Episode 21
***
“……Ha.”
Ranié barely managed to lift her body and turned her gaze toward the mirror. The dark circles under her eyes and the lifeless look on her face were miserable. She couldn’t let Lilia see her like this, so she splashed cold water on her head.
After finishing her shower, she went out to the living room, where Hilde was sitting alone, sipping a warm cup of tea.
“……Grandmother.”
“Are you feeling better? You collapsed at Mrs. Grewell’s house, so I asked the village chief for help and brought you here.”
“I’m fine. I’m sorry for worrying you.”
Sitting across from her, Ranié glanced around for a moment before asking,
“……Where’s Lilia?”
“She’s sleeping in my room. She cried for a long time before finally falling asleep, and she hasn’t woken up since. I suppose she’s mentally exhausted at such a young age.”
That was for the best. She hadn’t yet figured out how to talk to Lilia.
“……She said she wanted me to look after Lilia.”
“…….”
“It looks like she left the child behind.”
Celine had abandoned Lilia.
Lilia had been abandoned by Celine.
It was something she neither expected nor wanted to believe. The whole thing felt unreal. Like a nightmare.
Just as suffocating silence filled the air, the door clicked open. Lilia appeared. Ranié slowly lifted her gaze. The child’s eyes were swollen and red from crying.
“……Where’s Mom?”
Her once-clear voice was now hoarse and cracked from crying so much. Ranié bit the inside of her cheek, walked over, and knelt down in front of her. When she took the child’s hands, she could feel them trembling slightly.
She knew better than anyone how much Lilia adored her mother. She was such a good girl—never once complaining about food, never making trouble. She’d always been by her side; how could she not know?
That made it all the harder to speak the truth. She didn’t want the child to realize that her beloved mother had abandoned her.
Ranié forced a smile.
“Lilia, your mom had something urgent come up and had to go somewhere for a few days. She said she’d leave you with your aunt, but your aunt was busy and forgot to tell you. I’m sorry for not saying it sooner.”
“……Where did she go?”
“Well… it’s a little far. She had to take a ship, so it might take some time. Let’s eat well and sleep well while we wait for her, okay?”
“…….”
“If you keep crying like that, your mom will be sad when she comes back.”
She knew lying wasn’t the answer. But she couldn’t bring herself to tell a child the truth.
Just until the child calmed down a little.
Just until she was a little older.
She’d keep it secret until then.
But Ranié failed to realize one thing—children sometimes notice more than adults do.
After that day, Lilia shut herself in her room. She barely ate and often threw tantrums.
“I said I don’t want to eat!”
Crash! The plate fell to the floor and shattered into pieces. It happened as she refused the food Hilde brought her. Hearing the noise, Ranié rushed in, stepping past the mess to reach the girl. Lilia’s face had gone pale.
“Lilia, are you hurt anywhere? Let me see.”
“I-I’m sorry…”
“That’s okay. I break plates all the time too. But eating is good, right? That’s how you’ll grow tall and strong.”
While Ranié cleaned up the broken pieces, Lilia’s gaze stayed fixed on the floor. Her face was thinner, her spirit dimmed. Since Celine left, the child had lost her spark.
Lilia cried every dawn. She somehow managed to fall asleep at night, but bad dreams would wake her in tears.
Ranié, normally a deep sleeper, made herself sleep lightly so she could hear the crying right away. As soon as Lilia began sobbing, she would go to her and comfort her until the crying faded and the child’s quiet breathing returned.
Lilia was a good child. And a good child listens to her guardian, which also means she’s sensitive to their feelings.
‘……Maybe Lilia already knows. That Celine isn’t coming back.’
Ranié swallowed the lump rising in her throat and held the sleeping child tightly.
After reading the true ending in her previous life, she’d seen the reviews. Most comments said Celine was pitiful. Looking back at her life, she could see why people said that.
But she thought differently. The unluckiest one in that story wasn’t Celine or the male lead, Kaen—it was Lilia.
The child had simply suffered between two people unfit to be parents.
