893 – Dazzling Dawn – 2

My happiness, my treasure, was robbed.

“You seem to have grown a lot since I last saw you. Let’s go and hug our grandson and see how much he has grown.”

“yes!”

While they were walking to the banquet hall under the guidance of the Duke, the first father-in-law, who was strolling over, snatched Pedi away without mercy as soon as he saw him.

It happened so quickly that my brother and I could only watch in a daze. I knew that my father-in-law was strong for his age, but I never thought that he would even surpass my reaction speed.

“Oh my. You’ve definitely grown a lot. In just a little while, you’ll be a great knight.”

“Knight! Then am I a knight too?”

“Our Pedi, you already know the title of Kyung? How wonderful.”

Even Pedi, who was held in the arms of his father-in-law, smiled brightly and flapped his arms.

Children usually like tall places and big things. And the father-in-law’s enormous body is both tall and big. That’s why Pedi is very fond of his wife, the Minister of Finance, as well as his first maternal grandfather, the father-in-law.

So I had to helplessly watch Pedi leave my side. The father-in-law’s physique was an area of ​​talent that I could not dare to reach.

‘If only it were 30cm taller…!’

20cm seems a little short, but if it had been just 30cm taller, it would have been able to put up a decent fight against my father-in-law.

It’s so unfair. I wish I could just take 30cm from Erich’s height.

“Well, has Julia grown a little too?”

‘ah.’

I shuddered at the sight of my father-in-law coveting not only Pedi but also Julia.

You already have Pedi in your arms, and now you want to hold Julia too. That is a fearsome and enormous greed befitting a former duke. Is it possible to reign as a duke for decades with such ambitions?

“I’ll hold Julia. What if I hold two of them at once and drop them?”

However, the craftsman’s hand was blocked by maternal love.

I was touched. Couldn’t even the Duke’s greedy ambitions penetrate his mother’s heart?

“Would this father make such a mistake? Don’t worry.”

“I would have believed it if it were my father last year, but this year he is old enough to retire.”

At those words, the craftsman’s shoulders trembled.

It was a harsh criticism that he retired and stepped down because he was not as good as before. It was not a logically wrong statement, so even my father-in-law could not open his mouth. To deny that statement, he would have to be a ‘father who retired while his son was still in good health’.

“…Then just don’t touch it.”

“Yes, that’s okay.”

The craftsman, who seemed slightly exhausted, carefully stroked Julia’s cheek,

“Aww-!”

Fortunately, Julia also liked tall and big things.

It wouldn’t be strange for him to weep when his big, bulky father-in-law approached him, but he greeted his father-in-law’s touch with a big smile like a pedicure. He was truly an angel.

“Your eyes are as beautiful as jewels. Your cheeks are also plump. Who does your face resemble? You are so pretty.”

Thanks to this, the expression on the craftsman’s face, which had been slightly gloomy, brightened rapidly.

But is it because of my mood? It seems like your expressions of emotion have become more colorful than when you were a duke. In the past, you would have had to look closely to notice when you were depressed or when you were bright.

In the first place, the emotions I could immediately identify when I saw my father-in-law’s face were anger, embarrassment, and laughter. Anything else required a bit of effort.

“Have you felt much lighter?”

As if he noticed my doubts, my brother whispered quietly in my ear.

“He was already half-retired, but he still bore the title of Duke. So he couldn’t help but appear somewhat intimidating and stiff to others.”

I immediately understood what my brother was saying. He meant that there was no need to save face or control his emotions, so all that was left was an ordinary, doting grandfather.

If I think about it, my father became more peaceful after he passed the Imperial Baek position to me, and even that machine-like situation changed like the village chief grandfather. The difference between a person and someone else is whether or not they have something to carry.

“Brother-in-law? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I do it because I respect my older brother who has to carry such a huge burden.”

At that moment, I almost said, ‘You’ve taken on the burden of being a duke, so why hasn’t anything changed?’ but I held back. I knew how flustered my brother must have been right after he was suddenly given the title of duke. His current state is the result of months of holding back his emotions.

Rather, wouldn’t it be more frightening to be someone who is usually easygoing but pulls out a sword when something is important? In some ways, he is a person who fits the title of Yeomyeong well.

Although he may have a faint glimpse of the peacock’s majesty, he is ultimately a person with the potential to shine more brilliantly than anything else.

“Hehe, it’s respectable. It’s embarrassing to live with someone like a duke.”

I almost laughed bitterly at those words. My brother was probably just thinking of Tricky, but I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw that Tricky was going to step down from the dukedom next year.

Even more so when I think about filling the vacant position of Duke Servette.

Even more so because it is a rare form of a peacock proxy.

‘Fuck.’

I wasn’t in a position to be a burden to my brother or anything.

Of all the blood relatives of Valenti, our family was the last to arrive.

