The Villainess in the Childcare Story Doesn’t Hide Her Personality - Chapter 11

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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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“How could you? Have you forgotten all our days together? I suppose it’s only natural that you cast me aside so coldly….”
Rather than hear him finish, I gripped Timothy’s hand firmly and stepped into the shop.
“Choose something.”
I whispered to Timothy, who remained visibly frozen.
“You see, that man is actually my stalker. That’s why I needed someone to keep me company.”
“…!”
Timothy’s eyes widened in shock.
“You understand, right? It helps me if you pick something you like here.”
“Really…?”
“Yes.”
I answered in a serious tone.
“That way, he’ll accept it too.”
“Okay…!”
At the Souvenir District we visited, Timothy deliberated for quite some time before selecting a dolphin-shaped keychain.
Crafted from obsidian and embedded with glimmering opal for eyes, the dolphin possessed considerable charm.
Clearly enchanted, Timothy stood quietly for a while, holding the keychain up to the sunlight.
Watching Timothy’s gaze fixed upon the rainbow hues reflected in the opal, I paid the substantial price without hesitation.
When else would I spend money if not for moments like this?
I grasped Timothy’s hand and exited the shop with satisfaction.
…Only to encounter Cain Inkaris waiting for us immediately outside.
I swallowed a sigh.
‘With Timothy here, I can’t even have a proper conversation… Why is he doing this?’
But thinking about it, even during my Academy days, Cain would follow me around without much reason.
That was then, and this is now.
“I’ll escort you, Tessa.”
I stared at Cain Inkaris intently.
Could it be….
‘Is he trying to protect me? Am I in danger without even realizing it?’
If that were the case, he would have mentioned it yesterday. We’d had plenty of time alone together.
“What if I refuse?”
“It doesn’t matter much. Whether you refuse or not, you’ll end up riding in the same carriage as me on the way back anyway.”
“….”
In the end, I rode back to the Erendal Hotel in the carriage Cain Inkaris had prepared.
An awkward silence hung between us, but I was grateful for it compared to an uncomfortable conversation.
I was concerned that Timothy, who had suddenly found himself in a carriage with the ‘stalker,’ seemed quite anxious, but there was nothing to be done about it.
The problem began the moment Timothy spotted the carriage waiting right in front of the Erendal Hotel’s main entrance.
“Ah, I, I… should check on something!”
Timothy dashed off, his face filled with dread.
Cain Inkaris clicked his tongue softly.
“The Princess of Kardicha, and now the Young Master of House of Dever… Tessa, you certainly surround yourself with troublesome children.”
“The children aren’t the problem. The adults are.”
A defensive retort spilled out immediately, but Cain Inkaris seemed unbothered.
“Either way, be careful of Duke Leopold. Things aren’t always what they appear to be. You’ll find yourself entangled in more troublesome affairs than you’d expect.”
“Is that a prophecy?”
“You could say so.”
Cain Inkaris let out a dry chuckle.
“Sorry for the bother. But I’ve been watching you for a while now, and it seems my help will be needed soon.”
….
Is this guy actually a stalker?
I didn’t even bother responding and simply stepped down from the carriage. Cain Inkaris seemed to be calling after me, but if it was truly important, he’d track me down again like the stalker he was.
The lobby of the Erendal Hotel, which I’d rushed to reach, presented an unexpected scene.
Regina, the young lady of House of Dever, was mocking Timothy.
“So it’s really true that our Timmy has been playing around with commoners?”
The young lady, who appeared to be in her late teens, had hair the same reddish-brown color as Timothy’s, but her demeanor was entirely different from his.
She had a sharp, fastidious air about her—the type one would never wish to associate with.
“Don’t even mention it, Regina. Because of some incompetent fool, I nearly had to share a room with a commoner. I gave them plenty of money, and they backed off like proper commoners, but….”
“Surely that commoner didn’t lay hands on our room?”
