Ch.9: That lowly, beautiful girl

"Is that really her? The orphan that the gardener was taking care of?" Countess Brandt asked, furrowing her brow as she gazed out the window at the garden where a bespectacled young lady was helping the gardener tend the rose bed.

"Yes, Mother. It's Leyla, that girl, Claudine casually replied as she concentrated on her needlework. She was just as skilled at embroidery as ever. While her mother paced around by the window, she patiently made stitch after stitch. As she did so, roses of various colors seemed to bloom from her fingers. "She's a pretty young lady. Don't you think so, Mother? I think she'll only get prettier as she continues to mature."

"And that doesn't bother you?" Countess Brandt asked.

"I understand your concern, Mother," Claudine replied as she set down her embroidery frame with a content smile.

Countess Brandt's eyes were wide with worry. She had always had a delicate frame, and had suffered several miscarriages before finally giving birth to a healthy child. That child was the Brandt family's only child, Claudine.

Countess Brandt had thus lived in constant fear that her husband would leave her for her failure to provide him with a male heir. Her husband's mistress had also failed to bear him a son, but this provided little consolation to Countess Brandt. She always worried that a pretty young lady would show up one day, bear him a son, and steal away his love.

Claudine understood this about her mother, and while she did feel sorry for her, she was also irritated by her constant fretting. "But I don't like to dwell on things like that, Mother," she solemnly declared.

The countess sighed in exasperation. "You're still too young to understand men, Claudine. If I were you..."

You'd get rid of all the pretty ladies in the world so that Duke Herhardt wouldn't be tempted by them, right?" Claudine asked, giggling as she let out an exaggerated sigh.

“As you said, I am still young and I don't know men that well. But I do know that men of great reputation usually have one or two mistresses alongside them.”

“Oh, my God. Claudine!”

“Of course, I hope such a thing doesn't happen, but even if it does happen, I know it's not a big deal.” Claudine lightly shrugged.

When she had recently come across Leyla by chance, the usually calm Claudine was surprised. Although it was natural for a sweet girl to grow into a beautiful woman, Leyla's mature appearance was more beautiful than expected.

With her unique, small body and delicate facial features, she looked like a fairy. The combination of her mysterious green eyes and her transparent white skin enhanced her resemblance to one. That was the reason why Claudine had asked Leyla to accompany her for tea. She was curious. Curious to know how the Duke would react to such a woman. And he had exactly acted up to Claudine's expectations. With proper interest and indifference, with perfect decency and moderation. That was enough for Claudine.

“But Claudine, there's nothing good about keeping that child close to Matthias.” Countess Brant still looked restless.

“Why don't I have a talk with the Herhardt household?”

“Mother” Claudine grumbled. It bothered her the way her mother was always crying over matters of love even though she had every luxury and comfort in the world at her fingertips. She had firmly resolved not to follow in her mother's footsteps in that respect. That was one of the reasons that she had agreed to get engaged to Matthias.

Matthias von Herhardt was noble, rich, and handsome. Claudine believed that kind of man would never only love his wife that he married in an arranged marriage. She knew her life wasn't the happy ending of a fairy tale. Maybe he too might be swept away by his desire for a beautiful woman. Like father. Like so many other men.

But men who regarded their mistress simply as a mistress were harmless. It was men who didn't regard their mistress simply as a mistress that caused trouble. Claudine was sure Matthias was the former type of man.

Do I love him? Claudine tilted her head and just smiled. Maybe. Maybe not. But it wasn't a big deal. Matthias knew that as well.

What mattered to her the most was whether the Duke of Arvis was capable of playing the role of a great husband and the role of a perfect father. Claudine simply wanted that. A marriage that could protect her dignity and elegance.

“What's the big deal if Duke Herhardt's interested in that humble, beautiful child?” The words that were calmly brought out by Claudine astonished Countess Brandt.

“My God, Claudine! What the hell are you talking about?”

“She'll simply just become a mistress at least.”Claudine laughed.

“It actually might be convenient for me for a girl like that to become a mistress. A woman who can't dare to threaten my place, who I can tame with the grasp of my palms.”

“Claudine, my child. You…… you really don't know anything about love.” Countess Brandt's lament for her daughter deepened.

She looked into her mother's shiny blue eyes and then turned her head away with a strange smile. She looked at Leyla out the window. The woman stood up from the flower bed and was laughing while massaging her back.

The cabin was empty when Kyle arrived. Leyla and Uncle Bill had seemed to have gone to the garden together. Kyle sat on the porch chair, waiting for the two to come back.

When he thought of Leyla's face with glasses on, Kyle grinned. The future Mrs. Etman was attractive even in glasses. Although he initially felt a little strange looking at her new appearance, his heart now fluttered at the thought of her face.3

Kyle purposely coughed in order to prevent himself from having his cheeks turn red. Around that time, Leyla and Uncle Bill had returned.

“What the hell is that hat?” Kyle's brow frowned when saw a rustic hat covering Leyla's lovely face.

“Wow. So tacky. You didn't pay for that, did you?”

When Kyle mischievously teased her, Leyla's and Bill's eyes both turned towards him. Their glares were quite fierce.

“Uncle bought it for me!”

