I Became the Mother-in-law of the Regretful Female Lead

“Mother, was your journey here comfortable?”

“Hmph, that’s none of your concern.”

“Ah, I see you had no issues. That’s a relief, hehe.”

Lilliana naturally guided me into the mansion, chatting away as she did.

I followed her, watching her with a satisfied expression.

Today, despite being in her own home, Lilliana seemed unusually tense rather than comfortable. It seemed she had prepared a lot for my visit.

“Actually, last time, I wanted to give you a proper tour of the mansion, but it ended too abruptly. Today, I’ll show you my room and other things!”

Now that I think about it, we did take a brief tour of the mansion when I visited Locke before.

‘But I couldn’t focus properly because I was too preoccupied with Tristan…’

I had mentally prepared myself to avoid anything like that happening today.

“Mother, should I start by showing you my room?”

“Don’t ask so many questions. Just do as you please.”

“Yes!”

With that, Lilliana proceeded to show me every room in order—her bedroom, study, hobby room, wardrobe, and more.

To sum it up, it wasn’t very different from what I had imagined.

The clean, organized rooms and the cohesive furniture gave off a distinct Lilliana vibe.

However, in her wardrobe, I encountered something I hadn’t expected at all.

‘What is this…?’

I had been casually observing her dressing room when something unexpected caught my attention and made me stop.

There were an unusually large number of blue dresses, and I had just discovered the reason.

Suppressing the urge to chuckle, I looked closely at a frame hanging on the wall.

Inside the frame wasn’t a beautiful painting or someone’s portrait, but a note written in large letters, like a family motto.

—

[Elegance!]

[No extravagant ribbons allowed.]

[One accessory, and only one.]

[Blue tones suit you well.]

—

Each sentence felt oddly familiar to me. It didn’t take long to realize why.

“Pfft.”

This was undoubtedly… advice I had given Lilliana when I took her to a boutique to buy her a dress.

“Elegance. You need to focus on that word. It’s your greatest strength.”

“Elegance…”

“in other words, the extravagant ribbons on your current clothes are unnecessary. They ruin the mood and make things look messy.”

I had given her a few pointers that day because I couldn’t stand to see her wearing clothes that didn’t suit her charm.

‘No wonder she’s been dressing so beautifully since that day…’

It seemed she had neatly summarized my words and put them in her dressing room like a cherished family motto—framed, no less.

Despite my best efforts, I couldn’t stop the laughter from bubbling up. Had Lilliana been choosing her outfits every day by reflecting on the sentences in this frame?

Just imagining it made her seem so cute and lovable that I couldn’t help but smile.

“This dress is the one you gave me last time, Mother, and… Oh?”

Lilliana, who had been eagerly explaining her cherished dresses beside me, widened her eyes in surprise.

“Wha-! Why is this here?!”

Her face flushed red, all the way to her ears, as she hurried to block the frame from my view with her body.

“The content seemed quite familiar.”

When I hinted that I had already seen it, she looked like she was about to cry. Her delicate hands fidgeted in the air, unable to find their place.

“Mo-Mother! I mean… it’s not what you think…”

She stumbled over her words, looking utterly embarrassed, as if I had discovered one of her deepest secrets.

I understood her embarrassment, but there was no need to make excuses. She hadn’t done anything wrong.

‘If anything, it was commendable.’

I firmly told her, still looking at her tomato-red face.

“I don’t dislike people who put in effort.”

“Huh…”

Not wanting to embarrass her further, I quickly turned my body in the opposite direction.

After that, as if nothing had happened, I briefly looked at the dress hanging there… and then I heard her muttering softly.

“…Yes. Effort… is a good thing.”

Startled by the slightly choked tone in her voice, I stole a glance at her face.

Lilliana was wearing a radiant smile.

***

After finishing the tour of the dressing room, Lilliana led Vanessa to the living room.

Although there were more places she had planned to show afterward, she suddenly felt like having a quiet conversation with Vanessa instead.

In the quiet living room, where only the two of them remained after dismissing the maid, Lilliana carefully poured tea into Vanessa’s cup.

