I’m a Mother-in-Law, but I Dislike Conflict with My Daughter-in-Law - Chapter 104

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

I’m a Mother-in-Law, But I Don’t Want Family Conflicts Episode 104

 

As Helene in the dream lost her reason, the surrounding scenery began to distort like a damaged oil painting.

 

Anger and humiliation became colors that invaded the world.

 

‘What did that woman say again… That’s right, she apologized saying it couldn’t be helped. While smiling.’

 

The Third Bride was a pitiful woman. She had entered triumphantly, believing she had become the mistress of the Duke’s Estate, but eventually her spirit was broken by the Duke’s abuse.

 

She couldn’t take a single step out of the Duke’s room, and gradually lost her confidence and spirit as she was mistreated by servants who treated her like a ghost.

 

Then, Helene appeared.

 

The woman who had everything, whom every woman in the Empire respected, had fallen into the same hell as herself.

 

She must have felt pleasure rather than sympathy.

 

With the thought that ‘this woman is ultimately no different from me,’ she must have forgotten her own circumstances.

 

So she mocked Helene until the moment before her death.

 

Did you think you were different? You too were ultimately chosen as a sacrificial lamb for this curse. Your ending will be the same as mine—

 

Those last words had followed Helene ever since.

 

‘Yes, until Wilhelmina appeared.’

 

The culprit who disrupted the plan. It would have been better if she had appeared first instead. Then, without time to feel such guilt, she could have secretly…

 

[Wow, I came to look at Wilhelmina’s dream, but I ended up seeing something brutal.]

 

Then, a faint voice was heard in her head. It was a strange voice that sounded both childlike and adult.

 

‘Who are you?’

 

Her reason was clouded by anger, making it difficult to think clearly. Now it had become ambiguous whether this was a dream or reality.

 

[Hmm, this kind of nightmare isn’t to my taste. But I can’t help it. Seeing how much you’ve suffered, I’ll help you a little. This family is my… well, anyway.]

 

At that moment, the surroundings began to brighten.

 

Snow began to fall from the ceiling, from the sky.

 

The Third Bride who had her foot on Helene’s chest, the Duke who was gleefully watching this scene, even Mikhail who still couldn’t move while holding his glass—all were covered by snow and disappeared.

 

[Wake up.]

 

With a comforting voice, Helene slowly opened her eyes.

 

Her body was stiff as if someone had doused her with cold water.

 

It took considerable time for her mind, which had been wandering in the dream, to return.

 

‘What did I… see?’

 

As time passed, the memory of the dream became hazy.

 

She was certain she had felt cold because it was definitely a winter memory, but she couldn’t recall who she had met.

 

The lingering echo of the strange voice she had heard at the end flickered in her ears.

 

“Ah, you’re awake?”

 

Then, the bedroom door opened and Mikhail appeared. Still wearing his nightgown, he was carrying a tray with a teapot and glass on it.

 

‘Teapot.’

 

The teapot she saw every day somehow made her spine tingle.

 

“I wanted to let you sleep a bit more. Are you going to get up?”

 

“…Yes.”

 

As Helene tried to pull back the blanket and get out of bed, Mikhail stopped her.

 

Instead, he brought a table in front of the bed. Though sitting on the bed to drink tea was improper behavior, Helene didn’t bother to point it out.

 

‘It’s been a while since we’ve done something like this.’

 

After the Late Duke’s death, the two had become so busy that their time together could be counted on one hand.

 

Since this was such precious time, she didn’t want to ruin the atmosphere with unnecessary complaints.

 

“Here, you had black tea this morning, right?”

 

“Thank you.”

 

“I thought your mouth might taste bitter, so I brought some fruit too.”

 

Mikhail set down a plate on the table. There was also a water bowl for washing hands. He personally washed Helene’s hands for her.

 

“You don’t need to go this far….”

 

“I want to do this for you.”

 

It seemed Helene wasn’t the only one happy to have this time alone together.

 

And so their private early tea time began.

 

They postponed breakfast time and sent word that no one should be allowed in unless it was urgent business.

 

She swallowed a bite-sized piece of fruit and took a sip of black tea.

 

Mikhail, sitting beside her, sparkled with anticipation.

 

“Did you brew this yourself?”

 

“Yes, how is it?”

 

“It’s delicious.”

 

She almost let out a laugh but barely held it back.

 

Actually, the moment she smelled it, she realized he had brewed the black tea.

 

From the astringent taste, it seemed he hadn’t gotten the water temperature quite right either, but it didn’t matter.

 

What mattered more than the taste of the black tea was the fact that he had done this for her.

 

As they savored their tea, a moment of silence passed.

 

When the teacup was about half empty, Mikhail spoke up.

 

“Yesterday, you went to the Annex Building, didn’t you?”

 

“…Yes.”

 

So it was about that.

 

Her fingers gripping the teacup tensed up.

 

Even if she could maintain her composure in front of Wilhelmina, she couldn’t put on an act with Mikhail.

 

No matter how much the Count Family had requested it, this decision had been Helene’s alone.

 

Just as she was preparing herself to endure whatever harsh words might come.

 

“You always hated the Annex Building. Are you okay?”

 

“….”

 

At Mikhail’s innocent question, all her tension crumbled away.

 

The deal with Count Tilim Family, their demands, and the way she had disregarded Wilhelmina… Rather than all that, Mikhail was worried about Helene.

 

Helene turned her head away to hide her reddened face.

 

“I’m fine. It’s all in the past now.”

 

“If that’s the case, then I’m relieved, but don’t push yourself too hard. I’ll ask Mother for her understanding.”

 

In truth, it was a lie.

