I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter

Two invitations to the tea party had arrived.
One was addressed to Leonia.
The other—to Varia.

“It’s been so long, I’m really nervous.”
Seated in the carriage, Varia let out deep breaths over and over, trying to calm her nerves.
When she was younger, she used to attend tea parties with girls her age. But ever since enrolling in the Academy and taking a job in the Treasury, she hadn’t gone to a single one.

“There’s no need to be that nervous.”
Ferio, seated across from her, said calmly.
“Just go and enjoy yourself.”

“But it’s not just any tea party.”
Varia let out another long breath, clearly unable to relax.
She glanced down at the invitation in her lap.

A yellow envelope the color of gold, and inside, a letter sealed with the emblem of a golden eagle.
It was an invitation from Empress Tigria.
Which meant that this wasn’t just an ordinary tea party.

'The second most powerful person in the Empire.'
Her hands, resting on her knees, clenched unconsciously. Varia was about to step into the capital’s social circle.
If she made even one wrong move, it could be a disaster. Ever since the last banquet, people had started treating Varia like she was practically already the Duchess of Voreoti.

Varia blamed herself. She’d only tried to distance herself from the family, and somehow she’d ended up caught in a flood of wild rumors.
What if she brought trouble to the House of Voreoti?
'Especially—'
Varia glanced to the side.

Just beside her, Ferio sat with one arm propped on the windowsill, looking out. Feeling her gaze, he slowly turned his head toward her.
Their eyes met for just a moment before Varia quickly looked away.
'Oh no…!'

All it took was that single, brief glance, and her heart pounded like crazy. Her face began to flush.
Since that day...
Varia hadn’t been able to look at Ferio the same way.

The confident, righteous version of herself who once proudly declared she could separate business from emotion now felt like a mockery.
“I-I’ll be careful not to bring shame to House Voreoti.”
She forced herself to speak in a calm tone.

At the same time, she rubbed the back of her hand against her burning cheeks, trying to cool herself down.
“You are not someone who brings shame to House Voreoti.”
Ferio reached out and lowered her hand. Her flushed face was now fully exposed.

“…From now on, you should wear your hair down.”
Then, suddenly, out came the scolding.
“…Sorry?”

Varia blinked at the random remark.
“When it’s windy and chilly, tying your hair up like that and exposing your ears and neck isn’t good for your health.”
“Um… but it’s summer?”

Outside the window, lush green foliage swayed in the thick air of midsummer.
“…The North is cold even in summer.”
Ferio smoothly changed his reasoning.

“Well, that makes sense.”
Varia nodded, accepting it without suspicion.
“…Are you two insane?”

And then—
“What the hell are you doing?!”
Leonia, squashed between the two adults with barely any room to move her shoulders, finally exploded in frustration.

“You’re driving me crazy!”
The Voreoti carriage was wide and spacious.
But with two grown-ups squishing a twelve-year-old in the middle, the one suffering was clearly Leonia.

“Can you two move over?!”
Like a hen flapping out of the yard, she wriggled her shoulders to escape.
Only then did Ferio and Varia lean away from her a bit, giving her room to breathe.

But even that didn’t last long.
“Move over? Yeah, right.”
“Exactly! You’re still a child, Miss.”

Just as Leonia tried to slide to the wide front seat, Ferio and Varia both hurried to stop her.
“A child should stay next to the adults.”
“What if the carriage flips over?”

Ferio even took a sharp breath before scolding her. Varia quickly chimed in as well.
“We’ll shield you and keep you safe, so don’t worry.”
“I’ll protect you with my life, Miss!”

They weren't just being protective—they were declaring they'd die for her in case of a disaster.
“Is there some new drug going around the capital right now?”
Leonia narrowed her eyes.

“Are you two high?”
There was no other explanation for {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} this synchronized madness from the adults.
And yet, despite her irritation and complaints, Leonia couldn't bring herself to separate from the two of them.

To make it worse, the two adults linked their arms through hers like it was some unspoken agreement, effectively trapping her.
“W-Wait, arm-in-arm?”
Her dad?

The fact that Ferio, of all people, had linked arms with her left Leonia utterly stunned.
At this point, she wasn’t just annoyed—she was seriously worried Ferio had lost his mind.
But Ferio’s expression remained as stoic and bored as ever.

'What the hell is going on.'
Leonia looked back and forth between Ferio and Varia, both of whom still hadn’t let go of her arms.
'Tea party, social circle—screw it all.'

