Please Leave The Sickly Villainess Alone

The sweet scent of cocoa spread incongruously through the office filled with the aroma of coffee.

“Wow! Dad, I didn’t know you could make cocoa too!”

“It’s not that difficult.”

He smiled gently in response to my words.

Dad was wearing a simple white shirt, and his silver hair was unstyled, falling softly.

And most of all…

“The glasses suit you so well!”

He looked truly fantastic wearing gold-rimmed glasses.

It seemed he wore them occasionally when working.

At my sincere admiration, he seemed a bit embarrassed and changed the subject with a smile.

“By the way, it’s a good thing I stocked cocoa powder in the office last time. I was planning to make it for you next time you came.”

“For me? I’m so happy.”

Come to think of it, it was rare for a noble man to know how to make such things himself.

‘And so skillfully at that.’

Dad often worked in the early morning due to his insomnia, and feeling bad about calling the sleeping servants each time, he had stocked the office with a magic kettle, teacups, and other things needed to brew coffee.

And recently, next to the box full of coffee grounds, it seemed he had newly prepared a cocoa box for me, who frequently visited his office.

He must have heard from Chef Shrimp, who knew my tastes well, that I really liked cocoa.

As soon as I took a sip of the cocoa he handed me, I exclaimed in admiration.

“It’s really delicious! Dad, it seems like there’s nothing you can’t do.”

He smiled gently at me as I spoke with a broad grin, but then his expression turned worried as he said:

“More importantly, are you also having trouble sleeping at night? At your age, you should sleep well to grow taller.”

I flinched when he mentioned height.

Certainly, until I was at the orphanage, I had been quite tall compared to my peers.

Most of the children had to look up at me, and Luka was definitely one of them back then.

However, recently I felt my growth was slowing down more and more.

It was enough to make me feel a crisis when I saw Luka, Terry, and Ben in the midst of their growth spurts.

“I-I usually sleep well! You don’t need to worry. It’s just today that I’m having trouble.”

“That’s a relief then.”

His face finally relaxed at my words.

As I laughed awkwardly and turned my gaze away, I saw the desk neatly arranged with documents.

I couldn’t remember a single time when those mountain-like piles of documents had disappeared from that desk.

Just as the papers seemed to be decreasing, new ones would pile up, and just when I thought they were all finished, more new documents would appear.

It was like a magical desk.

“You must have a lot of work. The papers seem endless…”

At my words, he picked up one of the documents beside him and said:

“Actually, I’ve finished all the work. It’s just that I can’t sleep every night, and with nothing to do, I’m devising new business plans.”

At those words, I almost dropped the teacup I was holding.

He was creating more work because he couldn’t sleep!

He was voluntarily working overtime. The term ‘workaholic’ fit perfectly.

“Business plans?”

I felt a bead of sweat run down my back.

“Yes, a new magic ore mine has been discovered in the Rayes territory in the northern region.”

What, what was discovered…?

“Wow, really?”

I clapped my hands as I spoke.

Just as they say some are born lucky, to think a mine would be discovered in the already overflowing wealthy Rayes territory!

Moreover, magic ore was even more precious than jewels.

“Usually when magic ore is found, it’s common to sell it to the Magic Tower at a fair price, but…”

Ordinary people neither had the technology to refine magic ore nor the ability to create magic tools with it, so typically they would sell it to the Magic Tower or Imperial Magic Department for profit, as he said.

But seeing Dad deep in thought as he trailed off, it seemed he was considering using the magic ore for something within our family first.

Magic tools were in high demand from the Imperial family, each noble house, wealthy merchants, and various foreign countries, making them a hugely profitable business item.

That’s why, as I had seen before, there was even a Magic Devices Development Club in the Magic Tower.

“I’ve been thinking about what we could do with the magic ore besides selling it to the Magic Tower, but there doesn’t seem to be a suitable method.”

At his words, I was about to nod and say ‘I see,’ when suddenly something occurred to me.

When Jen visited my room at all hours, I usually read books while he chatted enthusiastically beside me.

Most of it was gossip about his boss, the Tower Master.

-They quit again.

-What?

-Three more mages left the Magic Tower this time…!

Jen lamented that they had lost more capable and promising talents.

The Magic Tower was currently stagnant at the top. The important thing was that while the upper-level mages were still excellent and things seemed to be running smoothly on the surface, in reality, there was a trend of young promising mages losing their places.

In terms of social status, more than half of the mages were commoners.

However, the young people who came to the Magic Tower with dreams couldn’t achieve beyond a certain level, and consequently, they earned less money.

While relatively older mages earned astronomical sums, young mages often couldn’t earn a penny while just doing research.

So he said at least three mages a month would give up early and return to ordinary life for their livelihood.

There was no proper way for them to pursue profit using magic individually without belonging to a mage group.

Requests for mages only came through the Magic Tower, a public institution, and mages who left the Tower were stigmatized as dropout mages.

In reality, they hadn’t left because they lacked skill, but that’s how people saw it.

