A Stepmother’s Marchen

Chapter 59

Anyway, this is my first time resting after a long time. Thanks to the burning stove, even the terrace was filled with warmth.

When it was time for a nap, I took Rachel who was dozing off and laid her on bed then went back to the terrace to enjoy the tremendous luxury while reading a magazine.

I wondered if everything was alright in the mansion.

Of course, if something happens, I’ll get informed right away, but… I wonder how I became a workaholic who didn’t know how to relax.

“Mom!”

Oh my! That scared me. At the sudden cry from the bottom of the terrace, I slightly removed myself from the long bench and looked down at the railing.

Unlike me and Rachel, Leon, whose chubby face was red, was running to the entrance of the villa, waving happily.

Let’s say that Elias is walking behind him with his cheeks still swollen. I think Jeremy made a friend in the meantime…. What?

“Hey, our dear Mother Shuri! Can we have dinner with him later?”

…Did they get close while fighting? I couldn’t find anything to say and blinked my eyes.

That’s because the boy next to the eldest son, who walked vigorously toward this side with his golden hair that wasn’t yet dry, was a person I knew very well. Considering what happened this morning, it’s weird not to meet him here, but…

“Hello, Lady Neuwanstein.”

“…It’s nice to see you here. Do you want to have dinner together?”

I don’t know why I feel so awkward. The last time we saw each other, we didn’t leave awkwardly, so why do I have such a weird feeling?

As a rival of fate, Nora, who stood next to Jeremy and stared up at this side, didn’t seem to have changed much.

The black hair that looked just like his father’s, and the slightly tanned complexion of a boy who enjoyed outdoor activities were still there.

If I have to choose something that feels different… It was that he seemed to have grown a little taller, and that he had cool blue eyes with an unprecedented shade.

“Look, what did I say? I told you that my beautiful mother would gladly accept it.”

“I didn’t doubt it that much, you slow cat.”

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“Ha! You’re angry because you’re embarrassed, poo-dog. Shall we play a round?”

“After dinner, I have to go now. See you later, madam!”

When Nora, who politely bowed his head, left, Jeremy also came inside and ran up the stairs with his younger siblings.

The thumping sound in the middle seemed to be the sound of Elias closing the door.

Oh, that’s weird. Why is he still sulking?

“Did you have fun?”

“Yeah, it was really fun! I had a diving match with my hyungs, and when my eldest brother was about to win, suddenly the black-haired older brother came and jumped in, so I won! The hyungs were so upset.“

Leon, who talked about what happened, took the ginger cookie that was on the table and walked over to sit next to his twin sister, who was sleeping soundly on the bed.

Then he began to bite the edge of the cookie, with a look in his eyes as if he was keeping a close eye on his sister while she slept.

Isn’t that a lovely scene? The twins with the same sparkling emerald eyes and wavy golden hair were always clinging to each other.

——–

“Why did you come back so early? Was it more boring than I thought?”

Jeremy, who came struggling to straighten his wet hair, sat down next to me.

And I just swallowed tears of grief. I thought it would be me and Rachel who would enjoy it, but I think it was the opposite.

“Because Rachel insisted that bathing in a hot spring is absurd.”

“What?” I swallowed a bitter smile and put the magazine spread on my lap on the table, and Jeremy, who was yawning, stretched out his upper body on the long chair the next moment and laid there. To be exact, he laid down on my lap.

I froze first, then came to my senses and opened my mouth calmly, “You seem to be acting young like someone.”

“Please take a look. I’ve completed the task given to me steadily.”

“Task?”

“You said I should take good care of my younger siblings. No one died and we all came back alive. Ah, I suddenly feel sleepy.”

That sounds pretty reasonable. There is no room for refutation. I convinced myself so, and decided to let this overweight eldest son lay down on my lap and doze off.

It doesn’t seem too bad to be doing this. It makes me feel comfortable and warm my heart…

“But you know what.”

“Huh?

“About that guy who was here. He’s a puppy thinking he’s a wolf.”

“You mean the young Nurembert?”

What do you mean by saying he’s a puppy that thinks he’s a wolf? He’s your fateful rival.

As I turned my gaze downward with a smile, Jeremy, who had his eyelids half closed, suddenly had an unusual expression in his eyes and continued speaking, “I think his father is very scary.”

“Why?”

“I saw him in the hot spring earlier, and his back was covered in bruises just like when Elias was beaten by our uncle last time.”

“Really?”

“That’s right. At the banquet at my house last time, you know, it was too obvious.”

“Why… was he beaten like that?”

“I don’t know. Would he tell me if I ask?”

The conversation with the duchess this morning came to mind.

After hesitating for a while, I carefully talked about one of the many questions that came to my mind, “But… Why is his relationship with his highness so bad?”

Even though it was a question I had high expectations for, he immediately said, “Don’t talk about him!”

Jeremy, who I thought would answer, blinked his green eyes and nodded. Then he immediately laughed and continued, “Well, I think it’s because Theo hyung is unlucky?”

“Unlucky?”

“I don’t know how close he is to the people around him, but when I look back, he makes most of them feel bad. Can you pretend to be nice all by yourself? It’s hard to. Anyway, it looks like he’s suffering from obsessive compulsive disorder. It seems like he can’t bear the thought that someone might be more interesting than him?”

How can a guy who doesn’t care about other people’s situation show such profound introspection?

Well, surprisingly, he is quick to sense that. But he has been close to the crown prince since he was young, so it wasn’t unreasonable to grasp that aspect much better than others. It’s just a bit unexpected…

“Jeremy, you know, the cardinal you met then.”

“Uh, what about him?”

“Are you sure you haven’t seen him at all?”

“I told you then. I couldn’t see him properly, but I may remember the voice…….”

It was then that rough footsteps sounded.

Elias, who was advancing to the terrace where we were sitting, stopped at the spot, as he looked back angrily, with a look that said that he had a lot to say.

“What are you two doing? I thought you were a hat.”

Elias returned the insult he had received before, but Jeremy calmly answered with a yawn, “Why don’t you find the right word, stupid brother.”

“What’s going on? What is this? Why do you get along so well? What are you doing”

“What are you saying? Do you think there’s a dark conspiracy in everything in the world?”

“Oh! It’s definitely like that! Especially, you’re the most suspicious! You suddenly started to pretend to be an adult, and… “

“No, why do you keep shouting? If you can’t call her ‘mother’, that would be bad, right?”

“Who’s my mother? My mom passed away 7 years ago! Why is she my mother?”

Elias, who was shouting in anger, began to blink.

The terrace of the bedroom, where the there siblings gathered together except Rachel, who was sleeping soundly, quickly became a territory of silence.

Jeremy jumped up and raised himself by hitting the bench he was lying on. Then, as soon as he was ferocious, his eyes flashed dangerously.

“What did you say again?”

“I, I…”

Elias’s mouth opened and closed, hesitated, took a step back, and then shouted again, “What? Did I say something wrong?”

“This boy is really…!”

“Jeremy!”

Crash! Finally, Elias, who made his last move, ran away quickly,and I grabbed Jeremy’s arm.

The boy, who was exuding a chilling anger, paused and looked at me.

I said as calmly as I could while looking at his eyes, “Forget it.”

“What? But…”

“It’s okay. It’s really fine, so I think you’d better leave it alone.”

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Elias talk that way.

Moreover, these boys didn’t return to the past with the memories of the future as I did, so they are still kids…. even Jeremy.

No matter how much Jermey has changed. From an objective point of view, I and these guys are strangers who are like brothers and sisters at best.