입양딸 역할을 지나치게 잘해버렸다 064화툰드라가 눈을 번쩍 뜨며 몸을 벌떡 일으켰다.

“안 돼!”

The sound echoed powerfully.

His shout contained even a small amount of mana.

Hixson smacked Tundra on the back of the head.

“Why are you yelling and going wild?”

“Ah….”

Coming to his senses, Tundra looked toward where the sound came from.

So we’re friends now.

With that thought, Jeremy and Viola were holding hands.

To be precise, they were shaking hands, but in Tundra’s eyes, it looked as if they were holding hands.

His mood soured greatly.

He asked Hixson, almost accusingly.

“Does Master not feel bad about this?”

“What do you mean?”

“Prince Jeremy is going to be friends with the princess.”

“Viola accepted it, didn’t she?”

Tundra felt a sense of dislike for some reason.

He instinctively sensed that Viola felt burdened by Jeremy.

Thus, he disliked Jeremy.

“Viola. Can I borrow him for a moment?”

“Why?”

“I have somewhere to take him.”

“Where?”

“You wouldn’t know even if I told you. Anyway, I thought of a way to make this brat stronger.”

Tundra actually wanted to refuse.

He didn’t want to be apart from Viola for even a moment.

He thought this was a natural feeling as a pet.

‘Can I become stronger?’

He felt it again while dueling Jeremy.

He was still far from strong.

He was growing quickly, but that was still not enough.

He thought that if he had overwhelmingly won, there wouldn’t be a chance for Viola to become friends with Jeremy at all.

“Tundra. Do you want to go?”

No.

I want to stay by my lord’s side.

But he hid his true feelings.

He had to get stronger.

“I’ll be back.”

“Okay, then. Don’t take too long.”

This scene was new even for Jeremy.

In Jeremy’s mind, Viola was someone who reigns and commands.

‘He calls her a dog while…’

Yet, she seemed to care enough for Tundra.

She asked about Tundra’s opinion first, and she was doing what Tundra wanted.

‘She calls him a dog, but actually, he’s like her best friend.’

Viola casually said, “We’ll depart tomorrow at 9 AM. Is that okay?”

“Sure, sounds good. I’ll be waiting in front of the viscount’s main gate.”

Seeing Jeremy casually speaking to her, Tundra growled lowly again.

*

That night.

Tundra visited the lodging where Jeremy was staying.

Instead of a comfortable suite provided by the viscount house, Jeremy was resting in a shabby inn room.

“Why are you in a place like this?”

Jeremy shrugged.

“What’s wrong with this place?”

“It’s shabby, old, and run-down?”

Jeremy smiled brightly.

“Most people live in places like this. You didn’t forget, did you?”

Tundra had lived in much worse than this.

He had lived in a shack made of logs in a mountain valley without any infrastructure.

The safety was poor, and there wasn’t an abundance of food.

He had forgotten.

Living with Viola was so prosperous.

He had been living at the duke’s house, where everything was provided, making him forget his previous life.

“If you look down from a high place, you can’t empathize with countless people.”

“Anyone with power should have a perspective that befits that power.”

“Why are you suddenly lecturing me?”

“Because you want to stay by Viola’s side.”

In that moment, Tundra was lost for words.

He didn’t understand what Jeremy was saying.

So he just listened quietly.

“Viola is a ruler. She was born with the destiny of a sovereign. And she is someone who fits that role perfectly. Viola must act accordingly.”

Jeremy understood Viola’s ambitions.

Viola was an ambitious woman who wanted to swallow Bellatu.

Someday, she would definitely become the absolute ruler of Bellatu.

That was Jeremy’s perception of Viola.

“So you have to complement her, fulfilling the things Viola cannot do. Empathizing with the people from a lower position, bringing them closer.”

“……”

“The Viola I see is…”

Though she has immense ambition and desires to rule, she is also a warm-hearted person.

However, her ambition was so great that she couldn’t tend to the warmth she had.

“She is a warm person. Yet, she cannot be warm either. She will wear a mask and hide her warmth from anyone. So, you take up the role of warmth.”

…Thanks for the advice.

“So what brings you to find me?”

“I came to warn you.”

“A warning? What kind of warning?”

“What are your intentions in getting so close to the princess?”

“What intent? I just want to befriend her.”

“At the expense of your own losses?”

To Tundra, it seemed Jeremy had taken a loss.

He had given up his right to priority compensation for the ruins that he had just discovered.

Why he made such a choice was hard for Tundra to understand.

“Isn’t it bad to take a loss?”

“…What?”

“I have feelings for Viola.”

Not so much romantic feelings as a liking towards a person.

It felt like seeing someone fascinating and fun.

“If it’s someone I like, isn’t it okay if I take a little loss?”

“If your intent is truly that, then yes.”

However, Tundra didn’t fully trust Jeremy.

Among the rumors about Prince Jeremy, there were plenty of bad ones.

Regardless of his behavior, there was chatter about him playing with numerous young noblewomen.

It was a rumor that inevitably followed him because of his dazzling appearance.

