TBMGW 21

Chapter 21

Somewhat gloomily, almost as if we had been driven out, the days we spent at the villa passed more peacefully than expected.

The fact that Ian behaved himself the entire time he stayed at the villa contributed greatly to that peace.

Unlike at the ducal residence, the villa staff—who had only heard rumors and warnings about Ian but had never actually experienced him—did not visibly shy away from him.

I could constantly feel watchful eyes on us due to the Duke of Brighton’s orders, but that was all.

Ian Brighton tends to want people to revere him or tremble and bow their heads before him, yet he actually dislikes it when they show any other kind of negative emotion.

Therefore, the villa staff’s businesslike yet respectful attitude was more than enough to satisfy Ian.

The duke’s decision to separate Ian from Lady Agatha Brighton and Lady Rosa ended up turning into a blessing in disguise.

And, to be honest, I clearly deserved some credit for these peaceful days as well.

If it hadn’t been for me, Ian would have turned the villa upside down the moment he arrived!

…He would have, right? The Ian Brighton I know is definitely that kind of boy.

Anyway, amid these calm days—so calm that I wondered if this was really okay—a letter arrived from the Duchess of Brighton exactly one month after we began staying at the villa.

The duchess had written not to Ian, nor even to the villa’s steward, but to me.

When I received the letter that began with “Dear Cissy,” I was so flustered I didn’t know what to do!

I never imagined I would learn in such a way that the duchess’s trust in me ran deeper than I had expected.

At the same time, I worried about how much Ian would hate it if he found out that his mother’s letter had arrived for her son’s personal servant rather than for him.

“It’s only natural that that coward would write to you.”

Surprisingly, Ian reacted calmly.

“She knows she wouldn’t be forgiven even if she said to me, ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t stop your father from driving you away.’ She’s more afraid of having that confirmed than of death, so she sent the letter to you.”

“You really do have an outstanding talent for talking about heartbreaking things as if they’re nothing, young master!”

“What’s heartbreaking about it? Where, in the sentence ‘Mother is a coward,’ is there anything heartbreaking?”

The look on his face showed genuine incomprehension.

Despite the salutation being addressed to “Cissy,” more than half of the letter asked after Ian’s well-being.

[Is the child doing well? Is he getting along with the servants? He must be sleeping properly, right? What about meals? At the ducal residence, Ian hardly ate at all……]

After reading every line, this was the conclusion I reached:

Agatha Brighton loves Ian Brighton.

She may be full of fear, but she could not abandon her son.

Unlike the Duke of Brighton.

If not for Duchess Agatha Brighton, the duke would likely have tried to erase his son from the world while he was still in the cradle.

Yet Ian Brighton has survived to this day, even while bearing the epithet of “the demon-possessed child.”

This is entirely thanks to the duchess.

The letter ended like this:

[I truly want to come see both Ian and you. I was about to depart immediately, but perhaps I overworked myself recently while conducting my research—my health has deteriorated severely.

My husband and Rosa strongly oppose me going to see Ian in this condition.

Their biggest reason is that no one knows what might happen if I come face to face with Ian.

Because of that, it seems I will have difficulty visiting the villa for some time.

Ian must have been deeply hurt by this incident.

What if he feels lonely? Those worries still trouble me.

I resent myself for being so weak and inadequate, unable to do anything for him.

So, Cissy, could you help me?

Could you write to me and tell me how Ian is doing?

If it can be proven that Ian does not cause trouble while he is with you, my husband will agree to meet him.

Perhaps the whole family could return to the villa and bring Ian back.

It’s a foolish hope, isn’t it?

I know it may seem naive, but even so, I want to protect this family……]

Ian flatly refused my offer to read the letter aloud to him.

His stance was that he was neither curious about that woman’s thoughts nor interested in knowing what was in her heart.

How cold and unfeeling he was! Truly, a demon incarnate.

In the end, it was only me—someone who wasn’t even family—who read Agatha Brighton’s entire letter and became sentimental.

“Impressive that you can read, you.”

Beside me, Ian Brighton sat sprawled against the wide windowsill, doing nothing but sneering.

I shot him a sideways glance—very secretly.

