”

“A walk?”

His golden eyes flared like the fires of hell as if he were interrogating me.

I straightened my shoulders, resisting the urge to shrink back, and answered firmly.

“Yes, I walk in the forest behind the estate every morning. That’s how I first met Angie.”

“Alone with that boy?”

“He’s my escort knight…”

The Grand Duke’s gaze slid from me to Mathias. His golden eyes lingered on him long before suddenly shifting to a distant point.

“A-Ah, yes, Your Grace!”

I heard the hurried sound of Mathias scurrying away.

Oh… That was an order to leave.

The Grand Duke then took a step closer to me and extended his hand, his expression resolute.

“That walk—can I join you?”

“I just returned from one.”

“I intend to take a walk with my daughter now. We’re not yet comfortable with each other, so I need you there.”

I couldn’t quite grasp what he was saying.

Was this some new form of punishment for making him wait…?

But his expression was so serious that I decided to respond sensibly.

“Your Grace, I’m sorry, but Angie needs to have breakfast now, and I have things to do.”

As I spoke, I glanced toward the vegetable patch.

Seeing that the Grand Duke’s presence would keep me from moving freely, Mathias had already started tending to the garden independently.

The Grand Duke followed my gaze and then muttered darkly,

“…No.”

Even his murmurs carried an eerie weight.

“In that case, I will handle my daughter’s meal. You will stay with us.”

“What? But I need to take care of the garden. I have to finish watering before the sun gets too high.”

“You need to supervise and advise me. That way, I can bond with my daughter more quickly.”

His tone was devoid of emotion, but his imposing presence made it clear that refusing wasn’t an option.

At the same time, he wasn’t entirely wrong.

‘Honestly, I could leave the gardening to Mathias. And the Grand Duke indeed needs to get closer to Angie…’

Just as I was about to nod in agreement—

“Shii!”

Huh?

I turned toward the sudden noise and saw Angie in his arms, her face scrunched up.

She stretched her little arms toward me, wriggling as if trying to escape.

“You don’t want to enjoy a nice meal with your father?”

“Uuuung…!”

An icy silence fell over us. The Grand Duke’s golden eyes gleamed dangerously.

‘That wasn’t an actual response, just baby babbling, right?’

Trying to ignore the tension, I gently patted Angie’s head as if I hadn’t noticed her struggle to reach me.

“Oh wow, Angie, how lucky you are! You get to eat with your father.”

“Shh, shii…!”

“Hm? You’re saying it sounds delicious? That’s right, our Paul is a master of baby food!”

“…Paul?”

The Grand Duke’s voice was filled with skepticism.

“…I thought you said you had no lover?”

“What?”

‘Is now really the time for this? Shouldn’t you be calming Angie down instead?’

I shot him a glare packed with meaning before replying sweetly.

“That’s the name of our estate’s chef.”

“……”

“Angie, doesn’t it feel reassuring and nice to be held by your father?”

Just as I turned to head toward the estate—

“Don’t… go!”

Huh?

Two words?

My baby, forming such logical speech already?

I turned back in surprise and saw Angie pointing her tiny finger firmly at the Grand Duke.

Of course, her “pointing” was just an adorable little stretch of her chubby arm…

‘Look at that perfect angle…!’

And yet, as her temporary guardian, I was overwhelmed with pride.

Overcome with emotion, I instinctively reached out and took Angie from the Grand Duke’s arms.

“Oh my, who does my little Angie take after to be so smart? Is it because you’re destined to be a Grand Duchess? Come on, let’s go eat something delicious!”

Showering her plump cheeks with kisses, I babbled nonsense in excitement.

In my lighthearted joy, I didn’t notice it at the time.

I didn’t see the Grand Duke’s stunned expression at suddenly finding his arms empty.

Nor did I see Angie smirk at him over my shoulder, as if teasing him.

***

“No, that’s way too much!”

“Is that really too much?”

“Think about Angie’s mouth size. Do you really think that will fit into those tiny lips?”

“……”

Sigh, my temples throbbed.

There was no end to the things I had to correct, from start to finish.

At first, I left Angie to sit beside him on her own.

“No, she doesn’t have enough core strength yet…!”

Hearing my words, the Grand Duke lifted Angie into his arms, imitating his observed posture.

Then, when I handed him the spoon I had already prepared, he tried to shove it straight into her mouth without a second thought.

