My Daddy Hides His Power - Chapter 122
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Father hides his strength.
Chapter 122
Did I suddenly lose my mind?
What did I do wrong?
As Lilis looked bewildered, Theo also shot Gerard a sharp glance.
“This isn’t it, Gerard.”
“What? I didn’t say anything….”
“Hey, what’s even good about you?”
Gerard was taken aback as Leon suddenly picked a fight with him.
“He’s pretty.”
Erika answered in his place.
“What good is a man being pretty?”
“Pretty and handsome is everything, Leon. Didn’t you know? He’s incredibly popular with the girls.”
“No, that’s not it. He’s ugly. Not the little one’s type.”
“What did you just say?”
Gerard, who had been listening, bristled.
“How tall are you?”
“153 centimeters.”
A height far exceeding the average for an eleven-year-old.
Leon pouted.
“Ever won the hunting tournament?”
“I’ve never competed.”
“Tsk, tsk.”
Leon clicked his tongue. Gerard, bristling again, forgot he’d been dragged into this and protested.
“But if I did enter, I’d naturally win.”
“You?”
“Just wait and see at next year’s hunting tournament.”
“Hmph.”
“You’ll need to beat the equestrian too, won’t you?”
Theo chimed in with that addition.
“Can you beat Lilis and Cheshire? They placed first and second in equestrian this time. If you lose, I won’t acknowledge it.”
“I can ride horses too. I can do it.”
“That’s enough!”
Lilis shoved the twins away.
“Why are you even saying such ridiculous things! Hurry up and decide who’s it!”
* * *
Gerard was chosen as it through rock-paper-scissors.
The twins threatened him, saying they wouldn’t acknowledge him unless he found them all.
What was there even to acknowledge?
‘But why did Erika suddenly act like that? Did she eat something bad?’
She was always so busy with her own love life—what was this meddling about?
“Cheshire, Cheshire, Cheshire!”
…….
I grabbed Cheshire’s arm.
I’d been waiting for a moment when we could talk alone….
“Want to hide together?”
“Sure.”
We headed to the stable.
Zephyr was there.
“Zephyr, hi! Can you help us hide?”
I dragged Cheshire into Zephyr’s stall and hid in the corner.
“Phew. He won’t find us here, will he?”
…….
I smiled with satisfaction, then glanced sideways at Cheshire.
Lately, Cheshire seemed to have a lot on his mind.
Did he have something to worry about?
If so, I didn’t want to add another worry needlessly, but….
‘Cheshire is the only one I can trust.’
The letter I’d hidden in my room to show Father.
Of course, it’s a letter I won’t need to see unless I somehow manage to avoid being discovered by the Emperor until the very end.
But what if I get caught?
Then Father would have to read the letter, so I’d need someone to tell him where I hid it.
“Cheshire, I need to ask you something.”
“What is it?”
“You know how I wrote a letter to Father and hid it? I wrote one for you too.”
……
“But you can’t look at it now. You have to wait until later.”
“All right?”
Cheshire nodded.
He didn’t ask why; he simply accepted it as it was.
‘This is why I like him.’
I continued, feeling relieved.
“It’s in Father’s old bundle in my wardrobe.”
“Got it.”
“It’s tucked inside the bag with Father’s old clothes he doesn’t wear anymore, so no one would have any reason to open it. The sisters don’t clean inside wardrobes anyway.”
“No one will find it.”
“Exactly. There are embarrassing things written in there, so I can’t have anyone else reading them. That’s why I’m asking you. The others won’t keep their word—they’d find it and read it right away.”
“I understand.”
“But later, I really hope Father reads it.”
“All right. I understand what you’re saying. So I just tell him where it is when the time comes?”
“Yes, exactly!”
Our clever Cheshire.
“When’s later?”
“Hmm.”
I thought about it for a moment before answering.
“Later, when we play Hide and Seek.”
……
“When I’m hiding and no one can find me anywhere—tell Father about the letter then.”
Cheshire stared at me for a long moment, then nodded with an odd expression on his face.
“Lilis.”
“Yes?”
“I’ll find you.”
“What?”
“Where you’re hiding.”
Cheshire took my hand quietly.
“No matter what happens, I’ll find you. Even if it takes a long time, don’t be afraid.”
……
“Just wait for me.”
He smiled.
I knew he rarely smiled, so this must have been for me.
Father and Cheshire are both strange in that way.
It’s as if they know exactly what will put my mind at ease.
“I promise I’ll find you.”
With those words, my heart grew lighter.
If it’s Cheshire, I’m sure he’ll find me no matter what.
