One Day, I Picked Up a Mom - Chapter 63

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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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One Day I Picked Up a Mother – Episode 63

Why?

Ludrio’s bright blue eyes wavered.

If it had been the original him, he should have accurately weighed the ripple effects and practical benefits that the woman’s past entangled with Rosemond Bain would bring.

In fact, that’s what he should have done.

The fact that Rosemond Bain threw dignity aside and laid hands on the woman the moment she saw her meant the two were connected through something unpleasant.

Either Luna was a servant who had stolen from the family in the past, or a woman who had slept with her husband.

Even those who weren’t prostitutes often meddled with family servants.

So he should have investigated her past first and thoroughly examined it.

Yet he hadn’t even tried to guess Luna’s past, nor calculated the troublesome variables that would follow.

As if taking responsibility for her was a natural duty.

Why…

“…”

Why had he acted so carelessly?

Though it was a burden he could handle, if he had intended to handle it from the beginning, that was a different story altogether.

Tap tap tap tap.

“Why are you outside…? Is there anything else you need?”

The face of the servant who quickly approached was pale with fright.

Only then did Ludrio lightly rub his face and shake his head.

“No. There’s nothing more I need.”

“Then where are you going…”

“Just go. I’ll carry the tea in myself.”

“Ah… Yes.”

Even as Ludrio received the tray, he continued to chase his doubts.

What had made him give assurance that everything would be fine first?

His thoughts flowed and flowed until he reached the realization that he was being unusually gentle with her.

Today had been like that too.

Enduring, waiting, and following along with everything she demanded.

Ludrio was quite displeased with this situation where she was treated as an exception.

Suddenly he thought he should send her away now and set things right.

Though the previous Countess had already taken her around the capital, if he wanted to send her away now, there were ways.

Luna wasn’t even Iban’s real mother to begin with, so if he used that…

“…”

If he did that, she would cry again.

If he cruelly sent her away, she would make that sad face again and silently…

Ludrio stared for a long time at the teacup and teapot on the tray in his hands.

A corner of his chest seemed to grow coldly numb.

“Haah…”

In the end, he let out a sigh filled with resignation.

He didn’t want to place all the responsibility on her. Even if he chased the woman away to resolve the situation, his heart wouldn’t be at ease.

He realized he couldn’t do such a thing.

Why was that?

It was strange.

‘What is that woman to me.’

What was she that he would have such thoughts?

Where did this strange sense of responsibility originate from? Since when had he been so altruistic?

Self-deprecating questions swirled chaotically in his mind, but the answers remained shrouded in fog.

Though thoughts led to more thoughts, none connected to any plausible conclusion. Only fragmented doubts sporadically surfaced.

While he wandered meaninglessly like this for a while.

Through the gaps of his tangled thoughts, a voice suddenly popped up.

‘Count Roderich is a good person.’

Ludrio’s thoughts came to a complete halt at the memory that invaded without warning.

The woman who had said those words had seemed quite confident.

That voice, which had seemed not just bold but almost arrogant, repeated once more.

‘He even assigned me a teacher, and when I collapsed from eating shrimp, he personally carried me. And since then, things like shrimp haven’t appeared in our meals.’

Despite not even knowing who she was.

‘Last time when a servant broke a teacup, he didn’t get angry or even scold them once.’

How dare she claim to know anything about him.

‘And he personally apologizes to me too. I’m truly grateful for that. I really mean it.’

Her unwavering eyes rippled vividly before his eyes.

“…”

As if her words, spoken with such conviction, had become a terrible curse binding him.

Only then did Ludrio’s mind grow very quiet, as if admitting defeat.

Click.

Just then, the door handle of the study turned carefully.

“Count Roderich…”

Then the door opened and the owner of the voice that had been floating in his mind spoke.

When he turned his head, their eyes met through the crack in the door.

Right. This woman was fragile and defenseless, and no malice could be found in her either.

So there was no need to play the villain.

There was no reason to hurt her unnecessarily and earn resentment. After all, she was the woman the child trusted and followed so much.

“Well, that is…”

Having concluded his thoughts this way, Ludrio lightly lifted the tray in his hands and said.

“Let’s go in.”

Ludrio, who entered the study with the woman leading the way, immediately set the tray down on the table.

“Thank you.”

When he then placed a cup in front of Luna, she whispered quietly.

Whether she meant it kindly or was just saying it because she too found this situation awkward, Ludrio became conscious again of his abnormal behavior because of that greeting.

“You don’t have anything particular to do tomorrow.”

Embarrassed by his appearance doing what a servant would do, he ignored Luna’s words and changed the subject.

“You just need to sit next to me.”

Though his gaze remained fixed on the teacup out of embarrassment, Ludrio’s firm voice showed no wavering.

“They’re coming to ask for forgiveness, and that’s the end of it. You just need to sit next to me and decide whether to forgive them or not.”

It was an arrogantly firm declaration.

His tone seemed to nail down that tomorrow’s initiative rested entirely with Luna, not Count Bain, and that there would be nothing problematic.

“I told you before. Even if they recognize you, they won’t be able to show it or raise any issues.”

When Ludrio raised his head and met Luna’s eyes, he added as if driving in a nail.

“Just as Rosemond Bain bowed her head before you today, Count Bain who comes tomorrow will do the same. Even if more people who recognize you appear, it will be the same.”

“…”

“So there’s nothing to worry about.”

Ludrio leaned forward to meet Luna’s gaze.

He carefully observed whether Luna had properly understood his words.

Luna quietly nodded without avoiding his eyes.

“Do you have anything you want to say or want to hear more about?”

“No, I don’t.”

Luna shook her head.

Whether she really had nothing to say or was just pretending to be fine.

“Don’t go to your room and worry alone again. If you have other concerns, talk about them now.”

Looking at her fidgeting hands, she clearly seemed to have something she wanted to say.

Luna lowered her gaze as if trying to swallow the thought that had occurred to her.

“…That’s really enough.”

In the end, Luna didn’t voice what was inside her heart.

Though he wanted to persistently pry further, Ludrio simply nodded his head to end his questioning at the faint smile that followed.

“Drink slowly.”

Then he recommended the tea in front of her.

The tea he had brought after enduring the ordeal had cooled somewhat, but still retained its warmth.

“Ah, the things you ordered have arrived.”

Ludrio brought up a new topic while savoring the silence.

Even he thought it wasn’t a smooth transition, but still.

“Yes?”

“The things you picked from the catalog.”

Luna had said she didn’t particularly want anything and only selected Iban’s toys to pass along.

“Since you didn’t pick anything for yourself, I told them to just send whatever they thought appropriate. They said it arrived, so go take a look.”

“Ah…”

“I’m not sure if you’ll like it though.”

He didn’t know what had come, but he hoped she would like it.

Enough that unnecessary worries couldn’t creep into her mind.

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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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