Chapter 9
Stupid Granddaughter (1)
“Picnic?”
“Yes. Don’t you think Bonita would like it?”
“Well, if Bonita wants to come along, she’s more than welcome.”
Luke, with his arms crossed, glared at Aria, who had an excited face.
“It looks like Miss Aria still has no intention of answering my questions.”
“Honestly, I have nothing to say about that.”
“You said you took care of Bonita and raised her for seven years, but you don’t know why?”
Luke’s mouth twitched.
“That’s a convenient argument, and I don’t know how far you think I’ll let you get away with it.”
“Of course-”
“Bonita is seven years old.”
He interrupted Aria.
“Seven years is enough for her to forget the people who raised her when she grows up. She may resent me now, but eventually, when she grows up, Bonita will realize it too.”
Red eyes fell on Aria.
“The gap between her and Miss Aria.”
Aria looked slightly hurt. It was true, but she didn’t want to hear it out loud like this.
Maybe she was too weak in her resolve.
There was no change in her mind, she was determined to protect Bonita no matter what, but she was not used to this and she couldn’t help it.
She was actually Elodie, but she couldn’t reveal her identity easily. Even for the optimistic Aria, that was an extremely absurd claim.
Even now, the maids in the mansion are calling me a fraud.
To be honest, if she had said that, it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had been kicked out.
Even if it’s true.
Aria opened her mouth, hiding her nervousness.
“But Bonita will need me now.”
“Do you really think so?”
Aria’s lips trembled.
How devastated she was when she saw the bruises on Bonita’s body or the poor conditions for a child to grow up in.
She answered after a moment of silence.
“Yes.”
To be honest, she wasn’t even sure herself. She wonders whether she really needs her.
She might not.
But she needed Bonita. Aria spoke in a calm tone, hiding her true feelings.
“Your Excellency may think that Bonita is still young, but her memories from this period have had a profound influence on forming the values that will guide her life.”
“……”
“Seven years is definitely young, but she’s not so young that she’ll forget everything as an adult.”
The Duke was silent.
There was nothing wrong with what Aria said. A child’s primary caretaker from birth had a profound effect on their entire life.
He thought fiercely about what he should do for Bonita. He could tolerate this woman creeping up on him if it was sure for his daughter’s sake.
However, what is important is her purpose.
He must constantly doubt and check whether she really loves Bonita and whether she has been greedy for his money or the Duchess status.
“When Bonita first came to the mansion, she had bruises all over her body.”
Instead of forcing her to open her mouth right away, he delved into something that had been bothering him all along.
“I can understand and give in to the lack of nutrition or being thin. In any case, isn’t it a world where it’s difficult to find a decent job as a single woman?”
“……”
“But that last part, that’s just not possible unless someone decides to hit her.”
He shot sharply.
“I don’t know anything else, but I need to hear an explanation on that.”
“What are you going to do if I shut up?”
“I can’t put my daughter together with a woman who may be a child abuser.”
Aria realized that it would be difficult for her to avoid this question.
And in fact, she would have made the same choice if she were in Luke’s situation.
But the problem is…
The truth is that she became that ‘child abuser’.
Her soul is someone else’s, but there’s no way to prove it. However, it was unfair for her to just admit the crime, and she had absolutely no desire to be separated from her daughter, whom she had just met again.
How did you find her?
Bonita had to be raised by her own hands. Even if the partner was a man who would love the child unconditionally, there were no exceptions.
There are two options given here.
First, tell the truth and get kicked out.
It’s not even worth considering.
Second, lie cleverly.
At least it is a realistic solution.
However, I was reluctant to use this method either.
Wouldn’t this be like protecting a criminal who dared to abuse a precious child with her own mouth?
So Aria made her third option.
The third solution to this situation.
“To be honest, I don’t remember.”
Telling only half the truth.
“You don’t remember? How dare you try to deceive me now?”
“It’s not a lie. It wasn’t that long ago that I remember clearly.”
It was never a lie.
Since Elodie does not know the time when the real Aria took over her body, her memories begin only four days ago.
Aria never lied, only cut and edited the truth.
“Maybe because I hit my head recently, I’m a little confused overall.”
It was real that she hit her head.
It was something she did herself to regain her sense of reality, but in any case, this wasn’t a lie either.
“I don’t know what Miss Aria was thinking in the past. That’s why she can’t answer.”
“What…?”
Luke flinched at the explicit third-person speaking style. Is she crazy?
Silence fell between the two. Luke smirked, still crossed his legs.
