The Baby Raising A Devil - Chapter 88

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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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Chapter 88

That woman was dressed shabbily compared to the other nobles in Sharon’s atelier.

She came up the stairs and greeted the nobles, but no one acknowledged her. The reaction was vastly different from what my aunt and I received.

While my aunt and I continuously conversed with people, the dark brown-haired woman stood alone by the wall.

When I glanced at her, my aunt spoke.

“That’s Lady Bartu.”

My perceptive aunt told me her name when she noticed I seemed curious about her.

“Lady Bartu?”

“Leticia Bartu. She’s the eldest daughter of the Count Bartu family.”

“I heard about all the Imperial Capital nobles from the ceremonial officer, but I didn’t hear about the Count Bartu family.”

“Because they’re a noble family drowning in debt with only their lineage remaining.”

“Then how did she come here? Only people the ceremonial officer said were important are here.”

“Count Bartu is a faithful lackey of the Marche Ducal House, which is the maternal family of the Empress Dowager and Empress Yvonne. He does all sorts of dirty work and barely managed to send his daughter here. To catch the eye of those in power. This place is like a matchmaking venue for Lady Bartu. Though it’s a dirty story for you to hear.”

I blinked and looked at my aunt.

“The ceremonial officer told me. I’m the Young Lady of Dubbled, so I can have everything, but on the other hand, because I’m the Young Lady of Dubbled, I can’t remain a child for long. So I need to know both the dirty and clean things.”

My aunt smiled faintly and rubbed my cheek.

“I like you more and more, which is troublesome.”

I giggled.

Just then, Leticia Bartu headed toward the rest room. I also told my aunt “I need the bathroom” and followed behind her.

Leticia was washing her hands at the washbasin in the rest room. Her eyes reflected in the mirror were dried black and hollow.

“Hello, Young Lady.”

“Hello.”

Having heard people call me the Young Lady of Dubbled, she didn’t ask who I was.

When I went to sit on the sofa, she looked at me.

“You’d be better off staying outside. To them, this rest room is a loser’s rat hole.”

“But it’s boring outside. They’re all adults and only talk about difficult things.”

When I spoke innocently, Leticia smiled as if she couldn’t help it.

“Well, if you’re the Young Lady of Dubbled, they wouldn’t dare look down on you carelessly.”

“Let’s play together!”

When I said that, Leticia smiled brightly.

“Alright. What shall we play?”

“Tell me an interesting story.”

“Shall I?”

Leticia, who sat beside me, told me legends and fairy tales of the Empire.

I occasionally clapped my hands and cheered, reacting enthusiastically.

“Tell me a whale story too!”

“A whale?”

“The story of a father whale searching for a mother whale and baby whale.”

When I mentioned the recently popular fairy tale, Leticia’s hand flinched.

“That’s… I’m sorry, I don’t know much about whale stories. Oh, quite a bit of time has passed already. I’ll excuse myself first.”

Anyone could see she was deliberately avoiding the topic, but I didn’t mind at all.

Because I knew the reason why she was avoiding it.

The story of the whale family goes roughly like this.

A father whale and mother whale, each living in different places, met by chance and fell in love, and a baby whale was born.

The mother whale and baby whale got caught up in an unfortunate accident and disappeared, and the father whale desperately searches for them.

The reason Leticia wouldn’t tell this simple story is because it’s her story.

To be precise, it’s a story that Grand Duke Rocar, the Emperor’s younger brother, deliberately spread throughout the Empire to find the woman he loved who suddenly disappeared one day and the child she bore him.

Leticia had once worked as a maid while hiding her identity to pay off her father’s debts.

She worked as a maid for Grand Duke Rocar, who was secretly recuperating to hide the fact that he had lost his sight due to illness.

At that time, the two fell in love and had a child, but for some reason, Leticia ran away as Grand Duke Rocar’s sight gradually recovered.

‘But in the end, it’s a happy ending just like the whale family story.’

Leticia was someone who would later become a grand duchess.

And she was someone who would become the ‘path’ I needed to obtain, leading to my godmother.

* * *

Sharon called my aunt and me over to show us the completed sketch.

It was a surprisingly lovely and cute design.

It somehow even felt elegant, making me wonder if I could actually wear something like this.

My aunt nodded her head.

“It would suit Leblaine well.”

“Right~! After completing the sketch, I got goosebumps from my own talent. This dress is absolutely perfect for the Young Lady!”

“A few more dresses on top of that. You can prepare accessories too, right?”

“Hmm, when my muse is asking, I can’t exactly say no. Well, fine. I like the Young Lady too.”

My aunt stamped Ariège’s seal on the dress receipt.

Curious about the price, I peeked my head out and nearly fainted.

‘How much is all that!’

