Chapter 53
Perhaps the sun was shining too well, making it rather warm. Well, unlike me who was lightly dressed, he was wearing several layers, so it made sense to be hot. The old butler was having a hard time too. I'll generously overlook his earlier slip of the tongue. As someone from a different dimension, I should be understanding.
"I'll be sure to tell the Madam of your sincere dedication."
From my past experience as a worker, I couldn't just stand by while the butler grandfather was working so hard at customer service. I should quickly praise him to Mrs. Toten. When you tell the employer, you usually get a bonus or at least a word of praise.
"Are you mocking me right now?"
The butler grandfather, who had been sweating, was now trembling as he glared at me. No, I only gave him a compliment, so why suddenly talk about mocking? Did he think I was making fun of him just because I said some smooth words?
Thinking that, I nearly fainted when I saw my arm resting on the butler grandfather's shoulder. Why are you there...?
I must have unconsciously patted his shoulder. The habit I had with our butler back home just...! But the clothes were similar, so it came out unconsciously. What can I do!
I understand why the butler grandfather got angry. Even in a class-based society, a young child patting your shoulder would be unpleasant, right?
Ah. Eye contact.
As expected! The butler grandfather was trembling with humiliation.
But perhaps he couldn't say anything to a noble young lady, so he continued guiding the way while suppressing his anger. I praised him so earnestly, but just putting a hand on him ruined all the goodwill. I hate my hand.
"It seems we've arrived."
Walking quietly behind the butler, I finally reached the Marchioness. Finally, escape! The walk to the drawing room felt like a year. I thought I was going to die of thirst.
Knock knock.
"Madam, I have brought Lady Rohanson."
"Come in."
A thoroughly exhausted voice could be heard from inside.
The impression upon actually meeting her wasn't much different. Despite Mrs. Toten being on the plump side, she was so haggard that it created the illusion of her being gaunt.
That was momentary, however, and as Mrs. Toten smiled, her hollow expression instantly faded.
"Welcome. I hope it wasn't too difficult coming here?"
Her tone had also become quite elegant. This is the experience of a lady who has long stayed in high society. As I marveled and sat across from Mrs. Toten, the maids of the Marquisate quickly set out dessert and tea.
She must have been doing embroidery before I arrived. No matter how much I try, I only prick my fingers and create alien script, but Mrs. Toten's skill was exquisite even at a glance.
"Were you doing embroidery? I suppose I made you wait long."
"No. Embroidery is just a hobby... Oh my. Looking at it like this, it resembles the young lady."
The Madam said it was similar to me, referring to the embroidery she was working on. Was she embroidering an angel? Well, Evangeline's face is pretty. I'm still surprised whenever I look in the mirror.
Coming here, I saw many sun god statues and paintings, so Mrs. Toten must have remarkable faith. Well, that's probably why she agreed to be my chaperone at Gabriel's request.
"You resemble the Madam more than me."
"Haha, how graciously you speak. As you may have heard from Sir Gabriel, I will be serving as your chaperone. I am Kinder Toten."
"I am Evangeline Rohanson. Thank you for readily accepting what must have been a difficult request."
"Not at all. Miss Rohanson's circumstances were quite difficult... If there's anything I can do to help, it's only right that I do so. And I owe Sir Gabriel a debt, so I'm helping with that as well, so please don't feel burdened."
"What kind of help is that?"
Mrs. Toten didn't answer and just smiled faintly while drinking her tea. Ah. This is something I learned from Doline. Eating or drinking something is a non-verbal expression meaning you don't want to answer. Teacher, I noticed this! I'm using a lot of what Doline taught me today. I should report this later.
I also picked up my fork.
Mrs. Toten silently watched me eat for a while.
She must be checking how proper my table manners are. Even though Gabriel asked her, she probably wanted to see and judge for herself. I ate with deliberate care.
I was so nervous I didn't know if I was putting the fork in my mouth or poking my nose. Am I going to get indigestion at this rate? I felt like I couldn't eat anymore, so I put down my fork. I thought I had eaten a lot, but looking at the amount I ate, it seemed to have decreased by only a fingernail's worth.
Just then, Mrs. Toten put down her tea and asked.
"Why does Lady Rohanson wish to enter society? With Sir Gabriel present, it's not as if you need to enter the marriage market. Being late to your debut, all sorts of rumors might be even more inflated."
That's actually something Gabriel asked me to do.
And honestly, I just decided to do it because in romance fantasy novels, a social debut is a natural flow. Even if I'm not going to date, having transmigrated into a romance fantasy, shouldn't I go to a ball at least once?
