Chapter 4

– I want a sister.

'?!' – the corner of Duke Dehsin's lips twitched, and the atmosphere in the room turned slightly cold.

– ...what do you mean?

– Sister, in the literal sense of the word. Hans and Sebastian have sisters, but we don't have one! – Judy continued to grumble and sulk.

Darwin pressed his fingers on his forehead and took a deep breath:

– Really?

'Not even two days have passed since Judy's last prank, however, this prank goes beyond all bounds.'

– Pathetic. How could this happen? Are you really thinking of playing a prank on your father, who is constantly traveling on estate business? – Darwin's angry voice instantly filled the room. His dark green eyes became even darker and it seemed that anyone who dared to look into them would shiver.

Judy turned away, and a disgruntled grin settled on his lips:

– You know what, no, thanks, I don't need anything. I knew you wouldn't listen even if I told you about it. You only love Dennis anyway.

– What? What are you talking about?..

– Goodbye, – Judy chuckled softly, waving his hand slightly, as if waving away his father.

Moved by Judy's words, Darwin took a deep breath.

'Judy is usually mischievous, but he is a quick-witted child,' – realizing this, Duke Dehsin turned pale, as if he had just realized that apologies would not help at all.

'However, Judy's words are quite strange… Including his drooping expression,' – Darwin's thoughts were confused.

'But why did he suddenly need a sister? Every day he plays for his own pleasure… I do not understand…'

Duke Dehsin coughed and calmed his voice:

– Judy, if you need a servant, I will grant you your wish. But not my sister.

'I'm ready to give him anything, but a sister is too much.'

– Why?

– No mother.

Darwin's wife, who was the mother of the twins, died shortly after giving birth. Darwin, who loved her with all his heart, did not remarry after her death, since no one could replace his beloved.

– And what? We don't have a mother either, do we? Judy shook his head, indicating that he didn't understand what his father was talking about.

'It's a headache...' – Darwin took a deep breath. He was alarmed, because the situation was not suitable enough to explain the process of giving birth to a child.

Therefore, Duke Dehsin, who was in a difficult situation, turned to Dennis:

– Dennis, you understand me, right? Do you understand why you can't have a sister?

Dennis, who was always close with books, was an intelligent child with a large stock of knowledge. Darwin believed that Dennis should know what process a person goes through to get a child.

Dennis blinked and lifted his glasses to look at his father's face. After a few moments, he calmly replied, as if he had finished some calculations:

– This does not mean that there is no way out. You can adopt her.

– What? Darwin's eyebrows shot up at the unexpected answer.

–You can have a daughter if you adopt her, – Dennis's voice was also filled with a subtle expectation.

Duke Dehsin looked at his son doubtfully:

– Dennis… Do you want a sister too?

– I'm curious about this from a practical point of view.

'God!' – This answer caused a deep wrinkle on Darwin's forehead. The shock in his green eyes became even stronger.

– Tell me, why did you suddenly want a sister? What happened?

Judy didn't expect his father to seriously listen to him. His face brightened, and he raised his voice excitedly:

–You know Sebastian, don't you? – He has a sister and because of this, no matter how much I call him, he does not come out.

To tell the truth, until recently, Judy did not even think that he would need a younger sister.

There was a lot of fun in the world, but there were also moments when he got bored. When Judy wanted to play with Dennis, he received only a cold refusal. As a result, when he wanted to tease someone, Judy called Sebastian.

Sebastian, stupid and strong, was a good participant for the games. He was a living toy that did everything right.

However, since his sister was born, Sebastian has changed a lot. When Judy called Sebastian, he excitedly ran to him and, apologizing, went back. When Sebastian ran out of excuses, he declared that he would no longer play with the twins because he liked spending time with his sister.

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– Do you really want to do this? And anyway, what's good about this cesspool?

– She's not a cesspool at all! My sister is a goddess!

– I don't care. Sebastian, if you continue to behave like this, I will never call you again.

– I don't care. Now I have a sister, but you don't, – Sebastian, who always looked up to Judy, shrugged indifferently.

The fact that Sebastian rejected him was a huge shock for Judy.

– Why are you so proud of your sister? Judy looked at him coldly.

________________________________________________________________________________

Judy still couldn't forget Sebastian's tone and attitude towards him. He wanted to crush Sebastian, who was bragging about having a younger sister that Judy didn't have.

– Father! From now on, I will always obey, I won't even bully, so will you make me a big brother? Eh?

Besides, Dennis joined his brother and added a few words:

– I will refuse the voice of God. Can I?

For Dennis, the rejection of his new book, which was published in a limited edition, was very serious.

Now not only Judy, but Dennis wanted the same thing. So Darwin could no longer ignore them.

'Have I been so inconsiderate?' – the anticipation experienced by the twins has reached Darwin. 'It seems that they are jealous that someone else has a younger sister, just because I am a father who lacks self-confidence…'

– ...let me think about it.

– You should think about it well!

– Be careful, Father.

Duke Dehsin left the mansion accompanied by Ben, receiving an energetic farewell from the twins.

– Hm… – Darwin took a deep breath and squeezed his temples tightly.

