<Chapter 23>
While Alfie was in the neighboring village…
The grandmother who had come to the duke’s residence looking for him had to turn back with a lonely expression.
Lucien, without realizing it, stepped forward to stop her.
“Ma’am, if it’s not too much trouble… would you mind coming in for a moment?”
The woman paused, then slowly shook her head.
“How could I? That child isn’t even here. I’ll just go back.”
As she turned away once more, Lucien couldn’t simply stand and watch.
Because Alfie had said his grandmother surely hated him…
But there wasn’t even the slightest hint of anger or hatred on her face when she cautiously asked about him—only deep concern.
Lucien tried desperately to think of something to make her stay.
“You know, the butler is teaching me how to study! So…”
The hurried explanation seemed to catch the woman’s interest. She turned back to Lucien.
“If you don’t mind, I’d love to tell you stories about him!”
The elderly lady listened to Lucien’s stories about Alfie with great delight.
As the afternoon wore on, she stood up, saying she needed to attend Mass. Thankfully, the nanny kindly prepared a small carriage for her.
“Um… Ma’am. If it’s not too much trouble, may I come along as well?”
“How could I refuse when I’m even borrowing a carriage? If you have business in town, come with me.”
“No! It’s not that.”
Lucien looked up at her nervously and spoke carefully.
“I… I wanted to pray too.”
She worried the lady might not allow a child she barely knew to tag along.
Though it had been by chance, Lucien had come into possession of that precious pendant. So she very much wanted to take part in the memorial service for Alfie’s mother.
She also wanted to pray that the butler would return home soon.
“There’s no reason you can’t. In fact, I’m grateful.”
Lucien quickly bowed in gratitude, asked the nanny’s permission to go out, and climbed into the carriage with her.
After Mass ended, the woman’s family, including Carter, gathered in front of the chapel. When they asked where she had been all morning, she said nothing and headed straight to her daughter’s grave.
Lucien stayed behind. She didn’t want to intrude on the family’s private moment of mourning.
Sitting by a sunlit window, Lucien wondered when Alfie would return to the estate.
‘I hope he doesn’t take too long.’
At that moment, someone opened the chapel door, and Lucien turned to look.
It was a mother and child who seemed very close.
Behind them came the duke’s carriage driver.
The very one who usually handled Alfie’s carriage!
Lucien jumped up and hurriedly asked if Alfie had returned.
“If you mean the butler, he’s in the carriage right now.”
Lucien rushed outside the chapel.
But the slightly open carriage door revealed no one inside.
Yet she instinctively knew where Alfie must have gone.
‘Maybe… maybe his mother really did hear my prayer!’
Lucien dashed off toward the grave, not realizing someone was coming from the opposite direction.
Thud!
She collided with someone and fell backward from the impact. But more than the pain, what shocked her was that she’d lost her grip on the precious pendant.
‘I should’ve kept it in my pocket!’
She regretted it just like Alfie had before—and quickly looked up.
The pendant, having rolled along the rounded edge of the stone path, came to a stop after bumping gently against someone’s foot.
“Ah!”
Lucien let out a small gasp as she raised her head to see who she had run into.
It was Alfie.
“This is…”
He was sitting on the ground, staring at the pendant that had touched his fingertips—as if he were seeing a ghost, blinking in disbelief.
“…Is this a dream?”
“It’s not a dream!”
Since he couldn’t bring himself to pick it up, Lucien picked up the pendant instead, wiped the dirt off with her sleeve, and gently offered it to him on both palms.
“It looks like the pendant has found its way back to you!”
Lucien decided not to mention how it had ended up with her, and instead cried out cheerfully. Alfie, still dazed, looked up at her.
“How?”
He asked, but Lucien couldn’t answer that question either. She simply shrugged.
“I don’t know.”
Then she added,
“But for now, I think you should wear it around your neck. Or at least keep it in your pocket.”
With trembling hands, Alfie took the pendant and chain from Lucien.
As he slipped the long chain over his head and the pendant came to rest on his chest, it swung as if delighted to be back in its rightful place.
At least, that’s how it looked to Lucien.
“Now you can keep your promise, right?”
Just then, a long shadow fell over them.
Alfie looked up first, and a flicker of fear passed through his eyes.
The person approaching from behind was his grandmother.
Alfie shut his eyes tightly and turned his head away, as if bracing himself for harsh words.
“Are you hurt?”
But what came instead was a soft, worried voice.
Lucien simply watched as Alfie blinked in genuine surprise.
“Where are you hurt? Hm?”
Alfie gave a small shake of his head. He couldn’t seem to find any words.
“I’m so glad to hear that.”
Her wrinkled hand rested gently atop his pale hair.
As she stroked him slowly, Alfie bit his lip in pain. Words rose to his throat but burned too much to speak.
“I… I was wrong.”
That one sentence stabbed into his heart like a blade. It was his admission—his belief that he was the one who killed his mother.
“Oh, dear.”
The old woman quickly cupped Alfie’s face with both hands, as if to shield him from something terrible.
“Don’t say that!”
Even as she scolded him, Alfie shook his head desperately.
He didn’t believe he deserved such kindness.
In truth, no one in the world condemned Alfie as much as he himself did.
“You did nothing wrong.”
“But… my mother, she…”
“She protected you to the very end. Isn’t that something to be proud of?”
Even her voice began to tremble slightly—with grief for her daughter and guilt for neglecting her grandson for so long.
“I heard how good you are at your job. That child told me everything. You can’t imagine how proud I felt.”
She then gently helped Alfie to his feet.
As he stood, unsteady on his feet, the pendant Lucien had returned to him swayed over his chest.
“…This is…”
“My mother asked me to return it to you,” Lucien said. “I’m sorry it took so long. I don’t even know how to begin apologizing.”
“I should be the one to apologize. She entrusted it to you, didn’t she?”
The grandmother brought the pendant to her cheek and gently touched it.
“That must’ve meant she was asking you to take care of him. And yet I didn’t care for you properly all those years… I’m sorry.”
“No.”
Alfie quickly took off the pendant and tried to return it.
“This was all my fault for running away! I promised myself I’d never come back here…”
“Thank you.”
“What?”
“It takes great courage to return to a place you swore never to return to. Thank you, Alfie.”
She gently pushed the pendant back into his hands.
“And now, it’s time I pass this on to you.”
Alfie looked down at the pendant in his hands, hesitant.
“I’m not sure I deserve it.”
“You’re my daughter’s only son. That’s more than enough. But if you still don’t believe it, then let’s go ask her.”
“Huh?”
“I mean, let’s go ask my daughter. She’s right here, after all.”
“W-what?! That…!”
Alfie didn’t resist as she gently pulled him by the arm, though he stood frozen.
It wasn’t until Lucien stood up cheerfully and gave him a push on the back that he began walking.
“Go on.”
“…Miss Lucien.”
“You’ve missed her for a long time, haven’t you?”
With a deep sigh, Alfie finally gave in and followed his grandmother.
Lucien watched from a short distance as he went to visit his mother’s grave.
“Where do you think you’re going?!”
For a moment, Carter the stable keeper shouted in surprise upon seeing Alfie. But that was quickly resolved when the grandmother smacked him on the back of the head.
“How dare you say that to your nephew, you scoundrel!”
“Mother!”
“Apologize to my precious grandson, right now!”
With a face like he’d just swallowed manure, Carter had no choice but to apologize.
And at last, Alfie stood before his mother.
Lucien felt as though she might cry.
