FWTR Chapter 19

Chapter 19

‘…Did he just say he wished me peace?’

Estelle was confused, unable to understand Michael’s words.

‘He seemed reluctant for me to remember. He said it was a terrible memory.’

She hadn’t yet figured out exactly what kind of relationship they had.

Still, one thing in particular stuck with her—the words he had spoken in passing.

‘He said I would make the same choice as when he left, saying he couldn’t stay by my side.’

Estelle came up with two possibilities.

‘He must have cared quite a bit. If he even knows my pet name…’

It meant that at some point, she had lived by his side. And that, for some reason, she had left him.

But what exactly had happened? What did it mean that she left…?

‘…A baby crying?’

Suddenly, the sound of a newborn wailing sorrowfully echoed from somewhere.

‘The baby is crying like that, but is there no nanny watching over it?’

The piercing noise overwhelmed her, and Estelle collapsed to the ground.

“Lady Winchester?”

The noise abruptly stopped as Olivia rushed over with a concerned expression.

“Are you feeling unwell?”

She carefully took her arm and helped her stand.

“Th-thank you.”

“It’s nothing. I’ll explain to the other young ladies, so you should head home for now.”

“Lady Aslan… By any chance…”

Estelle started to ask about the crying she had just heard but swallowed her words.

Could it be that the Aslan Marquis had a hidden illegitimate child? Such a sensitive topic was not something she could ask about so carelessly.

As Olivia supported her down the stairs, she hesitated before speaking.

“Lady Winchester, who did you meet in there?”

“…Who are you referring to?”

“Never mind. Please forget I said anything.”

Estelle found Olivia’s behavior odd. She had asked whom she met, only to immediately dismiss the question.

But pressing further seemed pointless—Olivia wouldn’t tell her anyway. More than anything, Estelle was simply too exhausted. All she wanted was to return home.

As she stepped into the garden to inform Liliana that she was leaving first, she overheard a conversation.

“Oh my, Liliana. What happened to your cheek? It looks like a scratch.”

“A stray cat scratched me.”

“Oh no, are you alright? Will it leave a scar?”

The young ladies murmured their concern for Liliana’s cheek.

‘A stray cat… She must mean Melody.’

Technically, they weren’t wrong.

“Estelle applied some ointment for me, so it shouldn’t scar too badly. Besides, it was just a stray cat.”

“Oh, Liliana. Ever since you invited Lady Winchester to this gathering, I’ve been curious—how did you become so close? You used to dislike that adopted girl, and Lady Winchester cared for her.”

Naturally, the conversation shifted to Estelle and Melody.

“Exactly. It’s not as if people didn’t notice how much the Lady has looked after her.”

“I do like the Lady now that I’ve met her in person, but I must admit, I’m a little worried. If she joins our sorority, won’t she end up getting involved with that girl as well?”

“Liliana, maybe you should reconsider inviting the Lady to our meetings.”

Estelle hesitated to step forward. If she revealed herself now, the young ladies would surely feel awkward.

Instead, she quietly turned to Olivia and spoke so that only she could hear.

“Lady Aslan, could you tell them that I’m feeling unwell and heading home?”

“Of course. Don’t worry, I’ll explain for you. Please take care and rest.”

As she turned to leave, Liliana suddenly slammed her hand on the table and stood up.

“What are you all saying? I already told you what happened at the Loquas boutique. And Estelle even treated this wound for me!”

“S-sorry. We were just worried about you, Liliana. You had the worst relationship with Melody, after all.”

“Liliana, don’t be so upset. We were only concerned that the Lady might try to bring that girl into our sorority.”

For some reason, warmth spread through Estelle’s chest.

It was the first time someone had defended her so openly.

“I’ll be going now.”

“Yes, Lady Winchester.”

Just as she turned to leave, Olivia murmured something under her breath.

“…My cousin may be simple, but she’s not blind when it comes to people. I really don’t understand what she sees in you. Liliana, and that person too.”

