One Day, My Dad Showed Up

After washing as quickly as possible and hastily putting on my clothes, I hung the pendant with my signet ring around my neck.

It was only natural for me to dash out the moment I finished preparing.

… still, I couldn’t avoid Eciel’s bumpy face.

“You’re late, Claire.”

As we rode in the carriage according to Viscount Rezena’s guidance, Eciel, unable to hold back any longer, spoke discontentedly.

I obediently apologized.

“Sorry.”

“Why were you late?”

“My class ended late yesterday, so I was tired. It’s my fault.”

Eciel pursed her chubby lips.

Today, my younger sister’s hat was a cute bonnet adorned with a ribbon. It complemented her smooth platinum blonde hair and bright green eyes.

Whether it was the dazzling pattern of her white dress or the shimmering shoelaces peeking out from under her skirt, everything was neat, pretty, and cute.

Eciel was probably looking forward to today more than I was.

The story of a child waking up early to choose the prettiest and cutest dress, hat, and shoes spread from the west wing of the manor to the maids on the east wing.

However, it was I who had proposed it first and ended up being late.

‘There’s nothing more to say.’

I kept silent, resting my gloved hands on my knees. I felt Eciel beside me subtly frowning and looking in my direction.

Her expression wasn’t enough to be annoyance or discomfort. Still, it was undoubtedly negative.

‘… did I say something wrong again?’

Just as I was seriously contemplating whether to further improve my social skills and eloquence, a cheerful voice interjected.

“Miss Claire, Miss Eciel, may I interject?”

It was Viscount Louis Rezena, who sat facing us.

He would be watching over us today instead of our parents.

We glanced at each other and simply nodded. Viscount Rezena smiled gratefully and spoke up.

“Miss Eciel, are you feeling sorry for Miss Claire?”

Why was Eciel feeling sorry for me?

I glanced at Viscount Rezena with a look of disbelief. But Eciel nodded with a slightly sulky face.

“… why?”

I couldn’t understand. Had I done something wrong?

To my puzzled question, Viscount Rezena responded on my behalf.

“After all, Miss Claire has a busier schedule than Miss Eciel. She feels sorry for imposing a demanding schedule on someone as busy as her.”

Eciel added with a dejected voice.

“Claire always joins me, even if it’s weird or annoying.”

That was a rule I had set for myself after a week of silence.

If it wasn’t harmful to Eciel or others, I would listen to her regardless of how irrational or strange it seemed.

To be closer to her.

‘I didn’t expect Eciel to notice.’

Slightly surprised, I turned to Eciel sitting next to me.

Her face was on the verge of tears.

I blinked.

For the most part, my emotions were generally closer to a flat blank state.

I grew up feeling little joys that would make my body tremble or deep sadness welling up inside me.

But Eciel’s emotions always changed quickly and had a large difference between highs and lows.

So… her happiness and sadness were my benchmark ever since I decided to interact more with people in general.

If Eciel cried, I comforted her, and if she was happy, we laughed together.

That was how I learned basic communication, and we became close because of it.

That fact wouldn’t change even if we grew older or when I took over the duchy.

That was because I decided to change my attitude towards life and approached Eciel.

I spoke reassuringly.

“If it was really too much, I wouldn’t have suggested it in the first place.”

Eciel’s green eyes sparkled.

In my recent elocution lessons, I learned to speak less and not to judge the content, but… I had no intention of doing that to Eciel.

Looking into those sparkling green eyes, I asserted.

“If you say it’s not weird or annoying, I’ll continue to do so because I promised to try to be with you.”

My sister’s face instantly brightened. Viscount Rezena spoke softly.

“Miss Eciel, did you hear that? Don’t worry about annoying Miss Claire. You two are precious twins who can tolerate anything for each other.”

… to me, it sounded overly sentimental. Did Eciel really like those burdensome words?

Eciel looked almost radiant as she turned towards me and threw herself into my arms.

She didn’t care that her neatly dressed clothes wrinkled, or that her perfectly arranged hat lost its shape.

Was there really a need to respond so passionately…?

Viscount Rezena, who was observing this amusing sight from across, chuckled discreetly.

