Chapter 54
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 54
The child in Madame Toten’s arms was a young boy who looked no older than six. His pale, sickly complexion made it immediately obvious that this was the ill son she had mentioned. He looks much worse than I expected. I could see now why the old butler had said there was no hope.
"Butler! Why didn't you send Ryder back to his room?"
As Madame Toten scolded him sharply, the old butler bowed his head in shame.
"Please don't scold him. I told him not to stop me."
"Ryder…"
As if handling something precious and fragile, Madame Toten stroked the child's hair with the utmost care.
"Did you come looking for Mom because I wasn't here?"
"Yes. And since we have a guest, I couldn't just stay in bed."
The eyes of Madame Toten, the old butler, and the child all fell upon me. Right. This is all my fault, isn't it?
I was so awkward I wanted to hide behind Hena. But if I did that, it would probably spark another rumor about how Evangeline shamelessly cowered behind her maid, so I gritted my teeth and held my ground.
"Cough… I am Ryder Toten, Lady Evangeline."
The boy's voice was impossibly faint, as if he lacked even the strength for a proper cough. Guilt weighed on me as I watched him struggle through his greeting. I should have just insisted Madame Toten come to the Rohanson Mansion!
Madame Toten’s stare seemed to demand why I wasn't responding, so I quickly gathered my dress and curtsied.
"I am Evangeline Rohanson. Young Master Toten, thank you for welcoming me despite your poor health."
I had tried to act humble, greeting him just as Doline had taught me, but the mother and son stared at me with strange expressions. Wait, did I do something wrong? I really tried my best to copy her!
Madame Toten averted her gaze. Wow. It must have been that painful to watch. Instead of mocking my terrible curtsy, she chose to pretend she hadn't seen it. How incredibly considerate of her.
"Are you satisfied now? Your cough is getting worse, so let's go back inside."
"Cough, cough. Yes, Mother. Lady Evangeline, my health is poor, so I shall take my leave."
Now that Ryder had welcomed the guest, Madame Toten urged him to return to his room and rest.
"Yes. Please get some rest."
Though the child was stumbling, he refused to be carried. Instead, he walked on his own two feet, supported by the butler. Madame Toten watched her son's retreating back and asked quietly, her voice so soft that Ryder couldn't possibly hear.
"How old do you think he is?"
His age? Six, at most?
"About six years old."
"Ryder is eight. But because of his illness, he looks much younger."
He really did have a baby face. No wonder he spoke so maturely. Just as Madame Toten said, his illness made him look much smaller than his age.
Only after Ryder was completely out of sight did Madame Toten return to her seat. The perfect etiquette she had displayed just moments ago was gone; she slumped back in her chair, looking utterly exhausted.
"…You are right. Since you were honest with me, Lady Evangeline, I will also speak my mind. To be honest, when I heard that Lady Rohanson had recovered, I wanted to see it with my own eyes."
Madame Toten finally admitted her true intentions.
"I wanted to know how someone who couldn't be cured even with holy water managed to make a full recovery."
Madame Toten glanced to the side. Following her gaze, I saw the symbol of the Sun Goddess decorating the wall. It wasn't a simple icon; it was an exquisitely and intricately carved emblem, the same one I had seen on Gabriel's uniform. How can a symbol be so ornate? Gabriel, who drew Donau's corpse to look like a moth, could never hope to replicate this.
"It was such an obvious ploy, so of course you noticed. But I was taken aback when you brought it up first."
"The marquisate's butler gave me a heads-up."
"The butler…?"
"Yes. He serves the marquisate with true loyalty. He's been working hard behind the scenes without your knowledge, Madame."
Old butler, I didn't forget to put in a good word! If you get a bonus, you'll know it was thanks to me, right?
Madame Toten, seemingly unaware that the old butler had been working so hard behind her back, kept muttering, "The butler? The butler did…?" She seemed to be debating whether to give him a bonus. Or maybe she was calculating how much to give.
Having apparently decided on an amount, Madame Toten stopped muttering to herself and returned to the main topic.
"Since you brought it up first, I will dare to ask. Is there a way to cure Ryder? How did you recover? Please, tell me. If there is any hope for our Ryder, I will give you whatever you want…"
Finally, the moment of truth had arrived. Madame Toten was probably looking at me as if I were a lifeline thrown to her.
And now, I had to shatter her hopes. This must be what a doctor feels when delivering a terminal diagnosis. I’d better prepare to get grabbed by the collar.
"I am sorry to disappoint you, but there is no cure."
"What?"
