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Chapter 5
When Father didn’t answer my suggestion about building muscle, I pressed him again.
“You heard me, right?”
“Huh?”
I let out a frustrated sigh. “Dad, did you not understand what I just said?!”
“A-ah, I heard you, I heard you. My sweet daughter, I’ll work out and try to make my body stronger. So please, don’t sigh like that. Every time you do, it scares me.”
He looked so nervous that I couldn’t help but reach up and pat his cheek. A father who gets intimidated by his own daughter—how pitiful and adorable at the same time.
He’s precious to me, but still… this can’t continue.
“Don’t be scared. I’m only saying this because I care about you! You have to stay healthy so you can live a long time and watch me get married someday.”
“That’s true, isn’t it?”
“Yup! So, Dad—” I smiled sweetly. “You’ll do anything I ask, right?”
“Of course! If my daughter asked for the world, I’d bring it to her.”
Even when I said something strange, he just laughed it off as usual.
“That’s a bit much,” I said.
“Really? You sound like a different person today. Just like that time…”
That time. The words made my stomach tighten, but I forced a bright laugh.
In my past life, Amannet used to be a quiet child most days—but if something annoyed her, she’d throw tantrums out of nowhere.
Still, she wasn’t greedy. Father spoiled her so much that she rarely had to ask for anything at all.
But I wasn’t that girl anymore. I needed to change things—to fix this life before it led to the same terrible ending as before. That meant asking for what I needed.
“So… are you saying you won’t do what I ask?” I said, squinting at him.
“What? No, no! Of course not. Tell me, sweetheart, what do you want? Did you find something you want?”
Without hesitation, I said, “It’s not something I want. It’s someone I don’t want. My nanny—I don’t like her. Replace her.”
“Huh? Nanny Reyna?”
Father’s face froze in confusion. But no one looked more shocked than Reyna herself, who had been standing silently behind us the whole time. Her eyes went wide, and I could almost hear her brain spinning.
“M-me, my lady?”
“Yup! You, Nanny!”
“You must be joking, right? You don’t really mean to dismiss me, do you?”
“Yes, I do.”
“You—you’re just playing around. Do you even know what ‘dismiss’ means, young lady?”
To be fair, hearing the word dismissed from an eight-year-old probably sounded ridiculous. But I wasn’t about to waste my new chance at life babysitting this snake in disguise.
If I could get rid of her before she started scheming against me, everything would be easier. It was a perfect plan.
“Not a joke. I’m serious.”
“But yesterday you said you liked me,” she protested weakly.
I dug a finger into my ear and tilted my head. “Did I? Don’t remember.”
“M-my lady! What are you—”
“What?!” I snapped.
Reyna puffed out her round cheeks, fuming, then turned to Father for backup.
“Lord Marquis, you can’t possibly dismiss me over a child’s whim, can you? You know how much I’ve done for her! I’ve taken care of the young lady like my own daughter since her mother passed!”
But my father… my sweet, foolish father… always sided with me.
No matter how unreasonable I sounded, he’d always listen.
“If Amannet says so,” he murmured, “then I suppose there’s no helping it.”
I smiled. There it is.
Reyna’s eyes went round with panic. “Y-You can’t be serious! After all these years of caring for her—you’d just throw me away like this? My lady, please tell your father this is just a joke!”
“Not a joke,” I said firmly. “I mean it.”
You should’ve behaved better while you had the chance.
Her lips trembled before she finally blurted out, “Why do you hate me so much?”
“Do I need a reason? I just don’t like you.”
My blunt answer left both her and Father gaping.
“So you just… don’t like her?” Father asked awkwardly. “But sweetheart, you always said you liked your nanny.”
“I did. But not anymore. Why, Dad? You said you’d do anything for me, but now you’re taking her side?”
Flustered by my sudden pout, Father shook his head like a doll. “No, no, that’s not it! But maybe instead of firing her, we could just make her a maid for now and hire a new nanny?”
He was clearly trying to find a middle ground.
“Dad.”
“Yes?”
“You’re too soft. You need to be decisive. Cut cleanly—like a sword.”
If we kept her as a maid, she’d never actually leave. She’d just worm her way back in.
I glared at Reyna, then shouted at Father, “Don’t be indecisive!”
He blinked rapidly, then stammered, “W-Where did you even learn that word?”
“From a book,” I said seriously.
“You read books?”
“W-why not? I can read!”
(Granted, the original Amannet definitely couldn’t have.)
“Anyway, that’s not the point!” I barked.
“O-oh. Right…”
“When you said you’d do anything for me, was that a lie?”
“No! Of course not!”
Good. Time to land the finishing blow.
“Honestly, Dad, you’re great in every way—but this side of you? Not so much.”
“H-huh? I’m… not great?” he asked in dismay.
“Yeah. You say you’ll do everything for me, but you keep hesitating.”
In human relationships, balance matters. You can’t just throw tantrums—you need to make them feel guilty. So I dropped my shoulders and looked down sadly.
“It’s fine. You don’t have to listen to me. I’m used to it.”
Reyna jumped at the chance. “That’s right, my lord. You shouldn’t give in to every childish demand. If you keep indulging her, she’ll grow up spoiled—rude and ill-mannered!”
There it was. The subtle insult.
I looked at Father, my expression trembling with hurt.
“Dad says he loves me, but he’s always so busy… It’s fine. I’m used to being treated this way. Everyone says nice things to my face but never means them. It’s always the same.”
No tears came, but I made sure to wipe my eyes as if they had.
An Oscar-worthy performance, if I say so myself.
“My sweet girl…” Father’s voice wavered.
Yes, perfect. He’ll realize it now—the truth about how the servants treat me when he’s not around. He’ll fire Reyna and start investigating the whole staff.
At least, that’s what should’ve happened.
But instead of understanding, his expression turned… odd.
Wait. Don’t tell me he didn’t get it?
Before I could speak, Reyna jumped in again.
“My lord, please don’t take this seriously. The young lady’s just in a bad mood. I’ll handle her attitude myself.”
She gave me a sweet, fake smile as she reached toward me in Father’s arms.
That smile said “Just you wait.”
My heart sank. Seriously? Dad, you can’t be this dense…
Then, suddenly—
Father’s face changed.
The soft, foolish man who always smiled at me was gone.
His red eyes sharpened like blades as he turned to face Reyna.
His voice, usually warm, was suddenly cold enough to cut through steel.
For the first time, he didn’t look like my gentle father—
He looked like the Marquis of the House of Reize.
