Chapter 16
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Chapter 16
"Me too! I want a haircut!"
"What? You just had your hair cut not long ago."
"No, I didn't. My hair's gotten really long."
Lucian deliberately stretched his hair, which barely reached his eyebrows, trying to make it look longer.
"Last time when your aunt cut it, you were sneaking around trying to avoid her."
"I-I never did!"
Lucian cried out while watching Amelia's expression carefully.
'Your true feelings are written all over your face.'
It was obvious without even looking. He must have wanted to hear Amelia say he was pretty too. He'd grown jealous after Edwin got his hair cut and received that compliment from her.
"Fine. I'll just trim your bangs and the back a little."
"Okay. Make it pretty."
Lucian whispered the last part so only I could hear.
I let out a soft laugh and trimmed Edwin's hair. Since there wasn't much to cut, the work finished quickly.
"Amelia, what do you think?"
Lucian's face as he asked Amelia was half hopeful, half anxious. He was so nervous that he was gripping the hem of his shirt tightly.
"You look cute."
The answer that finally came was a different kind of compliment than what I'd given Edwin. Yet it was more than enough to satisfy Lucian.
"Really?"
"Yes. It suits you well."
"Hehe."
Lucian laughed with his mouth wide open. I had watched him from the moment he was born until now, but this was the first time I'd seen such an expression on his face.
'They say raising children is pointless...'
He refused to listen to his aunt's words, yet he acted like a well-trained puppy around the girl he liked. It was both frustrating and absurd.
However, my idle thoughts didn't last long.
"I want a haircut too!"
"Me too!"
"Please cut mine as well!"
The children who had witnessed the changes in Edwin and Lucian all rushed forward wanting haircuts.
Because of that, my small salon didn't close until the sun had set. It was a completely different outcome from my original intention of comforting Edwin.
* * *
Sir Gillian, the Duke of Bellomen's aide, returned to the Duke's Mansion. He had finished his meeting with the Duke in the Capital and was returning to the Dukedom.
"How is the Duke doing?"
"He is well."
If he's doing so well, he could at least pay some attention to our Lucian.
I wanted to complain, but I was in no position to do so. It meant I couldn't question the Duke carelessly.
"By the way, did you see the documents I sent?"
"You mean the matter of the embezzlement of orphanage funds?"
"Yes, that's right."
As soon as I returned from the orphanage, I reported the operational status of the Büsnie Orphanage to Sir Gillian. Since the busy Duke wouldn't listen to me, I had conveyed it to Sir Gillian, who handled the practical matters.
The Orphanage Director had not only embezzled funds from the Duke's household but was also abusing the children, or so I'd heard.
"That Director fellow must have quite the audacity. To even consider embezzling money provided by His Grace. And to think he received a reward for passing those funds up the chain of command..."
"Exactly. He probably never imagined he'd be caught."
The Duke would never personally visit a place like an orphanage. Nobles and inspection committees typically gave advance notice before their visits.
The more I thought about it, the more infuriating this scoundrel became.
"The punishment will be severe, I trust?"
"Yes. I intend to punish the Director, his staff, and all those in higher positions who received bribes. Beyond the crimes themselves, we must make the punishment severe enough to prevent such incidents from occurring again."
"Excellent."
I nodded in satisfaction.
"Since we're already doing this, why not inspect all the orphanages within the Dukedom? We could verify whether they're operating according to their reports and ensure there's no embezzlement or child abuse."
"I don't believe that's necessary. Now that a precedent has been set, everyone will be cautious for some time."
"I'm not just talking about the funding. There may be children being abused right now."
"You're suggesting we expand our personnel and workload for commoner children who may or may not have problems at this very moment?"
Sir Gillian's expression darkened with displeasure.
"Those children without homes should be grateful to His Grace merely for being fed and sheltered. Yet you wish to verify their wellbeing as well? Don't you think such treatment is excessive for commoners?"
Sir Gillian's words were, in essence, thoroughly aristocratic. To the nobility, commoners were hardly significant beings. As long as one was bound by the arrogance of noble privilege, such thinking was inevitable.
"I'm not asking for anything grand. I simply want to ensure there are no children slipping through the cracks."
Yet with my memories from my past life, I couldn't easily accept such reasoning. They were people—helpless children, no less. Couldn't adults show at least that much compassion?
"Besides, the sudden cold has already increased our workload considerably. We're short on personnel and have much to accomplish. Must we really handle such trivial matters now?"
