Chapter 13
Paternity Test (1)
“That is….”
Elodie took a breath for a moment.
She had no choice but to lie, or to skillfully edit the truth.
It was obvious that no one would believe her if she told the truth.
“I raised Bonita.”
“What?”
Catherine raised her eyebrows.
It was a signal for her to tell more.
“I can’t explain how it happened either… I recently lost my memory.”
“What kind of bullshit are you talking about? You want me to believe that?”
Catherine snorted.
“If you’re going to lie, you should do it properly. It would have been more fun if you had said that you were the spirit of the dead Elodie.”
“Huh?”
Aria’s heart sank as she wondered if she had really noticed something. At the same time, useless anticipation rose up in her.
It had to be a joke, it had to be a coincidence. Aria repeated to herself and took a breath.
“What?”
“Oh, no.”
And of course.
Catherine’s face was too calm to be considered it was true. What she had just said must have been a joke.
Aria tried not to show her disappointment. She added with a calm expression.
“Really. I can’t explain in detail, but Bonita is definitely the Duke’s daughter… It is also true that I raised Bonita and that Bonita thinks of me as her mother.”
“No, so if you leave out the detailed explanation, why-”
When Catherine was about to coldly criticize her. Bonita, who had been sleeping soundly, flinched at the raised voice.
“Hmm.”
Catherine closed her mouth in a vague pause. Though she was still glaring at Aria.
“Huh, you’ll have to explain it lproperly later. I’m not particularly worried about the child waking up, I’m just a little tired right now. Got it?”
“… Yes, madam.”
You’re really… still the same.
Aria answered in a subtle tone.
*****
The carriage ran smoothly into the Duke mansion. Bonita was still asleep.
Aria carefully carried Bonita and walked. Perhaps tired from the long outing, Bonita only tossed and turned a few times when she got out of the carriage, but she didn’t wake up.
When Aria brought the child into the room, Catherine immediately broke the silence.
“So, what on earth is that? You must have heard the situation, right?”
“Hmm.”
Luke cleared his throat.
He had certainly met Aria four days before Catherine, but they hadn’t really seen each other often. Aria Hilton was a mystery to him, too.
She was a real headache, a burden. If it weren’t for Bonita, he would have kicked her out right away…
“I don’t know either.”
“What? How could you put a woman you don’t know in here, no, at least on the child?!”
“But you saw it too, Mom.”
Luke protested silently.
“Bonita is really obsessed with Aria Hilton. If you separate them carelessly, it won’t be good for her emotionally.”
Catherine groaned at his words.
How could she not understand? Even with just a quick glance, it was easy to see how much Bonita liked that woman. On top of that, the woman cherished the child as if it were her own daughter.
“Was Hilton that kind of person?”
“Do you know her? I never really had any reason to meet her.”
“That’s true, you are.”
Catherine easily understood.
Luke, who had a stone-like temper, had become soft after falling in love with a rabbit-like woman at the age of eighteen.
Only in front of that young lady.
He wears a filter that allows him to see only Elodie, so it’s hard to imagine him remembering the maid next to Elodie.
The problem was that Catherine was no different.
‘It doesn’t seem like she was the type of person who caused trouble, though.’
If that were the case, Catherine would have remembered, even if Luke didn’t. She swung her cane angrily.
“What the hell, you useless bastard!”
“Why are you hitting me again?”
“Just call the priest! This should have been checked on the first day. Why the hell are you dragging it out for four days?”
Luke muttered, rubbing the back of his head.
A paternity test.
“If you do something like that right when she gets here….”
“Why?”
“I thought it might hurt the child.”
It was an unexpected remark.
Catherine turned her head and looked at her son.
Luke covered his face with one hand and slowly brushed it away.
“Because it would look like I don’t believe her.”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
Catherine responded.
“Wouldn’t it be more reassuring for the child if you did it yourself, or did she just figure it all out with her Lysianthus blood or something?”
“She probably doesn’t know. She didn’t learn it.”
“Then we have a conclusion!”
Chuck.
She raised her cane and pointed it at Luke, declaring confidently.
“Contact the temple right now!”
*****
It was until the next morning that Bonita opened her eyes. She wriggled like a caterpillar, burrowing into the warmth next to her.
“Mother….”
As if her mind was at ease, she hummed to herself.
It was childish things that the ‘former Aria’ would never accept.
