Chapter 3: Chapter 3

I Became the Villain’s Lost Daughter Chapter 3

Although my face was hidden in the robe, the director trembled at the frightening feeling.

“Bring her?” (Director)

“Yes” (Aslan)

Aslan glanced at the director’s stupid question with an annoyed expression.

“What about your promise that you would bring whatever I asked?” (Aslan)

“Ah, y-yes.” (Director)

“Yes. Fortunately, I’m not deaf.”

Only then, the director, who came to his senses quickly sent the kid next to him from the attic.

Then the kid, who was in the attic looking down from the window, suddenly disappeared.

Aslan’s eyes, hidden inside the robe, turned tenderly towards the attic where Erita was.

“Let’s go home now.”

✿

“Bring her.”

Erita stared at the man in the robe and blinked stupidly at the words she heard from afar.

He looked down blankly and saw me running into the building and fell from the window behind him.

“…I told you to bring her.”

I pondered on the man’s words, but I couldn’t believe it.

Why did he ask to bring me?

The man stared at me from the attic. He didn’t turn his head and look at me properly.

He was the first person who didn’t frown after seeing my head in my whole life.

When I finished thinking slowly, my heart began to pound with weak expectations.

All those who rarely saw me looking down on the attic they only frowned and turned their heads.

“I wish I had a little more decent clothes.”

It was especially regrettable today that all were old and shabby clothes.

Knock, knock~

Erita hurriedly opened the door as she heard the knock.

“The director wants you to his office.”

“Yes, I got it.”

The walk to the director’s office felt long, as I followed the frowning child behind, it’s unusual.

“Go inside alone.”

When we arrived in front of the director’s office, the kid who took me there, left me immediately and went to where his friends were.

Before I entered, I tugged on my wrinkled skirt and brushed off my hair, wondering if it might have gotten dusty while cleaning.

Sigh~ I took a deep breath and knocked on the door and whispered my name.

“Director, it’s Rita.”

“Come on in.”

Normally, I would have heard a scolding, but today I only heard a friendly voice because we had guests.

When I opened the door and walked in, I saw the director sitting on the sofa and the men on the opposite side.

I didn’t know how to properly greet a nobleman, so I just bowed my head and greeted him.

“Hello.”

“Rita, come here and sit down.”

My name was called by the director for the first time ever since I got here.

‘It was just funny that my name was suddenly changed in front of a noble guest.’

I bit my lips and walked towards the sofa.

As I stood in front of the low table and watched the men carefully, my eyes met the blue-haired man.

“Hello, little girl. My name’s Fern.”

I turned my head in surprise, and a man with blue hair greeted me with a smile.

“Ah, well, I’m Rita…”

I looked at him blankly for a moment without realizing that he was a very handsome man with his languid curved eyebrows.

I came to my senses because of the low laughter that came over my head.

As I peeked up, the tail of the man’s lips was raised a bit from under the robe.

I could only see the lower part, but I could guess that the man’s face was quite aesthetic.

“Lady, may I ask what you usually do?”

“Uh, I usually prepare meals and clean, and I just go up to the attic during my free time.”

I hesitated for a moment when asked by the man who introduced himself as Fern, but I glanced at the director first and answered.

I could have told a lie, but I didn’t want to take the director’s side by saying it in a good way.

“Do you prepare the meals all by yourself?”

“…Yes.”

Well, a few months ago, there was another kid who sometimes helped me, and I’ve been preparing alone ever since he was adopted.

The man in the robe whispered something at my words, but I didn’t hear it exactly.

“Then what about the other children?”

“They sleep in the morning, and at lunch and dinner, they just play.”

After I finished talking, I turned my head towards the director and shuddered as I saw his face.

“It’s true anyway.’

The director’s expression was like how dare you frame me? It seemed to imply that.

I bowed my head, turning away from the harsh director’s face, and the man in the robe gently called out my name.

“Rita.”

“Yes?”

My name, which the man called in a low voice, felt somewhat strange.

It was a name that was rarely called in the orphanage, so I felt something tickling in my chest.

When I answered while fiddling with my fingers, the man sitting on the sofa stood up and sat in front of me with one knee.

My eyes trembled with embarrassment.

And when he smiled at me again, he held out his large hand towards me.

“Would you come with me?”

Perhaps the excitement I had from the moment my name was called. My wish, which I had prayed to God every day, for a very long time.

The existence of a family that I’ve longed for since I found out that I’ve become a child again here.

Then I asked in a trembling voice.

“Really?” (Erita)

“Yes.” (Aslan)

“I’m not pretty, I’m not smart, I’m cursed, I have black hair. Do you still want to adopt me even though I told you all that?”

“Rita, it doesn’t matter. Because you are the most lovely child in the world to me.”

The man’s words were the warmest I have ever heard here.

Then the man held out his hand again and said,

“Rita, would you come home with me?”

“…Yes!”

Erita couldn’t say no.

✿

On the other hand, the director stood in confusion as he watched the scene, looking alternately at Erita and the man…

‘What? Are you sure you want to take her? I didn’t think you’d want to adopt that kid.’ (Director)

‘Why? Why of all the kids in the orphanage did you have to pick her? Why’s that kid?’

The director pressed the boiling anger inside and spoke in a soft voice.

“Um, Count?”

The man who looked down warmly at Erita’s hand, which he was holding tightly, turned his head at the director’s words.

