Chapter – 03
Freya Hayworth.
Commonly known as the Grand Lady of Hayworth.
Who was she?
The only wife of the late Marquis Hayworth, and the woman who had the great Duke Seymour Somerset as her son-in-law.
She was, without a doubt, the true power behind the current House of Hayworth.
And she was the one who raised Seymour Somerset.
The late Marquis Hayworth had been born with a frail constitution.
As a result, he had only one child, a daughter named Rose, whom they had struggled to conceive.
Fortunately, however, although he had been lacking in health, he had a wonderful friend.
That friend was Marquis Graham, the son of the Duke of Somerset.
“Graham, I hear you have two sons. Why don’t you send one of them to the Hayworths? If we marry him to our Rose and have him inherit our family, wouldn’t that be good for both our houses?”
“That sounds like an excellent proposal, Hayworth. Quentin, the eldest, has to become my heir, so I’ll send you the second son. Please take good care of our boy.”
And so, through the enthusiastic agreement of their fathers, a boy was suddenly sent away to the Hayworth household.
That boy was Seymour Graham.
He would later become the son-in-law of the House of Hayworth and, after inheriting the title of Duke of Somerset following an unfortunate accident, become Seymour Hayworth Somerset.
Though he had the blood of the Grahams running through his veins, he was a Hayworth down to his very bones.
He had been raised by the Marquis and Marchioness Hayworth, and he loved their daughter, Rose Hayworth, more than anyone in the world.
That’s why, even after his wife died and he became a complete wreck of a man, they said he was the one person who would always back down before the Grand Lady of Hayworth.
To Seymour, the Grand Lady of Hayworth was his mother-in-law, his mother, and the only person who shared the pain of his loss.
And yet, that very Grand Lady of Hayworth was a patron of Townsend Orphanage.
What’s more, Rowena was going to meet her today!
If everything goes well, meeting Seymour won’t be difficult at all!
This was huge!
When Rowena first had this thought, she couldn’t help but jump up on the spot.
She had discovered that she had been reincarnated into a book, and the orphanage she lived in just happened to be sponsored by the mother-in-law of the story’s mastermind!
I really am lucky!
Yes.
It wasn’t as though the world was determined to make her die.
Come to think of it, Rowena had always been lucky.
While the other children searched through the grass all day long, Rowena could find four-leaf clovers one after another after barely looking through the bushes.
Even when they all secretly stole cookies from the kitchen, Rowena was always the only one who never got caught.
Come to think of it, having the memories of my past life is lucky, too.
Of course, if she were to actually count her luck, she would first have to question whether being reborn as an orphan extra in a book and then being diagnosed with a terminal illness could really be called lucky…
Oh, that’s not important right now!
Counting such trivial things was something not even a pawnbroker would bother doing.
The important thing was that she now had a way to meet Seymour.
Until now, meeting him had seemed completely impossible.
But if the Grand Lady of Hayworth was involved, it didn’t seem quite so hopeless anymore.
Of course… just because I can meet the Grand Lady of Hayworth doesn’t guarantee that I’ll definitely meet Seymour.
Still, having a path to approach him was something.
It was the difference between searching all over the place for an apple tree sapling just to get an apple and simply going to a fruit shop.
A tremendous difference.
Obviously, it was much easier to get an apple by going to a fruit shop and buying one than by hunting around for an apple tree sapling!
But there was one problem.
The fact that a fruit shop existed was great.
It was.
But…
“The Grand Lady of Hayworth had better be in a good mood today.”
“She gave us quite a scolding last time, didn’t she? What was it about again?”
“Miller got caught wiping his nose on his sleeve.”
“Don’t you think she gets scarier with every passing day? The Grand Lady of Hayworth.”
“Please, just let us get through today safely…”
Yes.
That was the problem.
The Grand Lady of Hayworth’s personality is anything but ordinary.
The Grand Lady of Hayworth was an extreme perfectionist.
‘I absolutely cannot stand to see anyone behave inadequately in front of me.’
That was something she said like a habitual refrain.
Put nicely, she was a perfectionist.
Put less nicely, she was eccentric.
As a result, the name of the Grand Lady of Hayworth had gradually become a source of terror among the children of Townsend.
It was only natural that any child who displeased the Grand Lady of Hayworth would return to Townsend that day and receive punishment.
I’d heard that she wasn’t nearly this sharp-tempered until a few years ago.
