How to Replace Your Dad - Chapter 46

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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 46

The archipelago’s Captain of the Guard rushed frantically toward the middle-aged nobles.

No, to be precise, he was heading toward my biological father.

He shouted at the guard as if to show off to my biological father.

“How dare you block the carriage of House Andres!”

“It’s an imperial order, so procedurally…”

The guard said in complete panic.

It seemed like some clueless newcomer had blocked Andres’s carriage.

“Silence!”

The Captain of the Guard barked at his subordinate and turned to my biological father.

“I apologize for keeping you waiting. Please board your carriage. The guard will safely escort you to your manor.”

He said obsequiously.

Then he waved his hands dismissively toward the guards.

The guards quickly moved toward the other nobles.

Of course, guards also approached our side.

He said to Dad.

“Remove your jacket and raise both hands. There will be a body search.”

I immediately frowned.

The intensity of the search was excessive.

Making people remove their jackets and groping their bodies in front of others in the middle of winter. They don’t investigate nobles like this.

Most importantly, we had never even been near the Grand Salon.

Since our names weren’t on the Grand Salon’s guest list, we didn’t need to undergo such a search.

‘Yet they’re committing such rudeness to show off to the nobles on my biological father’s side.’

That this is such a thorough investigation.

But letting them go without a search is because we’re treating you well.

So we’re being used as a means for the guard to curry favor with those in power.

I looked at them coldly and said.

“Do not lay hands on my father.”

“…!”

“…!!”

The guard flinched.

The Captain of the Guard scowled.

The nobles on my biological father’s side also turned to look at me at the word “father.”

My biological father as well, of course.

The Captain of the Guard said angrily.

“Did you not hear that we’re searching for an assassin by imperial order?”

“Then you should investigate the guests of the Grand Salon.”

“Considering the possibility that an uninvited assassin snuck into the Grand Salon…!”

“While that possibility is low, even if that were the case, my father, who arrived in this area from the complete opposite direction of the Grand Salon, has no reason to be searched. We firmly refuse the body search.”

“Do you intend to defy the imperial order!”

“If you’re investigating by borrowing the authority of the Imperial Palace!”

I raised my voice.

People looked at me with surprised faces.

I met the hardened gaze of the Captain of the Guard without flinching and said.

“The high nobles will not be able to avoid the same search as us.”

Are high nobles above imperial orders?

If you’re going to do it, do it with the high nobles on my biological father’s side too.

If done together with the high nobles, it’s an unavoidable matter due to imperial orders.

But if only done to us, it’s an insult that occurred due to lack of authority.

The people who were waiting for the search with us quickly agreed.

“Of course that’s right.”

“Certainly. High nobles are equal under imperial orders too.”

“What a refreshing thing to say. She looks like a young noble lady, but who is she?”

“Don’t you know? That’s Andres’s… no, that’s Yustea.”

“Ho, she’s as clever a child as I’ve heard.”

The high nobles frowned.

They were flustered that the atmosphere had become subtle.

The Captain of the Guard looked bewildered.

“Ah, no, this is… well, so…”

He was afraid of the high nobles if he searched them.

But not doing so would be defying imperial orders.

As he hesitated not knowing what to do, the guards also looked confused.

That’s when it happened.

“We cannot defy imperial orders.”

Those words came from my biological father’s mouth.

When he removed his jacket, the high nobles looked at him in shock.

“No… Your Grace, what…”

“You all follow the imperial order as well.”

At my biological father’s words, the high nobles looked bewildered.

But when my biological father glanced at them, they also reluctantly removed their jackets as if they had no choice.

I nodded toward Dad.

“I’ll hold your jacket for you.”

“Alright.”

Everyone submitted to the search.

The guards moved hesitantly.

The Captain of the Guard watched this scene with a pale face.

* * *

After the men’s search ended, female search party members arrived.

While Yustea was being searched, Antonio whispered to Aslan.

“Do high nobles normally submit to body searches so obediently?”

He thought they’d throw a fit saying they absolutely couldn’t do it because of their pride.

They were surprisingly reasonable.

The Clan Leader watched the high nobles boarding their carriages after the search.

“The moment she drew the words ‘imperial order’ from the Captain of the Guard’s mouth, they had no other choice.”

An attempted assassination of a foreign prince.

An incident that showed the Empire’s security was terrible.

The Emperor must be furious beyond measure.

In the midst of this, to oppose imperial orders in front of all these people?

It would be throwing the Imperial Family’s dignity into the gutter.

Yustea, having finished her body search, quickly headed toward Aslan.

“Did you wait long? Please get in the carriage quickly.”

“Alright.”

Aslan gently patted Yustea’s head with a soft expression.