Olivia’s muttering barely reached Estelle’s ears, but she didn’t have the energy to confront her. Besides, Olivia hadn’t directly mentioned her by name, and her voice was quiet.

‘One thing was clear—Olivia doesn’t like me very much.’

Having grown up surrounded by resentment, Estelle was quick to pick up on such things.

‘I’m exhausted. I just need to rest.’

The thought of adding another person to the list of those who disliked her wasn’t pleasant, but it wasn’t particularly difficult to accept either.

—

As soon as she arrived home and stepped out of the carriage, Estelle ran into the Winchester knights.

“Lady Estelle, we greet you.”

She wanted nothing more than to go inside and rest, so she intended to acknowledge them briefly and move on.

‘Michael’s greeting earlier— he said he was from Luweon.’

That reminded her—there was a knight from Luweon among the Winchester knights.

She was curious about the meaning behind grabbing someone’s hair and kissing them, but there were too many eyes watching. She couldn’t ask now. Instead, she gestured for the knight captain to come closer.

“Are you on your way to training?”

“Yes, my lady.”

“Later, send the knight from Luweon to my room. I have a question for him.”

“Understood.”

The captain didn’t ask why, simply answering efficiently.

Estelle found his response satisfying—it didn’t drain her further.

But that satisfaction was short-lived.

‘Too loud.’

Melody’s wailing pierced her ears, louder than what she had heard at the Aslan estate.

The Duke of Winchester was pacing anxiously in front of Melody’s room.

“Estelle, Melody has been crying inside for a while now. She won’t answer when I call her, and I’m worried she might collapse at this rate. She hasn’t even eaten…”

The moment he spotted Estelle, he immediately started listing Melody’s condition without being asked.

‘I almost forgot. I was supposed to comfort Melody when I got back.’

She had known that, but hearing it from the duke only made her feel more irritated.

‘A person doesn’t collapse from skipping a single meal. He’s being ridiculous.’

The sight of him fretting outside Melody’s door, unable to even enter, was pitiful.

She wanted to ask him—

‘When I was too sick to even swallow thin soup, you didn’t care.’

Had he ever come to her room out of concern, like he was doing now?

Did he even know where her room was?

“Estelle, do you know what happened to Melody? The butler informed me, but I want to hear it from you.”

The Duke of Winchester demanded a proper explanation.

‘He wants to know why I slapped Melody.’

It was unexpected. Normally, he would have simply hit her back in anger, but now he was asking for a reason.

“You already heard from the butler, so you know. Lady Gannet and Melody were pulling each other’s hair. Before that, Melody scratched her cheek with her nails.”

“…I’m aware they don’t get along. Scratches… Yes, I suppose the Marquis of Gannet wouldn’t let that slide. But I could have handled the protest letter myself.”

In other words, he wanted an explanation he could accept.

‘So he thinks I didn’t have to slap her.’

Estelle took a deep breath, feeling stifled, and then spoke.

“Lady Gannet was my guest. The servants were watching. I had to protect her dignity and keep them from talking.”

“…I see. I won’t bring this up again. Now go and check on Melody.”

Estelle hesitated.

She had been planning to reclaim what Melody had taken from her, step by step. And now was the perfect time to take back the room Melody had claimed simply because it got good sunlight.

In the past, she would have been too afraid to say anything. But not anymore.

“Your Grace. Melody has been in good health for quite some time now. I should move back into the west wing.”

“…Is that necessary?”

“Of course, I’ll find her another nice room and decorate it beautifully.”

The Duke of Winchester gave her a questioning look, as if to ask if all that effort was really necessary.

“This is the room of the legitimate daughter. In this house, I am the only one who should use it.”

“…”

“It’s not as if the other rooms don’t get sunlight.”

Estelle refused to back down.

What had been taken from her—she would take back.

Hello Guys, if you liked my work and want to support me then you can visit this link for tips. As I can’t create Kofi because of the unavailability of Paypal in my country, I’ve made this tier which will be updated every week so that you won’t be charged again till you want to donate again by yourself or you can exit the tier after donating 🙂.

Happy Reading 🩷