Chapter 23: The Foolish Leon and the Spoiled Fiona
In the garden hallway, Leon sprinted as fast as he could in the direction of Fiona’s cries.
“Damn it! I’m such a terrible father!” Leon cursed himself in frustration, overwhelmed with guilt toward Fiona.
He had been so absorbed in the Hall of Glory that he had overlooked his primary objective of meeting Fiona.
Listening to her cries, she must be feeling incredibly upset that he hadn’t come to see her!
Leon continued running until he finally reached a spacious and beautiful garden—the very place he had been seeking—and entered it.
“Finally…” Leon slowed his pace and let out a small sigh of relief, catching his breath from the sprint.
He looked around the garden with curiosity, struck by its beautifully arranged flower beds, lush grass, and just the right amount of shade from the neatly arranged trees.
“This garden is truly exquisite, a perfect spot for relaxation,” Leon praised silently, surprised by the unexpected presence of such a stunning garden within the palace grounds.
Even in his estimation, the imperial garden of the Elysium Palace paled in comparison to this one.
Following the source of Fiona’s crying voice, Leon finally spotted two silhouetted figures at the center of the garden—none other than Fiona and Lyra.
Leon smiled, feeling a twinge of embarrassment for his tardiness, but he continued walking towards them, intending to greet them.
However, before he could say anything, he was so shocked that he felt as though he might have a heart attack.
He saw Fiona rolling around in the garden, crying uncontrollably!
“Wuuuu! I want to play with Daddy!” Fiona sulked and cried hysterically, as if feeling deeply persecuted.
Beside her, Lyra stood with her usual expressionless face, yet she appeared extremely distressed, as if uncertain of what to do.
“Young lady, please refrain from rolling around on the ground; you’ll get dirty.” Lyra tried to persuade her quietly. But Fiona, already deep in her sulk, didn’t hear her and simply shook her head.
“No! I want Daddy to come! Wuuuu!” With tears streaming down both chubby cheeks, she refused adamantly, continuing to cry.
Upon hearing this, Lyra couldn’t bring herself to push Fiona further, fearing her cries would only worsen.
Just as the two reached a stalemate, the sudden sound of footsteps, accompanied by a familiar voice, broke the tension.
“My dear Fiona, forgive me for being late. Please don’t cry, okay?”
Leon’s words instantly halted Fiona’s tears, and as soon as she spotted him standing before her, she swiftly rose to her feet and dashed towards him, tears still streaming down her cheeks.
“Wuuuu! Daddy’s finally here! Wuuu!” Fiona exclaimed, jumping up and tightly hugging Leon’s thigh as if she never wanted to let go, all the while crying sorrowfully.
Upon witnessing this, Leon smiled wryly, surprised by the intensity of Fiona’s reaction, which only deepened his sense of guilt.
“Alright, don’t cry, okay?” Leon lowered his head slightly and lifted her into his arms, soothing her.
Feeling the warmth emanating from Leon, Fiona’s tears gradually subsided, and she hugged his neck tightly, burying her chubby face in his shoulder.
Leon sighed at the sight of Fiona, who had ceased her tears, then shifted his gaze to Lyra, who was also making her way toward him.
“Forgive me, Your Majesty Leon, for not properly attending to Young Lady,” Lyra said, bowing her head with an apologetic expression on her usually expressionless face.
Upon hearing her words, Leon felt somewhat embarrassed, realizing that the blame should fall on him, not Lyra.
After all, Lyra had informed him beforehand and had even been willing to care for Fiona until he arrived in the garden.
Swiftly, Leon shook his head and offered her a gentle smile.
“It’s fine; it’s my fault for arriving late from what I promised. Besides, I also got lost trying to find the garden, so it took some time to get here,” Leon attempted to maintain a calm demeanor as he waved his hand, dismissing any need for further concern.
Lyra also felt reassured upon hearing Leon’s words, but at the mention of being ‘lost,’ she was instantly startled and cast a curious gaze at Leon.
“Lost? Your Majesty Leon, this garden is actually very close to your room. You just need to pass through the hallway on the left after passing your room, and it will lead directly to the garden,” Lyra replied somewhat hesitantly, providing clarification on the correct direction.
During her explanation, Leon’s face flushed red with embarrassment, leaving him momentarily speechless.
Indeed, when he emerged from his room earlier, approximately a hundred meters away from its door, there were two long hallways stretching out to the right and left.
At that moment, he hesitated so much in choosing the correct path that he resorted to the age-old method of flipping a coin from his pants pocket, hoping that luck would guide him.
However, to his surprise, the path he assumed to be correct based on the coin toss—the right one—turned out to be incorrect, while the left path was the correct one!
‘(Darn it! No wonder gambling is forbidden; it only brings bad luck!)’ Leon cursed inwardly in frustration.
The outcome of tossing the coin, leading him down the right hallway, had left him feeling foolish for getting lost.
Certainly, he also acknowledged it was his fault for not seeking directions from Lyra earlier, when she had brought breakfast to him.
“Cough! That’s what happened. I didn’t heed the advice to take the left hallway, and instead, I went right, ending up getting lost,” Leon admitted with a calm expression and a faint smile, feigning indifference to mask the embarrassment of his foolish mistake.
However, to his surprise, Fiona, who had been silent after her crying episode, suddenly giggled in his arms as she looked up at him.
“Pfft! Daddy, you’re so silly,” she said innocently, closing her small mouth after the chuckle.
Upon hearing this, Leon was taken aback, his mouth twitching as his pretense collapsed on the spot under his little daughter’s teasing.
“Alright, so you dare to tease your daddy, huh? I got lost because I wanted to find you as quickly as possible, and this is how you repay me?” Leon pretended to be angry as he lightly pinched her chubby cheeks.
Her cheeks, with their soft, bun-like texture, bring joy to Leon.
“Wuuu! I’m sorry, daddy~” Fiona’s face immediately took on a pitiable expression, her round eyes filled with sorrow, which elicited a hearty laugh from Leon.
Leon understood that this little girl was merely putting on an act, feigning pitifulness, but he paid it no mind and simply shook his head.
“You’re quite the little actress,” Leon commented with a smile as he kissed her chubby cheeks and caressed her hair.
Fiona’s eyes narrowed into crescents as she relished her father’s gentle caresses, finding them immensely comforting.
After a moment, she gazed up at Leon with excitement and a playful smile.
“Daddy, when can we play?”
————
A/N: I’ll upload 2 chapters tomorrow as I promised earlier. So, please give me your support and thank you!
pronovels.com
