Lucy's innocent smile accompanied her.
The kids who were chasing after Derek behind them were whispering to their mother and rolling their eyes.
Since the children couldn't control the volume of their voices, their story reached the ears of all the ladies present.
"Mom. Lucy said the Duchess is an angel, so she teaches her everything. Is it true? Is the Duchess an angel?"
One child who said that glanced at Ariel and continued quietly,
"But the Duchess really does look like an angel."
Only Jessica was biting her lower lip, when Lucy took a step towards her.
"As Older brother Derek's cousin, could I perhaps help him? Although I'm a year younger, I think I can teach Older brother Derek history."
From just seeing the child's sweet intentions, it wasn't a bad suggestion. Ultimately, she just wanted to help.
However, for Lucy, a year younger, to suggest teaching Derek was an extremely insulting remark.
Ariel looked at Jessica with an anxious eye, but fortunately, since there were so many people around, Jessica matched Lucy's eye level with a smiling face.
"Miss Lucy. Older brother Derek is just nervous from visiting the palace after a long time. There's no problem at all, so don't worry. More importantly, Miss Lucy..."
Just as Jessica was about to give Lucy a lesson, Lucy's head turned back.
Damian, who had just finished his audience, was standing in the center of the hall.
"Dad!!"
Lucy called out loudly, looking at Damian.
Ariel was startled by the voice that resounded through the banquet hall.
At the same time she thought her daughter, who practices perfect manners, could never make such a mistake, and at the same time, her mouth fell open as she realized that it was none other than Damian whom she had called out.
Without being able to stop her, Lucy's steps started moving.
Lucy ran towards Damian with open arms.
Damian, holding a champagne glass in one hand, slightly tilted his head while watching his daughter Lucy, without any particular reaction.
Then he chuckled and put down his champagne glass before lifting Lucy into his arms.
The sight was so affectionate, like a loving father, that Ariel covered her mouth.
"Dad!"
Lucy, cradled in her father's arms, hugged Damian's neck and smiled brightly.
For some reason, Damian gazed at Lucy with a chuckling laughter.
Everyone, who had been staring in surprise at Lucy's loud voice, now had warm smiles at the affectionate scene between father and daughter.
And of course, the one who was the happiest among them was Ariel.
Ariel was so moved that she was on the verge of tears.
She had worried a lot because Lucy seemed hostile towards her father at home, but she seemed to be just acting mischievous because the only people she could rely on outside were her father and mother.
Of course, she would have to teach her that yelling out in crowded places or cutting off adults mid-speech was rude behavior.
"Ariel."
Damian, holding Lucy, approached Ariel.
As soon as Lucy, hugging Damian's neck, reached out her arms to Ariel, Damian pulled Lucy's arms back.
"Lucy."
When Damian said that, Lucy first whispered into Damian's ear with a bright smiling face.
From the whispers exchanged between the father and daughter, Ariel wondered what they were saying while also wanting to capture this precious small moment.
Next time, it seemed like a good idea to invite a painter to the house and have even Damian captured in a painting.
A pose like today's would be perfect for a personal collection! Lucy whispering into Damian's ear seems so lovely.
And it would be good to have a refined pose painted to hang in the center of the ducal residence as well.
Come to think of it, there hadn't been a family portrait yet.
"My lady."
Damian gently called out to Ariel, who was completely absorbed in the thought of preserving this moment.
"It seemed Lucy was hearing something from Mrs. Jessica. Did Lucy do something wrong perhaps?"
Damian's gaze shifted from Ariel to Jessica. As Ariel opened her mouth with a slightly flustered look, Jessica shook her head first.
"...No, Your Grace. Derek was just a bit startled from the tension of visiting the palace. My apologies, but may I excuse myself with Derek first?"
"Children can be like that in unfamiliar situations. Please do, Mrs."
When Damian readily nodded, Jessica and Derek left the group.
"Dad, let me down."
Following Lucy's words, Damian carefully set Lucy down on the floor.
Then, like someone who had finished their task, he gave Ariel and the surrounding ladies a nod before leaving.
