How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love

“You opened your eyes.”

 

“Father.”

 

The door closed and the long light disappeared.

 

But the darkness that had been creeping in again quickly receded. It was because Leonhard had turned on the lamp on the dresser next to the bed.

 

“How are you feeling?”

 

“I’m okay. There were no injuries in the first place.”

 

Noah, who had gotten up from the bed, absentmindedly felt his abdomen and answered. 

 

Leonhard stared at the child’s face illuminated by the lamp light and then opened his mouth.

 

“I still haven’t heard the answer to the question I asked.” 

 

“Question? Ah…”

 

“How far did you intend to go?”

 

Even when he asked that question, and even now, Leonhard’s face was expressionless.

 

‘I used to be scared when I saw my father’s face like that, but now I don’t think like that.’

 

‘Was it because I was a little excited at the thought of being praised?’

 

“I didn’t think about the magic tool my mother gave me.”

 

“Then what was your original plan? Did you plan to deflect the sword with the power of the pattern?”

 

“No. I was planning to get stabbed. That way, Mario Polten’s punishment would be more severe.”

 

“What?”

 

“So what happened to Mario Polten? Did he admit to his crime?” 

 

That was more important to Noah than whether or not he had been stabbed.

 

“Lucius said he would report to you. Didn’t you hear? Mario Polten tried to slander mother. To do that, he pretended to be close to my mother’s family—”

 

“Yes, I got a statement from him. I also found out who was behind him. So you don’t have to worry anymore.”

 

Leonhard told Noah what he had been longing to hear. 

 

“Mario Polten, Count Hiern, and Count Lamberton who helped him will all be punished. They will never be able to set foot in this castle again.” 

 

“It can’t end there. Give them terrible punishments and then tell everyone. So that no one will ever think of harming my mother again.”

 

“Yes…I will.”

 

A smile appeared on Noah’s face as if he was pleased that things had turned out the way he wanted.

 

But Leonhard, on the other hand, could not smile. He sat down on the bed where Noah was sitting and stared at his son, his face even more stern than before.

 

“I don’t know if you remember. You had an escort around you until last year.” 

 

“An escort?…Yes, I remember.”

 

Noah didn’t know why Leonhard suddenly brought up that topic, but he nodded obediently.

 

Apparently, Noah had an escort until last fall.

 

They didn’t always stay by Noah’s side. They tried not to get too close to him, such as by guarding the front of his bedroom when he was sleeping and the front of his study room when he was studying.

 

It was just to avoid invading Noah’s daily life, but Noah was more stressed by their attitude. It felt like surveillance rather than escort. 

 

But he never said that out loud. It was his father who put them there, and he thought he had to follow whatever his father wanted.

 

Then one day, the escorts disappeared. He wondered why, but he had no one to ask. He couldn’t bring himself to ask his father.

 

He thought that if that went on like that, a new escort would come someday, but Noah never got another escort.

 

“I got rid of the escorts because you seemed to find them a burden. I thought that even without them, you, who had the symbol of Ajas, would not be in danger in this castle. Also, I wanted to set an example for my vassals.” 

 

Leonhard reached out and placed his hand on Noah’s head.

 

Flinching slightly and looking down, Noah was slightly relieved to realize that his hand was merely stroking his hair.

 

At the same time, he realized that he was being watched by his father. It wasn’t an atmosphere that praised his actions.

 

“I regret what happened back then. If I had known you would do something like this, I would not have let you go without an escort.”

 

“I did that to protect my mother.”

 

Noah was a little angry, so he looked at Leonhard’s face and spoke straight. It was something he would never have imagined doing in the past. But now the child found it easy to look his father in the eye and talk to him.

 

It was true that the many letters he had written to him had made it less difficult. 

 

But it wasn’t just because of that; it was because Noah knew that even if he had angered his father, his mother would side with him.

 

“Lucius told me that the lie he deliberately told could harm my mother. If a plausible situation were to be created, the vassals who dislike me would join forces to banish Mother from this castle.”

 

“No, that won’t happen while I’m in this castle.” 

 

“Really?”

 

“Yes. She is my wife. No matter what happens, no one can drive my wife, your mother, out of this castle. Not even the emperor.” 

 

Noah was not scared even when he heard the emperor mentioned. Instead, he smiled as if it was not bad.

 

“Then I can continue to live with your mother.”

 

“Yes. So for her sake, this must never happen again. Never again,….Don’t use your body as a means. If it weren’t for the magic tool, you could have died.”

 

“No, that’s not true. I remember everything I learned.” “What?”

Noah grabbed Leonhard’s hand, which was still on his head, and brought it to his abdomen.

 

“I was planning to get stabbed right here, avoiding the major blood vessels and organs.” 

 

Not noticing Leonhard’s blank expression, Noah continued to repeat each word as if he were reviewing what he had learned.

