QBSLB 23

Chapter 23

“Nice to meet you.”

At those words, I slowly raised my head again.

Madam Vanetta looked far older than I had expected.

Yet even her wrinkled eyes and somewhat gaunt frame could not conceal the dignity that overflowed from her.

“The honor is mine, Madam.”

“Formalities aside—please, have a seat.”

I took my place across from her at the tea table.

Because the space was a glass greenhouse, I could clearly see the flowers planted all around, swaying as they were soaked by the rain.

“It’s a truly beautiful place.”

“I told you, the pleasantries aren’t necessary.”

Madam Vanetta replied coolly as she lifted her teacup.

For some reason, she looked exhausted and melancholy.

“You asked me to sell a necklace with a story behind it, didn’t you? It wasn’t such a difficult request that I could refuse.”

It seemed that inviting me here as well had been something she did reluctantly, at Savanna’s request.

After all, the reason she had recently withdrawn from social gatherings was simply that she “didn’t want to meet people.”

They said that after that incident a year ago, she rarely even left the house.

“Yes. There was no one else I could ask, so I had no choice but to trouble Savanna.”

“Mm. She’s a clever girl… especially good at reading people.”

The lady’s gaze, which had been examining me, suddenly sharpened.

For a moment, it felt as though the charisma of the woman who once dominated high society had returned.

But only for a moment.

Soon, Madam Vanetta, looking weary once more, handed me a heavy pouch of gold coins.

“Here. Transactions should be clear, so it’s best to confirm the amount now.”

The deal ended quickly.

She gave me neither too much nor too little—just the right amount.

It was consideration, meant to avoid hurting my pride.

If she had given too much, the recipient might have felt pitied instead.

“Thank you, Madam.”

That ended sooner than I expected.

After tucking the pouch safely into my clothes, I lingered, sipping the now-cold tea.

Shaaah—

The sound of rain echoed softly through the quiet glass greenhouse.

As I gazed blankly at the hydrangeas in the rain-soaked garden, I suddenly spoke.

“…Do you live here alone?”

Count Arrington—her son—was an outstanding swordsman.

Twenty years ago, he had captured border territory during the war with the neighboring Kingdom of Frank, earning the title of Margrave.

As a result, only Madam Vanetta and her granddaughter, who was studying in the capital, remained in this estate.

That is—until a year ago, when that granddaughter died in an unexpected accident.

From that moment on, Madam Vanetta retired from society and shut herself away at home.

“…Yes.”

She replied in a tired voice.

I quietly swept my gaze around the greenhouse.

The Arrington estate was old-fashioned and beautiful, but it felt too silent and lonely for someone living alone.

…I didn’t realize it when I read the original.

Reading words on a page and facing a person in reality were entirely different things.

When I first came here, my goal had simply been to meet the “fairy grandmother” in order to attend the imperial palace party.

But seeing the lady’s weary expression in person made my heart ache.

Wanting to comfort her, I spoke in a deliberately bright, gentle tone.

“I really like rainy days. And the way raindrops cling to hydrangeas!”

At that, the old woman’s wrinkled eyes widened slightly in surprise.

After a moment, she smiled faintly.

“…Is that so? I suppose women your age are all rather sentimental.”

Women my age… Was she thinking of her granddaughter?

I didn’t comment on it, and simply took a quiet sip of my cold tea.

Working as a barista had taught me more than just how to deal with difficult customers.

It had also taught me how to care for people.

The reason I’d decided to learn coffee in the first place was because I wanted to comfort someone.

Just as I once had been deeply comforted by a warm cup of coffee that winter.

Before long, the old woman spoke again.

“I had a granddaughter. That child loved looking at hydrangeas on rainy days, too.”

“……”

“She was devout and followed me closely… but what is love, really?”

Her gaze was fixed not on me, but on the blue hydrangeas.

I simply listened in silence.

“One day, she begged me, saying she wanted to marry some man of unknown origins.”

The old woman gave a bitter smile, her wrinkled face twisting.

“I opposed it. I believed it was for her happiness. But…”

Her fading voice scattered into the sound of rain.