Aslan wasn’t the only one watching Count Andres.

Count Andres was also watching Aslan from inside the carriage.

…And Yustea who was with Aslan too.

The high nobles who were together in the carriage spoke in irritated tones.

“What kind of disgrace is this? For us to be searched, even removing our coats.”

“Isn’t it that stupid Captain of the Guard’s fault? Why did he have to bring up imperial orders there…”

Then one of the high nobles sighed and said.

“She led him to mention the imperial decree.”

“Pardon?”

“That child, as soon as the captain of the guard arrived, she was observing the guards.”

The easiest way to assess someone’s character is to observe their surroundings.

The guards immediately lowered their eyes upon seeing their captain.

He was terribly authoritarian.

“Deliberately interrupting and even refusing the body search. The captain of the guard must have been thoroughly humiliated.”

“Oh my….”

“Moreover, he was silenced by sound reasoning. Someone like that would have no choice but to borrow other authority to crush her, wouldn’t he?”

The imperial decree – an authority that no citizen of the Empire could ever overcome.

“Is there reason enough to make us submit to such a search?”

“Perhaps it’s because of the man with her. Didn’t she call him father?”

That child had said.

“Do not lay hands on my father.”

The high nobles groaned as they recalled those words.

For the word ‘father’ to come from Yustea’s lips again.

“She must have been adopted, right? But how could anyone think to adopt such a child….”

“But even I would be tempted. How precious must she be for Her Imperial Majesty the Empress Dowager to call her the finest lady in the archipelago. Such a waste….”

The high noble who had been speaking flinched and glanced at Count Andres.

The Count was quietly gazing out the window.

Outside the window, Yustea was smiling at Aslan.

* * *

We arrived at Mother’s caretaker’s house.

The auntie who saw me came running over in a hurry.

“Isn’t that Yustea? How could you come without any notice… No, what is this appearance….”

Originally, I had only worn old, tattered clothes like sacks.

But seeing me in a neat dress, the auntie looked very surprised.

“I came to be under the care of a good person.”

“My goodness. Is that really true?”

“Yes.”

“What amazing fortune.”

The auntie glanced at Dad and Antonio.

Then she patted my shoulder and said.

“Let’s go in. You should see your mother.”

“Yes.”

I quickly went inside the house.

Mother was still quietly lying with her eyes closed.

Dad asked.

“Is this your mother?”

His tone was somehow subtle.

Perhaps because we don’t look alike at all.

“Yes. We don’t look alike at all, do we?”

“I don’t think that’s necessarily true.”

I opened my eyes wide and looked at Dad.

I felt like I’d heard about resembling my biological father ten thousand times, but I’d never once heard about resembling Mother.

“Really?”

“The atmosphere is similar. Your nose too.”

“Really? My nose?”

I smiled brightly.

Antonio grinned.

“Are you that happy?”

“Because I love Mother.”

“She must have been a good person.”

“….”

I quietly turned my eyes away.

Antonio looked puzzled.

“What’s wrong?”

“People called Mother like this.”

“What did they call her?”

“Trash that even dogs wouldn’t bite.”

“…?!”

Antonio looked at me in shock.

“But in the adoption test, the girls said they respected your mother!”

“Well, those girls never saw Mother up close….”

When Mother was running the trading post, the reporters were very kind.

…Because Mother made them that way.

With money.

“Things like ‘Iron-blooded Empress’ were nicknames the reporters wrote while being mindful. People who actually knew Mother all called her things like villainess, witch, villain, or trash.”

“…That’s impressive.”

“But her business acumen was amazing.”

Everyone said so.

If only Mother hadn’t collapsed in less than two weeks in Andres, I would have lived luxuriously again.

They said she would have made it happen by any means necessary.

‘Hmm, I agree too.’

Antonio let out a “Wow….” in admiration.

I smiled awkwardly.

Feeling embarrassed, I looked for something else to do.

I borrowed a basin and towel from the auntie to wipe Mother’s body.

Just as I was about to dampen the towel and wipe Mother.

From where my hand touched, whitish light began to gather.

‘…Huh?’

It seemed others couldn’t see it, as no one reacted.

But I clearly saw it.

‘This is the reaction that appears during purification.’

Purification?

Why?

Illness wasn’t something that could be purified.

If it were, I would have purified clan members with colds just by brushing hands with them.

‘But what could be purified… Don’t tell me.’

I hurriedly examined Mother’s body.

After checking Mother’s body, I shouted.

“Auntie!”

“Huh, what?”

The auntie who was bringing a tray with teacups flinched.

She had never seen me shout so sharply before.

Dad and Antonio also looked surprised.

But I stared at the auntie.

