Chapter 7

“(Yeees? What do you mean?)”

“You seem to think I’m a joke, but I don’t go easy on children. If you don’t want to eat this chicken with the spicy sauce still on it, then that’s enough.”

“(Huuuh?)”

She had only tilted her head in confusion, yet somehow, even that made the half-formed little brat look adorable.

That’s right. That’s exactly right. I’ve already fallen for it!

Damn it.

Cassian Calypso, you’ve really fallen off, haven’t you?

There was a time when I fought for three days and nights without eating or sleeping. And now, after sharing nothing more than a single meal with a tiny little brat, I’m already coming down with Stockholm syndrome.

What’s next? Am I going to turn into one of those old geezers who constantly goes on about how things were in their day, saying things like, “Back in my day, you know…”?

Overcome with self-loathing, Cassian squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed the sadness rising inside him.

They said that not even the ruler of a nation could stop the passage of time, but he still wanted to enjoy his youth while he could.

So he glared at the little brat who was turning him into an old geezer.

Or, more accurately, he tried to glare at her.

The problem was that the little squirt was so tiny that her feet dangled beneath the chair without touching the floor. There was nowhere to direct his glare.

His anger fizzled out with a soft pfft.

Cassian picked up a towel that had been lying on the neighboring chair.

It smelled musty because it hadn’t been washed in a long time, but he was so accustomed to that sort of thing that it barely bothered him.

It’s not like she’ll be staying here much longer anyway.

When he wiped the grease smeared all over her face, the little squirt let out a pained whimper.

“(Waaah. It huuurts.)”

“I can’t understand a single word you’re saying.”

“(I wanna speak the imperial language, too, but I can’t do it properly. Honestly, I can’t even understand half of what you say.)”

“Yeah, yeah. It must be frustrating for you. I’m practically tearing my hair out, too. I’d rather be out drinking, you know.”

The downy hair on her head brushed against his little finger.

It was only her face, yet the touch conveyed so much: the fragile bones that hadn’t fully developed, her tiny presence, her soft cheeks, and the warm body heat unique to a child.

And then…

That baby smell.

Ah.

His eyes met the little girl’s golden ones above the towel.

…She looks like her.

He remembered the eyes of the woman who had pierced his heart with a sharp sword.

She had thick, closely spaced eyelashes, just like the child.

Thump!

His heart pounded.

It felt as though Iris had come back to life.

An inexplicable sensation surged through him, so overwhelming that the affection he’d felt for the child just moments ago seemed almost like an illusion by comparison.

Cassian had experienced this feeling before.

He had felt it the first time he met Iris.

It was the feeling of being perfectly happy even as every last bit of something precious inside him was being taken away.

In fact, he had felt sad that he couldn’t give her even more.

Cassian clenched his teeth, balled his hands into fists, and repeated the words to himself.

Iris is dead.

He abruptly looked away.

His head was spinning, and his heart was in turmoil.

For some reason, he felt like crying.

Iris is dead.

Cassian bit his lips over and over.

Otherwise, he felt as though he might burst into tears and pour out everything he had been keeping inside.

“(Mister? What’s wrong?)”

The child’s voice broke into his thoughts.

At that moment, he shot to his feet and headed for the bathroom.

Whoooosh.

After splashing cold water on his face, he thought to himself.

“Little squirt, you’re one hell of an opponent! You think I’m going to lose to you?”

He was Cassian Calypso.

The hero who had led the Holy-Demon War to victory and saved the world from destruction.

Unless the little brat was a monster, he couldn’t simply cut her down with a sword. The only option was to get her out of his sight as quickly as possible.

Cassian had intended to take the child to an orphanage.

Yes. That was definitely what he had intended to do.

“Now that you’ve finished eating, let’s get going.”

“(Yeees? Where are we going?)”

“I’ve been waiting for this day.”

With his certificate of impotence safely tucked inside his clothes, Cassian happily left the house.

Stockholm syndrome or whatever other illness it might be, there was no problem if you nipped it in the bud before it could develop, right?

“Hey, little squirt. Hurry up.”

“(Misteeer! You’re going too fast! I’m short!)”

He was in a hurry and wanted to move faster, but they weren’t making much progress.

