His origins were shrouded in mystery. No one knew which country he was from or who his parents were. Despite the interference of the Count's family, he successfully inherited the title as the successor to Count Pison.
After he inherited the merchant guild along with the title of Count, the Pison Count's guild prospered to the point where it could be said to have entered a golden age. I am not well-informed, as I was not interested at the time, but I clearly remember that whenever a party was held at the Imperial Palace, many noble ladies would boast about the items they had purchased from the Pison Count's guild. They bought the goods there as if it were a trend. Most of them were luxury items targeting women, such as clothes, shoes, and jewelry.
His strategy of targeting aristocratic women was brilliant. Women steeped in luxury spent money like water. I was one of those women, too. No, when it came to luxury, I was second to none.
At that time, I had never seen the Count's heir in person. The nanny handled all the administrative duties, and I only told her what was necessary. With just a single word to her, the things I wanted always fell into my hands. Back then, I felt absolutely no need to meet him.
The man I saw in person was very different from the image I had imagined. I could not find in him the portly physique and gentle demeanor typically associated with a merchant. His tall stature, well-proportioned build, and sharp features made him look more like a knight than a merchant, and his short, gray hair reminded me of a soldier.
“Evan!”
Elle reached out her hand toward the empty air.
He took Elle from me and held her in his arms without a moment's hesitation. His action of lifting the child looked very familiar. He lifted Elle and met her gaze with his. It seemed as though he was doing this even while knowing that Elle could not see.
"Elle, you've run away from your nanny again."
Elle hugged his neck without answering. Elle was quite shy around strangers. The number of people the child followed could be counted on one hand. I was surprised to see Elle hugging him without hesitation. It meant that he was just that accustomed to the child.
"Evan, I miss my father."
He slowly stroked Elle's back with his large hand.
"Yes, Elle misses her father."
"Yes."
"Father misses Elle a lot too. But he is sick right now, so let's meet a little later."
"When?"
"When Elle eats well, sleeps well, and has a pretty face?"
“Elle is still pretty!”
Elle puffed out her cheeks at his joke. His blue-gray eyes, looking at Elle, were filled with affection. He rubbed his cheek against Elle's cheek.
"Yeah. Our Elle is really pretty."
He adjusted his hold on Elle and gestured to the Marquis and me. It seemed to mean that we should go into the room without Elle noticing. Unlike his sharp appearance, his eyes were truly affectionate.
While Evan took Elle up to the child's room, the Marquis and I entered the Count's bedroom. Contrary to my expectation that there would be many people, the Count and the Countess were alone in the room. She smiled faintly at me, appearing to be barely holding back her tears. She leaned down and whispered into the ear of the Count, who was lying on the bed. The Count, who had been closing his eyes as if asleep, slowly opened them.
He turned his head toward me. Even that simple movement seemed to be of great difficulty to him. He looked toward me and slowly reached out his hand. His gaunt arm trembled.
“Bjornne.”
The Countess called out to me as I hesitated. I looked back and forth between the Count's hand reaching out to me and the Countess's face. She nodded, still wearing a sad smile.
I slowly approached and took the Count's wrinkled hand. The gaunt hand seemed to be nothing but bone and skin. The Count smiled at me. The shadow of death hung heavily over his wrinkled face, covered in age spots.
It wasn't the first time I had let someone by my side go. I had gone through it countless times, even when I was Lee Ji-ah. Nevertheless, this moment was always hard to bear.
"Thank...you."
The Count looked as though he was having difficulty even speaking. I tightened my grip on his hand. The Count's other hand covered the back of mine.
"Be, happy. My dear."
He struggled to continue speaking as he stroked my hand. At that warmth, I suddenly burst into tears. He slowly patted the back of my crying hand. I could not stop crying. The Count's gaze turned to the Marquis standing behind me.
"...Please..."
The Count could not finish his sentence and closed his eyes. The hand I had been holding hung limply. I shook his hand.
"Grandfather?"
The Countess, who had been watching the Count from a step back, hurried over. She shook the Count's body.
"Honey, wake up. Please? Honey! Please..."
The Count did not move even at her call. Finally, tears fell from the Countess's eyes as well. She collapsed onto the Count's chest as if falling. Lying face down to embrace the Count, her body trembled intermittently.
Even as I watched her radiating sorrow with her whole body, I could not utter a single word of comfort. Just standing here was overwhelming for me.
The Count—no, my maternal grandfather—was the first person with whom I felt familial affection since realizing who I was, and at the same time, he was my reliable pillar of support. His thoughtfulness and the warmth I could feel even when he was just standing still were enough to tear down the solid wall of Bjornne that had been inside me.
