How to Replace Your Dad - Chapter 43

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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How to Replace Your Dad

Chapter 43

* * *

Turning back time, two hours earlier.

The meeting proceeded smoothly.

Introducing the vassals’ backgrounds and explaining their assigned duties.

Up to that point, it was the expected flow.

‘The problem will start when the issue of appointing my vassal comes up.’

Fortunately, he was a noble.

Though he got wrongly involved in some political incident, had his title revoked, and all his family except him died.

So he met the minimum requirements to become a vassal.

But all the vassals in a place like the Sanwonro Jurisdiction have titles.

Could they accept making someone without a title into a vassal? That was the problem.

But then….

“If that is our Lord’s will, how could we oppose it?”

The Medical Association President readily answered.

‘This easily?’

The Clan Leader glanced at the Clan Leader.

The Clan Leader was silently staring at the Medical Association President.

“I hate beating around the bush. What do you want?”

“Haha, how embarrassing. But communication will be easier.”

The Medical Association President who said that looked around at the vassals.

It meant everything had already been discussed.

The Medical Association President said:

“You are an adopted son of House Sanmiguel, my Lord.”

That’s right. To become lord, he took it from the former Count Sanmiguel along with the entire family.

Starting from there somehow felt ominous.

The Clan Leader furrowed his brow.

“What are you trying to say by discussing our Lord’s origins?”

“Along with our Lord, Young Lady Yustea, who is your daughter, is likewise an adoptee.”

“And so?”

“Wouldn’t that make legitimacy somewhat lacking?”

The Medical Association President looked at the Clan Leader.

“So this is what I propose – please use my family.”

“Use, you say.”

“Our Paleta Family began together with this Valboa. If you take us, no one will question our Lord’s legitimacy.”

The Clan Leader frowned.

His true intentions were obvious.

‘He’s going to talk about marriage.’

The Clan Leader was unmarried.

He planned to marry off his child to share in the lord’s power.

The Clan Leader who was thinking that far paused.

‘But that guy only has two sons….’

That was the moment.

“Please marry Young Lady Yustea to my son.”

What?

Not the Clan Leader but the Young Lady?

It was the moment the Clan Leader stiffened.

The vassals from Valboa exchanged glances with smirks.

‘It would take a good 20 years for the new lord to marry and have children grow up.’

‘We can’t serve such a lord for 20 years.’

Though an adoptee, Yustea was Aslan’s only child as proven by documents.

They planned to arrange the marriage first, then expel Aslan.

They would set up Yustea as a puppet to usurp the lordship.

With no one to rely on, Yustea couldn’t resist, so the vassals could install whatever lord they wanted.

The Clan Leader opened his mouth.

“He’s at least in his 60s – did he have children late?”

Then the Clan Leader whispered:

“No.”

“Then.”

“The youngest is 36….”

It was the moment the Clan Leader said that.

The Clan Leader opened his mouth quietly with an expressionless face.

“Son of a bitch.”

The table was overturned.

Aaaahhh!

The meeting room became pandemonium in an instant.

* * *

“…That’s how it happened.”

After hearing the Clan Leader’s explanation, I held my forehead.

But the reactions of those around me were different.

“Still, the Clan Leader’s personality has mellowed a lot since becoming lord. Should I go tear his mouth apart?”

“How about using him as a target for shooting? Where’s my bow….”

“Hehe, that kind of guy needs a good beating with clubs.”

The Unit Members nodded their heads.

I looked at the Unit Members with an expressionless face.

“Don’t tear. Don’t shoot. Don’t beat.”

After saying that to the Unit Members, I crossed my arms.

I couldn’t openly punish them for just a proposal.

But I couldn’t just leave it alone either.

I knew why they wanted to marry me off.

‘They probably want to expel the Clan Leader and use me as a puppet.’

After pondering, I said to the Clan Leader:

“Where is the Clan Leader?”

“He should be in front of the castle wall.”

…He’s really going to hang them.

I nodded and headed toward the northern castle wall where the Clan Leader was said to be.

In front of the castle wall, vassals were packed tightly.

“You cannot do this!”

“You must not ignore procedures and discipline!”

“If it continues like this, we’ll have no choice but to seek help from the Homeland…!”

It was chaos.

The Clan Leader stood upright, watching the Medical Association President hanging from the castle wall.

I whispered to the Clan Leader:

“Please let him down. If you do this, there will be problems later.”

The Clan Leader looked at me.

“Do you think of me as someone you need to protect?”

“Pardon?”

“You’re wrong. I am the one who protects.”

“….”

I opened my eyes wide and stared at the Clan Leader.

The Clan Leader said.

“I’ve taken you as my child. So you’re the person I must protect above all else.”

“….”

“What can someone who can’t even protect their own child possibly protect?”

“….”

I couldn’t say anything.

I had never heard such words even from my biological father.

‘He said he’d protect me.’

