My Life Was Taken by My Charm-Wielding Sister—But It Ends Here (The Mind-Reading Noble Lady’s Journey to Happiness After Escaping Her Toxic Family) - Episode 55

“Father…”

Otilie murmured while taking a slight step back.

It had been nearly a year since she last saw her father. Back then, he had offered her a perfunctory apology. Said he was sorry.

But it was clear he didn’t actually believe he was at fault, and an apology didn’t erase everything. To Otilie, her father represented fear, sorrow, and suffering.

(I’m scared…)

Of seeing her father. Of hearing his voice. …Of hearing his inner thoughts about Otilie.

Just the thought of him being there made her stomach clench painfully, and her breathing grew shallow. It was no wonder she wanted to run away.

“Otilie.”

Varick gently wrapped his arm around Otilie’s shoulder. Smiling at her as if to say “It’s alright,” Otilie cautiously looked toward her father.

“Um…”

What should she even say? They’d never had a proper conversation before, and she didn’t know what to do. Her father remained completely silent, just staring at Otilie.

“Father… um…”

“I’m sorry, Otilie!”

“…Huh?”

Her father collapsed to his knees before her. His body trembled violently, and Otilie’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Father?”

As she hurriedly approached, Otilie could hear her father’s sobs.

“I’m sorry…! Truly, I’m sorry! What have I… what have I done……!”

Anyone could see this wasn’t an empty apology. Her father’s remorse was painfully clear, and Otilie felt herself on the verge of tears as well.

“Father… um, please lift your head.”

Her father, still kneeling, shook his head violently. His sobs echoed through the office, and Otilie clutched her chest tightly.

“I know this isn’t something that can be fixed with an apology. I deserve to be criticized for only wanting to apologize to ease my own conscience. But I feel so terribly sorry toward you, Otilie…! I failed to notice how much you were suffering. I failed to protect you. Worse than that, I myself caused you pain…! I’m sorry, Otilie! Truly, I’m sorry!”

He repeatedly banged his head against the floor while apologizing to Otilie.

“Father, stop! Please lift your head! We can’t have a proper conversation like this.”

“But…”

“I want to hear what you have to say properly, Father.”

Otilie said this while looking directly at her father. His face was distorted and messy with tears, his purple eyes the same shade as Otilie’s. For the first time in her life, he was directing emotions other than hatred and disgust toward her, and honestly, she couldn’t help but feel confused. But if she let this opportunity slip away, she might never understand him.

“Marquis, Otilie is saying the same. Let’s speak calmly.”

“Y-yes, Your Highness… Understood.”

Her father, patted on the back by Aldrich, slowly rose to his feet.

“So, why has Father suddenly…? When we last met… well, you were completely on my sister’s side, and as I recall, you despised me.”

Choosing a moment when things had calmed down, Otilie broached the subject. Her father made a pained expression before struggling to figure out where to begin.

“Ugh…”

It seemed his emotions were overwhelming him again. Her father began crying loudly.

(What should I do? He’s started crying again.)

Otilie looked at Varick in confusion. Then Aldrich leaned forward slightly.

“Otilie, sorry. Father is in this state, and there might be things he finds difficult to say himself. Would it be alright if I explained?”

“Brother… yes, please.”

“First, I want to tell you that Father, like me and the servants, had been under Iama’s charm all along. Ever since you were born, he’d been poisoned by Iama.”

“…Yes.”

When she was taken from Einhorn Manor, Otilie had read her father’s heart. Thanks to Varick’s ability temporarily breaking the charm, he was remembering his past.

The images she saw then… Iama stealing her father’s affection from the newborn Otilie – she couldn’t forget them even if she tried. It was clear her father had been charmed by Iama and made to obey her.

That said, it didn’t erase the terrible treatment she’d received from him, nor could she bring herself to feel positively about him.

“As for how Father suddenly regained his senses… truthfully, it wasn’t sudden at all. Prince Varick had been regularly meeting with Father.”

“Huh?”

In that moment, Otilie’s eyes widened dramatically. She quickly looked at Varick, who narrowed his eyes gently.

“His Highness gradually, repeatedly, took his time to weaken the charm’s influence on Father. And recently, he finally succeeded in completely neutralizing it.”

“Lord Varick did…? But! You never said a word about it…!”

“I thought you would be frightened if I mentioned the Marquis or told you we were meeting. Just now too, you made such a pained expression upon seeing him, and I didn’t want to cause you any more distress than necessary.”

“Lord Varick…”

Tears welled in Otilie’s eyes. Feeling Varick’s kindness and deep affection made her heart unbearably warm.

“I wanted to somehow break the Marquis’s charm before our engagement announcement. I’m glad we made it in time. Though perhaps you didn’t wish for such a thing.”

Otilie shook her head at Varick’s words. Then, burying her face in her hands, she burst into tears.

“I… didn’t particularly want an apology. No matter what happens, the past won’t disappear, and Father was essentially a victim too. But…”

It was no use – the tears wouldn’t stop. It was as if the resentment in her heart was melting away. She’d thought it would never disappear, no matter what.

“Father, truly? You don’t hate me from the bottom of your heart? …Do you think of me as your daughter, like you do my sister?”

“…! Of course.”

Her father, who had remained silent until now, finally spoke. He came to Otilie’s side and gently took her hand.

“I don’t think I have any right to act like a father to you now, when you’re about to become a princess. But I… truly wish for your happiness from the bottom of my heart, and want to do everything I can for you. It’s true. Please believe me.”

A gentle, caring gaze. The warmth of family. These were things Otilie had desperately wanted for so long. She murmured “Father” while narrowing her eyes.

(This is enough.)

Though the painful memories wouldn’t completely disappear, Otilie’s heart felt more saved than ever before. If Otilie wished it, she could build a new relationship with her father from now on. All of it, all of it, was thanks to Varick.

“Thank you, Lord Varick.”

“…Seeing you smile is what matters most, Otilie.”

Otilie’s heart pounded at Varick’s smile. She already liked him more than enough. How much more would he make her fall for him? Though she tried to maintain her composure, Otilie couldn’t stop her racing heart.

“By the way, I brought a present for Otilie today.”

As he said this, Aldrich placed a small velvet box on the table.

“What is this?”

“It’s your mother’s memento – a brooch.”

Urged to open the box, she found inside a large sapphire the deep blue of the ocean. Small diamonds were scattered around it, making it a piece that could rival royal jewelry.

“You’re giving this to me? But is that alright? It’s an important keepsake of Mother, isn’t it?”

“Precisely because it’s a keepsake that I want you to have it. This stone will surely protect you.”

As she listened to her father’s reply, Otilie gently stroked the brooch.

(Father is giving me a memento of Mother…)

Was she dreaming? …She felt like asking. But this was undoubtedly reality.

“Thank you, Father.”

For the first time in her life, she directed a beaming smile at her father. Otilie’s father widened his eyes in surprise before bursting into loud sobs once more.