CH 380

Mia’s Papa’s Pure Heart

“Okay, let’s move on for now. Bel, I’m going to introduce you to the emperor today.”

Mia decided to shift the subject because she couldn’t think of an effective method to get Bel to stop being so frivolous.

“Huh? Bel was taken aback when she heard, “So I’m going to meet my great— I mean, your father?”

Mia solemnly nodded.

“That’s accurate. His Imperial Majesty Matthias Luna Tearmoon will be introduced to you.

She sat with her arms folded, looking thoughtful.

But after giving it some thought, I think that this might be a little challenging.

Despite all of his incompetence, the man was still in charge of the vast Tearmoon empire. She was unable to just approach him and request that he say hello to his great-granddaughter. Bel would therefore have to be, at most, a commoner’s daughter. She might, at worst, come across as suspicious.

Since I’ve never heard of an assassination attempt on my father, I assume that they have stringent security measures in place to foil such attempts. He wouldn’t likely consent to meet with someone whose past is completely unknown. What can I say to deceive him?

She was pensive the entire way to his office.

“Pardon me, dad. Have you got a second?”

“Oh my Mia! I do, of course! What is the issue?”

Being the emperor, Mia’s father was frequently busy. However, there was a little window before meals when he frequently sat back in his office. This period of his day had a clear cause. He made an effort to eat with Mia whenever possible. Because of this, he planned all of his official business—meetings with the imperial council, reports from the moon ministries, and whatever else he needed to do—so that he would finish it well before his mealtimes. Nothing in the world was more blissful to him than sharing a dinner and a chat with his adored daughter.

The experience occasionally bothered Mia, but that wasn’t crucial just now. She told Bel to wait outside the room and then entered the space herself.

“What a magnificent and uncommon fortune this is. You arrived without being invited.”

At her, the emperor smiled. “Are you coming to lunch with me today?”

“Well, yes, I guess. However, father, there is someone I really want you to meet.”

“Oh? Someone you want me to get to know, do you say?” The emperor rubbed his chin and smiled, “Maybe this is the friend of yours that you’ve been showing around. I’ve heard she’s a young girl who resembles you more than just a little bit. I’ve been wanting to see her for myself.

“You keep up with the news, by the way, don’t you?”

Mia thought her father’s response was impressive.

I’m curious if he keeps an eye on everyone who enters the Whitemoon Palace. Oh, I didn’t realize how much my father valued knowledge. Maybe he’s not quite as stupid as he appears to be.

Thought the person who had previously been chastised by Ludwig for not knowing the names of even one dignitary who had visited the palace. She understood the significance of gathering knowledge in advance as a result of that. That was guaranteed by the experience’s visceral agony.

“Of course I do, ho ho ho. Did you really think I’d be that careless as to not look into your friend group? I’ve done research on everyone, including your classmates, members of the riding club, the student council, and even your dorm neighbors.”

The emperor puffed out his chest like a youngster who has just informed his parents that he had finished all of his schoolwork early. Mia strained to keep a straight look while her face twitched.

“I-I see. Well, uh, congratulations. I’d like to present her to you, though. Before that, father, I’m sorry for being so abrupt, but would you happen to have any children I’m not aware of? Illegitimate kids, for instance?”

It was not a particularly bright idea and was more the product of indolence than of knowledge. She simply reasoned that she could make Bel one of his fake babies and end the situation if he did have any. She wasn’t having trouble coming up with an acceptable identity. There were other methods to pass her off, such as a girl she picked up from the streets or the daughter of a foreign royal. The simplest answer, one that would justify her existing “younger sister” setup, was to have an illegitimate child.

Unfortunately…

“Absolutely not. That is not physically possible.”

The emperor shook his head without the smallest hesitation.

“Oh? How come? You know, it’s not like I’ll yell at you. It makes sense that, as emperor, you would be considering your successors. I completely understand if you, you know, had a little fun when you were younger, so…”

“That’s extremely kind of you, but the problem is that I’ve only ever known your mother as a woman.”

“…Huh?”

She gaped at her father, who was beaming broadly at her.

“Woman came before women, to put it simply. I fell in love with your mother before I even had a chance to learn about the lovely world of skirt-chasing. It was love at first sight. Upon reflection, I probably could have played about a bit more. “Bah, ha, ha!”

So what exactly is a girl meant to do when her father tells her that she has never interacted with a woman aside from her mother? Laugh? Cry?

Mia wasn’t sure how to take in this new revelation about her father’s crude and obsessive fascination with her mother as his daughter. The emperor left the chamber without asking permission and began to scan the area as she struggled with her emotions.

“Oh, you’re the one, then. Intriguing. You obviously have a lot of Mia in you! What’s that? You go by Miabel, right? Moons! Even your name sounds alike. Oh, oh, oh. I bet the child Mia would have would resemble you exactly.”

They connected right away. They started speaking merrily in a matter of seconds.

“Wait, Father! What? You cannot simply approach her in that manner. Mia sighed. Despite the fact that she is my friend, please use caution.”

Mia couldn’t help but feel a tinge of worry for her father’s safety when she saw how openly he accepted Miabel. The Tearmoon Emperor wasn’t just enjoyed by the Chaos Serpents as a fantastic target practice. They were not alone in their interest; many assassins were.

“Caution? Why is caution necessary? Mia, you are amazing. Then everybody who resembles you is magnificent,” the emperor continued, as if he had just proved a mathematical principle beyond all doubt. “I trust her because she looks like you,” said the doting father.

“You do?”

“Indeed, I do. How could it not be? It’s true that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, and the same goes for people. However, you are not people. You are Mia! The ultimate jewel that is you can only be created when both inner and outer beauty coexist in harmony.”

He exhaled a loud laugh.

I tell you what. I am in awe of my father for the first time ever. And a little scared, too. At this pace, I wouldn’t be shocked if he was genuinely thinking about creating some sort of enormous golden statue of me.

Although the emperor may have ignored caution, Mia did and she immediately incorporated it to her view of her father.