In the gray-white room, Sora tightly hugged Reiju. On that exquisite face like fine porcelain, at this moment, complex emotions filled it.
Her eyebrows slightly furrowed, and in her eyes flickered lights of entanglement and struggle, as if a fierce inner battle was taking place.
"Your Highness, this is the Vinsmoke household…", In the end, Sora gently let out a sigh and still rejected Rosse's idea.
She knew what Rosse wanted.
Also knew that for Reiju's sake, this might be the best choice, perhaps Judge would even be overjoyed.
But she was not that kind of person and could not do such things.
'Moreover, there must... must be a better way.'
'Judge shouldn't be so heartless, to really treat Reiju as a tool and soldier…'
"Lady Sora, let's just pretend I never brought it up," Seeing Sora's resolute attitude, Rosse smiled lightly and naturally chose to let the topic pass.
If fish could be caught as soon as the hook was dropped, then fishing would lose much of its fun.
This was fine too.
The longer the wait, the sweeter the taste.
While they were chatting, two-year-old Reiju also woke up, staring at Rosse with her big round eyes, full of curiosity.
"Reiju really is cute," Rosse smiled as he took Reiju from Sora's arms and began to play with her.
At first, Sora was worried that Rosse wouldn't know how to take care of a child, but watching his interaction with Reiju, she realized Rosse was not only patient but also very adept.
In Rosse's hands, Reiju basically didn't cry or fuss.
"Has Your Highness taken care of children before?", Sora couldn't help but ask.
"I have. A little boy just born, much more mischievous than Reiju."
Thinking of Robin and Ace, the smile in Rosse's eyes deepened.
It would soon be the year 1501. He hadn't returned to the Holy Land in nearly a month.
To be honest, he kind of missed those two.
Though the milk was bland, occasionally Rosse really did crave it.
"Your Highness is very patient," Sora looked at Rosse, who was using his finger to interact with Reiju, and her gaze became slightly distant.
The scene before her was so much like the most beautiful dream she'd ever had.
Judge would be by her and Reiju's side, joking with her while playing with young Reiju in his hands.
"Lady Sora, what's wrong?", Rosse's gentle words softly rang in Sora's ears, instantly pulling her out from that beautiful dream and back into reality.
In a daze, Sora looked again.
In the gray-white room, only Rosse's tall figure gently held Reiju.
Unfortunately, it was just a dream.
In reality, there was never a gentle Judge. Only a more gentle, taller, stronger, more noble Rosse.
"I'm fine, it's just rare to see Reiju liking someone so much," Sora gently shook her head. Her words were like a light breeze brushing the lake's surface, carrying a touch of barely detectable politeness and distance. The corners of her lips lifted in a faint smile, yet it couldn't conceal the deep depression in her heart.
Like drifting fallen leaves, Sora's thoughts wandered back to the past.
After Reiju was born, she was cared for and fed by designated staff.
Everything was orderly, except that her biological mother was excluded.
If she wanted to see Reiju, it required Judge's permission and accompaniment.
Only when Judge was busy with experiments and she had applied multiple times did she get a few chances to see Reiju alone.
If she came alone, besides Mazo and Mayu watching her like hawks, everything else was still acceptable.
Reiju was very close to her, seemingly knowing she was her biological mother.
Every time she had time alone with Reiju, those were Sora's happiest moments.
But unfortunately, most of her memories were still tied to when Judge came here.
Every time Judge came, his eyes would fix tightly on Reiju, monitoring her every emotional reaction.
However, that attention didn't come from fatherly concern, but like the cold wind of winter, piercingly frigid.
Whenever Reiju showed the slightest sign of crying, Judge's face would instantly darken, and impatience and violence would surge like a tide.
At best, he would ruthlessly throw Reiju to the ground, that small body tracing a heartbreaking arc through the air.
At worst, Sora too would become a sacrifice to his anger.
In Judge's eyes, a child's emotions seemed to be an extremely shameful and untouchable thing. He couldn't understand, nor accept Reiju's pure tears and laughter.
Sora was incredibly thankful that Reiju's bloodline had been modified, and her body was more resilient than an ordinary person's, barely able to survive under Judge's abuse.
Otherwise, any ordinary infant would have long disappeared into endless darkness.
"Reiju's very affectionate. She'll definitely grow into a kind little girl," Rosse smiled, and his seemingly casual words struck precisely at Sora's sore spot like a sharp arrow.
No matter how one thought about it, Judge didn't seem like someone who would allow a child to grow up normally.
But facing Rosse's blessing, Sora could only force a smile, "Yes, she'll definitely be a kind little girl."
That was her most beautiful wish for Reiju, and she hoped this scene could one day truly come to pass.
Just as Rosse and Sora each had their own thoughts, hurried footsteps came from outside the room.
Rosse and Sora both looked toward the outside, and soon, Judge's figure appeared at the doorway.
"Your Highness, Mazo and Mayu disturbed you. I have personally taken care of the two of them," When Judge spoke, he was slightly panting. It looked like in that short time, he had personally done quite a bit.
After speaking, Judge's slightly angry eyes glared at Sora, "Your Highness, the princess shouldn't have come to this filthy place and disturbed you. It was my oversight."
Swept by Judge's angry gaze, Sora's weak body trembled uncontrollably.
She had seen what Judge looked like when truly angry, exactly like this.
Judge was always like this, too afraid to vent his anger on the strong, so he would take it out on his own people.
Last time, a member nation in the North Blue rejected a deal from Judge, and that very day, dozens of slaves on the snail ship died, each in a miserable state.
"It was me who came here; it has nothing to do with Lady Sora," Rosse stepped forward nonchalantly, just right to block the view between Judge and Sora.
With the line of sight cut off, Sora could only see Rosse's tall, broad back, and her panicked body finally relaxed a little.
As if sensing Sora's relief, Rosse deliberately turned his head and gave her a smile.
Sora instinctively turned her face away, not daring to accept Rosse's kindness in front of Judge.
"Your Highness, I overstepped," Judge lowered his head deeply again and sincerely admitted fault to Rosse.
However, in those lowered eyes, was the reflection of Rosse and Sora's interaction.
Seeing this, Judge not only didn't get angry, but instead felt genuine joy.
The expression forms of lineage factors were varied, but among them, inherited genes, as the special medium connecting bloodlines, contained the most complete lineage factors.
If he could obtain Rosse's lineage factors this way, Judge would truly wake up laughing from his dreams.
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