But now, even if I do this, my mother doesn’t get angry at all.
Bonita thought so and pulled the edge of the blanket.
“Daughter, are you awake? You can sleep a little longer.”
Then she heard a kind woman’s voice.
Bonita exhaled.
Her half-asleep, hazy mind gradually cleared. Then she was able to recognize her surroundings.
The fire in the fireplace crackled. Water was bubbling in the brass kettle above it. The satin and feather duvet covering her body was warm, and beside the large, pretty bed was a string that could summon a maid at any moment.
Bonita slowly opened one eye.
“Oh, you’re awake?”
Then there was Aria.
Aria, who had changed into pajamas and was lying next to Bonita, was looking at her with eyes full of affection.
Bonita put her hand on top of the hand gently patting her belly. Then Aria burst into laughter as if she was tickled.
If she could, Bonita wanted to cut out this moment and save it in an album.
If she did, she would be able to remember this moment and be happy even if her mother disappeared.
“Are you up? You can sleep more.”
“No.”
But she couldn’t do that.
Bonita groaned and got up. Aria, who had been awake for a while, helped Bonita get down from the high bed.
Growl–
Her thin stomach made a sound. Bonita’s face turned red. Aria laughed when she saw the child.
“Well, you didn’t eat anything after lunch yesterday.”
And it was the same for Aria. She came to put Bonita to bed, caught a quick glimpse of her, and fell asleep until morning.
Besides, Bonita was so cute sleeping with her arms bent that she couldn’t even think of going out of the room.
Aria stroked Bonita’s soft cheek once and put on her furry slippers. She didn’t need to change because she had fallen asleep in the clothes she had worn yesterday.
“It’s seven o’clock, so it’s time for the Duke to come down soon. Should we go to the dining room?”
“The dining room?”
Bonita’s eyes widened.
During the four days she had been at the Duke’s residence—now five days, since it was morning again—Bonita had spent most of her time in her room, except for the tea party she had with the Duke. Because of this, Bonita had not really realized how big the Duke’s residence was.
“Is there a dining room in the house?”
“Noble families usually have separate dining rooms.”
Bonita was once again shocked. She had already admired the large kitchen once before, but she still didn’t know there was a dining room in the house.
Bonita held Aria’s hand with a blank expression. Aria walked down the long hallway and down two flights of stairs. Only then did she see the dining room in the distance.
“Lady!”
The kitchen maids who had found Bonita shouted in surprise. Their eyes turned to Aria, who was holding Bonita’s hand tightly.
“Did the young lady say she wanted to come down?”
“No, I think it wouldn’t be bad to have a meal with the Duke.”
Aria naturally bowed down.
In fact, that was true.
Although Aria Hilton was the former Duchess’ maid, she was the daughter of a baron, unlike commoners like maids or servants. Even if that family had completely fallen into ruin, she was still born a noble.
‘Oh, by the way.’
The Baron Hilton family had fallen.
Also, judging from the fact that Bonita didn’t know anything about him, it seemed like Aria had never visited the Baron’s residence since their death, so the Baron Hilton residence must have been abandoned for six years.
Of course, it’s possible that she could have visited without Bonita’s knowledge.
‘I should check.’
All of the Baron Hilton family members except Aria had died seven years ago.
At that time, Aria had been separated from Elodie for half a year to attend the funeral and manage the household. And when she returned…
Elodie had given birth to a dead daughter.
No, that’s what she thought.
Aria tried hard to shake off her memories of that time. In any case, the important thing was that her daughter was by her side now.
Then, what she had to do was obvious.
‘Having a title and not having one are completely different things.’
Bonita was the only daughter of the Dukedom in the kingdom. As she grew up, she would no longer need a nanny, so before that, Aria had to find a reason to be by Bonita’s side.
For example, as a teacher.
In order to do that, it would be advantageous to officially inherit the Baron Hilton title.
When she was Elodie, she may not have a good body, but she had a brain. She calculated that she could play the role of a teacher in cases like etiquette and arithmetic that she could teach with her eyes closed.
It was heartbreaking that she could never be officially recognized as Bonita parent, but Aria decided to compromise with reality.
“What? Why are you holding hands so affectionately with a child who might be my granddaughter?”
At that moment, a curt voice was heard.
When she raised her head, she saw Catherine with a crooked expression.
“Madam Lysianthus?”
