Tie asked Papa only once.

Why she did not have a mother.

That day, Papa did not answer.

Instead, he said some nonsense and changed the subject.

But Tie clearly saw his face back then.

He was smiling as if everything was fine, but there was so much loneliness in that smile.

Since then, Tie never asked again.

So she did not know.

That she had another family too.

As Tie, with a confused face, kept clutching and releasing the edge of her cloak—

"......Tie?"

From the gap between the wardrobe and the wall, three pairs of eyes appeared.

Tie flinched and raised her head.

Edmund, Leonardo, and Alexander, who had arrived at some point, were looking at her.

"Unc......"

As usual, Tie was about to call them "uncles," but stopped.

Before, that word slipped out easily.

But now, when she knew they really were her uncles, saying it became harder.

"What were you doing here?"

Alexander held out his hand.

Tie hesitated, but took it and crawled out.

Immediately, Leonardo brushed the dust off her clothes. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Shifting from foot to foot, Tie looked at the three of them and muttered:

"Well... Tie was looking for where everyone went......"

"We were in that room at the end the whole time. But you have been there before......."

Leonardo nudged Edmund.

Edmund fell silent and looked closely at Tie.

"Why do you look like that? Were you that upset that we knocked out the deputy leader? We only knocked him out, we did not hurt him."

Tie shook her head.

Of course, when she did not know they were brothers, it felt very wrong.

But now it was different.

Three princes—Papa’s brothers.

And that meant older brothers could hit the younger one a little.

That was what older kids at Hanbit Kindergarten always said.

"Then what is wrong? Are you hungry?"

Tie shook her head again.

And quietly answered:

"I do not know......"

In truth, she really did not know.

Why her body suddenly felt so heavy, as if filled with water.

She had found a family she did not know about.

Her heart beat faster because of that.

But at the same time, for some reason, it was sad.

Tie tightly pressed her lips together.

Leonardo took a chocolate wrapped in paper from his pocket and held it out to her.

"Here."

Tie slowly blinked, looking at the chocolate in her hand.

And in the next moment—

without understanding why, she started crying.

Large tears rolled down her cheeks.

"......Tie!"

A pale Alexander lifted her into his arms.

Tie sobbed and buried her face in his chest.

Alexander placed his palm on her forehead, checking her temperature.

Then, looking over her face, he said to the others:

"No fever......!"

But seeing how worried they were about her only made the tears come even more.

Tie hiccupped and burst into full sobs.

Even when her nose smeared against his clothes, Alexander just kept comforting her.

"Tie, will you not tell uncle why you are crying?"

Edmund came closer and asked in confusion.

"Hng...... hic!"

Sniffling, Tie wrapped her arms around Alexander’s neck.

Edmund brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead and said reproachfully to Leonardo:

"I told you not to knock him out in front of a child."

Leonardo, flustered, started wiping Tie’s tears with a handkerchief.

Tie pressed herself even more into Alexander’s shoulder and thought:

'They really... really are my uncles.'

She did not have only Papa.

She also had three wonderful and kind uncles.

And that felt so good that tears welled up again.

Of course, right now she ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ could not say that she was their niece.

But—

'If there is another assignment in class, <Draw your family!>, this time Tie will draw everyone.'

She would not draw only two people on the paper anymore.

Papa, the uncles, and......

"What are you doing here."

A familiar voice appeared from the other end of the corridor.

"Father."

Valentis approached with wide steps and took Tie from Alexander’s arms.

"You are holding her awkwardly, that is why she is crying."

He carefully supported Tie under her back and thighs, then quietly looked at her.

"I am sorry. I called you and made you wait."

Tie raised her tearful eyes to him.

Valentis smiled gently, as if calming her.

Now Tie already knew.

Valentis was a frightening person.

He almost never smiled and often said fewer than five sentences in an hour.

But not with her.

"Today you are in beautiful clothes again. Did Marshal choose them?"

Tie looked at the yellow sleeve peeking out from under her cloak and shook her head.

"Today Tie chose them herself......"

"I see. Chick color. Very cute."

Tie’s cheeks flushed.

That was exactly why she chose those clothes.

Because the color was like a little chick.

"Are you hungry?"

This time, Tie nodded.

Valentis quietly chuckled and patted her back.

"Let us go. This Commander in Chief prepared many of your favorite treats."

Tie looked at his face.

And suddenly said:

"Grandpa......!"

Valentis froze in place.

His eyes widened—a rare sight.

Scenes from kindergarten flashed through Tie’s mind.

'Oh, my little one! Grandpa came to pick you up today!'

'Graandpaa!'

Grandfathers coming to pick up children.

Children running to them and hugging them tightly—

kiss.

Tie giggled.

And Valentis slowly opened his mouth.

Unable to hold back his smile, he turned to his sons as if asking—did you see that?

"Wow."

"......I am jealous."

"Ha-ha-ha, Father!"

The three princes looked at Tie and Valentis with different expressions.

Tie giggled and lightly shook his shoulder.

"Grandpa, Tie is hungry."

"Yes...... yes, of course."

Valentis hurried forward.

"Ha, ha-ha......"

He was still laughing as if he could not believe it.

And at that moment—

"......"

At the stairs, Valentis and the three princes stopped.

Because Tesetan stepped out from the corridor toward them.

Seeing them, he frowned.

"......What kind of scene is this?"

I thought "acquainted" just meant acquainted.

But to carry the King of the Dead in your arms and receive kisses from her......

Normally, Valentis would pretend not to hear and walk away.

But now—

"Is it not obvious? Let us go downstairs. I understand you want to leave quickly, but since you are here—let us have dinner together."

With a smile on his lips, Valentis simply walked past him downstairs.

Edmund patted Tesetan on the shoulder twice.

"Sorry about earlier."

Leonardo also lightly tapped his arm as he passed.

"Come on, Theseos... I mean Tesetan. You are hungry, right?"

Alexander, as always smiling gently, pulled him by the hand.

Tesetan reluctantly followed, looking at the King of the Dead in Valentis’s arms.

For some reason, she was tightly hugging his neck and looked like the happiest person in the world.

'......I see. She is pretending to be a child, that I understand.'

He smirked.

'But kissing my father on the cheek? And he just allows it?'

He fell into thought.

His father—the Commander in Chief of the Holy Knight Order, Valentis Luminel.

The very man whose smile was rarely seen even after two months on the battlefield.

And that man was delighted by a kiss from a necromancer pretending to be a child.

'Strange.'

Tesetan stopped on the stairs.

And for a long time, he watched the five figures disappearing below.

Suddenly, that day of the duel came back to him.

How the King of the Dead could not remove her transformation until the very end.

"......Very strange."