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Chapter 32
Perhaps, because of his mother’s absence, Leo showed a sign of anxiety. Kyle was playing with him until he fell asleep, and when he checked that Leo was asleep, he asked the servant.
“…What about Rosalind?”
“She is heading here.”
With that said, Kyle began to move his steps without hesitation. He made his way out of the mighty castle and roamed the garden without hesitation.
Then, suddenly, as if frozen, his feet stopped on the spot.
…In the distance, in the middle of the garden, stood Rosalind crying.
She was slender, with her body on the ground, and she was sadly wiping away her tears. The tips of her palms pressed tightly against her eyelids, and her shoulders trembled as she gasped for breath. Conceivably, it had been hit by the rain, her dress was clinging to her tiny body.
She looked just like a child.
It had been a long time since he had seen a woman cry. It was a feeling of being reminded of old feelings.
Rosalind was not a sweet girl like candy or sweet desserts. When Rosalind sniffled, his nerves were on edge, and he now felt as though his heart was being crushed when he saw her crying like this. It felt too dizzy to be a simple relief that nothing had happened to her.
Indescribable emotions drenched him like rain.
Kyle couldn’t stand the rush of emotions and walked over to her. Seeing Rosalind was swallowing her tears as she hadn’t noticed he was coming, he impulsively grabbed Rosalind’s body.
Her tear-filled eyes narrowed, and a puzzled look flashed across her face, though he just hugged her tightly.
It wasn’t intended. He could only do that.
“…Duke?”
“What a relief. Thank God…”
She always made him powerless.
He was raised as the eldest son and heir of the Spencer family. Emotions are something that should be controlled, something that should not be revealed.
As soon as emotions were revealed in their eyes, they became weak, and when they became weak, they would be devoured.
That was the first thing he learned to survive.
Nonetheless, standing in front of her, everything he had learned became overshadowed.
“Really…”
If by any chance this woman he had barely found would really leave him. Kyle became terrified when he made such an assumption. It was like he was buried under deep water, unable to even breathe. He was going to be submerged without even resisting to a distant place where the depth was unknown.
…Just like today’s self, he was terribly helpless.
‘I fell deeply in it, and I was a little afraid of how far it would end. It felt like being swept away by a wave, being dragged by unfamiliar emotions. I thought, love is what it feels like to be overwhelmed by everything…’
He suddenly remembered Rosalind’s words.
It was so far-fetched that it was impossible to comprehend, and everything seemed to be overwhelming.
If that was love, he was in love with her.
That, too, from a very long time ago.
She glanced up at the sky and spoke softly.
“…The day is gloomy. It will rain soon. Right, Leo?”
Without answering her mother’s words, Leo was busy browsing the market. From an early age, he was so curious that he preferred to just hold hands rather than being fully carried since he couldn’t reach out his hand and touch things when he was held.
When she was as big as him, Rosalind was a girl who was always withdrawn and frightened.
“Leo…? Mother told you not to look away.”
“Can’t you buy that?”
Saying so, Leo pointed to the toy with the tip of his finger.
Rosalind shook her head, saying no. Despite the fact that she liked it and wanted to buy it all, she could not, and her family’s circumstances were not as good as before.
“No.”
“Hmph.”
“Let’s buy something else instead.”
Seeing Leo stuck out his mouth, she opened her mouth. “I’ll buy you next time,” Rosalind’s voice was soft as she comforted the child.
Today, she went out to buy things that were not Leo’s toys. Usually, noble wives simply browsed through the markets, but she also picked up vegetables and bought daily necessities herself. As she lived on her feet in an unfamiliar land, she learned to do things alone and it was still ingrained in her body.
She suddenly saw the books lined up and sold in an alleyway. It was a short story book that would be good to read to children.
Rosalind glanced at a few with her eyes before picking up one and asked.
“How much is this?”
“It’s twelve gold.”
When the merchant answered kindly, Rosalind lengthened her lips as if worried.
Gold was the most valuable of all monetary units. Books were expensive, although she hesitated for a moment because they cost more than she expected.