‘… that person must have intended this. Maybe I could even wear the signet ring.’

But if this could ease Eciel’s heart, why not?

In the end, I gently patted Eciel’s back.

“Let’s reconcile.”

A pleasant scent emanated from my sister.

She nodded vigorously, her warm and gentle touch enveloping me.

Every time she nodded, the carefully chosen coiffure slowly deteriorated.

I shouldn’t have had these thoughts, but it was amusing.

‘Why did I have to deal with this mess from early morning…?’

Nevertheless, I managed to restrain my laughter.

“Stay still, Eciel. Let me straighten your clothes.”

Viscount Rezena was indeed remarkably perceptive.

If it had been a typical servant, he would have stepped in here to smooth things over. Instead, he simply stood by and watched.

After we clumsily tidied up each other’s clothes and hats to some extent, we politely sought permission and sorted out the missing parts.

Once the commotion settled a bit, I spoke quietly.

“Thank you for your assistance, Viscount Rezena.”

Eciel, who was holding my hand tightly, nodded in agreement. It was more a sign of gratitude for aiding reconciliation than for assisting with clothing.

Viscount Rezena spoke with a restrained smile.

“Please speak at ease, Miss. I am His Excellency’s counselor.”

“… then I will call you Louis.”

He adjusted his glasses, looking at me with a curious expression.

Was he wondering why I didn’t say everything at once?

“Miss Claire …”

Just as Louis was about to say something, the coachman loudly announced.

“We have arrived!”

Soon after, the carriage stopped, and someone politely knocked on the carriage door.

It was probably the accompanying escort.

Louis casually stepped out of the carriage, extending his hand politely. Eciel, with a bright expression, took his hand.

Seeing my younger sister excited and happy as she stepped down the stairs one at a time, I kept silent and postponed my questions.

What was he trying to tell me? Why did he have that expression?

It would be difficult to ask directly anyway.

‘Today is a day to focus on Eciel. So, let’s concentrate solely on Eciel.’

As I thought of that, Louis was already extending his hand politely to me.

Flawlessly graceful and respectful, he took my hand and gently took it back when I stepped on the firm ground.

There was not much difference compared to what he did for Eciel.

“Claire, look here!”

Eciel, unable to hide his excitement, called out to me, and my gaze naturally turned from Louis to the building in front of us.

One store seemed to occupy the entire large four-story building.

The sign displayed prominently was clean, and at a glance, it seemed to have quite a few customers.

‘… are the third and fourth floor reserved exclusively for nobility or the wealthy?’

The attire of the people by the windows or on the terrace of those floors were noticeably more splendid than those below.

Scanning the exterior of the store, I squinted slightly.

‘Nathan Colta mentioned this place.’

Nathan Colta was the wealthiest son I had seen before meeting Dad.

He was said to come every year to a villa his reasonably well-off father had built in a quiet and picturesque location.

‘I didn’t know him well because we weren’t that close.’

If it wasn’t a lie… then he also frequented a very famous confectionery shop that even nobles would visit.

Although wealthy, he was a commoner boy.

Was the Colta family far more prominent than I estimated back then?

While connecting brief deductions, Louis briefly mentioned.

“There’s a separate area upstairs for distinguished individuals. I’ve already made a reservation under my name, so we just need to call a waiter.”

Those who followed us were the servant, Louis, and two escorts. All four of us.

The servant parked the carriage in a moderately secluded area, and we only brought two escorts because having too many would draw attention.

‘Today, it would be inconvenient to attract attention.’

In the same context, Louis seemed to have taken the initiative to avoid revealing that we were the daughters of Duke Chelsiers.

Two noble girls accompanied by guards. A very common sight on this bustling street.

However, if people could scrutinize us under our hats once we entered the store…

Everyone would surely notice our uncommon status.

Just the thought of it made me tired.

Sincerely praising Louis’s foresight, I nodded.

‘It hasn’t even been a month since arriving in the capital, yet we’ve experienced events that might unfold over a year. Please, let’s have a day without any incidents…’

But alas, unlike the demigod Astariol, my wishes tended to not come true since I was young.