Chapter 79

Reina couldn’t say anything about the Finecke being labeled heretics.

If she carelessly defended them, she could easily be branded a heretic herself.

‘Something’s strange.’

They said it had once been used to kill Finecke.

That could also mean it had been cultivated for that purpose alone.

‘Am I overthinking it.’

Reina tapped the table lightly, then shook her head.

“I guess I shouldn’t take the medicine the temple distributes.”

“Yes, yes, Reina. That’s a good idea.”

It was a sensitive topic to bring up to Damian.

Mentioning anything that reminded him of the duchess would only trouble his heart.

‘As long as the young lady is here, that ingredient won’t enter the duchy anyway. It’s not something I need to worry about.’

There was something far more pressing on Reina’s mind.

“Would it be alright if I head back early tomorrow?”

“Hm? Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow is, ah. The young lady’s birthday.”

“It’s her first birthday at the duchy, so if you can celebrate, you should. We’ll be stuck here because of the research, but still.”

“Then we’ll give you a gift, and you can pass it along for us.”

Reina quietly watched everyone smoothly making plans, then shook her head.

“It’s the young lady’s birthday, but it’s my daughter’s birthday too.”

Silence fell for a moment.

“Y-Your daughter’s birthday?”

“My goodness, the same day as the young lady? That’s amazing.”

“Right? I was shocked when I first found out too.”

Reina laughed awkwardly.

“So I was planning to push the experiment as far as possible before I left. I felt bad about leaving my spot empty.”

“But it’s your young daughter’s birthday. Why didn’t you say anything earlier? Did you prepare a birthday present?”

Before she knew it, everyone had leaned closer to her.

Reina was flustered by how many people were suddenly interested in Bonita’s birthday.

“N-No… I asked her three days ago, and she said she’d be happy just spending time together. I thought maybe I’d just prepare a cake…”

“How can you say that!”

“Reina! You can’t do that!”

All the mages slammed their hands on the table and sprang to their feet at once.

“…Pardon?”

“It’s the same birthday as the young lady!”

“There’s going to be a birthday party, and you’re thinking of just one cake? Even if she doesn’t feel inferior now, she might later.”

“…What?”

“Oh, Reina. You can be so fierce when talking about poison, but you’re not delicate in moments like this.”

“We’ll restore our niece’s pride ourselves. This won’t do. We need to prepare gifts for Boni!”

“Why is Bonita your niece…?”

They had been kind to Reina, but not close enough to call each other aunt, uncle, or niece.

Reina studied them carefully.

Dark circles hung deeply beneath every pair of eyes.

“Ah…”

Their hair was dry and messy, and exhaustion showed plainly.

‘Sleep really is important.’

Her eyes met those of the servant holding the teapot behind them.

His expression didn’t look much different from hers.

‘I’ve at least taken short naps, but the mages have barely slept for nearly three weeks.’

When she had asked Damian if this was acceptable, he had replied that they were being paid several times over, so it was fine.

Thanks to the money and manpower spared, the experiment had progressed unusually quickly.

Reina looked at the mages, their eyes wide like zealots as they huffed with determination, then cautiously made a suggestion.

“I think everyone should get some sleep first.”

“…”

“While I’m at the mansion tomorrow, I think it’d be best if everyone rested.”

At her suggestion, the excited mages slowly calmed and sat back down.

They each took a sip of their tea, now long cold.

“That… sounds like a good idea.”

“If we weren’t getting paid this much, this would be borderline exploitation.”

“Alright, let’s eat and move on to the next test.”

“What were we changing this time?”

As everyone rose and returned to their stations, Reina stood as well. The indoor air was chilly since the windows had been opened to clear out the smoke.

She closed each window herself and looked around at the room, far messier than on the day she first stepped inside.

‘I hope we get results soon.’

Once they had results, this space would be cleared.

Research she had started to earn a title.

Whenever she stood here, her heart pounded like it had when she ran through flower fields as a child.

‘Boni.’

Whenever that happened, she thought of Bonita. Thinking of the place she had to return to calmed the rhythm that didn’t suit her current self.

* * *

Estelle’s first birthday as the young lady of the duchy was celebrated only within the Winternight territory, at the ducal castle.

Even so, many families who heard of her birthday sent gifts.

Carriages loaded with presents formed an endless procession, and there weren’t enough storage rooms to hold them all.