“How is it, Mother? The fragrance of the tea is nice, isn’t it? My brother drinks this often.”

“Yes, it has a pleasant aroma.”

Vanessa smiled faintly. Fortunately, it seemed the tea recommendation was to her liking.

“I’m glad you like it, Mother.”

After enjoying the peaceful silence and the tea for a while, Vanessa broke the stillness.

“…You two seem to get along well.”

“Oh, with my brother?”

Vanessa nodded calmly.

“Yes, hehe. We’re pretty close. I’ve heard there are many siblings who don’t get along, but my brother and I have been close since we were young.”

As the words brought memories of her childhood to mind, Lilliana suddenly recalled the past.

After being lost in thought for a moment, Lilliana slowly began to speak.

“In truth… there’s a reason why my brother and I are so close. When we were young, he was the one who mostly took care of me.”

Vanessa didn’t respond but met Lilliana’s gaze.

Her warm eyes seemed to encourage her to continue, as if inviting her to speak comfortably.

That gentle gaze felt like it was softly embracing her heart.

Lilliana spoke of something she had long buried in her heart for the very first time.

“Our family wasn’t particularly harmonious. My late father… he was rather indifferent.”

To be precise, “indifferent” wasn’t quite the right word—”oppressive” might have been more accurate.

‘Don’t waste your time on unnecessary things. That’s not your role.’

Just the thought of her father’s face made it seem as though his voice was echoing in her ears.

Those were the words she’d heard when, as a child, she had drawn a picture for her father.

But it wasn’t just that time.

No matter what she did beyond the tasks he assigned, her father always responded in that same dismissive way.

He always loathed it when Liliana devoted effort to anything he deemed unnecessary.

Thanks to Tristan’s support, she had managed to endure it well during her childhood, but that eventually came to an end when he went abroad to study in the Kingdom of Onz.

Though he returned a few years later… Lilliana had already changed significantly.

Her once lively personality had become timid, and her confidence had diminished.

Even as she grew older, that didn’t change. It just became harder and harder for her to know what she wanted to do.

“The truth is… my brother going abroad to study at such a young age was also something our father forced him to do. And during that time, I was really lonely…”

Although Tristan sent letters often, those few years when Lilliana was left alone in the mansion with her father felt suffocating. The air in the mansion was stifling, no different from the depths of the ocean.

As Lilliana poured out the past she had kept deeply hidden in her heart, she suddenly hesitated.

‘…What am I even saying?’

Though this was a great burden on her heart, to others, it was likely nothing of significance.

Everyone carries a burden of this kind in one part of their heart.

Yet, here she was, saying these things, intoxicated by Vanessa’s warmth.

Even if Vanessa found this uncomfortable, she wouldn’t blame her.

Lilliana hurried to wrap up the conversation.

“Hehe, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to talk about something that would make you uncomfortable… It’s really nothing special, but I—”

“You persevered well. It must have been difficult.”

“Ah…”

Vanessa interrupted her softly with a few words.

But instead of feeling bad… Lilliana felt a lump in her throat, and tears welled up.

She lowered her head, swallowing back the tears that threatened to spill over.

Even though she didn’t understand why she was suddenly on the verge of crying, Vanessa’s gaze seemed to be telling her that it was okay to cry if she wanted to.

‘As expected… Mother…’

Lilliana knew. Whatever pain she carried, it would never compare to what Vanessa had endured.

Right after arriving in a foreign country with no connections, Vanessa had faced unimaginable hardships, starting with the false accusation of assassinating her husband, among many other unjust situations.

If Lilliana had been in Vanessa’s position, she wouldn’t have been able to withstand it.

Yet Vanessa had never once faltered.

And more than that… she acknowledged Lilliana’s pain. She didn’t belittle it as something insignificant.

‘…She’s truly incredible.’

And how fortunate Lilliana was to have such a person by her side.

Swallowing her tears, Lilliana smiled brightly.

‘I really do love Mother so much.’

It was a fact she had only now fully realized.