How to Protect My Sub Male Lead Dad

The Duchess of Moltke, Princess Sofi, was the only surviving sibling of the Emperor.

The late Emperor was a cruel man.

He rose to power by murdering his weaker brothers.

Because of this, he also pitted his children to compete, intending to leave only the strongest among them.

They were forced to turn their swords against each other in order to survive.

The current Emperor, Robert von Reinhardt, was the one who emerged victorious from that hellish ordeal.

“I slaughtered all my brothers,” said Robert as he threw his brother’s head before the Emperor.

“I’ve done what you wanted me to do. Don’t make me do any more of this madness.”

“No. You are not ready to become my heir yet.”

“What do you mean? Is there any left to be killed!”

“Isn’t there still one? I’m talking about Sofi.

Princess Sofi was only five years old at that time.

Driven by madness, the late Emperor ordered to eliminate even his youngest sibling, who was excluded from the succession fight.

“To become a true Emperor, you must be able to sever emotional ties.”

Reluctantly, Robert raised his sword again.

He slit the throat of the late Emperor, the creator of this hell.

It was all to save his younger sister, Princess Sofi.

‘This is why the Emperor is so fond of Duchess Moltke.’

In the original, he lost his beloved sister to Asta.

Afterwards, the Emperor also became ill.

‘But in this life, things will be different.’

The Emperor spoke coldly, with a hint of mockery, as Asta observed him, contemplating.

“You knew everything…?”

“I knew Duke Moltke was mining ores at Mount Paro.”

“But Your Highness said nothing about it until now….”

“Why should I bother to tell you about it?”

“B-But iron ore is a material for weapons! Duke Moltke is sending iron ore to arms dealers! This is a plot to rebel!”

The Emperor burst out laughing.

“I know iron ore is an ingredient in weapons. So what? The mine belongs to me anyway.”

“What?”

Asta stammered.

The Emperor spoke with a smirk.

“The Duke and Duchess of Moltke came to me the other day, confessing of his wrongdoing. That the Duke of Moltke had been secretly mining iron ore, blinded by money, and that the Duchess had recently discovered it.”

Asta was horrified.

Looking at her face, I couldn’t help but let out a smile of satisfaction.

When Duchess Moltke learned of the iron ore mine, she was distressed.

‘Even after consulting with Hart, she couldn’t come up with a solid plan.’

Even during our lessons, she couldn’t concentrate properly.

“You look sad. Has the Duke hidden something bad in Paro?”

“You’re perceptive. My husband was operating a mine that His Majesty prohibited. I don’t know what to do about it… Although being a young child, you wouldn’t understand what I’m talking about.”

“Then tell the truth honestly and ask for forgiveness.”

“That’s easier said than done, for grown-ups, things aren’t that simple. And even if I told him the truth, the Emperor wouldn’t believe me. He’s a suspicious man, and the price of sin is very high.”

“Then give the mine to the Emperor!”

‘If the Emperor finds out, the mine will be confiscated.’

‘So we’ll confess the truth and give him the mine beforehand!’

The choice is between being found out and having the mine confiscated, or telling the truth and giving it away, volunteering.

Just by changing the order, the result will vary drastically.

The moment the mine becomes ‘his’, the Emperor’s perspective will be altered.

‘It’s not a bad idea to pay for sins by offering a mine that would be soon confiscated.’

Duchess Moltke nodded.

I made one more suggestion to the Duchess of Moltke.

“And you must promise His Majesty that you will never do it again!”

I planned to make the Duke of Moltke surrender his commercial rights.

The Duchess of Moltke grabbed the Duke by the scruff of the neck and dragged him to sign the renunciation.

Then she and her husband visited the Emperor to beg for forgiveness.

They gave the Emperor the mines and the ownership of the company that managed it.

The Emperor would have had a full accounting of the mines under his control.

How much was mined, where it was sold, the books, the labour force.

He would have naturally learnt that the Duke of Moltke was greedy, but not treasonous.

“A witness. Let’s see if I can guess who is… The manager who stole the iron and ran away with it. He’s someone in deep debt and in need of money.”

The Emperor stared at Asta, who was in thoughts.

“Are you thinking of luring him into giving a false testimony?”

