A Fortune-telling Princess - Chapter 76

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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[I clearly told them not to come anymore. But they still-]
“You’re disappearing.”
[….]
“If you continue like this, your disappearance will be certain.”
[I know.]
“You know, yet you keep doing this?”
[I have no choice.]
Perhaps because I had already heard of disappearance from the dead Habel, Jihyun’s Grandmother’s face remained composed even at the mention of it.
[Those children need me.]
“But you’ve already passed away. What can the dead possibly do?”
[….]
“Caring for the children temporarily? You know that’s just your own desire, Director.”
[I-….]
“It’s not even good for the children. It’s not something worth accepting disappearance for.”
Camilla clicked her tongue in disapproval.
“More than anything, the teachers here can do that much just fine. You personally selected them—do you really distrust them that much?”
Finally, a long sigh escaped Jihyun’s Grandmother’s lips.
[I’m anxious.]
“About what?”
Jihyun’s Grandmother’s gaze turned toward the main building.
[My son.]
* * *
“Pardon?”
“Cut the food expenses.”
Her son, who had recently taken over as director following the previous director’s passing, was a man in his mid-thirties—relatively young for the position.
The first thing he did upon taking office as director of the Orphanage was to gather and review all of the facility’s ledgers.
“It’s not just the food budget.”
He picked up one of the ledgers piled high on his desk and clicked his tongue repeatedly.
“There’s far too much money being spent on unnecessary things.”
The new director threw the ledger back onto the desk and shot a sharp glare at those standing before him.
“Is this a noble household? Why are you purchasing such premium ingredients? Same with the clothing. There are far cheaper options available. Tsk.”
“B-but this was what the previous director instructed us to do.”
“That’s right. She told us to purchase only the finest things for the children to wear and eat-”
“Enough.”
He cut them off without needing to hear more.
“That’s why we’re changing it.”
The new director, Heman. He disliked every single one of the operational policies his mother had maintained all this time.
“Charity work should have its limits.”
Heman’s family had been engaged in business for generations and possessed considerable wealth.
Yet from childhood until now, Heman had never once felt that his household was wealthy.
Why, you ask? Because I never had the chance to experience being cherished.
‘What’s the difference between me and an Orphan Child, really?’
My mother didn’t raise me any differently from the Orphan Children.
She gave me the same food they ate, the same clothes they wore.
‘If anything, being her biological son pushed me further down the priority list.’
So how did I appear in the eyes of others?
Everyone treated Heman as a parentless orphan. No matter how much I screamed that I wasn’t, that I wasn’t an orphan—it was useless.
Both Father and my mother prioritized the Orphan Children over their own biological son.
Government subsidies, profits from other ventures—they poured nearly everything into the Orphanage’s children.
‘Why did they have to do that?’
The older I grew, the less I understood my parents.
When Father passed away, when my mother passed away, they left me with only one thing to say.
Please take care of the children.
That was all their final words amounted to.
Are other orphanages like this? Of course not. Most directors pocket the government subsidies without hesitation.
But my parents? They stripped this cursed Orphanage bare, donating every last possession they owned.
“From today onward, report every single expense to me.”
“But…!”
“Do you have an objection?”
“It’s just—”
“Anyone with complaints is free to leave. I’ll calculate your severance pay precisely.”
Everyone fell silent.
Most of those gathered here had worked in this place for over twenty years.
It was more than just a workplace—it was a space where they’d devoted their entire lives, where their beloved families existed.
How could they abandon all those children?
They simply bowed their heads before the new director’s words.
* * *
“Isn’t that obvious?”
[Obvious, you say?]
“I think I would’ve hated it too.”
Camilla clicked her tongue repeatedly as she listened to stories about the newly appointed director. She found Jihyun’s Grandmother’s complete lack of understanding frustrating.
“Who would love parents who care more about other children than their own?”
From the orphans’ perspective, they were nothing short of admirable people in everyone else’s eyes.
Even I wondered how such virtuous and benevolent people could exist.
But from a child’s perspective?
‘Isn’t it the worst?’
How must the son have felt, raised no differently from the orphans since childhood? What was it like watching parents who always prioritized the orphans first?
“Grandmother made a mistake.”
Could he have truly felt parental love, the affection of family?
Children feel complex emotions from simpler things than we realize. Their self-worth rises and falls based on how differently they’re treated from others.
