I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 246

I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 246

‘Ferio, think in reverse.’
Diator’s thick finger traced the path of the figures and animals in the fresco in reverse.
At those words, Ferio let his imagination take over.
The black-haired person who had once set out on a long journey toward the Northern Mountains was now beginning a journey descending from them.
‘...Huh?’
Ferio tilted his head again.
‘Did the Voreoti come from the mountains?’
Ah, Ferio instantly regretted it. Even he found his own words ridiculous.
That was the kind of thing someone with flowers for brains—like Regina—might say.
But Diator didn’t mock Ferio’s question.
‘The god who lives beyond that place—’
Diator gently corrected Ferio.
‘—sent us here.’
The fresco painted on the ceiling depicted the origin of House Voreoti.
***
“...A god, huh.”
Recalling one of his childhood memories after so long made Ferio let out a quiet laugh.
It was, without question, not a situation worth laughing about.
He was currently alone in the Northern Mountains. Varia had been captured by Remus and was somewhere within these peaks. Leonia was fighting alone inside the Imperial Palace.
And yet, this rare happy memory from his childhood strangely brought Ferio a small bit of comfort.
Diator Voreoti—Ferio’s grandfather—had passed away only a few months after that day.
‘He must’ve been really worried.’
Though long since gone, that eccentric old man still seemed concerned enough to come crawling out of Ferio’s memory just to soothe him.
A god would protect them.
Nothing bad would happen.
Ferio allowed himself to lean on the comfort gifted by one of his few happy childhood memories.
He believed Leonia, left behind at the palace, would handle everything.
She had been right there beside him, preparing for this from the very beginning. His dependable heir had the kind of personality that would do it all just to prove herself in front of her father.
‘And Varia...’
Was up above.
Ferio was certain of it.
The Fangs of the Beast dormant within his body squirmed vividly, reacting to the child inside Varia’s womb.
‘Does the baby have Fangs?’
That could be bad, Ferio thought, and began climbing the mountain.
He wasn’t bothered by the bone-piercing cold or the thin air.
He moved as lightly as a child running up a small hill in the neighborhood.
Although his steps were rather urgent.
‘It better not take after Leo.’
Ferio couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that their second child would take after Leonia more than either him or Varia.
He grew faint just imagining their second-born babbling about muscle names, silver elephants, or purple peacocks—decadent and unhinged words.
‘Once I find Varia...’
Ferio thought as he recalled his wife, who caused just as much trouble as their daughter.
‘...Definitely black.’
He started to wonder what color shackles would suit Varia’s ankles best.
He had kept her from going outside for the past few days out of worry—and in return, she had caused a massive incident, as if to spite him. Ferio was dumbfounded, yet somehow impressed.
‘There’s never a quiet day.’
Ferio found himself amused by how chaotic his family had become.
‘Family...’
The word came so naturally that Ferio found it surprising all over again.
Before he knew it, he had nearly reached the summit of the mountain.
The Fangs of the Beast stirred more violently in his body, and his legs, moving toward the peak, grew even quicker.
Yet his mind had never been clearer.
‘How did I even end up with a family like this?’
Was it because he fell for Varia?
Then why had he fallen for her?
‘She was like Leo.’
Stubborn, bizarre in strange ways, and unusually skilled at touching muscle. She didn’t hesitate to curse when angry and had a decent punch too.
It was only a matter of time before Ferio found himself drawn to someone like that.
‘Then why do I cherish Leo?’
Thinking objectively, he had no logical reason to care for or love that little pervert.
From the moment they first met, she was a menace.
Even when she was exhausted and dizzy from motion sickness, she still found the strength to grope his chest muscles. She was constantly harassing the muscular knights and loved kneading his thighs and calves.
On top of that, she had a bizarre obsession with pairing up men.
Ferio had been dragged into multiple imaginary pairings—Lupe, Mono, Tra, even Count Urmariti and the Marquis of Pardus weren’t spared.
When she was young, she even falsely claimed to have a stalker and ran away from home.
No matter how many times he scolded her, she never reflected. Her mouth was rougher than sandpaper, and her cursing was so extreme it could add years to your life just from shock.
‘If she weren’t my daughter, seriously...’
What was it with that word “daughter”?
Ferio thought about all the years he had endured and tolerated that foul-mouthed pervert simply because she was his daughter.
In a way, Ferio’s youth had been consumed by the agony of childrearing.
‘...And I was happy.’
Yet the smile that curved on his lips didn’t match that suffering in the slightest.
Ferio accepted it without hesitation.
His life had changed completely after meeting Leonia.
Sure, there had been plenty of headaches. But there had been even more moments of happiness and joy.
He even found himself thinking that the world was more livable than he had once believed.
