AMDE Chapter 34

34.

“Lord Archie!”

A bit late to catch up with Archie, Glenn Dogman let out an astonished gasp, panting heavily.

The servants and knights trailing behind Archie dared not even think of laying a finger on the one and only heir of the McFoy family. They merely followed him, their jaws clenched.

Seeing the flustered Glenn, I felt a brief moment of pity.

‘The more he grows up, the more he resembles my stepsister rather than my brother-in-law.’

The growth at that age was astonishing. Archie, who had grown a bit taller, surprised me in the midst of everything.

My half-sister, Roxy, was a beautiful lady with soft features and red-blonde hair. Unlike Roxy, who looked exactly like me, Archie, the one who did resemble me to some extent, had entirely different looks. The only thing that was remotely reminiscent of a family resemblance was his violet eyes, the same color as mine.

‘But no, why is he really here?’

But soon, the situation quickly enraged me as I realized that he was out of my control. Simultaneously, my heart pounded, but I did my best to keep any unfavorable words related to me from entering Archie’s ears.

I quickly turned to Erica, raised my index finger to my lips, and she nodded in understanding.

“No, Archie! You, what are you doing here?”

Feeling overwhelmed, my scolding was more severe than usual. In that moment, I could see Archie’s violet eyes, just like mine, trembling and lifeless.

I thought to myself, ‘I realize it now. I haven’t seen the boy in nearly three months.’

Archie wasn’t really good at listening to me lately, but considering he had come all the way here, it was clear that the situation was unfavorable.

He must have known about the incident where his aunt almost died. Or perhaps he couldn’t take it anymore after being confined to the villa for nearly three months.

‘Maybe both.’

Seeing that troubled expression on his face, I had an intuition that both were possible. The thought was enough to make me break into a cold sweat.

I hadn’t been a very good guardian. Of course, Mrs. Seymour was his main caregiver, but it seemed that even with someone like me around, Archie’s temperament became increasingly challenging.

Nevertheless, at this moment, I realized that even someone like me knew I shouldn’t scold the child as soon as I saw him.

I reached out belatedly to touch Archie, but he was faster.

“Mrs. Seymour! Who is that evil old witch with the nasty personality?”

Archie, who had been visibly furious, eventually shouted out loud. He dared to scold my aunt.

“I have no idea who that person is! Why is she calling my name?”

Then he turned around and dashed away. As if he couldn’t stand the sight, Archie, who tore off the cloak of a nearby knight and covered his face, quickly ran away.

“Aunt! Really! You’re such a fool! Waaah!”

A cry mixed with sobbing echoed down the hallway.

“Archie! You, you! Bring this brat back!”

That fool! Didn’t I tell him not to cry in front of the servants?

I turned around, shouting at Archie as he disappeared, but he managed to disappear behind a door. Someone’s foot kicked the door, and Archie disappeared behind it.

It was Mrs. Seymour.

‘Well, this is great.’

Archie’s arrival meant that Mrs. Seymour was here as well.

I quickly let go of the hand that was clutching her back and looked at her. Mrs. Seymour was visibly angry. When she was angry, she smiled.

I was a little tense and looked for Harry Fallon behind Mrs. Seymour.

“Fallon, what’s going on here? I told you not to come until I called for Archie!”

“Lord, we’re short on time, so I will reprimand Mr. Fallon. Please meet Mrs. Seymour first.”

Suddenly, Erica jumped up and interjected. Why was she in such a hurry? Right, we had a lot of work to do, covering up the scandal and managing the Morfolk situation…

While I was momentarily taken aback and stammering, Erica quickly left the office before I even gave my permission.

Why was she acting this way again?

“Please leave for a moment, everyone.”

I found Erica’s sudden intervention suspicious, but I couldn’t think further because of Mrs. Seymour’s elegant and soft-spoken voice.

Erica’s nickname is the “Earl.” However, the original Earl in my memory was Seymour’s lady, my stepmother. The charisma of the McFoy’s top knights, Sir Glenn Dogman, couldn’t compare to hers. I also remembered my father being somewhat subdued in front of Mrs. Seymour.

She easily subdued my older brothers, Iyno and Cef, who had no separate discipline. Even I, in my memories, pretended to be as docile as possible when facing her powerful demeanor.

Of course, Ophelia, who was always by my side, was also a well-behaved child in front of her.

Everyone closed their mouths and left the Duke’s office obediently, following Mrs. Seymour’s instructions. Soon, the door was closed with a soft click.

“Lord Aisa.”

When we were alone, Mrs. Seymour addressed me by my name. It was the first time in about three months that I had heard her voice.

“How you spent the past three months.”

She approached me, tears streaming down her face, taking slow steps towards me. Frightened by her intense grip and stern voice, I took a few steps back without realizing it.

“I’ll explain. For now, yes, I’m alive. That’s the situation…”

I tried to hurriedly justify myself but couldn’t continue speaking. Mrs. Seymour’s embrace prevented me from speaking any further.

“Thank you for being alive, Your Grace. If you weren’t, I…”

“…”

“Thank you for being alive.” Not “Thank goodness.” The words “thank you” were what Glenn, who had come all the way to Khatam, and Erica had told me first. It felt like the first time I had heard those words.

In the West, in McFoy, they feared losing someone. I could keenly sense Mrs. Seymour trembling.

“Thank you for being alive.” Overwhelmed by the emotions, I shuddered and closed my eyes in silence.