I already knew that my maternal grandfather would pass away. In fact, he had lived four years longer than that. It was more than enough time to prepare for his death. Nevertheless, his death came as a greater shock than I had anticipated.
My body could no longer hold on and staggered. I squeezed my eyes shut, thinking of the pain that was about to come. Instead of the hard floor, a strong force grabbed both my arms tightly.
"Are you okay?"
A low, deep voice rang in my ears. The Marquis straightened me up and looked at my face as if checking my complexion. Reflected in his eyes, I was shedding endless tears.
He let out a low sigh. My body flinched reflexively at the sound of his sigh. The Bjornne of that time still remained within me, occasionally surfacing like this. The heartache I felt whenever I met the Crown Prince, the Marquis’s disapproving gaze, or my body flinching at the sound of his sigh. It annoyed me that my body reacted contrary to my thoughts, but I could do nothing about it. Because I was Lee Ji-ah, and at the same time, the Bjornne of that time. Since this was also a part of me, I had no choice but to embrace it all.
The Marquis seemed to sense my flinch as well, tightening his grip on my arm. Just as I thought a fragment of emotion was glistening in his blue eyes, I was suddenly pulled into his embrace. His arms were much wider and more comfortable than those of young Landt. He tightened his grip on me and whispered softly.
"I'll stay like this until your tears stop."
My tears flowed for quite a long time without stopping.
***
"That's nonsense!"
"Hah, unless you're crazy. How could you!"
"How could you give a trading company to a guy whose origins are unknown!"
"He's senile. Senile! The Count has gone senile in his later years."
The large drawing room was as noisy as a marketplace. They were shouting like a commoner.
I quietly watched the human crowd.
It was only an hour ago that my maternal grandfather's funeral had concluded and his remains had been taken out and placed in the ossuary in the presence of the Countess and Elle. At this time, when the warmth had not yet even fully dissipated from his bones, they were shouting like this upon hearing the contents of the will.
I could not bring myself to take young Elle to the crematorium, but I had no choice but to take her to the columbarium as well. Elle also had the right to witness her father's final moments.
Elle entered the mausoleum in the Countess's arms. Although no one told Elle the details, Elle neither whined nor cried, as if she knew everything.
'Father, are you not in pain anymore?'
'Huh?'
At El's sudden question, the Countess and I looked at the child. The child's face looked very peaceful.
'Watch out for Elle here?'
'What do you mean, my dear?'
The Countess held Elle more tightly and asked. Elle tilted his head.
'Evan said so... isn't it?'
The Countess and I met each other's eyes. Until now, we had been unable to bring ourselves to tell Elle that her father was dead. We were worried that the child would be hurt, and we were at a loss as to how to bring it up. While we were delaying it, Evan seemed to have explained it to her at her eye level so she could understand. The Countess buried her face in Elle's small shoulder.
'Mom, are you crying?'
'No, no.'
The Countess shook her head without lifting her face from Elle's shoulder. As the Countess did not lift her face, Elle's face grew increasingly tearful.
I approached Elle and stroked the child's soft hair. Is it because it is red? In my hand, the child's hair wrapped softly and felt warm.
'Evan is right. He's probably watching over Elle from here every day.'
'Does it not hurt anymore?'
'No, it doesn't hurt.'
'Thank god.'
Elle smiled broadly. I could no longer face the child with a smiling face. I had to clench my teeth desperately to keep from crying.
Elle smiled broadly. I could no longer face the child with a smiling face. I had to clench my teeth desperately to keep from crying.
Waiting for the Countess and me after we came out of the columbarium to place the remains were people called relatives.
They demanded that the Countess reveal the will immediately. The Countess entrusted Elle to the nanny and led them to a large drawing room. My maternal grandfather's aide and the butler of the Pison Count family revealed the will in the presence of everyone. And this was exactly what happened.
At that time, I did not attend my maternal grandfather's funeral. Since I didn't even attend the funeral, there was no way I would have come to the place where the will was revealed. A few days after the will was made public, I merely received his property as my inheritance. So, I never imagined it would be this messed up.
"You cannot treat us this way."
"What on earth is so special about that fellow that he is inheriting property?"
Evan, who could be considered the center of this matter, said nothing. His surroundings were completely silent, as if they were in a different space altogether.
"Please calm down."
"The merchant guild, which is the backbone of the Pison family, is about to fall into the hands of some guy we don't even know. Are we supposed to be calm now?"
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