I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 253

I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter-Chapter 253

Leonia knew what a “god” was.
She already knew from the original story—and had even seen one with her own eyes here, at the summit Ferio had taken her to during her first monster hunt.
But in the original, the gods were not important figures.
It had only briefly mentioned that the Voreoti were strong because they had been blessed by the gods, and that the gods lived beyond the Northern Mountains.
So Leonia was left speechless at the sudden appearance of a god right in front of her.
The same was true for Ferio and Varia.
The god that appeared before the Voreoti family had the face of a lion, but no mane. Leonia suddenly thought—it might be a child, just like her.
The way it tilted its head with curiosity as it looked at them reminded her of a young animal.
Then, without warning, the god threw back its head. Its throat bobbed up and down, and then it opened its mouth wide.
Out popped the lioness it had swallowed earlier with Remus—like a silent burp.
“It’s the lion!”
Leonia pointed to the lioness.
She was genuinely relieved to see the lioness unharmed.
“...So it really was there.”
Ferio narrowed his eyes. Now he could clearly see the lioness.
And her blue eyes.
‘It really was Regina.’
Landing safely atop the god’s head, the lioness gave a powerful shake of her body. Then she looked down at the three people watching from the Northern Mountains.
Her blue eyes found Leonia.
“Leonia. Try calling her.”
“She looks like she’s waiting.”
Ferio and Varia gently patted their daughter’s back.
“W-What do I even say!”
Leonia scowled in embarrassment. But she couldn’t ignore the lioness staring straight at her.
“......”
She was about to say “Regina,” but hesitated.
‘I’m not really Regina’s daughter...’
Leonia suddenly felt a strange weight settle in her ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) chest. She was the daughter of Ferio and Varia—not Regina.
The person Regina had given birth to no longer existed in this world.
She was someone who only cared about muscles—a true degenerate. What right did someone like her have to call out to Regina?
‘Regina must know too...’
The reason the lioness had been able to summon such powerful strength to block her and Ferio was likely because the god before them had helped.
So the lioness might know the truth of Leonia’s identity.
“...Um.”
After a long pause, Leonia carefully began to speak.
“Uh... I’m doing well.”
She gestured awkwardly toward Ferio and Varia beside her.
“Dad, Mom, and I—we’re all doing fine. We eat a lot, I study hard, I’m into working out a bit...”
She explained that her days were happy and full of joy.
“So, uh...”
The child faltered for a moment, then mustered the courage to finish.
“Um, I hope you’re doing well too, Mom.”
See you again sometime.
“Bye-bye.”
Leonia gave an awkward wave, mimicking the short farewell she used to offer Regina’s grave as a child.
Ferio and Varia pulled her close, embracing her shoulders in silent praise.
“......”
Tears fell from the lioness’s eyes as she watched them quietly.
Blue tears, like the clear sky itself, dropped from her eyes—and slowly, her irises darkened.
As the final tear fell, the lioness let out a soft, farewell-like cry.
Her eyes turned completely black, just like Leonia’s.
Her demeanor changed entirely.
She gazed at the trio on the mountaintop as if they were strangers—then turned and descended the god’s body.
The lioness dashed across the plain.
But the god remained, standing still as it stared at the Voreoti family.
With intense curiosity, it looked at each one of them in turn—especially at Leonia and Varia.
Then, suddenly, it bounced like an overgrown foal—thumping and bounding on its massive legs.
The movements were violent enough to cause an avalanche, yet strangely, the ground didn’t tremble at all.
“...Huh?”
Varia let out a confused chuckle.
“It kind of reminds me of Leonia?”
“I don’t bounce around like that!”
Leonia protested.
“The Northern Tyrant doesn’t prance around. I’m cold and heavy with authority!”
“Well, your weight’s got some gravity,” Ferio muttered, thinking of how much she ate.
“...If I dropped Dad down there, even he’d be finished, right?”
“Thanks for the unwavering filial piety.”
“Anytime.”
“That wasn’t a compliment.”
“I’m aware.”
“Ahh, this is peace...”
Varia finally felt relief as she listened to her husband and daughter bicker.
The god, having finished its erratic bouncing, sprinted toward the plain.
And at the end of that plain, two even larger gods waited.
Like parents waiting for a child.
‘Family...?’
That’s how Leonia saw them.
The two gods looked exactly like the small one. One had a magnificent mane.
But the larger of the two was the one without a mane.
The two parental gods welcomed the small god running toward them. They brought their faces close and gently examined it—no different than any human parents.
