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Deatrice suddenly became curious about the conversation that Lucius and her father had. ‘Did father, who is swaggering proud, apologize to Lucius?’ It was something she could’ve never imagined in the past, but these days, her father had become humbler, so she thought that maybe facing Lucius, he asked for his forgiveness.
‘At that time, you must’ve been very humiliated because I publicly revealed your identity. I’m sorry for what I’d done to you.’ Deatrice tried to think of an apology her father could have said, but she soon laughed. No matter how humbled her father became, he wouldn’t say those words even until he breaths his last.
After all, the fact that Lucius was an illegitimate child was not something the duke made up.
Deatrice was more embarrassed that the unforgettable skit one afternoon was performed in their drawing-room, than the fact that her lover’s true identity was revealed to everyone.
The duke didn’t buy Lucius’ birth mother as what the rumors said, but it was true that the duke himself intended the skit. He wanted to ruin Lucius that he brought her mother to his manor and gathered nobles as witnesses.
That day, Lucius’ birth mother sat on a silk sofa embroidered with floral patterns and spoke in a morose tone. She, however, sounded so rehearsed and theatrical, Deatrice knew right away that she was faking it.
“I was immature. There were times when I easily fell in love. A man promised me marriage, but the proposal was nothing more than the sweet words he used to whisper to my ears. It turned out that he— he already had a wife in Elon! And by the time I realized it, it was already too late. I got pregnant, an appropriate punishment for my immature choices. I accepted my fate and raised the child alone for several years. But after being kicked out of the house, there wasn’t much I could do.” The nobles listening hang on her every word. She continued.
“I had to give up many things as I raised my child, which didn’t fit my status as a noble. But suddenly, six years later, the man appeared again. Then he told me to hand over the child to him. He said that he and his wife were not likely to have children. He told me if I give up all the rights I had related to my child, he will inherit his fortune. At that time, I thought I made the right choice for my child. I did exactly what he said and gave up all my rights.”
She shed tears as she continued to speak.
“The portraits of my child which were sent occasionally ceased one day; it’s like I was forgotten. I got sick from doing too much work, but still, I wanted to see him again before I die. But when I came here, the name of the child and even the name of the man I used to love, all turned out to be lies. It was then when I realized that maybe I would never be able to lay my eyes on my child again.”
Everyone who was sitting in the drawing-room showed their sympathy and surrounded the woman.
“We will find the man for you!”
“Did you say the man was a navy? Do you still have the portrait of the man you received?”
In such chaos, only the duke and his daughter remained quiet.
Deatrice became tired of the gullible faces of those who found interest in the woman’s fake voice of sympathy. She thought that the duke would’ve thought the same, but to think back, he must have been satisfied to see things happening as he planned.
From the day he brought Bella Annis, the Duke said, ‘This lady almost got into great danger because of our carriage. I heard that she came from Hasto. She’s not feeling well, and she even lost everything she had. Please take care of her for the time being.’ From the moment he introduced her to Deatrice, he must have planned everything for the utter destruction of the man his daughter loved.
As soon as Bella Annis went up to fetch a portrait, people began to mention the names of the naval officers, not trying to hide the excitement in their voices.
“Will it be Jonny Brown? I heard he’s living in debauchery.”
“It might be Matucci. I heard that they couldn’t have children.”
“Or perhaps…”
Their conversation stopped when Bella Annis came down. She carefully handed them a small portrait. The first person to receive it was Baroness Carmen Wiles, a socialite who’s famous for having a cool and free-spirited personality.
She received the portrait, thinking that she will recognize the child right away since she has a wide circle of acquaintances. To everyone’s mortification, she soon let out a shriek and threw the portrait away from her. Her face was in utter disbelief.
The portrait also came into Deatrice’s sight. It was a handsome boy with dazzling blonde hair and scarlet eyes.
“Eden?” Bella Annis called the middle name of her son, who came in just in time. Lucius, who returned from horseback riding with other noble young men, frowned slightly as if he was bewildered by the crowd’s gaze. Someone spoke in a hoarse voice.
“No way! That woman must have made things up!”
“But her story was so detailed.”
“But still! There’s no way that Fenry is her son!”
One side was defending Lucius, and the other side was defending Bella Annis.
If Bella Annis hadn’t dropped to her knees and burst into tears while wailing ‘Oh, Eden!’, those defending Lucius would have multiplied. It was the honor of the noble lad that they were willing to defend. Not only that, Lucius had won the hearts of many socialites with his handsome look and pleasant attitude. But when Bella Annis shed tears, people were swayed. She was, after all, a sick woman who was going to die soon. There was no reason for her to lie at all.
“Is it true that your birth mother is Bella Annis?” A woman shouted at Lucius with scorn.
A man beside her quickly reprimanded her for being so vulgar, “Calm down, Mrs. Mackenzie! Fenry won’t know anything. I’d rather ask the count about this…”
But at that moment, bringing up the count was like throwing firewood into the flames. With no one to debunk this rumor, people started to connect pieces of information together against the count and his son, Fenry.
“Come to think of it, the count served in the navy before he received his title.”
“Clearly, the place where he served was near Hasto, the homeland of Mrs. Annis.”
“But the count is currently not in a condition to talk since he’s suffering from fever!”
“The countess will tell us something about it.”
“Did the countess know about all this? Oh, poor soul!”
Lucius glanced at Deatrice in the middle of chaos. When her eyes met his, she felt her blood gone cold. ‘I’m not involved in this. I couldn’t do anything about it.’ She quickly thought of an excuse in her head. Flustered, she can only stay silent.