Side Story 7: Mother (3)
“P-please… let-let me hold my son once.”
The woman seemed overwhelmed with emotions, trying to reach Abel, who was behind me.
I originally had no intention of turning her down so coldly since she gave birth to Abel, but… perhaps I was afraid at that moment.
Regardless of how and Abel’s and my souls have been intertwined for longer than we could comprehend, I knew that two people sharing the same blood would inevitably be drawn towards each other intrinsically.
Maybe because of that, I may have been selfish to hope that Abel doesn’t sense something from his birth mother that he hasn’t felt from me …
I slapped away the woman’s hand reaching out to Abel, almost in reflex.
“What is the meaning of this rudeness?”
“Ah…”
The surprised woman then held on to her red, swollen hand and cried.
I felt a bit guilty, feeling like an evil stepmother in the way of some mother and son who had lost each other under devastating circumstances.
Would Abel want to at least hear some excuses from his birth mother?
I turned to see Abel in nervousness and saw that he was still staring at the woman with a baffled look on his face.
“Abel…”
When I called him, he looked at me for a brief moment with a look of confusion, then turned to run out, as if he was fleeing.
“Wait for us in the reception room. Sir Barial, escort them inside if you aren’t so busy.”
“Ah! Yes, yes…” Jax said, as he stood there dumbfounded.
I turned to run after Abel. Soon, I was able to see his back. He stopped on his track and was standing still.
In case he ran off again, I hugged him tightly from behind.
Abel flinched, He then started shaking. He even held my hands wrapped around him tightly.
“Mom…”
Even as a child, Abel always called me ‘mother’ instead of ‘mom’. Though it was unfamiliar, it was nice to hear. I stuck my cheek against his shoulder and answered.
“Yes.”
“I’m actually scared.”
“…”
“She supposedly gave birth to me. But I am not happy to see her at all, on the contrary I am slightly mad. I was living so happily and well with mother and father… I could have continued to do so.”
“Abel…”
“I am a little surprised at myself for thinking such a thing. I-I must have been a bad, selfish kid.”
“No, not at all.”
Seeing how relieved I feel and a laugh coming on by hearing that Abel hates his birth mother and doesn’t want to see her, Abel could never be as bad as me.
“If you are worried about such things, let’s just make it that I’m the only bad person here. Son, promise me that you wouldn’t consider anyone else your mother nor call them so apart from me.”
Abel flinched at my words and turned to look at me slowly.
“It’s not you who is bad. I’m so greedy that I want to be your mother alone. Understand?”
He trembled his lips looking like he was almost about to cry, then planted his face into my bosom and nodded.
***
Arriving at the reception room, Malcolm’s face was looking elated.
That baffled look on the duchess’ face, and the look of confusion the Childe had…
He was worried at first because Serena kept acting weak, but she had done much better than he had thought.
Indeed, deciding to use a smart and quick-witted girl like her was a remarkable move.
He tapped Serena’s shoulder encouragingly, giving a snicker. “Did you see the Childe’s face? What a sight. He must have been confused.”
“My lord.”
“Hm?”
“Is the Childe really not duke Louvremont’s son by blood?”
Serena was worried and she bit her nails.
Malcolm recalled Abel’s face he saw for the first time and fell silent at her question.
Indeed, he had a face that was so alike that it would be strange if he wasn’t related.
“No, don’t you worry. The duke is a man who had never even set foot anywhere near Obituth all his life apart from the raid in Obituth 10 years ago. A child cannot be made alone, can it?”
“But they look so similar.”
“You think a house like Louvremont would have accepted a bastard child without any evidence if otherwise? No need to be nervous. Just keep up what you were doing until now.”
it was ‘the’ Louvremont house. He had obviously planned this game with utmost care before starting off.
Not only did he investigate the duke’s whereabouts around the time Abel was just born, he had gone through quite a lot of troubles to find the ‘real’ birth mother who may exist.
Though it bothered him how similar the father and son looked, Malcolm trusted the few years of time he had dedicated.
“Coax the weak hearted Childe and get close. Who knows? You may attract the duke’s attention and receive his love as well,” Malcolm urged Serena.