 

“I know exactly where to stab someone to make them die or not. I aimed for the place where I wouldn’t die.”

 

The child who had deliberately put a sword in someone else’s hand and planned to get stabbed with it smiled brightly as if the memory had no trauma whatsoever.

 

“I’m confident I can do it again.” 

 

“Noah!”

 

“If you don’t die, your wounds will be completely healed with a single magic spell. Isn’t this a good deal? We can now drive out that man who dared harbor evil intentions toward my mother.”

 

Noah said with a smile. The child’s smile was genuine. 

 

“I’m just happy that I can protect my mother with my own hands.”

 

“Huh, how….you’re not scared? Even if you knew a place where you wouldn’t die, what if you had made a mistake, even just a little? What if the trajectory of the sword tip had gone astray from Mario Polten’s hand? You could have been stabbed in the heart!”

 

“Then there would be no way for Mario Polten to escape.”

 

It’s one thing to give your enemy a way out, depending on your strategy. But if you’re cornering an enemy that you need to finish off on the spot, you need to make sure there’s no way out.

 

A momentary mistake can be a variable like a joker. From the old days, it was always a small variable that ruined a perfectly planned strategy. That is why you must deal with an enemy that can be dealt with on the spot. 

 

That was a lesson Noah learned from Mario Polten in a short time. 

 

“There would be no way for him to escape.…What if Mario Polten had maintained his innocence to the end? If I had conducted the on-site investigation without knowing anything, Mario Polten’s innocence would have been proven.”

 

That was why Leonhard interrogated Mario Polten alone, without bringing in anyone else.

 

He didn’t even mention Noah’s name in front of Mario. He only asked what he was planning to do and who ordered him to do it.

 

Did anyone among the vassals notice? Leonhard didn’t directly say, ‘Mario Polten stabbed Noah with a sword.’

 

“I’m saying this not as a father, but as a Marquis. What you did today was too reckless. Accusing him of something he didn’t do will come back to bite you many times over when the truth is revealed.”

 

“But, Father, they already tried to do the same thing to Mother.” 

 

Noah asked, genuinely confused.

 

“Why can’t I do the same?” 

 

“That’s it.…”

 

“If you intend to harm others, you should be prepared to be harmed too.”

 

There was no trace of guilt or regret on his face as he spoke. He was only five years old. Only. 

 

Not only had he done that, but the child’s amber eyes were firmly centered.

 

It wasn’t an impulse. That child did it after much thought, thinking it was the best thing to do. With the noble purpose of protecting his mother. 

 

“Why…”

 

‘What on earth should I say to this child?’

 

Leonhardt couldn’t find any words in his blank mind. 

 

He opened and closed his lips meaninglessly several times. Leonhard managed to utter a trembling voice.

 

“Why….You didn’t tell me. Why didn’t you tell me?” 

 

‘Why didn’t you trust me?’

 

Leonhard couldn’t bring himself to say those words. 

 

How could he? Since when did he become a father? 

 

‘Can I continue to call myself his father? Am I qualified to do so?’

 

At that moment, a distant despair covered Leonhard’s vision.

 

Leonhard felt a deep sense of helplessness, not daring to think of anything to say to the child.

 

Even if he were to drift alone in the vast ocean without a compass, there would be nothing more desolate than this.

 —tok tok. 

At that moment, a small knock on the door woke Leonhard up. Turning his head, Leonhard saw the closed door opening and light pouring in through the gap as if a path had been opened.

 

“You are here?”

 

It was Raenel.

 

Leonhard, who had been looking at her with distant eyes as if he had found a mirage in the desert, realized that she was real when she blinked with a clear face.

 

“Are you feeling okay? Are you okay with walking around like this?” 

 

“I told you, I’m okay. Besides, I slept well and my eyes are wide open.” 

 

However, the area around her eyes that she emphasized as wide open was still puffy and red.

 

Leonhard, who had come near to her without her knowledge, looked at her face. 

 

Raenel pushed his shoulder aside and went to Noah, who was sitting on the bed. 

 

“It’s still dawn. Why are you up? Did your father wake you up?”

 

“No. I woke up because I slept too much. What about Mom?” 

 

“Me too. More like, um.…”

 

Her gaze traveled from his forehead to the tip of his chin, making sure not to miss any of the features, and then began to scan the child’s neck.

 

At first, she was cautious and cautious, but at some point, her gaze changed to become more blatant. She picked up the child, sat him on her lap, and started checking his body for any injuries.

 

“I….”

 

“Noah, are you feeling any pain?” 

 

“No, nothing.”

 

Shaking his head in Raenel’s arms, Noah stared into her eyes for a moment and then smiled.

 

“I fell asleep during tea time with the teacher because I couldn’t sleep last night and was tired. It wasn’t because I was sick, so don’t worry.”

 * * *