Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 113

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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 113

I couldn’t remember when I’d returned to the Rose Palace or when I’d fallen asleep. My eyelids felt impossibly heavy, but I forced them open. Debbie was watching me quietly.
“Yesterday was fine, I th—”
The moment I tried to speak, my throat stung. Debbie held out a glass of water. After draining it in one gulp, the soreness eased.
“I can’t remember much. Did… did everything work out yesterday?”
My last memory was… my reason had completely abandoned me. I’d clung to Raymond, spilling out all manner of things. And Raymond had—Raymond, for his part, had simply continued with his incredible apologies.
‘I’m sorry.’
Words that poured into my ears again and again, as if he were coughing up blood—so desperate, so raw.
It must have been sincere.
But yesterday’s me was like a candle burned down to the stub, utterly devoid of thought. The things I said were as unreal as words someone else might have spoken.
Don’t blame yourself… truly, it was the kind of thing the conscientious Young Duke would say. I must have been quite a mess yesterday for him to have begged my forgiveness so desperately.
Of course I’d been a mess. I carefully gauged Debbie’s reaction without mentioning Raymond’s name.
“Yes.”
“Well, I’m sure you handled everything properly.”
“Are you feeling alright?”
“My eyes feel strange. They’re burning.”
“Your eyelids are terribly swollen. Like a goldfish’s.”
—Wow, really! (ง˙∇˙)ว Master, your eyes are open? They don’t look it!
‘It’s terribly rude to critique someone’s appearance right after they’ve woken, Black.’
……
I felt the pillowcase beneath my fingers—it was damp. Had I cried in my sleep? Debbie skillfully wiped my eyes with a dampened cloth. As my vision cleared, I noticed something odd at the edge of my sight.
“What… what is that?”
Debbie shrugged and dragged a tray that had been sitting beside the bed toward me. I thought it held food, but it didn’t. Small boxes were stacked on it, one after another.
The first thing handed to me was a small gift bundle and a card. On it, in neat handwriting: “Sister, may you always have sweet dreams. This is my friend who protects me from nightmares, and he’ll help protect yours too!”
When I unwrapped the bundle, something enormous suddenly puffed up out of the small package. It was a rabbit doll with bright ruby eyes. I forgot my unsettled feelings and burst out laughing.
“Is this… isn’t this something Bibi treasures? She’s okay giving it to me?”
“Yes. Mr. Rabbit is a capable doll, after all.”
There was something strange about the way Debbie answered so casually.
“Wait—a capable doll?”
“Mr. Rabbit’s eyes are superior-grade Ruby Mana Stones. They repel any intruders who slip in without warning and protect the owner. There’s also an additional function that plays lullabies, though you can change it to other songs if you’d like.”
“Just send it back.”
“If you send it back, he might send the Carrot-wielding Rabbit instead.”
“And what in the world is that?”
“The carrot is a weapon, of course! Specially treated—”
“Does he have an entire army of fighting dolls?!”
Instead of answering, Debbie grinned. It was a foolish question. Of course the great Duke of Castrain had given Bibi automatic-attack dolls or whatever else he pleased.
Next came a pale golden box. When I opened it, it was full of dried flower petals. I could tell they were from the flowers I’d seen in the South, caught in that shower of petals. The variety that mostly bloomed in the Capital didn’t have that purple tint mixed in.
“Where did this come from? Did Count Cortez send it?”
“Oh, no. It was… the Young Duke.”
Debbie glanced at me carefully. I ran my fingers over the petals nestled in the box. They were so delicate that careless handling would reduce them to powder. So he’d actually collected those petals while we were viewing the flowers?
Imagining Raymond gathering those petals stirred something strange in me. A faint fragrance lingered. I closed the box before the scent could dissipate entirely.
Another box was filled with fresh fruit. It came with a short note: “Eating well is the best use of time.” From the message alone, I could guess who’d sent it, and I couldn’t help but smile.
“So everyone sent gifts because I was melancholy yesterday?”
“Yes.”
“Tell them all I’m grateful. I need to be strong.”
“Shouldn’t you rest for at least today?”
“No. I feel better now. I need to see the Empress. Call Mary for me this time.”
I smiled brightly. My body felt heavy, but my heart felt lighter.

* * *

“Are you… are you alright?”
Elaine gazed at the person addressing her with an expressionless face.
The Emperor had entered the Licoris Palace itself, and upon seeing the deplorable state of her quarters, he had bristled with indignation—as if he’d forgotten that it was he who had deliberately caused her to live in such misery. Or perhaps he knew and simply didn’t care.
Elaine’s green eyes, which revealed no emotion whatsoever, fixed upon a curtain edge marked with dust. After being thoroughly rebuked by the Emperor for “how she dared to serve her mistress,” the lady-in-waiting, deflated, repeatedly glanced at Elaine.
“No. I’ve never been alright.”
“Then… at least… this much…”
Though she bore the title of lady-in-waiting, her clothes and bearing were those of a common maid. She trailed off hesitantly. She was likely the only person in this palace who genuinely cared for Elaine.
The murky liquid in the transparent crystal glass wavered. But Elaine didn’t hesitate for a moment. She lifted the glass and swallowed its contents entirely. What little color had remained in her already-pale complexion drained away. Without a single breath faltering, she endured the pain with stubborn resolve.
“But… you decided to follow Empress Cleo’s… wishes, didn’t you? Why are you still taking this…?”
“Do you think that woman would let me die in peace?”
A smile like broken glass twisted across Elaine’s face.
“I saw the Emperor drool with fascination at my face. If my body weren’t essentially infertile, she wouldn’t have been able to stop herself from forcing an Infertility Drug down my throat.”
Elaine’s voice was as thin as a whisper, yet sharp as a sliver—a blade so fine it cut with terrible precision. The lady-in-waiting spoke to her very carefully.
“But you… you saw Titania, the Princess, today…”
……
“Didn’t your thoughts change, even a little…?”
Elaine looked at the maid who had stood by her side alone through all the long years—now called lady-in-waiting, though her manner hadn’t changed one bit. Eyes like a docile sheep. Artlessness that couldn’t hide its inner thoughts. A good girl who had stayed by Elaine’s side with tears in her eyes as Elaine slowly killed herself through long confinement.
‘…Empress Elaine.’
The girl’s face came to mind—speaking calmly while concealing warped emotions.
‘I cannot express how delighted I am to see you in such good health.’
A face that never called her mother.
A composure impossible to imagine from a child afraid of rejection, hovering at someone’s side.
“I have no more feelings to waste on that child. The only man I ever loved in this world died trying to save her, and the only woman I ever called friend vanished of her own accord, claiming she would brighten the future. Such noble, remarkable people they were. I am petty and weak… I hate that I am her mother. I hate those who left me because of a child I never loved.”
In her days as an earl’s daughter, Elaine had dreamed of an ordinary life.
She hated her family, always constraining her at every turn. Elaine wasn’t told, but within the family, all manner of dark secrets and schemes flowed constantly.
They treated her not as a family member, but as merchandise to sell to guests. There were no fond memories.
So when she’d lost her memory and been mistaken for a commoner, those relationships—with the gentle escort knight and the somewhat secretive girlfriend she’d happened to meet—had been precious beyond measure. If only those two remained at her side, she didn’t care what kind of life she led.
‘Take me and run away.’
So the moment Elaine learned that the Emperor had taken a fancy to her, and that her family had no intention of refusing, she clung to the escort knight and begged.
‘I don’t care what happens to the family for defying the Emperor’s command. Do you understand? I never wanted a luxurious life. Please. Take me and run away, anywhere…’

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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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