Madame Toten asked again, as if she had misheard. I forced a smile, remembering the saying that you can’t spit on a smiling face. Then I realized that smiling in this situation made me look like a psychopath, so I quickly dropped it. But that probably just made me look unhinged. I really have no talent for acting…
"You're lying. You must be lying. You're hiding something from me. Why? Was the reward I offered not enough? I can give you the marquis's entire estate. Lady Rohanson, please. I'm begging you, tell me."
Madame Toten seemed convinced I was hiding the truth, even adding the marquis's estate to the bargaining table. As she spoke, she leaned closer and closer to me.
"There is truly nothing that can be done, Madame."
She looked so pitiful that I gently took her by the shoulders.
"Why won't you tell me? Is it because I used Sir Gabriel to approach you? I had my motives, but didn't it benefit you as well, Lady Evangeline? Please, have pity on Ryder, who was in the same position as you."
Madame Toten looked on the verge of tears. Her distorted face clearly showed the overwhelming sorrow welling up inside her.
Seriously… there is no way. The original Evangeline died, and I just happened to possess her body at the perfect moment. She really doesn't believe me. I guess this was why the old butler told me to prepare myself. But old butler, the special mission you gave me is currently failing spectacularly.
This wasn't working. I needed to take a different approach. I had to make her understand that there was nothing to tell. Ah, right. Let's use the rumors circulating in society!
"Have you perhaps heard the rumor that I am not the real 'Evangeline'?"
"Are you claiming that rumor is true? Please do not mock me. A lady's poise is not something one learns in a day or two."
It failed. Doline had taught me too well. It wasn't a day or two, but it was only two weeks! My talent is truly terrifying.
I needed an excuse that Madame Toten would immediately accept. But nothing came to mind. When I looked desperately at Hena for help, she gave me a hint.
Our Hena must be a genius!
Right. Since Madame Toten was a devout believer in the Sun Goddess, this method would work perfectly. Leaning in as if sharing a deep secret, I whispered into her ear.
"I summoned a demon."
"Pardon?"
"I begged the demon to save Evangeline Rohanson."
The word Hena mouthed was 'demon.' She flinched and covered her mouth the moment she formed the word—was she stunned by her own brilliant idea?
I flashed the kind of smile that had once terrified Donau in his younger days. I might be bad at acting, but I was great at playing the villainess. Or perhaps it was because Evangeline was a villainess, so everything I did was automatically viewed in a negative light.
"Can you abandon your beloved Rachel and place your faith in a demon, Madame?"
Of course she couldn't. Madame Toten was a devout follower of the Sun Goddess. In a world like this, the influence of religion was on another level. There was a reason the Saintess was so popular. As expected, Madame Toten was left speechless.
Just in case she was tempted, I added more.
"Even if the price demanded is not the marquis's estate, but a human life? Even if it is the life of an innocent person?"
For the record, this was one of the theories that had come up during a discussion about what Evangeline did with the young children she bought. Yes, it was the very rumor that had prompted Misha to suddenly shout that I couldn't touch human skin.
According to Misha, the most popular theory was that Evangeline required human lives to maintain her healthy body. Even though I was using that very theory to crush Madame Toten's hopes… I definitely needed to make my high society debut and clear up these ridiculous rumors.
* * *
Ryder, returning to his room at his mother's urging, was deeply dejected.
"Was I in the way?"
"Not at all. You were very mature," Lak said, shaking his head at the child's question.
For a boy his age to drag his sick body from his room just to fulfill his duty as master of the house was incredibly admirable. He looked as if he might collapse at any moment, yet he insisted on walking back to his room on his own, refusing any support.
"How did I do, butler? Did I seem like the Young Marquis of Toten?"
"Yes, very much so. If the late Marquis had seen you, he would have been extremely pleased."
Only after Lak praised him by mentioning the late Marquis did Ryder relax, looking satisfied. His body swayed for a moment, prompting Lak to quickly reach out, but the boy leaned against the wall and regained his balance on his own.
"Sorry, let me rest for a moment…"
Lak was amazed by the child's willpower. His body was so weak that he seemed on the verge of death, yet he never let it show.
If not for his cursed body, he would have been the perfect heir to lead House Toten. If the child had been born healthy, Lak certainly wouldn't have had to scheme behind the scenes like this.
"Please do not push yourself any further. Lean on me. There is no one watching."
Ryder was the type to care about the eyes of not only other nobles but also the servants working in the estate. In front of them, he wanted to appear as the Young Marquis, not a sickly young master.
Just as the butler said, the staff were currently preoccupied with entertaining a guest for the first time in a long while. Thanks to that, there was no one on the upper floor.
Persuaded by the butler's words, Ryder finally allowed himself to be held. Lak was shocked by how light the child was, but he did his best not to show it as he carried him toward the room.