My Daddy Hides His Power - Chapter 148

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

Father Hides His Strength
148
Watching Oscar huff and puff, I found myself completely bewildered.
Never mind that he’s got no eye for detail—what’s this nonsense about romance?
“What exactly are you doing?”
Oscar pushed me behind him and turned to the robed man with a swagger.
“What? Master, calm down!”
I snatched the Bouquet from Oscar’s hand. This is mine!
“I would never date someone without telling you first, Master!”
“Right. That’s true.”
“…? Wait, hold on.”
Aunt, who’d been listening, stepped in.
“What are you saying? My niece is seeing someone, and she needs your—I mean, your teacher’s permission?”
“Of course. A man knows men best. What if she brings home some punk or ruffian?”
“Well, even so, that’s a bit much.”
Aunt seemed mildly uncomfortable with the interference, but Oscar wouldn’t budge an inch.
The man and I watched the two of them go back and forth in the middle.
I sighed; the man’s robes kept rustling—apparently he was trying not to laugh.
“Aunt, this person is—”
“First, Master, please don’t be so rude. Um, could I… could I show my face?”
Aunt, who’d been bickering with Oscar, stepped in front of me and spoke to the man.
“There does seem to be quite an age gap between you and our Lilis.”
“Indeed. I’m not fond of it. He shouldn’t be more than five years older.”
As Oscar egged her on like a magpie from behind, Aunt nodded in agreement.
“Of course, I respect our Lilis’s own opinion, but as an adult, I can offer some guidance.”
“Absolutely right. You’re certainly much wiser than your younger brother.”
What on earth was happening here.
“Ugh, really! Show your face already! You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore and spoke up.
The man lifted his robe slightly, revealing his face only to us.
“My goodness?”
“What—!”
* * *
At that moment, in the Imperial Palace.
The Grand Hall, where the Investiture Ceremony banquet was in full swing.
“Cheshire’s quite skilled, isn’t he? Attending to all these ladies without pause.”
“Does it look to you like he’s attending to them?”
Theo and Leon exchanged words, watching Cheshire surrounded by ladies.
“Then what is he doing?”
“Look closely at his mouth.”
Leon observed Cheshire carefully.
“He hasn’t moved his lips for more than five seconds. And he’s only using ‘yes’ and ‘no.'”
“What, really?”
It was true.
“I saw you from a distance during the Victory Parade last time. I’m Rose of House Planz.”
“Yes.”
“I’m Yvonne of House Laus. Congratulations on your formal appointment, sir.”
“Yes.”
Cheshire, surrounded by ladies all dressed in finery and elegance.
His responses remained unchanged.
“Would you tell us about the Subjugation War last time? I heard your exploits were quite remarkable.”
“No.”
“…….”
By this point, it was enough to offend any lady listening.
“My, you really are just as I imagined, sir. However did you become so taciturn and so steadfast!”
“Indeed. A man shouldn’t talk too much, you know. Especially not knights like yourself.”
They laughed merrily, entirely charmed.
‘I want to go home.’
Cheshire found conversation with them genuinely tedious.
During his countless campaigns as a Boy Soldier, nearly nine-tenths of what he’d heard on the battlefield was gossip about women.
I’d always wondered why men gravitated toward talking about women whenever they gathered together….
But even after finally attending a gathering where women outnumbered men, the mystery remained unsolved.
‘Perhaps the problem lies with me.’
It was as though dressed stones kept approaching me in turn, all saying the same things.
I’d greeted nearly everyone at tonight’s gathering, yet I couldn’t retain a single name.
“I hope you don’t mind, but would you like to see the opera at Rott Street next week with me?”
Rose Planz, a countess’s daughter with striking auburn hair, boldly took Cheshire’s arm as she spoke.
“No! I mean—not no. I’m sorry. I worked up the courage to ask.”
…….
Rose had moved so quickly to seize the advantage that Cheshire, who’d been about to refuse, found himself speechless.
He hesitated for a moment, then lied.
“I’ve already seen it.”
“Oh, I see.”
Rose’s face flushed with embarrassment as she opened her Fan to cover her mouth.
“But, but that opera opens for the first time next week…. How could you possibly have seen it already….”
…….
Just then, Axion, who had come to find Cheshire, happened to overhear their exchange and stiffened in surprise.
“Ladies, might I borrow my son for a moment?”
“Oh! Lord Axion, of course.”
Hehehehe.
The ladies snapped their Fans open, cheeks flushed as they withdrew—though only a short distance. The moment their exchange ended, they looked ready to swoop back down on Cheshire like hawks.
Of course it was all just a short distance away.
“Father….”
Cheshire turned to face Axion as though he’d been waiting for this rescue.
“Yes, I know what you’re thinking. You want to go home, don’t you?”
…….
“That’s not happening. I want to leave too, but I’m staying because of you. You’ll stay until the gathering ends, at least.”
Axion felt a twinge of sympathy for his son.
‘Do I need to teach him how to handle ladies separately? No, wait—nobody taught me that either, did they?’
Come to think of it, Axion had been the same way when he first entered High Society.
He’d simply acquired his social skills and conversational abilities gradually as the years passed and he grew older.
