The Saintess Became the Northern Grand Duke’s Daughter - Chapter 26

The Duke’s eyes, which had been relaxed, shook slightly. However, he soon understood Liriette’s feelings.

 

‘In the first place, Liriette came to me in search of freedom.’

 

To such a child, the surname Windsor-Ice can feel like a heavy chain.

 

However, Liriette had a completely different idea from the Duke when she said so.

 

‘The Duke might change his mind later.’

 

The affection may cool off and he may be bothered to keep Liriette by his side. Or, the presence of his beloved woman may make Liriette’s existence uncomfortable.

 

If so, Liriette thought of cutting the ties with the Duke without hesitation.

 

‘I don’t want to be a burden to the Duke at all.’

 

It wasn’t because of her petty pride.

 

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to get hurt.

 

It was pure affection.

 

Because to Liriette, the Duke had become that much of a precious person.

 

He opened his mouth, not having the slightest idea of Liriette’s feelinggs.

 

“Of course. You may drop the name Windsor-Ice whenever you want… It’s okay even if you leave me.”

 

The more he uttered his voice, the lower his voice was, yet Liriette finally put her mind at ease.

 

She looked up at the Duke. And as she strained her eyes, she said clearly.

 

“Great. I will become the Duke’s daughter.”

 

“…”

 

The Duke didn’t say anything for a moment.

 

Soon, he lifted Liriette up with a look as if it was unbearable.

 

“Kyaak!”

 

It was the first time the Duke had acted like this, so Liriete was taken aback.

 

He said to the rabbit-eyed child.

 

“Thank you, Liriette.”

 

Both her cheeks blushed.

 

‘The Duke is a really strange person.’

 

He looked as cold as ice, then as kind as spring, as an endlessly adult, yet as honest as a child.

 

She couldn’t believe that this kind of person would become her father, a bright smile leaked out.

 

Even if this relationship is broken, that will be for later.

 

Right now, she wanted to be happy that she had a family.

 

***

 

The Duke looked at Liriette and said.

 

“She’s my daughter.”

 

Except for Simon, who had heard the story in advance, all the servants opened their mouths.

 

In the suffocating silence, Liriette gulped.

 

‘Until now, everyone in the castle knew that I was the Duke’s guest.’

 

It was unpredictable how they would react to the fact that Liriette suddenly became the Duke’s daughter.

 

‘How could I deny that I, who isn’t even a noble, is the Duke’s daughter? Or will they find it difficult for me to become the Duke’s daughter?’

 

Either way, her relationship with them will never be the same.

 

However, her thoughts were wrong.

 

The servants, especially the maids who were friendly with Liriette, cheered in a loud voice.

 

“Kyaa, at last Miss Liriette has become the Duke’s daughter!”

 

Simon whispered to Liriette, who blinked at the unexpectedly intense reaction.

 

“Actually, I spilled the story a little bit beforehand. That Miss Liriette is the daughter the Duke lost a long time ago.”

 

The servants didn’t have the slightest doubt about that statement.

 

Because that ice-like Duke was extremely devoted to Liriette!

 

“The Duke really hated things like cakes. It’s damn sweet and doesn’t help build muscle at all. That kind of person ordered a new dessert to be made every day, and ate it without saying anything.”

 

“His Grace the Duke ordered each and every one of Liriette’s items very carefully. In particular, he gave a ridiculous order to make clothes as light as possible and warm. If the clothes are too heavy, Miss Liriette will have a hard time, but if the clothes are too thin, it will be cold.”

 

“Even the dinner with Miss Liriette every day. His Grace the Duke, originally dislikes eating with anyone. To think that such a person, no matter how busy he is, would find time to eat with Miss Liriette…”

 

The maids shouted in unison.

 

“What is this if not the love of a father for his daughter!”

 

Standing in front of the excited maids, Liriette blinked her eyes with a dumbfounded face.

 

‘I knew the Duke was considerate of me, but I didn’t know it was that much.’

 

Feeling the Duke’s affection again, her face turned red.

 

Seeing Liriette like that, maid Marie said.

 

“Actually, we worried a lot among ourselves. What if His Grace the Duke doesn’t admit Miss Liriette.”

 

Usually, in noble families, children born to women who weren’t mistresses weren’t recognized.

 

This is because they were a flaw that diminished the family’s honor just by their presence.

