The Male Lead's Fake Sister

Did my father apologize?

For a minute, Ravia stood frozen as she tried to digest what she had just heard.

Ravia had always been at ease ever since she realized her kidnapper was none other than Duke Leontine himself.

She might have fully anticipated this situation if it weren’t for the growing sense of impending death that crept up her neck.

Instead, it was a positive sign.

‘It means Amnesia worked properly.’

It was a narrow villa. That was obviously just Ravia’s standard; the villa actually measured roughly the same as a typical mansion in size.

The main reason for this idea was the fact that none of the buildings owned by Leontine had ever been this small.

‘This isn’t Leontine’s villa, but a building rented in a hurry.’

Two observations justified that thought.

First, in an effort to hide its rustiness as much as possible, the wood on the walls and floor was heavily polished.

Second, carpets and tapestries were placed everywhere to hide the blemishes that couldn’t be hidden by polishing.

There was no compelling reason for a high-ranking noble like Duke Leontine to stay in such a shabby villa.

Unless he was in a hurry to find a hiding place to escape someone’s surveillance.

‘I guess he wants to escape Tidwell’s eyes.’

In other words, the fact that Duke Leontine was in this villa was substantial proof that he knew who Tidwell was.

Yet Ravia was unable to understand one thing.

What was the reason for calling her all the way here?

Was it because he couldn’t bear to be in the same space as Tidwell? Or did he accidentally reveal that he already knew who Tidwell was?

‘Whatever it is, it’s not a good enough reason.’

Did he not make every effort to escape Tidwell’s surveillance by renting a villa like this?

Yet when he brought her here, the likelihood that he would be discovered increased twofold.

Duke Leontine wasn’t so careless.

The person Ravia used to admire was known for having a keen judgment.

The Duke Leontine she knew wouldn’t put his life in danger to rescue the daughter he didn’t love from the enemy.

He might have abducted his daughter first before she could even put him in danger, then dealt with his enemy promptly…

‘I can’t understand this.’

Ravia first chose to act as though she knew nothing, as she normally did, because nothing was certain yet.

‘No need to keep the conversation going for too long.’

She initially thought of rushing home right after she heard the reason he brought her here. But when she met Duke Leontine, he wasn’t the person she used to know.

No, it was a rather narrow judgment.

Ravia’s memory of Duke Leontine’s appearance was too hazy to accurately describe him as someone different from the person ‘she used to know.’

He was a father who looked away or frowned upon seeing her.

It was impossible to say for sure because Dark Flower had influenced his behavior and attitude. But Ravia could affirm that she had never seen him with such a dejected countenance.

But what’s with the look on your face?

Are you still affected by the Dark Flower?

Why do you look at me with such a sorrowful gaze?

Why is your face filled with guilt?

Why, to me…

“…I’m sorry.”

Why are you apologizing?

Confusion swept over her. It felt like someone dumped cold water on her while she was standing in a snowfield.

She wasn’t sure if her hands were shaking out of confusion or cold anger at the moment.

Even before learning the reason for that apology, it had already had this great of an impact on her.

How could something as simple as an apology be so unsettling?

Get your act together. Don’t be swayed by something like this.

It’s not like you don’t know how many sins your father has committed against you. Don’t act like a child.

“…It’s my first time hearing an apology from Father.”

Ravia managed to shake off her trivial feelings. The corner of her mouth trembled as she lifted it.

“This situation…is very sudden. Can you at least tell me the reason?”

Why did you bring me here? Why did you suddenly apologize to me?

Heint was visibly puzzled by Ravia’s question. No, he was like that from the start.

He struggled to speak properly like a fish out of water, and with a pale face he said, “I’m not sure where to begin. I understand if you feel that my apology is too sudden. I didn’t mean to say this out of the blue, but I made such a grave mistake that I had to….” His words trailed off.

No matter how much he rehearsed it in his head, Heint was unable to properly explain himself. Mostly due to the fact that it takes a lot of courage to confess his own sins.

Heint was unable to turn back now that he had come this far.

He moved his stiff tongue to spit out words.

“Tidwell.”

As soon as the name was spoken, the words that had been caught in his throat up until this point began to flow.

The reason why he brought Ravia here, and why he apologized to her. The answer could all be summarized in one sentence.

“Tidwell is targeting you, Ravia.” Heint confessed.

Ravia was already well aware of that fact. But it was weird to hear the fact that she already knew through someone else’s lips.

“My ignorance has put you in danger. I’m sorry…”

She was not to blame for any of the tragedies that lay ahead of her. That fact had been drilled into her head.

But why doesn’t it get any easier?

Ravia felt as though she had fallen into an endless abyss as she listened to his unwanted confession.

* * *

Heint’s story didn’t deviate much from Ravia’s expectation.

In a way, his story was pretty lengthy. It couldn’t be helped since Heint suffered from Dark Flower a lot.

Heint began by explaining Tidwell as a con man who had drugged him into believing his false identity.

From the emperor’s order to look into the Dark Flower to the part where he was able to escape the influence thanks to the Amnesia flower Ravia provided. When the story reached that point, Ravia could no longer feign ignorance.

“Ravia, did you already know all this?”

“…Unfortunately, yes.”

Of course, she already had prepared an excuse.

“I wanted to tell Father right away, but I didn’t think you’d trust me while you were under the influence of the Dark Flower.”

“Was that why you gave me the Amnesia?”

“I thought that it should be my priority to release the poison while Tidwell was distracted.”

Heint seemed touched by his daughter’s sensible move. And he seemed quite terrified by the fact that he’d be helplessly manipulated if his daughter weren’t there to save him.

Heint’s restless gaze returned to Ravia.

“By the way, Amnesia is a flower that is rarely found in the empire, so where did you get it?”

“… It was a coincidence for me as well, though I can’t tell you right now. Also, could you first respond to my question?” Ravia deliberately changed the subject, but Heint didn’t bother to pry further.

As Ravia said, how she got Amnesia wasn’t that important right now.

Heint hadn’t answered Ravia’s question about why he brought her to this place.

No, he already gave his answer.

“I’ve said it before. I couldn’t leave you with Tidwell once I knew that he was after you.”

“If that was all, I wouldn’t have asked you twice.”

Heint seemed to make a request along with the answer he gave.

“I want to hear your reason for why I shouldn’t return home.”

After hearing her father’s answer and request, Ravia couldn’t understand her father’s eccentricity even more.

“You should know better, Father. If you knew he was after me, you shouldn’t have brought me here.”

A hostage most likely keeps the enemy’s attention away from you, or you could use this chance to launch a surprise attack while the enemy was preoccupied with the hostage.

Ravia expected Heint would act in that way. So she thought the main problem would be solved when Heint returned.

But if he brought her here, it was going to be hard to prevent things from going haywire.

She thought there had to be a reason, but he apologized and said that he couldn’t bear leaving her alone with Tidwell knowing he was after her.

Is my father this stupid?

“More importantly, you should’ve gone to the Imperial Palace instead of bringing me here. At this rate, Tidwell will catch wind of it,” Ravia’s voice came out sharply.

“Ravia, I understand your worries. Why didn’t I do that?”

After hearing Heint’s response, Ravia’s vision started to blur.