Chapter 37
Children’s Social Gathering (7)
Allan’s nose was suddenly struck by a small, chubby white hand.
“Argh!”
“What was that sound?”
“It was Allan.”
“Serves him right. Bleh!”
One of the boys Allan had shoved reached out and smacked him right on the nose.
Normally, he would’ve erupted in anger, causing a huge commotion. But even as tears welled in his eyes, Allan couldn’t tear his gaze away from Bonita’s drawing.
Bonita held out the finished picture to Maya.
“This is for you.”
Maya, as if she had completely forgotten about her ruined drawing, accepted the gift with a beaming smile.
Her eyes met Allan’s.
Bonita watched the two of them.
One had reddened eyes, the other a reddened nose. It was a rather amusing sight, but the two were entirely serious.
Feeling the two girls’ gazes on him, the back of Allan’s neck turned red. He hesitated awkwardly before mumbling under his breath.
“Uh, um, ahem. About earlier, when I yelled… s-sor… sor…”
“‘Sor’?”
“‘Sor-sor’?”
“Allan’s face is turning red!”
“Ugh! You brats!”
As the children around him began mimicking his stammering and teasing him, Allan shouted in frustration once more.
“Stop it.”
That’s when Bonita spoke.
“You shouldn’t make fun of someone who’s trying to apologize.”
The children immediately quieted down.
Bonita’s gaze turned to Allan. Meeting her deep pink eyes, he flinched.
“……”
“……”
The gingerbread house, which held more than twenty children, became unbelievably silent.
The one who broke the silence was Allan.
“…Sorry.”
He directed the word at Maya, fidgeting with his fingers before adding,
“For stepping on your drawing and not apologizing properly… and for yelling at you.”
“Wow…”
Derek was genuinely impressed—stubborn Allan was actually apologizing.
And as for Maya, the one receiving the apology—
“It’s okay.”
“You’re forgiving me?”
“Yeah.”
Maya nodded.
She proudly held up the drawing Bonita had given her.
“I got such an amazing gift. I’m going to show it to my mom.”
The discomfort on Allan’s face finally eased.
Watching from the back, Cassis let out a small sigh of admiration.
He muttered to himself,
“She’s… really something.”
*****
“This goes here. And then…”
Bonita kept drawing.
By now, the children had gathered around her, watching in fascination or lying on their stomachs, eagerly tracing wobbly lines with crayons, trying to imitate her.
‘It’s been a while.’
As she sketched, Bonita felt a faint sense of nostalgia. It felt like ages since she had last sat down and immersed herself in drawing like this.
Even though, in reality, she drew every day.
At home, without Aria, there was nothing for Bonita to do once she finished her chores.
There were only so many times she could look at the illustrations in fairy tale books she couldn’t yet read.
Naturally, she had started copying the pictures.
Too embarrassed to show anyone, she had hidden her drawings beneath the wooden floorboards. She never showed them to Aria either…
“You’re amazing!”
“Next, draw a castle where a princess lives! And a prince on a white horse!”
“No, a cool knight would be better!”
“Whoa!”
That’s why receiving such direct, enthusiastic praise was a first for her.
Hearing those compliments made Bonita’s cheeks flush red. It was embarrassing—but it also felt really nice.
It was around the time Bonita finished her fifth drawing that someone knocked on the gingerbread house’s door.
“Young masters, young ladies, it’s time to return home.”
The person who entered was one of the Marquisate’s servants.
He had braced himself for the usual chaos—wailing, screaming, at least a couple of kids fighting over something trivial. But what he found instead left him baffled.
A group of children sat peacefully in a circle, completely engrossed in something.
‘What’s going on?’
By now, there should have been at least two or three kids sulking in a corner.
But today, no one was crying or throwing a fit.
More surprisingly, they didn’t even react when he announced the end of the gathering—they were too focused on something in the center.
Curious, the servant walked closer.
It didn’t take long to figure out what had captured their attention.
There, among the children, was a pink-haired girl.
‘The Lady of Lisianthus?’
Was it simply the novelty of having a duchess’s daughter among them that made the children so fascinated?
His gaze followed theirs to the drawings they were looking at.
‘Did the Madam place these paintings here?’
It wasn’t unusual for nobles to hire skilled artists to decorate their walls.
Perhaps someone had done the same for the gingerbread house.
Smiling at the thought, the servant spoke again.
“Young masters, young ladies! The ladies will be arriving soon. You must all prepare to return home in ten minutes.”
