CMESD 06

Chapter 6

 Go Back to Your Own House, Uncle!

I lifted my chin and stared straight ahead, playing the picture of absolute innocence.

“I am not after any more of Your Grace’s money than what was agreed upon in advance.”

“Then?”

Cough, hack!

Jade violently cleared his throat, desperately signaling for me to stop right there.

I couldn’t help it, though. Even though I knew I would likely regret this later, I had to say my piece.

“I didn’t say I had any complaints about the deal we made, Your Grace.”

“Then explain yourself.”

“What I mean is, if the only reason you’re trying to take Luna back is because of her title, that simply isn’t good enough.”

“I have no idea what you are getting at.”

“If you treat Luna merely as an heir rather than a daughter, you will never be a proper father to her. And Luna has no desire to live with a father who doesn’t love her.”

Cough! Hack, cough!

Ignoring Jade, who looked perilously close to coughing up blood, I turned my attention toward him.

“Are you alright, Jade? Shall I fetch you some water?”

“Ahem, cough, no, no need. Please, do not mind me.”

“Then would you mind keeping it down for a moment? We are currently in the middle of a very important conversation.”

Jade’s eyes widened in sheer panic, and he immediately started hiccuping. Liam shot him a withering glare, causing Jade to hurriedly clamp both hands over his mouth.

I felt a twinge of pity for the poor man trying so hard to stifle his hiccups, but my hands were tied. After all, the person who mattered most right now wasn’t Jade—it was Luna.

With an irritated sigh, Liam dragged a hand through his dark hair.

“Fine. So what exactly is it that I have failed to provide for Luna?”

“I’m not sure if you even remember, but Your Grace has only ever attended a single one of Luna’s birthdays over the past three years.”

“I sent gifts every year without fail.”

“I am not talking about material presents. And since the subject has been brought up, I hardly think handing an eight-year-old child a document transferring part of the estate over to her counts as a thoughtful gift.”

Now gripping my hands together tightly, slick with cold sweat, I forced my spine to straighten. I met Liam’s gaze head-on, refusing to flinch, prompting him to ask with a strange, unreadable expression:

“Then what do you mean by ‘a single one’?”

“I mean actually showing up in person to attend her birthday party, of course.”

At my blunt words, Liam’s brow narrowed sharply.

He was either desperately searching his memory or realizing with a jolt that he truly couldn’t remember.

I knew I was crossing a line.

Yet still.

If you want to take Luna away, you have to become a better father to her.

At the very least, a child who insists on calling someone completely unrelated by blood her mother shouldn’t have to stubbornly claim that she has no father at all.

Before I could finish that thought, the parlor door burst open with a loud bang.

Jade glanced toward the entrance with an expression that clearly asked, Not again?

Sure enough, Luna was standing by the doorway, looking thoroughly riled up.

She was supposed to be in the middle of her lesson with Madame Dubois, so how on earth did she get here?

While I sat there frozen in shock, Luna marched resolutely into the parlor and shouted at the top of her lungs:

“Luna is going to stay with Mommy! Uncle Liam, go back to your own house!”

It was a full-scale declaration of war from an eight-year-old child—barely six years old by international count.

The reason Luna managed to slip away from her lesson and track us down to the parlor was simple.

“My apologies. Lady Luna kept demanding to know who the visitor downstairs was, and I suppose it slipped out.”

“I see.”

“Oh, truly, Lady Luna has been nothing short of a handful ever since we arrived here, throwing the most dreadful tantrums.”

There wasn’t a single shred of genuine apology on Madame Dubois’s face as she spoke.

Had this been a few days ago, the tutor would never have dared make such a careless mistake. Back then, after all, I had been the Grand Duchess of Preston.

“Does Luna give you trouble during lessons?”

“Oh, absolutely. Heavens above, we have been studying prominent noble houses lately, and whenever the subject turns to the viscountcy, she kicks up the most tremendous fuss.”

I didn’t bother asking what she meant.

The implication was blindingly obvious.

She must have been disparaging the Viscount Milton family. It’s no secret in high society that our title is nothing more than an empty, debt-ridden shell.

It all finally clicked into place. Luna hadn’t been acting out because she hated homework or found the lessons too difficult. Why hadn’t I realized it sooner?

“Madame, it should go without saying, but Luna adores the viscountcy.”

At my direct, unyielding tone, a flicker of genuine bewilderment crossed the tutor’s face. I locked eyes with her and continued:

“And I am no longer the Grand Duchess; I am Viscount Milton. Naturally, Luna is immensely proud of her title.”

“Is… that so?”

Madame Dubois stared at me, completely lost for words. But it only lasted a moment.