“Yes! I’ll be waiting!”
* * *
Gerard never did find me and Cheshire.
“You’re out! Now stay away from the little one!”
Leon was giggling.
“Leon, isn’t that too harsh? Disqualifying him just for losing at Hide and Seek once!”
I couldn’t understand why Erika was making such a fuss.
I shook my head slowly.
“Please, just give Gerard one more chance!”
“Hmm, maybe we should.”
Why was Gerard being punished anyway? What was the point of another chance?
“Besides, it’s almost lunchtime, isn’t it? Why don’t we have him cook for us?”
“Oh, Erika! That’s actually a great idea! If Lilis can find a domestic man who’ll cook for her when she’s hungry, I might just consider it myself.”
Theo jumped into the conversation.
I stood between them with a vacant stare, too tired to object any further.
At this point, if Gerard never comes back to train at our house again, I wouldn’t blame him.
“Cooking? Oh, I’ve never actually tried cooking before.”
But contrary to expectations, Gerard seemed to feel a strange competitive urge.
Gerard, who had been deliberating, spoke up.
“Why don’t we go to the new restaurant that just opened in Jedo? I’ll buy us lunch.”
“What?! Don’t tell me you’re talking about that seafood restaurant on Rabiniu Street? The one where a lunch course costs 420,000 tern per person?”
Erika exclaimed in surprise, subtly dangling the bait, and the twins’ eyes went wide.
Gerard puffed up with pride.
He seemed to be savoring their reaction.
“What’s the problem with that? It’s less than three million tern for one meal.”
He smirked with an arrogant expression.
“Come on, let’s all go.”
“Wow, he passes the wealth test!!!”
“Right! Way better than eating some bland food I made—just solving it with money is the way to go!”
Leon and Theo clapped their hands together.
“Phew.”
In the end, we decided to eat lunch out and were about to head outside when—
“Lilis, will you go on ahead?”
Cheshire grabbed my arm.
“Huh? Why?”
“I need to look for something in my old room.”
“Hmm? Did you leave something behind?”
Cheshire nodded.
“It’s a pen Father gave me as a gift. When we unpacked after moving, it wasn’t there. I think it might have been forgotten when I packed.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah. If it’s already been thrown away, there’s nothing I can do, but I wanted to at least look for it.”
“If you can’t find it, ask Jetti and Joon! The furniture sisters cleaned your room!”
“Got it.”
Cheshire sent us on ahead.
“I’ll catch up soon.”
* * *
But the place Cheshire headed to was not his old room.
It was Lilis’s room.
Cheshire slipped quietly into the room, which lay as silent as a tomb, and closed the door.
‘I’m sorry.’
A request to read the hidden letter later.
Lilis must have believed in him completely.
She would be angry if she found out he’d broken his promise in less than thirty minutes, but…
‘I’m truly sorry.’
Cheshire felt a strong premonition that he had to read Lilis’s letter right now.
Perhaps it held the answer to what he wondered about.
Something that even Enoch and Oscar seemed to know, but he alone didn’t.
Lilis’s secret might finally be revealed.
‘She said the wardrobe.’
Cheshire’s hand trembled as he opened the door.
Inside the wardrobe.
Within an old bundle of luggage.
There it was, just as she’d said—Lilis’s letter.
Cheshire quickly unfolded it.
And then.
Word by word, as he read…
‘What… is this.’
Confusion slowly washed over him.
Most of what the letter said was incomprehensible.
Except.
…I am Primera. That’s why…
If I’m captured by the Emperor…
If it comes to the point where you have to kill me…
Dad, I love you.
I hope that even in a world without me, you’ll continue to live happily.
Cheshire finally understood what Lilis was trying to tell him.
The world tilted before his eyes.
The hand holding the letter trembled uncontrollably.
What is this?
What—what is she saying?
“Hah… hah…”
He needed to stay calm.
But faced with words he could never have imagined, composure slipped through his fingers like water.
Cheshire gripped his head tightly, trying to steady the spinning world around him.
“Cheshire, listen… Save me. Please save me.”
“I swear, no matter what happens—you have to save me, understand?”
“Never kill me….”
Only now could Cheshire fully comprehend what Lilis had been asking.
“You wrote a letter to me too?”
How much had she wept while writing it?
The letter was warped and smudged in places where dried tears had fallen.
Cheshire. If I should fail, and you’re forced to kill me no matter what….
I truly don’t mind. I won’t resent you for it, not for a moment.
So please, don’t apologize to yourself. Don’t grieve.
And take care of Father for me.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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