 

They were often sent off to distant places without even setting a foot in the house.

 

Marie continued through tears.

 

“I’m really glad that Miss Liriette didn’t go through such a sad thing.”

 

It wasn’t the only Marie. The maids standing next to her looked genuinely relieved.

 

The warm hearts of the maids made Liriette burst into tears.

 

She bowed her head with a face that would cry.

 

“Thank you very much everyone.”

 

Miss Liriette, hug her tight! Throw her sky high! Kiss her from head to toe!

 

The maids felt every urge to do something to the lovely little creature, yet held back.

 

Meanwhile, the Duke standing behind Liriette muttered in a low voice.

 

“Since when did the castle maids talk so much?”

 

Simon, who was standing next to the Duke, lowered his eyebrows and replied.

 

“They’re not like that usually. They quietly do their own thing. But when it comes to Miss Liriette, they lose their temper and get excited. They’re doing this out of love, so please kindly understand.”

 

Even the servants, who had relatively little to do with Liriette, were delighted.

 

“Yahoo, we finally have a pretty girl in our castle!”

 

The castle was in a festive mood.

 

However, that didn’t mean that Liriette became the Duke’s daughter completely.

 

First of all, just like the name of Windsor-Ice, there were an enormous number of vassal families following it.

 

Surprisingly, however, they weren’t much of a problem.

 

It was because of the Duke’s overwhelming power.

 

Even if the Duke adopted a puppy as his daughter, none of the vassal families would say anything.

 

However, there was one existence that such a maneuver couldn’t be overlooked.

 

“Former Duchess of Windsor-Ice. So, she’s my mother.”

 

At the Duke’s words, Liriette’s eyes widened as if they were about to explode.

 

“I told her the news about you, and the reply came right away. She wants to see you. What do you want to do?”

 

An adult whose face she doesn’t even know. That’s also the former duchess, a far-fetched person.

 

Although Liriette was scared, she clenched her fists and said.

 

“I want to meet her too.”

 

Since she was meant to be Liriette von Windsor-Ice, she was someone she must see.

 

***

 

The former duchess.

 

Olivia von Windsor-Ice was living far away from Windsor-Ice Castle.

 

Riding a deer would take them 15 days, so the Duke paid an exorbitant amount to use the gate.

 

After coming out of the gate, Liriette’s eyes widened.

 

‘It’s warm!’

 

She couldn’t see any of the pure white snow she saw every day in the castle. There wasn’t even the cold wind that made her body tremble with each blow.

 

It was a clear spring day, with the warm sun and the gentle breeze.

 

Liriette asked with her slightly flushed face.

 

“Is this also the north?”

 

“Yes. It’s the warmest place in the Windsor-Ice territory.”

 

And he said it was Olivia’s favorite place too. Enough for her to leave the castle as soon as her son inherited the dukedom.

 

After a while, entering Olivia’s mansion, Liriette exclaimed again.

 

“Whoa.”

 

The mansion was large and beautiful.

 

The garden was particularly impressive, with all kinds of flowers and trees blooming on the green lawn.

 

‘It’s not an artificially decorated garden for show.’

 

It gave off a natural yet warm feeling, as if a small forest had been moved.

 

Liriette relaxed a little.

 

‘Alright. Sir Simon said it several times before leaving the castle. She has the dignity and personality befitting a duchess, so there’s no need to be afraid.’

 

The corners of her lips went up.

 

‘More than anything else, she is the Duke’s mother. She must be a good person like the Duke.’

 

However, Liriette’s hopeful hope disappeared the moment she met Olivia.

 

She was so beautiful that it was hard to believe that she had a grown son.

 

Smooth skin without a single wrinkle. Shiny white hair.

 

But…

 

Maybe it’s because of the raised eyebrows and blue eyes that show a lot of white. Or is it because of the tight lips?

 

She looked cold and solemn to the extent that one couldn’t dare to admire her as a beauty.

 

Standing next to the stiffened Liriette, the Duke opened his mouth first.

 

“How have you been, Mother?”

 

“Fine.”

 

It was a very blunt response for her dealing with her son whom she hadn’t seen in a long time.

 

However, the Duke, with a look as if he was used to it, pointed to Liriette far below and said.

 

“This is my daughter.”

 

“…”

 

Silence lingered between the three for a moment.