To Leonia, it looked exactly like herself and her parents.
A glance upward showed Ferio and Varia watching the scene with similar expressions. They couldn’t take their eyes off the gods.
“...The black beast family lives.”
Leonia began to hum a tune—a song she had made as a child, inspired by a northern folktale Kara had once told her.
“Mom and Dad and baby beast, cozy together...”
Wandering through the snow-white forest.
The beasts leap behind the mountains.
“Behind the mountains...”
Is the beasts’ homeland.
“A home they can return to.”
As she finished singing, Leonia shivered.
At the beginning and end of everything—there were these gods who lived on the black plain.
Then the largest god moved.
‘You’ve done well.’
My children.
***
Prince Chrisetos was utterly drained after the day’s events at the imperial palace.
‘I’m exhausted...’
All he wanted was to collapse and take a long nap.
The knights from House Meridio who had come to kill him had been so intense, his knees had buckled repeatedly.
But he had survived.
‘So it’s finally over...’
The cursed ties to the imperial superstition had been cut in front of him. Now, a new Bellius Empire was about to begin.
And he would be the one to start it.
‘Now that I’m here... I’m scared.’
Chrisetos didn’t believe he would be a great emperor. He wasn’t even aiming for that. He was well aware of his own limitations.
But at the very least, he wanted to be an emperor who did his best.
He vowed never to be a ruler who ran away from duty.
“Scandia.”
The determined prince approached his sister.
Princess Scandia, seated near the Gate, looked up as he sat down beside her.
“It’s probably a bit late to ask, but... how was it over there?”
“And you, Brother?”
“It was a little lonely without you.”
“I felt the same.”
The siblings exchanged quiet smiles.
Then they turned again to the Gate.
“They’re still not back.”
Chrisetos glanced to the side.
“You think she just went straight to the North?”
The sky beyond the Gate had turned crimson.
The once-blue sky was now painted with sunset hues, and a deep navy twilight was beginning to stretch across it.
“...She’ll return.”
Scandia fiddled with the watch on her wrist.
“She told me she’d come back. So she will.”
“Who? The Duke’s daughter?”
“She’s a Duke now.”
“She actually became a Duke...?”
The prince shuddered. He remembered the “Duke act” Leonia had put on at the estate.
He hadn’t expected to witness the return of the Mad Duke this soon—it gave him goosebumps.
But his concern faded quickly.
“At this rate, you’ll collapse.”
“I’m fine.”
Scandia gestured at what surrounded her.
The Gladiago Knights had spread out stolen imperial cloaks like picnic mats and raided the imperial storeroom to prepare refreshments.
“...You’ve been marked.”
“I don’t think they dislike me,” Scandia retorted.
“No, not by them...”
The prince gave a bitter smile.
Nearby, the Gladiago Knights kept glancing this way, wary not to upset the princess who was loyally waiting for their young master’s family.
‘You’ve already been marked as the Duke’s consort.’
Chrisetos worried for his sister with a sigh.
“You’ve been sitting like this for hours.”
That his sister had been “marked” was one thing—but he was more concerned about how long she’d been glued to the spot.
“You’ve had a rough day too.”
He gently urged her to rest.
Since Leonia had crossed the Gate, the princess had waited there endlessly, and her face clearly showed the exhaustion.
“Staying here like a statue... that’s not doing the Duke any favors either, you know?”
“She’ll like it.”
“...Yeah, she probably would.”
Chrisetos agreed.
From what he’d seen, that crazy, muscle-obsessed Duke was more than capable of appreciating that kind of loyalty.
Still, to the prince, his one and only little sister mattered more than any Northern Tyrant.
In the end, Prince Chrisetos decided to wait with her.
“You’re the one who should be resting...”
“Where would I go without you?”
He had grown fond of the Voreoti family. After all the help he’d received, some attachment had formed.
‘And also...’
He glanced at Scandia.
He had a bad feeling about his sister’s future.
“...You’ll be loved.”
Sighing, the prince patted her on the back.
Still, Leonia wasn’t so bad—her taste was just the issue. Her personality wasn’t completely hopeless.
Just like how Ferio treated Varia, Leonia would surely be good to her partner.
“......!”
Just then, Princess Scandia jumped to her feet.
Between the quiet pillars, the Gate shimmered.
Suddenly, a sharp, brutal cold wind burst through it.
Those who had let their guard down staggered.
But to the Gladiago Knights, it was a familiar chill.
“The Gate has opened!”
“Master! My lady!”
“Take off your cloaks! Now!”
“Physician! Get the physician, quickly!”
The Gladiago Knights rushed to assist the family returning through the Gate.
The poor imperial physician, who had been kept waiting nearby for hours, hurried forward.
Princess Scandia also ran to greet them.

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Chapter 253