I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter

A black knight’s uniform, a white cape draped over it—despite the late hour, Mono was dressed in the full regalia of the Gladiago Knights.

Connie, who had gone out to empty the rinse water, had returned with Mia—both of them in outdoor attire.
Next to them were travel bags.
“The carriage?”

“It’s ready.”
With his answer, Mono opened the door.
Stepping outside, Ferio pulled Leonia closer into his embrace.

Though it was spring, the night wind was still sharp and cold.
“Miss Leonia…”
Connie, summoning all the courage she had, spoke softly. Mia looked horrified.

“She’ll be sad when she wakes up…”
“Because I’m not there?”
“She adores you, Master.”

Though Ferio’s face wasn’t visible as he walked ahead, Connie could tell—her master was smiling.
Even Mia had never imagined Ferio would give a response like that.
“She’d better not throw a fit like last time.”

Every time we’re apart, something happens. His voice was calm, but the bitter smile beneath it was unmistakable.
Connie climbed into the carriage first and tucked the luggage into a corner.
Mia followed and, gathering her courage, reached out with both arms, asking to hold Leonia.

But Ferio shook his head.
Instead, he gently laid Leonia down on the carriage seat himself.
“Mmgh…”
Leonia murmured sleepily, her lips twitching in a half-dream.

Ferio couldn’t take his eyes off her.
He smoothed out the strands of hair sticking from beneath her blanket, tucking them carefully behind her ear.
Then he adjusted the blanket that had shifted while laying her down.

“…”
Connie and Mia, already seated, stared awkwardly at the floor, unsure what to do with themselves.
The carriage door closed soon after.

The father’s gentle warmth, so full of love as he held his daughter, vanished.
In its place, the biting, cold killing intent of a beast emerged.
The fangs were ready.

“Gladiago Knights.”
My beasts.
The Gladiago Knights, dressed in full formal uniform, lined up at Ferio’s sides in precise formation.

A glimmer of red shimmered in Ferio’s black eyes as a sliver of moonlight slipped through a veil of clouds.
“From this moment forward—let the hunt begin.”
***

Clatter. Clatter.
“…”
Leonia furrowed her brow.

The uneven rattling was uncomfortable. Her back felt stiff, and her body felt confined.
When she tried to move her limbs, she realized she was wrapped in something—tightly.
Still, it was better than the orphanage.

“Miss, you’re awake?”
The kind voice belonged to Connie. She added that Leonia could sleep a little longer if she was tired.
Grateful, Leonia tried to nestle her head deeper into the pillow.

“Still, I’m glad you didn’t get motion sick this time.”
Just as Leonia was exhaling and trying to drift off again, she heard Mia’s voice nearby.
“She got it really bad last time, didn’t she?”

“Sir said it happened the moment we crossed the Gate—”
“Wait… Don’t tell me you’re actually dating Sir Gaber?!”
“N-No! Sir Levipes—I mean, Miss Meleis told me!”

As their voices got louder, Leonia grimaced. The two maids instantly fell silent with a gasp.
‘Mia’s here?’
But it wasn’t their chatter that made Leonia frown.

Connie was always the one to wake her in the morning.
Mia only came on Connie’s day off—and even then, Connie would always tell her the day before.
This time, she hadn’t said a word.

Then—clatter. Another jolt.
A cold premonition struck.
Leonia shot upright.

“Eek!”
Startled, Connie let out a scream.
Across from her, Mia gasped in panic.

But Leonia’s attention was locked onto the window.
“…”
The face reflected in the glass was a disaster.

Puffy from sleep, her wide, stunned eyes stared blankly back at her. The clear blue sky and green trees outside clashed sharply with her expression.
And in that moment, Leonia knew.
“Wh… Where are we?”

This wasn’t the North.
“We crossed the Gate while you were asleep. We’re in the West now.”
Connie opened the window slightly, letting in the fresh air.

“When?!”
Leonia demanded.
“While you were sleeping, Miss.”

“Yes, but WHEN?!”
“Well…”
Connie hesitated, then explained.

What Ferio had given Leonia before bed was motion sickness medicine.
Thanks to the potion, she’d fallen into a deeper sleep than usual, allowing them to travel through the Gate in the middle of the night without waking her.
Only now did Leonia notice the warm, fragrant air filling her nose.

It was the West’s famously mild climate.
“…”
Leonia froze.

