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Chapter 6
I bit my lip.
Even as an empty compliment, I couldn’t call this fried rice delicious.
Because I added too many eggs, it turned soggy, and the green onions and bacon were chopped unevenly.
I had already given up on preparing raw shrimp from the beginning because it looked too difficult.
And as for stir-frying it properly?
The bottom was burnt while the top was still undercooked.
It was a complete mess.
I gave Melissa all the better-cooked portions, but even those were still terrible.
But Melissa ate it happily.
She even scraped up every last grain of rice.
“…….”
Suddenly, realization hit me.
The reason I gave up my weekend to take care of this child was not because of anyone or anything else.
Because I was the Vice Director of the Child Protection Bureau?
What sense of duty could possibly come from a title that was only for show?
Because I pitied Melissa?
There were countless pitiful children in the world already.
And from the start, I never asked the Grand Duke for anything, so there was absolutely no benefit for me in taking care of Melissa.
Even so—
‘I’m doing this for myself.’
Not for the current me.
But for the eighteen-year-old “me” from five years ago, who woke up alone in a tiny mold-filled room.
Back when I struggled desperately to survive as Tessa Harrington, an orphan the same age who barely survived by doing odd jobs.
More than anything else, what I desperately wanted back then was a person.
Just one person who understood my hopeless situation and would offer me a shoulder to lean on.
Of course, that person never appeared in the end.
But—
‘Melissa has me.’
And until the wounds this child received at such a painfully young age finally healed, I would never let go of that tiny hand.
“Unnie, are you crying?”
Melissa’s voice sounded frightened.
“D-did I do something wrong?”
“No.”
I shook my head firmly.
“Melissa, you didn’t do anything wrong at all.”
“Really?”
Melissa looked at me with a confused expression.
Seeing that face, I could clearly feel all the confusion and pain the child must have gone through until now, and my eyes became watery again.
With a tight throat, I barely managed to answer.
“You know, I think tears come out because I’m so happy.”
“……Happy? Why?”
“Because I’m eating fried rice together with Melissa. Actually, since coming here, I’ve never eaten this kind of…… food together with someone before.”
Melissa suddenly jumped down from her chair and walked toward me.
Like she was sharing a secret, she whispered quietly into my ear.
“Me too. This is the first time I’ve eaten it with someone here too.”
* * *
Time passed in the blink of an eye.
After completely finishing the fried rice, Melissa and I spent the entire day talking about memories.
Because of that, I learned many things about her.
The name of her closest friend, the age of the Maltese dog next door that got along with Choco, the old grandmother at the senior center who always gave Melissa candy whenever she greeted her, and even the last family trip she went on.
Of course, we didn’t only talk about personal stories.
Melissa knew all the newest songs from popular idol groups by heart, and she even sang and danced for me.
Naturally, they were songs I didn’t know, but I was still happy just hearing new songs from familiar singers.
“You’re really good.”
I clapped my hands while smiling.
At least right now, Melissa looked like an ordinary third-grade elementary school child.
Melissa puffed out her lips.
“The dances they teach here are weird. They’re not fun at all……. So I showed them the dance I’m best at, and after that the dance teacher never came back.”
“…….”
I barely held back my laughter.
I could only imagine how shocked a noble dance instructor must have been after seeing Melissa suddenly perform intense idol choreography.
Still, I couldn’t take Melissa’s side here.
“That one was your fault, Melissa. The teacher came to teach you dances for ballroom parties.”
“……Really?”
Melissa looked at me with innocent eyes.
“So from now on, I can’t dance the dances I know?”
“Not in front of other people.”
Melissa had to continue living in this world from now on.
Whether she liked it or not, as a noble lady.
If I truly thought about her future, I couldn’t keep indulging her forever.
“But when it’s just the two of us, you can dance whenever you want.”
Thankfully, instead of crying or throwing a tantrum, Melissa tightly hugged me.