What should I do with Leo tomorrow?
Would she like this snack?
He picked out gifts for Varia with Leo—and picked out gifts for Leo with Varia.
Ferio’s life was now overflowing with family.
A staggering change for the man who once watched a street full of happy families from a lonely carriage window.
‘I must’ve been lonely.’
Very, very lonely.
Admitting that shameful truth turned out to be surprisingly easy.
“...So now it’s time.”
Ferio stopped walking and spoke gently.
“Let’s go home.”
A swirl of dull pink hair caught his eye.
“Ferio!”
Varia cried out his name, her voice trembling.
At her feet, collapsed and wheezing, was Remus—like a bonus feature.
***
The lioness had guided Varia all the way to the summit.
Strangely, Varia didn’t feel uneasy. In fact, even she found it strange now. Her body simply moved on its own, following the lioness.
‘Did my fear disappear?’
Or had she just become desensitized?
Living with such overwhelmingly strong people like Ferio and Leonia must’ve dulled her reactions to just about everything.
That thought made her laugh faintly even in this absurd situation.
Her nerves were tougher than ever.
But the laugh faded as Remus’s ragged breathing continued to echo behind her.
She found herself wishing he would just collapse mid-way and roll down the mountain.
Then maybe a monster would eat him.
But Remus clung on tenaciously.
Even as his limbs stiffened from the cold and he gasped like a dying man, he somehow kept up.
‘Even now...’
Whenever Varia hesitated, imagining all kinds of murderous impulses, the black lioness would stop walking and look back at her.
If Varia still wouldn’t move, the lioness would nudge her gently with its snout.
But when it came to Remus, the lioness bared its fangs and growled menacingly.
Not that Remus seemed to notice her at all.
“...You’re really strange.”
When Varia reached out her hand, the lioness pressed up against her affectionately.
“You’re not a monster, are you?”
The lioness wagged her tail slowly.
“You really are just like Leo.”
The wagging tail paused in midair.
Slowly, its energy faded and the tail drooped low.
“Leo is my daughter. My eldest.”
Varia was already in full-on bragging mode.
“She’s kind and sweet. She’s smart, athletic—and so stunningly beautiful and amazing that I find myself speechless, even as her mother!”
Her praises flowed on and on.
The lioness listened silently, ears perked.
“...Truth is, I didn’t give birth to her.”
Varia whispered like it was a secret.
“But I’m so glad I became her mom. Leo is the light that gave me a second chance.”
A god-like presence who had brought her true family and happiness.
That was how Varia always felt about Leonia.
“If only Lady Regina could’ve seen her.”
She often visited Regina’s grave while staying in the North, bragging about how amazing her daughter had become.
Grumble.
The lioness rumbled in its throat and rubbed its body against Varia’s.
The sudden affection made her stumble a little, but she smiled and patted the lioness.
“...Ah.”
Soon, Varia reached the summit.
Tension returned, gripping her entire body.
The very top of the Northern Mountains was unexpectedly flat. She had imagined jagged peaks and sharp ridges, but the reality was nothing like she expected.
But beyond the summit—
“...!”
The sight stunned her into silence.
The lioness, having completed its guidance, lay down at Varia’s feet, pressing its body against the ground. It kept a wary eye on the path they had taken.
Remus would arrive soon.
“W-What is that...?!”
Varia gasped in horror as the lioness lifted its head.
She still couldn’t tear her eyes away from what lay beyond the mountain.
Endless black plains stretched far beyond the snowy mountains.
Not a single tree, river, or even hill marred that lifeless land.
And yet something lived there.
Varia couldn’t even describe its form.
There wasn’t a single animal she knew that looked anything like that.
But one thing was clear—the black beasts moving across the black ground were huge.
So massive, in fact, that even Varia could see them clearly from this distance.
And there wasn’t just one.
As Varia stood frozen in place, dazed, the lioness suddenly rose.
Varia barely turned her head and looked.
The lioness growled and stared sharply back down the mountain trail.
Huff, huff...!
The ragged gasping was drawing closer.
‘What am I supposed to do now?’
At this cliffside, with nothing but the black plain beyond the mountains, Varia tried to figure out what she could do.
In her current condition, she might just be able to defeat Remus.
But her body was barely holding on. It was already a miracle that she’d made it this far.
If ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) they struggled physically, she might fall off the edge.
‘What do you want from me?’
She asked the voice that had brought her here.
But only the fierce wind answered.
‘...Damn you, god!’
Varia curled her lip.
Dragged all the way out here with no way to flee—and now, in the most critical moment, the god had gone silent.
There wasn’t even a rock or branch nearby to use as a weapon.
That was when something flickered—a misty red blur, like hair touched by frost.
Varia’s eyes widened as if they’d pop out of her skull.
Unlike her, who had reached the summit safely, Remus looked like he was on the verge of freezing to death.

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Chapter 246