“I must confess, that thought entirely slipped my mind. I shall make sure to give Lady Luna a much more thorough education regarding the House of Milton during our next session.”

With those words, the tutor’s eyes drifted down to appraise my attire.

Even by a stretch of the imagination, the stiff cotton shirt—far from fine silk—and the cheap, unadorned buttons could not be called fashionable. Instead of shrinking away in shame, I squared my shoulders proudly.

“A thorough education about the House of Milton?”

“Wouldn’t it be best for her to fully understand what kind of household she has chosen? I certainly had no intention of hurting Luna’s feelings, but misunderstandings must be cleared up.”

“I see. So you are saying you had no intention of hurting Luna.”

“Of course not.”

“However, Luna was hurt, and as her mother, my priority is to protect my child. I am afraid I have no choice. Thank you for your service thus far, Madame. You need not return for any further lessons.”

Madame Dubois took a beat too long to process my words. Her lips began to tremble faintly.

“Are you… are you firing me?”

“Yes.”

“I have been tutoring Luna since long before you even became the Grand Duchess!”

“Then it seems you have quite forgotten who Luna actually is, Madame.”

I did not flinch away from her outraged glare.

“Just because I am no longer the Grand Duchess of Preston does not mean Luna is any less a Grand Lady of Preston.”

For a fleeting second, the tutor shrank back, but immediately her expression twisted into a venomous scowl as she ground her teeth.

“…You will live to regret this, Viscount.”

Regret it? No doubt she would.

Madame Dubois was a high-society darling among elite tutors. Since she was invited to every grand ball and banquet every season regardless of holding a peerage herself, her influence ran deep.

“Perhaps so.”

I retrieved a pre-prepared envelope from my desk and held it out.

“Here is your payment for today’s lesson. Thank you for everything, Madame Dubois.”

“Ha! I can only imagine what the Grand Duke will think when he learns you are arbitrarily interfering with the education of his sole heir!”

He wouldn’t think anything at all.

If that man had ever cared enough to look into her tutors in the first place, I wouldn’t have had to worry.

Instead of voicing any of that, I simply offered a polite, serene smile.

“As it happens, His Grace has just returned to the capital. Perhaps you might wish to pay him a visit and share your grievances.”

“In—Incredible…!”

Consumed by sheer rage, Madame Dubois practically stormed out of the room, though she notably made sure to snatch up the payment envelope before she left.

I could hear her muttering curses as she stormed down the corridor, but I paid her no mind.

The tutor wouldn’t let this go. She would undoubtedly spread all manner of malicious gossip about me throughout high society. It was entirely predictable. Yet, I didn’t care in the slightest.

We’ll be heading down to our provincial estate before the social season begins anyway.

Roughly a month remained until the start of the season.

I swallowed a heavy sigh as I calculated the days leading up to the debutante ball that would kick off the social calendar.

Before the season commenced, the academy entrance ceremonies would take place at the end of April. By then, I needed to have sent Luna back to take her rightful place as the young Grand Lady of Preston.

To make that happen, I suppose I need to… help Liam and Luna grow closer, don’t I?

Which was, unfortunately, the most difficult hurdle of all. Suppressing a groan that threatened to slip past my lips, I recalled what Liam had said to me before he left the manor:

“I am well aware that Luna wishes to become a daughter of the House of Milton.”

Liam hadn’t tried to drag Luna away, nor had he barked any intimidating orders. He had simply watched the retreating back of the child who had screamed and fled from him, and uttered those words.

“However, I cannot accept the notion that the root of the problem is my lack of closeness with her. Viscount, Luna knows very well who she is. Far better than you might think.”

I knew for a fact that Liam understood virtually nothing about Luna. The duties of Preston? What on earth was he expecting an eight-year-old to shoulder?

The most shocking part was that Liam apparently didn’t mind Luna clinging to me. I had fully expected him to accuse me of manipulating the child and blowing things out of proportion, but he hadn’t raised a single objection on that front.

If anything, he almost seemed pleased by it.

Perhaps that meant he wasn’t entirely indifferent to Luna after all. It implied he at least recognized what the child truly needed.

“Mommy?”

At that exact moment, the bedroom door creaked open, and a small face peeked inside.

“What are you doing over there?”

Tension was etched clearly across Luna’s features as she asked. Had she overheard my argument with Madame Dubois? Realizing my slip, I hurriedly smoothed my expression and called out:

“It’s nothing, Luna. Are you getting ready for bed?”

“Mhm. Will you read me a fairy tale?”

Luna scampered over to me, folding her hands neatly in front of her as she looked up with bright, hopeful eyes.