The little child grabbed the hem of the mother's skirt, shrank behind the mother, exposed half of his head, and looked timidly at the brown-haired man opposite.
A tall and strong man stood by the window, and the bright sunlight fell on the man through the window, covering the man in brilliance.
In the eyes of that little child, that powerful man was like a sun god bathed in radiance.
Since he was born, he had grown up listening to this man's brilliant record, and it was the first time he saw this man.
Guardian of Mia Star.
his father.
A man who is as powerful and noble as a god in the hearts of children.
The child's eyes shone slightly, with a bit of timidity and excitement on his face, he stared at the man with admiration.
The tall man stood by the window, the bright sunlight illuminated half of his tough face, and he stared at the boy huddled behind his mother's skirt.
His thick and long eyebrows were tightly frowned, and he looked at this child, his son, whom he saw for the first time after he returned from playing for eight years, his eyes were sharp and somewhat cold.
The man's sharp gaze made the child purse his lips more nervously, grasp the hem of the mother's skirt, and grasp the deep folds on the mother's skirt.
And his actions made the man's brows wrinkle even tighter.
The frowning man opened his mouth and spoke his first words after seeing the child.
"Beate, you let me down."
...
…………………
In the luxurious room filled with rich fragrance, the man who was lightly sleeping on the deep red sofa opened his eyes suddenly.
A few strands of dark brown curly hair were scattered around the corners of his suddenly widened eyes, showing a somewhat messy trace.
The man sat up and lowered his head slightly. He raised his right hand and inserted his fingers deeply into the neatly combed forehead hair. The extremely well-maintained white and tender fingers formed a sharp contrast with the dark brown hair.
A few strands of curly hair fell down again, the man closed his eyes, and the scattered curly hair formed deep shadows in his eye sockets.
The lines of his face were a little softer, more like his mother, and his sharp lips, which most resembled his father, were tightly pressed at this moment, as if he was suppressing something, and he pressed it hard.
A spacious and luxurious room was empty, and he was the only one sitting on the crimson sofa.
The room was very quiet, only his breathing could be heard.
He just sat quietly like this, pressing his head, closing his eyes, and pursing his lips tightly.
After a long time, the man put down his hand, his eyes opened, and the expression in his eyes was kind and calm.
He looked up at the opposite mirror, opened his mouth, and revealed a perfectly polite and gentle aristocratic smile.
"Come on."
He says.
Immediately, a beautiful maid came in from the side door, walked behind the sofa, combed his hair gently, and recombed the messy curly hair scattered around his eyes to the neat appearance at the beginning.
Beat stood up, opened his arms, and let the maid take off the crumpled dress that he had just taken a nap on the sofa for him, and put on a new clean, neat and wrinkle-free aristocratic dress for him.
He glanced at the attendant standing respectfully to one side.
"How's it going?"
he asked, looking very calm.
"Mission failed, the target person was taken away by Major General Troll."
"Where are the people sent?"
Beat continued to ask, her tone was inaudible, but her eyes were gloomy.
"Insane, unexplained."
People who are mentally strong enough to fight back against intruders are extremely rare, none in a million, and almost all of them are leaders in various fields—and no matter how you look at it, Mutt can't get involved with the kind of people who stand at the top, so this The attendant didn't speculate in that direction.
His judgment was that Major General Troll had left the special equipment for the boy to protect him, and it was because of the counterattack of the device that they could not judge that the person they sent was insane.
"Have you tried to forcibly read the memory?"
"I have used a mental detector to investigate, but I can't find any useful information. His mind is completely shattered."
"What's the reaction over there?"
"Major General Troll has never shown up, and his subordinate, Major Robin, has a very tough attitude."
The attendant said, "He said that if the Mia family cannot guarantee the safety of the guests, then Major General Troll will leave Mia immediately and return to a safe place."
The new dress has been arranged, Beata lowered his arms, and took the decorative golden pocket watch handed over by the maid.
"Send his head there as an apology."
Slamming the golden pocket watch shut and throwing it into his chest, he spoke cruel words in a gentle tone.
"Yes, Lord Beat."