“Boni, look at this.”

Bonita watched from Estelle’s room as Estelle opened her gifts.

All sorts of dazzling items kept pouring out of the boxes without end.

Yet not a trace of jealousy appeared in the child’s pale lavender eyes.

“Wow, it’s so pretty.”

“I don’t even know if I’m allowed to receive things like this. Isn’t there anything you want, Boni? If you say the word, I’ll give it to you. I didn’t prepare a gift for you.”

“It’s okay. They’re all gifts for you, My lady. And I didn’t prepare a gift for your birthday either.”

Bonita truly didn’t mind.

What she wanted most couldn’t fit inside any small gift box.

‘When is Mom coming.’

She stole a glance at the window. It had long since grown dark outside.

* * *

‘Oh no. It’s later than I thought.’

It wasn’t that she had left late.

But Reina had remembered what the mages said and gone alone into the busy district to pick something Bonita might like.

It was her birthday after all. She wanted to give her what she would love most.

Buying a sword wasn’t an option since she already had three practice wooden swords, and Damian had long ago prepared training clothes for her.

By the time she had bought five different boxes of gifts and looked up at the sky, it had already grown dark.

By the time she called a carriage and returned to the mansion, it was naturally an hour when children should already be asleep.

“B-Boni… are you asleep?”

Reina carefully opened the door and called out.

‘Is she asleep?’

She set the gift boxes down and walked toward the bed, but the bed she expected Bonita to be lying in was empty.

“Where did she go?”

‘Sir Dean watches over her, but he always sends her back by evening…’

On every one of Bonita’s birthdays until now, they had spent the entire day together no matter what.

She had bought several gifts for Bonita, but they couldn’t compare to what Estelle had received.

And today of all days, she had left her alone.

Reina’s heart felt heavy.

“…What’s this?”

A small note had been left on the bedside table.

In neat handwriting, it read “Estelle’s room.”

It was clearly a note Damian had left.

Reina traced the edge of the note with her fingers, then slowly made her way to Estelle’s room.

‘Why is Boni in the young lady’s room?’

Just as she was about to knock, the door opened slowly.

Damian appeared from beyond it and spoke in a low voice.

“She’s asleep.”

“…Did you put her to bed, My lord?”

“It just happened that way.”

A fairy tale book was tucked under his arm. He stepped aside so Reina could see more easily.

As he moved, she saw Bonita asleep beside Estelle.

“My daughter…”

“She wasn’t a bother, so don’t say she caused trouble.”

By now, Damian could easily predict what Reina was about to say.

Embarrassed, Reina rubbed the back of her neck with both hands.

“She had cake too.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Two slices. Your daughter has grown a lot.”

“Hahaha, I hope she grows more than I did. I didn’t eat much when I was young, so I stopped growing early.”

Reina laughed weakly.

Damian glanced at her, drained of energy, and said,

“You looked like you were flying just reading the reports, but today you look like someone awaiting execution.”

Reina slowly approached Bonita’s side.

Compared to before, her cheeks were plumper. Reina gently brushed them with her finger.

Unaware that the mother she had waited for all day had finally arrived, the child slept peacefully.

“Do you think Boni waited for me a lot?”

“She looked out the window quite often.”

“Did she resent me?”

“Your daughter would use the time to work harder instead of resenting anyone.”

Reina smiled softly at the kindness hidden within Damian’s bluntness.

“I wonder who she takes after.”

“I wouldn’t know. Bonita said she takes after you.”

Tap. Reina lightly touched the tip of Bonita’s small nose.

The sleeping child’s face scrunched slightly.

“Thank you for looking after her.”

“It wasn’t that hard. Dean Peronte watched her until dinner.”

Damian stepped closer to Reina’s side.

“Shall I carry her to her room?”

“No, it’s okay. I’m stronger than I look.”

Reina smiled brightly and lifted Bonita into her arms.

Bonita felt much heavier than before.

‘She’s heavy.’

Just a few months ago, no, even a few weeks ago, she hadn’t been this heavy.

In that short time, the child had grown quickly.

Because she had been busy, she hadn’t witnessed every moment of that growth.

Even missing such a brief moment felt regretful. How much must it have hurt Damian to have missed eight whole years of Estelle’s life.

For a fleeting second, Reina felt a faint sense of kinship with him.

But she couldn’t bring herself to pity him.

She wasn’t in a position to pity him.