‘Why does he have to inherit even this from me, when he’s not even my real son?’
Axion sighed and patted Cheshire’s shoulder reassuringly.
“We’re almost done. Just hold on a little longer.”
“…Yes.”
“Is there any young lady who catches your fancy? You’ll need to attend Victory Parades regularly from now on, and you’ll want a Partner.”
Cheshire immediately shook his head.
“Not that I’m telling you to find a lover. I’m just saying you should keep up appearances. Without at least a Partner, you’ll be tormented relentlessly like this all night.”
He’d meant it thoughtfully, but Cheshire shook his head again.
“I made a promise….”
“What promise?”
“Lilis asked if I would be her Partner at her Debutante Ball.”
“She did? But why?”
“She wanted me to hold the position of her first Partner. So I don’t intend to do anything like that with anyone else before then.”
……?
Axion’s eyes widened.
“What’s he saying? It’s not as if being a Partner is such a momentous thing.”
…….
“…This boy is serious. Do you realize you have over four years until her Debutante Ball?”
Of course he must know.
His son had just declared that he would endure countless social engagements in the coming years without a single Partner to show for it.
“You’re really something!”
“But what about you, sir?”
Anticipating the lecture Axion was about to launch into, Cheshire quickly changed the subject.
“Enoch? Where is Enoch….”
Fortunately, Axion took the bait.
But.
“…I’m sorry. He’s gone. He left some time ago.”
* * *
When Enoch removed his Robe, Aunt and Oscar were startled by the face that was revealed.
“Aha-ha-ha! Little princess!”
Father laughed and scooped me up in his arms, planting a kiss on my cheek.
“Mmph!”
“Father! What on earth are you doing here?”
“Good heavens. What’s all this? Enoch, how’s the children’s gala?”
“Don’t worry, sir. My face was covered the whole time. I only planned to show myself briefly at first, then wait outside anyway. I simply wasn’t certain when the Princess Salon would end….”
Which meant he’d been planning to pick me up all along.
“Then you should’ve told me yesterday!”
“If you’d known, you would’ve told me not to come!”
“That’s true! What if someone recognized you at an anonymous salon?”
“Come on, give me a break. That’s why I came in disguise, sneaking around like this. I was going to watch from a distance if you’d made lots of friends, then just head home.”
Father stuck out his tongue.
“But honestly, everyone thinks alike. While I was waiting, noble ladies started showing up one by one. I was absolutely flustered.”
“Yeah, I was surprised too.”
“I was worried about showing my face, but I didn’t expect your aunt to come. And I certainly didn’t expect your teacher to dress up so handsomely.”
Father burst out laughing at Oscar.
“Never imagined the princess’s mentor would look this sharp.”
“Tell me about it. I was shocked myself. He looks so refined and distinguished—you should dress like this all the time.”
…….
Oscar quietly turned his head away from the teasing siblings.
“Enoch, I still have appointments with the noble ladies, so I must go at once.”
“Thank you for all your trouble, Aunt.”
“Think nothing of it. We’ll see each other later. You’ve worked hard too, sir. Our little beauty, mind yourself on the way in.”
Aunt touched my cheek in farewell, then hurried into the carriage and departed.
“Who’d have guessed? The Magic Tower Master, who barely leaves that tower—as if it’s been smeared with honey—shows up looking energized at a young ladies’ salon? No one in their right mind would’ve imagined it.”
“Please, just one verse.”
“Aha-ha-ha! The princess is so lucky to have a wealthy teacher! Look at that carriage, that carriage right there. Gleaming and shining like that.”
Father continued teasing me while holding me.
“Princess, your father came without eating anything and is starving. Let’s ask your teacher to buy us a nice dinner.”
“Really? Yes!”
I turned to Oscar.
“Teacher, teacher! Didn’t we say we’d go eat something delicious? You’ll treat Father too, won’t you?”
“Sigh….”
“Of course I’ll treat him. Our Magic Tower Master has nothing but money, and just lets it pile up without spending it.”
“That money’s saved for you, actually.”
Father casually ignored Oscar’s protest and quickly hoisted me into the carriage.
“I’m riding in this carriage too! We’re eating something expensive!”
“Yay-yay! Let’s have meat, meat!”
“Aha-ha! Perfect!”
Oscar trembled as he watched us banter back and forth.
“Ugh, really! Why did he have to come, that man!!!”
* * *
Evening, as the gala drew to a close.
The Emperor Nicholas’s chamber.
Moonlight streaming through the wide windows fell softly upon the handsome, still youthful man’s luscious golden hair.
“Hmm.”
Nicholas reclined lazily on the sofa, swirling his wine glass as he thought of someone.
Cheshire Livre.
The gleam in the young man’s eyes, which he’d witnessed properly at today’s Investiture Ceremony, had pleased him greatly.
The Dos of the younger generation.
He would soon become a man of power in the new age.
“Your Majesty, I heard you wished to see me.”
At that moment, a sharp-eyed, middle-aged nobleman appeared at Nicholas’s door.
“Yes, glad you’re here. Have a seat.”
Nicholas greeted him with a smile.
The man was Roger Onyx, a marquis.
Cheshire Livre’s biological father.

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