Thought It Was 'The End', Only to Return to a Changed Genre - Chapter 231
At the break of dawn, Jeff headed straight to the Blanchard estate.
Ashad grumbled as he carried heavy gift boxes in both hands.
âDid you hire me as a porter, Mr. Bertrand?â
âMight as well kill two birds with one stone.â
âThis is what we call abuse of power.â
âWhereâd you learn to spout such boring nonsense?â
âAbout six months ago, Lord Patrick and Lady Emma taught me this while I was at the Bertrand estate.â
âMy brother really canât help but meddle in everything.â
âThey specifically asked me to let them know if I was ever treated unfairly.â
âIt wonât do any good, Ashad. If I say itâs a gift for Lisa, they wonât even bother listening. If anything, my brother is worse than me when it comes to her.â
After Lisa was born, Jeff had to leave Delmuz shortly afterward to focus on his business ventures in the Brubewein Kingdom. Patrick, however, had frequently visited and kept a close watch on Lisaâs growth.
Patrick was a textbook case of a doting uncle.
âYou know, people call men like you âuncle fools,â Mr. Bertrand.â
âI know.â
And so what?
Jeff was proud of it. Lisa was the child of his beloved little sister, who was already so precious to him. Of course, the child of someone so adorable would be doubly adorable. It didnât need to be saidâit was obvious.
âEven porcupines think their own babies are soft and cuddly.â
Jeff said this with utmost confidence.
âYou have no idea. My niece is really beautiful.â
âDidnât you say youâve only seen her when she was a newborn and havenât met her in two years?â
âRight. And she was incredibly cute. I practically helped raise her for half a year.â
âKids grow up fast. If sheâs turning three this year, sheâs probably already speaking well by now.â
âThat just makes her even cuter.â
âYou donât realize how annoying a talkative child can be, do you?â
Ashad, on the other hand, had no tolerance for children.
As someone who grew up in an orphanage attached to the church, he had been burdened with childcare duties until he was fifteen and left under Jeffâs sponsorship.
What could possibly be cute about kids?
Babies and children were different creatures entirely. Babies couldnât do much besides eat, poop, and cry, but children babbled incessantly in clumsy speech, asking endless questions about everything they saw. They were little devils, through and through.
No matter how cute they looked, if their behavior screamed âdevilâ, they were devils. The cuter they appeared, the more devilishly deceptive they wereâjust like demons who tempted humans.
âTo me, youâre still just a kid.â
âIâm not. Iâm an adult.â
âAh, of course. Sure.â
Jeff stifled a laugh and shrugged.
âAnyway, my niece is different. Just wait, Ashadâyou might fall for her.â
âI donât like kids. And please donât force your âniece loveâ on meâIâve already heard enough to bleed from my ears.â
âIâm just being objective.â
âYes, yes. Got it. Family bonds are⌠something else.â
ââŚWell, I guess itâs safer for you to stay firm. Even if you do fall for her charms, itâs best not to show it.â
âI wonât fall for her charms. Iâm not like you, Mr. Bertrand.â
âIf you show it⌠well, your life might be at risk.â
âMy life?!â
Lisaâs adorable protectors are nothing short of terrifyingâŚ
*
Lisa Kylie Blanchard was now three years old.
She was a perfect miniature version of her father.
With black hair and blue eyes, it was obvious she would grow to look even more like Shane as her features sharpened. The more her face developed, the clearer it becameâshe was a tiny replica of him.
If Shane had been born a girl, he wouldâve looked exactly like Lisa.
Adeline, however, often wondered where her genes had disappeared to.
All the components that made up Lisa had come from her body, so how was it that none of her traits seemed to have carried over?
âIâm sure I gave birth to her⌠didnât I?â
Even though Shane had endured the morning sickness, it was Adeline who had gone through labor.
Though her labor had been relatively short and intenseâaround two hoursâit was still her who had gone through the pain.
Genevieve occasionally lamented, âIt wouldâve been nice if she took after you at least with her eye color, Adeline.â
Adeline secretly agreed, at least just a little.