“By the way, how are you so good with babies?”

“What do you mean? I just…”

“You have no siblings and no younger relatives in Lure’s branch family. You also didn’t grow up close to any younger friends.”

“Huh? That’s…”

I was momentarily startled by the Grand Duke’s sharp questioning.

I couldn’t exactly say it was because I had experience taking care of younger children at an orphanage in my past life, could I?

‘Why is he being so sharp about this? How much does he even know about Odelia?’

Shouldn’t he be showing this level of interest in Angie instead?

I found myself feeling slightly resentful toward the Grand Duke.

Why was I being blamed for doing something he couldn’t?

“All you need is love and attention. Then you’ll naturally understand what she needs and what makes her feel comfortable.”

Like how your stiff embrace must feel uncomfortable to Angie, how your stern face must look terrifying to her, and how to be considerate so she can eat adequately… things like that.

I wanted to spell it out for him in detail, but I held my tongue.

‘I’ve never seen a lady be so protective over a baby like this. Let alone a father who didn’t even know she existed.’

Perhaps the difference came from the fact that I had grown up in a culture different from that of the nobles in this world.

I was especially surprised to see how, after days of following me around, the Grand Duke still struggled to handle Angie properly.

Of course, his cold personality also played a role.

“…Love and attention, huh.”

The Grand Duke seemed to find my words reasonable as a satisfied expression crossed his face. One corner of his lips curled up handsomely.

Reclining lazily on the sofa and stroking his chin, he looked as though he was scheming something.

‘Typical of the original villain—his smile makes him look rather sinister.’

Knowing his role in the original story, I dismissed my impression as mere bias.

***

“He seems to be running late today.”

When I returned to the garden after my morning walk, the massive figure of the Grand Duke was gone.

On a normal day, he would have already marched over to snatch Angie from Mathias by now.

“He must be busy. He’s probably been neglecting his duties at the Grand Duchy while spending time here.”

“That just means he cherishes our Grand Duchess… Oof!”

Mathias, continuing his usual praises for Angie, was silenced when her tiny hand smacked his philtrum.

“Well then, shall we say hello to our dear little greens today?”

Excited, I rolled up my sleeves and picked up my beautiful watering can from near the faucet. The embossed patterns reflected the light beautifully.

“Hello, Basil! Oh my, your leaves have grown so splendidly! And Rosemary, when did you grow so much?”

Not just Angie—my garden friends were also growing by leaps and bounds. Having been dragged around to help the Grand Duke bond with Angie for the past few days, I hadn’t been able to check on them properly, and now the garden looked noticeably different.

“Mathias, you must have worked hard taking care of everything alone.”

“I just followed Dame Gwendolyn’s instructions.”

Mathias replied with his usual bright demeanor. I had no idea why the Grand Duke was so wary of someone this kind-hearted.

After a brief gardening session, we sat on a bench, admiring my quaint vegetable garden.

‘…Ah, this is nice.’

The warm sunlight of deepening spring, the gentle breeze cooling my light sweat, and the lush greenery before my eyes.

The way the pale green leaves swayed in the wind was soothing in itself.

For the past few days, the villainous Grand Duke had been disrupting the tranquility with his icy presence, always hovering around trying to bond with Angie. But not today.

‘He may be nice to look at, but seeing him so often has made me numb to his handsomeness. I just wish he’d hurry up and get close to Angie so he can take her home already. It’d be sad not to see her, but still…’

As I let my gaze drift downward, I met Angie’s wide amber eyes staring up at me.

She looked as if she were trying to read my thoughts.

“Angie, isn’t it nice to have such a peaceful moment?”

“Oooh!”

“But you still need to get closer to your father soon. He’s the only one you can truly rely on now.”

“Ai…!”

“Family is that important.”

I had never had one myself, but in this life, Odelia’s father had been willing to stage a rebellion for his daughter’s sake.

Angie puffed up her chubby cheeks in dissatisfaction. Finding it adorable, I gently pinched her soft little face.

That was when—

“Y-Your Grace…!”

Mathias suddenly leapt to his feet.

The Grand Duke had arrived.

As usual, he brought an air of chilling tension with him into the cozy garden.

But something was different today…

“Angie, look! Your father has dressed up so handsomely today. He must have wanted to look good for you!”

“Noo…”

“It seems he took extra time getting ready, which is why he’s late, right?”

“Hai… huung.”

Instead of his usual pile of metal armor or a casual shirt, the Grand Duke was dressed in a dignified formal uniform, as if he were heading to a banquet.

The hair he usually swept back carelessly was now neatly styled, making his forehead appear even more well-defined than usual.

