Dark Dad’s Rebirth - Chapter 11: Time at Crossroads (2)

Caelius clicked his tongue softly, recalling Aria’s behavior. It baffled him. Once, she had been desperate for his affection, starving for every drop of attention. Now, she drew a line in the sand, telling him not to exploit her emptiness.

‘What exactly went wrong?’

No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t pinpoint an answer.

After that day, Aria began using a separate bedroom. Caelius could have forced her to share his room, but he chose not to. He was curious to see how far this defiance would go.

Life returned to its usual rhythm.

Caelius rose early in the morning and worked until evening, while Aria buried herself in her room, studying history, social graces, and military strategy.

In the past, she had studied to win his approval. Now, she learned to gain independence from him.

Most of the material was already familiar to her, but combining it with knowledge from her previous life gave it new depth and utility.

“Haah…”

Aria sighed, wiping her face with her hands. She had spoken to Caelius with feigned indifference, but her heart was far from calm.

The memories of the last day before her regression haunted her, vivid and raw.

Even now, her chest tightened, and her heart felt like it was being torn apart.

She had thought she could endure anything—to be treated however he wished, to exist in whatever way allowed her to stay by his side until death. She had told herself it was fine if her feelings were never returned.

So why does it hurt so much? Why am I filled with resentment?

She felt betrayed by fate.

‘Why was I cursed with such a cruel and destructive father?’

There were so many things she wanted to ask him.

Had there ever been a single moment when he was genuine with her? Why had he treated her the way he did? Did he feel even a shred of guilt in his final moments?

But Aria didn’t have the courage to voice those questions.

She knew that the moment he gave her a cold answer, the fragile balance she had maintained would collapse entirely.

‘It’s exhausting.’

I just want to rest for a while.

Like a marionette with its strings cut, Aria fell onto her bed.

The soft bedding seemed to carry a faint trace of Caelius’s scent.

‘That’s impossible.’

This was a completely new room.

When she left the bedroom they had shared, she had moved to a space untainted by any memories of him. She had chosen it deliberately, like someone hiding away.

Through the slightly open window, the scent of flowers wafted into the room. It reminded her of the rose garden Caelius had once created for her.

The memory surfaced vividly at the scent, and she forced herself to sit up and close the window.

The nostalgic fragrance of flowers felt suffocatingly cruel.

* * *

For three weeks, Aria stayed holed up in her room, avoiding any chance of encountering Caelius. He, in turn, neither coaxed her out nor tried to stop her, seemingly content to see how far this silent rebellion would go.

To Aria, his indifference was a relief.

Out of sight, out of mind.

Not seeing him made it easier. Slowly, she felt her chaotic emotions beginning to settle.

“Lady Aria,” a maid called, knocking on her door.

Aria gave a halfhearted response, prompting the maid to cautiously enter.

“I came to let you know the rose garden has been completed.”

In an instant, the three weeks of effort Aria had spent regaining her composure were undone. Her mind blanked. She moved as if in a trance, opening her window to look outside at the newly completed garden.

The sight of the dense patch of blue roses made her face twist into a grimace.

Blue roses: the flowers of impossible love, undying love, and miracles.

Once, they had been her favorite. Back when she was foolish enough to think her love had miraculously come true.

“That’s right… he said something about wanting to make me a rose garden…”

And now, there it was.

Aria turned away abruptly and commanded the maid to draw the blackout curtains.

The maid, who had expected Aria to be delighted by the gift—a rare gesture of sentiment from Caelius—couldn’t hide her surprise.

It was unprecedented. In all her years of serving the estate, she had never seen Caelius do such a thing for anyone.

“But Lady Aria,” the maid began hesitantly after finishing her task, “it is a gift from His Highness. Don’t you want to go down and see it?”

Aria didn’t reply. She only bit her lip, hard.

The maid, seeing no response, quietly exited the room.

As soon as the door closed, Aria felt bile rising in her throat.

“Disgusting.”

False affection, false love, false actions. A man built entirely of lies.