The reason why a servant was sent ahead instead of the noblewomen themselves was simple.
Not all children obediently left when told it was time to go.
Some whined to stay longer. Others clung to pillars like cicadas or even hid somewhere, hoping to stay unnoticed.
But giving them a warning in advance minimized such rebellious antics.
It was much better than abruptly stopping them in the middle of their “important playtime.”
“Oh, okay.”
“Already?”
“We have ten more minutes.”
“Then let’s hurry and finish this! I’m almost done coloring!”
Just like that, the children adjusted quickly.
Still, they moved their hands even faster now, determined to complete their drawings.
“This is a masterpiece!”
“Masterpiece? What’s that?”
“Uh, I don’t know? But my mom calls really good drawings that…”
Five minutes after the servant’s arrival, the voices of noblewomen could be heard outside.
“Ah…!”
Bonita, who had been watching Maya draw, suddenly lifted her head.
“I have to go for a bit.”
“Bonita?”
Maya looked up, confused, as Bonita swiftly stood.
She was the first among the children to dash toward the entrance.
Bang!
The gingerbread house door swung open.
Spotting Aria in the distance, Bonita’s face lit up with joy.
*****
“Oh my, someone’s coming out first.”
At the Countess of Lavinier’s remark, Hazel turned her gaze toward the gingerbread house’s door.
Clunk.
The chocolate hinges creaked as the door swung open, and she immediately recognized the person who had stepped out.
In fact, anyone would.
There could only be one girl in the entire kingdom with such pink hair.
Hazel watched with slight surprise as Bonita ran straight toward Aria. Aria stretched out her arms and embraced her tightly.
“Aria!”
“Yes, Bonita.”
Seeing the two of them holding each other so warmly, the noblewomen felt a peculiar sensation.
Despite their completely different appearances, the bond between them was unmistakable—they looked just like a loving mother and daughter.
Hazel adjusted her silk gloves and thought to herself,
‘I’m being absurdly sentimental today.’
She didn’t know the full story, but Aria was likely Bonita’s governess. It was only natural for noble children to grow attached to their caretakers.
Especially if they had no mother of their own.
So there was nothing strange about this at all. And yet…
‘Is it because of Miss Hilton’s demeanor?’
Hazel concluded that this sense of unease stemmed from Aria Hilton’s peculiar presence.
Because in truth, Aria Hilton was a truly enigmatic woman.
—
“Raising a child is no easy task.”
“Tell me about it! They never listen, and the servants are always struggling with them.”
“It’s about time to bring in a tutor, but I’m not sure where to start.”
As the noblewomen shared their parenting troubles, Aria simply sat quietly, sipping her tea and listening.
She was so silent that one of the ladies, feeling a bit awkward, decided to address her directly.
“Miss Hilton, what do you think is the best way to handle a child constantly begging for things?”
The conversation had shifted to discussing children throwing tantrums.
It was just a casual topic.
Any parent with a seven-year-old—especially a noble child, raised as the little tyrant of their household, pampered by maids and servants—was bound to have their own opinions.
But Aria’s response was unexpected.
“Hmm, well… I wouldn’t really know. Bonita has never asked me for anything first.”
“Oh my. Well, I suppose children like Cassis, who are mature beyond their years, never throw tantrums either.”
The woman who had started the conversation smoothed things over, and the discussion moved on naturally.
Aria Hilton fell silent again whenever the topic returned to children.
The Countess of Lavinier, observing her, thought, She doesn’t seem like someone who has raised a child for seven years… She seems more like someone who has only just adopted a seven-year-old.
Of course, such an idea was utterly ridiculous.
But no matter how absurd it was, the feeling lingered.
And that wasn’t the only strange thing.
Whenever the conversation shifted away from children to discuss the latest fashion or jewelry trends, Aria often spoke as if she had personally experienced events from long ago—as if they had happened just yesterday.
Had she been isolated in the countryside for years, out of touch with the world?
It wouldn’t be unusual for someone distanced from the glamour of the capital to reminisce about the past.
But Hazel was certain—Aria Hilton wasn’t one of those people.
No, it was as if…
As if she had been in a deep slumber for a long time.
As if she had missed everything that had happened in between, and the distant past still felt fresh and immediate to her.
“……”
Hazel’s brown eyes turned toward Aria and Bonita.
The daughter of her beloved friend and a mere lady’s maid.
Just what exactly was the relationship between those two?