As she gently wiped the tear-streaked cheeks, Ranié closed her eyes.
‘……I won’t leave you alone. Ever.’
A few more days passed. Naturally, Celine didn’t return.
Lilia spent each day listlessly staring out the window, waiting for her mother.
The sight was so heartbreaking that Hilde often had to wipe away her tears. Ranié tried to cheer Lilia up by staying close and chatting, but it was useless.
Time passed meaninglessly until one day—Ranié was out working, and while Hilde dozed off for a moment, the child disappeared. When they realized she was gone, both turned pale and frantically searched every corner of the house.
“Lilia! Where are you?!”
They searched every possible hiding spot, but not a strand of her golden hair was in sight. Ranié stood frozen for a moment, then, with a sinking feeling, rushed to the neighboring house.
The door, usually shut tight, stood wide open. Inside, Lilia was packing her small bag with a few clothes and daily necessities.
Relieved, Ranié approached her.
“Lilia, what are you doing here? We’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
“……I’m going to find Mom.”
“…….”
“Mom must be lost. That’s why she can’t come home.”
“Lilia.”
“I’ll go meet her halfway. Then she’ll come back sooner.”
Lilia spoke as if she were determined, but her voice trembled. She was holding back tears, because if she cried, she wouldn’t be able to go find her mother.
“Lilia……”
Ranié pulled her into a tight embrace. The child didn’t resist, melting into the warmth of her arms. The scent was different from her mother’s, but it was comforting. That difference made her cry.
“Did… did Mom, hic, abandon me? Does Lilia, sob, not matter anymore…?”
Lilia was more perceptive than other children her age.
In books, there were always moms, dads, and children—but she had no dad. Her mom sometimes cried in secret. The neighbor “aunt” loved her, but often looked at her with a worried face.
Growing up in such an environment, it was only natural that she became so perceptive.
“So… now I don’t have a dad or a mom anymore…?”
A child without parents. Ranié knew too well how painful that was—because she herself had grown up without them.
Now, the villagers treated her kindly, but it hadn’t always been that way. When she was young, people had often clicked their tongues and looked at her disapprovingly. She remembered how bitter that felt.
“Lilia, that’s not true. You’re so precious.”
“…….”
“I mean it. You’re the most precious person in the whole world. I’m certain of that.”
Those were words Celine should have said. It should have been her holding the child right now.
If she had taken the child with her, Ranié wouldn’t have hated her. Even if she died young from illness, at least she would have tried to take responsibility for her child.
But instead, she abandoned her.
“……Then why did she leave me?”
“…….”
“Why did Dad and Mom both leave Lilia…?”
“Lilia, that’s not it. They didn’t leave you…”
If not abandoned, then what? There was no better way to explain it. Ranié’s lips trembled before she finally managed to speak.
“……Actually, your mom had her own circumstances. She didn’t abandon you—she just… had no choice. So, for now, things are difficult, but when you grow a little older, she’ll come back.”
“Why didn’t she… hic… take me with her…?”
“That’s a good question. When you grow up, shall we go find her together? No, I’ll find her first and scold her properly. That’s a promise.”
At the mention of scolding her mother, Lilia flinched slightly. No matter how much her mother had hurt her, she didn’t want anyone to scold her. She was that kind of kind child. Ranié clenched her fists, then released them.
She couldn’t heal Lilia’s wound completely. She didn’t have that power. But there was one thing she could do.
Maybe she’d regret it someday. But she made her choice—for Lilia’s sake.
“So until we find your mom, I’ll be your mom. I’ll never leave you alone or let you feel lonely.”
“…….”
“Let’s live together, Lilia.”
“Hic… h-huuh… uwaaaah…”
Lilia nodded and buried her face in her chest. Holding the trembling little body close, Ranié thought of ’s true ending.
She remembered the agony of Lilia’s final moments and made a vow. She would protect the child, so she would never have to face such an empty end.
And so, Ranié Fillet took Lilia Grewell as her daughter.
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