Chapter 9

In noble society, being an unmarried mother was something people looked down on.

For nobles who cared deeply about their reputation, it was a devastating scandal.

Many secretly abandoned their children and hid the truth.

But Viola had never done that.

She has an incredible sense of responsibility.

Still, Cain couldn’t simply admire her.

He couldn’t even imagine how she must have felt when she finally revealed the truth to her family after hiding it all by herself.

How humiliated she must have been.

The nobles would call it disgraceful.

But Cain didn’t think what she had done was wrong.

In fact…

Wasn’t political marriage the truly disgraceful thing?

Marrying strangers for power.

Having children without love…

Cain himself had been born from such a marriage.

And he had never once been proud of his birth.

He suddenly remembered the look in Viola’s eyes.

She looked like someone trying desperately to forget a person she both loved and resented.

Her sadness was heartbreaking.

Cain didn’t know what love felt like.

But he knew it wasn’t an easy emotion.

As someone born with dragon blood…

It was an emotion he had never even been allowed to have.

Everything had happened because she had loved someone.

So he couldn’t blame Viola.

Then why…

Why were his hands trembling so much?

Drop.

Drop.

Ink dripped from his hand onto the report below, staining it black.

“Your Grace?”

“Are you alright?”

“The ink…!”

Conrad asked worriedly.

Cain didn’t even hear him.

After letting out a deep sigh, he quietly asked,

“Why?”

“…Pardon?”

“Why would that man do something like that?”

“I truly don’t understand.”

Before being a father…

Didn’t he even have the responsibility of being a decent human being?

How could he leave a woman like her all alone?

He remembered Viola’s cheerful smile.

He had thought she was simply someone who loved children.

But behind that smile…

She had been carrying the burden of raising a child alone.

He muttered once more.

“How could anyone do something so disgusting?”

The murderous intent hidden within his low voice made even Conrad shiver.

“Y-Your Grace…”

“I don’t think I’m the right person to ask…”

Poor Conrad suddenly felt like crying.

***

At the same time…

Inside the guest room of the Duke’s mansion.

Late that night…

I was in the middle of an unexpected chase.

“You there!”

“Little girl who hasn’t brushed her teeth!”

“Stop running!”

“Uuu!”

“What did Mommy tell you?”

“You have to brush your teeth before bed.”

I finally grabbed Melody by the back of her collar as she tried to escape.

“Hmmph.”

She sighed dramatically, as though life were terribly unfair.

Goodness…

Did she really hate brushing her teeth that much?

She always brushed happily in the morning.

Only nighttime was a battle.

Maybe she was just sleepy.

Still…

There could be no compromise.

Cavities are not negotiable!

After putting my bags on the table, I took out the toothbrush and marched Melody into the bathroom.

“Come on.”

“Open wide.”

“Uuu…”

“Good girl.”

“Brush, brush.”

“Bleh!”

“Hey!”

“Don’t spit it out right away.”

“Swish first, then spit!”

After the exhausting battle known as toothbrushing…

I washed up as well.

By the time we finished, it was already past nine at night.

Finally…

We were ready for bed.

What an unbelievably long day.

I had gone through a pharmacist interview.

Made a contract with Cain.

Even moved all our belongings into the Duke’s mansion.

Honestly…

Without Melody behaving so well…

And without Cain’s consideration…

Even ten bodies wouldn’t have been enough.

“Melody.”

“Shall we go to sleep now?”

“Mm!”

Carrying Melody in my arms, I walked over to the bed.

This was the guest room the servants had shown us earlier.

“This is where you’ll be staying.”

“Guests rarely visit the mansion, so if there’s anything lacking, please let us know.”

The head servant’s words came back to me.

Lacking?

Just giving us a place to sleep was already more than enough.

After all…

I was the one who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

I would have been grateful even for a storage room.

But…

Exactly what part of this room was lacking?

“…Wow.”

“What is all this?”

“Waaah!”

Beneath the soft lighting…

There was a silky blanket that shimmered beautifully.

And a mattress as soft as a cloud.

The moment we saw it…

Both Melody and I jumped onto the bed with sparkling eyes.

“Uuu!”

“Hehe!”

Wow…

It was unbelievably soft.

We rolled around happily on the bed.

It was so large that even when I lay sideways, there was still plenty of room left.

Coming to the Duke’s mansion really was the right choice.

I almost cried with happiness.

Not only was the weekly salary amazing…

Now we even had the perfect bed.

So this is the greatness of House Ashelrn.

How wonderful…

I silently pledged my loyalty to Cain.

