Chapter 53

“Because we need to have a more serious conversation, shouldn’t the young master be left with the nanny at this time?”

Charlotte thought for a moment. Theo was trying to stay with her today, so she had no choice but to welcome her two brothers and the baby with her.

But when she saw Theo who had sold his soul for chocolate, she thought she could leave him for a while.

Charlotte called Emma and left Theo with her. Fortunately, Theo couldn’t resist Emma’s temptation with chocolate and went into the room.

After the two left, Issac opened his mouth.

“At the moment, there doesn’t seem to be anything special.”

Jack was angry.

“Nothing special! Her face is pale! Is the Duke’s family feeding you properly?”

“Jack.”

Issac spoke in a low voice.

“Don’t forget that this is the Duke’s house.”

Jack, who was about to say something, fell silent after Issac’s words that followed.

“You should think of Charlotte and not make trouble.”

“I-I’m sorry. I said that because she might not eat if she was afraid.”

He sat next to Issac and crossed his arms defensively.

Asked Issac who was looking out the window.

“I’d like to hear what happened.”

“It’s a long story .”

“I came here today, and I’m on vacation. So I really have a lot of free time.”

Where do I start talking? Charlotte rolls her eyes and begins her story of how she met Theo at Lannia’s estate.

How Theo, who was wandering alone after being attacked by an assassin, was brought into the mansion, and she honestly took care of him until Carcel came.

After that I told them the story of Carcel.

“Two years ago, I came to the capital to meet my brothers. At that time, I went out to watch the festival and met the Duke.”

“What, when?”

Jack, who was quietly listening, jumped up and Isaac grabbed him by the shoulder and pressed him.

Did you meet him when Jack and I were away?

“Impossible. The man with the cloak?”

“Yes .”

Charlotte remembered that day and blurred the end of her speech.

The story I suggested to Carcel was not a lie from start to finish.

In fact, she actually met a guy at the festival two years ago. As Jack said, it was a man wearing a cloak.

Two years ago, Jack and Isaac took her on vacation, it was to celebrate Charlotte’s coming of age, and they took her to the festival.

It had been a very cloudy day since the morning.

Charlotte asked them to stay in the dorm fearing the rain, but Jack didn’t want to and took her out.

In contrast to the gloomy weather, the festive atmosphere was filled with excitement. Children running and buying from merchants and bands are playing happily.

Charlotte was excited as a child because it was a sight not seen in Lannia’s estate. She forgot the cloudy weather and wandered the streets.

She ate schnitzels, drank juice, and rummaged through the stalls for romantic fantasy novels to read.

“Someone, help me, he took my baby!”

A woman cried sharply in the quiet street. Behind Charlotte and her two older brothers, a man ran with a crying baby. He was a kid about the same age as Theo.

Isak and Jack exchanged glances.

“Lottie, stay here for a second.”

“ We’ll be right back.”

Even if they were on vacation, they were both Imperial Knights. They had to prioritize the safety of the citizen of the empire wherever they were.

“Yes, don’t worry, go.”

The two moved before Charlotte could finish her words. However, due to the large number of people, it was difficult to speed up.

Watching the two of them get away, Charlotte guessed it would take longer than she thought.

It was not easy to catch the kidnapper, and they will have to take him to the guards for interrogation.

‘It would be nice if they found the baby safely.’

The kid who went out so excited to play what his parents was kidnapped. This was evil.

Charlotte had been cursing the unknown kidnapper internally.

Then she felt something fall on her nose and realized that it was raindrops.

Charlotte put on the cloak that she had brought with her from head to toe to cover herself from the rain, but soon she began to get wet from the rain.

This was because the Lannia family fortune could not afford the waterproof magical clothes.

A stall owner pointed to Charlotte because she looked as pathetic as a wet mouse in the rain. It was a cart in which he sold toys that children loved.

“You will catch a cold if it rains on you in this way. Come here and rest for a while.”

“I’m sorry .”

“ What are you sorry for? Come here quickly.”

Giving Charlotte the slightest spot on the water, Charlotte felt sorry and tried to buy a toy but the owner refused.