***

– You don't need to think about it too much. It's just a whim of children who are always together.

– They didn't look so frivolous.

– Really... really, are you really thinking about adoption?

– I don't think it's that bad, – Darwin looked back after leaving the mansion.

The conclusion he came to was to listen to what the twins emotionally asked for.

Darwin always let his sons get whatever they wanted. He tried to do this because he didn't want them to feel the lack of care from their mother. Perhaps that's why the twins got tired of everything so easily. Even if he sang them a new song or bought them a new toy, their interest lasted very short.

Darwin was very concerned that they could not get attached to people.

'Sons lack a sense of sympathy and affection. However, now they dream of a younger sister… I do not know what results it will bring, but if it works well, it will help them develop social communication skills.'

– Ben, find a place where you can adopt a decent child.

– Wait, are you really going to follow the lead of your children?

– If there is a suitable child, – Darwin always made quick decisions. His intuition never failed him. And intuition perceived the request of the sons as positive. – Let's think about it when we get back from the temple.

The adoption story was resolved positively. Soon after, Duke Dehsin's carriage set off for the temple.

Soon Ben was thinking about something, looking at the reflection of the Duke in the window. The adoption story turned out to be extremely unexpected for him.

–Your Highness, I think you should practice your smile.

– It's unlikely that anything will change thanks to practice, – Darwin replied casually, without even turning his head.

High nose and thin lash lines. Duke Dehsin's facial lines were perfect, but they didn't reflect a single drop of emotion, making him look like a beautiful statue.

–Don't you remember what happened last time? – Ben had no reason to retreat from this topic and shut up.

Last time at a temple event, Duke Dehsin laughed and knocked unconscious a candidate for Sainthood who brought him blessings.

When Ben pointed this out, Darwin pursed his lips.

– ...I get it.

'I can't make the same mistake I did then.'

Darwin had to practice smiling in front of the mirror. However, no matter how much he lifted the corners of his lips, there was no improvement.

– What do you think?

– It's scary.

– Why? I smile according to the rules.

– I think it's because of the expression on his face. Why don't you close your eyes for a few seconds?.. Okay, if someone faints again, prepare my grave.

Darwin's gaze quivered at Ben's frank remarks. And in the end, the exhausted Duke broke the mirror, saying:

– It's useless, – Darwin leaned back against the back of the seat and closed his eyes.

Finally, calm has come.

'Smiling and killing create self-confidence.'

Suddenly, memories of enemy soldiers flashed in the man's mind, who, having been captured and seeing him, lost consciousness or shook their heads, saying that they were very sorry.

***

In the Austin Empire, the power of the Saint was as strong as the power of the Emperor. The role of the Saint in the Empire was so great because the Empire followed the will of the Goddess. The main thing has always been the dual agreement between the Saint and the Emperor.

In the central temple, an event was held every 4 years when the voice of the Goddess could be heard. It was called the «Holiday of Congratulations» and was mandatory for visiting the Emperor and the heads of the four great families.

– You understand how happy it is to be here. You should think of it as an occupation and keep calm, – the virgin Laura, in a stern voice, addressed the candidates for saints.

– Yes, Virgo.

– I want to hear the voice of the goddess as soon as possible.

It was today that the event that Dinah was waiting for took place. An opportunity to meet the heads of the four great families in the temple itself.

'Unlike other cases of rebirth, this time, thanks to returning a year earlier, I can be present here,' – Dinah looked around for Duke Dehsin's seat.

It wasn't difficult to find him, but the problem was that Dinah and the duke's place were too far apart. For a moment Dinah was confused, not knowing how to call him.

'There are a lot of people near Duke Dehsin. Even if I am lucky enough to get close to him, it will be difficult to start a conversation that others will not hear…

What should I do?'

It was at this moment that Sera, who was sitting next to Dinah, lightly patted her hand. More precisely, she only lightly touched her fingertips to her hand, as if it was unpleasant for her to touch Dinah.

– You, go to the pantry and get the chairs. The Virgin Laura ordered you to do this.

Dinah looked at Sera.

Just now, she perfectly heard how the virgin Laura told Sera to do it, and Sera tried to shift this troublesome work to Dinah.

In the past, Dinah would have said yes, but now it was different. There was no reason to serve them to look their best.

– The Virgin Laura told you to do it, not me.

– And what??

– No, – Dinah replied casually, and Sera rose from her seat with a threatening look.

The look she gave Dinah was filled with contempt:

– Hey! How can you refuse me? You're just an orphan, without a family or tribe.

The word «orphan» hit Dinah hard in the chest.

'I didn't want to be an orphan. Why am I to blame for being abandoned from the moment I was born? Did I choose my parents?'

– This orphan is also a junior candidate.

When Dinah muttered this, Sera's eyes widened, she looked shocked and dumbfounded:

– Look at her. How can we be on equal terms?

– Where did you put us? Don't think it's that easy. Do you really think we're all on the same level? We are different from you, beggar!

– Yes, my father is a Marquis. I'm a noblewoman!

A bunch of candidates started shouting and hurling abuse at Dinah at the same time.