I Became the Male Lead's Adopted Daughter-Chapter 70
Strige burst out laughing.
Ferio gave his daughter a withering look, as if he couldn’t believe the cheeky little remark she’d added.
“What, what?”
Leonia, the one who tattled, wasn’t the least bit embarrassed—she was shamelessly proud.
“Your Grace...”
Strige finally managed to swallow her laughter and drew in a slow breath.
“You really are a father now.”
“To show such a shameful side...”
“What’s there to be ashamed of?”
Strige looked warmly at the father and daughter, their resemblance striking in both looks and demeanor.
“That’s what family is.”
“...”
“I’m relieved to see that you’re doing well.”
After all, the rumors about the Voreoti father and daughter that had reached the capital were mostly malicious.
Even if she had dismissed them as baseless, Strige hadn’t been able to completely erase her lingering unease.
“Creating a family is a far more difficult thing than most realize.”
But now, seeing the two beasts standing in front of her, she realized just how false all those rumors were.
She was finally relieved, finally at peace.
“And you’re doing it well. So don’t be ashamed.”
Ferio had no words.
Strige was one of the few adults Ferio trusted.
The fact that someone older than him was sincerely concerned for both him and the child—it soothed the Black Beast’s heart, offering real comfort.
“But you know...”
Leonia chimed in.
“Professor Ardea abandoned his wife and child and ran away to the Academy, right?”
“That man...”
Strige chuckled softly.
“Is an exception, even here.”
She drew a ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) clear line with a warm yet firm smile, signaling that Ardea was not to be taken as the Academy’s standard.
Before long, the three of them entered the Academy.
“Dad, I want to look around the Academy.”
Leonia, catching the mood, excused herself at just the right time.
As Ferio had some serious things to discuss with Strige, he readily agreed.
But he added the condition that she must stay close to the knights.
“I won’t be long.”
“Okay.”
Waving goodbye to Ferio and Strige, Leonia set off to explore the Academy with her escorts.
“So this is the Academy, huh...”
Probo looked around with genuine curiosity.
As a magic swordsman still involved in magical research, he had a keen interest in academic places like this.
“That large building beyond the window is the Academy proper,” Meleis said, pointing to a white structure outside.
One of the Academy buildings was connected to the main research building by a corridor on the first floor.
“Many Academy professors are also members of the Institute.”
From the domed roof of the tall Academy building came the distant sound of students chattering.
It must have been their break time.
“They’re all so young...”
Paavo’s gaze, watching from beside the window, was wistful.
“Paavo oppa, you talk like an old man.”
Leonia frowned. Paavo looked incredulous.
“You’re the one who acts like an old granny, my lady...”
“You’re the one who's still young and talks like someone who’s already seen the end of life.”
“I mean, that kind of talk—”
Just as Paavo was about to argue that she was the one who sounded old, he gave up mid-sentence with a sigh.
Instead, he turned his eyes back to the Academy.
“Actually... I have a younger brother.”
“A brother? Out of nowhere?”
“He’s my little brother. He got into the Academy last year.”
“That’s amazing!”
Leonia gasped.
The Academy in the capital was a prestigious institution where only the brightest were accepted.
Getting in was considered an enormous honor, enough to bring pride to one's entire house.
Even among nobles, whether one graduated from the Academy had a huge impact on their future in society.
“Wait—since when did you have a brother?”
“Why didn’t you ever mention him?”
Meleis and Probo looked surprised—they were hearing this for the first time.
“Well... you know...”
Paavo scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen him...”
Sighing, he glanced at his companions. The stares from the two knights and their young mistress were making him sweat. He finally gave in and explained.
“As you know, I’m from the South.”
Paavo came from a family of southern merchants.
His parents had run a business for years selling jewelry and decorative items made from precious metals.
Then one day, the eldest son, Paavo, announced that he wanted to become a knight.
“Of course, my parents were thrilled.”
Being a knight was an honorary position—treated almost like nobility.
Having a knight in the family was a major source of pride for commoners. It was enough to spark a festival in the village.
“But when I said I wanted to join Gladiago, they absolutely lost it...”
Paavo shivered at the memory of his parents’ fierce opposition.
“They wanted me to become a knight of the Imperial Guard.”
“But the North is amazing! Gladiago is the best!”
Leonia, future commander of the Gladiago Order, placed her hands proudly on her hips.
She felt personally offended by Paavo’s parents.
Paavo responded with a sheepish smile.
“There’s a lot of regional discrimination.”
Meleis offered an explanation on his behalf.
Since the topic was a sensitive one, her voice was more careful than usual.
“Why?”
Leonia couldn’t understand.
