~Chapter 112~
IF Side Story: What if Catherine followed environment, not blood?
“Huff…!”
Catherine woke from her sleep with a gasp, suddenly sitting up.
It was a ridiculous nightmare.
That her most elegant and beautiful mother—was not her real mother.
‘Yes, that’s impossible.’
She let out a small sigh between her lips. Stretching her arms wide, she got out of bed.
Just then, a maid of Grand Duke Ernest’s household, Sera, entered with breakfast.
“Lady, I brought your breakfast.”
“Thank you, Sera.”
Catherine smiled warmly at her.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Yes. And you, Sera?”
“I did too.”
Sera grinned as she set the dishes on the table.
“How can our Lady look so much like the Grand Duchess?”
“I want to resemble my mother, but everyone says I only look like my father.”
Catherine walked slowly toward the table, grumbling without malice.
“Your face may resemble His Grace, but your aura is different.”
“Aura?”
“You feel like an angel. Gentle and soft.”
She kept chatting as she moved the dishes from the trolley to the table.
“And you treat even the servants politely—just like the Grand Duchess.”
“They’re people working for me. It’s only natural.”
Catherine shyly rubbed her neck.
All her life, she had grown up watching her mother.
Diana el Pereshte, called the Saint of Pereshte, now the Grand Duchess of Ernest.
It was Catherine’s dream to become like her.
“Mmm, as always, our chef’s cooking is the best.”
“Does it suit your taste?”
“Yes. Sera, did you eat breakfast? If not, eat with me.”
“No! How could a servant eat with her master!”
“Come on, why not?”
Catherine placed both hands on Sera’s shoulders and gently forced her to sit beside her.
“My mother always said: every person is precious and dignified.”
The Ernest family was an old noble house.
But unfortunately, their reputation wasn’t perfect.
Every business her father touched ended in failure.
Though she never said it, Catherine always pitied her father.
And she only respected her mother more for enduring silently beside him.
“My Lady…”
Sera looked at her with emotion.
“You’re really something.”
The two finished their breakfast together warmly.
“Ah, I’m full. I should go greet Father and Mother now.”
Catherine dabbed her lips with a napkin, straightened her dress, and stood.
“See you later.”
She smiled at Sera, then walked slowly toward Calypso’s office.
The mansion’s corridor windows were all open, letting in a warm spring breeze.
The sky was high and blue.
Today somehow felt like it would bring good things.
“Hm hm~”
Humming, Catherine quietly opened the office door without knocking.
“…Huh?”
Her father should have been sitting at his desk—but the seat was empty.
She tilted her head.
“Father?”
Looking around, she stepped farther inside.
From the corner, she heard the rustling sound of a dress.
‘Huh?’
Why would there be the sound of a dress in Father’s office?
Frowning slightly, she walked closer.
“Huff…!”
In that moment, Catherine covered her mouth in shock.
Before her eyes—
“Father, Doctor…!”
Calypso and Alicia were hurriedly pulling their clothes back on.
“Catherine…”
Alicia came into Catherine’s room later and explained everything.
Her relationship with Calypso.
And that Catherine was her real daughter.
Catherine was too shocked to speak.
“How, how…”
How could this be?
How long had her father deceived her mother?
No—worse was the fact that she wasn’t truly Diana’s daughter, the one she admired most.
For a ten-year-old girl, it was too heavy a shock.
“I’m… not her real daughter?”
Tears streamed down her violet eyes—her father’s eyes.
“Catherine.”
Alicia looked at her with pity, but inside thought it was better this way.
“If the truth comes out that you’re not her daughter, what do you think will happen?”
Catherine’s eyes trembled like leaves in the wind.
Seeing her shaken, Alicia pressed on.
“Would Diana still love you the same?”
More tears fell. She was only ten.
Everything she had believed in was suddenly a lie.
“You’re just a child of adultery.”
But Alicia didn’t hesitate to wound Catherine, if it meant she could get what she wanted.
Even if it hurt now, the truth would come out one day.
It was better to use this chance to win the girl to her side.
“Diana is only human.”
“But…”
“If she learns you’re illegitimate, her attitude will change.”
Catherine’s eyes widened. But her throat was tight—she couldn’t speak.
“It’s better this way. I always wondered when to tell you…”
Alicia stroked her hair gently.
She had wanted to do this for so long.
Until now, she had to treat Catherine as the Lady.
But now, with the truth out, she could show her the affection she had held back.
“…Then where is Mother’s real daughter? The true Lady?”
“She’s living with commoners. In a filthy way.”
“Filthy…?”
“Yes. The lower she lives, the more precious you become. If she disappears, you’ll be the true Lady. Catherine.”
Slowly, Catherine lifted her head.
Diana’s real daughter was living among commoners.
Could that really be left alone?
She clenched her fists tight.
Then, wiping her tears and forcing her face calm, she said:
“I want to see her. Just once.”
“Of course. I can bring her to you anytime. How about making her your maid?”
“…For now. Can I see her today?”
“Smart girl.”
Alicia hugged Catherine tightly.
Then she went to the orphanage where she had abandoned Aisel, and brought the girl back.
She returned secretly while Diana was out, and entered Catherine’s room.
“Ugh…”
“From now on, this is the Lady you will serve.”
Aisel, weak and timid, glanced nervously at Alicia and Catherine.
Seeing her, Catherine’s lips parted in shock.
The child’s appearance resembled her mother too much.
‘She’s… different from me.’
Catherine only resembled her father.
But this girl looked exactly like Diana.
If she weren’t so skinny and dirty, the resemblance would have been even clearer.
‘But still…’
It was shocking.
Alicia had been Diana’s best friend.
Yet she had switched their daughters—and left Diana’s true child to grow up like this.
Judging by her state, she hadn’t even been placed in a proper orphanage.
“You said I could use her as my maid, right?”
Catherine forced her face into calmness and looked at Alicia.
“Then I’d like to talk to her alone.”
“Of course.”
Alicia smiled at her, then left the room.
As the door shut with a thud, Catherine quickly lifted Aisel up from her knees.
“What’s… your name?”
Her voice trembled despite herself.