“I’m glad I have you, unnie.”
Time flew by quickly, and before we realized it, it was already time for me to leave.
“Uuuugh…….”
Melissa looked at the clock and made a miserable face.
“Unnie, let’s meet again next Saturday too, okay?”
“We’ll have to see depending on the situation. Of course I want to see you too, Melissa, but sometimes unavoidable things happen.”
“Hic…… uugh…….”
Tears slowly gathered in Melissa’s large transparent violet eyes.
“I don’t want to separate from unnie…….”
“Me neither. But we can meet again, right? And if we can’t meet next week, I’ll send you a letter.”
……Though honestly, I had no idea whether that letter would safely reach Melissa or not.
Still, no matter what, I had to find a way to keep communicating with her.
Because only by cooperating with Melissa could we stop the terrible future ahead.
Clack, clack—
The sound of horseshoes striking hard stone echoed outside before stopping precisely in front of the villa.
‘They came earlier than expected.’
I held Melissa’s hand and opened the door.
“……?”
Naturally, I thought a servant had come to pick us up.
But stepping out from the luxurious carriage marked with the Northern crest—
Was Grand Duke Kardicha himself.
Compared to how he looked at the ballroom, he seemed far better now, though the gloomy and troubled atmosphere around him still remained.
……And he was still handsome.
Especially today, his hair was brushed back, emphasizing the perfect shape of his head and giving him a completely different feeling.
Instead of the flashy formal clothes from the ball, he wore a simple coat, but somehow that suited his cold beauty even better.
‘……What am I even thinking?’
My face suddenly burned hot.
Had I always been this weak against visual attraction?
“U-unnie……?”
Melissa spoke softly while tightly grabbing my sleeve.
My already flushed face became even hotter.
I was so flustered by the fact that I kept staring at him that I ended up blankly staring without realizing it.
‘What am I even doing?’
I hurriedly regained my senses and lowered my head.
“Y-Your Grace. I apologize for my rudeness.”
I quickly greeted him, but the Grand Duke acted as though I didn’t even exist and immediately walked toward Melissa before kneeling on one knee.
“Melissa.”
“O-oppa…….”
I winked at Melissa.
‘We practiced enough, remember? You can do it, Melissa.’
I tried putting as much encouragement into my gaze as possible.
Maybe my feelings reached her.
Finally, Melissa spoke with a trembling voice.
Her left hand still held mine, while her right hand slowly reached toward Grand Duke Kardicha.
“I-I-I missed you…….”
An ordinary third-grade elementary school child.
Her favorite food was shrimp fried rice from Chinese restaurants, her best friend in the world was a poodle named Choco, and her dream was to become an idol singer.
This completely ordinary child—
For the first time since becoming “Lady Melissa,” reached out to Achilles Kardicha first.
“……Melissa.”
Grand Duke Kardicha was so shocked that he couldn’t even properly take her hand.
He grabbed it absentmindedly, but even he looked unable to believe what was happening.
“You…… missed me.”
Instead of answering, Melissa let go of my hand.
The child spread her arms wide before bravely stepping forward and throwing herself into Grand Duke Kardicha’s embrace.
“……!”
Grand Duke Kardicha’s violet eyes widened violently.
The same purple eyes Melissa had became wet as he stared at the child in disbelief.
“Melissa…….”
No more words were necessary.
The Grand Duke still could not bring himself to hug his younger sister back, but Melissa clung tightly to him and refused to let go.
“Oppa…….”
Melissa spoke tearfully.
“You won’t abandon me, right?”
“……Why would I ever abandon you?”
My feelings toward Achilles Kardicha could never truly be good.
Even now, he was still a villain planning to destroy both himself and the entire Empire.
But—
“You are my younger sister. My one and only precious younger sister.”
Tears suddenly filled my eyes.
A reaction completely unworthy of my reputation as a cold-hearted villainess with no blood or tears.
