I Became the Male Lead’s Adopted Daughter

Marquis Pardus, much like his son, had always thought of the Voreotis as nothing but terrifying, formidable beings.

But as the wrinkles deepened on his face and the years weighed on him, he began to see the unstable side beneath the surface.

“To be feared and revered by all... that’s no easy burden to bear.”

“......”

“And every moment spent trying to maintain that image? It’s exhausting.”

He’d thought that way long ago.

When he saw the former Duke harshly disciplining Ferio.

When he insisted a Duke must always stand above everyone, treating Ferio with ruthless strictness.

And yet, at the same time, he would gently dote on the daughter his late sister had left behind.

He remembered catching a glimpse of young Ferio, watching all of this from the shadows.

...A wounded beast.

That kind of childhood, he thought, was what shaped Ferio into someone whose mere presence could make others flinch, radiating a fearsome aura.