To me, who had always had to protect even Mother, those words felt unfamiliar.

The Clan Leader said.

“So not Lord, but Father.”

“…!”

“Titles are surprisingly the best advertisement.”

I kept finding myself at a loss for words.

Father.

I had never thought I could call someone Father again.

My throat felt ticklish, and I couldn’t bring myself to say the word Father.

When I hesitated, the Clan Leader glanced at me.

‘Did it look like I was displeased?’

That wasn’t it.

When I was hesitantly trying to open my mouth, the Clan Leader spoke again.

“If you prefer Dad, you can call me that.”

“…Huh?”

He must have thought I was pondering the title.

* * *

My room in Kuaron is very pretty.

The room in Count Sanmiguel’s Castle was good too, but that was relatively good compared to when I lived in a semi-basement.

But my room in Kuaron Castle was objectively good enough to make everyone envious.

The wainscoted walls had beautiful patterns embossed on them, and the wallpaper was a very pale almond color.

The furniture was luxurious white-toned pieces, and the chandelier looked like small flowers clustered together.

The carpet was as soft as clouds, and the bedding had delicate embroidery.

What I liked most was the huge arched window.

There was a small terrace outside, with a view of the Maze Garden made of hedges.

And in that room, I was….

“Please spare me! Please spare me, Lord!”

“Aaaaah!”

…listening to screams.

For several days now.

I stepped out into the corridor.

The castle was like thin ice.

The arrogant Vassals from Valboa were completely demoralized.

To what extent?

“Hello, Marquis Delso.”

“Ah, ah, ah, hel-lo, mi-miss!”

Enough to run away like an arrow.

Thanks to this, the Sanmiguel natives were delighted.

“Those Valboa bastards misjudged people.”

“Right, how cruel and ruthless is our Lord! I was locked in a well for three days and nights just for trying to skim some taxes!”

“Hahaha!”

It was like this.

Yuise, whom I met in the corridor, whispered while watching the vassals trembling as they passed by.

“At this rate, they’ll die of stress.”

“Isn’t this a bit too harsh? What if they write a petition and report to the Citadel?”

“Did Andres handle petitions right away when they came in?”

“Not really. There were mountains of other work.”

“How long did it take?”

“Starting from investigation to reaching a conclusion, at least three months?”

Then Yuise smiled brightly.

“Exactly.”

“Huh?”

“The Clan Leader said so. Two months is enough to carve fear into their bones.”

“Oh, then….”

“A rolling stone that came in without legitimacy. Once you start being pushed around, there’s no end. He said a decisive cleanup was necessary.”

I was surprised.

‘He was thinking that.’

I hadn’t thought about being the daughter of a marquis who had been the master of Andres Estate for generations.

My biological father had commanded the world from a golden throne since birth.

A rolling outsider has no choice but to fight and seize it.

And the Clan Leader had been thinking about this even before I did.

Yuise said.

“Actually, the Clan Leader’s thinking is working.”

“Working?”

“Some of the Valboa’s Retainers who followed the Medical Association President seem to be preparing to side with the Clan Leader.”

“That’s good.”

Yuise and I walked while having such conversations.

There was also small talk.

“So when are you going to call him Father?”

“….”

I walked quietly.

Several days had already passed, but I just couldn’t bring the word Father out of my mouth.

“It’s not even that difficult a word. Someone who speaks common tongue, formal language, classical language, and foreign languages fluently.”

“…I will.”

“Next year maybe?”

“…Soon.”

“Since you’ve already decided, why don’t you try it now?”

Yuise lightly pushed me in front of a corner.

Because of that, I was pushed out beyond the corner and….

Thump.

I bumped my forehead against someone’s forearm.

“Oh, sorry….”

I froze while rubbing my forehead and speaking.

Because the person I bumped into was the Clan Leader.

The Clan Leader looked at me steadily.

I looked up at him while flinching.

“…Yuise pushed me.”

“I know.”

“How…?”

“Because I heard you two talking.”

“Ah….”

“So?”

“Pardon?”

When I looked at him as if asking what he meant, the Clan Leader turned his head and continued on his way.

“It’s not soon anyway.”

─While saying that.

I just stood there with my eyes wide open, and Yuise poked me.

“You’re planning to do it around next year, right?”

“…I’m going to fight back.”

“Really? Someone who can’t even call him Father?”

Yuise giggled.

I turned my head.

And.

“Lorenzo! Lorenzo!”

“…!”

I enthusiastically called for the Clan Leader.

Yuise was dragged off to the training ground.

* * *

The Clan Leader’s office.

After nearly two hours of hellish training, Yuise came back fuming and slumped onto the sofa.

“How petty, tattling to the Clan Leader?”

Then the Clan Leader, who was heading toward the Clan Leader with documents, smacked his head.

Yuise groaned and rubbed his head.

“It wasn’t even that bad of teasing. I just joked a few times about how he can’t call the Clan Leader Father.”