“I am not doing this to get you to buy something. I’m just doing that as a favor, apparently the two guys went on to do something good, so let’s all help each other survive.”

“Yes, thank you . My brothers are knights so when they see a scene like this they can’t stand still.”

Without realizing it, Charlotte said proudly.

“In a way, they both look like knights because of their height. If I had a daughter I would love for a son-in-law to be one of them, but unfortunately I only have a son. Miss, are you married?”

“No why ?”

“Do you have a lover ?”

“No .”

“This is good . What do you think of my son? He is also a knight of a noble family.”

“ Haha. I am from the south and have not yet thought of living in the capital.”

“You’re not even from the city, that’s why you’re good. These days the people of the capital only see themselves and do not know how to take care of others.”

At the time when Charlotte was having a short conversation with the owner, suddenly a shadow fell on her head and a man in a black cloak appeared.

A man taller than Jack and Issac, Charlotte naturally expected that he might be a knight.

“Welcome, take a look”.

The man did not respond to the owner’s response. His eyes and the hood over half of his face could not be seen, but Charlotte had the impression that he was staring intently at the toys.

To settle the matter in the owner’s favor, Charlotte got up and approached  the man.

“Is it a gift?”

“……..”

What a calm person. Charlotte thought about that and then looked at his face.

All she could see were the sharp jaw and lips.

But somehow it seemed as if he was pressing his teeth hard. Charlotte felt strange because his jaw was filled with strength.

‘Did something bad happen?’

Well, in this gloomy weather, the guy in the black jacket didn’t seem to be out for a good thing. Is the child ill?

So while he ignored her, Charlotte couldn’t turn a blind eye.

“Is it a boy or a girl?”

“….”

“What do you think? Gender is no use when buying toys for children. Let’s see, what would be good? It would be nice to know how old the baby is, how old is he?”

Charlotte knew he wouldn’t say anything again this time. So it’s time to look at the games without waiting for an answer.

“He will be a year old soon.”

The low voice shook her.

But the most impressive thing about the low tone was that his voice was quite full as if he was holding back on something.

In this voice there was an unrecognizable emotion.

Sadness, confusion, anger, pain. All kinds of negative feelings.

Even though it was her first time seeing him, Charlotte felt sympathy for him. She tried to speak sweetly and picked up a bear.

“If he is two years old, it would be good if you give him a doll to help him. How about this bear?”

The man nodded his head silently. Charlotte handed the bear to the owner. The owner hastily packed the doll and gave it to the man.

Charlotte followed the man who was leaving after he paid. The man walked at a fast pace without running, but was too far away in an instant due to the length of his legs.

“Wait a moment !”

Charlotte called him, but he didn’t stop, I ran full speed and managed to catch up with him.

“Take this .”

Charlotte handed him the handkerchief she had. Fortunately, the napkin did not get wet.

“It is raining now, so wipe the rain with this.”

He swallowed so much that I felt like he was holding back his tears for some reason.

“….”

She put the handkerchief in his hand and looked at him.

“I’m sure he’ll like it, I guarantee it.”

“…..”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but it will be fine.”

The man looked at the handkerchief for a moment, then nodded and went back on his way.

Back that quickly moved away. That was two years ago, but the back was still pretty clear in front of me.

Why did a man buy a gift for a child in such a depressed mood?

Feeling frustrated, Charlotte told her siblings.

“A while ago, a man came to buy a teddy bear with a very sad face.”

Jack replied as if insignificant, and laid his clothes on Charlotte, whose outer clothing was wet.

“Sad face, did he cry?”

“no I do not know . I couldn’t see him because he was wearing a hooded cloak.”

“Why ? How do you know that his face is sad.”

“I felt that .”

“Stop, wherever you go, be careful not to be deceived. The crook will come and say a lot of things, and you may be deceived. The people in the capital do not help each other like the people in the Lannia estate, even if your eyes are open, you will cut your nose.”

Since then, Jack has continued to grumble about how difficult life is and the people around him have been terrified.

Charlotte thought of the man she had seen earlier, listening to his grumble. The man who looked somehow sad.