The Useless Duchess' Second Chance

I'll Do What I Can

“My Lady, please don't run too far from us!”

Ignoring the screams of the maids and knights who were tasked to guarding her, Ariana walked briskly through the vast surroundings of the palace. Her little feet cut through the large trees that surrounded the palace. Like a princess, Ariana is very familiar with the ins and outs of the palace. She purposely made it difficult for the maid and knights to chase after her, and sneaked to arrive at a large castle hidden in the thick of the trees.

“Mr. Fairy, I came to see you again today!”

With great difficulty, Ariana tried to knock on the castle door, which was too big for herself. Even though she didn't get an answer to her call right away, the girl didn't stop calling while knocking on the big door. Ariana called out several times, until a boy came out from the large castle.

“You came again.”

Ariana smiled widely as she looked at the figure of the boy in front of her. When the boy had opened the castle door, Ariana immediately went inside the castle and took out the book she had been hiding in the robe that was used to warm her body. Ariana took all the books from her personal library. All the textbooks were sorted by Ariana, before she showed them to the boy.

“This time I brought geography, physics, math, and history books for you! Grandpa might get angry if he finds out that I lost my textbook again. But for you, I am willing to give all of this so that you can get to know this world as quickly as possible.”

The child who was called a fairy by Ariana gave a small smile before her hand gently stroked the girl's hair. “Thank you," he said as he took a seat next to Ariana. In such a large castle, only the sound of Ariana's babbling echoed around the room. The other boys quietly continued to listen, while several times replying to Ariana's words very cheerfully.

“Mr. Fairy, I hope you can quickly understand how this world works so that you can get out of this castle soon. When you're free later, I would like to invite you to stay in my residence so that we can get to know many things together. Apart from you, no one has truly understood my feelings all this time. Others may have continued to try to please me. But no one has ever understood the loneliness I felt after the death of my parents.”

The child who is called a fairy by Ariana continues to listen carefully as Ariana continues to chatter about her life. His hand almost went up to stroke Ariana's hair. However, his movements stopped, as Ariana resumed her speech.

“But Mr. Fairy is just like me. We lost a loved one and have to fight alone in an unknown place. I have been determined to work hard for you. So, don't give up before you can leave this castle, okay?”

The child who was called Mr. Fairy smiled broadly when he saw Ariana's spirit. “I understand. I will never give up because I also want to stay with you forever!” said the boy in a soft voice. Ariana smiled too when she heard that answer. In the large palace, the girl was glad she at least had a friend who could truly understand her situation.

***

“Ugh.”

Ariana wakes up in a daze when she suddenly dreams of an unfamiliar event in her memory. Ariana never remembered she found a large castle in the vast grounds of the palace, but she also couldn't believe that the dream was just a simple dream. The dream seemed too real to be called a dream. Ariana also felt familiar with the boy's face, although she couldn't quite remember who or where she had seen the boy.

“How do you feel, Aria?”

Ariana's attention was distracted when her grandfather's voice greeted her ears. When Ariana turned towards the window, the sky had darkened and her bedroom window had been shut again. Ariana remembered she was practicing swordsmanship when she was last sober. Judging by her state, Ariana realized she might have fainted after forcing her body too much on her training.

“I'm fine, Grandpa.”

Ariana immediately got a soft tap on her forehead after she finished saying that. “Bad girl. What will you achieve if you push yourself too much like this? They were all just trying to test you on the first day. Grandpa will punish them after this. How dare they, make the only heir of the Alison family faint from exhaustion like this.”

As Duke Andrew grumbled, Ariana chuckled, then slowly shifted from her sleeping position to a sitting position. “Don't be too harsh with them, Grandpa. I know that they're just worried about the future of this family. I'm also stubborn with my decision because I also want to know my limits. But, you don't need to worry, Grandpa. This kind of thing won't happen again in the future,” said Ariana while trying to calm her grandfather. Duke Andrew stared at Ariana for a long time after the girl said that. His hand slowly cupped Ariana's head, before he rubbed it gently while taking a deep breath.

“Be honest with Grandpa, Aria. Has Grandpa been too hard on you all this time?” the man asked suddenly. Ariana immediately shook her head to answer the question. “What Grandpa does always makes sense. I'm the one who's been neglecting my responsibilities and constantly causing trouble for you all this time," she answered very smoothly. But Duke Andrew didn't seem too happy with that answer. The man sighed again, as he stared at the face of his granddaughter, who was only twelve years old, but already looked like an adult all of a sudden.

