– Chapter 27 –
It was not as difficult as expected for Erin to find the Duke.
Erin can’t go to the Duke’s office recklessly, but it was easy to find out where the Duke moved alone.
The Duke, who seemed to be the center of the society, unexpectedly sat in the corner.
From afar, out of everyone’s sight, he was watching the Duchess.
It was the same today.
“Father, you were here!”
“You’re here again.”
The Duke was no longer surprised.
Erin sat down next to the Duke.
Even the Duke got used to it as these days, the same things were repeated over and over again.
Now they have come to the point where they can sit side by side and have a conversation.
“I’m going to play with Mother and Aiden today.”
The Duke turned his head and looked at
Erin.
Those eyes were shaking as if they were saying something
‘I envy you.’
It was certainly that kind of look, so Erin suggested it first.
“Would Father like to join us too?”
The Duke seemed to ponder for a moment, then answered firmly.
“I’m busy.”
The Duke stood up from his seat as if he didn’t want to talk more.
Looking at that figure, Erin was deep in thought.
The Duke only looked at the Duchess from afar and never approached her.
Especially, when the Duchess and Aiden were together, he purposely avoided them and went back.
Erin’s eyes narrowed.
When she first found out that the Duke was in love with the Duchess, Erin only had one question.
‘Then what about Aiden?’
What does he think about Aiden?
She thought he wasn’t interested at all up until now, but there’s a possibility that maybe she was mistaken.
However, no matter how much she observed, she could not understand the Duke’s thoughts about Aiden.
Just as he avoids his wife, she only knew that he was also avoiding Aiden on purpose.
‘Why hasn’t he shown interest in Aiden so far?’
It was too bleak to call it a parent-child relationship
However, it seemed to her that the Duke was really not interested in Aiden.
Maybe there is a reason she doesn’t know yet.
“Father.”
The Duke did not respond to all of Erin’s words.
But Erin didn’t care and said what she wanted to say.
“Why aren’t you doing anything?”
“What does that mean?”
“That’s why; I just can’t understand you at all.”
“Truthfully, you like Mother, right?”
The Duke’s face hardened at once. His facial muscles trembled slightly.
“Who…… are you?”
The Duke had a confused face.
| “Of course, Father’s daughter-in-law!”
Erin answered with a shiny face on purpose.
The nervousness on the Duke’s face was released right away and turned into absurdity.
This little kid was lifting and lowering himself.
“One-sided love is not a problem.”
The Duke was saying everything to the child while thinking she must have thought that he was spouting nonsense.
But Erin listened to those words seriously with her eyes wide open.
And then she opened her mouth very confidently.
“If she doesn’t like you, you can just make her like you!”
The Duke stared at Erin with a blank look.
“Will she like me?”
The Duke’s voice was low.
The Duke asked with a hope, even though he was not confident.
Meanwhile, Erin saw hope for the future, knowing that the Duke had a desire to improve his relationship with his family.
The corners of Erin’s lips greatly rose.
Erin was spending time with the Duchess and Aiden by having tea time together.
Lately, they’ve made a regular time like this.
“Mother, how about coming out with Father next time?”
That’s how she asked an allusion question.
The idea was to strike the Duchess first.
She already knew the Duke’s feelings, but she didn’t know much about the Duchess’s feelings.
Just as she had interest and affection for Aiden now, she wondered if she had even the slightest bit of that kind of feeling towards the Duke.
But at Erin’s words, the Duchess’s face hardened.
“He wouldn’t like it.”
“
?”
The Duchess’s words were a little subtle.
‘This reaction again.’
She replied that the Duke would not like it.
‘It sounds as if Mother thinks he doesn’t like being with her.’
The Duchess was indifferent towards the Duke.
But every time Erin asks something. She was always the reason for the rejection, not him.
It wasn’t just an excuse to pass it on to him.
She really thought the Duke disliked being with her.
Somehow as if she had given up.
Erin blinked her eyes.
She took a closer look at the Duchess.
As expected, she was similar to the Duke.
“I don’t think it’s true that the two are not interested in each other.’
As she observed, there were subtle points that were recognizable by Erin.
It was evident in her eyes that the Duke and his wife were conscious and caring for each other.
‘No. I think they both love each other.’
Erin’s eyes widened.
I can’t believe the two of them are in love with each other.
Erin had many possibilities in mind, but none of them had this speculation.
It’s been 20 years since they got married and a while since they had a child, but she wondered how they could not understand each other’s feelings.
