My Youngest Keeps Bringing Home Male Leads - Chapter 17

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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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Chapter 17
“Still, you’re always worried about her.”
“Nonsense. All she ever does is hover over Amy. When has she ever treated us like siblings?”
Elizabeth’s voice suddenly sharpened.
The hand smoothing her hair had gone bloodless, pale as bone.
“She says a few words to a girl who isn’t even dead, and for a whole year she acts like we don’t exist. And she thinks I’d miss her?”
“Miss…”
“Enough. I’m not expecting anything anyway. Since we have money now, I’m going out. Call Alfred when I’m ready.”
“Where will you be going?”
“Our sister went to Kalburn City, didn’t she? There’s nothing stopping us from doing the same.”
Elizabeth waved them out, and Martha and Lilia withdrew together.
Once the door closed completely, Lilia let out a thin breath.
Martha, watching her, managed a bitter smile.
‘They haven’t spoken for a whole year, then?’
Lilia’s question came only as lip-shapes. Martha’s expression turned stern in response.
“Don’t concern yourself with the masters’ affairs, Lilia. That’s the virtue of a good servant.”
Yet even trying to look away, the truth became impossible to ignore.
Elizabeth with her sharp edges, Edmund with his timid, somber nature.
And Count Laberose, rotting away like a corpse in the darkest corner of this Mansion.
Only Martha had entered the Count’s room, but one could at least catch glimpses from the doorway.
Even though it was morning, thick curtains kept the chamber in darkness.
Breathing issued from the bed, punctuated now and then by harsh coughing.
The room reeked of liquor, mingled with a stale, indefinable odor.
Lilia came downstairs with a heavy heart.
‘The masters seem more troubled than I thought.’
That was when she saw Martha approach Alfred.
“Miss Elizabeth says you’re to come up to her room.”
“Can you guess what for?”
“She was preparing to go out.”
“I see.”
As Alfred murmured those words, his face darkened.
That was all Lilia could observe. After that, she had to help Elena tidy the Kitchen.
Short-handed, Pavel and Ben joined them too, and the two men banter with easy camaraderie, lifting the mood.
“A guard, you say? Looks like you’re just good for odd jobs.”
“Plenty of strength to spare, so might as well use it. Don’t complain.”
Watching the two of them jostle back and forth like old acquaintances, Lilia found herself smiling as well.
Before long, lunchtime arrived.
Neigh!
From outside the Mansion came the sudden cry of a horse.
Lilia, who had been scrubbing the Corridor, looked out the window.
A strikingly beautiful white horse had entered the Garden grounds.
A man riding it dismounted first and helped down the woman who had come with him—people she had seen only once but could never forget.
“It’s the young mistress and the Fairy with her!”
Outside erupted in commotion. It seemed things would become busy in a different way now.
* * *
“Welcome back!”
“You seem more enthusiastic than usual.”
“How could that be?”
Exchanging pleasantries with Martha, Agnes surveyed the Garden.
The workers she’d sent on ahead just yesterday had done their work well.
The overgrown brush lining the path to the Mansion had already been trimmed back considerably.
As Agnes looked around with admiration, Martha offered a faint smile and explanation.
“The new workers are so capable! Still, Oliver says it will take time to restore the entire Garden to proper shape.”
“That makes sense. There’s so much to manage. He didn’t ask for more help?”
“He said he’d try managing it alone first. Pavel and Ben are assisting him too.”
“What about those two? Are they proving satisfactory?”
“Yes, they’re conscientious and willing to take on any labor. But about the horse—there’s still no Stable master…”
Royce, who had been drinking water with a low rumble beside her, lifted his head as if asking whether he was being spoken of.
Stroking Royce gently, Silmare answered in his stead.
“Once he’s had enough water, we’ll be moving on.”
“Then I should say goodbye to Royce just like this?”
Agnes asked, feeling an unexpected pang of reluctance, and Silmare shook her head.
Matching her gaze to the horse once more, Silmare whispered something in the Fairy Language and relayed Royce’s words on his behalf.
“He says he’ll be wandering about these parts, so call for him if you need anything.”
“Then it would be alright to say we’ll meet again, wouldn’t it?”
“Of course.”
“See you next time, Royce.”
As she whispered the words, Royce nudged his nose against her forehead.
Leaving Silmare to observe Royce a while longer, Agnes entered the Mansion with Martha.
“You didn’t overexert yourself while I was gone, did you?”
“Oh, I’m perfectly sound, so I should be doing more. Besides, we couldn’t possibly ask Elena to handle everything, could we?”
“Don’t push yourself too hard. Here, let me help with some of it.”
“Goodness, we have staff now—what are you doing working? What we really need is to hire more hands.”
“The house has been neglected so long there’s plenty to do. No one’s complaining about how difficult things are?”