 

Just going near the Annex Building brought back images of the Late Duke. That wrinkled face, those eyes filled with hatred, the devil’s face that could never be forgotten.

 

Just thinking about it sent chills down her spine.

 

“No. That was something I had to convey myself.”

 

“…The Count Tilim Family.”

 

“Yes.”

 

She knew that Mikhail hoped she would get along well with Wilhelmina. But this was an issue that Helene couldn’t back down from either.

 

Making peace with Count Tilim was an important matter for the Ducal House as well.

 

Among the several businesses entrusted to Helene, Count Tilim was an important partner in the wool export business.

 

‘I cannot fail.’

 

It was obvious how High Society would view the fact that the lady of the house was conducting business.

 

Despite accepting that risk, she couldn’t betray Mikhail’s trust in pushing the business forward to her.

 

And Count Tilim hadn’t made any unreasonable demands either.

 

He had simply conveyed his wife’s absence from the gathering, saying that she seemed to feel great burden about entering High Society.

 

Though it bothered her that the method had been distorted into ‘please ban her from entry,’ for Nobles, the head of the family’s decision was more important than anything.

 

Even if Helene had not accepted the proposal, Chloe Tilim’s situation would remain unchanged.

 

So she mustn’t let personal feelings ruin important matters. What she had to do as the lady of the Ducal House was…

 

‘No, this matter is finished now.’

 

Helene organized her thoughts while looking at Mikhail, who was watching her with concern.

 

She didn’t want to cause him any more worry. She forcibly changed the subject.

 

“But Mikhail, there were signs of the Curse during the last evaluation, weren’t there?”

 

“…You heard? I told the Butler not to mention it.”

 

“There’s more than one pair of ears.”

 

Mikhail let out a troubled laugh.

 

“Don’t worry. It was just a small accident.”

 

He wanted to brush it off lightly, but it was an incident that couldn’t be ignored.

 

About a year had passed since the Late Duke’s death, so this was a sign that the Curse was beginning to transfer to Mikhail in earnest.

 

Helene grasped Mikhail’s hand.

 

“As you know, if the Curse becomes uncontrollable… you must call for me.”

 

“…”

 

Mikhail didn’t answer.

 

‘No, he probably doesn’t want to answer.’

 

Helene looked straight at him and spoke.

 

The eyes of Mikhail, who had always listened to her stories with a cheerful face, were growing dim.

 

“You remember that promise, don’t you?”

 

It was the promise they had made while holding the Late Duke’s funeral.

 

The memory of Helene proving her love through sacrifice for the Layton Family and for Mikhail.

 

“The promise to kill me first, before the Curse devours you.”

 

She lifted Mikhail’s hand and brought it to her cheek.

 

It was still warm. It meant that the Fairy’s Curse hadn’t yet begun flowing through his blood.

 

Mikhail still didn’t open his mouth, but Helene knew well that silence meant agreement.

 

A harmonious couple’s morning.

 

The two shared each other’s warmth for a long while like that.

 

As if anticipating that the end of this time was approaching, they cherished their love preciously.

 

* * *

 

I needed information.

 

The superficial information that Anna or Jane brought wasn’t enough.

 

Even if I had to use dishonest methods, I wanted to know in detail why this situation had occurred.

 

If I had at least had a lot of money, I would have tried hiring someone, but with Helene blocking my way, that wasn’t easy either.

 

In other words, it meant I needed someone to help me.

 

While I was pondering if there was any method, I recalled That Child’s memory after a long time.

 

‘But why do they hide their identity like that? Isn’t it cooler to step forward?’

 

It was a story that started from the topic ‘Why do novel titles these days hide something?’

 

The titles always hid something, but the actual content was about a hero’s exploits, which was impressive.

 

To my question like that, That Child transformed into teacher mode and explained.

 

‘There’s catharsis when revealing hidden power.’

 

‘Like a kid who got last place on a unit test becoming first in the whole school on finals?’

 

‘…I’m actually good at studying though.’

 

‘I wasn’t talking about you either.’

 

‘No, let’s skip the funny conversation for now.’

 

Come to think of it, when talking with That Child, we often went off on tangents. Setting aside the pleasant memories, I recalled the important explanation.

 

‘So the more someone hides, the higher the possibility they’re an important person. Or incredibly strong. Even if the reasons for hiding vary, the leisure to hide only comes from the strong.’

 

Perhaps thanks to good Korean grades, it was certainly a clear explanation.

 

Indeed, being able to hide one’s abilities meant being able to solve problems without giving it your all.

 

‘For example… high-ranking nobles traveling incognito, guild masters, SS-rank hunters, people like that. Oh, but there are rules here too.’

 

‘What are they?’

 

‘First, they must be strong. Second, they must have noble status. And third…’

 

‘They must be handsome.’

 

And there happened to be one person who fulfilled all three of those conditions.

 

“…You mean that’s me?”

 

I nodded toward Rohan who asked back.

 

Rohan, who had been moving food ingredients under Jane’s orders, stopped in his tracks and stared at me blankly.

 

“You’re strong, you’re hiding your identity, and you’re handsome. Am I right?”

 

“That….”

 

Perhaps unaccustomed to compliments, his ears turned red as he moved his lips slightly.

 

“You’ve never seen my face though.”

 

“I can tell just from looking at your lower face that you’re handsome.”

 

“….”

 

Oh… now it wasn’t just his ears but his neck that had turned red too.

 

Seeing his neck with even the blood vessels visible, I felt like I had played some kind of mischievous trick.

 

For some reason, I could hear Nata, who was on guard duty a step behind me, muttering “Here she goes again.”

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