“You need to consider the angle! Angie isn’t used to swallowing from a spoon yet.”

Only then did he finally adjust the spoon’s angle to match Angie’s head position and successfully get the porridge into her mouth.

After repeating the process a few times, I handed him the bowl and told him to feed her independently. Instead, he scooped up the porridge, packing it to the very limit of surface tension.

‘He really doesn’t seem to have any affection for her…’

Affection is about attention, observation, and considering what the other person needs.

I glared at the Grand Duke’s smooth, expressionless face, which showed no hint of concern for Angie.

“Well, you’ll be hiring a nanny anyway, right?”

“A nanny?”

“She’s already started eating solids, so it’s not like she needs to be nursed anymore. But you’re not going to raise her yourself, are you?”

“…That’s true.”

His response sounded bewildered, as if he had never once thought about the specifics of raising Angie.

“You searched for her for so long, and yet you didn’t prepare for this?”

“Well…”

“You’ve at least set up a nursery for her, right?”

“……Of course?”

The slight hesitation before his answer made it obvious—he’d be ordering people to prepare one as soon as he returned to the Grand Duke’s estate today.

“And you’ve already prepared a crib and bedding for her?”

“……”

“Judging by how you shower her with gifts daily, you must’ve stocked up on clothes in advance too, right? Just so you know, Angie is growing pretty fast.”

The Grand Duke pressed his lips into a thin line, looking displeased.

At this time, he should be flustered for failing to act like a proper father, yet he had the nerve to act indignant instead.

‘How can I possibly send Angie with him?’

He was her only biological father, and the Grand Duchy was the best environment for her future, so I resolved to entrust her to him.

‘But at this rate, she’d be better off staying with me. Damn this terminal illness.’

I rolled my eyes and checked on Angie.

She had porridge smeared all over her mouth and was rolling her big, round eyes, trying to make sense of the argument unfolding in front of her.

And the moment our eyes met—

“Mama!”

As if she had been waiting for this, she said with a bright smile.

Ugh, she’s too cute…

She’s this adorable, and she’s his daughter, so how can he be so indifferent to her?

Does he really have less paternal affection than the maternal instincts I developed out of nowhere?

I was the one spending more time with Angie right now, but ultimately, the responsibility was his.

Suppressing my concerns, I focused on watching the Grand Duke feed Angie.

After that day, the Grand Duke insisted on learning how to care for Angie and continuously arranged situations where the three of us would spend time together. As if trying to compensate for his lack of fatherly affection with time.

And for days now, I hadn’t even had a chance to check on my precious plants.

As if determined to prevent me from tending to my garden, the Grand Duke kept showing up at the crack of dawn, lingering in the Blue Roof Manor all morning before leaving.

“Today’s a hands-on lesson. Use this rattle and play with Angie properly.”

I placed Angie in his arms and handed him a rattle. It was one of the extravagant gifts he had brought to impress her.

It was the epitome of luxury with its gilded handle and embedded emeralds, sapphires, and rubies.

Holding the rattle, the Grand Duke looked visibly uncomfortable.

Ignoring him, I crossed my arms and leaned back, fully adopting the stance of a spectator.

“If this is a hands-on lesson, does that mean you’ll be evaluating me?”

“Angie will do the grading. If she laughs, you get a perfect score. If she cries, you fail.”

I tilted my head, signaling him to go ahead and try.

This level of cheekiness would’ve been unthinkable when I first met the Grand Duke.

Even if it was for Angie’s sake, being constantly dragged into these situations with him made my frustrations pile up.

And the Grand Duke…

“Now, Angie. Focus on the sound and movement of this.”

With an utterly solemn expression, he began shaking the rattle—without even adjusting the tempo.

It was as if he were keeping time for the national anthem or a funeral march…

Angie glanced between his face and mine, then pursed her lips.

“Hwaaang! Mama…!”

Her face crumpled as she flailed her tiny arms toward me.

…Just as I expected.

Sighing, I stepped forward and took Angie back into my arms.

“…You failed.”

My petty little plan had only ended up making Angie cry.

Feeling guilty, I shot him a reproachful look.

“How do you plan to take care of Angie alone if you can’t even manage this?”

“…Good question. That’s a real concern.”

For some reason, at that moment, Angie’s crying started to subside.