Chapter 78
Upon hearing the news, Aiden sought out Kaiden along with Dalia.
Kaiden, having confirmed Dalia’s aura, let out a soft chuckle.
“Aiden, you better brace yourself. Once Dalia grows up, you might not be able to keep up with her.”
“Is that true?”
Even at the suggestion that she was stronger than him, Aiden showed no displeasure at all.
Instead, he stared at Dalia with a face full of excitement. His eyes brimmed with affection for his daughter.
As he kept grinning widely, Kaiden shook his head in disbelief.
Is he really that happy?
Having never considered marriage, let alone children, Aiden’s reaction struck him as nothing short of fascinating.
“She probably can’t wield the aura freely yet. Teach her well, just like Father taught you.”
“I will.”
Aiden declared with a beaming smile.
Up until then, everything seemed fine.
A short time later, word spread that Dalia had manifested her aura.
Everyone rejoiced at her manifestation, which was even earlier than her father Aiden’s.
The northern nobles who heard the news sent congratulatory messages to Dalia.
It heightened the likelihood that she would become the next Duke of Crencia.
Meanwhile, Dalia was bewildered by the sudden flood of congratulations, but the praise that she was special lifted her spirits.
After that, she practiced handling her aura every day with Aiden.
She started out excited, but it wasn’t long before Dalia grew anxious.
‘The aura isn’t moving the way I want it to…’
Even with reassurances that she would get better with time, it was hard to quell her unease.
Moreover, a conversation she had overheard by chance at a recent social gathering kept nagging at her.
“Will Sir Aiden’s daughter really become the next head of Crencia like this?”
“Of course. Isn’t that why Sir Aiden is the young lord in the first place?”
“I’m not so sure. I think it’s too early to say. The duchess is young and beautiful, and she gets along so well with the duke, doesn’t she?”
“That’s true… If the duchess bears an heir, things could get complicated. No matter how close the brothers are, neither will back down when it comes to their children.”
“It’s wonderful that Lady Dalia has such strong abilities, but that might actually become a poison to Crencia.”
There were quite a few voices subtly expressing concern over Dalia’s abilities.
They treated her like a problem. It seemed they believed her exceptional talent could ironically spark discord.
Dalia couldn’t fully grasp the calculations the adults around her were making.
She simply thought that to avoid falling out of favor, she had no choice but to try even harder.
Dalia liked Reina and didn’t want their relationship to sour.
On one such day, as these invisible threads of subtle anxiety gradually grew.
After she repeated the same mistake several times in a row, Aiden spoke up.
“Dalia, you’re having trouble concentrating today.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Shall we take a break if it’s too hard?”
Dalia nodded.
Aiden looked at her with concern as she suddenly seemed so downcast.
“Are you hurting anywhere?”
“No.”
“You look so listless.”
As Aiden gently coaxed her with kindness, Dalia asked,
“Dad, do I have to become the duke?”
“Hm?”
Aiden wore a puzzled expression at the abrupt question.
Dalia said nothing more, merely fiddling with her milk cup.
A short while later, Aiden gently broached the subject.
“Why did that thought suddenly come to you?”
“Everyone says Reina is having a hard time because of Dalia.”
Since something similar had been said a year ago before Lady Mary left, he couldn’t just brush it off.
The idea that her mere existence was making Reina uncomfortable was becoming increasingly unbearable for Dalia.
“I don’t care if I don’t become the duke. I don’t want to fight with Reina. What if she ends up hating me?”
Dalia wore a tearful expression.
In truth, even after Lady Mary departed, Dalia had continued to seek approval from others.
As her father, Aiden knew this well, so he could fully sense his child’s anxiety.
After watching the girl quietly for a moment, Aiden spoke softly.
“Our little princess, I was wondering why you’ve been so down these past few days—looks like you heard some strange talk somewhere?”
When he sat Dalia on his lap, her eyes widened in surprise.
Then, playfully tapping her nose, he said lightly,
“Dad’s okay if Dalia doesn’t become the duke.”
“Really? You won’t get mad if I don’t?”
“Why would you think Dad would get mad?”
“Well…”
Dalia couldn’t continue rashly. It was such a vague anxiety that even she couldn’t articulate the reason right away.
Aiden stroked her hair gently and said affectionately,
“All Dad wants is for our princess to grow up healthy, do whatever she wants, and live freely.”
As Aiden’s expression turned wistful, Dalia nestled into his arms.
“Dalia won’t leave Dad early like Mom did.”
Feeling the longing in Aiden’s eyes, Dalia could only hug her father even tighter.
Aiden, in turn, patted his daughter’s back as if she were the one comforting him.
“Yes. Dad will live happily with Dalia for a long, long time. And this training is for your sake, so you don’t have to think of it as successor lessons.”
“Mm, okay.”
Dalia burrowed deeper into his embrace, acting spoiled.
Aiden’s thoughts grew deeper.
After that day, Aiden learned that the northern nobles were treating the succession issue quite seriously.
This wasn’t just a matter of trust between brothers.
It was time to revisit the succession problem that had been put off time and again.
* * *
“What brings you to my study, of all places?”
Kaiden chuckled as he sat down, but Aiden spoke with a stern face.
“There’s something I need to confirm.”
“Why the serious look?”
Kaiden dropped his playful demeanor at his brother’s unusual atmosphere.
The only time his ever-optimistic younger brother came out so earnestly was when it involved family.
A moment later, Aiden said,
“You still have no intention of having children, brother?”
“Children?”
“You said it yourself. That you had no plans for marriage or having kids. So you’d make the child I have the next head of Crencia.”
“I did.”
Kaiden murmured lowly as he sipped his tea. Just a few years ago, he had no inclination toward marriage at all.
He had lived believing there would be no marriage in his life.
But after Reina proposed to him, quite a lot had changed in his world.
He had ended up with someone who might be even more precious than his blood family.
“If your thoughts on the succession have changed since getting married…”
As Aiden cautiously brought up the succession issue, Kaiden replied,
“If it’s about the succession, don’t worry. Whether I have a child or not, Dalia becoming the next Duke of Crencia won’t change. That’s something Reina and I have already agreed on.”
Back when they first entered their contract marriage, he had told Reina.
That he had a younger brother and a niece, and he had promised to make his niece the next Duke of Crencia.
To be precise, it was something he had said as an excuse when Reina mentioned marital duties, but it was sincere.
Kaiden didn’t want children.
Even more so after developing feelings for Reina.
Amy had weakened rapidly after having Dalia.
She had always been frail, but the dragon’s bloodline made pregnancy especially grueling.
He couldn’t be sure if the already delicate Reina could handle his child.
He was actually anxious that she might end up dying like Amy.
Fortunately, with Dalia around, he hadn’t even considered the succession issue.
“That was back when it was a contract marriage. You two will have a child someday. And when that happens, your thoughts might change from now.”
Aiden hinted at the concerns spreading among the nobles.