“If you commit even the slightest wrongdoing against the princess, I will behead you.”

“That seems a bit excessive, doesn’t it?”

Jeremy tilted his head.

Rather than feeling unpleasant, he genuinely seemed curious.

“If you claim to be a loyal subject, then fulfill that role. This is possessiveness.”

“It seems you misunderstand my role.”

I have no intention of being a loyal subject.

“My dream is not to be a subject but a pet dog.”

“Are you serious?”

“Of course.”

Jeremy read the sincerity in Tundra’s eyes.

To speak such nonsense with such seriousness…

Even Jeremy couldn’t help but grin.

“Would you get jealous if I talked and held hands with Viola?”

“Not holding hands, but shaking hands.”

“Physically, it still touches, doesn’t it?”

Grrr.

Tundra growled again.

Jeremy found that sound quite interesting.

“Hm, so you’re saying you feel jealous.

That’s intriguing, a research subject.”

Returning to the viscount’s mansion, Tundra fell into deep thought.

His head and heart were in conflict.

‘Jeremy seems like a decent guy.

I can feel that.

He possesses a unique ability to sense the smell of mana.

When you sense the smell of mana, you can roughly tell if someone is a villain or a good person.

The smell of Jeremy was good.

There was no trace of malice.

‘But why do I dislike him?’

Jeremy is clearly a good person…

He seems like he could be a great help to Viola.

Then I should be maintaining a good relationship with Jeremy.

‘I don’t like it.

Why is that?

If he is someone helpful to Viola, I should like him.

‘I don’t know.’

Tundra tossed and turned in his bed, troubled after a long time.

*

8:20 AM.

After being treated to a grand farewell banquet by the viscount, Viola changed into comfortable leather attire.

“It’s sad.”

“What is?”

“The princess looks great in leather, but honestly, the dress suits her much better.”

Viola frowned slightly.

In the original work, Zeno never mentioned “cuteness.”

It was natural.

Cuteness and Bellatu are words that cannot coexist.

‘Was I told to test discreetly? Is this how it goes?’

But it was ambiguous too.

Zeno looked very sincere.

‘No, don’t be deceived.

The Viola in the original work was a genius.

The character who doubted and tested that genius until the later parts of the work was Zeno.

A solid ally but also someone to always be wary of.

“If you mention ‘cute’ one more time, I’ll sew your mouth shut.”

“Understood.”

Zeno genuinely looked disappointed.

What can one say about something cute other than calling it cute?

‘She really seems to dislike the word “cute.”

Usually, people like it, don’t they?

Indeed, Bellatu is Bellatu.

‘Tsk, what a pity.’

Zeno hid his true feelings.

Since Viola disliked it so much, continually expressing it would be overly rude.

Still, he secretly followed the train of thought.

‘What should I buy her next? What kind of dress would fit with which dagger? Or perhaps Medea’s great sword would suit her well.

She would look incredibly cute.

He reported, hiding his thoughts.

“I reported to the main house, and a response has come down.”

The response was brief.

Summed up, it was something like, ‘Well done. Good job.’

“There has never been a Bellatu who completed such tasks at the age of twelve. Even if they achieved accomplishments like slaying monsters or subduing mountain bandits, no one could infiltrate human and political relationships to win hearts like this. Not even the renowned first princess.”

“Enough.”

I just want the future Bengas to be on my side…

I simply worked hard and moved around.

This wasn’t about politics or convoluted human relationships.

It was just about making sure the future grand sorceress wouldn’t chase after me with a staff.

“What else?”

“The content is that you’re granted permission for your exploration of the ruins. Of course, it was just a formal reporting procedure.”

Bellatu respects the autonomy of the heir candidates.

If you report that you’ll carry out the exploration of the ruins with Jeremy, there won’t be any further interference.

“However, it feels a bit strange.”

“What’s strange?”

“Your father instructed to investigate Jeremy more closely.”

“Investigate?”

Viola tilted her head.

“Why?”

Was there a scene like this in the novel?

I don’t think there was.

“Yes. So I plan to conduct the investigation.”

“Is there really a reason for my father to investigate Jeremy?”

Is there something I am missing?

Is there something hidden about Jeremy?

I recalled the novel’s contents and setting but could remember nothing in particular.

“Who knows.”

There were some parts that made sense.

A father’s heart towards his daughter, maybe.

Zeno had some guesses about it, but he didn’t voice them.

9 AM arrived.

Hixson and Tundra had left for somewhere, while Zeno and Viola were on their way to greet the viscount couple at the main gate.

“Princess Viola. Long time no see.”

“It’s been just a day.”

“Well, that’s long enough.”

Jeremy was wearing a mask like when they first met at Winter Castle.

He had completely transformed into a different person.

Zeno, walking behind Viola, moved smoothly.

As if a ghost was moving, it was smooth and natural.

“But I must say, Sir Jeremy.”

Zeno positioned himself in front of Viola.

He had unwittingly become a barrier between Jeremy and Viola.

“I have something to say.”

Zeno threw out an absurd statement.