CH 79

“……I assume you know what happened between the kids.”

“No, I don’t know the details. But you’re a parent, you know when your kids are having a hard time.”

Hearing Julian’s words, Scarlett thought of Herwin writhing in bed.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Scarlett frowned and swept back a stray strand of hair that had fallen forward.

“Still, I can’t help but be disappointed. I was so sure that it would be nice for Lucia when she moved in with us.”

Julian fiddled with her hands, unable to respond.

She couldn’t help but feel sorry for Scarlett a hundred times over.

“Actually, I came here to talk to you about what happened yesterday, and when you put it like that, there’s nothing I can say.”

“What happened yesterday?”

“Yesterday, when you left Herwin outside all day.”

Julian was dumbfounded at first, then pale.

“What do you mean, did Herwin come to our house?”

“In case you didn’t know, I thought you were punishing him because he told me he had done something wrong to Lucia.”

“That can’t be right, it’s not the case that you throw a child out, no matter how much you hate him!”

Scarlett didn’t think Julian was lying, judging by her shaky voice and pale face.

So, it was someone else?

‘Does Lucia…….’

“Really, I’m sorry. I didn’t even know it had happened. I’ll apologize instead.”

“No, my son didn’t do well either.”

Scarlett accepted Julian’s apology grimly and rose from her seat.

Julian, still reeling from what had happened with Herwin, looked at Scarlett.

“You’re leaving now?”

“Yeah. I’m a little nervous about leaving a sick kid behind. I’ll be in the capital for a while, so I’ll see you around.”

“Wait, I’ll see you off.”

“It’s okay, I can handle myself. I’ll see you later.”

Scarlett sighed softly as she walked out, leaving Julian behind.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have been so angry.’

In fact, up until the carriage ride there, she’d been angry at the fact that they’d kicked her precious son out.

But when she spoke to Julian and she told her about Lucia, she was surprisingly less angry.

More precisely, she realized that Julian cared about her child just as much as she did, so she couldn’t be angry.

‘Judging by the reaction, I’m guessing it was Herwin’s fault.’

She hadn’t expected Julian to be so serious, as she usually laughs off everything.

“Herwin, what the hell did you do?”

Not knowing the exact situation only increased her frustration.

As she headed out the front door, she heard a trotting sound.

“Duchess!”

Scarlett whirled around at the sound of the squeaky voice.

Lucia stood gasping for breath.

Scarlett’s jaw dropped and she grinned.

“My goodness, Lucia, how long has it been? You’ve become a young lady.”

“I didn’t know you were coming. How have you been?”

“Fine.”

Lucia was very cute in her tiny little body. In Scarlett’s eyes, who was nearly six feet tall, Lucia looked even cuter.

“Madam?”

When Scarlett stared at her wordlessly, Lucia tilted her head with flushed cheeks.

Scarlett’s shoulders shook. Then she hugged Lucia tightly.

“Well, the more I look at you, the cuter you get! Do you want to be my daughter now?”

“Ha, ha, ha…….”

Lucia laughed awkwardly in Scarlett’s arms.

It was something Scarlett said every time she saw Lucia, so she was a little used to it by now.

“I wouldn’t want anything more than to have you in my home.”

Lucia stopped dead in her tracks. Scarlett, who had blurted it out without thinking, covered her mouth as she realized her mistake.

“Just kidding, just kidding. No, I meant what I just said, but…….”

Scarlett, who had been stuttering unnecessarily, coughed in vain when her eyes met Lucia’s stuttering wall.

“Hmmm, I heard you’re getting engaged?”

“Oh…….”

Lucia looked a little shaken as if she hadn’t expected Scarlett to know.

“Yeah, that’s how it happened.”

Lucia’s hand awkwardly stroked the back of her neck, her eyes not meeting Scarlett, and her body is stiffening.

Scarlett was inwardly surprised by Lucia’s reaction.

“Herwin must have told you.”

Somehow, a faint disappointment flickered across Lucia’s face.

Suddenly, an animalistic sixth sense ran through Scarlett’s body. She squinted her eyes to see if she was right.

“No, it wasn’t Herwin, it was Henry. Herwin never told me that.”

“Oh…is that so?”

Her stiff cheeks softened, and Lucia smiled, saying she had misunderstood.

“But what brought you down to the capital, did you have some business to attend to?”

“I came running after hearing that you were getting engaged.”

“What?”

“I had predicted you as Herwin’s partner, and I was surprised to hear that you were getting engaged to someone else.”

Lucia’s face heated up instantly.

“I heard that the engagement has progressed considerably.”

After a moment of embarrassment, Lucia’s lips curled as she realized her predicament.

She’d been preparing herself for this for a long time, but now that she was standing in front of Scarlett, her jaw dropped.

Scarlett’s face mirrored the face of Herwin, who had confessed to her yesterday.

“We’re getting engaged… soon.”