And stayed that way for three full days of travel.
“W-Where’s Dad?”
She finally asked about Ferio just before they entered the Rinne estate—their destination.

Until then, she had sat in a daze, staring silently out the carriage window.
That alone showed how shocked she was.
“Where’s my dad? Where is he?!”

Panic finally broke through. Leonia couldn’t hide it any longer as she turned to Connie.
It was the first time she had ever seen the girl so visibly distressed. Connie’s heart ached.
She always acted so grown-up—but she was still small, and still fragile.

“Master said he would follow shortly.”
“He sent you ahead because of an urgent matter.”
Connie and Mia both tried their best to reassure her.

“Oh—right…!”
Connie quickly rummaged through a bag and pulled out a glass jar.
Wrapped in two thick towels, the jar was Leonia’s strawberry milk-flavored candy jar—Ferio often gave her these.

Leonia held it close, and her anxiety slowly eased.
Then came the wave of embarrassment.
This translation is the intellectual property of .

She’d acted like a real little kid.
Leonia hid her face behind the jar full of candies.
But through the clear glass, her red face was still perfectly visible.

Connie and Mia silently chuckled and exhaled in relief.
Soon, the carriage pulled into an estate.
In stark contrast to # Nоvеlight # the gloomy Voreoti mansion, this one was bright white and airy.

“Young Lady Voreoti!”
Count Carnis Rinne greeted her with open arms.
And only then did Leonia fully grasp the reality—

She was in the West.
***
“I’ve really come to realize just how much the Duke truly loves the young miss.”

“Huh? Just now?”
Probo tilted his head at Lupe’s remark, surprised at how late that realization seemed.
The two were chatting briefly, having finally found a sliver of free time in their packed schedules.

“I mean, I always knew.”
Lupe replied as he rubbed the knot in his neck from too much work.
The infamous Voreoti father and daughter duo had become a sensation across the North.

Everyone knew Duke Ferio doted on his only daughter.
But the reason Lupe had felt that truth so deeply this time… was because Ferio had sent Leonia to the West alone.
Probo had felt the same.

Her departure had taken place in the dead of night. It was completely unexpected.
“He probably didn’t want her to see anything unpleasant.”
Probo recalled the word Ferio had used—hunt.

No matter how gentle and friendly he seemed to his daughter, Ferio was an arrogant beast who looked down on the world because of his overwhelming strength.
He referred to troublesome people and pests as dust.
And the act of dealing with them was always called cleaning.

But this time, he had called it a hunt.
“A bloodbath’s coming.”
Lupe voiced what they were both thinking.

He knew how furious Ferio was this time.
The foolish pests had touched Leonia—and tried to shatter the peace House Voreoti had guarded for generations.
At least three noble families would vanish from history.

There would be blood.
Ferio didn’t want Leonia to witness that.
Someday, she would inherit the house, and experiences like this would be necessary.

But not yet—not while she was still so small.
It was pure fatherly love.
And to hide it, he’d left all three of Leonia’s escort knights in the North.

Just in case—though nothing would likely happen.
People often viewed Ferio as something beyond human.
But when Leonia was with him, he was no different from anyone else.

That was why people couldn’t help but like him.
Everyone at House Voreoti felt the same.
The atmosphere had grown so much warmer—it was easy to forget how harsh last winter had been.

“It’s a good change.”
“Agreed.”
Which is why Lupe and Probo were both especially furious at the current situation.

Those idiots were provoking the miracle that had brought peace to House Voreoti.
They were poking the beast.
And no matter how much he had changed, Ferio’s nature remained the same.

Sending Leonia away was, in part, for her sake—but also a clear declaration:
There would be no mercy.
Lupe and the knights didn’t even think those fools deserved a funeral.

“Vice-Commander.”
Just then, someone called for Lupe in an urgent tone. One of his subordinates.
“A message just arrived.”

He handed over a small note. The sender: the Marquis of Pardus.
Lupe read it.
“…”

His face instantly turned as pale as his own hair.
“…Where is the Duke?”
Lupe steadied himself and asked for Ferio’s location. At the same time, Probo stepped out of the room.

He would head straight for Mono—to warn him that the Lord’s command could come at any moment.
Lupe did the same.
There was no time to sit still.

“We move. Now!”
Lupe left with his attendant, urgency burning in his chest.