“Hah, what. Are you telling me to believe that now? You don’t know that long tongues get cut off.”
“I didn’t lie, Your Excellency.”
Luke studied Aria’s expression as he narrowed his eyes.
Most people don’t realize it, but people who lie usually show signs in their facial expressions, pupils, direction of gaze, and body language. Luke had a natural talent for catching such liars.
“…… ”
He followed everything about her with his persistent gaze. But he couldn’t find anything particularly suspicious about Aria.
He leaned his slightly bent back against the back of the sofa.
“Okay. Let’s assume that everything Miss Aria said is true.”
“It’s true.”
“Then, even though she doesn’t remember anything, why does she take care of Bonita both materially and emotionally? If what you say is true, my daughter is the child you suddenly took on, and she is nothing more than that.”
“Honestly, it’s difficult to explain it logically. but….”
Luke nodded his head.
“One thing is certain.”
Aria added quickly.
“I am the person in this world who can love Bonita the most. Of course, the same goes for the Duke.”
“…….”
Luke struggled.
There is also a way to torture that woman right away and make her open her mouth. It’s not that difficult.
The problem is, of course, Bonita.
I could tell just by looking at it a little bit.
That Bonita truly follows that damn woman like her mother and craves her affection.
Of course, there is no right answer when it comes to parenting.
However, just because she pours out financial support by providing expensive clothes, good food, and excellent education, it does not mean that the child will grow into a healthy adult.
Of course, that aspect is important, but attachment during the growth period is something that can never be ignored. Isn’t she in a sensitive state because the environment has changed?
It was a dilemma.
Either trust that suspicious woman for now, or torture her to the point where she won’t be able to bear it without telling you.
The moment the latter is chosen, it cannot be undone. It was an uncomfortable and irritating situation, as if there was a thorn stuck in my throat.
“I don’t trust you.”
“……”
“I will watch first. And if you do something stupid-”
Luke warned with a cruel look on his face.
“Please understand that we cannot guarantee Miss Aria’s life. The only reason you live is because I decided that way.”
Aria was currently watching Luke’s actions with great satisfaction.
‘Yes, that’s enough to protect my daughter.’
She was a bit worried because he acted like an idiot when dating, but that was a relief.
“Let’s keep that in mind.”
“And, it would be good to quickly regain those lost memories.”
Luke’s face was cold. His expression of disbelief clearly revealed the hostility he had towards Aria.
“Because I have no intention of leaving anyone who touched my daughter.”
“I agree with you on that point.”
Aria said Luke, who had a frown on his face.
“So, are you going to go on a picnic with me?”
“… That has to go.”
Barely safe.
Aria let out a small sigh in secret.
*****
“Will my mother be okay?”
“Of course, lady. You can talk to me more comfortably.”
“But the Duke doesn’t seem to like my mother very much.”
The maid Mary picked up Bonita, who was tapping her feet with a worried look on her face, and placed her on a chair in front of the mirror. It was to properly organize her hair, which had become a mess.
“Lady, what kind of ribbon do you like? blue? Or red?”
“Huh? Anything…”
Bonita blurted out the answer to her question and she looked at herself in the mirror.
She had only been at the Duke’s house for four days, but compared to when she was on the streets of the village, which was close to the slums, she seemed like a completely different child. She was especially livid, her cheeks more flushed than before.
She was thinner and shorter than her peers due to stunted growth, but if she maintained this lifestyle, it would soon return to normal.
For no reason, Bonita smoothed out the fabric of her dress.
She said, ‘It’s like a dream.’
She couldn’t believe it at first, but when she saw the Duke’s attitude yesterday, he seemed to really value her. I didn’t know why he was so sure that I was his daughter.
Still, it was definitely a good thing for her.
She is a girl from the slums who became the only princess of a Duke’s family.
Even a five-year-old child wouldn’t know which one is better for her.
‘But….’
What also caught her off guard was her mother.
She knows that Aria is not her biological mother. Still, she thought that it didn’t really matter to her as long as she raised her.
As much as she misses her biological mother, Aria has been her mother since the first moment Bonita can remember.
That’s what she thinks, and everyone in the village knows that Aria’s daughter is Bonita. There was never any doubt.
But this place is different.
They noticed that whenever Bonita called Aria ‘mother’, she got uncomfortable looks from people.
They denied that Bonita’s mother was Aria.
They even said that the truth she had believed in all her life was a lie and that from now on she would have to think of someone whose face she didn’t even know as her real mother.
It was a story she could not easily accept.