If she could just escape this awkward, suffocating carriage ride, she was ready to voluntarily surrender her precious muscle sketchbook to her dad.
But the carriage, utterly oblivious to the baby beast’s desperation, kept rolling steadily toward its destination.
***

Since the tea party was hosted by the Empress, the black carriage arrived precisely on time at the Imperial Palace.
Inside the palace gates, several other noble family carriages had already arrived.
When they saw the black Voreoti carriage, they immediately stopped and stepped aside.

But the first person to step out wasn’t Leonia, nor was it Varia, the rumored future Duchess.
It was Ferio.
Ferio stepped down and extended his hand toward the carriage. Leonia took it without hesitation and climbed down.

A moment later, Varia hesitated, then also stepped out while holding his hand.
“They really must be getting married.”
“Did you see the Duke’s expression?”

“Even the Black Beast can smile that gently, huh?”
The gathered noblewomen burst into soft squeals and chatter.
“Oh my goodness!”

“Look over there!”
Ferio pulled Leonia and Varia into a big embrace. The three of them clung to one another as if reluctant to part ways.
To anyone watching, they looked like a warm and loving family.

Meanwhile—
“Dad.”
Leonia asked in a hushed tone.

“Why are we doing this?”
She cast a side-eye at Ferio’s arm wrapped around her shoulders.
“We can’t afford to create misunderstandings. From now on, we’ll need to show this kind of affection publicly now and then.”

“Do we really have to go this far?”
To Leonia, just the image of Ferio reaching out to help her and Varia from the carriage seemed more than enough.
But Ferio was thorough.

“No one can suspect anything. I’ve told you this before, haven’t I?”
“That stupid suspicion again.”
Leonia pouted, grumbling under her breath.

'If we’re any more cautious, I’ll pass out from holding my breath.'
Because of all that cautious suspicion, Ferio still hadn’t made a move against the Imperial family or House Olor, even after five years.
Sure, he couldn’t act until they did something first—but even so, Leonia wasn’t exactly convinced by his reasoning.

“Isn’t that right, Miss Varia?”
“O-Of course! We’re just acting, that’s all!”
Varia nodded stiffly like a broken wind-up doll.

“…Did you two fight or something?”
Leonia frowned, concerned by the awkward tone between them.
“No.”

“Definitely not.”
Luckily, both answers came without hesitation. Leonia felt slightly relieved.
But she was still suspicious.

“Well, I’m off then.”
Ferio, finally done with the performance, climbed back into the carriage.
He said he’d return to pick them up after the tea party ended, then gave Leonia and Varia one last embrace.

He gave Leonia a light hug and kiss on the cheek.
Varia got an awkward, creaky hug—and a kiss on the back of her hand.
“Varia-unni.”

Leonia watched the carriage roll away with narrowed eyes.
“Are you sure nothing happened between you and my dad?”
“N-Nothing…”

Varia answered in a weak voice.
Which only made Leonia more suspicious.
This was someone who always looked her in the eyes during conversation—and now she was avoiding eye contact, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Really?”
Leonia tried again, this time with a stern voice.
But Varia only hung her head low, like she was guilty of something huge.

'Ugh, why does this feel like eating dry potatoes…'
Watching her like this felt like watching a stereotypical female lead silently suffering from some grand misunderstanding.
“Did my dad confess to you or something?”

Leonia asked on a whim.
'No way. That’d be way too fast.'
Still, she asked, just in case. Despite the flowers that bloomed at the banquet, the two of them remained frustratingly professional.

“It was just a joke.”
Leonia tried to laugh it off.
But then—

“U-Um, w-well…!”
Varia stammered, her face turning bright red.
And Leonia’s jaw dropped.

***
That day had seemed like any other.
A warm late spring, just before the summer heat.

While Leonia, fed up with the lack of progress between Ferio and Varia, had returned to her room for a nap—
That ordinary day became something very different for Ferio and Varia.
Ferio had come to find her without any warning. Varia, who had just been talking about him with Leonia, was startled.

And even more startled when he opened his mouth—
'The world is vast, and full of beasts.'
'In the North, we do not import Eastern-style dresses.'

'Layer up and keep yourself warm.'
'You should drink medicinal tea regularly…'
The moment he saw her, Ferio started scolding—and it went on for quite a while.

Varia was stunned.
The Ferio she knew barely spoke and only said what was necessary. The only time she’d seen him chatty was when he was with Leonia.
So seeing him ramble like this was new—and, frankly, a bit overwhelming.

‘Um… did something happen?’
It didn’t seem like he came here just to lecture her.
Varia tried to ask naturally while subtly moving the muscle sketchbook she’d been reading with Leonia out of sight.

But then, Ferio fell silent.
Had he really come here just to scold her?
Varia was about to grow anxious when—

'Varia.'
Ferio’s black eyes suddenly leaned in, invading her space.