I hadn't expected him to agree in the first place.
"To be honest, I'm rather bewildered. Since when has the young lady of the Rilprey Family concerned herself with such matters?"
I hadn't anticipated him to be so openly dismissive about it.
"What possessed you to visit an orphanage in the first place?"
His tone and expression were filled with contempt. As if being cast out from the Rilprey Family wasn't enough, he clearly resented that I—someone who shared not a drop of blood with the Duke—was meddling in such affairs.
"It's for Lucian."
"The Young Master?"
"Yes. Since there are many children at the orphanage, I thought it might help Lucian understand their perspectives better. And I thought it would be nice to find him some friends as well."
"Commoner friends? Wouldn't that be beneath his station?"
The way he spoke was absolutely infuriating.
I wanted nothing more than to sew his mouth shut.
'How will I face Edwin later?'
Because Edwin, whom you'll serve so respectfully in the future, is also from the orphanage!
I swallowed the words I desperately wanted to shout and spoke calmly instead.
"Their station may be low, but they all have kind hearts."
"Well, if that's the case, they could serve as playmates, I suppose."
Sir Gillian gathered his documents with a sharp sound and rose from his chair.
"I hope you'll make decisions that truly benefit the Young Master, Miss Rilprey."
Having said his piece, Sir Gillian left the room without waiting for my response.
I raised my middle finger toward the closed door.
"Tell that to your master, not to me!"
He said nothing to his father, the Duke of Bellomen, yet he raised his voice only to me, his aunt.
Given that disagreeable attitude, it was almost surprising he'd even reviewed my report.
'If it hadn't been for the embezzlement of subsidies, he would have certainly let it slide. He's the type who doesn't listen to a word from useless hangers-on.'
Gilbert Sir Gillian was the Duke of Bellomen's loyal subordinate. There was no way he could simply stand by and watch the Duke's money slip into someone else's pocket.
Sir Gillian's dislike of me stemmed from this very reason—he resented that I, the late mistress's sister, had settled myself in this mansion.
It wasn't enough that I occupied a position here; I was also drawing monthly allowances from the Duke under the pretense of maintaining my dignity, so naturally I must have appeared to him like a thorn in his side.
'I suppose I can't blame him for that. But why must he begrudge Lucian a little affection?'
He didn't care much for Lucian, the Duke's son either, claiming it was because of the boy's unbecoming conduct. It seemed he believed that was my fault for poor education—though I was never Lucian's guardian to begin with.
'That's precisely why he was so delighted when Edwin arrived at the Duke's Mansion.'
Edwin, who resembled the Duke perfectly and possessed a composed temperament opposite to Lucian's—he was an heir Sir Gillian couldn't help but approve of, one who revered the Duke.
'I don't like it.'
But even if I disliked him, there was nothing I could do about it.
The one silver lining was that thanks to Sir Gillian, I'd stumbled upon a natural way to bring Edwin to the Duke's Mansion.
'Though I'm not sure if Edwin will agree.'
It still felt a bit premature.
Since Edwin seemed to be quite shy around strangers, perhaps I should first find adoptive homes for the other children at the orphanage.
I sank into thought on my room's sofa, one idea leading to another, until Lucian broke through my reverie.
"Aunt, are you going to the orphanage today too?"
Lucian asked as he opened the door and stepped inside.
"I went two days ago, so I was planning to go next week."
"Aw, why not? Let's go today. Please?"
Contrary to my initial worries, Lucian seemed to get along well with the orphanage children. He didn't bully or make anyone cry. Rather, he'd been doing surprising things like yielding toys and snacks to others.
"I want to play with my friends too."
"Be honest. You just want to see Amelia, don't you?"
His antics reached their peak whenever Amelia was around. He was so desperate to impress her that he did things he normally wouldn't.
"I-I don't know!"
At my teasing expression, Lucian's face flushed crimson like a radish. The amusement was quite satisfying.
But if I teased him any further, it would only spoil his character.
"Fine. Let's go today too. Go tell Grace to get you dressed quickly."
"Wait!"
Lucian dashed off to his room and began stuffing toys into his bag.
"Lucian, what are you doing?"
"I told Amelia we have tons of amazing toys at our house. I'm going to take them and show her."
"Go ahead."
I smiled watching Lucian stuff even candies into his bag. If he continued growing like this, I truly couldn't ask for anything more.
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