One Day, I Picked Up a Mom - Chapter 72

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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 72

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At the end of Ludrio’s gaze as he descended the central staircase of the hall, Iban, who had arrived first, caught his attention.

“It suits you well.”

Ludrio murmured quietly toward Iban, who stood upright beside the servant.

A stiffly set white tie and a silk vest with smooth luster flowing across it.

The black tailcoat the child wore was identical to his own, from the material to the silhouette.

“…Is that so?”

At Iban’s answer as he awkwardly dropped his gaze, the corners of Ludrio’s mouth lifted.

Suddenly, he realized just how small this child wearing the exact same clothes as him truly was.

Perhaps finding the sensation of the tie constricting his neck unfamiliar, Iban raised his hand to touch the knot, then hastily lowered it as if thinking better of it.

Ludrio silently approached the child, bent one knee, and matched his eye level.

“Let me see.”

Large, firm hands approached near the child’s slender nape.

Ludrio skillfully loosened the tie just enough to give him breathing room without disturbing the shape of the knot.

“Is that better?”

After Ludrio adjusted his appearance once more, he raised his gaze.

Iban, who had been staring intently at him, startled and nodded his head vigorously. Ludrio withdrew his hands, thinking perhaps the distance was too close.

“There will be many people you haven’t seen before, so it won’t be entirely comfortable, but if anything bothers you, don’t endure it and be sure to tell me.”

“Yes.”

Having finished his advice, Ludrio rose from his position.

However, his gaze soon turned back to Iban.

It was because the child had quietly taken hold of his hand.

At the small warmth that touched his fingertips, Ludrio gazed down at Iban’s small hand that held onto him.

The child’s hand that first entered his own was so thin and small that Ludrio stood perfectly still, unable to extend or bend his finger joints for fear of breaking it if he applied any force.

What made him move was when the child’s trembling was transmitted completely through their touching hands.

Come to think of it, this was Iban’s first outing since the day he came to the duke’s mansion.

He wasn’t accustomed to occasions like balls either.

“There’s nothing to worry about.”

Ludrio completely enveloped the child’s hand in his grip.

“You just need to stand by my side.”

Ludrio quietly nodded while meeting eyes with Iban, who looked up at him.

Iban gave no particular response and merely stood close against Ludrio’s leg.

Now that he looked, the shoes the child wore were the same design as his own. Black leather shoes with a smooth luster.

Ludrio gazed for quite a long time at the small feet placed neatly beside his large shoes.

How much time had passed?

Suddenly, the sound of shoes along with the rustling of soft silk echoed through the quiet hall.

Ludrio unconsciously raised his head.

Following Luna’s movement as she descended the stairs, the layers of her skirt rippled like waves.

The dress with a subtle peach tint sparkled brilliantly like finely shattered water droplets with each step she took.

“…”

Perhaps due to the dark red velvet cloak, her cheeks as she smiled gently appeared more flushed than usual.

When she stopped at the bottom of the stairs, the voluminous dress train that had stretched long across each step made a soft rustling sound as it swept the floor.

“Have you been waiting long?”

Luna took in Iban and Ludrio in turn with her eyes, then narrowed the corners of her eyes and showed a bright smile.

“…Not particularly.”

Ludrio murmured low as he met her beautifully curved eyes.

Only then did he exhale a belated breath, not even knowing when he had started holding it.

‘Is he not in a bad mood today? Why…’

Having such thoughts, Ludrio’s eyes, which had been observing Luna, caught sight of the slender neckline revealed beneath her neatly pinned-up hair.

There rested a necklace that was a family heirloom. It was a treasure passed down through generations of the ducal family, permitted only to the head’s companion.

Precisely cut diamonds glittered densely against her snow-white skin.

Ludrio hastily turned his head away, feeling his nape grow hot for some reason.

“Iban, why did you take off your outer coat when it’s cold?”

“I’m not cold though? I took it off because I was hot.”

“We’ll be leaving soon. Let’s put it on quickly.”

Though the child grumbled that it was “heavy,” Luna took the coat the servant offered as if he still needed to wear it.

Ludrio released the child’s hand and stepped back.

“The outer coat matches the Count’s exactly too. So adorable.”

Luna, who had been putting the coat on the child and fastening it securely, burst into another very gentle laugh.

Luna, who had been crouching to check the child’s appearance, suddenly raised her head to look at Ludrio.

The gaze looking up at him sparkled excessively.

“Ahem. Let’s go now.”

Ludrio felt somehow embarrassed and let out a small cough as he took a step.

“Isn’t the Dowager Countess coming?”

“Tsk, couldn’t wait that brief moment.”

Before he could answer Luna’s question as she belatedly stood up, the former Count’s wife appeared.

Wearing a deep purple velvet dress and cloak, she glared at Ludrio with displeasure.

“No patience at all.”

At the Dowager Countess’s rebuke as a signal, the firmly closed doors of the estate opened.

Cold winter air rushed deep into their lungs, and all of Ludrio’s nerves were focused on Luna’s footsteps as she walked closer to his side than usual.

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The day when night is longest in the year.

The Empire called this day ‘the day light is born’ and celebrated it grandly.

A festival day when not only nobles but all citizens of the Empire gathered to drink, dance, and spend the long night.

Beyond the window of the stopped carriage, the golden-glimmering panorama of the Imperial Palace spread out.

The former Count’s wife had given me various pieces of advice for today.

Above all, she assured me not to worry needlessly since she and Ludrio would not leave our side.

‘As if I’d leave you alone to bring shame upon us. The family has already suffered enough disgrace just by taking in you and your son.’

Though it wasn’t exactly affectionate or a decision made for our sake, that cold-hearted intention actually reassured me.

In a way, it meant the Dowager Countess and I didn’t differ greatly in what we hoped for.

Soon the door opened and sharp winter night air rushed in.

“…I can do this.”

I murmured low and grasped the hand Ludrio extended as he got out first.

I felt his strength firmly gripping my hand through the leather gloves. Our gazes met briefly.

His eyes were quiet as if indifferent, and when I nodded slightly, only then did he release the hand he had been holding.

Ludrio took Iban’s hand and led the way first.

Iban seemed a bit frozen by the unfamiliar situation, but he followed well as Ludrio matched his pace.

“Luciana, let’s go now.”

At the former Count’s wife’s call, I hurriedly placed my hand on her arm and stood close beside her.

“Once we go inside, look straight ahead only.”

As we climbed the marble steps, her instructions continued.

“Yes, I understand.”

I nodded as if there was nothing to worry about, but the moment the massive golden doors of the banquet hall opened, my breath caught involuntarily.

‘The ceiling is this high.’

The distant ceiling that seemed reachable only by craning my neck back completely was the first thing to overwhelm me.

The hall’s pillars were finished with ornate carvings, and the light from dozens of chandeliers hanging from the ceiling poured down like a waterfall.

The orchestra’s melody that filled the majestic space so vast that one couldn’t even gauge where it was being performed rang sweetly in my ears.

If the Dowager Countess hadn’t given me advance warning, I surely would have stopped walking as if enchanted and looked up.

The moment we entered the hall, the noise filling the venue subsided all at once.

Hundreds of pairs of eyes poured toward us all at once, as if by some prior arrangement.

The gazes of the young ladies and high-ranking nobles gathered between the pillars, chatting amongst themselves, were decidedly sharp and blatantly obvious.

Just as my shoulders naturally tensed up, the Dowager Countess quietly covered the back of my hand.

The Countess didn’t add any particular words, but gradually put more strength into the hand that clasped mine.

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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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