Even in the novels she’d read, the prejudice between North and South had always baffled her.
In particular, the South’s disdain for the North was excessive to the point of absurdity.
“Is it like that in other regions too?”
Leonia turned to Probo.
“Not really,” he replied.
As someone from the East, Probo explained that while there might be rivalry, open contempt like the South’s was rare.
“Well, anyway, I ran away from home to join the North, and I was disowned for it.”
“So you can’t see your brother?”
“Before I left, I gave him half of the money I’d saved and left him a letter. I couldn’t contact him after that, obviously.”
But then, last year, Paavo’s younger brother sent him a letter—initiating contact.
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
The letter had held not a single word of blame, and that made Paavo feel all the more grateful—and guilty.
“But, you know... I just don’t have the nerve to go see him.”
“That’s not like you, oppa. Getting all shy.”
“Wow, you of all people talking about modesty.”
“A rare moment of humility, truly.”
“You’re all being so unfair.”
Paavo grumbled.
“Hmph. Still, while we’re in the capital, you should meet him at least once.”
Leonia gave him a firm pat on the back.
“You never know what life’s going to throw at you. If you want to see someone, it’s best to do it while you can.”
“My lady...”
“Your brother probably wants to see you too.”
Leonia added that he should bring his brother to the estate someday and introduce him.
“You said he sent the first letter, right? He might’ve been waiting for you all this time.”
“...”
This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.
“Don’t regret it later. Just do it.”
“...I’ll try to muster the courage.”
Paavo bowed his head in thanks.
“...She’s seven, right?”
Probo leaned toward Meleis and whispered, having overheard the conversation.
He couldn’t even remember how many times he’d asked this by now.
“She’ll be eight after the fall,” Meleis corrected him calmly.
“Our lady’s mature and sharp. That’s why we can have these kinds of deep conversations with her.”
“Deep... conversations?”
Probo shook his head. He wouldn’t go that far.
To anyone else, it looked exactly like a wise elder soothing a troubled youngster.
Leonia, of course, had been the one leading the entire exchange.
But this wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, so Probo quickly let it slide.
***
Shortly after Leonia had left to explore the Academy with the knights—
Ferio climbed the stairs with his former teacher, Strige.
A few Academy staff who happened to be coming down stopped in their tracks at the sight of his endlessly black hair.
“They seem startled.”
Strige laughed softly.
“You have quite the sense of humor, Professor.”
“It’s a wonderful thing.”
Having her cherished pupil now be the Duke of Voreoti—and seeing him smiling, genuinely happy as a father—it was heartwarming.
She still hadn’t gotten over the sight of Ferio earlier, smiling softly as he watched his daughter walk away.
“The child was in an orphanage, wasn’t she?”
“So even that rumor reached this far?”
“Most rumors that spread in the capital are malicious—but often rooted in truth.”
“...”
“You did well.”
There was not a single trace of abandonment in the child who resembled Ferio so completely.
Even in such a brief meeting, Strige could sense Leonia’s unwavering trust and affection toward her father.
Which meant Ferio had put in real effort.
“...It’s quite strange.”
Ferio stopped walking. Strige stopped with him.
“When I look at you, Professor, and think about myself... the North-South conflict feels like a lie.”
Ferio averted his eyes from the proud look his teacher gave him.
Strige sensed that her student was a little embarrassed.
He had never been good at being open—then or now.
“Do you think all Southerners hate the North?”
“These days, it feels that way.”
“Right... these days.”
Strige smiled meaningfully.
Soon, the two of them stopped before a door at the end of a corridor.
The door, made of richly grained paulownia wood, had a sign posted on it: RESTRICTED ACCESS.
Ferio looked down at the handle.
“...Still haven’t found the culprit?”
The keyhole was visibly scratched and gouged—clear evidence of tampering.
“There’s been little progress in the investigation,” Strige replied as she removed the sign.
“The authorities don’t seem particularly motivated. Though, now and then, we do come across someone who tries in earnest...”
“I can guess how that goes.”
Creak.
The door opened.
Inside, the room was a mess.
“They really tore through it.”
Every bookshelf had been toppled and broken. The small sofa meant for rest had been slashed repeatedly, like with a knife.
Every drawer was pulled out, its contents scattered all over the floor.
“This is the room, isn’t it?”
Ferio stepped inside, glancing around with practiced detachment.
“As you requested, no one’s been allowed in since that day.”
“Then it’s exactly as it was.”
Ferio stepped onto a fallen bookcase.
Strige, watching him quietly, flipped over the RESTRICTED ACCESS sign.
On the back, a name was written:
[Ardea Bosgruni]
This had been Ardea’s research lab.