“I know my place. I am only going along with this crazy plan because you’re holding my sister hostage, my lord. It’s not because of some ambition I don’t even have.”
“No, I know you well. We are the same kind. Don’t you know why I picked you?”
Looking at Malcolm snickering, Serena winced.
“Have you already forgotten the day you so bravely stole from my room?”
“I don’t want to hear it.”
“You didn’t hesitate for a second to blame it on Milla. The one who brought you to the castle and allowed you make a living when you had nowhere to go.”
Malcolm was meticulous. He didn’t just pick anyone to get on the same boat as him. Serena was hired as a maid to his mansion with a sick sister. She had a cold and selfish disposition with a moderate amount of greed.
She put false charges on a maid she worked with, one who might as well have saved her life, and did not bat an eye seeing her getting beaten to death…
‘Vile thing, don’t act all weak and fragile now.’
Malcolm shook his head inwardly, but smiled tentatively as to not mess with Serena’s mood.
“Anyways, we got all the way here so there is no going back. It’s either success or death. You must’ve heard all too well what kind of person Duke Louvremont is.”
“Why don’t you mind yourself, my lord.”
She seemed to have realized how important her role was in this, and put on an arrogant air about her that he couldn’t see before.
Hiding his discontent, Malcolm grumbled about it inside his head.
The duke they were about to meet soon, would definitely be taken aback by the sudden appearance of the birth mother.
Since he would want to make the childe his heir no matter what, he would try and attempt to strike a bargain with him to take childe’s secret to the grave.
“Heh heh…”
In the middle of laughing wickedly, Malcolm became quiet in an instant.
It was because of the man in question, Hades Louvremont, suddenly slammed open the door to the reception room.
A tall height and well-built body, with a face that looks as if someone intentionally sculpted his face and a slightly cold impression to top it all off…
Serena only got a chance to see a few portraits of sculptures of the duke spread across the empire, but she almost lost her breath in that instant.
Malcolm bowed deeply.
“It’s my honor to meet you, Your Grace Duke Louvremont. I am Orgiu County’s…”
“Yes, take a seat.”
Waving his hand, Hades interrupted Malcolm’s introduction short and sat himself casually on the opposite side to them.
He then crossed his legs arrogantly. Smiling at Serena, not Malcolm, he waved his hand in a friendly manner.
“Hey. It’s been a while.”
…What’s this?
Malcolm and Serena were both baffled.
“You remember my face, don’t you? But I can’t really recall yours. Could you raise your head a bit properly?” Hades said with a smile and Serena was instantly caught off guard, shrinking as she lowered her head even more.
“Serena.”
Malcolm called the shivering Serena by her name and tapped her lightly on the shoulder.
Feeling him urging her, Serena barely managed to raise her head but couldn’t bear to look at Hades in the eyes and turned her gaze aside.
Looking closely into Serena’s face, Hades then turned his head to Malcolm right away to continue.
“That’s odd. I don’t recall her face at all. But well, it’s natural for me to be unable to remember her. It’s already been more than 10 years now. And besides…”
“…”
“…I’ve fooled around with a lot of women. I can’t recall every single one. So don’t be so upset.”
“Ah, well… yes, okay.”
A line of sweat trickled down his forehead.
‘What? So he is not about to admit it so easy is he? That the Childe is not his son by blood?’
Keep calm — Malcolm thought.
It wasn’t something outside his expectation.
Malcolm spoke with the most pitiful face he could muster, “Since it seems that Your Grace already knows why we have come all the way to the North to visit castle Louvremont, I will cut to the chase. This is Serena, the birth mother of Childe Louvremont.”
At his words, Hades gave a grin and wrapped his hand around his knees and loosely propped himself up.
“Yes, so they say. Though it is quite surprising that I can’t even recall a woman’s face when I have even had a child with her.”
Hearing the cynicism in his words, Malcolm flinched but tried to keep his cool.
‘So you are coming on strong, eh? Don’t make me laugh. I know everything.’
“Serena is a girl who worked as a maid in my castle. I found out about Serena’s situation when I saw her crying in secret. She said that she had a son but was not able to meet him all her life since she had parted from him due to inevitable circumstances.