After a while, Mrs. Seymour, who was still holding me, spoke.

“The young lord knows everything. He was very shocked and upset. Given his age, he endured a lot.”

“…”

Archie was only eleven years old. I had been lacking as a protector who was fourteen years his senior.

“The young lord is quite hurt, so you should prepare yourself. Of course, I was extremely angry too, so please be prepared.”

“…”

With my face buried in Mrs. Seymour’s shoulder, I nodded my head slightly.

Mrs. Seymour was a tough person despite being gentle as a stepmother. I wasn’t used to hugging, so it was a bit strange, but amazingly, she always appeared like a ghost to embrace me when I needed it, even without me saying anything.

‘At least like a ghost.’

She gently patted my back. I finally started to feel a little alive.

Yes, this feeling. It’s finally relief.

Lost in my thoughts, I raised my head to look at Mrs. Seymour’s face.

“But Archie knows everything. What? Could he know about the scandal too?”

“Scandal? What’s going on?”

Mrs. Seymour’s expression instantly turned cold.

Uh-oh.

It seems she didn’t know about this.

The courtesan, Patricia Landry, who was beloved by Lord Morfolk, Philip Morfolk, was a fairly well-known actress in imperial city.

Patricia was originally a noble lady from a region near the border between the East and the North. However, her foolish father squandered the family’s wealth, leading to a broken engagement. They couldn’t afford the dowry specified in the engagement contract.

For an impoverished noblewoman, a broken engagement was a deadly blow. No noble family wanted her anymore. Instead, the equivalent of becoming the fourth wife of a powerful noble or some similar position was forced upon the young lady.

Her elder sister, who was two years older, had already married an old man forty years her senior. She left the mansion after shedding tears every day.

Next was Patricia, with an age difference of only twenty years. Patricia’s father pushed her into marrying an elderly man, who was no different from a beggar.

“Was it just about her body? Of course, it would be. They were being sold.”

Patricia was a woman of action. On the very day she left her home, with the help of a friend who had married into imperial city, she found a job. Her first job was sewing costumes for opera singers.

She considered herself lucky. As long as she didn’t have to crawl on the streets or end up in the brothels in the pleasure districts, she was satisfied.

Then, opportunity knocked on the door of the beautiful Patricia, who had a noble background, an exquisite voice, and a striking appearance. She quickly became a fairly popular actress in imperial city.

She was especially invited to secret and debaucherous events like masked balls. In places like tea parties hosted by ladies of nobility, which were similar to the tea parties once held by noblewomen, she was naturally not welcomed.

Women with professions, even women like Patricia who sang and acted, might lead in popularity in imperial city, but ultimately, they weren’t highly regarded. With her lush brown hair and enchanting red eyes, the beautiful and talented Patricia was popular, but that was as far as it went.

The nobility regarded her as nothing more than a beautiful and witty doll who could adapt well to their preferences. Noblewomen cheered her style, speech, manners, and talent, but in the end, they drew a line. Noble ladies only wished to meet her and spend a day at the masked balls.

Now she was the lover of Lord Morfolk, but in the business-minded empire, lovers were just lovers. Everyone approached them as easy, carefree companions just like before.

Today was one of those days. The people who ran towards her seemed to want to have fun with her for the day. They were like sinister snakes.

Patricia hid behind her mask, raised her round eyebrows, covered her mouth with a fan, and cursed at those repulsive individuals.

The foolish and arrogant nobleman. They acted high and mighty, noble and elegant, but in reality, they were the most vulgar and arrogant individuals.

That’s why Philip Morfolk was different. Foolish, inconsistent, and, unlike the nobility who would find it difficult to pester commoner lovers, he only cared about flaunting a commoner lover or two, just as if he were offering anything.

‘Staying this way, I’ll end up begging on the streets sooner or later. But it’s with Lord Morfolk.’

Patricia nibbled on her soft lips thoughtfully while hiding behind her fan. She stood at a crossroads in her life. Would she embark on an adventure with Lord Morfolk?

‘But if I stay like this, I’ll not only fail to maintain my current life, but I’ll finally hit rock bottom.’

Rumors were circulating that the fiancée of Lord Morfolk’s lover had been kidnapped and would soon die. The fanatical cult group that had kidnapped the woman was notorious for their heinous crimes in terrorizing the village. Everyone believed that Lord Morfolk had done something terrible and that the woman had died.

And a few days later, Patricia learned about her own pregnancy. She thought it was a remarkably fortunate timing. Someone else’s tragic misfortune had turned into an enormous opportunity for her.

Philip Morfolk, the inconsistent man, would never abandon or kill the childbearing her. Once he made up his mind, the Morfolk family would restore her to noble status to save face in front of others and accept her as a family member.

Patricia believed her misfortune would end there. Lord Morfolk’s life was truly unpredictable, but she considered it fate and wanted to inform Philip of the good news with joy.

However…

Young Lord of Morfolk returned unharmed.

Things were going horribly wrong. When Philip got drunk, he often mumbled about the unbreakable agreement he had made with Lord Morfolk.

If it was revealed that a child was born, the Morfolks would be ruined. Perhaps they would even have to pay with their lives.

Would she survive? What about the child in her belly? What about her job?

The woman who had seen hope in the possibility of regaining nobility, losing her mind and hope, began to act extremely out of despair.

It was some time later when Philip, under duress, sent a demand for an annulment to Lord Morfolk.