Kays Translations

Chapter 102: The Count Richmond family, my adoptive family

　My adoption was discussed between the heads of the family prior to our engagement.

　The meeting at the time of my adoption was postponed due to the aftermath of the epidemic, but today, now that dinner parties can be held, a meeting was arranged.

　I was adopted by the Count Richmond family, a relative of the Howlers. The countess has a heiress and welcomes a son-in-law.*

　The six of us attending the dinner were Viscount Howler and his wife, myself, Henry, and Mr. and Mrs. Richmond.

　Mr. and Mrs. Richmond are in their forties. The Count has golden hair and blue eyes, and Mrs. Richmond has soft light brown hair and eyes.

“Mai. I am delighted to adopt you as my daughter.”

“Thank you, Count.”

“I heard you’re the creator of a dish that’s been all the rage in high society recently. And you’re a wizard too. My husband and I are very proud to be parents to a wizard.”

“Thank you, Countess.”

“Oh, please, call me Barbara. Or you can call me mother if you like.”

　There was a large feast laid out before us, with a few familiar dishes mixed in. There are tomato-flavored rice noodles, meatloaf with a boiled egg inside, and cream puffs.

　Illustration (By Mitemin)

　I was surprised, but Lady Barbara explains it to me with a smile.

“Today’s dishes were prepared by the Howler family cook. Mitchell kept Mai’s cooking skills a secret from me. When the other families told me about the Howlers’ cooking, I thought, ‘Oh, my, that sounds fishy.’”

“Barbara, there’s a lot going on here.”*

“Hehe, I was just kidding. I’m very happy about this arrangement.”

　The power dynamic between the two of them came through so quickly that I braced myself (Don’t laugh today, either.) 

　After dinner, Barbara and I decided to take a walk in the garden. Henry said he would accompany us, but she scolded him, saying, “I won’t bully Mai. You know, people don’t like a persistent man.” Henry looked discouraged and withdrew.

　The servants sent me out into the garden.

　I had noticed from the moment I stepped into the house that all the servants in the house, except the butler, were beastmen. This can’t be a coincidence.

　Lady Constance said that deciding on servants is the job of the lady or the butler, so it means that either Lady Barbara or the butler, or both of them, are hiring the beastmen on purpose.

　I wonder why. I wonder how are they gathering them?

　However, since Lady Barbara is now my adopted mother, I thought to myself, “I can’t afford to make a mistake on our first meeting!” and I meekly keep my mouth shut.

“I hear you run a cafe. I imagine you get all kinds of customers.”

“Yes.”

“There may even be beastmen among them.”

“Yes… perhaps.”

　I was taken by surprise, and all the anecdotes I had prepared blew up in my face.

“Beastmen are indistinguishable from humans unless they transform. We have begun exchanges with the Kingdom of Arcetheus, and the civil servants of their country, the guests invited by the king, will be politely entertained. But the beastmen who live among the common people will not yet be treated with the same respect.”

“Is that so?”

　What is she trying to say? Is this the “aristocratic trick” that Henry was talking about?

“Mai, what do you think of beastmen?”

“I am not sure. Nothing in particular.”

　When I answered that, lady Barbara looked at me intently.

“I want you to understand, as the new daughter of this family. Beastmen are not frightening beings. They speak just like us, they love their families the same as we do, and they know the difference between right and wrong just like we do. Aside from their overwhelming physical abilities, they are the same as us in every way.”

　Hmm?　Is the wife an advocate for beastmen?

“This is something my husband doesn’t know, but when I was a child, there was a couple who worked as maids in my house. They had a daughter about my age, and I loved her very much. Although we were the employer’s daughter and the servant’s daughter, I considered her my best friend.”

“Best friend……”

“Yes, my best friend. One summer when we were 14, she said to me, ‘I’m going to tell you my secret, but only you. You’re my best friend, after all.’ And then she turned into a cat right in front of me.”

　Wow.

“My best friend was a wonderfully beautiful black cat. She was big and graceful and I loved cats so much that I thought it was a dream. I hugged her and shouted, ‘I love you more than ever.’ I wanted to show her how moved I was, so I told my sweet mother about it, telling her not to tell anyone.”

“What?”

“The next morning, she and her parents had disappeared from the mansion. I made the biggest mistake of my life… at the age of fourteen.”

　I was speechless. Lady Barbara’s eyes and the bridge of her nose were red.

“Neither my father, mother, nor the butler told me where they had gone. I asked them if they had given them severance pay, or if they had written them letters of introduction, but they never responded. I suspected that perhaps they had been killed on my parents’ orders. I was too scared to ask, and many painful years passed. In that pain, I got married, had children, and just when I thought I could no longer bear the weight of my sins, I heard that the Howler family had adopted a baby boy.”

　That’s where this leads!?

“When I went to the formal celebration and saw the baby, I thought my heart would stop. The dark-haired baby looked a lot like Carlotta. At the time I thought it might just be a coincidence, but as Henry grew up, he looked more and more like Carlotta. When Henry was eight years old, I became convinced that Carlotta was alive after she disappeared from our home, had fallen in love with someone and given birth to Henry. That she hadn’t been killed by my parents.”

　Then Lady Barbara covered her eyes with a lace handkerchief.

“You’re the only one I’ve told this story to. I can’t make the same mistake as I did in the summer of my fourteenth year.”

“Lady Barbara ……”

“When I heard from a relative that Mitchell was looking for an adoptive family to adopt Henry’s girlfriend, I approached Mitchell and offered to adopt her. Then I confronted him. ‘Does the woman know who Henry really is? You are not going to let her marry him without letting her know anything, are you?’”

　The viscount must have been very surprised.

“At first Mitchell was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ So I said, ‘Isn’t Henry’s mother’s name Carlotta? I know who Carlotta really is.’ His mouth fell open and he was absolutely mortified for a moment. “You know Henry’s secret,” he said.”

　I remain silent, neither saying yes or no. I still can’t let my guard down.

“I was glad to hear that you were getting engaged to Henry with full knowledge of all this. I wonder if you know where Carlotta is. Mitchell was adamant that he didn’t know. Hearing that, I was convinced that Carlotta is still alive. If she had died, he would have clearly told me she was dead. There’s no way that Mitchell wouldn’t look into something as important as adopting a child. I want to meet Carlotta and apologize. It’s not something that can be solved by just apologizing, but I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart.”

　This isn’t something I should just reply to.

“Have you spoken to Henry about this?”

“I have not. Mitchell said very quietly that if I should say one word too much about Henry, they would become the enemies of the Richmonds. And he was absolutely serious about it. The family knows how close Mitchell is to His Majesty. No one, including me, would ever offend him.”

“May I tell Henry what you have just told me?”

“Yes. but I would appreciate it if you would keep it secret from Mitchell. I really don’t want to antagonize him. Can I get in touch with Carlotta? I want to apologize to her. Please, I need your and Henry’s help. As you see.”

　Lady Barbara bowed deeply to me.

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