Chapter 179: The Loose Leash
Even though my life has been full of ups and downs recently, I prepared for the engagement wholeheartedly. In the meantime, I also solved one problem. Some time ago, Arrendt Clovis asked me if I was human. I couldn’t grasp the meaning behind his question, but now I understood. Arrendt must have heard Fiona’s voice in the darkness. Perhaps he found that my voice and Fiona’s were almost similar, which was why he doubted me. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
I was finally able to answer his question: “I am human.”
Arrendt, being the smart person he was, realized the true meaning of those words. “Have you learned anything new?”
“I can’t tell you that, but in any case, your suspicions are wrong, Marquis.”
I grinned and gave a bonus hint. “And the problem that has been troubling you for a long time will soon be resolved.”
“….”
It looked like he wanted to ask more, but couldn’t because I had managed to escape from him.
There were still many unresolved issues regarding the ‘real’ Fiona. But one reassuring thing was that the person she hated would probably be me. So even if she did something, I would be the one who suffered the consequences. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
I had also communicated several times through letters with the scholars at the Academy whom I had previously met, and I even got permission to see the results of their studies.
Therefore, I had a lot of work ahead of me. Of course, the first priority was preparing for the engagement. Unexpectedly, Carl was of great help in this matter. He had good taste.
“The dress looks good on you; you suit both dark and bright colors, Miss.”
Sorry to say this, Sigren, but Carl has been much more helpful than you in this regard. Sigren’s eyes were shrouded by bean pods[1] he thought I looked pretty even in rags. [1] blinded by love.
“Carl, thank you for staying at the mansion.”
If I had let him leave at that time, I would have been in big trouble—there was no doubt about that.
“It should be me who feels grateful that you let me stay here like this, Miss.”
“No. I’m truly grateful, Carl. Thank you very much. Without you, I would have had a lot of trouble.”
Celine was here, but I still needed the perspective of young people. Read the translation on ladygrey.com.
“Originally, your mother should have taken charge of everything, but well… so I wonder if I could get involved….”
“Sure, it’s fine. Father isn’t married, so I don’t have a mother.”
And the original family that Fiona was born into, the Green family, was that of ‘morning soap opera’.[2] morning soap opera is poorly produced drama.
Carl looked at me blankly. “I don’t mean to be rude, but may I ask about your biological mother?”
Hmmm, was this a sudden personal investigation? I remembered what I had said to Carl a while ago when he was about to leave. Oh, did he think there might be some connection to the deaths of Carl and Sigren’s mothers?
“I have no idea.”
This was the truth. I didn’t have any personal information because I hadn’t developed any backstory for Fiona’s biological mother, even though I tried to recover Fiona’s memories from before the age of ten.
“Well, I really don’t know.”
“You speak of this matter as if it’s none of your business.”
“Because I truly have very little memory. Also, haven’t you finished investigating my personal life?”
Carl’s hand, which had been touching the fabric, stopped. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
“Yes, that’s why I can’t understand the meaning of what you said back then.”
“Why?”
“No matter who investigates you, the only evidence that exists is that you are a victim.”
“Is that so?”
A victim. It means I suffered, and I didn’t do anything wrong. That was probably the title Fiona should have held.
Carl laughed awkwardly. “But if your mother were here, she must have been proud of you.”
That statement, in its own way, gave me some consolation. I smiled at him. Even though our first meeting hadn’t gone very well, so far my interactions with him told me he was indeed a nice guy.
I expressed my gratitude. “Thank you for saying that.”
Sigren, Carl, Abel, Livya… I thought of all the people I had met here. Everyone was a good person. So I hoped that Fiona, who was trapped in her anger, would only hate me and cause harm to me. Read the translation on itsladygrey.com.
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