What had once been pure love, the kind that made Aria’s golden eyes shine with joy, had curdled into bitter hatred.

The warmth that used to tint her cheeks a rosy hue was nowhere to be found.

Aria stared blankly at the chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

How do I even describe this feeling?

She didn’t want Caelius to lose to Azecresis. On the contrary, she wanted him to have what he desired most: the throne of Bierne.

She wanted to see him seated on the gilded throne, proud and arrogant as ever.

But not out of love.

Her gaze drifted from the chandelier to the floor as she closed her eyes in thought.

Why do I want Caelius to become emperor?

Because, when she finally saw him crowned, she thought she might be able to let go of the lingering regrets in her heart.

Yes. That was all there was to it.

She no longer wanted to love Caelius.

* * *

Why had he created the rose garden?

Aria couldn’t understand. In the past, he’d done it because she loved roses, but this time… why?

After spending hours hiding under her blanket and trying to ignore it, Aria finally couldn’t take it anymore. She left her room and headed out to the estate’s garden. The scent of spring filled the air, carried by the blooms of various flowers.

It was a sight that didn’t match the austere and rigid nature of the Wittlesbach patriarch. Instinctively, Aria furrowed her brows.

“Has the rebellion ended?”

She didn’t know how long she had been standing there when a familiar voice called from behind her.

Aria didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

“You’ve been holed up longer than I expected.”

It was the same indifferent tone she was used to, unchanged even after all this time.

‘I didn’t want to see him…’

Aria clenched her fists tightly and pretended not to hear him, intending to leave.

But Caelius grabbed her wrist, stopping her.

“Shouldn’t you at least answer when your father calls?”

“…I have nothing to say.”

Aria muttered in a low, strained voice, trying to pull her hand free.

“You never even thought of me as your daughter,” she hissed, venom dripping from her words. “So don’t throw around the word ‘father’ so casually now.”

“When should I use it, then?”

“…”

“In bed?”

“…You’re such a piece of trash.”

Caelius’s brow twitched, not from anger but surprise at the unexpected venom in her words. Yet he didn’t seem particularly offended.

“You used to say you loved this piece of trash.”

“…”

“What’s with the sudden change of heart?”

The grip on her wrist began to ache, but just as she was about to say something, Caelius seemed to notice and released her.

Instead of letting her go entirely, however, he stepped closer and wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her against him.

“Tell me. What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing.”

“Then what is it? Are you just going through a rebellious phase?”

Uncharacteristically persistent, Caelius refused to let the matter drop.

“I just don’t like you anymore,” Aria said flatly.

“Out of nowhere?”

“I said I’d help you seize the throne, didn’t I?”

Unable to hold back her frustration, Aria’s sharp eyes bore into him.

“I said I’d let you use me however you want. So stop acting like this and just go back to being yourself.”

Her words only made Caelius’s expression darker.

“If I were to act as I usually do, the first thing I’d do is snap the neck of a defiant daughter who talks back like you.”

“Then go ahead,” Aria retorted coldly.

“…What’s your problem?”

Caelius frowned deeply, feeling his patience wearing thin.

“What’s so wrong that you’re acting like this all of a sudden?”

Aria’s irritation boiled over as she snapped back.

“Oh, is it because I didn’t spread my legs for you?”

“…What?”

“Well, it makes sense. Ever since I can remember, you’ve been so desperate to fuck me every time you looked at me.”

For a brief moment, Caelius ignored his simmering anger as something in her words gave him pause. Ever since I can remember?

Before he could address the odd phrasing, Aria pushed further, her words sharp and cutting.

“Don’t cross the line,” Caelius growled, his tone dropping dangerously low.

His dark eyes glinted like those of a predator sizing up its prey.

“There’s only so much childish rebellion I’ll tolerate.”

Intimidated by his anger, Aria bit her lip and said no more.

Instead, she smacked his arm away from her waist and fled without another word, leaving Caelius standing alone in the garden.

* * *