“Dad, how about bringing these dropout mages into our family?”

At my words, Dad, who had been drinking coffee, looked at me.

Seeing him willing to listen to me first rather than dismissing it as absurd, I was able to speak with confidence.

“If we have mages in the family, we can develop magic devices ourselves. And if they’re mages who worked at the Magic Tower, they’ll know well about refining methods and usage. I’ve heard that dropout mages are much more likely to have quit for their livelihood rather than lack of skill. They lack materials and funding, while we have those but lack the technology, so wouldn’t our interests align?”

At my words, Dad seemed to be considering various aspects, as if calculating on an abacus.

“Certainly…”

He soon nodded, his azure eyes shining. He said he would look into information about dropout mages tomorrow.

The magic devices sold by the Magic Tower were expensive items centered on nobles.

Since the Magic Tower already had a tight grip on the noble market, it might be a good idea to turn our eyes to developing magic devices for commoners.

For example, household magic tools with reduced costs and increased practicality.

Since most dropout mages were of commoner origin, they would have a high understanding of the market too.

Even without me saying all this, I could already see some of what I had thought written among the words Dad was quickly jotting down.

“You’ve been a great help. Thank you so much.”

Receiving unexpected praise, I was about to smile shyly when I paused.

By the way…

‘I hope I haven’t just increased his workload?’

This wasn’t my plan at all.

‘Oh, I must definitely put him to sleep today!’

As I clenched my fist with determination, I tripped over something.

“This is…”

It was a family portrait that had been on the desk.

Dad when he was even younger, Drehan and Miller when they were just little kids, and…

‘Is this the Duchess?’

Where my gaze fell, a truly lovely woman was smiling more happily than anyone.

With warm brown tresses and fresh emerald eyes, she was preciously holding a small newborn baby in her arms.

‘When she was young, Laveria’s hair was silver like the rest of the Rayes family.’

Young Miller was carefully holding the tiny finger of the baby sleeping peacefully in her arms, as if fascinated.

And next to him, Drehan, who looked about fourteen or fifteen, was smiling broadly while looking at the baby with affectionate eyes.

‘He was someone who could smile like that when he was young.’

Lastly, there was Dad in his youth, embracing all of his family.

It was a beautiful family like a painting.

Above all…

‘The Duchess and I really look alike, don’t we?’

Although I couldn’t say we looked strikingly similar since I still hadn’t lost my youthful appearance, our auras were truly alike.

The slightly upturned eyes, the emerald eyes characteristic of the Tranze region, the softly curved lips.

Looking at her, I found my lips curling up unconsciously.

The Duchess’s smile was a warm one that made even those looking at her smile naturally.

‘She’s truly a beautiful woman like sunshine.’

As I was deeply absorbed in the portrait:

“Laveria.”

I raised my head at the voice calling me.

“Shall we go for a night walk?”

Dad, who had already set aside his documents and taken off his glasses, held out his large hand to me as he spoke.

“I’d love to!”

I said, fingering what I had brought in my pocket before leaving my room.

Before using ‘this’, I should try the usual methods first.

Also, to maximize the effect of ‘this’, it was better to go for a night walk to make him even sleepier.

* * *

Dad held my hand tightly as we descended the dark stairs, and even that seemed to make him anxious, so he ended up carrying me down.

Only when we finally got outside could I put my feet on the ground.

“I’m not a little kid anymore.”

When I spoke sulkily, he smiled and said:

“In my eyes, you’ll always be a little child. When I see you, I’m filled with the desire to protect you like this forever.”

As we took each step, breathing in the cool night air, it felt especially meaningful.

Come to think of it, he was also taking a night walk in that dream last time.

I saw the place from my dream. The moment when Luka left me was vivid.

Was that really part of the original story? As I was lost in thought, recalling that time when I received an unexpected warning, Dad spoke to me.

“It’s nice to take this walk together, which I usually do alone.”

His brilliant silver hair fluttered in the blue moonlight.

I had the surreal thought that the scene was like a masterpiece painting.

As we matched our pace and left footsteps in the quiet garden, Dad said:

“The woman in that portrait you saw earlier always told me. That our daughter is truly a blessing, an infinitely precious gift.”

His azure eyes took me in.

“Thank you for growing up just as she said, our good daughter.”

He actually knew that I hadn’t come to his office late at night because I couldn’t sleep.

At that kind voice, I was reminded of when I first came to the Duchy.

I had purely taken his hand out of curiosity, wondering if the emptiness deep in my heart would be filled.

I took that rough but warm hand again and smiled brightly.

As if boasting to the moon in the sky that I had gained another precious family.

More importantly…

“Dad, you still can’t sleep, can you?”

Completely at odds with my ultimate goal, Dad’s azure eyes were wide awake.

I should have known he had almost given up on sleep when I saw him drinking coffee in the middle of the night…

This method wasn’t very effective after all.

Finally, I decided to bring out Plan B that I had in mind.