It seemed that losing her entire family had affected her deeply.
Her husband had died of illness, and not long afterward, the daughter she had raised like the most precious jewel in the world had also died in an unfortunate accident.
And her son-in-law, whom she had raised almost like her own son, had lost his mind over it.
To be perfectly honest, it was almost more remarkable that the aging Grand Lady of Hayworth had managed to remain sane all this time.
But because of that, it was also true that Rowena had no opening to approach her.
Unlike other noblewomen, who would sit around with the children, chat with them, or have snack time together, the Grand Lady of Hayworth usually exchanged only the most formal greetings before sending the children away.
What should I do?
She had been so excited at the thought that she could meet Seymour through the Grand Lady of Hayworth.
But at this rate, she might not even get the chance to speak with her.
“Phew…”
As Rowena let out a worried sigh, the girl beside her, Jenny, poked her cheek.
“What’s wrong, Rowena? Are you nervous? We’re only going to exchange a few greetings and sing some songs before coming back. Relax!”
No. That’s exactly the problem, Jenny.
What’s the point of meeting the Grand Lady of Hayworth if I don’t get a chance to talk to her?!
Despite Jenny’s attempt to comfort her, Rowena’s expression only grew darker.
There’s barely anything about the Grand Lady of Hayworth in the original story.
If she knew something about her, she could at least strike up a conversation.
Or, better yet, if only she had more time.
Then she could have thought of another plan!
But cruelly, the carriage had already come to a stop in front of a magnificent mansion.
“All right, we’ve arrived! Everyone, get off in an orderly line! The headmistress said that anyone who makes a mistake in front of the Grand Lady today will be locked in solitary confinement, so be especially careful!”
At the supervising teacher’s warning, Rowena could see the children flinch one after another.
She was one of them.
Solitary confinement?
Being locked in solitary confinement was considered the most terrifying punishment at Townsend.
It was a tiny, cramped cell where there wasn’t even enough room to properly stretch your legs, and you could vividly hear sewer rats scurrying across the ceiling and beneath the floorboards.
After being locked in there for several hours, it was only natural that the mere first syllable of the words “solitary confinement” would make your knees go weak.
If I make even one little mistake, am I really going to end up locked in there for nothing?
Just thinking about it made Rowena’s face twist into a miserable expression.
But there was nothing she could do.
Rowena steeled herself and climbed out of the carriage.
Every step she took behind the supervising teacher toward her meeting with the Grand Lady of Hayworth felt extraordinarily solemn.
All right.
This isn’t the time to be picky about whether the stew is cold or hot.
If necessary, she would even do a forward roll right in front of the Grand Lady of Hayworth!
And if a forward roll isn’t enough, I’ll do a backward roll!
If a backward roll doesn’t work, I’ll do a cartwheel!!
Whatever it took.
She would perform every trick she knew if it meant getting a chance to speak with the Grand Lady of Hayworth—
“Oh my, are these the children sponsored by the Grand Lady?”
“So the Grand Lady said she was expecting guests for tea today. She must have meant the children!”
“As expected, the Grand Lady truly is an example for everyone.”
…Huh?
Rowena’s solemnly widened eyes involuntarily became round.
This wasn’t the drawing room where she usually met Lady Hayworth.
It was a beautifully maintained garden.
And over there were several elderly noblewomen seated around a tea table.
In other words—
They’re having tea.
Why did they bring us here?
Could it be…?
Just as Rowena was wondering in confusion, the Grand Lady of Hayworth, who was seated at the head of the table, silently lowered her teacup and spoke.
“It seemed a little lonely having only elderly ladies gathered together, so I arranged our tea time to coincide with the children’s visit. If none of you object, why don’t we enjoy some refreshments with the children?”
“Oh my, we’d love that.”
“Come to think of it, it’s been quite some time since I’ve seen my granddaughter.”
“Hehe. Thanks to the Grand Lady, we’ll get to hear children’s voices again after such a long time.”
“Come, everyone. Come sit here. Henry, bring chairs for the children.”
“Yes, my lady.”
At the Grand Lady of Hayworth’s command, the servants moved with perfect coordination and prepared seats for the children.
So, in summary—
We were invited to the Grand Lady’s tea party?
Rowena’s bewildered face immediately brightened.
She had naturally assumed that they would simply exchange greetings and return home as usual.
But now I have a chance to talk to the Grand Lady naturally!
What incredible luck!
