A Resplendent Era (15)

How many times had Freugne properly addressed me as “Father”?

‘Around ten times, perhaps.’

It could have been even fewer instances. Despite knowing her for nearly a decade, ten occurrences was a negligible frequency – essentially, it had never happened.

Yet I had accepted her habitual use of “Uncle” as a given.

Perhaps it had simply become ingrained over time, for our relationship remained unaltered regardless of the appellation.

Though we shared no blood ties, I loved Freugne. And I believed her feelings towards me were mutual.

Of course, I had mentally prepared for the day she would inevitably reach adolescence and rebelliously retort: “What do you know about me, Uncle!”

Such outbursts would likely stem from mere petulance, eventually dismissed as youthful embarrassments.

Yet if she were to invoke our lack of consanguinity, it might sting considerably.

Contrary to my apprehensions, Freugne did not experience a tumultuous adolescence.

While she occasionally stayed out late, it paled in comparison to her peers’ nocturnal tavern raids, remaining relatively tame.

“The word ‘daughter,’ you mean.”

“Do you still perceive me as such?”

Thus, I never anticipated hearing such words from her.

Yet, unlike the myriad mental simulations I had envisioned, I felt no sense of dejection.

Ordinarily, this would have been the moment for introspective self-reproach, but…

“Heh.”

“…?”

Withdrawing her lips, Freugne licked them as she exhaled a sultry breath.

I gazed blankly at the ceiling, unable to fully process her actions.

So, let us calmly reassess the sequence:

Freugne had proposed fleeing together, which I refused.

I fail to discern the connecting thread, but she had abruptly kissed me thereafter.

Not a chaste, fleeting goodnight peck I was familiar with, but something more prolonged and intense.

And just as I had belatedly intended to admonish her that “Such acts should be reserved for one’s beloved,” Freugne had preempted me.

“How about now?”

“…What?”

“Do you still view me as a child to be solely protected? Will you accompany me, or refuse?”

Receiving no response, Freugne sighed softly.

Up to this point, her actions could be generously interpreted as falling within the bounds of affectionate embraces, rendering them unsurprising.

Although that “normalcy” harked back nearly five years, I had initially regarded her behavior as merely endearing, eliciting no further sentiments.

“Hmm. Still insufficient, it seems.”

Momentarily pensive, Freugne then crawled forward from her perch atop the bed, embracing me once more instead of kissing.

Admittedly, I seldom employed such descriptors, but her touch was soft and warm.

I had embraced Freugne countless times before.

Historically, the earliest instance would be our escape from Briannen’s burning factory, followed by occasional, comforting hugs whenever she seemed chilled during our Antrim tour.

“Wait, hold on a moment.”

“Truly.”

“……”

“Do you sense nothing, even now?”

Yet this present moment differed from those prior occasions. Slightly startled by the incongruity, I attempted to extricate myself, but the more I struggled, the tighter her grip became.

What distinguished this from her usual behavior? Why did I perceive this instant as divergent from her customary actions of the past?

‘Time has elapsed, for one.’

Considerably so.

Naturally, Freugne had matured over that span. Newly realized, her prepubescent visage was scarcely discernible in her current appearance.

Moreover, our previous embraces had invariably featured me enfolding her from behind or hoisting her up – never positioned beneath her.

As these realizations dawned, an unbidden, quivering exhalation escaped me, and the very effort to repress my elation proved discomfiting.

There had been times when her apparent obliviousness to my sentiments had caused discontent.

Yet witnessing her present startled reaction, a degree of denseness might not be entirely undesirable.

While hardly an apt descriptor for one I trusted and depended upon, in that moment, she seemed… rather adorable.

“Gulp“

Freugne swallowed the saliva pooling in her mouth. This seemed sufficient progress for the day.

One cannot expect satiety from the first sip alone.

Freugne evidently possessed enough restraint to refrain from such expectations. s intrinsically seek stability. Abrupt changes only arouse wariness in others.

A notion she perpetually contemplated, yet struggled to consciously acknowledge: In her perception, I remained her “Uncle,” just as she remained my “daughter” in my own view.

Recklessly overreaching risked outright rejection. Thus, she had decided to be content with today’s progress.

-“No. Freugne is a good girl… a good girl……”

One reason was her having foreseen me lying awake in bed, murmuring those very words to the vacant air while she slept.

Nevertheless, my failure to completely rebuff her advances constituted a passing grade, with ample room to spare.

Ever inclined to preserve her acquisitions while coveting what eluded her grasp, Freugne deferred to a future opportunity.

A future contingent upon her own actions, potentially imminent.

However, she now intended to unsettle my psyche through unintentional means.

“Very well. I shall also persevere instead of fleeing.”

“Good. With your aid, I’ll feel reassured. Truthfully, I’m still uncertain about the extent of your capabilities, but your assistance alone would prove invaluable.”

“You said ‘alone,’ did you not?”

“Yes, why?”

“I’m not alone, you know?”

Edan’s expression betrayed bewilderment, clearly unable to fathom the existence of an organization akin to a shadow cabal.

Since elaborating further within the ward would unlikely foster immediate belief, Freugne opted for a direct demonstration, deeming it the swifter approach.

Perhaps Edan’s lingering perception of her stemmed partly from their legally documented father-daughter relationship.

It was two days later that Freugne discovered her ability to expunge even that family registration record, should she so desire.