“N-No. I’m……!”

“You were travelling to the East to procure medicine for me. That is why you were given a pass that allowed you to enter and exit any of the estates at will, but I had no idea you would do something like this. The ‘fountain of life’ you sought was mere plain water. The other priests and people escorting the Saint suffered from heavy casualties.”

In the original story, it was Hart who travelled with Asta to the East, to Mount Paro.

‘He was destined to be seriously injured by the demons that guarded the mountain.’

But the development changed, and Hart didn’t follow Asta.

Instead, it was the Duke of Eisen’s men who went with her.

‘Even Hart, a great knight, would have been gravely injured by such dangerous creatures, so the men of the Duke of Eisen, being ordinary knights, would not have survived.’

The priests were in a pitiful situation too.

When it was revealed that the ‘Fountain of Life’ was normal water, the High Priest vehemently denied it.

But when the imperial court announced a major investigation, a priest who had claimed that the water was favoured by the Gods committed suicide. Ostensibly out of guilt.

‘He destroyed the evidence and took the entire blame instead of the church.’

Asta was white as a sheet and shaking.

She was panicking.

‘It must be a huge shock for her to experience consecutive failures in her plans.’

She hadn’t had such a disastrous failure since the regression.

She had been on a roll, as if blessed by God.

Suddenly, everything changed.

Not only did she get down on her knees and apologize to a child, but her plans were exposed.

Now Asta had two choices.

She could do what the Duchess of Moltke did: Tell the truth and beg for forgiveness.

“I don’t understand why the Duke and Duchess of Moltke would give away their mine so freely.”

Or she can persist until the end.

“They might have destroyed all the evidence and offered the mines. Knowing that I would reveal the truth. If you give me one more chance, I will definitely…”

The Emperor frowned.

“The mine is already under my jurisdiction. I have examined it to the last speck of dust. Do you think I would have accepted it without checking?”

“Your Majesty…”

“Not only that, I’m looking through it even now. I prefer to have complete control over what I have. Of course, if the Saint doesn’t trust me, the Emperor, you can create other opportunities.”

Asta remained silent.

She realized that if she crossed that line, there would be no mercy from the Emperor.

Her pale white face flushed bright red.

“….No, Your Majesty. I was arrogant.”

“It’s alright. You are a Saint, after all, you should know that you can’t refute the Emperor. You may leave the palace now.”

Asta bowed weakly and retreated.

Her back was full of despair, as if she was walking towards a cliff.

As I watched, I realized.

‘The original story has been completely twisted.’

Asta had captured neither Hart nor the Emperor.

She couldn’t even kill the Dukes of Moltke.

No longer could Asta use them, or sacrifice them.

I-

‘I protected my family!’

My heart was pounding loudly in my chest.

My fingertips tingled, as my chest was filled with emotions.

“You must have been very surprised.”

The Emperor looked at me.

He saw my expression and misunderstood.

“She is only a child.”

Hart answered for me.

“I called you here to receive the apology. But you got surprised instead. I couldn’t score points.”

“What do you mean by scoring points?”

“Something like that.”

Hart looked at the Emperor with wary eyes.

The Emperor opened his mouth in disbelief, then locked eyes with me, and softened his glare.

It wasn’t exactly gentle, but it was a soft expression.

I felt a little relieved.

“From what Sofi said, I thought she was a freak1.”

What a relief!

‘A freak! A kid like me!’

Without realizing it, my expression changed, and the Emperor spoke with a smile.

“In person, she’s just a baby…..”

“?”

Freak to baby.

‘Isn’t the difference too big?’

In a bewildered state, I opened my eyes wide and looked at him.

The Emperor chuckled, as if my expression was funny.

“Anyway, it’s a strange thing. To think that this little one advised Sofi to dedicate a mine…”

The corners of the Emperor’s mouth twitched.

“What do you mean, Hanelope advised her?”

Hart asked, uncharacteristically angry.

The Emperor clicked his tongue.

“Didn’t you know? It was thanks to that little one’s advice to Sofi that the Duke Moltke was able to avoid ruin.”

“Is that true?”

“Yes. Sofi was in a dead-lock in this matter, and at that time, the child said to give the mine to me. She advised her.”