But I can't say that, right?
Just like no one tells the truth during job interviews, I need to make up something plausible. What should I say? While pondering, a good excuse came to mind.
"Do you know of my maternal family?"
"...The Hosquin Ducal House, I believe."
"Yes. Then you must have also heard that my grandfather and mother were estranged."
The beloved youngest daughter of a ducal family married an earl against her family's opposition, essentially eloping for love, so there must have been quite a bit of talk in society at the time.
"Neither when my mother passed away, nor when I was bedridden with illness, did the ducal family send any word."
When I asked our butler, he said Evangeline's mother had written several letters, but not a single reply came back. Of course, they didn't come to the funeral either.
"My mother always wanted to speak with my grandfather again. It wasn't her dying wish exactly, but I want to fulfill that desire for her."
In reality, Evangeline's mother frequently mentioned in her diary that she had done wrong and wanted to go back. Of course, the portions cursing her husband the Earl were overwhelmingly more frequent.
Ah, that diary has also become quite thin since I've been tearing out pages to send whenever I ask the Earl for something. The Earl probably treats them as unpleasant notes, but that was my small revenge. I mean, who told him not to be faithful to his marriage? He brought this disaster on himself. I wish there was another diary.
"She treated my mother coldly, and with me bearing the Rohanson name, she would treat me even more harshly. Going directly would just mean being turned away at the door. So I'm hoping to meet her even from afar, since she'll surely attend banquets."
That was a much more plausible answer than I expected for something I just thought of. If I could shed some poignant tears here, it would be perfect, but I'm not an actor, so I can't get that immersed.
"Was that a sufficient answer?"
"Is that so...?"
Hmm? That's not the reaction I expected. Since she was someone who felt sympathy for Evangeline, I thought she would offer support and empathize, saying 'I see, that's how it was.'
Wait. Didn't she already know the whole story since Gabriel asked her to be a chaperone?
It seems I chose the wrong answer. I should have just been honest!
"Did you hear the story from Sir Gabriel in advance?"
I was hesitating, wondering how to salvage this, when Mrs. Toten covered her mouth and laughed.
"I didn't hear the detailed story, but I know that Sir Gabriel asked Lady Rohanson first."
Then why did you ask what my purpose for debuting in society was! My head was about to explode from making up excuses.
"So you're just helping Sir Gabriel, and there's no other reason?"
"Does what I just said not count as an answer?"
"However, for a young lady who supposedly wants to fulfill her mother's dying wish, you spoke rather dryly. In truth, you don't really miss her, nor do you have any reason to meet the Hosquin Ducal House, correct?"
"Yes. That's right."
She hit the mark. Even from a romance fantasy perspective, it was too late for the maternal family regret route, and from my perspective, the person I miss is my mom, not Evangeline's mom.
I thought I had acted the part well, but the problem must have been my acting skills. Did I get caught being possessed as Daisy because my acting was terrible too? I thought it was because I was too nice! Was it my acting skills all along?
"But... why did you say that when I asked earlier?"
"Because that sounds more plausible to the listener. Is that a problem?"
Please say it doesn't matter. It would be awkward to explain to Gabriel that the Mrs. Toten he saved won't be my chaperone. If he asks for a reason, I'd have to say it's because I got caught lying. I'm afraid my favorability will drop significantly.
"No. How could it be a problem? I only asked out of personal curiosity. I was curious if the young lady had any other purpose. Of course, regardless of the answer, I had no intention of going back on Sir Gabriel's request."
So she's saying if Gabriel hadn't asked, she absolutely wouldn't have been my chaperone.
But is that really all? The butler grandfather and Gabriel said they accepted me out of sympathy for Evangeline who had a son transmigrated into her frail body. And I was even warned that the Madam might ask about the secret to my recovery.
"I thought you accepted me as a chaperone because there was something you wanted to hear from me."
"Something I want to hear from Lady Rohanson?"
"Yes. For example, 'How did Evangeline Rohanson rise from her sickbed?'"
"That..."
As I said this with a bright smile, a crack appeared on Mrs. Toten's face.
Wasn't she curious about that?
Just as the butler grandfather said earlier, I was about to firmly state there was nothing I could help with when suddenly the sound of knocking was heard.
Before anyone could say to come in, the door slowly opened. Mrs. Toten was frowning at the uninvited guest's rude behavior, but then she saw who opened the door and jumped up from her seat in surprise, rushing forward in a single stride.
"Cough, cough. Mother..."
"Ryder! Why are you out of bed instead of lying down?"