“What did you feed Mother?”

“Feed her, you say. I never did such a thing….”

“That’s a lie. These are traces of poison!”

The red rash on Mother’s body.

At first glance, it looked like common bedsores that appear on unconscious patients, but dark reddish spots like freckles were spread around it.

This was a trace of snake venom.

“What… what are you talking about…?”

Auntie panicked and stumbled backward.

Antonio immediately slammed the door shut and stood guard in front of it.

Father also looked at Auntie with a cold expression.

Auntie said in panic.

“N-no, why would I poison your mother? I’ve been nursing her with what little money I have, so what kind of false accusation is this…!”

Then Father said.

“I am the lord of Esgaroth Estate in Cuaron.”

“Wh-what did you say?”

Surprised by his more impressive status than expected, the tray fell from Auntie’s hands.

“If you have harmed my daughter’s birth mother, it won’t end with just you.”

“N-no, I… I…”

Auntie looked at me in panic.

But I was also completely rigid.

I could never let anything related to Mother slide, no matter what else happened.

Auntie frantically made excuses.

“I just switched the medicine!”

“Medicine?”

“Y-yes. Someone I met at the market gave me medicine. They said they had been nursing their unconscious husband for a long time, but he died this year. They gave it to me saying the medicine they bought had become useless…!”

Auntie hurriedly brought out an injection from the drawer.

“Th-this medicine. Look, it clearly has the medical center’s mark and it’s sealed, right?”

“…”

“I’m sorry for taking the medicine money you gave me, but I never intended to harm your mother. Really!”

“…”

I gripped the injection tightly.

With a crack, the injection vial shattered.

As soon as the liquid touched my hand, whitish light rose up.

The snake venom had been inside this injection.

Antonio rushed over in surprise.

“You’re hurt, Young Lady…!”

Even at his words, I had no time to respond.

Because I had figured out the culprit.

The hospital mark stamped on the bottom of the injection.

It was from the Andres Medical Center.

And the person currently managing this medical center was…

‘Emma, Stella’s birth mother.’

That woman who was Father’s first love.

* * *

We returned to Esgaroth’s Second Manor.

Mother came with us too.

Father had thankfully suggested bringing Mother along first.

I laid Mother down on the second floor and came down to the small parlor.

Yuise had arrived in the small parlor.

“I had the unit members in my group draw a composite sketch of the woman who gave them the injection.”

When I checked the composite sketch he handed me, the culprit became even more certain.

The woman in the composite was Emma’s personal maid.

I put down the composite and said.

“Father, I have something I need to do. I’ll try not to trouble you…”

“It’s okay to trouble me.”

Father stroked my head.

“Do whatever you want to do.”

“Yes…”

I gripped Father’s collar tightly.

‘I tried to forget the resentment.’

Because I thought it was just following the game’s story.

I thought I’d just forget about it and live on, since it had come to this anyway.

‘But the moment you touched Mother, you crossed the line.’

* * *

For the year-end celebration, nobles from all over the Empire came up to the Archipelago.

Marquise Andres, Esmeralda, was one of them.

When she entered the Andres Estate, Emma hurriedly approached.

“Y-you’ve arrived, Mother.”

“Where are Onel (Andres’s eldest son) and Stella?”

When she asked about her grandchildren’s whereabouts, Emma’s expression became awkward.

“W-well, they went hunting with the young nobles…”

“You mean they went hunting without even thinking to greet me when I came up?”

“Since all the young nobles were gathering, it was hard for them to skip…”

“Are you saying the Andres bloodline pays attention to what the crowd thinks?”

Emma flinched and hunched her shoulders.

“I-I’m sorry…”

As Emma fidgeted, not knowing what to do, the Marquise frowned and said.

“What about lunch?”

“It’s finished. Perfectly.”

Emma’s expression brightened.

Today’s lunch was a day she had been eagerly anticipating.

‘Today, she’ll finally introduce me to the vassals.’

She would finally become a noble and be established as the new Marquise.

The time with the Marquise was uncomfortable, but thinking of lunch made it bearable.

The vassals began arriving one by one.

The Marquis also returned home.

Taking the Marquis’s jacket, Emma said with an excited face.

“How do my clothes look? Do you think the vassals will find them acceptable?”

Just as she was saying that.

It became noisy outside.

The butler hurriedly ran toward the Marquis.

“Master!”

“What’s the matter?”

“There’s someone who wishes to see the Madam.”

Emma frowned.

“How rude to come without making an appointment. Send them away immediately.”

“But the person who came…”

“Who on earth is it!”

A commotion before lunch was unwelcome.

As Emma frowned, the butler said.

“It’s Lady Yustea.”

What?

—————
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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