Chapter 45

That's right. Unlike seven years ago, Enoch, now a father, had something he had to protect.

Something more important than his beliefs, the existence of a daughter.

"......"

The emperor, who had patted Enoch's shoulder a few times, looked back at the map and said,

"Winter would be good. It's the time when all life is hushed, and the smell of blood will be covered by the blizzard."

No further words were needed.

Before the year was over, in winter. It meant to erase the names of the countries that still occupied one corner of the continent.

"......"

After a long silence, Enoch walked past the emperor.

He paused for a moment.

"...I'll prepare."

A smile crept onto the emperor's face.

* * *

When Enoch came out of the emperor's room, Axion was waiting.

"What did you talk about with His Majesty?"

"Obvious things."

"...I see."

There were no more words between them, but the conversation was enough.

"There's someone who wants to see your face for a moment. Go and meet them."

"Who?"

"Selena."

"......"

Enoch, who wanted to quickly escape the suffocating palace, stopped in his tracks as he crossed the corridor.

Selena.

A comrade who fought alongside him on the battlefield seven years ago and a great magician.

She was Lylis's birth mother.

"Why me?"

"How would I know?"

Axion, who had blurted out, added with a sigh,

"Maybe she wants to talk about her daughter. It's not like you had her alone. As a mother, she might claim the right to meet her daughter."

"Oh, I see."

Enoch pondered for a moment.

He would be lying if he hadn't thought of the child's mother when he decided to return to the capital.

If Lylis was curious about her mother, he naturally wanted to let them meet.

However, Enoch had somewhat unilaterally taken the child, and Selena had already formed a new family...

'If she wants to meet Lylis, I should let her.'

A mother with another family. It might confuse Lylis, but it was something Enoch had to handle.

While thinking about this, his steps stopped again.

Selena.

Their gazes intertwined in the middle of the quiet corridor.

"See you later."

As Axion moved aside, Selena approached.

"It's been a while. How have you been?"

"Fine. What's up?"

Selena, who had slightly brushed her blonde hair, smiled faintly.

"You haven't changed. Still only saying what you need to."

"......"

"First, I'm sorry. As you know, I was the one who told His Majesty about you."

"It's okay."

Enoch said calmly.

Telling him where he was. Respecting Selena as Lylis's birth mother and not moving to a new place. It was all Enoch's choice.

"Even if you hadn't told him, the emperor would have found me somehow. If you're worried, you don't have to be."

"Is that so? I got a few things from His Majesty for telling him about you. I retired and my son was exempted from conscription."

"I know."

Selena's eyes narrowed. She had braced herself for a scolding, but Enoch's reaction was unexpectedly calm.

"Why did you come back? I thought you would run away somehow."

"Because Lylis wanted to come to the capital."

"I see. How is the child? Did you raise her well?"

"Yeah. Her name is Lylis. She's kind and bright. She's beautiful. She's a bit shorter than her peers but will grow soon. She's a bit picky with food."

Selena was surprised by Enoch's smiling face as he talked about his daughter.

"I thought you hadn't changed at all, but you have."

"Did you come to talk about the child?"

"Yes."

"I'll show her to you. But I haven't told her about her mother yet..."

"No, Enoch."

"......?"

"I came to ask you not to tell her about me. I'm glad you haven't told her yet."

Enoch's eyes widened. It was an unexpected response.

"The child will be enlisting soon, right? I work at the training facility. We'll probably meet at some point."

"You don't want to see the child?"

"Probably... It might confuse her. I've formed a new family and have a son. I can't be her mother."

"......"

"My son is five. He's also at the training facility now. If Lylis... if she says something to me, it might affect my son's emotions. Can you understand?"

Enoch, who had lost for words, looked at Selena.

"Sorry. Having a child really changes a person. As you know best, you'll do anything for your child."

She turned away.

"Sorry again. Take care."

Enoch watched Selena's retreating back in a daze.

It was a conversation that would have been terrifying if Lylis had heard it. He was also at a loss about how to tell Lylis about her mother, who she would inevitably be curious about.

"Haa."

Enoch, tilting his head back to the sky, muttered,

"I'm tired..."

* * *

Dad, who had slept for two nights, finally came back late in the evening on the fourth day.

I heard that this was a reduced schedule. The return ceremony the emperor had prepared was supposed to last a week.

"Hmm. Princess."

Dad, in his pajamas, crawled into bed and hugged me.

"Your dad's face is half gone..."

I could tell how tired he was, so I obediently let him hug me.

"Is that so? Is Dad ugly now?"

"No, no. You still look good, but you look tired. You must have worked hard."

I said calmly and opened the fairy tale book on my lap.

"Hmm. Aren't you going to ask anything? How was the return ceremony? What's in the palace...?"

"Not really curious."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"...Princess."

"Yeah."

"Listen."

"Yeah."

"Listen... "

"What? Don't drag it out, just say it."

"Do you want to see your mom?"

"......"

Caught off guard by the unexpected question, I hesitated.

'...He must have gone to see Mom.'

My mind raced. From Dad's hesitant expression and what I heard from the tower master, it was clear what Mom had said.

"Mom? Suddenly?"

"Yeah. Since you came to the capital, you might be curious, but you haven't said anything."

Dad's face, trailing off, looked like a child waiting to be scolded.

If I said I wanted to see Mom, he would be at a loss for an excuse.

'At least I'm glad I heard about Mom from the tower master beforehand.'

If I hadn't, I might have naively asked if I had a mom and said I wanted to see her.

"Hmm, I don't know... Did Dad go to the palace and meet Mom? Does she want to see me? I'm a bit... "

"Huh? A bit...?"

Dad sat up abruptly.

I flipped the pages of the book, pretending not to care.

"I thought Mom might be somewhere since we came to the capital, but... I don't really want to see her. It might be awkward if we meet. Do we really need a mom?"

"You're not curious? You used to ask Dad where Mom was."

"That was because everyone thought I only had a dad, but my friends said they had moms at home, so I was curious. I didn't ask because I wanted to see Mom."

"O-Oh, I see."

"Yeah. And if I suddenly have a mom after only having Dad, it would feel strange. I don't think I need to meet her... I don't even want to know."

"......"

"...Do I have to meet her?"

Lifting my eyes from the book, I asked. Dad, who had been staring blankly, shook his head quickly.

"No? It's not like that. If that's what Princess thinks, then that's fine. You don't have to see her. You don't even have to know who she is. Yeah, that's fine."

"Got it. Let's go to sleep now."

I closed the book, lay down, and closed my eyes. I could feel Dad's gaze.

Dad, who had turned off a few candles lighting the room, lay down next to me.

"Hmm."

Dad tossed and turned for a while, unable to fall asleep immediately.

'It must have been a really terrible return ceremony.'

I thought.

He must have seen the unpleasant face of the emperor, and the emperor probably used me as leverage to pressure Dad.

Did he tell him to prepare for war? He probably did. Nodding reluctantly and coming out, he met Mom.

'With a new husband and a son, did she suggest they pretend not to know each other? Or did Dad bring up me first, and she said she didn't want to meet?'

As I ran simulations in my head, I sighed.

I felt sorry for Dad. It all seemed to be because of me.

'No, it is because of me.'

I snuggled into Dad's arms, who was still tossing and turning. He smiled and hugged me.

"Dad."

"Yeah, Princess?"

"I like Dad the most in the world."

"Haha, Dad likes you too."

"I only need Dad."

"......"

Realizing that my sudden affection was because of the talk about Mom, Dad was silent for a moment.

I burrowed deeper into Dad's arms and said,

"Let's just live happily together."