Leyla shouted as she scowled at Kyle. Bill retorted by picking up the shovel he had loaded on the cart.

“On second thought. Wow, it's pretty! Uncle Bill has a good eye!”

Kyle hurriedly changed his view.

“Don't make fun of it. It's really precious to me.”

Leyla took off the problematic hat with a look of disapproval. It was a rather glitzy straw hat, lavishly dressed with artificial flowers and ribbons.

Leyla prepared lunch while Bill was busy putting away his cart. The problematic hat was placed at the end of the table. Kyle sat in front of the hat and tried to read Leyla's expression.

“Leyla, are you mad at me?”

“Yeah.”

Leyla slammed Kyle's plate down as hard as she could.

At least she's still feeding me.

Kyle was relieved.

“I'm sorry. You know I wouldn't have said that if I knew?”

“Whatever.”

“But why did Uncle Bill decide to gift you a hat?”

“Because I asked him to.”

“You? You know how to ask for stuff?”

Kyle asked in surprise. The Leyla he knew was a child who rarely asked anyone for anything.

“My glasses upset him a lot.”

Leyla's voice dropped.

“Was he upset that your eyesight got worse?”

“No. That's not it. He was upset I never told him that I was planning on buying expensive glasses with my own savings.”

Leyla sat across Kyle after she was finished setting the table.

Uncle Bill was dazed. It was as if he had been hit on the back of his head when Leyla showed up in the cabin with glasses on. After hearing her explanation of how she came to get her glasses fitted, his expression was as cold as an ice sheet. It was the first time Uncle Bill been so angry towards her.

'Leyla. Am I not that reliable to you?'

Bill sighed. Leyla felt suffocated looking at Bill's sad eyes.

The more she clarified, saying that she didn't want to burden him and was thankful for everything that he had done for her, the more his eyes saddened.


Ever since that day, their relationship had gotten rather awkward.

Bill was sulky and refused to speak while Leyla was at a loss of what to do. The answer she found was the hat.

'Uncle, please buy me a hat.'

Leyla blurted at the dinner table a few days ago.

'I'd like a very pretty hat, please.'

Uncle Bill laughed at her serious tone.

The next evening, the old man who had gone downtown to buy a pair of electronic scissors came back with a straw hat decorated with flowers and ribbons.

'I bought it at Lindsay's, so if you don't like it, go ahead and return it.'

Bill carelessly added while holding out the hat.

'Did you pick it yourself?'

'Well, yeah.'

'It's so pretty.'

Leyla brightly smiled and wore the hat.

Uncle Bill had personally bought her many things, but in most cases, he had asked Mrs. Mona to buy stuff for Leyla or he directly took Leyla out to the store to pick out what she needed. Leyla knew too well how difficult it must've been for Uncle Bill to choose a female hat. She also was aware of how big his love was for her.

For Bill Remmer, flowers were the prettiest thing in the world. So he believed a hat with many flowers was the prettiest hat. He was sure he picked the most charming hat.

“Hey! You should've told me that before.”

There was an embarrassment in Kyle's face as he attentively listened.

“Now I feel like a scumbag for making fun of that gift!”

“When did you give me a chance to talk? You teased me as soon as you saw it.”

“That's true, but……”

“You cheeky gluttonous herbivore. You're eating up all my food again. Someday I'm going to ask Dr. Etman to pay for all that food you ate here!”

Bill, who burst into the door, loudly yelled. But his face was friendly and his tone was playful, which was completely different from his harsh words.

Bill then chuckled awkwardly at the sight of Leyla's hat on the table. Leyla's expression, smiling at Bill, was so sweet that Kyle was almost pathetically jealous.

The man who loved Leyla Lewellin had no choice but to accept the fate of being second place in Leyla's heart. Leyla's number one was forever Uncle Bill.

Comforting himself, Kyle grabbed the fork. He didn't mind Uncle Bill's nagging. Leyla's food was delicious enough to bear Bill's harsh lectures.


When Uncle Bill went back to work after lunch, only Kyle and Leyla were left in the cabin.

Leyla sat on the porch, reading as usual. Kyle stared at Leyla as he pretended to read. Except for the time when she had to put down her book to eat some biscuits, Leyla was totally fixated on her book.

I shouldn't have lent you that novel.

Despite his bitter regret, Kyle smiled.

Leyla wouldn't know. How charming her face was when she was concentrating on her book. How lovely she was when she munched on her biscuits with those luscious lips.

Should I tell her today?

Kyle, who had put the book down on the floor, looked at Leyla with a stern expression.

He believed he could wait a little longer, but now, he wasn't so confident.

Even the touch of Leyla's fingertips made his heart feel like it would burst. His body heated up as he often had guilty dreams of her.1

Kyle was recently worried about his concern. He feared that one day, someone would appear to take Leyla away from him.

So wouldn't it be better to make a reckless confession?

The sound of slow horseshoes was heard from a distance when Kyle was about to open his warm lips. When Kyle turned his head to the direction of the sound, he saw Duke Herhardt in his equestrian uniform. Leyla, who was just about to take another bite of her biscuit, was surprised by the visitor.1

The duke stopped his horse in front of the porch railing.

His glance, which briefly brushed past Kyle, paused on Leyla's face. Her face was blushing in confusion.

Chapter end