"I hate you for being indifferent despite receiving all his attention and love. I despise you for not even trying to know everything he has done for you."
Her tears streamed down her cheeks, wetting her hands and knees. Even as she continued to cry, her gaze turned toward me like a flower.
"Even so, I'm going crazy because you resemble him. I hate you, and I want to hate you. But I'm so grateful to you for giving me Elle... sob."
She was unable to continue speaking and eventually burst into tears. Evan, who had been standing behind her like a screen, did not comfort her even at her crying and simply stood there. His face was merely slightly stiff; it was not an expression of pity or sympathy for her emotions. I became curious about the relationship between her and Evan.
Anasha certainly loved my maternal grandfather. It was an undeniable fact just by looking at her now. It did not seem like she had an affair with Evan. Moreover, Elle's red hair resembled the Marchioness's red hair, which I did not possess. No matter what anyone said, Elle was my maternal grandfather's blood relative.
What on earth is the relationship between these two? Anasha and Evan look so different that it is hard to consider them blood relatives.
I met Evan's eyes as he turned around, perhaps sensing my gaze.
He slowly opened his mouth.
"Anasha is also one of those saved by the Count."
He took a step closer to me.
"He is a benefactor to us. He is like a light we met in the depths of despair."
He took another step closer to me.
"Do you know how miserable and painful it is to live just because you cannot die?"
As he took one step at a time, the distance between me and him grew closer.
"The hand he extended was like God's salvation to us."
There was only about one step left between him and me.
"Do you know? The reason He saved us..."
He slowly bowed down.
"I mean that everything is for your sake."
Evan's knees touched the ground. His gaze and mine met at exactly the same height.
"The Count traveled all over the world gathering children. Among them were some with special talents."
He turned his head toward Anasha.
"Anasha was even more special among them."
A special child among talented ones. Her business acumen was certainly remarkable. My maternal grandfather seemed to have an exceptional eye for people. Moreover, the boldness and drive to place a woman in the position of actual head of the trading company seemed to be beyond the reach of an ordinary person.
"The Count spared no expense in investing in the education of children. If he saw talent, he would sponsor them unconditionally."
He turned his head toward me again. His eyes stared directly at me.
“For you.”
"..."
It was difficult to understand his words. How could he claim that sponsoring children's talents was for my sake? I could have understood to some extent if my grandfather had taken them in and cared for them out of a desire to atone for neglecting the Marchioness and me. After all, there were occasionally people who served out of a desire to atone for their wrongdoings. But the claim that it was for my sake was incomprehensible.
"This top is not mine. It isn't Anasha's, either."
My face was clearly reflected in his blue-gray eyes.
“It’s all yours.”
"He left everything for you."
Anasha, who had stopped crying before I knew it, continued what Evan had said. I felt confused. My maternal grandfather left everything to me? Why?
“Why?”
The question that had been swirling in my head came out of my mouth. Anasha stood up from her seat and approached me.
"He knew he wouldn't live long."
Hadn't my maternal grandfather fallen ill from the shock of losing the Marchioness? As if noticing my confusion, Anasha held my hand.
"He needed someone to protect you in his place."
She slowly bent down and met my eyes.
"So he prepared us for you."
It was a fact I was completely unaware of at the time. All my maternal grandfather left me was a small amount of land, some jewels, and cash. It was enough money for an ordinary commoner to live comfortably for a lifetime, but compared to the vast wealth of the Pison family, it was a drop in the ocean.
If, as she said, what my maternal grandfather left behind was everything of the Pison family, then if it flowed endlessly like an inexhaustible spring, I felt like I would know where my fortune came from.
"Why are you telling me that only now?"
"I needed to keep it a secret. Because officially, I can't protect you completely."
From her answer, I felt I could guess everything. Then, as of now, I was the Crown Prince's fiancée. Although the Emperor was backing the Crown Prince, danger always existed as long as opposing forces were present. The First Prince's faction still found me extremely troublesome. If they could have, they would have killed me before I could marry the Crown Prince and become his backer. Once the Pison family's assets officially fall into my hands, I am sure they will go to great lengths to eliminate me immediately, even right now.
I looked at her as she held my hand.
'Unlike her now, why didn't she tell me this fact back then, even if belatedly?'
She wouldn't have confided this to me merely by chance. She must have been waiting for the right time to tell me for quite some time. If so, what is the difference between her then and her now?
She told me she hated me for monopolizing my maternal grandfather's attention. She also said I was lovely because I resembled him. Finally, she thanked me for giving her Elle.
'...I see.'
I felt like I knew why. Then as now, she had a love-hate relationship with me. Hateful but unable to hate, lovely but not loved.
Back then, instead of telling me the truth, she must have provided me with every possible support. My wealth, which seemed to run dry no matter how much I used it, was proof of this. She repaid my maternal grandfather's kindness and avenged the dead child. That must have been her best course of action.
I held Anasha's hand. Anasha smiled faintly, her face still bearing the marks of her tears.
Evan, who had been quietly watching Anasha and me, placed his right hand on his chest. He opened his mouth while remaining in his kneeling position.
"I swear by my heart and soul. Eternal loyalty to my Master!"
Although it was a simplified form, it was clearly a knight's oath.
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