“I learned at the Grington Count’s estate. I may not look it, but I’m a useful worker who can both read and write.”

“Hm.”

Ian, resting his chin on one hand with an elbow propped on his raised knee, narrowed his eyes.

“From everything I’ve heard so far, it’s hard to imagine that that ‘Grington Count’s estate’ ever did anything good for you.”

Right on the mark. Unnecessarily sharp.

I tried to brush it off with an awkward smile.

There was no way I could say, “Actually, I’m the Count of Grington’s illegitimate child. Even as a bastard, the count couldn’t tolerate the fact that his bloodline was illiterate, so I was forced to learn.”

“I was sometimes put in charge of organizing the library. They said I had to at least be able to read book titles.”

Ian’s gaze, still fixed on me, showed no sign of being convinced.

But he didn’t press the issue or question me further.

“Come to think of it, don’t children of noble families receive education from private tutors?”

“I don’t need that sort of thing.”

“But your age—”

“The tutor who came when I was eight became crippled on the day he struck my palm with a switch. The new tutor appointed when I was nine turned into a fool who couldn’t even preserve his own dignity while lecturing me about the dignity of noble children. Want me to go on?”

“N-no. I understand.”

I grew a bit serious. Just how did the eighteen-year-old Ian Brighton from the original story grow up into a perfect nobleman?

If there had been no tutor by his side to teach him noble etiquette or knowledge, then how on earth…?

“I’ll say it again. I really don’t need ‘that kind of thing.’”

Perhaps he read my thoughts from my expression.

Ian looked at me with calm eyes and enunciated each word carefully.

“Do you understand? I mean that even without such things, I can master everything.”

A little dazed, I let out a short sigh.

“Ah……”

The demon’s child.

“So that’s it. There really is a demon living inside Ian.”

The demon growing alongside Ian must have absorbed all the knowledge in the world and crammed it into him.

Reading without being taught, grasping politics without being told, and even mastering martial arts, refinement, and the art of captivating people……

And a boy who could even learn how to fight on his own.

Some would praise him as a genius; others would feel a primal fear toward the incomprehensible.

Those who feared him most would likely be those who knew Ian Brighton’s true nature.

For example, the Brighton ducal family.

No……

I can’t allow Ian Brighton to grow even closer to that demon.

Then the “Ian Brighton Humanity-Raising Project” would be a complete failure!

“I still think you need good people by your side, young master.”

Ian brushed off my heartfelt statement with indifference.

“You’re here.”

Wait.

“Did you just call me a good person?”

Ian stared straight at me, still resting his chin on his hand.

But I didn’t have the leeway to care about that persistent gaze.

For the first time in a while, emotion surged up from deep within me.

“Young master! You’re becoming more admirable by the day……!”

“Objectively speaking, it’s true that you’re a ‘good person.’ You’ve already won over all the villa staff.”

“Ah, well.”

A personal servant who has served the longest, devotedly attending to a young master surrounded by bad rumors.

And that sole personal servant is a twelve-year-old girl.

A face still full of baby fat, scrawny, and short.

Isn’t it only natural that the older villa staff would treat someone like me kindly after seeing those outward conditions?

If it were me, I’d be kind to a kid like that too.

“Of course, not everyone is this generous.”

The unusually warm atmosphere of the Brighton family’s villa must have played a significant role as well.

Just looking at the Grington Count’s estate, the difference was like night and day.

Anyway—

“It’s probably not because I did anything particularly outstanding to earn their favor.”

“I can’t earn people’s favor no matter how little or how much I do.”

Ugh. Now there’s nothing I can say.

Seeing me fall silent, Ian curled his lips into a crooked smile.

“I’m not earning it, though.”

It sounded like he was telling me not to feel too discouraged. Or maybe that was just my imagination.

“Anyway, I have no intention of keeping anyone else by my side besides you.”

“I see……”

Ian Brighton’s position was firm. It wouldn’t be easy to break that stubbornness.

But that doesn’t mean I’ll give up.

While we’re at this villa, I’ll make Ian a little softer and warmer!

…And that resolve would be utterly crushed about three years later. Completely and spectacularly.