Then, she repeatedly apologized to him, saying she was sorry.
“Mom is sorry for speaking so harshly, too. Mom has never once regretted protecting Shushu. Swear to heaven, I really mean it.”
Shushu hugged Melissa—who had somehow grown to be about the same size as him—and rubbed her back.
How difficult it must have been for such a tiny woman to raise a young child all alone.
Having given birth to a child at twenty-three, she had endured every imaginable hardship. Shushu was truly grateful that she hadn’t abandoned him until the very end.
“Right, Shushu. Let’s run away quickly. If the Young Grand Duke’s name appears on you, he’ll definitely realize you’re a fake and kill you.”
Melissa mustered up her courage once more for Shushu’s sake. But Shushu shook his head.
Shushu knew what kind of fate awaited him if he stayed like this, but he didn’t want to needlessly run away and expose the mother who had sacrificed everything for him back to danger.
“Mom, every morning as soon as I wake up, I’ll cover the name up with makeup. Then I won’t get caught.”
“But the Young Grand Duke calls you Shushu.”
“The name Shushu is just a nickname people use for puppies, babies, and lovers, right?”
Shushu echoed back the exact words she had used earlier.
Melissa was left speechless.
She hadn’t actually meant it that way.
She had just forced herself to believe it.
Because she had desperately needed to believe everything would be okay.
“Mom, I’ll live as Damian until the day I die. Instead, Mom, go to the Solemio Empire and rescue the real Damian.”
“Shushu.”
She knew that if she left the child behind in the ducal castle like this, he would eventually die.
She tried to pull the boy who was pushing her away back into her arms, but Shushu resisted.
“They say Lady Meiyue sold the real Master Damian off as a slave to the Solemio Empire. So if you open a high-end dress salon in the capital of Delta, you’ll be able to find out where Master Damian is by dealing with the nobles.”
“No. Shushu. If Mom isn’t by your side, who is going to protect you?”
“Melissa! Do you dare disobey the Vesper family’s orders?”
Mimicking Callix as awkwardly as he could, Shushu raised his voice.
Melissa finally accepted the pouch handed out by Shushu.
“Make sure you hire enough mercenaries to protect Mom all the way to the Solemio Empire. And when you reach Delta, buy a mansion and hire three maids so you can live comfortably.”
“Sob. Ugh.”
Melissa shook her head.
Begging him not to abandon her and apologizing for saying such harsh things, she clung to the boy’s legs, but Shushu—having hardened his resolve—turned a cold shoulder to her.
“When you find the real Master Damian, take care of that child with as much love as you gave me. I am the happiest child in the world thanks to Mom… so you have to raise him just like me. Okay? If Mom does that, I think I’ll feel a little less guilty toward Master Damian.”
Shushu figured that if their eyes met, he would instantly regret what he had just said and end up crying for her not to go.
Because of that, he kept his eyes glued to the floor until he walked out of her quarters.
Needing to secure her travel pass, Shushu headed toward Callix’s office.
Fortunately, since he seemed to be working late, an orange glow was seeping out through the gap in the door.
Shushu knocked on the door and identified himself.
“Big Brother, it’s Damian.”
“Come in.”
Catching sight of his younger brother’s tear-stained face, Callix bolted upright from his chair.
“Who is it. Who made you cry?”
Overwhelmed by the murderous pheromones of the hyper-dominant alpha, Shushu trembled involuntarily.
Realizing belatedly that he was terrifying the boy, Callix reined his pheromones back in.
Callix cupped Shushu’s red, heat-flushed cheek with his hand.
Despite being a mage, the palm of an alpha who had trained with the sword for a long time was hardened with calluses.
Looking down at Shushu, who fluttered his eyelashes to shake off his tears, his gaze held the heavy admiration of a spectator appreciating a fine piece of art.
“Shushu, tell me right now. Who was the bastard that made you cry?”
“It’s not like that, Big Brother. Melissa says she’s going to stop working as a nanny now to go find the son she lost when he was little.”
“Ah, is that so.”
Suppressing a laugh was all Callix could do at the news that Melissa—who had always made him uneasy because Damian trusted and relied on her more than anyone else since childhood—was finally leaving.
Even so, the cheek with which he forced down his joy twitched and spasmed repeatedly.
“Big Brother, would you be able to issue a travel pass for Melissa? Melissa’s child is in the Solemio Empire. I gave her the gemstones I had as severance pay, but since she’s a commoner, she won’t be able to casually sell them to a jewelry shop. So I’d like to ask for a certificate of guarantee stating that they were bestowed by your name, too.”
Callix readily drafted the travel pass and certificate of guarantee, pressing the Vesper family seal upon them.
Taking them, Shushu gave a polite bow and tried to step out of the office, but was immediately grabbed around the waist by Callix.
Worried that he might have noticed something, Shushu stood frozen in his embrace with a nervous, breathless face.
After holding him close for a good long while, Callix finally let him go, telling him he could go rest now.
Stepping outside and closing the door, Shushu pressed a hand over his heart, which was still beating wildly.
‘Is this because I’m scared?’
To cool down the flush of warmth blooming across his cheeks from the lingering influence of the alpha pheromones, Shushu fanned himself with his hand and resumed his walk back to Melissa’s quarters.
“Hoo-ooh. Young Master, you must take good health of yourself.”
“Yeah, you stay healthy too, Nanny.”
Shushu hugged the crying woman and bid her a final farewell.
The carriage driver waiting for Melissa grew irritated, asking how much longer she was going to dawdle.
Refusing to let go of Shushu for a full hour, Melissa finally yielded to the driver’s urging, climbed into the carriage, and departed completely.
Now, even if his identity as a fake Damian were exposed, Melissa would be safe.
After all, she was merely his former nanny and a retired servant.
Since he had already told Callix she was leaving to find her lost child, there was no connecting thread left linking her to him.
As far as Shushu was concerned, he desperately hoped his mom would find Damian and protect him well.
Damian was still only thirteen years old.
He was far too young, at an age where parental protection was absolute.
Unlike the original novel, if Mom took good care of the boy, he might never end up dabbling in dark magic vowing to destroy the world.
Honestly, his truest wish was to put Damian back in his rightful place immediately and let him live as the Grand Duke’s son, but since Tang Miyun hadn’t arrived in this world yet, it was impossible.
She was still five years away from arriving here.