The agent who failed the mission and was no longer of any use value became an abandoned child. His last task was to use his head as an apology and give an explanation to Major General Troll.
"Master Beat..."
The attendant spoke again, but stopped talking.
"what?"
"Master Marquis Mia wants you to go there."
"..."
After a little silence, the expression on the man's face was still gentle, but the shadows in his eyes deepened a bit.
"I see."
He said, turning his head to look at the mirror on the other side again.
The man in the mirror was well-dressed, with an elegant posture and a gentle face. Then, he smiled, which was the posture of an impeccable nobleman.
...
……………
Dozens of attendants bowed their heads and stood quietly at the rear, and the little children stood on the golden gravel, watching the huge landing ship descend from the sky.
He looked at the tall and straight man who came down from the hatch, and his eyes, who hadn't seen his father for a long time, flashed a look of anticipation.
When the man's eyes fell on him, a bright smile appeared on his immature face, and he almost couldn't wait to walk to his father.
But the moment the child's bright smile met the man's eyes, it froze on his face.
He opened his eyes wide, watching his father look at him, frowning.
He looked at the back of the man who turned and left. The child stood there in a daze, the shadow stretched long under his feet.
He watched the broad figure disappearing from his eyes little by little, and the light in his eyes also disappeared little by little without a trace.
"Mom, is Father mad at me?"
"...Beate, you are the heir of the Mia family, you must be calm and polite at all times, and you shouldn't show that expression when welcoming your father."
"But, Mom, Father doesn't like me."
"It's not like that, Beate, you have to work hard, because your father wants to see his children be better than anyone else."
"As long as I do well, will Father like me?"
"Yeah, Beata, at that time, your father will be proud of you."
At that time, the little child worked desperately, he wanted to become stronger, he wanted to be an excellent successor, and he wanted his father to be proud of him.
And what this child expects is nothing more than an admiring look from his father who is as powerful as a god in his mind.
...
……………
At this moment, the atmosphere in the thick and dark study room was extremely depressing. On the huge desk, the tumbler with funny face was shaking again and again.
The old Marquis stood on the pitch-black fur blanket, his eyes fell on the shaking tumbler, and his fingers stroked the golden ring on his finger.
Even though he was getting old, even though his face had been covered with wrinkles, his back was still straight without any curvature.
He stood there, not angry but mighty.
This old man who spent most of his life fighting in the universe starry sky just stood there quietly, and there was an inexplicable oppressive atmosphere in the air.
Beat habitually lowered his head and stood on the side of the study.
He lowered his eyes, looking at the dark blanket in front of his boots as always. The dark brown curly hair fell down, casting deep shadows in his eye sockets, only his gentle face at the moment could be seen, but the look in his downcast eyes could not be seen.
"Beate, you did something you shouldn't have done."
After a long silence, the old man finally spoke.
His voice was not loud, but his tone was extremely severe.
The man lowered his head even lower in front of the old man, so low that he couldn't even see the expression on his face clearly.
Only the bowed head expressed his obedience to his father.
"Yes, my lord, I'm sorry."
Beatt said softly.
"But, it's just a major general, my lord father."
"...Yeah, just a major general."
The old man made a sound like a sigh.
He looked deeply at his son with his head down, and he thought, since when did his child, the future heir of the Mia family, never raise his head in front of his eyes again.
His son, he knows.
Beat was jealous of that fine young man.
He was still unwilling to admit that the young man was stronger than himself.
Therefore, he tried his best to embarrass that young man. He wanted to drive that young man out of this planet and out of his sight.
He used those shady tricks to get at Troll's weakness, and to anger Troll through that young child.
Narrow-minded.
Jealous of Virtue.
Bully the soft and fear the hard.
… This is his child.
... This is the future heir of the Mia family!
With a deep breath stuck in his chest, the old Marquis raised his hand high—
There was a loud snap.
A slap slapped Bayate's face hard, and the force made him stagger, and a shocking red handprint appeared on the extremely delicate cheek in an instant.
"Beate, you've let me down so much!"
His cheek was in hot pain, and Beata raised his eyes slightly, and what he saw was the uncontrollable anger on the face of the old Marquis, as well as the clearly visible disappointment in the eyes staring at him.