“Fortunately, I dealt with it before they entered. But apparently they needed a companion, so I allowed them to keep Timothy with them for a few days.”
“Ugh, how revolting. What if the stench of commoners rubs off on me?”
Regina wrinkled her face in disgust and shook her head.
“Mother!”
A boy’s voice I’d never heard before rang out, and a youth bearing Regina’s resemblance strode in with commanding presence.
“Mother, I’ve arrived!”
“Leopold!”
The Duchess’s face brightened instantly.
“My dear Leopold, have you been well? Oh, my boy, you’ve lost weight!”
…Leopold, the young lord of House of Dever, appeared to be twice Timothy’s size.
Once freed from the Duchess’s embrace, he spotted Timothy standing nearby and immediately contorted his face in displeasure.
Timothy had been there for the sole purpose of carrying Leopold’s luggage.
Though Leopold surely knew this, he shoved Timothy away with force, driven by nothing more than irritation.
“Stop standing there like an idiot and get out of the way!”
Pushed weakly by Leopold, Timothy’s chest struck the pillar directly.
As Timothy sank down, clutching his chest, an emotion I’d never seen on his face before surfaced.
Shame and humiliation.
Regina clicked her tongue.
“How pathetically weak.”
Silent tears streamed down Timothy’s cheeks.
‘…Surely not.’
I know that expression. The reaction it evokes is distinctly different from that of ordinary violence….
‘…It can’t be.’
It shouldn’t be.
No matter how vulgar House of Dever might be, they wouldn’t commit such an outrageous act.
Not against their own child.
But why, then, did Cain Inkaris’s words keep echoing in my mind?
【Be careful of the Duke. Things aren’t always what they appear.】
Along with the ending of a mystery novel I’d finished reading without much thought.
[It wasn’t Adel as a boy, but Adel as a girl. Raised as a male since childhood!]
* * *
My suspicion that I might have been completely wrong shattered after spending several days with Timothy.
Perhaps it was because I knew the truth.
No matter where I looked at the child, she didn’t appear as a boy, and she seemed somewhat uncomfortable whenever she moved her shoulders.
Likely, her chest and shoulders were bound tightly.
‘….’
I clenched my lips.
This was abuse that made no sense.
‘What on earth is the reason?’
What possible reason could there be for raising a perfectly healthy young lady of the Duke’s household in male disguise as a son?
There were indeed cases where families without sons would disguise their daughters as male.
There were exceptional cases like House of Monstina, where succession followed the maternal bloodline alone, but most noble families maintained themselves through paternal lineage alone.
However, in those cases, the disguised daughter was raised as precious as a family heir.
Not hidden thoroughly like Timothy.
In most cases, they wore male disguise and acted as male heirs in official settings, but lived as women otherwise.
It was a kind of legal loophole, in a sense.
‘…This situation is completely different.’
From what I’d heard, Leopold was only a year younger than Timothy.
Since there was a son born nearly the same year, there was no need to raise Timothy in male disguise.
And there was even less reason to treat her worse than a servant.
Naturally, I wanted to help Timothy.
But….
‘…It’s difficult.’
Growing close to Timothy was quite easy. The child seemed starved for affection, so she was deeply grateful even for the most ordinary attention I gave her.
But the problem came after that.
Every time I subtly suggested that the Duchess’s abuse was wrong, Timothy would nearly leap up in refutation.
“No, no! It’s all my fault… I was wrong. Mother does this for me. That’s right.”
“But Timothy, hitting someone’s cheek because they made a mistake is wrong.”
“No, it’s not.”
Timothy shook her head.
“P-parents are supposed to educate their children properly… I should be grateful.”
Something boiled inside me. What had the Duke and Duchess been doing all this time to brainwash Timothy to this extent?
“Timothy.”
I leaned toward Timothy.
“You, Regina, Leopold—you’re all the same to me. But has our mother ever once raised a hand against either of you?”

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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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