CHAPTER 76………………..
If a passerby had seen her, they would have stared—Leah’s appearance was a complete mess.
But Linaria, who didn’t even blink as if she didn’t care, spoke calmly.
“No matter if it’s a marriage between families, he’ll still be the family you’ll live with for the rest of your life. So say that you want to marry a man who will at least cherish you and love you.”
“……”
“Shouldn’t you at least be with someone who will love you as much as you love yourself?”
“But it’s not as easy as it sounds. If I break the family’s promise first, what kind of disadvantage might…”
“Ah, so what really bothers you is not that Young Lord Russell’s heart has turned away, but that you’ll suffer the consequences of breaking the agreement. If you want, I can help you.”
“You, my lady?”
Leah was startled by such an unexpected statement.
“Even without a contract holder, the fact that I’m Father’s daughter won’t change. That’s something I can easily take care of.”
Linaria smiled as she said this. It was a reassuring smile.
“Oh dear, my handkerchief’s a mess now.”
At that moment, Leah’s face flushed red.
Seeing the handkerchief stained with her makeup sent a wave of shame through her.
And then, because of what Linaria did next, her cheeks burned for a different reason.
Linaria took off her outer coat and draped it over Leah’s shoulders.
“It’s not much of a replacement, but wear this instead.”
Leah stared blankly at Linaria, who only spoke to her with such kindness, clutching the coat tightly in her hands.
Alicia only returned much later, after being tormented by Julia.
Her face was full of exhaustion as she looked at the young ladies clustered together.
‘Still, I should finish things properly.’
Trying to resume leading the gathering with as normal an expression as she could muster, Alicia froze.
‘…What on earth?’
In the short time she’d been away, Linaria had become the center of the group.
Alicia, quick to notice, hurried over.
“Ladies, there’s been some unpleasantness today. Lady Obel, this was your first gathering, wasn’t it? You must have been very shocked.”
She cast a sidelong glare at Linaria.
“To prevent something like this from happening again, we should all be a little more careful when speaking of others.”
It was as good as saying Linaria was the cause of the mess.
“Miss Leah must have felt very uncomfortable as well.”
Alicia fully expected the blame to fall on Linaria.
But it didn’t.
Leah shook her head easily.
“No, I’m fine.”
“What?”
That couldn’t be true.
“Thanks to Lady Obel, I avoided a disaster. If I’d only found out after marriage, it would’ve been almost impossible to part ways then.”
Come to think of it, Leah’s face—tear-streaked and messy when she had left—was now clean and composed.
“I know you probably spoke without realizing it, but I’m grateful. Lady Obel. Ah—no, you said I could call you Linaria.”
“Of course.”
“…I see.”
Alicia gave a reluctant agreement.
She had no idea what had happened in her absence.
Unable to grasp the situation, Alicia decided to send everyone home for now.
For some reason, the atmosphere was cheerful and warm—except around her.
When Alicia and the other young ladies stepped outside, they encountered an unexpected visitor.
“Lord Ricardo!”
Startled, Alicia called his name and rushed toward him.
“You must have come after hearing the news.”
Her cheeks were faintly flushed as she addressed him.
“Thank you for introducing us to Lady Obel before anyone else. I almost regret not having met such a wonderful person sooner. Will you be staying long, or just for a short while?”
She could feel the envious gazes stabbing into her back.
“This is perfect timing! Everyone was just leaving. Let me show you inside.”
She was about to smile triumphantly when—
“Linaria.”
Ricardo called for Linaria.
Then he strode straight toward her.
“I came to take you home.”
“Me?”
Linaria, just as startled, couldn’t hide her brief confusion.
“You’re not familiar with the area.”
“…But surely the coachman is.”
Linaria murmured under her breath, so quietly only Ricardo could hear.
Though he certainly caught her words, Ricardo’s face betrayed nothing, as if he hadn’t.
It was Alicia who broke into the stiff silence between the siblings.
“Lady Obel! I truly enjoyed today. To build on our friendship, I’d love to visit you sometime. Would that be all right?”
Her motive was obvious: to see Ricardo.
And with others watching, she calculated that Linaria couldn’t refuse outright.
“Of course.”
Linaria nodded without hesitation.
Then she turned to the other ladies.
“Thank you for welcoming me today. Please come visit sometime as well—together with Lady Fletcher.”
It was her way of making clear she wouldn’t play the stepping-stone for Alicia to reach Ricardo.
Normally, the others might have reacted coolly. But today was different.
“Yes! Of course!”
“See you next time!”
They truly welcomed Linaria’s invitation.
Leaving behind their cheerful farewells, Linaria took Ricardo’s escort and boarded the carriage.
Kaath, quick to read the mood, went up to the driver’s seat, leaving Linaria trapped alone with Ricardo inside.
As the carriage started moving, Linaria turned to the passing scenery.
Then she broke the suffocating silence.
“There’s no way you were worried I’d get lost. So why did you come?”
“The butler advised me it was the right thing to do—for your first gathering.”
The same man who used busyness as an excuse to avoid showing his face—yet came just because of the butler’s words?
Linaria tried to gauge what scheme Ricardo was hiding.
And then—
“She’s my birth mother.”
“…What?”
“The butler. She’s my mother.”
Ricardo was originally from a collateral branch, but awakened as a Grandmaster and was adopted into House Obel.
So of course, he had a birth mother and father somewhere.
But to think his mother had been right nearby all along—Linaria had never even guessed.
“Does Father know?”
“He does.”
“I had no idea.”
“It’s not something to go talking about.”
Ricardo spoke curtly.
“I’ll be careful too. Ah, that reminds me—I met some good people today, thanks to her. I think my time here will be enjoyable.”
“If you want to thank someone, thank the butler. She’s the one who went through the trouble of sorting your letters.”
“Oh, she did.”
It didn’t seem like a lie.
‘So that’s how it is…’
Linaria had assumed Ricardo deliberately chose only troublesome invitations to toy with her—but apparently, there was someone else behind it.
‘If Father had thought she had any ulterior motives, he never would have kept her near Ricardo.’
Pushing aside her brief suspicion of the butler, Linaria switched topics.
“By the way, did you know Lord Brimstone sent me a letter?”
“…August did?”
“You call him by name. You must be close.”
“Not really.”
If August had overheard this, he would’ve been thrilled and even more persistent.
Linaria thought so fleetingly.
“He’s just a good man, that’s all.”
“Brother August would love to hear you say that.”
This time she voiced her thoughts plainly.
But Ricardo’s reaction was strange.
He stared at her as though she’d said something forbidden.
“Did I just say something odd?”
Had she accidentally spoken the very words that would encourage August’s persistence?
“No.”
Ricardo’s face was more serious than necessary.
Anyone else would have been embarrassed into silence. But not Linaria.
“Anyway, he asked me how you were doing. But honestly, I don’t recall us ever having a proper conversation to even know that. What should I tell him?”
“……”
But instead of an answer, what came back was another question.
“…You must be close with August.”
The exact same question Linaria had just asked him.