“Hmm…”
He could get tired of playing with toys, though she wanted to have a few books so she could read them over and over again. It seemed that it was a little extravagant for the current economic situation, but on the other hand, if it was for the child, she could easily spend money, wasn’t it a parents’ mind…?
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“Can you recommend some of these?”
“Of course.”
As soon as the vendor thought she was going to buy a book, the vendor started recommending this and that, with a smile.
“It would be a collection of stories from foreign countries. An exciting story full of adventure and love! Children especially like it, so time flies when you read it.”
“It looks fun. Hmm…”
“Kids don’t get enough sleep. When they read a book like this, they fall asleep quickly.”
“It is.”
Every time he slept, Leo would beg her to tell him something. Rosalind also thought that he would like it if she could tell him something new as she brought out all the stories she had picked up in the old days.
“Leo, would you like to buy some books?”
She asked, but she didn’t hear an answer.
“You don’t want books? But, look at the book…”
When she turned her gaze, Leo was not right next to her. Rosalind glanced around with a bewildered look on her face. Still, nowhere was the little boy. Soon after, she left the bookseller behind and began to call out Leo’s name.
“Leo…! Where are you?!”
No matter how much she shouted, it only resounded hollowly among the crowd. She started looking for Leo in earnest as she wandered among the people with sudden anxiety.
“Leo! Leo—!”
No matter how many times she called, there was no answer. No matter how many times she called or no matter how much she turned her head, she could not see the child, and her fear overcame anxiety. Rosalind wondered how she could lose Leo like this.
Holding back the welling tears, she began to run through the crowd.
“Have you not seen a little boy here?”
It was of no use for her to hold onto someone passing by and ask.
“He has blonde hair and is about this tall…”
People just shook her head at her question.
She had no idea where he went. Could he have been kidnapped by strangers? Or, maybe… A number of ominous cases were constantly floating in her mind. Once she had put her thoughts in order, she headed to the castle.
Leo might have come home.
However, when she got home, Leo was nowhere to be seen.
“Mother, have you seen Leo?”
“Leo…?”
“Leo, Leo is gone.”
Rosalind didn’t know what to do. She clutched the hem of her dress, looking around, begging like she was about to cry, then exhaled a bit.
“…I don’t know where he went.”
“Let, let’s have the servants find him.”
As her family’s circumstances worsened, she reduced the number of employees, though she decided to release the employees as soon as she could. Rosalind buried her face in her palm and wept, before heading out to find Leo again.
“I will go out and look for him.”
As soon as she opened the big door, it was raining.
With the maid behind her hastily carrying an umbrella and coming out, she hurriedly began to move her steps. She decided to return to the market where she had just been, and she shouted Leo’s name again eagerly. She was sure he was by her side until she picked up a book, so he must be somewhere…
“Leo…!”
Although it was raining and there were far fewer people than before, Leo was nowhere to be seen. Rain dripped down on her pale face. Her wet eyes were dizzy, not knowing whether it was rain or tears.
As she went looking for a while, she heard the voice of a maid running from afar.
“Madam!”
Rosalind quickly looked at the maid at the urgent voice.
“I found the Young Master!”
“What?”
A moment of relief spread across her face as she saw the maid breathing out in haste. In Rosalind’s weeping voice, she barely spit the words out.
“Where, where is Leo?”
The place where Rosalind hurriedly went to was Kyle’s castle.
By the time she went there, she was in a hurry, though when she arrived, she realized it was a pretty familiar place… No, it seemed like too much time has passed for her to get used to it. She had lived here before, though after setting foot in a long time, Rosalind felt overwhelmed by the majesty and sheer size of it.
“This is the Duke…”
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But, why is Leo here? Rosalind looked at the maid with a face asking for an explanation.
“It seems that the Elder Madam asked the Duke for help because there were not enough people. It is said that the Duke sent people as soon as he heard and found the Young Master.”
She felt uncomfortable to be entangled with him in any way. Nonetheless, when Leo was found, Rosalind was not in a position to argue.
Now, the most important thing to her was to find Leo and hold him in her arms.
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