Chapter 28

“Robert, why did you just stand by and watch my aunt?”  

Johann ignored Carolina, who was fidgeting anxiously, and gestured toward the butler.  

“…I apologize.”  

“I didn’t ask you that to hear an apology.”  

“…….”  

The butler silently bowed his head.  

“Do you remember what I told you when my aunt said she’d manage the Ducal estate in my mother’s stead?”  

“…You told me to assist Lady Carolina so the estate wouldn’t falter.”  

“And yet, instead of stopping her from strutting around the estate like she owned it, you encouraged her.”  

“Johann, how could you say such a thing to your aunt!”  

“Aunt, I am speaking to the butler right now.”  

He did not tolerate Carolina interrupting him.  

“Your Grace, I was at fault.”  

“You were not at fault; you were excessive. You didn’t serve the Blumhart family but offered your loyalty to Carolina Sprecher.”  

At those words, not only the butler but also Carolina and the Duchess Dowager turned to Johann.  

“Johann, what do you mean by that?”  

“Mother, Robert colluded with my aunt to falsify the ducal ledgers.”  

“…What?”  

Isabella received the ledger handed over by her son’s aide with trembling hands.  

She quickly scanned its contents, her expression darkening.  

Johann’s words were true.  

‘Ever since I entrusted the household’s finances to her, excessive funds have been allocated to Carolina…’  

How could this happen so immediately after she took over?  

“Carolina, how could you do such a thing!”  

“…Sister, that’s…”  

“They say old habits die hard. It seems my aunt hasn’t been able to abandon her spending habits from the Sprecher Marquisate.”  

“…Johann, no matter the circumstances, how could you treat me this way? If your late father knew about this…”  

“Don’t you dare mention my father with that mouth. That is, if you still have a shred of conscience left, Aunt.”  

Carolina deliberately brought up her late brother, the former Duke, but it was no use.  

Mentioning the late Duke no longer worked on Johann or Isabella.  

Carolina had crossed the line.  

“You even embezzled the budget meant for Rafaella, didn’t you?”  

“…That, that’s…”  

“What? Carolina, did you truly…?”  

Isabella, who hadn’t yet read the last pages of the ledger, looked at Carolina with a shocked expression.  

“You used the money meant for your great-niece’s dresses to buy yourself even more clothes when you already have more than enough.”  

“Your Grace, it’s all my fault!”  

The butler, who had been silently listening, approached Johann and knelt before him.  

“Do you think this is a matter that can be resolved with just kneeling?”  

“I will resign from my position as the ducal butler and…”  

“Do you think resigning your position is enough to resolve the falsification of the ledgers? How foolish.”  

“I will accept any punishment, but please, I beg you to show mercy to Lady Carolina.”  

“Your punishment isn’t something you need to concern yourself with. You’ll accept it regardless, so don’t arrogantly make demands about my aunt’s fate.”  

Johann smirked coldly.  

“Johann, Johann. You heard Robert, didn’t you? He said it’s all his fault.”  

“Robert, are you still…”  

Realizing she was cornered, Carolina hurriedly shifted the blame to the butler, while the Duchess Dowager looked at him as though she had realized something.  

“I’m sorry, Madam.”  

Isabella let out a deep sigh.  

She had vaguely noticed it before.  

Before Carolina married into the Sprecher Marquisate, Robert, who had been learning the duties of a butler under her father, had feelings for Carolina.  

He was young at the time and tried hard to hide it, so she had pretended not to notice. She hadn’t thought it would become one of the causes of this disaster.  

“Robert, I never thought you would disappoint me like this.”  

“…I have no excuses.”  

They say love and sneezes cannot be hidden, but for a butler of the Blumhart estate, it should have been concealed at all costs.  

As a vassal of the family, loyalty to the lord should have come before love.  

Instead, Robert Burns not only devoted himself entirely to his rekindled love but also tried to offer up the Blumhart estate.  

It was a foolish and idiotic act.  

“Sister Isabella, please forgive me just this once. I swear I’ll never do it again!”  

“When you did it at the Marquisate, I thought it was because you were young and influenced by the late Marquis’ extravagance. But now I see I’ve been too generous in my judgment of you.”  

As Isabella coldly dismissed her, Carolina began to cry loudly like a child.  

The older brother who had always forgiven her was now gone.  

Even if the dead returned, they wouldn’t be able to resolve this situation for her.  

“Take them away — those who embezzled the estate’s funds and falsified the ledgers.”  

At Johann’s command, the knights brought by Samuel dragged Carolina and Robert out.  

Robert went quietly, but Carolina screamed at the top of her lungs, demanding to know if they knew who she was and how they dared treat her like a criminal, as she was forcibly taken away.  

“…This is all my fault.”  

After the head maid, who had been Carolina’s right hand, was also dragged out, Isabella’s sigh echoed softly in the now-quiet drawing room.  

