Chapter 8

Is there a problem if she’s my daughter?

For a moment, I almost asked that question after seeing the strange look in Cain’s eyes.

But I quickly stopped myself.

“…Yes. Is something wrong?”

Now that I thought about it, I had been so focused on signing the contract that I had never actually explained my relationship with Melody.

It seemed Cain had naturally assumed the Saintess candidate was my younger sister.

Well…

I’m still fairly young.

People often misunderstood us.

Melody and I looked so much alike that everyone assumed we were family.

They simply thought we were sisters.

Usually, it wasn’t a problem.

I would just tell them she was my daughter.

But why…

For some reason, the words wouldn’t come out easily.

Cain’s face remained expressionless.

Yet there was something unusual in his eyes.

His calm, dignified gaze looked almost as though someone had just struck him over the head.

I’m probably imagining it.

This was the cold Dragon Duke who was said to have no emotions.

Maybe he would become a doting father later in the original story.

But certainly not now.

I explained again.

“Melody is my daughter.”

“I’m raising her by myself.”

“By yourself?”

“Yes.”

“Where is your husband?”

“Well…”

“I’m actually unmarried…”

“Hah. Unmarried?”

Instead of clearing up the misunderstanding, I seemed to have made it worse.

His eyes shook with emotions I couldn’t even describe.

“Mama?”

Even Melody sensed the strange atmosphere.

She tugged gently on my clothes.

“It’s okay.”

“The adults are just talking.”

“Mm!”

She nodded, apparently satisfied.

Meanwhile, my mind was in full panic.

Oh no.

I knew this pattern well.

The next question would surely be…

“What kind of man abandoned you and left you to raise a child alone?”

What should I say?

This question always put me in a difficult position.

I had been pretending to be a single mother for over a year.

Yet I still hadn’t gotten used to moments like this.

Ahhh… I have to answer something.

I could simply say my husband had abandoned me.

Or that he had died.

But the words refused to leave my lips.

I wasn’t good enough at lying to invent such a story.

Besides…

It feels wrong to make Melody’s real father sound like a terrible person.

The original novel never mentioned him.

I had no idea what kind of person he really was.

Still, I felt guilty.

Maybe I should tell Cain the truth.

The thought crossed my mind.

But I quietly shook my head.

The fact that Melody wasn’t my biological daughter…

But my adopted daughter…

Was a secret shared only between Melody and me.

No matter what, I didn’t want to break the promise I’d made to her.

There had been a long story behind why I chose to become Melody’s mother.

Although I was now a commoner…

I had originally been the adopted daughter of the Marquis of Devorre.

And just like most adopted daughters in novels…

My family hated me.

They locked me up.

Starved me.

Beat me.

Eventually…

Without even a shred of shame, they tried to sell me as the fifth concubine to an old lord living in the countryside.

I met Melody on the very day they informed me of that marriage.

She was a little girl with pink hair…

Crying alone in the rain.

The moment I saw the bruises covering her tiny body…

It felt as though I were looking at my younger self.

Why?

Even I didn’t know.

But it felt like fate.

Maybe it was because of the original novel…

Either way, I’m glad I met her that day.

I immediately treated her wounds.

Then I decided to become her family.

The problem was the Empire’s adoption laws.

They were terribly unfair to adopted daughters.

If someone claiming to be Melody’s biological parents appeared…

I would have no choice but to hand her over.

Even if they were the ones who had abused her.

Then why not simply become her real mother?

Now I knew, thanks to remembering the novel, that the temple had caused those injuries.

But back then…

I believed her biological parents had abused her.

So I made my decision without hesitation.

Fortunately…

Melody and I looked surprisingly alike.

Pretending to be her mother was easy.

No one doubted us.

Not even my own family.

Some people wondered when I’d given birth.

But since there had been long periods when no one had seen me for over a year, no one questioned it very deeply.

After that…

Everything worked out perfectly.

Once everyone believed I was an unmarried mother…

The marriage they had arranged for me immediately fell apart.

Originally, I had planned to run away anyway.

Yahoo!

Even better…

The Marquis’s family finally threw me out.

Without any long legal battle…

I was officially removed from the family register.

It’s all thanks to this little sweetheart.

I looked down at Melody.

All I had wanted was to become her family.

Instead…

The biggest problems of my life disappeared overnight.

Since then…

I had continued living as Melody’s real mother.

So, in conclusion…

I was pretending to be a single mother.

Legally, I was also considered one.

But…

There had never been any terrible man who abandoned me.

After remembering everything, I couldn’t help sighing.

Sigh…

So what am I supposed to say?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t find an answer.

In the end, I did what I always did.

I simply kept my mouth shut.

Then I made the saddest expression I could.

It wasn’t acting.

Because…

I’m genuinely sad.

Just imagining similar situations happening over and over while living in this mansion nearly brought me to tears.

At that moment…

As expected, Cain started asking the question.

“So then… the child’s father—”

Afraid Melody might hear, I gently covered her ears.

Then I looked at Cain with tearful eyes.

“Th-”

“Yes?”

“…Never mind.”

Huh?

This was the first time.

Someone wasn’t asking about Melody’s father.

I didn’t know why.

But I was grateful.

My tears disappeared immediately.

“It’s getting late.”

“I’ll have the servants prepare your room.”

“You should rest.”

“Thank you so much for your consideration!”

Cain gave a slight nod.

Then he quietly left.

Was he always such a fast walker?

The way he hurried away almost looked like someone trying very hard to suppress his anger.

***

That night…

Inside the Duke of Ashelrn’s office.

“We’ve finished investigating Miss Viola as you ordered.”

At Conrad’s report…

The pen that had been moving nonstop finally stopped.

Cain spoke coldly.

“Report.”

“Our investigation shows she doesn’t appear to be a spy.”

“However…”

“She seems to have lived quite a tragic life.”

“What do you mean?”

“She is currently a commoner.”

“But she was originally the adopted daughter of a noble family.”

“It seems the previous Marquis of Devorre brought an orphan from the streets into his household.”

Cain knew exactly who the former Marquis was.

He had once served as the late Imperial Princess’s personal guard.

After becoming a marquis, he retired from service and returned to his territory.

He had been famous for his kindness and honorable reputation.

“The problem began after the former Marquis died.”

“The remaining family revealed their true nature.”

“They abused her severely for years.”

Cain’s hand tightened into a fist without realizing it.

Unaware of his reaction, Conrad continued.

“It seems that’s why she studied pharmacy on her own.”

“The abuse became so severe that even the maids couldn’t bear to watch.”

“They secretly brought her medicinal herbs…”

Conrad continued his report.

The people of the Marquis’s household never allowed the injured young Viola to see the family physician.

The maids pitied her.

They could secretly bring her herbs.

But they knew nothing about medicine.

So…

From a very young age…

Viola had no choice but to study medicinal herbs entirely by herself.

At first she struggled.

Later…

She became skilled enough to treat even the maids.

“How was she expelled from the family?”

“It appears they planned to sell her as a concubine.”

“She finally reached her limit.”

“She revealed that she had secretly given birth to a child.”

“That became the reason they removed her from the family.”

“Hah.”

Cain couldn’t help laughing in disbelief.

“And what was the child’s father doing?”

“At such an important time?”

Conrad answered carefully.

His voice trembled.

“He… disappeared completely.”

“No one knows where he went.”

“He never appeared.”

Crack.

The fountain pen in Cain’s hand snapped cleanly into two pieces.