I Became the Ghost Duke’s Daughter - Chapter 6

We were standing in front of the Duke’s office while admiring this bizarre combination inwardly.

Sebastian knocked on the door twice with utmost respect before opening his mouth.

“Duke, this is Sebastian. I have brought the Lady.”

“…Come in.”

A very low and somehow strangely powerful voice came through the door.

Sebastian opened the door as if he gestured for me to go in first, then stepped aside.

I took a small deep breath and went into the office with my gaze down.

I heard a thump behind me and the door closed, then slowly lifted my head.

And right after that. Unbeknownst to me, my mouth opened in a daze.

‘Whoa.’

I wondered for a moment if this expression would be appropriate for someone who would act as my father…

‘He looks really pretty.’

The Duke of Everdeen, Valerian Everdeen, was truly a great beauty.

Even though he’s bluish now, clean skin without a single blemish. Hair neatly parted that covers the forehead.

Even the long eyelashes fluttered in a vague atmosphere beyond the silver-rimmed glasses.

The Duke was definitely the first person other than Mom whom I admired for being so beautiful.

‘Oops.’

I was stunned by the Duke’s face for a while, then suddenly woke up by his gaze looking at me with a surprised expression.

‘An expression like an eight-year-old would make. An expression like an eight-year-old would make.’

After muttering like brainwashing, I did my best and smiled broadly.

And though I was a little bewildered, I put my hands on my belly button and bowed down.

“Hello, Duke! My name is Theresia Oblene. Please take care of me from now on!”

I deliberately smiled and looked at the Duke.

I tilted my head once, and then he belatedly blinked once and raised the quill.

[Nice to meet you, Lady Oblene. My name is Valerian Everdeen. I will also wish you well in the future.]

I opened my eyes wide in surprise, once at his very plain and round handwriting, and twice at his comfortable way of speaking and demeanor without being overbearing.

‘It’s the first time I’ve seen such an adult again. amazing.’

However, I soon suppressed the novelty and refined my expression.

As much as possible, like a child who doesn’t know anything about the world and only knows how to demand.

“By the way, Duke.”

[Tell me.]

“Dad said that if I go here, I can eat delicious food and wear pretty clothes to my heart’s content. Is that true? I saw it on my way, but it didn’t look like it!”

I gave him the innocent smile of a child and tilted my head.

What do you think, what do you think! You feel bad, don’t you! You want to return me right now!

I intentionally scratched the Duke’s poor financial condition and naturally appealed to the fact that I was an extravagant and gluttonous child. It really kills two birds with one stone!

I waited for the Duke’s answer with my eyes shining with anticipation, yet contrary to expectations, he didn’t show any signs of displeasure.

‘…What?’

Something was strange. Then, with a calm face, the same as before, he picked up a quill and wrote down something, then picked up a piece of paper.

[I don’t know if I can satisfy the Lady’s needs, but I’ll do my best. As now, I’m the Lady’s guardian.]

“Uh…”

[And if you don’t mind, I’d like to call the Lady by your first name. Will you allow me?]

With an extremely plain face, the Duke asked permission to call me by name.

I stammered out an answer, weighed down by his completely different attitude than I expected.

“Ah, yeees. You can call me, Terry…”

As I mumbled in rapture, he smiled briefly, then picked up a new piece of paper and showed it to me.

[Yeah, Terry.]

After Mom died, my name, nickname, which had never been heard by anyone living except the ghosts.

Of course, the Duke was also half a ghost, so strictly speaking he couldn’t be called a living person…

Even so, what is the reason that one word is particularly engraved in his eyes, I wonder.

The Duke looked at me blankly, and he blinked his eyes as if he was puzzled, then he spoke again.

[Are you okay? You’ve worked hard all day, so it’s better to go back to your room and rest for today.]

“Yes…”

“Sebastian.”

As soon as he heard the vague answer, he raised his voice and called out to Sebastian.

“Did you call me?”

“Terry seems very tired, so please take her to her room. You’ve been through a lot too.”

“It’s my pleasure. Then I’ll get going.”

After that, I couldn’t shake the strange feeling the whole time I left the office holding the white glove with the hand that Sebastian carefully extended.

This is a really, strange place…

***

Theresia, who was shown to her room and washed up with the help of the maid, fell asleep quickly.

The maid, Mina, walked backwards and came out of the room, careful not to wake the child.

Sebastian, who was waiting outside, opened his mouth with a slightly serious face as soon as the door closed.

“What about the Lady?”

“I just confirmed that she fell asleep.”

Mina replied with a serious face just as serious as Sebastian’s.

The moment Mina finished her words, the two of them let out a deep sigh.

Sebastian, who was watching Theresia’s visit with pensive eyes, murmured softly.

“How has she been at the Viscount’s place…”

He let out a chilling voice at the fury seething inside him.

‘There must have been a reason why the Viscount wanted to send the Lady here. The situation in Everdeen was urgent, so I couldn’t find out the details and accepted it… It’s all my fault.’

As he, who had a benevolent impression, hardened his expression coldly, the atmosphere became chilly to the point where a hideous expression suited him.

[This bratㅡ!]

At first, he thought she was a very brave and curious kid.

After that, he thought it was cute that she was trying to act like an adult like a kid her age, yet he was making a fluttering face with red cheeks.

The fact that she couldn’t fit her arms properly into the coat and was clumsy, he thought it was just because the clothes were too big.

However, Theresia wasn’t like any other child from a noble family, especially from the Viscount of Oblene, who had better circumstances than the current Duke of Everdeen.

The fact that when she first stepped into the room, she opened her eyes wide and hesitated involuntarily.

At the Viscount’s house, where they’re raising two young children, her hair was pulled all over the scalp and tightly tied.

She didn’t say a word, even though it must have been difficult for her to breathe because of her overly tight clothes, even her heels that were about to come off because of the stiff new shoes.

A child wasn’t like a ‘child’.

“Ever since I heard rumors that the Viscount brought a mistress into the mansion upon his wife’s death, I thought that viscount bastard was supposed to be beaten to death in an unusual way…”

Mina gritted her teeth as she muttered in a cold tone that was comparable to Sebastian’s.

[I can do it alone!]

Theresia smiled broadly like a child who grew up receiving only love, yet then suddenly opened her eyes with a wary look.

Uncomfortable with even the slightest help, she tended to straighten her back proudly and stiffen her head.

In Mina’s eyes, it looked like the ferocity of a beast trying not to show its weakness in order to survive.

‘And… thank you for letting my hair go.’

Right before Mina turned off the light, she was half sure that Theresia’s expression, as she uttered her words after hesitating, was the closest to her sincerity.

Sebastian, who continued his thoughts which were similar to Mina’s, said lowly.

“People say that the new madam takes care of the two children with sincerity… I guess I’ll have to look into the Viscount Oblene family again. Focus on how the Lady was doing.”

“Yes. Please let me know when the investigation is finished. By all means.”

“I’ll send someone. Until then, you will do your best to help the Lady.”

“Don’t worry.”

Mina bowed politely.

Sebastian nodded his head and walked away to report this to Valerian.

Mina also made sure that there was no sign of anything beyond the doorway of the room in which Theresia was asleep, and then left the hallway, silencing her footsteps.

The door opened silently when the moon hung high in the sky.