Though I spoke to Angie as if it didn’t affect me, my heart stirred helplessly at the sight of a neatly dressed, handsome man.

“G- good morning, Your Grace! Then I’ll leave the three of you to enjoy your time together!”

Mathias cheerfully greeted the Grand Duke before promptly stepping aside. The young boy, who admired the Black Knight of the Ice Wall, was always impeccably polite.

“Good morning, Your Grace. It seems you have an engagement today. You look quite splendid.”

“Good morning. This…”

The Grand Duke briefly frowned as he glanced at his attire in response to my words, then swallowed whatever he was about to say.

His expression seemed to say, “What kind of nonsense is this?”

“Shall we head inside, then?”

“I have been thinking about ‘love and attention’.”

Without warning, the Grand Duke stepped toward me. As he leaned over me, a deep shadow was cast over my face.

Just as I felt that the distance between us had shrunk to an inappropriate degree—

“You must come to Norhart with me.”

“…Excuse me?”

I couldn’t hide my shock at his declarative tone as I looked up at him. His expression was so stern that I couldn’t even begin to guess his true intentions.

“No matter what I do, Angie only clings to you.”

His low voice echoed right before me, making my heart pound wildly.

This must be arrhythmia, right? Because Odelia’s heart is weak…?

I thought I had grown somewhat comfortable around him, but it seemed I was mistaken.

‘The pressure of an original villain is truly something else…!’

I quickly shut my eyes, trying to clear my mind of this heart-straining presence.

‘It’s not unreasonable for him to think that way. Angie is practically attached to me with separation anxiety.’

But it would be better for Angie if we parted ways as soon as possible. If we grew even more attached and I ended up showing her my failing health…

‘That can’t happen.’

I knew all too well how painful it was to watch someone you love grow weak and fade away—losing my grandmother at a young age in my past life had taught me that.

For me, this life might just be a tutorial, but for Angie, her life would continue on.

Perhaps due to the sudden maternal instinct I’d developed, or maybe because Angie wasn’t even in Princess Flora Is Lovely, I found myself imagining her future in a way I hadn’t for other characters.

‘I also don’t want to go around inviting sympathy just because I have a terminal illness.’

More than anything, if I went to Norhart, this peaceful life would be completely shattered.

‘Everyone sees Odelia as the infamous villainess who drove her father to rebellion just to get revenge on the royal family…’

Considering the way Baron Alterman had looked at me and the malice I had sensed from the servants at the Marquess of Lure’s estate, it was clear that would be the case.

Yes, thinking about it this way, I had more than enough reasons to refuse.

“Your Grace.”

I intentionally deepened my voice to sound as serious as possible, hoping to put some distance between us.

“Do you realize you are making a highly inappropriate proposal to me right now?”

“Inappropriate?”

One of the Grand Duke’s eyebrows arched elegantly. His expression, the very embodiment of arrogance, seemed to challenge me to continue speaking.

I forced down my racing heartbeat and pressed on.

“You are essentially trying to detain an unmarried lady in your residence.”

“…Ha.”

At my words, the Grand Duke let out a scoff of disbelief.

I supposed it was understandable—after all, I had just reacted as if he had invited me in for an instant-noodle date on the first outing.

‘If only he’d take offense and withdraw the suggestion. Now, what would Odelia do in this situation…? Ah, right.’

I recalled Odelia’s severe sense of propriety in Princess Flora Is Lovely and fully immersed myself in her mindset.

“Even though I have been expelled from high society, do you think I am ignorant of a lady’s honor?”

“Honor, you say.”

Of course, I didn’t actually care about that.

I just remembered Odelia acting all high and mighty when she tormented Flora, throwing around words about “a lady’s honor.”

“I deeply appreciate Your Grace’s petition for leniency regarding my father’s punishment.”

I added a touch of old-fashioned politeness, just for good measure.

“However, if I were to seek Your Grace’s protection while under house arrest, I would merely become fodder for gossip.”

“…”

“Moreover, I have heard that a royal decree was issued against you due to my father’s actions. I fear provoking the royal family any further.”

Had he not expected me to respond with such rational arguments? His lips curled ever so slightly in amusement.

As the Grand Duke slowly straightened his posture and the shadow over me lifted, I finally felt like I could breathe again.

“As I expected.”

He crossed his arms and fell silent momentarily, seemingly contemplating the words I had just thrown at him. Since he was naturally expressionless, I could not know what was going through his mind, which made me uneasy.

“In that case, how about this?”

No, please, there’s no need for a counteroffer. You can just let this go.

Despite my inner protest, I maintained a polite tone.

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s get married.”

“…Pardon?”