It was incomparable to Melbane’s dresses. There were so many zeros I couldn’t count them all at once.

Even for me, who had become quite wealthy through Hope Trading Company and was planning to become even wealthier, it was a price that made my shoulders tremble.

‘It’s a price that can’t help but smell like money…’

“Thank you as always, valued customer.”

Sharon chuckled softly and tilted her head to the side with a bow.

Then we returned home.

Father and my brothers were waiting for us.

“What kind of dress is it?”

Henri said with his eyes crinkling gently.

“Such a pretty dress.”

“I already know Sharon’s skills well, but I’m even more excited since you’ll be wearing it.”

I gestured enthusiastically to Father and my brothers, telling them how pretty the dress was and how expensive it was.

Even after I mentioned the price, my brothers had expressions like ‘So what?’ which made me flustered instead.

‘The sensibilities of people who are rich from birth.’

I need to work hard and learn the mindset of the wealthy who don’t even bat an eye when spending money like water!

And I also talked about Lady Leticia Bartu.

Although I knew the general outline of the future, I had little involvement with her in the future, so I needed detailed information.

Father and my brothers knew about the Count Bartu family well, just as I thought.

“Count Bartu, huh. I heard his daughter does the cleaning and laundry herself because all the servants left due to unpaid wages for months.”

“Didn’t he borrow a large sum using the Imperial Capital mansion as collateral? What did he do with all that money?”

“The borrowed money would all go to the education costs of the eldest and younger sons. Even after borrowing that money, Lady Bartu, the youngest, has to desperately work to support their tuition.”

A noble young lady doing cleaning and laundry…

‘Managing that big mansion would leave little time to go outside.’

On top of that, with copying work and taking care of her own children, she would have almost no time to come out.

Isaac frowned and said.

“They treat her like a servant rather than a child, so why doesn’t the young lady cut ties with them?”

Henri answered while putting sugar cubes in my teacup.

“Still, I heard their father-daughter relationship was terrible when she was young. The count lived holding the young lady close, and when she was little, she even said she would marry her father. She can’t forget those memories.”

“How foolish.”

While they were talking, I was thinking of ways to become friends with Lady Leticia.

‘Hmm, I absolutely need to become close with Leticia…’

That’s when I was thinking that.

Somehow the surroundings became quiet.

When I quietly raised my head, Father and my brothers were looking at me.

Father asked.

“Leblaine, who do you want to marry?”

What?

“Why ask something so obvious? Little One likes me the most.”

“There’s a limit to delusions.”

Isaac and Henri spoke in turn.

“Leblaine.”

“Little One.”

“Leblaine.”

Their burning gazes were so scary that I swallowed dryly.

“Just speak comfortably, Leblaine.”

“Right, just be honest, little one.”

“Who is it, Leblaine.”

If I said one of the three, it felt like war would break out.

I rolled my eyes and said.

“I, well… um…”

After mumbling, I found a refuge.

“Johan!”

The faces of the three men excluding Johan hardened stiffly.

Their gazes pierced into me fiercely like arrowheads.

“Why.”

Father’s voice was so low it seemed like it would drill through the ground.

Isaac glared at Johan with murderous eyes and said.

“Why, that, heartless, eldest brother.”

His words were cut off several times from how much he was grinding his teeth. The smile that was always on Henri’s face disappeared.

‘Well, it’s because he’s the most normal one in the family.’

Johan closed the book he was holding with a thud and stood up.

‘See, Johan doesn’t react to words like this.’

Just as I was thinking that, Father said with an ominous expression.

“Where are you going.”

Then Johan replied nonchalantly.

“I’m going to look at tuxedos.”

Henri and Isaac glared at Johan as if they would tear him apart.

Father called the Butler.

“Throw that bastard into the Academy.”

—And so.

* * *

I peeked my head out the door and turned it this way and that.

‘Good, no one’s there.’

After confirming no one was around, I carefully laid the doll on the bed, then took out the teleportation magic from my pocket.

Thinking of the location, I tore it with a rip. After being enveloped in light and opening my eyes, Seria was in front of me.

“Young Lady!”

“Hello…”

When I greeted her with a tired face, Seria quickly got up from the desk and offered me a seat on the sofa.

“I received the letter saying you came to the Imperial Capital, but what brings you here without notice?”

“I came to check on the progress with Seria, and I have something to tell you.”

The progress referred to tracking the ‘client’ who kidnapped me and bought Seria’s siblings.

“Yes, I heard there was someone among those who worked at the House of Hope who was connected to slave traders, and I’ve finished confirming it. But they’re quite cautious, so I’ve put a tail on them for now.”

“Good job. We can’t have them getting scared and committing suicide. Three years ago, one of them did that, remember.”

“Yes. But what’s the matter?”

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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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