Chapter 03
“…!”
At that moment, all the servants quickly stood in a straight line.
I immediately knew who the loud laughter belonged to.
It was Marquis Leo.
I turned toward the door with everyone else.
This was my first time seeing him in person.
What does Leonardo, the villain marquis, really look like?
‘He caused his only daughter to die young because of his bad behavior. I really want to see that famous face.’
I still remembered his last line in the novel.
He shouted angrily at the Duke and the Shablin family for abandoning him.
“I won’t ever come back to this disgusting house!”
He didn’t care at all about his young daughter who was being thrown out with him.
In the book, it said:
“Little Eresha trembled in fear.”
That line suddenly hurt my heart.
Being kicked out of your home overnight is terrible.
Especially for a soft and timid child like Eresha.
While I was shaking my head, the door opened with a heavy sound.
Cold air came inside.
And with it… a deep, sweet scent.
It was fresh and attractive.
‘What is this charming smell?’
Is this the famous “seductive scent” that only Leo has?
In the novel, women fell in love just by smelling it.
To me, it was just annoying.
“Ha ha ha!”
Leo walked in, laughing loudly.
His long silver hair shined.
His golden eyes sparkled.
He was tall with long limbs, and suddenly the huge room felt small.
His presence was overwhelming.
‘Wow… the novel wasn’t exaggerating.’
His skin was smooth like a sculpture.
His eyes were long and beautiful.
His nose and lips were perfectly shaped.
His body was tall and strong.
He looked like an elf turned human.
He wore shiny jewelry on his ears and neck.
He was unbelievably handsome.
So handsome that I almost forgot he was a terrible father.
‘Is he an angel?’
I quickly reminded myself.
No. He’s the villain father I need to fix.
Then I noticed the half-empty wine bottle in his hand.
His cheeks were red.
He was slightly swaying.
‘Of course. He’s drunk.’
They say he’s drunk 365 days a year.
“Roro! Where is Roro?”
Roro?
When he shouted, Helen gave Evot a quick look, telling her to take me away.
I quickly ran toward him.
“Daddy!”
All the servants looked shocked.
Leo slowly looked down at me.
I held my hands together and smiled brightly.
It felt embarrassing to flatter him like this…
but I needed his permission for a tutor.
Evot had said:
“The Marquis probably won’t agree. He thinks a child like you doesn’t need high-level education.”
Still, I had to try.
Leo stared at me carefully.
Then he suddenly said:
“Roro?”
He looked confused and turned to the servants.
“When did Roro dye her fur purple?”
“…Huh?”
Woof!
Suddenly, a dog barked.
A servant brought a small white fluffy dog with pointed ears.
Helen carried the dog and said calmly,
“Roro is here, Marquis. This is your daughter, Miss Eresha.”
“What?”
Finally, he blinked at me.
Did he just mistake me for his dog?
He’s so drunk he can’t tell his daughter from his pet?
He stared at me for a long moment.
Then his face darkened.
“…I see. I was mistaken. You’re small, so I got confused. Why isn’t the child asleep yet? Take her away.”
He threw the wine bottle into the air.
The servants quickly caught it.
Then he walked past me.
My mouth dropped open.
‘Is he seriously ignoring me like this?’
He took the dog from Helen and smiled sweetly.
“Roro. Daddy’s here.”
Kiss.
He even kissed the dog.
What is this?
Even though I’m not the real Eresha, I felt tears coming.
‘I want to leave. I want to hit the back of his head and walk away.’
Is that really a father?
But I forced myself to stay calm.
I ran up to him again and smiled.
“I waited for Daddy!”
“For me?”
He stopped walking and looked down at me.
When I stepped closer, he stepped back.
“?”
Is he uncomfortable because we haven’t seen each other in a long time?
Fine. I moved two more steps closer.
He moved two steps back.
“Why were you waiting for me?”
He looked suspicious.
Of course he was confused.
Eresha had never come to him before.
I took a deep breath.
“Eresha has a request.”
“…A request?”
Many emotions crossed his face.
He quickly said,
“If it’s something like that, ask someone else. The servants can handle it.”
He spoke very fast and turned to leave.
I quickly stopped him.
“Eresha!”
“!”
“Eresha needs teacher! Eresha wants to learn!”
“A teacher?”
Yes. You didn’t expect that, right?
Giving your ignored daughter one tutor isn’t that hard.
And if Grandpa hears that I’m a genius…
maybe we won’t get kicked out.
I held my hands together tightly.
“Eresha wants to study! Need teacher!”
Leo narrowed his eyes.
The dog jumped out of his arms and barked, but he ignored it.
Come on. Just say yes.
I want to leave this strong smell of alcohol.
Then he spoke firmly.
“No.”
“Huh?”
Why not? It’s just a tutor!
Suddenly, his eyes became sharp and clear.
“You don’t know what they teach. The Shablin family tutors are cruel. They teach fifteen-year-old lessons to five-year-olds.”
“….”
“Do you want dark circles like your cousin Oscar at age six? Buried in homework every night?”
It’s probably just basic math.
For me, that would be easy.
“You don’t need to enter that old grandfather’s world. Don’t even dream of having a tutor.”
“!”
He turned his back completely, as if the conversation was over.
