Chapter 77

And a few days later…

“Wow! There are a lot of people!”

Leah holding my hand is looking around curiously.

There are a lot of young ladies and children my daughter’s age.

‘Because of Goth, Leah avoided attending the ball last time.’

It was a mistake to accept my daughter’s wish to go. I should have thought about that more.

This time, I thought she could start by getting closer to her peers at smaller gatherings.

As expected, Leah showed interest in where the children were gathered.

“Can I play over there too?”

Two girls, about seven years old, are riding on a swing hanging from a tree.

“Okay, but you can’t get away from the swing. Can you promise?”

There is no danger in the children’s play area, as the maids watch over the guests’ children so they don’t get hurt.

“Yeah!”

Leah nodded her head with a broad smile and walked away.

I turned my head after making sure that Leah was blending in with the other kids without any major problems.

People quickly gathered around me. It seems that everyone is curious about the rumors going around.

“Marchioness Ainel, long time no see. Do you remember me?”

“Of course.”

“I saw you at your wedding. I’m glad to see you healthy.”

After that, I focused on not making mistakes while dealing with many people, and occasionally checked where my daughter was.

Leah is sitting in the corner of the garden and looking at something.

‘Is there a flower?’

Lately, Leah has been busy taking care of the flower beds at the mansion. It’s her new hobby after painting.

“For a moment. I’m thirsty. Excuse me.”

I asked for the understanding of the people who were surrounding me and then went to a corner.

“Mom.”

Leah was suddenly beside me without me noticing.

“Why?”

“I just saw your friend walking away! This way!”

‘My friend?’

After a moment of puzzlement, I realized she was referring to Carla Hoffen.

She was the only one I introduced to her as my friend.

‘Is Carla coming too?’

If so, I’d like to say hello to her and ask about her health after such a long time.

I walked in the direction my daughter said but there was no one to be seen around.

In addition, this area itself is not a place that is often visited by invited guests.

“Did you really see her going this way?”

“Ugh… weird… Oh, there!”

Leah pointed at a slightly large tree. I can see someone behind the trunk.

‘No, there are two.’

One is Carla, and the other is an elderly woman.

I stepped closer hesitantly

“—did you really have to do that?”

“Mom, how could you say that?”

The old lady’s voice is rather exasperated. Because of that, I could hear the conversation very well.

‘Is that person Carla’s mother-in-law?’

That means she is the birth mother of the Count who made a fuss the other day.

“It’s just a small incident that will pass quietly.”

“How could my baby’s death be a small incident!”

It’s not on purpose, but I don’t think I should be listening to this.

It’s more personal than I thought.

“I’m not even sure if it’s because of the disease. It could be your baby died because of your mistake! How can you be so impatient?”

“…….”

“Did you have to make it this big by exposing something that could be covered up?”

‘What should I do?’

I was dumbfounded by her shamelessness, and before I knew it, Leah was making her way over to the two of them, with something clenched in her little fist.

‘What is she doing?’

Surprised, I followed her. But I didn’t even have time to stop Leah from throwing the thing she was clenching at the old lady!

It was none other than a bug.

To be precise, a few tiny bean bugs and their larvae.

“What else is this― Aaah!”

Suddenly, the old lady with bugs on her face and neck screamed and ran away.

‘Well, when did she pick those up?’

Was what you saw while crouching in the garden earlier those bugs?

In the meantime, Leah turned to me and put on a triumphant expression.

“I kicked out the bully of my mom’s friend. Did I do well?”

“…….”

I know Leah has a bold side, but I can’t help but be surprised every time I see her like this.

I thought about what to say to my daughter, but I ended up stroking her hair.

“Yeah, good job.”

“Hehe.” Leah smiled broadly.

I then moved to a place where I could have a comfortable conversation with Carla.

Meanwhile, Leah went back to the garden. For some reason, she looked happier than usual.

‘Did she makes any new friends?’

I’ll ask later. First of all, I focused my attention on Carla, whom I hadn’t seen in a while.

“Are you okay?”

She looks pretty tired.

“Thanks to you, I got better quickly after taking medicine.”

That’s a relief. Early syphilis can quickly get better with antibiotics.

“I heard my husband went to see you. I apologize.”

“It’s okay, it’s not your fault.”

She sighed, touching her forehead.

“I asked for a divorce, and he made a fuss with his acquaintances to stop me… Now even his mother is interfering.”

“He doesn’t want to stamp the divorce papers?”

“He said he can’t. Personally, I wanted to finish it quietly and quickly, but it was completely ruined.”

“……could it be that the rumors spread?”

“Looks like you haven’t heard of it. Right now, half of the social world is probably talking about us.”

It seems that he is determined to be pathetic.

‘If rumors spread like this, Carla’s honor would fall to the ground.’

People’s mouths don’t carry the truth. That’s the biggest problem.

“I think it’s to bring you down.”

“Exactly. Sometimes some parts are omitted, and only some are spread.”

Since they were such a famous couple, I expected that it would be difficult to avoid people’s attention.

Even the baby was stillborn, so it couldn’t be just one or two people gossiping freely about this.

‘I’m sure some people focus only on the venereal disease itself.’

Originally, rumors were edited to suit one’s taste.

The thing that sticks the longest in people’s minds is not the truth.

‘It’s the most stimulating part.’

Perhaps this will follow her like a tag all her life.

‘Though the people who spread it won’t even remember.’

I sighed. “Your husband is so…….”

“Bastard. No, even bastards are better than him.”

I agree.

I glanced at her face. She covered it up with makeup, but the dark circles under her eyes got quite thick.

“Do you sleep well?”

“No, I have insomnia.”

I am worried that she might be suffering from depression. In this situation, it is likely to come.

“If it’s too hard, go to the suburbs for a while. Rumors are quickly forgotten if the person concerned is not seen.”

Anyway, in this situation, no matter what the truth is, correcting and going around only makes it harder for her.

“I’m actually thinking about it. My husband is a different matter, but everyone around me is talking too much… saying a woman who depended on love is now abandoned.”

This is why words are scary. Sometimes it attacks people sharper than a knife.

‘Thankfully there’s no such thing as the Internet here.’

With fewer means to carry rumors, it is expected to calm down a little in the winter when social activities are low.

“I heard that Onyx Village is pretty!”

‘Ah, you startled me.’

Leah suddenly said so. Since when is she here?

Rather than that, I’m afraid this is too dark a story for a child to hear.

“I heard that the apples there are delicious, you should try them!”

Carla smiled. “I will. Thanks for letting me know.”

Listening to what my daughter said, a question came to mind.

‘Where did she hear this village from?’

“Sweetheart, where did you hear that?”

Leah replied cheerfully. “My friend told me.”

It really seems like she made a new friend.

‘I’ll have to ask in detail later,’

After that, the three of us talked some more.

Carla must have thought that Leah was quite cute. Before we parted, she promised that she would definitely come over to play again.

And she lightly kissed Leah on the cheek and whispered, “Thank you so much for throwing the bugs. It made me feel refreshed.”

Leah chuckled, and I pretended not to hear.

***

After that, my daily life went by without anything special.

Leah’s new friend is a ten-year-old boy named ‘Mion’ who recently came in as a gardener’s apprentice.

He is a child who commuted from the nearby orphanage to the mansion to learn work from a gardener.

I heard that the gardener and the orphanage director are close friends, and he teaches the children skills to help them become self-reliant.

Seeing as Leah and he were often together, it seemed like she could communicate well on garden-related topics. I also didn’t forget to tell my daughter not to interfere too much with her friend’s work.