“As the only family that has the most power besides the royal family, the lives of the heir in this family have not been easy since they were a child. Moreover, the number of children who can inherit this family titles continues to decrease in every year. Now when only you are the only heir of this family, Grandpa just wants you to be able to live a long time without anyone daring to bully you both now and in the future.”

For Ariana, this was the first time she had heard this confession in both her past life and present life. Since women have many limitations in the kingdom, her grandfather plans to make Ariana the strongest woman by making her a future queen. But when Ariana refuses the engagement, Andrew immediately plans to teach Ariana whatever she has to master to become a strong and unobtrusive Duchess. Everything had always been for Ariana, but the girl failed to catch her Grandfather's true intentions in the past.

“I know. That's why I love you, Grandpa.”

Ariana's tone trembled slightly as she spoke to her grandfather. Finally, she had a chance to say that before it was too late. The girl's smile broke, as she added her words while holding back her tears.

“Please forgive me for kept causing trouble in the past. I love you, Grandpa. You're not allowed to leave me from now on.”

Perhaps because Ariana was still carried away by her past feelings, the loneliness she experienced after her grandfather's death made Ariana unconsciously say unreasonable things. She acts like a normal child. Ariana hugged her grandfather, while still trying to find comfort in that hug.

Even with his son, Duke Andrew never had the chance to hug someone this tight. His expression softened, as his hand moved to run through Ariana's hair to soothe the girl.

“Jeez, you even dared to command the current head of the Alison family. Don't worry too much, silly girl. Until I'm is satisfied to see you lead a stable life, Grandpa isn't going anywhere. Ah, no. I will watch over you very well, so you don't cause trouble again.”

Even though her grandfather tried to make a serious voice at the end of the sentence, Ariana knew he was only attempting to comfort her at this point. Ariana laughed softly, before she let go of the hug as her heart began to calm down again.

“Ah, yes. Do you have anything to say to me, Aria?” asked Duke Andrew suddenly. Ariana knows her grandfather wants her to admit her guilt for bringing Valencia without his permission into the training room. The girl wiped her tears, before trying to act the best she could in front of her grandfather.

“I apologize for bringing Valencia to the special training room without getting your permission first, Grandpa. But today, Valencia showed great interest in the art of the sword, and I feel it would be a waste if she threw away her talents to become my personal maid. She is from the same family as Sir Albert. Their talent in the field of the sword is definitely unquestionable. If you allowed me, I would like to make her my personal knight in the future.”

Since Ariana is a woman, in the future, it's a bit inappropriate for her to have a personal knight, especially if she decides to marry into another family in the future. But the story would be different if Ariana's personal knight was a woman like her. People tend to look down on a woman, and that's something Valencia can use to protect Ariana in the shadows.

Ariana's idea is not bad on this subject. Duke Andrew carefully considered Ariana's request. For his granddaughter, he couldn't make the slightest mistake in his decisions.

“What if she's not as capable as the rest of her family? How do you know she has talent that can be compared to the rest of her brothers?” asked Duke Andrew curiously.

“Trust me Grandpa, I have a good eye for judging someone,” Ariana replied no less confidently. Duke Andrew shook his head in disbelief after hearing his granddaughter's answer. It seems, his granddaughter has changed drastically after the accident that happened to her.

But that doesn't mean Duke Andrew isn't quite satisfied with Ariana's answer. Being able to see people's potential is also an important strength as a leader. Duke Andrew nodded, as he readily agreed to Ariana's request.

“She can join you in the training, as long as she can show that she deserves to learn a special technique that should only be taught to the family members or the head of a knight. But you know the rules yourself. We can only let her training in secret. She also can't be a knight, as long as the king does not allow her to obtain the title.”

Ariana was quite satisfied with the condition. There is still time for him to help Valencia climb to the top. But for now, all that she could do was this. They all had to become stronger first, before they could have any thoughts of going against the kingdom laws.

“Thank you so much, Grandpa! I love you very much!” said Ariana very sincerely. Andrew smiled as he was hugged again by Ariana. The man hugged his granddaughter back, then replied to the girl's words in a low voice.

“I love you too, Aria," he replied while a little embarrassed.