Published: January 12, 2026
From the beginning, I was never given the chance to talk with my father. I hardly ever saw my mother either.
The reason was simple—I was a failure.
Since I was little, I was timid, picky, and bad at studying. There was nothing I was good at. If anything, it might have been puppet magic.
I couldn’t do sports, and I was bad at dancing, but strangely enough, when I controlled dolls, I could make them move more beautifully than expected. Though I was useless at everything else, maybe this could bring some joy to my mother.
Excited by the thought of being praised by my rarely-seen parents in the future, I practiced magic diligently.
But when I showed my mother a puppet the size of a person, she got angry with a terrifying expression.
At last, I had the chance to perform the puppet dance I had practiced every day, but my mother must have found it repulsive and unpleasant.
I hardly remember what she said. I only recall being slapped on the cheek and dragged out of the room into the hallway by my hair. I also remember her shouting, "What an unfilial child!"—nothing else.
I didn’t understand why I was scolded. Magic was supposed to be learned starting from the age of eight, so maybe I didn’t know the details.
Still, in my narrow world, my mother’s words became something I would never forget.
No matter what I did, I failed.
Without confidence, I couldn’t speak up or act on my own.
Even the magic I desperately practiced didn’t work out.
Perhaps that was the deciding factor. Since then, my mother stopped looking at me. My father never really met me to begin with, but it was unbearably painful when I occasionally passed by my mother, and she ignored me.
But since it was my fault, there was nothing I could do. So, I quietly kept my head down and lived like that.
Eventually, I became someone no one noticed. No one spoke to me, and I wasted my days away.
Even though no one did anything to me, tears would fall when I was alone in my room.
Maybe my mother had hoped for something from my magical aptitude results. Perhaps she was sad because the outcome wasn’t what she wanted.
If so, how cruel I had been.
She gave birth to me, she had expectations for me, yet I couldn’t do anything for her. I only disappointed her.
What an unfilial child I was.
When those words floated through my mind, I cried out loud. It was so painful and heartbreaking.
Two months, or three, or maybe half a year passed.
For the first time, my father called me.
Having spent every day crying, I no longer dared to hope when I was called.
I had nothing—no size, no intelligence, no talent. So the reason for the summons was probably to tell me I had no place anymore.
Thinking that, I stood like an ornament in the corner of a large room, waiting.
My father appeared, a little fatter than the last time I saw him some years ago.
“G-good to see you, Father…”
I bowed as politely as I could. My hands holding the hem of my skirt trembled. I wondered what my father thought of me, someone who couldn’t even do such a simple thing properly.
I was too scared to look up.
Then, instead of scolding me, my father spoke with someone who followed him in. It seemed to be a woman.
“This is her.”
“I see. But are you sure she is suitable? If we consider the other party, we might as well send a summons.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. It depends on the time and place. If something happens, it won’t be painful. Do as I say.”
“...Understood. Well, depending on the other party, I might bring her back, you know?”
Saying that in a displeased tone, heavy footsteps approached.
“Hello, Miss Arte von Ferdinand. I am Viscount Panamera Carrera Cayenne. Have you heard about your marriage?”
She looked like a strong woman, but the viscount had kind eyes.
“Ah, um, I-I haven’t... heard…”
Not knowing how to answer, I couldn’t finish my sentence. But the viscount didn’t get angry.
“Hmm... if you are capable, you will be betrothed to my fiancé. If not, we will refuse, so don’t worry.”
“…I’m not needed, then, and I have to leave home…?”