Chapter 22
Sitting diagonally on the bed, I calmed my feelings and then stood up.
Only then did I notice the birthday cards and gift boxes piled on the console table next to the bed.
“Right, today is my birthday.”
There were many cards and gifts with the names of relatives written on them. Just by looking around, I felt relieved and amazed that I now knew all these names.
Among them, a small light pink box caught my eye. The pattern engraved on the card inserted into the box was clearly that of the Dierne Duke family.
‘Kyle couldn’t have sent this… right?’
When I saw the beautiful blue butterfly pendant inside the box, I immediately knew it was a gift from the Duchess.
I pushed away a faint feeling of disappointment and opened the card.
Dear Lady Ries.
I heard that today is your birthday. Congratulations sincerely.
It has already been more than three weeks since we last talked together.
I am sorry that we missed each other when you visited before because I was busy.
Next week, I will stay at the duke’s mansion for most of the weekdays.
If you are able, please visit. I would like to introduce a new pair of butterflies.
They are children with transparent wings.
She needs someone to talk about hobbies…
Even the Duchess of the world had someone she wanted to share her “fan talk” with.
If I still want to go see Darius occasionally, I should keep a good relationship with the Duchess.
I should visit two weeks later after deciding carefully.
And if I meet Kyle… I should properly apologize, just like I resolved last night.
After spending a while opening gifts and letters, I felt hungry and checked the clock.
It was already past ten in the morning.
‘That’s strange? It’s already past the time Millie usually comes to wake me.’
I skipped morning classes today to rest for my birthday.
But I didn’t plan to skip breakfast.
Maybe they were letting me sleep longer out of consideration?
When I left the room, I saw servants walking quickly along the corridor.
Among them, Millie hurriedly ran toward me and pushed me back into the room.
“What is it, Millie?”
“Miss, you are awake! Your meal will be brought up soon. Let me help you get ready first!”
“What is going on? Everyone looks busy since morning.”
“Ah, n-no! Nothing special!”
There was suspicious energy coming from Millie as she dragged me toward the bathroom.
I held back my laughter and let her do as she wished.
It was obvious they were planning a birthday cake surprise.
Even though they clearly knew it was my birthday, there were no birthday greetings yet. That was proof.
After washing up and eating a light snack, I changed clothes.
“The weather is completely summer today! You can wear something light.”
Millie brought a bright light yellow dress with many decorations.
It was much more lively than the clothes I usually wore.
While concentrating on fixing my clothes, Millie even started braiding my hair into several thin strands.
“Isn’t it too much since I’m not going out anywhere?”
I teased her, even though I knew she was just trying to buy time.
“Ah, Miss. Roses bloomed in the backyard, so we thought lunch would be there today. Like a picnic.”
“Okay.”
I happily played along with the poor acting.
Since I had never had someone work so hard to celebrate my birthday in my past life, I felt very excited.
After hesitating a little, I decided to tell Millie about my condition first.
“Millie. My memory has returned.”
“……What?!”
“It’s thanks to the report you wrote. While reading it, my memories suddenly came back.”
It wasn’t only because of the report, but it was the trigger, so I said it that way.
Millie stopped touching my hair, hugged me tightly, and suddenly burst into tears.
“Ahhh, Miss! This is so good…! If I knew this would happen, I would have written it earlier!”
I hugged Millie back and patted her, because she was happier than I was.
After wiping her tears and calming down, Millie suddenly turned pale.
“Th-then, what about your birthday…?”
“It’s fine. We can have a small celebration, and on the memorial day we can remember mother with the family. Mother wouldn’t be angry about this.”
Millie seemed relieved, thinking the surprise could continue.
After that, while doing my grooming, we talked casually about old stories, and soon it was close to noon.
Millie checked the wall clock and stood me up with a satisfied breath.
“Haah, it’s been a long time since I showed my skills. You are very beautiful, Miss!”
The hair, carefully braided and decorated with small jewels, looked twice as fancy as usual.
“Thank you for your hard work, Millie.”
“Not at all! Shall we go now?”
Walking downstairs with Millie toward the backyard, I began to hear murmuring voices.
There were many voices talking.
I felt a strange sense of discomfort.
Even if my father, brother, and Brant county servants gathered, it should be only around a dozen people. Why was it so noisy?
But I had no time to think further.
As soon as I turned the corner, fireworks suddenly exploded everywhere.
I almost fainted.
“Lady Ries, happy birthday!”
“Congratulations, Miss Brant!”
After Millie’s lead, people’s congratulations and cheers followed.
On the round table in front of me was a large three-layer cake.
Behind it, a long table was filled with delicious food.
The arch gate decorated with flowers and ribbons looked like a small outdoor wedding venue.
I looked at the unfamiliar people applauding and tried to calm my pounding heart.
There were about ten to twenty girls around my age.
This was more of a party than I expected.
I thought it would be a quiet meal with family and a few servants.
“Th-thank you.”
While I was frozen in embarrassment, my father gently pulled me closer.
“…Did you plan this surprise party, Dad?”
“Yes. I sent invitations to all the families nearby who have daughters your age.”
“…Thank you.”
He looked very satisfied while smiling and winking.
So this was why Millie dressed me so carefully.
She had another purpose besides buying time.
It was not as grand as Darius’s birthday banquet, but still a rich tea party scale.
Still, many people gathered to celebrate the birthday of a stranger like me.
My older brother standing in the corner walked to the table and lit the big candle on top of the cake.
After I blew out the candle, another round of applause followed.
When the applause quieted down, everyone looked at me silently, waiting for my speech.
I quickly put on my social smile mask from my past life.
“I am truly honored that so many people gathered to celebrate my birthday. Thank you very much. Please eat, drink, and enjoy yourselves.”
After receiving cheers and congratulations for a long time, I finally sat in the seat of honor at the long table.
The girls sitting around the table one by one gave congratulatory speeches and introduced themselves.
Most looked like early to mid teens.
Probably trained as noble children, they acted more mature than their age.
This sudden surprise party was unexpected, but I thought I should try making friends since the chance came.
They came to celebrate someone they didn’t even know, so they must be kind people.
At that moment, the young lady sitting next to me tapped my arm.
“It’s been a long time, Lady Ries.”
When I turned my head, a girl wearing particularly refined and mature clothes smiled at me.
When I saw her reddish hair and hazel eyes, her identity came out from my memory.
“……Lady Kien.”
“You remember me. I’m happy.”
I also made a fake smile and returned it to her.
Kien Lastin.
Several years ago, Count Brant invited her to make a friend for Ries.
She was also the girl who said harsh things to the quiet and passive Ries.
Although it might have been because of age or personality differences, I didn’t feel positive emotions toward her.
It was surprising that Kien was sitting here since she probably also disliked me.
Maybe she came because she couldn’t ignore the invitation.
After the cake cutting and gift presentation ceremony were finished, free conversation began.
Father and brother left to let the children talk freely.
Servants also stepped away.
Among the young ladies, some already started chatting because they knew each other.
I only knew Kien, so I quietly stuffed cake into my mouth and listened to their conversation.
“Miss, a guest has arrived.”
Millie announced an unexpected visitor while I was feeling a bitter sense of emptiness.