“I was so focused on Penelope that I allowed Carolina to run rampant in the estate.”  

“This isn’t your fault, Mother. If there’s anyone to blame, it’s me.”  

“How could it be your fault when you’ve been so busy since your return? The household’s management was entirely my responsibility.”  

Isabella waved her hand at her son.  

“If I hadn’t trusted Carolina and had properly managed the estate, Rafaella wouldn’t have suffered such a terrible ordeal today.”  

She thought of young Rafaella, who must have had a hard time today.  

“And to think that I scolded the poor child harshly for coming up to the fourth floor. I don’t even have the face to look at her.”  

“…It was a misunderstanding. If you sincerely apologize, Rafaella will forgive you.”  

“I hope so. In any case, to think Carolina even took the budget for Rafaella’s dresses…”  

She had barely seen her granddaughter and hadn’t noticed at all.  

Or perhaps she had been so preoccupied with Penelope that she hadn’t truly seen Rafaella, who had been right in front of her.  

It wasn’t an excuse.  

“I must have a new dress made for Rafaella immediately.”  

“Yes, once things settle down, I’ll call someone from the salon.”  

“Good. And I owe an apology to her mother as well. Only a parent knows a parent’s heart.”  

She resolved to properly apologize to Lia and Rafaella once the situation was under control.  

* * *

Lia calmed her mind as she drank the warm tea brought by a maid.  

Rafaella, sitting beside her, was also drinking tea, her dress still dirty despite Penelope’s efforts to clean it.  

Her knees bore several small scratches.  

‘That wretched boy!’  

Lia trembled with anger at Marco.  

‘And that woman is no better. Instead of disciplining her trash of a son, she spoiled him rotten.’  

She swallowed the tears of rage welling up in her throat.  

“Raffy, was today very hard for you?”  

“…A little?”  

“No, Raffy. At times like this, you should say ‘very much.’”  

Seeing her daughter answer ‘a little’ out of concern for her, Lia’s heart ached.  

‘I came here to protect you, but I’ve made it so you can’t even express your true feelings.’  

She felt deeply sorry for Rafaella, who seemed hurt not just physically but emotionally as well.  

“…It was very hard.”  

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you, Raffy.”  

“It’s okay now because you’re here, Mom.”  

Rafaella hugged her, accepting her repeated apologies.  

“I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again. Never.”  

She murmured the words like a spell.  

“Raffy, shall we wash up before dinner?”  

Lia carried Rafaella to the bathroom.  

While washing her daughter, she saw the scratches on Rafaella’s forehead and knees, and her anger flared again.  

‘How dare that Marco do this to my Raffy.’  

Since the day she was born, Lia had cherished and loved her daughter, treating her as if she might break if held too tightly or fly away if let go.  

“Mom, it doesn’t hurt at all!”  

Noticing her mother’s sorrow over her scratches, Rafaella spoke in a cheerful voice.  

“…There’s no way it doesn’t hurt when you’re injured.”  

“But Marco had a nosebleed!”  

“That boy doesn’t matter.”  

“…Mom, aren’t you going to scold me?”  

“Why would I scold you? You deserve praise, not scolding.”  

Lia whispered as she kissed Rafaella’s crown.  

“It’s wrong to hit someone without reason, but if you’re in danger, you can always defend yourself with all your might.”  

“Really?”  

“Really. But if you can, ask an adult for help first.”  

If she couldn’t protect her daughter herself, she wanted Rafaella to be able to protect herself.  

* * *

The next morning, Carolina and Marco visited Rafaella’s room.  

Of course, it wasn’t of their own volition.  

“What are you doing, standing there?”  

Johann glared at Carolina, who hesitated at the door.  

“…Johann, is this really necessary?”  

“If you don’t apologize, I won’t show you any courtesy, Aunt.”  

“…Fine, I’ll do it. Are you satisfied now?”  

Carolina finally entered the room, holding Marco’s hand.  

Marco’s reluctance was written all over his face.  

“Marco, do as I told you earlier.”  

“No, why should I apologize to that commoner…!”  

Smack!  

Carolina slapped her son’s cheek with a trembling hand.  

Though not strong, it was enough to bring Marco to his senses.  

“…Apologize to Lady Rafaella right now!”  

Marco, stunned that his mother, who had always doted on him, had slapped him, approached Rafaella.  

Rafaella hesitated and tried to hide behind Lia’s skirt.  

Johann approached his daughter.  

“Rafaella, there’s no one in the Empire you need to fear.”  

He whispered softly as he bent down to her level.  

“…Really?”  

“Of course. You’re my only daughter, the Duke of Blumhart.”  

In the meantime, Marco, wiping away his tears, knelt before Rafaella.  

Behind the child stood the Duke of Blumhart, towering like a great mountain.