My brother is the owner of Wolken 24 hours a day, and my sisters-in-law live in Wolken or nearby, so it’s natural. If anything, it might have been a little embarrassing if we had arrived before the other sisters-in-law.

“Oh my. You look more and more skinny.”

“That’s right. Look at those bright eyes. Mardo was like that when he was little.”

“But doesn’t it seem a bit sharper than Marbo? Is it because he takes after his youngest brother-in-law?”

At the fourth executioner’s words, the executioners’ gaze turned to me.

I flinched for a moment. When I saw the ladies with similar appearances to Maru looking at me at the same time, I felt like I had fallen into the future or a parallel world.

“It seems that the youngest brother-in-law’s bloodline is strong. Our Valenti bloodline is not the type to be pushed around anywhere either.”

“There’s nothing I can do. My father is also a protagonist of the old era that is now passing away. The protagonist of the new era is my youngest brother-in-law.”

‘What is that?’

The first executioner’s words left me breathless.

How can you say something like that, treating your father-in-law like trash in an instant?

“This guy. Is he treating his father like trash at a family gathering after a long time?”

“It was your father who said that nobles without titles or positions were trash. What did you say to your sons-in-law every time we got married? Did you say that you wouldn’t let them retire if they trusted their father-in-law’s support?”

Unfortunately, however, the ranking within the family has fallen dramatically in recent months. He is still struggling to come to his senses due to the onslaught of his first wife.

More importantly, father-in-law. You said that to other sons-in-law. You didn’t even mention the word ‘retirement’ to me.

‘Is he the kind of guy who can’t retire even if he doesn’t say anything?’

It was a sad truth and I cried in my heart.

‘hmm?’

While the craftsman, who had lost his authority, held Pedi in his arms with a bitter look, and the executioners were teasing Marwa and Julia, I felt eyes staring at me intently.

‘ah.’

As I turned my head to follow the gaze, a mini version of the craftsman caught my eye.

No, since he is my brother’s son, it would be more accurate to say that he is a mini version of my brother.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t had a proper greeting with you, Duke. How have you been?”

Since our eyes met, I bowed my head slightly and said hello.

In fact, I had less opportunities to meet the Duke than my older brothers or sisters-in-law. Although he is similar in age to me, there is a big difference in rank, position, and generation. Furthermore, even though the Duke is a direct descendant of the Duke’s family, he was only the eldest grandson of the Duke until last year. It is difficult to compare him to me, the current Imperial Count and Minister.

However, starting this year, he is no longer the eldest grandson of the duke, but a true young duke. Now, I have to respect him and treat him as the main character of the duke’s family, not as my wife’s nephew.

“Of course. I’ve been a bit busy this year, but I can’t say it’s been hard because I’ve just been doing my duty.”

But why? Even though I was the first to show respect, the little prince hesitated and bowed his head in return.

It’s not just an awkward look. It’s not like they’re avoiding me or trying to distance themselves from me. If I had to pick a similar feeling, it would be─

‘east longitude.’

The countless looks I received in the Armenian kingdom. The emotions I encountered every time I passed by.

That’s definitely a dream. It’s definitely a dream to be given the grand title of the best swordsman on the continent.

‘Didn’t they say that even a small peacock is unmanned?’

The Valenti Dukes are a family that values ​​martial arts, as their founders have been awarded the title of Duke for their achievements. My father-in-law also played an active role in the wars against the Eastern Kingdoms, so my older brother is rather unique in that he is more of a socialite and administrator than a warrior.

However, the Duke of Edvard, Edward Varenti, has considerable passion and talent for martial arts, as expected of a Duke of Edvard. If he hadn’t been a Duke of Edvard, he would probably have been a member of the Imperial Knights by now.

“Haha! Edward looks trembling when he sees the best sword on the continent! He used to admire his father, but has the object of his admiration changed?”

‘Don’t do that.’

I was taken aback by my brother’s words. What kind of words could he say in front of his father-in-law, who was already bitter after hearing the words of a trash person from his eldest daughter? It was an outrageous remark that drove a wedge into the theory that Cheolhyeol Gong was a trash person.

“no.”

But before Nana and the craftsman could react, the little peacock spoke first.

“As a warrior, it is true that I admire the best swordsman on the continent, but at the same time, I admire the person who followed in my grandfather’s footsteps and became the best warrior in the empire. If I follow in the footsteps of such a person, wouldn’t I one day become the best in the empire like my grandfather?”

‘oh.’

While applying gold to my face, I showed my respect for my father-in-law, saying, “I admire him because he followed in my grandfather’s footsteps.” I quickly and perfectly cleaned up the bomb dropped by my older brother.

“hmm.”

The craftsman also seemed satisfied with his grandson’s praise. He gave a small laugh and patted Pedi’s head.

Since coming to the Dukedom of Wolken, this is the first time I have seen the authority of the craftsman upright.