Ariel tilted her head watching her husband's retreating back. He certainly wasn't the type to intervene in such matters.
Not the type to step in for such things... One thing has changed - their daughter! They say fathers are weak to their daughters. Could this be an example?
Ariel found it slightly perplexing as she recalled her own father, but she thought Damian could be a bit different.
And that instilled a very pleasant sense of anticipation in her.
Perhaps their philosophies on child-rearing may differ slightly, but the overarching principles of loving and respecting the child could be the same - that was her expectation.
Amidst the ladies remarking how lovely the father-daughter interaction was, Ariel carefully asked Lucy:
"Lucy, what did you talk about with Dad?"
"Hmm.... It's a secret from you, Mom."
"A secret?"
Ariel opened her eyes wide in surprise, and Lucy smiled.
"Actually.... He said you're so pretty, Mom. That you're the prettiest in the world."
Lucy said with a smile. Ariel, her face flushed, cleared her throat unnecessarily.
"Did Dad really say that?"
"....Yes! Oh, did you pray with Dad yesterday, Mom?"
Ariel smiled at Lucy's question.
"Well, that's my secret too."
"Huh? But I told you, why is it a secret for you Mom?"
Ariel gently poked Lucy's puffed-out cheek with her finger and narrowed her eyes.
"But it seemed like you had a different, longer conversation with Dad besides that?"
"Hmm, I'm hungry Mom."
Seeing Lucy lightly change the subject, Ariel burst into laughter and scooped her up.
She decided to play along with the cute little lie.
This way, Lucy would also have memories with her father.
***
"Damian. It seems you were right after all. Our Lucy needs a tutor."
Inside the carriage returning to the manor, Ariel spoke with conviction.
Lucy was fast asleep, her head resting on Ariel's lap, while Damian watched them both.
Even as she spoke to Damian, Ariel smiled while caressing Lucy's blonde hair.
"Our daughter is quite extraordinary, it seems."
At Ariel's words, Damian raised his eyebrows and nodded.
"It does seem so."
"Right? You heard it too! Our Lucy has already read the imperial history books!"
Ariel lifted her head with a flushed expression.
"Our daughter must be a genius! How wonderful. She takes completely after you."
The affectionate Ariel had a habit of praising others, and she did so again this time.
"Takes after me..." Damian chuckled. He wasn't sure about her being a genius, but their daughter did seem quite cunning.
Like in the banquet hall earlier.
To others, it may have looked like she excitedly ran to her father. But Lucy was clearly threatening Damian.
As she ran over, she mouthed, 'Pebble, hug. Mom's watching.'
Mentioning that Ariel was watching was a smart move.
It was a sentence that he precisely understood how to threaten him.
"She does seem to have taken after me in some ways."
Damian readily admitted that part. Blood cannot be hidden, they say - though only her eyes resembled Ariel, her core was Damian's.
Moreover, when he picked her up, she proposed a deal in a whisper.
'If you side with me in driving off Auntie Jessica, I'll help you with Mom.'
It was quite a plausible threat.
'If you want a sibling, persuasion might work better than threats.'
When Damian countered, Lucy snorted.
The tiny girl behaved in a manner that only an adult far beyond her years would normally do, with her expressions and actions.
She could not have learned such behavior from Ariel, and if she had learned it, she must have picked it up by observing someone else.
Could she have secretly watched the maids during their breaks?
'If you don't pray, I'll sleep with Mom every day. Dad is unneeded unless it's for a sibling.'
'Is that so? Then why did you propose to help me?'
'Because Mom needs Dad.'
The child's green eyes were wide and unwavering. She clearly distinguished her affections.
While saying her father was unneeded, even calling him a "pebble", she doted greatly on her mother.
This amused Damian, making him chuckle as he listened to Lucy's words.
If Lucy insisted on sleeping together every day, Ariel would certainly do so without hesitation.
Of course, if Damian said a word to Ariel, she would have no choice but to sleep in the bedroom.
That's the kind of woman Ariel was. But Damian did not want his wife by his side that way.
Damian preferred Ariel worrying about him and loving him of her own volition.
He did not wish to experience her coldly turning away like yesterday.