“Are you really planning on taking that child with you?”

“Why? Was there a problem?”

The man casually answered back, holding Erita’s small body.

‘Ugh!’ The director screamed embarrassedly.

Even in the midst of this, the man patted the surprised Erita on the back very affectionately.

The director, who tried to ignore the cold sweat flowing behind his back, smiled for his business.

It wasn’t bad to get rid of the troublesome child, but it was more the director’s wish for other children to be adopted by a noble family.

‘It’s a bit sad when someone with good skills disappears…’

The director, who hid his evil intentions, continued with a smile.

But I was wondering if it was too soon for him to decide. There are many other pretty kids.

At the sharp gaze looking at the director, Erita shook her body.

“Shhh, it’s okay.”

The man gently stroked Erita’s head and comforted her.

The director, who bit his lips at the sight in front of him, carefully spoke his words out again.

“Don’t do that, Count, I have an exceptionally lovely child, you could see her first, or at once then you may decide, it won’t be too late.”

Fern slightly frowned at the director’s obvious words.

‘There are a lot of stupid people out there who don’t know how to read the atmosphere.’

It’s because he’s overshadowed by his soft appearance, but in fact, Fern’s personality wasn’t that good.

And especially to the kinds of people like the director, Fern disliked it.

Recalling what he had heard from his master before coming to the orphanage today, Fern smiled kindly.

“Haha! Yes. There were many other pretty kids, too. ”

The director’s face lit up when he saw Fern who agreed with him.

“But, sir.”

“Yes?”

“The other children’s clothes are new… Why was this little girl’s clothes so ragged?”

However, the smile disappeared from the director’s face when Fern laughed at his words.

Although people with black hair were rejected, it was unacceptable for the children of the orphanage cared for by the charity to be discriminated against.

“Well, that’s…! Our orphanage was in a difficult situation right now… We couldn’t afford to buy new clothes for all of our children.”

To say that, from the director’s outfit, to the furniture in the director’s office,

Nothing was cheap.

The man laughed at such a rude remark.

“Difficult…?”

“It-it’s true! That’s why it’s so sad that we couldn’t even feed our children properly…”

Someone might believe it’s true if they didn’t know the situation and saw him weeping in tears while pretending to be sad and pitiful.

“I bet, you’re going to steal all the donations and feed the kids properly.”

The director, who tried to fool them, hardened at the words of the Count and Fern that stuck to his ears.

“It was said that it was not enough to embezzle the subsidy from the charity, so they stole the donations from the nobles to satisfy their greed.”

Fern, who lugged out the paper from his arms, laughed heavily.

On the paper, the subsidies and donations that the director had stolen were written down.

“Fern, what’s the punishment in this case?”

The director’s body trembled hearing the man’s low voice.

“What’s this?” (Director)

“Hmm, the charity’s subsidies and donations for children were stolen…”

Fern paused for a moment, and glanced at the trembling director.

“Well, at least it would be about deportation after the deprivation of the director’s qualifications and the confiscation of property.”

“Tha-that…!”

“Of course, at the very least.”

At Fern’s words, which he clearly heard, the director, who had lost strength in his legs, sat down in his seat.

“That’s what they said…”

“As you say so.”

“Ah, no matter how many, Count, you couldn’t do that to me…!”

Although he shouted useless words, the director knew that this was the end.

“Why are you doing this to me?! I didn’t do anything wrong to the Count!”

The director shouted, you could see the fear on his face…

Of course, embezzlement was against the law, but it was normal to overlook this much.

‘What the hell did I do wrong to deserve this?!’ (Director)

At those words, he looked at Erita as if glaring at her.

“So what did this kid do wrong to you?”

The man looked down at Erita in his arms and asked the director.

The director replied with a smirk.

“Because of this little girl?!”

At that moment, Fern pulled up a sword in the blink of an eye and aimed it at the director’s neck.

The man turned his back on the director, who was muttering in front of the bright blue blade.

“Fern”

Fern, who had turned into a cold bloody soldier, moved to the Count’s call.

When he left the room, leaving the director blanked by the same curse, nodded to the knight who was waiting, and the director, whose arms were tied up, was quickly dragged out.

“Take it away.”

“Argh! Let go of me!”

Ordering with an indifferent look, Fern headed towards the man’s side.

The scream from behind quickly disappeared

✿

Erita left the director’s office carried in the man’s arms.

“Do you happen to have anything to bring?”

The man asked in a friendly voice as he felt her body stiffened in his arms.

I thought about it for a while, but the things in the attic came to my mind and shook my head.

“I just want to leave this place.”

There were only old clothes and worn-out blankets in the attic anyway.

At my answer, the man paused for a moment, then moved on again.

“It’s all right. Everything you need will be there when we get home.”

The words that followed were quite sweet.

“Home…”

I pondered on the word the man said that felt awkward.

As I turned my head slightly, I saw an old orphanage building.

I remember it for a year, but originally I lived there for more than six years.

If I were to simply say home, this would have been my home.

However, the contempt and bullying I had received from the moment I opened my eyes was clear in my body and mind.

It was such a terrifying place that I couldn’t even call it a home.

“A home…”

I finally have a place to call home.

“Yes. We’re going home.”

At the warmth of the voice that had settled in my ear, the tears I had been holding back burst out silently.