He lowered his eyes, there was no wave in his eyes.
The old Marquis's chest heaved violently, and he raised his hand, pointing to the door.
"Get out!"
He scolded.
Beat didn't say a word, he turned and left the study according to his father's order.
Behind him, the eyes of the old man looking at him were full of pain and disappointment.
...
……………
The child has been working hard.
He is almost demanding on himself to learn all the things he should learn, and he tries his best to do his best.
Every day and night, he is telling himself that he cannot lose to anyone.
[You are the heir of the Mia family, Beate, your father wants you to be better than anyone else.]
...
"Father! I can already drive the frigate independently!"
"It's too slow, Beate, it took a whole year to drive independently, you let me down so much."
"...I'm sorry, Father."
not enough.
the child thought.
It must be that he did not do enough, he has to work harder.
"Father, I have completed all my studies on history, and my instructor said that my learning ability is the best he has ever seen—"
"Are you satisfied with just this? Beate, you've let me down so much."
…
"Father, this time the academy simulated Star Wars, and I made it to the final... This final is open to the public, can you come and see it?"
"Beate, this so-called mock battle is just a child's play in my eyes. If you are proud of this achievement, you will only let me down."
... ... ...
Time and time again, the blazing flames were doused by icy water, leaving only temperatureless ashes.
Why
Why is his father not satisfied no matter what he does
… why.
The young child grew up slowly, but he never got what he expected.
What he saw was always his father's stern face. What he heard was always a reprimand to him.
He began to slowly learn to give up.
No matter how hard he tried, he always got that sentence, so he thought, forget it.
The so-called disheartened, but that's all.
Since when did he never want to look at his father's face anymore, when did he never want to meet his father's eyes again... He doesn't remember either.
He just habitually lowered his head in front of his father, covering his face, and his heart was as calm as the dead sea.
He has grown up, he is no longer the child who yearns for his father's admiring gaze, and his emotions will no longer be affected by any actions or words of his father.
He was used to getting along with his father like this.
until that day...
"That young man's future is limitless."
It was a look of admiration he had never seen on his father's face.
However, this gaze was directed at another young man.
"Troll... I always thought that he was promoted to major general only because of the favor of His Majesty the Emperor. Now it seems that the young man got his current position entirely by virtue of his own strength."
"Even me, at his age, was far inferior to him."
The old man, who had never been stingy in giving himself a little praise, stared at the young man with incomparably burning eyes, and then kept his disappointed eyes to himself.
"Beate, if you could have his half..."
He clenched his hands tightly, nails digging deep into his palm.
He used to think that his heart was as hard as iron, he used to think that he would never be shaken by this man's reprimand—
But this man, this man he called his father, always easily pierced him with a look or a word.
This man, always understatement, can throw his dignity on the ground and trample him to pieces.
...
…………………
Low laughter rang out in the oppressive room. The man sitting on the dark red sofa lowered his head and covered his face with his hands.
A low-pitched, weird laugh came out from between his fingers covering his face.
[You let me down so much, Beate.]
Father, I'm used to it.
I'm used to you being disappointed in me.
Dark brown curly hair was messily scattered on the back of the man's hand covering his face, and the man's eyes looked through the gap between his fingers.
The mirror opposite reflected the man's appearance at the moment, as well as the red mark on his cheek.
A faint tingling sensation came from his cheeks, hot, and the pain seemed to penetrate into the deepest part of his body along his skin, flesh and blood, and even bone marrow.
The man covering his face stared at the opposite mirror and was still laughing, once and for all.
The laughter grew louder and sharper one by one.
By the end, the laughter bordered on hysterical.
The sharp laughter echoed throughout the room.
Father, I know that you want a son who is better than anyone else.
You've been disappointed because your child is me.
You will never be proud of me.
I know how much you expect that the young major general who is better than anyone else is your son—
The man stared at the shadow in the mirror, his distorted eyes looked extremely ferocious and crazy through the slits between his fingers.
What if that guy dies
Father.
If that guy dies, can he still be better than me? !