Scarlett’s eyes sharpened.

“Really? Julian said you hadn’t gotten to that point yet.”

“We just talked about it yesterday. I’ll send you an invitation to our engagement.”

Lucia’s eyes could be seen flushed. She’s trying to hide her feelings as well as her trembling hands behind her.

It seemed as if Lucia had lingering feelings for Herwin.

‘Am I mistaken?’

Scarlett may be reading too much into it. But, if she’s right, then….…

After a moment’s hesitation, Scarlet finally spoke up.

“So, have you given up on our Herwin?”

“……?”

“I thought you liked him a lot, so I’m sorry if I misunderstood.”

“……….”

Lucia froze, unable to say anything. Scarlett regretted for a moment, wondering if she’d been too blunt.

‘Still, I can’t let this go.’

It was either this or losing her chance to know Lucia’s true feelings.

“I meant what I said a moment ago, I wanted you to join our family, even though Herwin may be lacking in many ways, and that’s not just for me, it’s for him as well.”

Lucia’s heart fluttered.

After all the times she had been rejected by Herwin, she was overjoyed that his family had thought to take her in.

“I am… grateful. But marriage doesn’t happen just because one person wants it, and… I have someone else now.”

The words she uttered came back as a spear to herself. Lucia tried to smile, suppressing the throbbing pain.

“Herwin will surely meet a good person, too.”

Even though Lucia tried to hide her mind, Scarlett saw her true feelings clearly.

It was a mixed love, she thought, but their hearts still belonged to each other.

That alone was a victory. Pushing wasn’t going to save their relationship, so she decided to back off.

“……All right, so that’s that. Lucia, I know it’s late, but congratulations on your engagement.”

“No, thank you, it’s my pleasure.”

“I should probably get going. I’ll stop by one more time before I head north. We’ll talk again then. Okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

Lucia followed Scarlett to see her off.

As she watched Scarlett climb into the carriage, Lucia felt nervous.

There was something she had been wanting to ask Scarlett ever since she saw her.

“Well, there…!”

Lucia finally gave in to her nervousness and grabbed Scarlett.

“By any chance… is Herwin sick?”

Scarlett’s eyebrows knit together. She turned around and stared at Lucia.

Lucia stammered, unable to make eye contact with Scarlett.

“Uh, I saw him briefly yesterday, and he seemed a little off…I think he had a fever, too…I was wondering if you could tell me what happened…….”

“Herwin is lying in bed now.”

Lucia’s head snapped up as soon as she heard Scarlett’s words.

The mask she was wearing had fallen off. Her desperate face still showed her love for Herwin.

“What do you mean lying in bed? Is he sick? He’s never been sick before……!”

“Now, now, now, calm down.”

Lucia, who unknowingly grabbed Scarlett’s arm, belatedly came to her senses.

Scarlett smiled inwardly and patted Lucia on the back.

“He came in late yesterday with a fever. The doctor says it’s cold, and her fever is much lower than it was yesterday, but he should still get some rest. Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as you think.”

“Fever…….”

For some reason, his temperature seemed hotter than usual, and it bothered Lucia that she’d left such a sick man outside all day and rushed into the house.

“Self-inflicted, I suppose. He wasn’t feeling well before that.”

“You mean he hadn’t been feeling well before?”

“Yeah. Jerome says he’s been skipping meals and drinking all week. It was to the point of not getting drunk.”

A week ago would have coincided with the night of Christine’s party.

What could have happened to make someone who didn’t even touch alcohol drink so much?

Lucia was worried about Herwin. She wanted to see how he was doing.

As Lucia pursed her lips and clenched her fists, Scarlett spoke up.

“If you’re worried, why don’t you go check on Herwin?”

“……me?”

“Yeah. I’m sure Herwin would cheer up a bit if he saw you.”

Lucia’s eyes were shaking. There was a conflict between the desire to go and the reason not to go.

After a moment of silence, Lucia lifted her head.

“Yes, I’ll go. I’ll get ready as soon as I can.”

“Okay, I’ll be waiting.”

Scarlett gave a small smile as she watched Lucia hurry back into the mansion.

“That’s a relief.”

It’s too early for Herwin to give up everything. It’s obvious that they like each other, and Scarlett can’t let it go.

Even though Lucia might have a fiancé now….…

“It’s not a marriage, it’s an engagement.”

Divorce is quite common in aristocratic society, so nothing to worry about what others think.

In the first place, if someone were talking about Lucia and Herwin, Scarlett had no intention of staying still.

“Herwin will be surprised.”

She couldn’t even imagine what Herwin’s reaction would be to Lucia.

Scarlett was still trying to figure out what to do with her son when she spotted Lucia, who had just changed out of her dress.

“You’ve been waiting a long time!”

Scarlett hummed to herself as Lucia looked even more beautiful.

“No, I didn’t wait that long. Now, shall we go?”