When a child receives more praise than others, when they receive one more gentle touch.
Through this process, the child comes to realize that someone regards them as special, that they are loved by that person.
It is through such stages that self-esteem grows.
“But what if they were treated exactly the same as the other children?”
From their own biological parents, no less.
[I loved my son. Was it wrong to love the other children equally?]
“That’s not what I meant.”
There’s no denying that she is a remarkable person.
How could she love her own child and another’s child equally? It’s almost miraculous that such a thing is possible.
‘I suppose.’
That’s probably why she was even elevated to sainthood. But…
“Do you think your son understood?”
[What?]
“That you loved him.”
[Of course he did-]
“I’m not so sure.”
Camilla shook her head.
“They say family love is something you understand without words, but…”
Is that really possible? I’ve never had a proper family, so I wouldn’t know.
“Sometimes don’t people need to hear it said aloud to truly understand?”
[….]
Jihyun’s Grandmother could no longer continue speaking easily.
She had believed she had conveyed her love as a parent sufficiently to her son, but had she been wrong?
Was it wrong to love him equally without discriminating against the other children?
‘Mom, I got a perfect score on the test!’
‘My son, you did so well.’
‘Hehe.’
‘I should make something delicious for you today.’
‘Really?’
‘Of course. Today let’s go home early together-‘
Burst!
‘Director, Jenny has finally learned all her letters!’
‘Goodness! Really? Our Jenny is so amazing!’
‘Mom, I…’
‘Jenny, the teacher will make something very delicious for you today. Heman, you eat dinner here too.’
‘…Yes.’
Why did that memory suddenly surface? The image of her son at nine years old, proudly bringing home his first perfect test score.
The image of the child nodding weakly at her words…
After a moment of silence, Jihyun’s Grandmother spoke with difficulty.
[If Heman were to learn that I loved him, my son, so very much, would that change his actions to destroy the Orphanage, even slightly?]
“That would be the case.”
If she came to understand her mother’s love, she wouldn’t carelessly destroy the Orphanage that her mother had cherished so dearly, would she?
The moment I casually affirmed this, an unexpected Quest descended upon me.
[Would it be alright if I asked you for a favor?]
* * *
“Welcome.”
Heman, the director of the Orphanage, found himself face to face with an unexpected visitor who had arrived early in the morning without prior notice.
Had it been someone else, he would have frowned, but when the visitor was one of the few noble daughters in the Empire, the situation was entirely different.
“I heard you visited our Orphanage just a few days ago.”
Patronage was always welcome, after all.
“I have some connection to this place.”
“A connection?”
“I knew your mother quite well.”
“…Pardon?”
This was the first he’d heard of it. He’d never heard such a thing from his mother, nor from any of the other people involved.
“We were the sort of people who confided our worries to each other.”
“…I beg your pardon?”
Heman’s expression grew even more peculiar.
‘How could that be?’
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t make sense of it. As far as he knew, his mother had no connection whatsoever with the Sorpel Family.
And Camilla Sorpel standing before him had only visited his Orphanage for the first time not long ago, or so he’d heard. Yet she claimed to have known his mother?
“I have something to give you.”
“To me?”
Before Heman could delve deeper, Camilla changed the subject.
“The former director entrusted me with something before she passed away.”
As Camilla glanced to the side, Dorman, who had been standing quietly in the corner, set a rather large box down on the table.
“What is this?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“I was simply asked to do this. She said that when she died, I should pass it on to her son.”
Camilla regarded the bewildered Heman for a moment, then rose from her seat before his questions could continue.
“Are you leaving already? Would you like some tea…?”
“No need for tea. I had some at home before coming.”
Heman hastily rose to his feet as well.
“There’s no need to see me out.”
“Ah, yes.”
Camilla gave a light wave and quickly departed.
Click.
The moment the door closed, his gaze returned to the box.
“What could this possibly be…?”
His face remained filled with questions.
What on earth was inside this box? What had Mother entrusted to the Sorpel Family’s young lady?
Click.
As Heman opened the wooden box, he caught sight of the miscellaneous items crammed inside and furrowed his brow slightly. It was truly nothing but odds and ends.
“What exactly is this… hm?”
Then, as he recognized the contents within, his eyes began to waver increasingly.
“This is….”
The first thing that caught his eye was a book—the very book he had loved most as a child.
“Could it be….”
Heman hastily examined the other items as well.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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