Watching the little brat trot along behind him with her short legs, trying to match his pace, made him feel a little sorry for her for some reason…

“Sigh.”

Whatever. They’d be parting ways soon anyway.

Cassian scooped the little squirt up into his arms. He tucked her under one arm and hurried toward the carriage stand, intending to find a carriage.

But then—

“Hmm?”

Were children normally this light?

He had two nephews, so although he didn’t know much about children’s ages, he had a fairly good idea of how much they should weigh for their height. But this little squirt was strangely light.

Why doesn’t she feel sturdy?

When he picked up his nephews like this, they would squirm and thrash about like fish trying to escape a net, giving him a surprisingly solid, heavy feeling.

But this little squirt’s bones were so thin, and her body was so excessively soft and squishy that he felt as though she might break if he applied even a little force.

“(Why are you doing that?)”

With her face now much closer to his, the little squirt tilted her head.

Maybe it’s because she’s a girl.

Suddenly worried that she might burst like a delicate little bubble if he squeezed her too hard, Cassian felt a twinge of regret.

He should have simply walked slowly to accommodate her short legs. Then he wouldn’t have needed to carry her at all, and he wouldn’t have had to deal with these strange feelings, either.

But now that he had already picked her up, it felt awkward to put her back down.

So Cassian continued walking, trembling as he tried not to put too much pressure on her with his arms.

Perhaps because it was the weekend, there wasn’t a single carriage in sight.

They were heading toward another carriage stand, hoping to find one somehow, when—

“Cassian?”

Someone called his name.

Before he could even identify the owner of that piercing voice, Cassian’s sharp instincts warned him to run.

He pretended not to hear and quickened his pace.

“Cassian!”

I didn’t hear that. I didn’t hear anything.

I can’t hear a thing!

The woman calling his name was a stalker who had been chasing him for the past year.

And she was an exceptionally persistent case.

Back when he still had his mansion, she would frequently sneak into his house. After losing the mansion, he had actually felt relieved, thinking that at least she wouldn’t be able to find him again.

“(Mister, I think that pretty lady is calling you.)”

“Shh. Be quiet.”

He hurried along, trying to get away from the area, but of course, this woman wasn’t just any ordinary stalker.

With his height of over 190 centimeters, Cassian naturally had a long stride and walked quickly. Yet she somehow managed to catch up with him and grabbed his shoulder to stop him.

“Cassian Calypso!”

A chill ran down his shoulder, raising goosebumps all over his skin.

Cassian froze and slowly turned his head.

Creak. Creak.

It felt as though rusty screws were turning in his neck.

“So it really is you!”

A bright smile spread across the woman’s face.

At first glance, she looked incredibly beautiful.

In reality, however, she was absolutely insane.

They had been involved casually and consensually, with no promises or commitments. Yet whenever he met another woman, she would chase him with a knife, threatening to kill her.

She sent him more than twenty letters every single day, to the point that even the mail carrier had seriously advised him to consider running away.

She had even drugged his drinks and locked him in an underground dungeon.

Of course, escaping had been as easy as drinking a bowl of soup while lying down. Still, the whole experience had left a bad taste in his mouth.

A very bad taste.

“Well, look at that. It’s you again.”

“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it? I heard you moved. Where did you go?”

“What do you need to know for?”

“What kind of question is that? Do you have any idea how hard I’ve been working to find your house? Didn’t you miss me?”

“Ah, I see. So you went around introducing yourself to more than a hundred households in the neighborhood where people said I’d moved, just to find out who lived there?”

“That’s all because of my love for you. But who’s that child? Is she your niece?”

The woman’s eyes gleamed with excitement.

It was obvious that she had completely lost her mind.

Cassian thought for a moment.

He could only run away so many times, and at this point, he didn’t even have enough money to move somewhere else.

This time, he decided he would finally get rid of her.

Smiling pleasantly, Cassian introduced the child.

“Say hello. She’s my daughter.”

When I lived with Mom, I had always been the most envious of my maternal cousin, Enrique.

Enrique’s dad would give him piggyback rides on his shoulders. He would even hold Enrique upside down and toss him onto the sofa.

I was so jealous that I tried getting Mom to carry me on her back, too. But Mom couldn’t lift me up and run around like my older maternal uncle did.

That’s why my wish was to have a dad.