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Chapter 2
I opened the door with relief, then hesitated.
‘What brings her here at this hour?’
Why suddenly in the stormy dawn?
Just as that question arose, my sister spoke.
“Me, Mary.”
My sister, her face tired, was wrapped up from head to toe. Her unusual appearance left me speechless.
Beside her, my brother-in-law, the Marchioness Chester, holding an umbrella, also had a bad complexion.
After carefully assessing the situation, just as I was about to ask what was wrong, my sister handed me the baby.
“……?”
I took the baby into my arms, flustered.
What is this warm hot dog….
“I’m sorry for showing up suddenly, but please take care of Pippi.”
Pippi seemed to be the baby’s nickname.
Pevelfin Chester.
I recalled her boasting about the baby’s name, which she had agonized over.
My sister loved the baby so much, cherishing even the name like that.
But then why….
“What do you mean by that?”
I had no choice but to ask, worried.
Especially since my sister had a weak constitution. She had only informed close family about her pregnancy after being warned of the risk of miscarriage.
“Say something, sis.”
I urged her, but there was no answer.
I turned my eyes to the Marchioness. But his mouth remained shut, too.
“……Black.”
Then, my sister, her eyes already wet, rubbed them and rambled incoherently.
“I, I’m definitely going to die. Because I, because I know something I shouldn’t know….”
“……What?”
Did I mishear?
At those unexpected words, my body froze.
“So please, please protect our Pipi, okay? I’m begging you.”
“Stop crying and tell me properly.”
“I’m, I’m sorry, Mary. I’m so, so sorry….”
Mumbling, my sister suddenly whirled around as if she couldn’t say any more.
I tried to urgently grab my sister, but she brushed my hand away callously, and I ended up letting go.
And just like that, my sister and brother-in-law disappeared into the torrential rain in an instant.
‘……She’s asking me to take care of the baby?’
It was sudden.
I soothed the fussing baby and tried to make sense of the situation.
‘I’ve never seen sister act like that.’
My sister and I were twins who looked exactly alike, but our personalities were complete opposites.
My sister was bright and cheerful, the kind of heroine everyone loved.
But the way she looked just now….
Something was definitely wrong.
My heart pounded with anxiety.
But then….
“……Ha.”
I reluctantly closed the door.
With the baby in my arms, it seemed I would have to wait until tomorrow morning to find out what was going on with my sister.
‘Well, taking care of a baby for a day or two can’t be that hard.’
I forced myself to think positively and hugged my nephew, whom I was meeting for the first time, tightly.
But taking care of a baby is never easy….
I realized that the next day.
“Ugh, I’m dying.”
Mary Blinn, the epitome of a self-made success who saved a ruined family, a capable business owner, had been soundly defeated by her cotton-candy-like nephew.
‘When will Martha be back?’
It was already evening since Martha, having been informed of the situation, had gone to the square to find out news about my sister.
Does raising a child create magic that makes a day feel like 24 minutes?
I was sitting blankly when I heard whimpering and got up.
“Yes, yes, our baby. What is it now?”
Even after taking care of him all day, my touch was still awkward as I patted Pipi.
Maybe I patted him too hard, because the corners of the baby’s eyes stretched upwards like a cat’s.
The eyes visible between them were the same gold as mine. His brown hair also seemed to come from our maternal side. It was as if my sister had made the baby all by herself.
‘At this rate, people would believe it if I said I gave birth to him.’
Thinking that, I patted him gently, but Pipi still seemed sulky.
Ugh…… Ugh…….”
“If only a miracle would happen and you could talk before your mother comes to get you.”
“Huh…!”
Of course, no such miracle occurred.
I ended up lifting the baby and glancing out the window.
The rain had poured so heavily at dawn, but now the sky was clear.
As my gaze, wandering through the window, reached the fireplace.
The ashes left from burning the letter yesterday caught my eye.
‘……I didn’t think it would end so easily.’
Of course, for nobles, romance is a kind of entertainment.
Although emotional encounters had become more common in the upper class, they were still superficial, and in the end, people parted in ways that benefited their respective families.
That’s why I had even less desire to date.
Having been hurt by people and seen my family ruined, I had closed my heart, but I also knew that if I gave a piece of it, I would end up giving everything.
But….
Three years ago, he had somehow found his way into my heart.
It wasn’t that I liked him from the start, this man who was a born noble with refined elegance embodied.
But small things accumulated and created meaning.
A side of him completely different from the rumors that he was ‘a cruel and frightening person.’
The thought that him acting especially light around me might be a consideration so I wouldn’t feel intimidated by the status difference.
Of course, now I know.
That for him too, romance was a kind of entertainment.
‘Fine, whether he marries some daughter of a great family and has rabbit-like kids or not. I’m going to live with Dad for a thousand years.’
Just as I was making an untimely vow of ‘when I grow up, I’ll marry Dad’ and about to draw the curtains.
“……What is that?”
I spotted a carriage.
A carriage bearing the Blinn family crest was speeding as if it would tip over any moment.
Why from home so suddenly?
I tilted my head and went down to the first floor.
As soon as I opened the door, a man stepped down from the carriage.
“Lady Mary……!”
It was Hibel, the head butler of the Count’s family.
For a moment, my nose tingled at seeing a familiar face after so long, but then I grew puzzled again.
‘Is something really wrong?’
Hibel looked a mess.
A sweaty forehead, crooked glasses, a heavily wrinkled shirt.
“Th, that is….”
Hibel, who had come running breathlessly, finally got to the point.
“……”
And at his following words, my mind went blank.
My sister had been murdered.
Without even time to tidy up the villa, I headed for the capital.
My head throbbed.
With things turning out like this, it felt surreal.
‘She said she was going to die?’
How did my sister know that in advance?
How on earth….
I wanted to think rationally, but tears kept flowing.
By the time I arrived at the Count’s residence, a full day had passed and it was dawn.
“……Mary.”
Just as I entered the mansion, I met my father.
Now it was just my father and me. Mother had died of puerperal fever after giving birth to us sisters.
Nevertheless, the reason I never felt her absence was because of my father and sister, who always took care of me with kindness.
“My daughter….”
Father embraced me and bowed his head. His shoulders felt warm.
I stayed still in his arms. Without a word, just like that.
“……Ugh.”
Then, a ragged breath escaped through my tightly pressed lips.
My twin sister, who had been with me since birth, was dead.
My head rang. It was hard to breathe.
I cried like that for a long time.
Then suddenly….
In my faint memory, my sister’s voice came to mind.
“It’s good to cry together, but you have to become the person who wipes away the tears. That’s what makes you truly strong.”
‘sister is…’
She wouldn’t want me to be like this.
She trusted me more than anyone, which is why she came to me in the moments before her death.
So….
I couldn’t stay crushed by sorrow forever.
‘I need to find out about sister’s death… quickly.’
To do that, I first needed to regain my strength.
‘I’ll mourn just until today, and I won’t cry until the funeral is over.’
In the meantime, I would eat well and sleep well, and with a sound mind, uncover the truth about my sister and her death.
I made that resolute vow.
But, the next day.
At my father’s vividly clear voice, I thought:
“I want you to become Pippi’s mother.”
I should never have made such a resolute vow to fulfill my sister’s request so recklessly.
‘……How did it come to this?’
