ASDEF 04

Chapter 04

Noblesse oblige.

The moral obligation befitting a high social status. The very idea that, as nobles, they should consider the plight of the poor commoners.

With everyone waiting solely for my answer, I lifted my head. And I directed my gaze solely at the Duke.

Of course, a smile was a bonus.

“Surprised, aren’t you? The dish I brought is grilled goblin, Father.”

The Duke’s startled eyes turned back to the food. Alyssa’s face crumpled even more at the word ‘goblin’.

“Eww, it’s goblin, Father!”

“Goblin…? You mean those dwarf monsters?”

After taking a breath, I continued calmly.

“You must have heard, Father, that goblins have been appearing frequently in all regions lately. As a result, the commoners are suffering considerable damage.”

“I’ve heard of it in the royal council meetings.”

“The commoners had to put all their effort into catching goblins rather than waking up in the morning to farm. Moreover, dealing with the mountain of corpses piled up was no easy task.”

“Well, His Majesty the King did issue a decree forbidding the burning or burying of the corpses due to the various stenches and contamination.”

“During that time, one commoner came up with a different idea regarding the goblins. Namely, cooking them quite deliciously. The commoners were delighted to dispose of the bodies, and they could also fill their bellies with the food, so it worked out well.”

“Oh, such a clever method existed.”

The Duke was now nodding, seemingly engrossed in the story.

I let out a sigh of relief and delivered the final blow.

“They are nameless commoners, but I learned the recipe and made it myself to bring here, hoping that Father would surely acknowledge their loyalty to the kingdom. After all, you are someone who has personally witnessed the hardships of the commoners in the rough frontiers.”

Only then did a gleam of interest appear in the Duke’s eyes, as if he finally understood.

However, no immediate reaction came back.

Just as I was starting to get anxious, wondering if I had said something wrong, the Duke began clapping his hands with a satisfied expression.

“A woman who knows how to understand the hearts of the commoners—truly worthy of a daughter of the Felds family! This is a story that would greatly please His Majesty if he heard it.”

The Duke, who had been so intimidating that I dared not even speak to him, now showed crinkles around his eyes as he smiled warmly, leaving me dumbfounded.

The Duke turned his gaze to his daughter beside him.

“Alyssa, you too must possess wisdom like Lady Felds. Remember that knowledge isn’t everything.”

“Yes, Father…”

Alyssa pouted her lips and reluctantly nodded.

I inwardly cheered in triumph.

‘Finally got over the hurdle! Just wait a little longer, 80 gold repayment!’

As I looked away, trying to suppress my lips from curving upwards with excitement, my eyes met Daniel’s.

I smiled at him, who looked slightly surprised, as a token of gratitude.

Watching our affectionate exchange, the Duke cleared his throat a couple of times and asked me quietly.

“This might be an impertinent question to ask Lady Felds, but…”

“Oh, not at all. Please, say anything.”

“What is it about our Daniel that made you fall for him?”

“Excuse me…?”

My expression hardened involuntarily at the Duke’s question. Daniel was the same.

Seeing our reactions, the Duke gave a faint, knowing smile.

“It seems it’s a rather difficult question.”

He was clearly still suspicious of our relationship.

Well, Daniel should have shown his feelings for the female lead a bit more openly. There’s no way the Duke wouldn’t know feelings that everyone but the female lead herself is aware of.

The crises just wouldn’t end. It felt easier to come up with an answer about the grilled goblin.

A question of the highest difficulty. It was particularly hard for me, who had never even experienced love, to conjure up an answer.

Actually, I was a sub-fan who rooted for Daniel in this novel. Even though my friend kept cheering for the prince, the male lead, I steadfastly supported Daniel.

Daniel is a man who loved one woman with unwavering devotion.

He marries ‘some young lady’ because of his father who constrains him, but this too is a choice he makes for the female lead’s sake.

Even after accidentally discovering the secret of his birth intertwined with his and the female lead’s, and being shocked, he couldn’t stop his feelings for her and dies saving her when she’s in danger.

The dark sub-male lead who dies in her stead.

Kuh, isn’t that just too fatal?

But the problem is, that’s from the perspective of the female lead and the readers. From the standpoint of someone with no real role in this novel, why should I care who Daniel saves or doesn’t?

If I said, “Father, I’m more interested in the money than your son,” then—

*’How utterly disappointing. And here you were, going on about noblesse oblige!’*

—he would say, so I channeled all the emotions of every female lead I’d ever encountered in web novels and dramas, and possessed yet another role once more.

Adding to that, the perspective of a reader who had read this novel.

I turned my head and gazed intently at Daniel. I hoped that my eyes would be filled with emotion.

Like a woman who loves that man more than anyone in the world, and will love only him from now on.

Transforming that chilling day I spent kneeling and begging desperately before him into a brilliantly radiant memory, like cherry blossoms on a warm spring day.

“Our first encounter was by chance in a narrow alleyway. His tall, well-built figure that looked so good in a frock coat and formal attire, and his sparkling violet eyes. When the wind happened to blow and his black hair fluttered, I felt it right then. That destiny, which I had never known before, had come for me. And I wasn’t wrong.”

At my words, Daniel looked at me with a peculiar expression.

Without a moment to interpret his look, I slightly averted my eyes towards the Duke.

Once again, a gleam of interest was swirling in the Duke’s eyes.

Seizing the opportunity, I drove the point home.

“I am well aware of the reason Father worries about the Young Lord. As someone who has survived wars where life was on the line, you naturally wouldn’t want your son to live such a life.”

At my words, Daniel suddenly grabbed my hand. His face had turned pale, as if this was an unexpected turn of events.

“What is that…”

He tried to stop me with a sharp look, but I gently put his hand down and continued even more calmly.

“But the Young Lord was proud of such a father. He still is. The Young Lord also wishes to live honorably, just like his father. I want to support that.”

In the original novel, Duke Benson did not want his eldest son, who would carry on the line, to be put in a dangerous situation.

But Daniel only thought that his father opposed his every choice.

In the end, he married ‘some young lady’, received a title, and defiantly left his father behind, living his entire life without ever knowing the Duke’s fatherly love.

As a reader, I spoke the words I had always wanted to say to this father and son, whose hearts only ever missed each other. It felt refreshing, as if a burden had been lifted.

With a clear-eyed gaze, I looked back and forth between the Duke and Daniel. Then, I gently formed a heart shape with my hands.

“I am an eternal fan of the Benson family, the spear and shield of the Empire. I love you, Daniel. And you too, Father!”

After the meal that felt endlessly long, and even having tea time, I was finally able to leave the Benson mansion.

Duke Benson personally came out to see me off. Of course, maintaining his stoic expression firmly in place.

Only after I boarded the carriage did I finally let go of the tension.

The grand ‘Deceive the Duke’s Family!’ mission had finally come to an end, but Daniel didn’t let me go easily.

“How did you know about my family’s internal affairs? I’m sure I never mentioned them.”

He interrogated me like this inside the carriage.

With narrowed, sharp eyes, he leaned back with his long legs crossed and arms folded, scrutinizing me with a fierce gaze.