Lady Cinderella - Chapter 20

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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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Lady Cinderella, Episode 20

Calaile took Ella’s hand and walked out of the reception room with his head held high. Seeing him lead a mysterious lady by the hand and personally show her around left the guests reeling, and even the Grand Duke’s Residence retainers, who only ever worked in the Main Building, were stunned.
Ella, who had been shut away in the Inner Residence all this time, was the very picture of a pure white lily. Those who saw her for the first time readily believed the rumors that the Grand Duke did not want to show his beloved fiancée to the outside world.
“Could that be the one everyone’s been talking about…?”
“Then the Baron Lloyd who came earlier is that lady’s father?”
“He was making a fuss saying his daughter had been kidnapped. Surely not?”
Seeing the Grand Duke treat the silver-haired lady, more beautiful than any flower, with such devotion, the engagement that had been kept under a gag order finally began to spread in earnest.
The Grand Duke’s fiancée is Lady Elladis, daughter of Count Lloyd.
She had inherited the silver hair and golden eyes that marked her maternal family, the Marquis Ruth House, and this lady, lovelier than any jewel, had captured the heart of the Grand Duke, who was as fickle as the wind. Before long, a fairy-tale rumor swept through the entire capital: that on the night of the ball, he had slipped away from the watchful eyes of their families, eloped with her, and secretly become engaged.
* * *
“This is ridiculous!”
Kate and Anastasia screamed, their pride badly wounded. That the younger sister who had been little better than a maid—no, that grubby girl who was not a drop of blood related to them—had captured the Grand Duke’s heart was something the two of them simply could not believe.
“It’s infuriating. How could this possibly happen?”
Everyone they met asked after Lady Elladis, so Kate and Anastasia were forced to decline every tea party invitation and shut themselves up at home. Their parents fretted day after day over what the trouble could be, and whenever they stepped outside, the whole world seemed to talk of nothing but Ella.
With Ella gone, even fixing the embroidery on their dresses cost money, and there was no craftsman willing to repair the delicate handwork Ella had originally done. Only after being turned away again and again, with the claim that it was beyond their skill, did the two of them finally realize how much they needed Ella.
“Can’t we just bring her back? No one with working eyes would get engaged to a girl like that.”
“Or maybe it’s just someone with the same name.”
No matter how many fantasies they conjured, the silver hair was hardly common, and with the Count’s insistence that she was Lady Elladis Lloyd, their wishful thinking came to nothing. Watching her two daughters thrash about in a rage, Patricia made up her mind.
“Kate, Anastasia.”
“Mother!”
“It seems Ella really does have some connection to His Highness the Grand Duke, after all. She’s still so childish, so shouldn’t we go and persuade her to come home with us?”
“Of course. What right does someone like her have to aspire to the position of Grand Duchess, ow!”
“Don’t you dare let such nonsense pass your lips.”
Judging by Baron Lloyd’s reaction and the Grand Duke Wellington’s movements, this was not a matter that would be resolved easily. The Baron was puffing himself up, vowing to file a formal lawsuit even if he had to scrape together every last coin he had, but in Patricia’s eyes, it was like trying to break a rock with an egg.
It would be better to win over the gentle-hearted Ella. She had changed somewhat of late, but for a naive girl who knew nothing of the ways of the world, weeping and pleading was easier for Patricia than twisting a child’s wrist.
“What should we do?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. We’ll tell her how much we love and cherish her. So that she’ll come back to us.”
Watching her mother’s insincere smile, the two girls set about preparing to head for the Grand Duke’s Residence in their finest gowns. They were full of confidence that they were far more beautiful than Ella, the cinder-covered girl who had worn a maid’s outfit and hadn’t even bothered to brush her hair properly.
Through the carriage window, the Grand Duke’s Residence came into view: not only sculptures of gleaming white marble, but a vast garden adorned with flowers of every color and splendid fountains stretching on and on. Leaving the Count to his lawsuit preparations, Patricia arranged an appointment at the Residence and brought her two daughters along to smooth things over.
Fortunately, Ella did not refuse. Seizing the chance to show the Grand Duke how lovely her daughters were, Patricia was escorted courteously toward the guest hall in the Side Residence.
“Sister, this place is really something.”
“The Imperial Palace was grand too, but this seems even more magnificent.”
“The Grand Duchy has an entire palace of its own. Compared to that, this is probably nothing more than a drop in the bucket.”
While her daughters were dazzled senseless by the splendid décor, Patricia ran her calculations thoroughly. If Ella had truly captured the Grand Duke’s heart, this was no matter to let slide so easily.
There was surely money to be made here. Even if he didn’t fall for her own daughters, if they could skillfully coax the foolish girl, it would be a golden chance to pocket a tidy sum. With their hearts fluttering, the three women waited eagerly for Ella to emerge from the reception room. Ten minutes passed, then twenty, then thirty, and still Ella did not so much as show her face. Worn out from waiting, Anastasia eventually kicked off her shoes and began to complain.
“What is this!”
“That wretched Ella must think she can treat us like fools.”
“Girls.”
