~Chapter 26~
Penelope wished she could scold Marco herself for messing with Raphaella—if only she were healthy.
Or at least tell her mother or older brother about it.
But officially, she was only allowed to meet her mother, brother, personal maid, and medical staff.
She couldn’t tell anyone about this.
“If only I weren’t sick, I would’ve put Marco in his place already for bothering Rafi.”
Instead, she decided to befriend Raphaella, who, like her, had no one but her mother and was always lonely.
“Mother always takes a break or runs errands around this time, so she won’t come in.”
So she told Raphaella it was okay to come visit her around this time anytime.
“…But our meeting is a secret, Rafi.”
She held out her pinky finger to Raphaella—to make a promise.
Raphaella mimicked her gesture, and Penelope hooked her pinky with Raphaella’s.
It surprised Penelope how naturally she felt attached to her niece, who looked exactly like her difficult older brother.
From then on, they met secretly whenever they could and built a hidden friendship.
Raphaella would visit whenever Leah wasn’t around—but never once did she make Penelope sicker.
The Duchess Dowager’s worries had been pointless.
If anything, Raphaella helped Penelope shake off her gloom, bringing back joy and life she’d lost.
Spending time with her niece through the winter, Penelope noticed something.
The dresses and accessories Raphaella wore used to be her own childhood items.
“Oh my gosh, I can’t believe my youngest aunt is this petty!”
If Mother were still managing the household, she would’ve ordered new clothes for her suddenly discovered granddaughter.
“You don’t just give hand-me-downs to a noble lady of Blumhardt!”
Being with Raphaella made Penelope want to live again.
Not just for her mother, but because she wanted to protect her niece.
“…I don’t want to die like this.”
She wanted to live a long, long time with her mother and Raphaella.
Spring arrived, and as expected, Penelope couldn’t attend the Day of Rest Festival.
But thinking that Raphaella would come back and tell her about it gave her comfort.
She wanted to see Raphaella the day after the festival, but a healer from a foreign country was visiting, so she couldn’t.
The healer was awful and even ended up spouting nonsense about her being cursed, so they kicked him out.
This time, she’d been a little hopeful, so it hurt more.
“…Mother must’ve been even more disappointed.”
A few days later, Raphaella showed up looking downcast.
When Penelope asked what was wrong, Raphaella just shook her head without saying anything.
Then today, Raphaella entered the room with messy hair, bruises all over, and disheveled clothes.
Penelope was so shocked she jumped out of bed.
Usually too weak to even get out of bed, she couldn’t just sit there seeing her niece like that.
Using all her strength, she walked over to Raphaella.
As soon as she asked what happened, Raphaella burst into tears, biting her lip.
Penelope knelt down, hugged her, and patted her back until she calmed down.
“What in the world happened to make her cry like this…”
Once Raphaella calmed down, she quietly told Penelope what had happened.
“You did well, Rafi. It’s okay now.”
After hearing everything, Penelope treated Raphaella’s wounds and fixed her clothes.
She even brushed out her messy hair.
Then she laid Raphaella down on her bed.
“Rafi, don’t worry. Stay here with me until your mom comes.”
“…Can I really?”
“Of course. I’ll be on your side no matter what. Don’t worry about a thing—not about yourself or your mom.”
“Really?”
“Really. So just relax, okay?”
Raphaella seemed to relax after hearing that—or maybe she was just too tired from crying—and started to doze off.
Penelope lay beside her, gently patting her chest as she drifted to sleep.
“This isn’t something I can let go. I need to tell Mother everything.”
Later, the Duchess Dowager came into Penelope’s room after having a nap, thanks to her daughter’s suggestion and a calming tea.
She was shocked to see her granddaughter sleeping beside Penelope.
Penelope held her finger to her lips, signaling for silence, then pointed to the sitting room.
Leaning on her mother, she quietly left the bedroom and closed the door.
She sat down in the sitting room, took a deep breath, and told her mother everything—how she started meeting Raphaella, and what led to today’s situation.
Meanwhile, in the mansion’s main hall, Penelope’s youngest aunt was throwing a tantrum at Leah.
—
Johann and Leah followed the Duchess Dowager into Penelope’s bedroom.
It was dim inside, and Leah looked down at her daughter Raphaella, who was sleeping with puffy eyes, beside Penelope.
Seeing her daughter like that made her choke up.
“I can’t cry right now.”
She tried hard to hold back her tears and watched as Johann gently picked Raphaella up.
She bowed slightly to the Duchess Dowager and quietly left the room.
Johann came out a little later after talking with Isabella for a bit.
He closed the door quietly and walked down to the third floor with Leah.
Looking at the sleeping Raphaella, Leah felt filled with guilt and sorrow.
“If I cry now, I don’t think I’ll be able to stop.”
Back in the room, Johann helped her lay Raphaella in bed.
She tucked her daughter in and gently stroked her swollen eyes.
“She must’ve had such a hard time to cry this much…”
“…Sniff.”
She couldn’t hold it in any longer and ran out of the room.
Johann followed her.
She covered her mouth, afraid that her crying might wake
Raphaella.
“…”
Johann stayed quietly beside her as she sobbed.
“…It’s my fault. I was too careless and stupid. That’s why I didn’t know Raphaella was being bullied.”
Leah sat down, leaning against the wall, and buried her face in her knees.
“She must’ve only had me to rely on here, and she couldn’t even tell me…”
“…I was so inattentive.”
“…I should’ve paid more attention.”
“…”
“I came here to protect her…”
She stood up, brushing off her clothes.
“She ended up with such an unworthy mom…”
Her throat tightened, and she couldn’t
finish her sentence.
“…I should’ve done better. Cared more.”
Johann watched her tear up again, and it tugged at his heart.
He felt like he had to do something—pat her on the back or say it wasn’t her fault.
“…Mom? Mom?”
Then they heard Raphaella’s small voice from the bedroom.
As soon as Leah heard her, she wiped her face roughly and rushed back in.
Raphaella, with swollen eyes, kept calling for her mom.
“Rafi!”
Leah held her daughter tightly, feeling terrible and sorry.
“Are you okay, Rafi?”
“Yeah, I’m okay, Mom.”
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry I didn’t know anything.”
“…It’s okay.”
Leah stroked Raphaella’s face, apologizing again and again.
Seeing her mom cry, Raphaella started crying again too.
Johann could only watch the mother and daughter cry in each other’s arms.
I don’t remember anything about them…
“…So why does my chest ache like this?”
Even if his mind didn’t remember, maybe his body did.
It was a strange, unfamiLeahr feeling.
Once things calmed down, Leah gently wiped Raphaella’s face with a handkerchief.
“…Raphaella.”
Johann, who had stayed close the whole time, carefully stepped forward.
Thinking she might get scolded, Raphaella clung to her mother’s clothes.
“No need to be scared. You didn’t do anything wrong today. If anyone deserves scolding, it’s me.”
Raphaella tilted her head.
“…Why would you get scolded?”
“Because I’m your father, and I couldn’t protect you.”
He looked into her eyes.
Her emerald eyes, still wet with tears, stared back at him.
It made his throat tighten.
“…Raphaella, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you.”
Leah was surprised by how sincerely Johann apologized.
She had hoped he would eventually open his heart to Raphaella, but she didn’t expect this situation to be the turning point.
Raphaella fidgeted, then grabbed one of his fingers.
“…I’ll accept your apology.”
“Thank you. I promise I’ll never let anything threaten you in the Blumhardt household again.”
Johann felt the warmth from Raphaella’s tiny hand around his thumb as he made his vow.
