< — Realization — > (4)
Lucia looked at the handkerchief and her mind went back to her memories in the dream . According to her uncle whom she met a few years from now, her grandfather died when Lucia was around 21 years old . So, the low-ranking nobleman who introduced himself as the Count of Baden was definitely her grandfather .
[My father was devastated . The mansion that he thought to be his last fortress until the end, went into other people's hands . He even went to the capital to get help but it didn't work out . In addition, he was old and his body was weakened by the long journey . ] (Lucia's uncle)
Her uncle, who succeeded her late grandfather and inherited his title, was her grandfather's second son . In other words, he was Lucia's mother's second older brother .
The eldest son who should have originally inherited the title, was injured in a carriage accident a little while after his father passed away . He ended up unable to use his legs because he could not get proper treatment . Her uncle said that his elder brother was pessimistic of his own situation and spent his days drowning in alcohol, then took his own life .
At the time, Lucia thought that she was an orphan with no family so she was glad to have a relative . There was a feeling of warmth in her empty, lonely heart . She felt bad about the difficult situation of her maternal family so unknown to her husband, she provided money for her uncle who was asking for help . When he asked her to introduce him to Count Matin, she provided a bridge in the middle .
[I want to protect my family in any way I can . I can't lose the title . ]
Her uncle said that there was nothing he wouldn't do to protect his family . From the perspective of her uncle who bore the responsibility of a Count family with nothing but its name, the Count of Matin must have seemed like a high-ranking nobleman with enormous power .
Her uncle settled in the capital and went to meet Count Matin on a daily basis . He didn't give Lucia a lot of details but even without knowing what he was doing, Lucia could see vigor gradually return to her uncle's face .
However for Lucia, life as the Countess of Matin was becoming too much to bear . So she asked her uncle to help her get a divorce .
[I'm sorry . I have no power to help you . I need your husband's help . Can't you endure?]
The rejection of her uncle came as a great shock to her . It had been Lucia's one-sided delusion, believing that he was the only hill that she could rely on . Her uncle did not see Lucia as his niece, he saw her as the Countess of Matin .
Lucia knew, realistically, that her uncle was not capable of helping her . Even if she understood it in her head, she felt a sense of betrayal . Who knew how much she had suffered because she gave money to her uncle several times without her husband's knowledge . When she thought that she was the only one who was worried about her maternal family, she felt stupid and resentful of her uncle .
When her uncle began to talk about money again after refusing to help with her divorce, Lucia gave him money for the last time and broke off their relationship . Even though her uncle visited the mansion frequently, Lucia did not meet her uncle again after that .
The Count Matin family was exterminated for treason and Lucia learned later on that her uncle was also caught up in it . The Count Baden family was on the list of traitors .
When Lucia found out about this, she sat down and soullessly looked at the sky . She resented her uncle but she didn't want him to die . She saw firsthand how much her uncle had tried to save his family . When she remembered the figure of her uncle groveling as if to lick the feet of Count Matin, tears fell from her eyes .
She wondered if her uncle who had died in the disgraceful plot of treason was able to close his eyes in death . If they had lived without knowing each other, such a tragedy wouldn't have occurred . In her dream, Lucia hit her chest with remorse . So, in reality, she vowed to never make a tie with her maternal family .
“Vivian . ” (Hugo)
Lucia flinched and lifted her head . She had fallen too deep into thought .
“Who is it?” (Hugo)
“…I don't know who it is . ” (Lucia)
A strong hand caught her chin when she tried to avoid his gaze . His red eyes were unusually bright causing Lucia to take a sharp breath .
“Do you know what your expression looks like? I've said this before . You are a poor liar . ”
Her expression as she looked at the handkerchief kept changing in various ways . Hugo sent the maid out and waited for her to get herself together . However, he couldn't keep watching when she looked like she was about to cry . Hugo looked at her trembling eyes and continued speaking .
“Tell me . Who is it?”
She stubbornly shut her mouth . Feeling the solid wall she had built around herself, Hugo's insides were boiling .
“You don't know who it is?” (Hugo)
“He has nothing to do with you?”
No matter how hard he pressed, Lucia couldn't give any answer . She was confused at the sudden appearance of her grandfather . She wasn't in a state of mind to explain this and that to him nicely .
When she found out about her grandfather in her dream, he had already passed away so she never thought that she would actually meet her grandfather . To her, her grandfather felt like someone who died and come back to life .
“He'll have to pay for his crimes then . He dares to send such a dangerous thing to the Duchess . ”
“A dangerous…thing?”
“He has nothing to do with you . You don't have to worry about it, right?”
His crimson eyes shone brutally . His icy manner of speaking was scary and Lucia was terribly frightened . It was as if he would change someday and have a cold and cruel expression like he did now . Tears rushed to her eyes from deep despair .
When her amber eyes surged with tears, Hugo was caught off guard . His mind was disturbed and his agitation subsided in an instant .
“Vivian . I was wrong . ”
Hugo hugged her . She burst into tears and twisted her body, pushing him away as if rejecting him but he hugged her tighter .
“I'm sorry . ”
Hugo repeated he was sorry many times in her ear . After sometime, Lucia's crying subsided . Hugo lightly patted her back as she calmed down .
“…Don't talk like that . It's scary . ” (Lucia)
“I won't . ” (Hugo)
He didn't intend to scare her . He only felt remorseful towards her . Hugo was depressed to hear her say that it was scary . Hugo sighed a moment later and spoke .
“If you don't want to say it, you don't have to . I won't ask . ”
Hugo felt his cowardice was pathetic . How petty of him . He couldn't tell her his deepest secrets yet he couldn't tolerate her secrets .
“It's not that I don't want to say it . I just…don't know how to say it…” (Lucia)
Hugo waited patiently when she went silent for a while .
“That person is likely…he's likely my maternal grandfather . ” (Lucia)
“Didn't you say you didn't have a maternal family?” (Hugo)
“I tried to think I didn't have one . My late mother wanted it that way . ”
Lucia's mother didn't tell of her maternal family's existence until the moment she died . Lucia only found out after meeting her uncle in the dream . Why did her mother do that? It was something Lucia always wondered about .
Chapter end
Report
|
Donate
Oh o, this user has not set a donation button.
|