“Oh, they wouldn’t dare complain outright. Their faces are all drawn and weary—I’m sure they’re thinking, ‘What sort of place is this?'”
“I suppose they would be.”
The two women bantered back and forth, laughing together.
“Would a raise help matters?”
“They’d certainly appreciate it.”
“Listen, Martha—brace yourself. I’m going to give everyone three years’ worth of back wages all at once. Of course that includes Elena and Alfred too. But only you should know about this for now, understand?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“If word gets out that there’s suddenly more work, people might flee. You see?”
“Three years’ wages? That’s… how could you possibly manage it?”
“Don’t worry. I can manage. I’ve more than enough even after settling the debts, but I’d prioritize this even if I didn’t.”
“Even if I tried to talk you out of it, you’d do it anyway, wouldn’t you?”
Martha let out a soft laugh.
Having raised Agnes since infancy, Martha knew well enough that her young mistress had a stubborn streak that could not be easily bent.
Once Agnes set her mind to something, she would see it through no matter how much one tried to dissuade her.
“It’s remarkable. To think the troubles could suddenly unravel like this. You can’t imagine how I’ve worried—terrified that things would only worsen until we had no choice but to part from you.”
Martha recalled the Laberose Mansion in its moment of greatest splendor, and all the suffering of its decline.
At the same time, she remembered every struggle Agnes had waged trying desperately to preserve House Laberose.
‘House Laberose can no longer pay wages. I shall write you the finest reference. Thank you for all your years of service. Please, I beg you, find work elsewhere.’
‘No, young mistress! I will stay to the very end.’
‘You can’t. We truly have nothing left to give you.’
‘What does that matter? As long as there’s a place to sleep and food to eat, that’s all I need.’
And so Martha had remained at the Mansion.
Martha had been a maid brought by the late Countess Laberose.
Though she was called a nursemaid, she had not truly nursed Agnes from birth.
She had simply cared for the children at the late Countess’s side.
But when the Countess passed, Martha could not bring herself to abandon the children and leave alone.
She could envision the young mistress she had raised since childhood, left without a guardian, struggling hopelessly through the years ahead.
Martha, foolish as she was, dabbed at her warm eyes with the hem of her sleeve.
“I’ll have to ask Amy for the full details once she returns.”
“Yes, it’s a mercy that Miss Amy is alive and well.”
They also inquired after the family members they hadn’t properly asked about last time, when guests were present.
“Father remains much as he was.”
“Well, at least he eats his meals on time. I do wish he’d give up drinking…”
As Agnes looked about the interior of the Mansion, she suddenly noticed something odd.
“But where is Alfred?”
“Ah, well…”
Martha’s expression darkened.
“What is it? Has something happened?”
“The truth is, Miss Elizabeth…”
After hearing the full account from Martha, Agnes made directly for the second floor.
Soft voices could be heard from Elizabeth’s room.
It sounded as though they were in some sort of quarrel.
When Agnes threw open the door, there stood Elizabeth and Alfred.
“Young mistress!”
Alfred greeted her with an awkward expression.
Agnes merely bowed her head slightly to him before turning to face Elizabeth.
It had been a full year.
When she saw her younger sister again, the girl appeared thinner, paler, and far more fragile than before.
Seeing her like this felt as though someone had reached into her chest and clenched her heart in an iron grip.
“Oh—why are you…?”
Caught off guard, Elizabeth’s eyes—blue like their mother’s—widened and darted about in confusion.
Amy’s eyes were blue too.
Looking at them was like gazing into a pair of beautiful glass marbles.
“You asked Alfred for money?”
Elizabeth’s shoulders flinched at the question.
“Y-yes, I did!”
Her voice rose as though in protest, yet she sounded like a child struggling desperately not to lose an argument.
Now that she thought about it, Elizabeth was only sixteen—just a child, really.
Why was this only becoming clear to her now?
‘Why did I treat Amy so badly?’
Part of her wanted to demand an explanation on the spot.
But meeting her sister for the first time in a year, now was not the moment for such words.
As she pressed her lips together, forcing herself to hold back—
Elizabeth cried out, her voice strained and desperate.
“You came back, didn’t you? So why can’t I go? I’m going to go! Do you have any idea how hard it’s been, locked away at home all this time? That’s why I asked for money! I want to get outside! Is it really fair to come back only to scold me after a whole year apart?”
“Do you know where that money came from?”
“Y-yes! Amy—!”
For her to speak with such shamelessness even knowing the truth.
Agnes steadied herself with effort. Losing her temper now would solve nothing.
“…All right. Fine. Go, then.”
“What?”
Caught off guard by words she hadn’t expected, Elizabeth’s cheeks trembled.
“Go outside. I’ll give you whatever you need.”

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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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