“And what could those inevitable circumstances be?” Hades asked and Serena replied this time.
Although she was still trembling, her expression alone showed an evident sign of courage.
“I tried to raise him just on my own. But… my father deemed him a cursed child and threw him out while I was asleep, I had no idea he would discard him in Obituth to die. Still, I searched, though all the wrong places, thinking that he would be alive somewhere…”
“Cursed?”
“Yes, the nexus he had on his left side of the chest when he was born… It was a little weird. It was a nexus like a transparent glass without any color.”
Saying it casually, Serena looked at Hades’ expression closely.
His eyebrows were stiff, and the tips of his lips were slightly shaking.
He was definitely shaken. Serena was sure of it.
“Your Grace, I wanted to find Serena’s son for her. Though when I found out that it was Childe Louvremont, I advised her that it would be for the best if she forgot about him and lived on, but…” the viscount made a saddened face and continued, “How could one cut away their bond so easily? I felt so bad for Serena that I risked the discourtesy and came all the way to the North.”
“Right. I see…”
Seeing Hades nodding, Serena felt her heart beat with tension and excitement.
Though she was scared by how alike he and the child looked, she was convinced that the childe was not his son by blood just like Malcolm said.
If he really was his son by blood, he would have seen through her lies the moment he saw her face.
If the notorious rumors of duke Louvremont were true, she and Malcolm would have been burnt to the crisp on the spot.
Despite being shaken by the childe’s secret she had revealed, the duke was not admitting that the Childe was not his son by blood until the end.
In other words, even if he knew the truth, Hades was willing to keep his son’s secret no matter what.
If so… indeed, just as Malcolm had said, the winner of this deal was decided from the start.
“Your efforts are incredible. Junior Count Orgiu, was it?”
“Yes, yes!”
“So, is there something you want from me? Since you’ve found Abel’s mother and brought her all the way here, I should be doing something for you in return, right?”
“My days, what could I possibly want, Your Grace? I merely wanted the Childe to meet his birth mother safe and sound. That alone makes me…”
“We all know how this goes. Don’t say unnecessary stuff. What do you want?”
“Ah! Khem… Well, I, don’t ask for much but…”
“I don’t need anything.” Serena interrupted just at that moment.
She was enchanted by the glowing ambition surrounding her in an instant. She couldn’t be doing something that would only benefit Malcolm after coming all this way.
She recalled the Childe’s face; the Childe who seemed easy enough to coax.
She continued, “I didn’t come all the way here wanting something. I merely wanted to see my son’s face one more time. Few days, just for a few days, let me stay by that boy’s side. Once I collect myself, I’ll return with no regrets.”
In a gamble, the most important thing to make big was bluffing.
The key to overturning her life was not getting some money out of threatening the duke. It was to become the proper, ‘real’ birth mother for the Childe.
Looking at Hades with an odd expression on his face, Serena laughed inside.
“W-what are you…” Malcolm was baffled by Serena’s words that she doesn’t need anything, but soon acted nonchalant.
After looking at Serena in silence for a while, Hades smiled.
“Alright, it’s not that difficult to let a guest who came all the way to the north stay in the castle. I will provide you with a nice room so stay until your heart’s content. We can talk about the details later…”
Hades nodded without any hesitation and rose from his seat. Then he reached out his hand to Serena.
Flustered by the hand outstretched as if telling her to hold it, Serena blushed and awkwardly rose, holding his hand.
“Ah…!”
At that moment Hades tilted forward. His lips were close enough as if he was about to kiss her on the cheek. Serena was startled.
But instead of a kiss, Hades kept his lips close to Serena’s ear and spoke.
“You’ve seen my wife, and my son. Haven’t you? If either of them… ever ends up crying, consider yourself dead.”
A frosty and sharp voice dug into her ear, making her heart throb because of a different reason.
“I’m telling you to only do what you can handle, if you do value your life.”
‘What’s this? What could he mean?’ Malcolm was baffled.
Rising back up from baffled and frozen Serena, Hades gave a casual smile as he tilted his head.
His expression at least made him seem like the most affectionate man in the world.