Ella’s circumstances had changed, so it was perhaps only natural that their attitude toward her should have shifted too, yet Kate and Anastasia could not shake their old habits and kept pouring out a torrent of insults about Ella.
“Her, the Grand Duke’s fiancée? How absurd.”
“Exactly. She ought to be grateful we even treated her like a maid.”
“That’s enough.”
“Mother!”
“No matter how she bewitched the Grand Duke, what does it matter? If we can just win that girl over, all of this will be ours.”
The three of them did not know. Through the secret room adjoining the reception room, Ella had heard every word of their conversation. Fearing it might invite gossip, she had brought only Olga and Kevin along.
“What do you intend to do?”
Olga supported Ella, who had gone deathly pale. Kevin, who had consistently opposed the arrangement of bringing in a fake fiancée, now found, having heard the entire conversation, that he pitied Ella sincerely. It had been he himself who suggested that they meet at least once before the lawsuit, so that they could talk. But now, all he could think was that letting her face these people at all was a cruel thing to do to her.
“It’s fine. After all, those people aren’t my family anyway.”
For a moment, however briefly, she had been foolish enough to be swayed by the talk of how they wanted to see her. Of course, though Ella had gone white as a sheet, she did not cry for an instant.
That same composed face she wore when her attempt to send another registered mail to the Grand Duke had failed. The sight of Ella seeming so detached from the affairs of the world, unbecoming of her age, struck Kevin as deeply impressive.
‘So she isn’t just a child after all.’
He had heard that she cried her heart out the last time her father came, so he expected she would be wailing and carrying on again this time. But Ella did not shed a single tear and rose from her seat.
“Did you record everything from our conversation just now on the Magic Tool?”
“We did.”
“Then you should have enough material now. Send them back.”
In case the question of who holds Ella’s guardianship turned into a legal battle between Count Lloyd and Grand Duke Wellington, I left evidence behind using a Magic Tool. They’ll no doubt try their hardest to put on a show of being a happy family, but Ella was not young enough to fall for such nonsense.
‘Look what they’ve done to bring this about.’
From far off came the sound of someone shrieking, demanding to know where Ella was. Pretending not to hear, Ella let Olga attend to her and turned away coldly. All the way out through the rear gate of the Annex Building, she didn’t say a word.
“I want to embroider. You can all go now.”
“Lady Ella.”
“I’m really fine.”
Ella dismissed even Olga and shut herself in her room to begin embroidering. Her stepmother’s and stepsisters’ voices seemed to echo in her ears. She wanted to wipe away every tangled thought, so she focused harder on the needle in her hand. Even if the future had changed, they hadn’t. Ella let go of her attachment cleanly.
* * *
“So that’s how it is.”
“It is, Your Grace.”
While Count Lloyd was overextending his funds, the Grand Duke, never letting his guard down, mobilized the Intelligence Department and undid every one of his efforts. The overconfident giant may have been felled by a stone thrown by a boy, but that was only because the boy had the makings of a hero to begin with. Count Lloyd was, to Calaile Wellington, nothing more than a speck of dust.
“Leave her be. She’s probably got a lot on her mind.”
“You said today’s snack was brioche, didn’t you? I think I’ll take a break.”
Since when had he cared so much about snacks? Unlike his usual self, he tossed aside even the documents awaiting his signature and headed for the Inner Residence.
As expected, Olga and the maids were all flustered, unable to get into Ella’s room. Calaile frowned and asked Olga about Ella’s condition.
“When did she go in?”
“She was supposed to have lunch with the family as well…”
Not only had the meeting fallen through, but the thought of her shut away in her room made Calaile’s head throb. Olga hesitated, weighing whether to bring it up, and then carefully spoke.
“Your Grace, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
After a moment’s hesitation, Olga told him that Mary, the owner of the dressmaker Rose Gold, was scheduled to visit tomorrow. Calaile took out the handkerchief he now carried out of habit and gazed at it. The golden roses embroidered on it were, Olga had said, the very first piece she had ever embroidered and sold. Come to think of it, it had been quite some time since he had brought her here and prevented her from contacting that side at all.
“Lady Ella seems terribly lonely, so I took the liberty of acting on my own. I hope that’s all right.”
“No, you did well. I’ll talk to her myself, so go ahead and prepare a snack. She’s probably crying from hunger by now.”
Not only had the Grand Duke come in person to coax a melancholy lady, but he was also praising her for a presumptuous move, and Olga didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. For now, she set the maids to work as the Grand Duke had instructed. Worry gnawed at her that the lady might really be crying alone, and without a moment’s hesitation, he knocked on the door.
“El, it’s me.”
“Come in.”
Her voice didn’t sound gloomy after all. Carefully, he opened the door and stepped inside. Contrary to his expectation that she would be sulking, Ella had a large map spread out and was busily writing something.
“What are you doing?”
“Oh. I was thinking about what’s going to happen on the Gordon Great Plains from now on.”
Proudly, Ella spread the map out and diligently marked the points she expected. When her mind was in a tangle, it was better to find something she could concentrate on.

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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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