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Chapter 36
Having seen Seraphina cling to Laura’s hem and call out “Mom” several times, Gepetto had no doubt that Seraphina was Laura’s biological daughter.
He thought it entirely possible that Laura had given birth in secret, avoiding the public eye. After all, in recent years, Laura had been living completely away from the Marquis family.
Afterward, Gepetto only saw Laura when visiting the palace—and even then, it was always from a distance.
If he tried to speak, the Crown Prince would glare at him…
“Could it really be the Crown Prince?”
The thought suddenly escaped his lips. At first, it had been a casual musing, but the more he considered it, the more plausible it seemed.
Blonde children were rare in the Empire. Such a thing was only possible for the royal family or a select few noble houses.
Considering how long Asel and Laura had been close, the child’s age roughly matched.
“Then… that brat knows everything and just ignores it?”
Without proposing to Laura, without declaring the child as a royal?
Suddenly, Gepetto entertained another possibility:
“Could it be that it’s not the Crown Prince’s child at all?”
But he quickly dismissed the idea. The closeness between Laura and Asel was too apparent.
Even if Asel was devoted to Laura, he probably wouldn’t accept a woman who had betrayed him and borne another man’s child.
“So it really is the Crown Prince’s daughter? But then why leave her here? Could it be he doesn’t know she was born? No, that’s impossible.”
Laura had never left the mansion with the child, but she hadn’t hidden her existence either. Everyone working in the mansion knew about the child.
Surely, everyone who needed to know already did.
After thinking over this in his room, Gepetto finally stood up.
“Why the hell am I even thinking about this? She’s not even my kid!”
He was annoyed that he had wasted time on such a pointless matter.
But thinking of the child made him want to see the little squirming body, so he went nearby.
He hadn’t planned to enter the room—just a quick glance would do.
“What the…?”
The child wasn’t alone.
The room was bustling.
Inside were Laura and Esha.
The two women had the baby sitting in the center of the room and were draping fabric over her while talking.
“Look, our little one even suits gray! She didn’t wear all those neutral ceremonial clothes for nothing.”
“Still… this color is a bit… wouldn’t a brighter color suit Seraphina better?”
‘Why are they dressing the baby in ceremonial clothes… wait.’
Though he had intended only a brief peek, Gepetto’s eyes widened at the gray fabric laid over the child.
‘What the hell is this? How dare they bring such dull gray here?’
As if hearing his inner thoughts, the women removed the gray fabric and brought out a different color.
‘Yes! It should be yellow!’
Gepetto clenched his fists in delight.
But then he immediately realized how ridiculous he looked and fell into deep self-reproach.
‘…What am I even doing here?’
He wasn’t fitting clothes for himself, so why was he so worked up?
Scratching his head, Gepetto was about to turn away when—
Through the slightly open door, his eyes met the child’s.
“Three—”
Snap.
‘Damn it, how is she so perceptive?’
He hurriedly withdrew, and the voice calling him didn’t reach him.
Apparently, the child had enough sense not to betray him to Laura.
Thanks to the child keeping quiet, the little scene went unnoticed by Laura.
Scratching the back of his neck, Gepetto descended the stairs and ran into a servant.
“Oh, what brings you here at this hour?”
Gepetto didn’t want to summon the household staff. He hated being watched now that he was no longer a noble.
But the Marquis mansion was enormous. Even minimal upkeep required staff.
The servant before him was one such employee.
The staff avoided Gepetto at a reasonable distance, and he didn’t bother to engage them.
So, when this servant spoke to him unexpectedly, Gepetto snapped.
“Do I look like someone who snoops around other people’s rooms?”
“Eh?”
The servant had only happened to see him pass by and didn’t understand.
Gepetto cleared his throat while keeping an eye on the servant.
“Ahem, come to think of it, do you have a child too?”
An awkwardly quick shift in conversation. Fortunately, the servant responded.
“Yes, just turned two. My wife struggles with her fussiness.”
“Two years, huh…”
Gepetto stroked his chin. He didn’t know the difference between a two-year-old and a four-year-old…
‘Kids are all the same anyway.’
Comforted, he asked the servant,
“What do children that age usually play with?”
After receiving recommendations for toys, Gepetto clutched a rattle and made his way to Seraphina’s room.
The toy, resembling a small hammer, jingled at the slightest movement, so he walked very carefully.
It was embarrassing enough just holding it!
Carefully, he arrived at Seraphina’s room and peeked through the slightly open door.
Unsatisfied with just peeking, he poked his head inside and looked around.
‘No one here?’
Only the child, sitting alone on a soft carpet stacking blocks, seemed to be in the room.
Then—
“Three—”
The child noticed Gepetto and opened her eyes wide, about to make a loud noise.
“Shh! Quiet!”
Gepetto pressed a finger to his lips, and the child nodded.
She was, time and again, a child he found very endearing.
“I, I came here because…”
His urgency made it hard to speak clearly. Still, he steadied himself to continue.
“What are you doing?”
“Damn it!”
Laura entered the room. Gepetto shouted in surprise.
The jingle of the rattle followed him as he jumped.
Laura’s eyes fell to the source of the sound.
“What’s this, a rattle?”
“It wasn’t on purpose… I just… from outside…”
Before Gepetto could explain, Laura clicked her tongue.
“But this is a bit… too young for Seraphina… That’s an infant toy.”
Annoyed by her calm tone, Gepetto exploded.
“Throw it away! I don’t care!”
The rattle he had thrown rolled across the carpet.
Behind the closed door, Laura blinked in confusion.
“What’s wrong with him?”
Until the tea tasting event, the Empire was surprisingly peaceful.
Except for Gepetto’s occasional blunders.
He often procured dolls or toy kitchen sets and left them in Seraphina’s room.
When the rattle was rejected, he adjusted his gifts to her preferences.
And, thinking he wouldn’t be noticed, he lingered near her room and slipped the toys inside one by one.
“But what’s the point? It’s all visible anyway.”
The method was so trivial it provoked only a small chuckle from anyone observing.
“Still, you’re not doing this with malice, are you?”
“That’s why I leave it be.”
Had it been otherwise, he would have already had Sirin hang him upside down.
Initially, they thought Gepetto was flirting with Seraphina, but the toys were ordinary.
For some reason, Gepetto seemed fond of Seraphina.
Meanwhile, I was seated in front of the mirror.
Today was the day of the tea tasting event.
I asked Masha to arrange my hair to look neat and elegant rather than fancy.
Having worked as a maid for years, Masha’s hands moved skillfully. She quickly gathered and smoothed stray hairs with care.
“By the way, Seraphina…”
“Don’t worry, my lady. Not a hair will be out of place. That’s my duty.”
“Right. And, I think Gepetto’s been sneaking her snacks—please make sure she doesn’t eat too much. She’s been skipping meals.”
“Yes, miss.”
Chattering, the styling was complete.
Finally, Masha secured a pearl pin.
“How does it look?”
“Perfect!”
“I’m glad you’re pleased,” Masha said.
“Do you have any plans for today?”
“Nothing special… just, since I’m wearing the original design, I want to be properly admired.”
That’s the perk of being possessed.
Meanwhile, Marien, who had been postponing her return to the kingdom with her fully healed leg bandaged, learned new news from her maid.
“Tea tasting event?”
Her eyes widened.