But after thinking about it once, as she observed the two of them, she became more and more convinced.
The two loved each other but turned away from one another.
‘How could this happen?’
Erin’s concerns deepened.
And at times like this, she had a way to find it out.
Erin’s gaze turned to Mona, who was right next to her.
“Mona. Did you say that you became close with the butler?”
“Of course. Isn’t this a world where we live to help each other?”
Mona said with a smile that reflected the years of experience.
As expected of my nanny.
Erin opened her mouth with her eyes twinkling
“Then, could you ask the butler and investigate about Mother and Father’s past?”
Mona’s eyebrows curled.
She could find out about the two’s pasts from the butler without difficulty.
Erin was curious about the two’s childhood.
The ducal couple has been married for over 20 years.
The couple got married when they were 13, three years older than Aiden and Erin.
In the Empire, it was common for nobles to marry at such an age.
Which means, they were still immature.
Besides, the two didn’t know too much about each other.
Like most noble families, the two also had an arranged marriage between the families.
The beginning of their married life was to follow the commands given by adults.
Roles in the family took precedence over getting to know each other and dealing with other people in aristocratic society took precedence over that.
Meanwhile, things piled up like moss between the two of them.
On the inside, it was due to the previous ducal couple who were the heads of the family at the time.
On the outside, the misunderstanding grew bigger and bigger as they were entangled in the interests of the social circle.
But there was never a chance to clear up the misunderstanding
Thus, the relationship between the two grew further and further apart.
The two had a strong misunderstanding of each other.
In the end, they have not confessed their feelings for each other even once in over 20 years.
However, the Duchess was the Duke’s first love.
So he didn’t know.
About the years the Duchess has endured for the past 20 years.
She also certainly had a dreamy first love towards the Duke when she was young.
Then, how did she give up her heart and what process did she go through to become what she is today?
Duke Leinster’s mother was a very fastidious and strict person.
She taught the young Duchess of Leinster to strict standards.
At the age of only thirteen, she was unable to do anything of her own will, and had to learn to control her behaviour in order to meet the standards of her mother-in-law.
Once you become a Leinster, don’t flounder anymore.
You shouldn’t treat your husband as if he is your friend.
Now that you are a member of the Leinster family, you must not act recklessly.
Even if you were to say a word, you have to think about what kind of impact it will have.
Her standards were harsh, and there were many things she had to uphold, both within the family and outside.
But that alone is daunting, so her heart was slowly dying while the interests of each family were entangled around the social circle.
Her eyes, which were once sparkling and shining, became dry and dull from which she couldn’t fathom her emotions from a certain point.
In her face, it was revealed that she naturally gave up the hope she had at first.
So, while the two liked each other, they turned away from each other and cared for each other by being indifferent.
The couple’s past was no different from that of Aiden before he met Erin.
A life in which everything is decided at a young age when no other choice is given.
They closed their hearts as they misunderstood each other.
The thing that got twisted at that time was that he followed them for such a long time.
‘Certainly for Aiden, if it wasn’t for me, nothing would have changed until he became an adult.
Thinking about it that way made her feelings mixed up.
Just like Aiden who began to change even if I helped a little by his side.
Wouldn’t a lot of things be different if I could help the ducal couple to understand each other’s feelings a little bit?
At least, if I can help clear up their misunderstandings towards each other.
Then, Aiden will be able to receive proper love and grow well as an adult.
For it to happen, Erin was determined to do what she could do.
Contrary to Erin’s wish, the relationship between Logan and Isabella was even more deviated.
Isabella came to Logan’s room at an early hour.
It was extremely rare for her to visit him in his private room.
Isabella tried to suppress her anger and opened her mouth.
“While it was happening to Aiden, we didn’t know anything.”
With a troubled expression on her face, she told him what had happened.
A step late, but he also knew what had happened to Aiden and how Isabella had dealt with it.
“It must have been hard…… Are you okay?”
In the meantime, he said these words because he was worried about Isabella’s expression.
But as soon as she heard those words, her face, which had been precariously maintaining her composure, was distorted in an instant.
Isabella glared at him with bitter eyes and opened her mouth.
“Was it hard for me? What’s the use of caring about me having a hard time? I am not the problem here……!”
Her intonation grew higher and higher.
“Aiden…… our son…… at the time he couldn’t say anything and endured the pain alone…… I can’t even imagine how hard it must have been for him, I think my heart is going to tear apart.”
Isabella’s eyes darkened.
“Yet you look like you don’t feel anything about it.”
– To Be Continued –