I’ll work really hard, Your Grace!

Then…

“Pfft!”

We must have rolled around too enthusiastically.

When I looked up…

Both Melody’s hair and mine had become a complete mess.

Static electricity had puffed Melody’s hair up like a dandelion.

I burst out laughing.

The two of us laughed together for quite a while before finally calming down.

“Now that we’ve had our fun…”

“Let’s sleep.”

“Mm.”

Click.

As soon as I turned off the light…

The bright room became dark.

Lying beside Melody and staring at the unfamiliar ceiling…

It finally felt real.

This would be our home from now on.

Melody blinked quietly.

She seemed overwhelmed too.

She must have a lot on her mind.

On the way here…

I had explained almost everything to Melody.

That Cain would protect her from the temple because she was the Saintess.

And that our lives would be very different from when we lived in Heyron Village.

Thankfully…

Smart little Melody understood everything.

Still…

I felt sorry for her.

She had truly loved our quiet village life.

I gently held her tiny hand.

“Melody.”

“Mm?”

“Let’s both do our best starting tomorrow.”

When I said that softly…

She snuggled into my arms.

Her little body felt warm.

“Mama… uu.”

She didn’t say the words clearly.

But I understood exactly what she meant.

I love you, Mama.

I smiled gently.

“Mmm…”

Before I realized it…

Melody had already fallen asleep.

Her soft breathing filled the room.

***

The next morning…

Knock. Knock.

Someone knocked on the door.

When I opened it…

A new face greeted me.

“Excuse me, Lady Viola.”

“May I come in?”

“Of course.”

I answered calmly.

But inside…

My eyes were shining.

I knew it…

Isn’t he exactly who I thought he was?

Trying not to make it obvious, I quietly studied his face.

Long brown hair tied high.

Thin silver-framed glasses.

He looked incredibly familiar.

Just like one of the supporting characters from the novel.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“My name is Conrad.”

“I serve as His Grace’s aide.”

Wow…

So it really is him.

Once again, it truly felt like I was living inside The Saintess from the Future.

Conrad was one of the novel’s comic relief characters.

He was the poor aide who would suffer forever because the Duke became obsessed with his adopted daughter…

And eventually…

Melody’s very first devoted fan.

In other words…

He was Cain’s closest subordinate.

“His Grace has already explained your situation.”

“May I ask where Miss Melody is—”

“Hng!”

Conrad suddenly covered his own mouth.

Melody, who had been hiding behind my skirt because of the stranger, slowly peeked her head out.

Conrad immediately knelt down to her height.

Then he greeted her gently.

“Hello, Miss Melody.”

“My name is Conrad.”

“Hehe.”

Melody smiled brightly and waved.

Conrad adjusted his glasses before standing up again.

Looking only at his stiff expression…

He almost seemed angry.

Nope.

I know that look.

It’s the expression of an adult desperately trying not to smile too widely because they’re afraid they’ll scare an adorable child.

Melody really is cute.

Understanding exactly how he felt, I rubbed beneath my nose.

I had worked in a kindergarten in my previous life.

I knew that feeling very well.

“Lady Viola.”

“I’ll take you to Young Master Jayden now.”

“Is that alright?”

“Of course.”

Just then…

The maids who would look after Melody arrived.

“Listen carefully to the nice maids, okay?”

“Mm!”

Melody proudly puffed out her chest as though telling me not to worry.

She was secretly a little show-off.

Still…

That made it easier for me to leave with peace of mind.

Following Conrad…

We walked from the guest residence toward the main mansion.

As he explained different parts of the estate…

We continued walking.

“This entire upper floor belongs to Young Master Jayden.”

“What kind of child is he?”

“I thought it might help if I knew him better.”

“Well…”

For the first time, Conrad hesitated before answering.

“Please don’t hesitate.”

“Just tell me.”

“I should apologize in advance.”

“Young Master is…”

“Well…”

“He’s rather…”

“No.”

“To be honest…”

“He’s extremely sensitive.”

“He’s a patient.”

“I understand that much.”

I answered without hesitation.

But Conrad’s face darkened beneath his glasses.

“I’m afraid…”

“He’s much worse than you’re imagining.”

How bad could it be?

The novel had mentioned that he was sensitive.

But it had never gone into much detail.

Less than five minutes later…

I found out exactly what Conrad meant.

“I said I don’t need it!”

“Get out!”

A furious shout echoed through the hallway.

Then—

Something flew straight toward me.

Crash!

A glass flower vase shattered on the floor.

Sharp fragments scattered in every direction.