Hart looked at me in surprise.

‘Hart wouldn’t have known about the conversation I had with Duchess Moltke during our private lesson.’

Duchess of Moltke didn’t mention it separately, so Hart must have been greatly surprised by the current situation.

‘On top of that, it was his own young daughter who gave the advice. He must have been extremely surprised.’

Feeling sorry, I awkwardly smiled, and Hart’s face deepened with concern.

“The fact that you managed to captivate Sofi’s heart is definitely not ordinary. Sometimes, even I don’t understand what’s in her heart.”

The Emperor spoke as if it were a light-hearted joke, but his eyes said otherwise.

The red eyes that scrutinized me held the coldness of an absolute.

‘I think he’s weighing me up.’

Whether I was worthy.

The Emperor, after all, resembled the late Emperor.

He was terribly fond of his sister, but he, too, was a ruler who was cold to his children.

They might be not at each other’s neck. But he had no mercy for them.

‘It will be the same with me, his granddaughter.’

That’s why I needed the Duchess Moltke.

Someone to back me up in front of the Emperor.

Someone who could convince him that I was worthy.

‘I will be of use to you, Your Majesty, so please be good to my father.’

I turned to face the Emperor with an eager heart.

For a moment, the Emperor was dumbfounded.

‘Did he read my mind?’

“I’ve been thinking, and your daughter is…..”

“Hanelope is a normal child. She’s not a freak, she’s not a weirdo. She’s practically a baby, as you said. Furthermore, she throws her food, she cries a lot, and she’s a troublemaker.”

Hart suddenly spat out the words quickly.

The Emperor’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.

“What are you saying all of a sudden?”

“That she advised the Duchess of Moltke, you shouldn’t take that at face value. Either the Duchess misheard, or the child said something and the Duchess took the hint herself. My child is not clever enough to give such advice. She is an ordinary child.”

‘Hart, you’re insulting me right now.’

It was a clear attempt to dismiss me in front of the Emperor.

Did Hart dislike that the Emperor was showing interest in me?

Or did he think the Emperor’s attention wasn’t beneficial?

“We shall retire from the palace.”

Hart, who witnessed his daughter’s distressed expression, embraced Hanelope in a defensive posture.

The Emperor was stunned, surprisingly, he let us go.

‘But what was the Emperor trying to say?’

I was curious, but upon seeing what had just happened, it might not have been a big deal after all.

“Hanelope.”

Suddenly, Hart called out to me quietly. I jerked my head up to look at him.

“You’re very clever, but you’re still a child to me. What I said earlier wasn’t meant to hurt you.”

My pink eyes widened.

“Do I throw food, cry a lot, and make a lot of mischief?”

In an instant, Hart’s face became flustered as he spoke.

“A child who doesn’t do any of those things is a real freak. But you’re not a monster, you’re not weird, and what I said was actually a compliment.”

“Mmm, so it was a compliment. I see.”

It was ridiculous logic, but I smiled and nodded.

‘I guess he was worried I’d be hurt by what he said.’

I leaned back in Hart’s arms and climbed into the carriage.

‘Somehow, I always leave the palace in his embrace.’

Unbeknownst to me, a gentle smile formed on my face.

‘I feel good in his arms.’

There was more good news.

Asta wouldn’t be going anywhere near the palace for a while.

‘She won’t be able to come near Hart too.’

“Why do you look like that?”

Hart asked gravely as he sat me down on the carriage chair.

“Why? What’s wrong with my face?”

“Your complexion….”

Asking, suddenly I felt my eyes spinning,  as if someone was shaking my brain.

“Hanelope!”

It wasn’t until I heard Hart’s urgent voice that I realized I was collapsing.

“Dad, I’m f-fine….”

I should be talking.

I need to reassure him.

My whole body turned weak, and I blacked out.

Note:

The original sentence was, ‘괴물 같은 아이라 생각했는데’ = I thought she was a freak. 괴물 is mostly used as monster or a freak. But the Emperor meant that Hanelope was different from others. From giving such advises at a young age or winning the prickly Duchess’s heart – none of them were easy feats. So he’s just saying it out of surprise, not as a malicious comparison.