A Contract Marriage with My Child’s Father - Chapter 36
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 36
“Mama. Wuu?”
When she pointed to the empty room and demanded that Becky and Marie explain what had happened, the two only repeated what they had said before.
“Young Master Jayden is sick, so Viola will be late today.”
“If, if you’re scared to sleep alone, shall we, shall we stay with you?”
Though the two answered kindly, she only felt sad.
Today they were supposed to come early and read fairy tales together. Sniff, tears came.
Don’t know, don’t know. Bring Mama back…
Melody liked both Marie and Becky, but she still loved Mama the most.
“Wuu. Wu? Mama.”
Melody pestered them to bring Viola, but the two were firm.
“Viola is very busy, so she said she’ll come when you sleep through the night.”
“Wuuuu!”
Then I’ll go see her.
“Wuu?”
Can’t I go see her?
Even when Melody asked desperately, the maids couldn’t understand what she was saying.
“Come now, let’s sleep quickly. You have to sleep to grow tall.”
“Wuuuu! Wu! Wu!”
This won’t do. I’ll go find her myself!
When she tried to run out immediately, Becky urgently grabbed Melody.
“Wait a moment, Lady Melody! That’s the main building, so it’s far. You might get lost if you go there.”
“Wu. Wuu!”
I’m good at finding my way!
No matter how hard Melody tried to express her intentions, nothing changed.
It’s sad. So very sad.
“Come now, we’ll stay by your side until you fall asleep today.”
Melody stopped sniffling and looked at the maids sullenly.
“Wu!”
I’ll sleep alone!
“Wuu!”
I hate Becky and Marie!
Then she seemed to give up and flopped face-down on the bed, pulling the blanket over her head. She lay quietly like that for just a moment.
“She, she fell asleep, right?”
“She must be tired from crying. Let’s go out quickly.”
The two who whispered quietly held their breath as they left the room.
That was the moment.
Now’s my chance!
In the darkness, Melody’s eyes sparkled like a cat’s.
‘They said the main building. Mama is there!’
Melody jumped down from the bed and secretly went out of the room.
Having escaped from her room, Melody hid behind a pillar and peeked out her head.
Perhaps because it was night, the maids who had been guarding the corridor were nowhere to be seen.
A naive child might walk boldly at a time like this, but…
I mustn’t let my guard down.
‘Hmm! I may not look it, but I’m an escape expert!’
It wasn’t for nothing that Melody was good at finding her way.
She had even escaped from that terrible temple!
Melody nimbly hid here and there as she moved her steps diligently.
Thud thud thud.
Making no small sounds and without being caught by anyone, Melody finally reached the main building and began to search her memory.
She remembered hearing an explanation of the manor from Marie and Becky, and they had definitely said that Jayden or Bagel or someone was on the 3rd floor.
Mama would definitely be there.
Step step step step.
After climbing the steep stairs with her whole body, she finally reached the target 3rd floor, but…
The atmosphere on the 3rd floor was different from other places. It was just quiet with hardly any people around.
“…Mama?”
Melody called for Viola, but only her voice echoed faintly in the long corridor before fading away.
‘Where is she. Hiiing…’
I came all this way to see her.
They said she’d definitely be here.
The disappointment was brief, as Melody moved her short legs even more diligently than before.
Then suddenly, she saw light leaking from a room at the end of the corridor.
There! Mama is there!
And so, as she peeked inside through the slightly open door crack.
Right in front of the door stood a young boy.
Silver hair that sparkled like the moon. Eyes like strawberry-flavored hard candy.
Melody felt a strange familiarity.
‘…Duke Uncle?’
He looked very much like that uncle.
“What are you.”
The boy looked at Melody with very wary eyes.
* * *
After Viola left, Jayden was quietly waiting for her to return.
‘She’ll come right back, right? Viola keeps her promises well.’
Usually he would always return to his own room at night, but just for today, she would stay with him.
Because she had promised him.
‘…’
The corners of his mouth twitched momentarily from happiness.
He had always been lonely at night. Someone staying with him. And it was even Viola. Jayden wiggled his fingers from inner joy.
However, the joy didn’t last very long.
It was because a corner of his chest kept getting stabbed.
‘…Will she hate me if she finds out I lied?’
He had whined to Viola that his heart kept beating and he was anxious, but actually Jayden’s body was no different from usual. No, it would be more accurate to say it had gotten better.
Because his skin, which had been painfully sore as if he had body aches, didn’t hurt at all after taking the medicine.
But Jayden deliberately pretended to be weak.
Of course, he hadn’t intended to deceive Viola from the beginning.
When the medicine’s effects began to take hold, his pounding heart was really too loud and made him keep getting nervous.
As Viola had said, after some time passed, he became completely fine, but Jayden deliberately hid this.
Because it seemed like Viola would stay by his side if he said he was still sick.
Jayden had so much fun being with Viola.
So much so that he even felt proud that he had done well to lie.
But when Viola left her seat, the conscience he had tried hard to ignore began to stab at him.
‘…I don’t know. It’s not like I really lied.’
Though one might wonder if there are fake lies too.
Anyway, all Jayden had said was that he was anxious.
It was also true that he was constantly worried that Viola might leave after just telling him the treatment method.
Jayden tried to console himself that this wasn’t really lying. But when he recalled Viola’s face, purely worried about him, it didn’t work as he hoped.
‘What should I do… Should I tell her honestly even now?’
He was at a loss, helplessly clutching at the innocent blanket, when it happened.
He heard signs of someone outside.
‘Viola?’
Jayden headed toward the door with anticipation, but listening carefully, the footsteps sounded different somehow. Smaller, lighter…
A young maid perhaps?
No, that couldn’t be. Jayden had forbidden servants from coming to this floor except during the times he permitted.
It was because even small sounds bothered him due to his sensitive senses. Viola was one of the few exceptions.
‘Then who on earth…’
“What are you.”
But the face visible through the crack in the door was something Jayden had never imagined.
The boy muttered in shock.
“…Did Viola get smaller?”
The cotton candy-like sweet pink hair, and even the eyes like spring buds. Everything was identical to Viola.
What was this? Had she taken some strange medicine and gotten younger? Was that why it took so long for her to return?
He was confused by this first-time situation when suddenly the girl began getting angry as if she understood his words.
“Uu. Uuu! Uu!”
Who are you to casually call our mother’s name!
From her frowning expression, she was clearly angry at him, but it was hard to understand what she was saying.
Whether the child threw a tantrum or not, Jayden just stared closely at the girl’s face.
‘Viola doesn’t get angry like a little demon. This isn’t Viola.’
Looking at every detail, it seemed like a different person after all.
Though very similar, unlike the gentle-looking Viola, this one had a slightly sharper impression.
Hmm, her eyes were slightly upturned like the Duke’s. Of course, the Duke was much scarier.
Ah! Come to think of it.
Only then did one fact cross his mind.
He had heard sometime that Viola had a young daughter.
‘This must be her!’
The reason Viola hurried back every night!
Thinking of her as a competitor(?), his shoulders naturally tensed up.
Jayden watched the child with wary eyes.
She looked to be four years old at most. Unlike him who was a whole six years old, she was much younger.
But… why did she look so formidable?
Jayden, who had never been intimidated by peers or even adults, felt some inexplicable aura from the girl.
‘…Is it holy power?’
As a dragon-blood, Jayden could sense holy power. But such strong holy power. Could she be a saint?
But even so…
‘Why isn’t she scared? I’m a dragon-blood.’
No, was she just not scared?
She was even stomping her feet and throwing a tantrum at him.
“What is she really…?”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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