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Chapter 107

Most nobles who sponsored orphanages usually sent only their subordinates.

But the Marquess and Marchioness of Eberwine were different—and that was why they remained vividly in Emilia's memory.

The Marchioness, pale and seemingly frail, always looked at the children with loving eyes.

She would ask each child their name and remember them all.

The Marquess, though not as gentle as his wife, would inspect the orphanage with a displeased expression.

Then, he'd demand to know why the children were so thin and why the facilities were so worn—and increase their donations on the spot.

So when choosing which family to send the double ledgers to, Emilia hadn't hesitated in choosing the Eberwine family.

Above all—

"Emilia."

The Marchioness's considerate gesture—smiling warmly at her, perhaps noticing she was being left out by the other children—still lingered in her heart.

After a moment's thought, Emilia said to Kayden.

"...If it's alright, I'd like to meet them too."

Ah, they're here.

Soon, a carriage passed through the main gate and approached the residence.

Emilia watched the carriage, straightening her posture in nervous anticipation.

Just then, Kayden called her.

"Emilia."

"Yes?"

She looked up and saw him lift the corner of his mouth.

Wondering why, she tilted her head, and he said in a low voice.

"You're not planning to use the same address in front of the Marquess and Marchioness, are you?"

"...Pardon?"

As Emilia blinked in confusion—

The carriage came to a stop before them.

The coachman opened the door, and a stern-looking middle-aged man stepped out.

Behind him, a noblewoman took his hand and slowly descended.

"Oh my!"

The Marchioness's eyes went wide the moment she spotted Emilia.

"Emilia—it really is you!"

She approached at once, examining her face as if she couldn't believe it.

Before Emilia could even greet her, she took both of Emilia's hands in hers.

"..."

At the sudden gesture, Emilia's eyes went wide.

The Marchioness's eyes were red-rimmed as she asked in a trembling voice.

"Have you been well?"

"Ah, yes..."

"I never thought I'd see you again."

As Emilia answered, a little flustered, the Marchioness gave a faint smile.

---

After moving to the reception room—

The Marquess handed over the documents he'd brought to Kayden.

They had been kept safe for nearly a decade—only the paper had yellowed.

Kayden looked through the ledgers and let out a short laugh.

"Even as a child, her handwriting hasn't changed."

With these, no one could doubt that Emilia had copied the double ledgers.

And they would serve as circumstantial evidence that the director had framed her out of malice.

Meanwhile, the Marchioness, learning only now that Emilia had been framed and expelled, was furious.

"That director was truly rotten to the core!"

She sighed regretfully and gently stroked Emilia's hand.

"You must have suffered so much at such a young age."

"It was nothing."

Emilia shook her head quickly.

Then, after a moment's hesitation, she asked cautiously.

"Um, may I ask... why did you want to meet me?"

The Marquess and Marchioness had been just one of the orphanage's sponsors.

And she was just one of many children there.

The Marchioness's expression turned wistful.

"So you really didn't know."

"Huh? Know what?"

"Actually... we wanted to adopt you."

"...Pardon?"

At the unexpected revelation, Emilia was momentarily stunned.

"But it seems the director deliberately didn't tell you."

The Marchioness was someone who loved children so deeply that building a warm family was her dream.

Unfortunately, she had been born infertile, and had long since given up on that dream.

So she decided to pour the love she would have given her own child elsewhere.

That was how she'd started sponsoring orphanages.

Though it wasn't the family she had dreamed of, watching so many children grow brought her little regret.

During her frequent visits to the orphanages she sponsored—

One child in particular caught her eye.

A girl with brown hair and fair skin.

Despite her young age, the girl was sharp and always expressed her gratitude to the sponsors properly.

So each time she visited, the Marchioness naturally found herself looking for that child.

But strangely, the girl was ostracized by the other children.

The Marchioness asked one of them.

"Why don't you play with Emilia?"

At her question, the child answered with a sulky expression.

"She doesn't need to play with us."

"Why?"

"She's already the director's favorite."

And so the Marchioness learned that the child was favored by the director and envied by the others.

Children were sensitive to such things.

So she remained concerned about the child, but couldn't show it.

If she showed too much affection, the child might face even more trouble.

She tried to treat all the children equally, but every time she left the orphanage, that child lingered in her mind.

After much deliberation, the Marchioness said to her husband.

"I'd like to adopt a child from the orphanage."

"The one named Emilia?"

"Oh, how did you know?"

When she asked in surprise, her husband confessed that the child had also caught his eye.

Hearing that, the Marchioness was overjoyed.

But it was only their decision—so they planned to approach Emilia slowly, to give her time.

They only gave the director a hint.

Then one day, documents exposing the director's corruption arrived, and the following days were chaotic.

When they next visited the orphanage, Emilia was gone.

When they asked a child about her whereabouts, the child rolled its eyes and said.

"Before the director changed, she was adopted by a very nice family."

"...I see."

The Marchioness blamed herself for being too late, but accepted it.

Emilia was clever and stood out—she must have caught another sponsor's eye and been adopted.

She had no way of knowing that the child had lied out of jealousy.

Worse, when the director was arrested, she had thrown a tantrum and burned the children's registration records, so there was no way to trace where Emilia had been adopted.

Now, recalling that time, the Marchioness was filled with regret and sorrow.

That young child had carried such a burden alone.

If she'd known, she would have found her and brought her home.

She felt terrible that her presence might have caused this child to endure such hardship.

"Ah..."

Emilia let out a small sigh after hearing the story.

"...I had no idea."

Her chest tightened at the warm gaze looking at her.

Now that she thought about it, whenever she'd sat alone near the orphanage yard, the Marchioness had always come to her.

Out of all the children, she had chosen to reach out to her.

The Marchioness, looking at Emilia's bowed head with gentle eyes, stroked her hand.

"But you've grown up so well, so bravely."

The Marquess, too, said nothing—but his eyes were warm as he looked at her.

"You've built a family with a good man."

The Marchioness said, relieved.

Emilia only smiled quietly at that.

---

It was only after nightfall that the Marquess and Marchioness made ready to leave.

"Take care on your way back."

At Emilia's farewell, the Marchioness smiled fondly.

"You greet people the same way you did as a child."

Emilia blushed a little, embarrassed.

"Now that you're a proper Duchess, we'll surely meet at social events."

"..."

"No—if you don't mind, would you host a tea party and invite me sometime?"

The Marchioness asked, her eyes crinkling with a smile—but Emilia couldn't bring herself to answer readily.

As Duchess, she would never host a tea party.

Though the Marchioness had come to see her out of childhood memories, this would likely be their last meeting.

"...Yes, I will."

And so Emilia made a promise she couldn't keep, quietly swallowing her feelings—

Just then.

"Actually, my wife and I will be attending the upcoming Founding Festival ball."

Kayden wrapped his arm around Emilia's shoulder and continued.

"This will be her first ball, so if it's not too much trouble, I wonder if you could offer her some guidance."

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