She couldn’t bring herself to continue—but I knew this story.

The young lady of Arrington ultimately eloped with a wandering poet.

Yet the impulsive flight of young lovers ended in tragedy before it could even begin.

On the road as they tried to flee abroad, they encountered a band of thieves.

Paying the driver of their wagon with a gold bar had been a mistake.

Realizing she was a noblewoman, the driver grew greedy, summoned the bandits, and in the end the poor lovers were kidnapped and killed.

Fortunately, the young lady’s body was recovered—but her lover’s was not.

All that remained were horribly mutilated body parts.

“…There was a rosary she always carried while she was alive.”

Madam Vanetta spoke heavily.

I already knew the rest as well.

She had even hired mercenaries to wipe out the bandits, but in the end, she was never able to recover the rosary.

“That I couldn’t bury it with her… it still weighs on my heart.”

“……”

At her bitterness, I was momentarily at a loss for words.

“I’ve said far too much to someone I’ve only just met. Perhaps because you were sent by Savanna, I felt at ease without realizing it.”

Soon, Madam Vanetta waved her hand with a hollow smile.

“How foolish. Perhaps I really am old now.”

“…No. I understand your feelings very well, Madam.”

I replied quietly, but earnestly.

“To be honest, the reason I asked you to dispose of the necklace… is because it was a gift from my unfaithful husband.”

Sharing misfortune often deepens intimacy.

Madam Vanetta nodded silently, her expression stiff.

She had probably heard a rough version of the situation from Savanna.

“…I was incredibly hurt, but strangely enough, what I thought about most in the process was my parents.”

I spoke honestly.

And it was true.

Before and after transmigrating—

Whenever my husband and in-laws tormented me together, I desperately wished I had parents who would stand on my side.

“Children think about their parents far more than parents realize—just as much as parents love their children.”

They said Madam Vanetta had raised her granddaughter like her own daughter.

“Is that… so? I wonder if that’s truly the case…”

At her damp, sunken voice, I slowly turned my gaze toward the garden.

Blue hydrangeas blooming across the entire garden.

What kind of heart did it take to sit alone in this lonely estate for a whole year, tending the flowers her granddaughter loved?

“…May I come visit often?”

I smiled at her, speaking in an intentionally cheerful tone.

“I like hydrangeas too. You can only see them this season, after all.”

At my frank manner, the lady let out a hearty laugh through tears.

“You’re right. It’s been nice, speaking with someone young again after so long.”

After finishing the cold tea, I left the greenhouse.

Rain was still pouring down from the dark clouds blanketing the sky.

As she walked me to the door, I asked one last question.

“You said your granddaughter liked rain-soaked hydrangeas. Do you also like rainy days, Madam?”

“No.”

The answer came immediately.

With a rigid expression, Madam Vanetta murmured in a low voice.

“I hate the rain… so much it makes my teeth chatter.”

* * *

I had just arrived back at the estate and was about to change clothes in my small attic room when—

Knock, knock.

A maid informed me in a relatively polite manner.

“Little Madam, the master is looking for you.”

Since the Emma incident, the servants had begun calling me “Little Madam.”

“My father-in-law?”

He must have returned early out of curiosity about my meeting with Madam Vanetta.

“Is Mother there as well?”

At my question, the maid nodded slightly.

“Yes. They’re in the drawing room. You may change into indoor clothes before going to see them.”

“…Mm. No.”

I smiled broadly at the maid.

“I’ll go as I am.”

Without even removing my cloak, I headed for the drawing room.

Knock, knock.

“Master, the Little Madam has arrived.”

“Come in.”

When I opened the door, I saw Hopsin and Sophia sitting on the sofa.

Sophia was glaring at me with eyes full of jealousy.

I knew it.

I was the only one who had gone to the Arrington estate, after all.

But I had my own plans.

“I’ve returned, Father.”

After greeting him demurely, I removed my cloak.

The moment his eyes fell on my shabby outing dress, sparks flew.

“…You sent the child to the Arrington Count’s household dressed like that?!”

Of course, the flames were directed not at me—

but at Sophia.