“Making someone uncomfortable isn’t a joke.”

“There’s no way I made him uncomfortable. He was just annoyed. That kid really likes me.”

“No, it’s me.”

Then the Clan Leader’s hand, which had been approving documents, stopped abruptly.

The Clan Leader, who was placing documents on the Clan Leader’s desk, asked.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s me.”

“…Pardon?”

The Clan Leader put down his seal completely and said.

“The person that child likes most.”

“….”

“….”

At those uncharacteristic words, both Yuise and the Clan Leader fell silent.

I didn’t know why he was suddenly fixated on those words, but since it was the Clan Leader speaking, I decided to respond.

“Of course it’s me.”

“No, it’s me.”

“No, it’s me.”

The three of them fell silent again.

Yuise was the first to speak.

“I can’t say exactly, but Yustea and I share each other’s secrets.”

Then the Clan Leader responded.

“She said she was happy to learn about life from me. She also said she wouldn’t forgive anyone who insulted me.”

The Clan Leader was last.

“I’m the most handsome.”

“….”

“….”

“That child said she likes handsome people.”

Bringing up looks at this point is cheating.

Yuise and the Clan Leader frowned in frustration.

* * *

That afternoon.

I looked at Yuise with a puzzled expression.

“What did you say?”

“I mean, we share the biggest secret, right? That’s huge.”

“…So?”

“So you like me the most….”

Yuise, who had been shouting excitedly, suddenly turned his head away.

“Never mind.”

Then he strode away.

I tilted my head.

What was he talking about, blocking my path out of nowhere.

The Elite seem a bit strange today.

It was the same when I ran into the Clan Leader earlier.

“Respect is quite a significant word, isn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

“Not just anyone can be respected.”

“Yes.”

“So the person you can clearly say you respect the most….”

“…?”

“…Never mind.”

Then he left too.

I was thinking about that when.

“Good evening, Young Lady.”

“We greet the Young Lady.”

I encountered Unit Members from Yuise’s team.

When I nodded, the Unit Members said.

“We heard Yuise went to see you, Young Lady. Did you not see him?”

They must be looking for Yuise.

I said.

“He just left.”

“Oh no. We had something urgent to tell him.”

“What’s going on?”

“The Medical Association President’s behavior is suspicious.”

“Behavior?”

“Wasn’t he tied to the Castle Wall the other day and released shortly after?”

“Yeah. And I heard he’s been staying holed up in his manor?”

“That wasn’t true.”

I looked at the Unit Members in surprise.

“What do you mean?”

“According to someone who infiltrated the President’s manor, no meals have been brought to the President’s bedroom since this morning. His son is nowhere to be seen either.”

“Then?”

“There were footprints at the back door that appeared to belong to the President and his son. They escaped from the manor.”

The President and his son who secretly escaped.

Why?

The petition should have already been decided to be sent to the Citadel.

‘If there’s something else they need to move secretly for… are they trying to harm the Clan Leader?’

But the Clan Leader is in the Castle Interior, protected by soldiers.

‘They wouldn’t be able to harm such a Clan Leader… surely not.’

I widened my eyes.

“Where is the Clan Leader?”

“I heard he’s been in his office the whole time.”

“Bring soldiers and a doctor to the office!”

I ran frantically.

A sword isn’t the only thing used to kill people.

This is Valboa.

The place that created deadly poison like the Population.

It wouldn’t be strange if there were deadly poisons in this region that I don’t know about.

‘The Medical Association President’s family has been with Valboa since its beginning.’

It wouldn’t be strange if they knew secret passages leading to Balbowa Castle.

If they targeted the Clan Leader with poison…?

If he hadn’t eaten since morning, it wouldn’t be strange if they had entered the castle by now.

‘No… no…!’

I ran frantically and even tripped over my own feet.

Startled servants tried to help me up, but I scrambled to my feet and kept running.

“Is answering when asked such a difficult thing to do.”

He said that to me.

“If someone who went for my business is in danger, it’s natural to save them.”

He came to get me.

“I made you my child. So you’re the person I must protect above all else.”

He said he would protect me.

It felt like all the blood in my body had turned cold.

My body was trembling so much I didn’t even know if I was moving properly.

Because I was scared.

Because I was so scared…

The time heading to the Clan Leader’s office felt like an eternity.

I couldn’t see anything around me.

I could only see the door to the office.

I kicked open the door and rushed in, shouting.

“Dad─!”

I put all my strength into kicking it open and lost my balance.

I collapsed right onto the floor, panting as I looked ahead.

But…

“…Huh?”

I muttered blankly.

The Clan Leader was standing there perfectly fine.

And kneeling in front of him were two people. The Medical Association President and his son.

Around the Clan Leader, I could see Yuise, Antonio, and the Clan Leader.

The Clan Leader was looking at me blankly.

“…Dad?”

─While saying that.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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