Chapter 4
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Chapter 4 "Miss, we've arrived."
Lost in thought, I hadn't noticed the carriage had already reached its destination. I descended from the carriage with the coachman's assistance. The first thing that caught my eye was a large sign reading "Büsnie Orphanage."
Beyond the sign lay a small dirt yard. Scattered stones and crushed flower petals on the ground suggested it served as a play area for the children.
"What kind of playground has not a single toy?"
They could at least provide a shovel for sandcastle building. I clicked my tongue in disapproval and passed the dirt lot masquerading as a playground. There, a building—a fraction of a fraction of the Duke's Mansion—awaited me.
"...The condition is far worse than I expected."
Up close, the building looked considerably more dilapidated than from a distance. The exterior walls were riddled with cracks, broken windows were patched with thick wooden boards, and one corner had lost its paint entirely. It was a space so desolate and dreary that one could scarcely believe it was an orphanage.
"I suppose I should knock first...."
The wooden door was rotting badly. A knock might shatter it entirely.
"Who is it?"
Fortunately, before I could damage the door, someone called out to me. I turned toward the voice. There stood a middle-aged woman with a rather unpleasant expression.
"I've come to see the children."
Her wary gaze lingered only briefly before her eyes rapidly swept across my person. More precisely, the clothes I wore. My attire was not particularly flashy, but the quality was exceptional. My shoes and gloves were of the same caliber. Among nobility, it would be considered ordinary, but for commoners, such an ensemble would be utterly beyond reach.
"Oh, I see!"
In that instant, I could almost hear the mental clicking of an abacus. The woman's wariness dissolved as she approached me with obsequious bows.
"Had you sent word in advance, I would have come to greet you!"
"There's no need for such fuss. I'm not that important a guest."
"But the weather is quite cold. Had you given notice, I would have prepared warm tea...."
"Rather than that, how much longer must I stand out here? As you mentioned, it's rather chilly."
I cut short her words. I understood perfectly why she was stalling.
"Ah, I'll show you right away! Just one moment, please!"
After instructing me to wait outside, the woman hurried off frantically. Simultaneously, sounds of bustling activity erupted from beyond the door. 'She's frantically tidying up, it seems.' It was obvious without even looking. The orphanage's interior was ordinarily a complete mess. The lazy director rarely cleaned anywhere except her own office. The director and staff only cleaned before visits from noble patrons. After all, no noble would wish to adopt a child raised in filth. One must always make a good impression on the wealthy. But I had no intention whatsoever of waiting for them to finish cleaning. Without hesitation, I grasped the door handle. With a creak, the door swung open. I stepped into the Orphanage and immediately came face to face with it. A child's crimson eyes, clutching a grimy mop while scrubbing the floor.
"...."
"...."
A brief silence fell between the child and me. Eyes burning like flames with that crimson hue were not a common color. Moreover, the child before me bore a striking resemblance to the Duke of Bellomen. Long hair obscured roughly half of the child's face, but beneath it, the lower jaw was identical to the Duke of Bellomen's. I found myself thinking—if the Duke had been this young, wouldn't he have looked exactly like this? Even the child's hair, with its slight coarseness, was as black as ebony. 'It's undoubtedly him. Edwin.' I was certain. Considering all these circumstances, the child was unmistakably Edwin, the Duke of Bellomen's illegitimate son and the protagonist of "From Bastard to Family Head."
But why was Edwin holding a mop? Crack! The brief silence was shattered by the sound of something breaking. Turning around, I saw a wooden door with its hinges broken, fallen to the floor.
"...."
So it finally gave way. Having anticipated this, I clicked my tongue softly.
"P-please wait outside!"
At the urgent voice, I turned my head toward the source of the sound. A face appearing to be in his fifties, with a completely bald crown, and a large mole on the left side of his philtrum. From his appearance, I could tell. He was the director of this Orphanage.
"W-what are you all doing? Why aren't you greeting our guest?"
At the director's gesture, the child set down the mop and stood up. The other children did the same. They placed the cardboard boxes and blankets they had been holding onto the floor and bowed their heads to me. However, I could not return their greeting.
"Were you having the children clean just now...?"
When I had just entered, Edwin was scrubbing the floor with a mop stained with grime. The same was true for the other residents. In the hands of the children moving hurriedly were piles of trash and hastily folded blankets. From the circumstances, it was clear. The director had entrusted the children with cleaning that adults should have been doing. In the original work, it was said that the director exploited the children whenever the opportunity arose. I didn't know the specifics of how, but I never imagined he would have children under a meter tall doing the cleaning.
"T-that couldn't be."
However, the director waved his hand in denial at my question.
"It's all because the children are so kind. Whenever it's cleaning time or meal preparation, they all eagerly want to help. Isn't that right, children?"
"Yes."
"You see? Our children are this kind-hearted, haha!"
I turned my gaze away from the laughing director and fixed my eyes on the children. They all clearly showed reluctance in their responses. I wanted to demand they stop lying, but this was not the time. Replacing the unscrupulous director and staff was something I needed to do after gathering solid evidence.
"With such angelic children, they will adapt well wherever they are adopted."
It appeared the director believed I had visited this place to adopt a child. 'Of course, I intend to bring Edwin with me eventually, so it's not entirely wrong, but....' I couldn't take him away immediately. If I suddenly adopted the Duke's child, it would certainly raise suspicion.
"Before making a final decision on adoption, I'd like to spend some time getting to know the children better. I'm thinking of visiting here not just today, but regularly in the future."
"Of course. That would be most appropriate."
The director rubbed her palms together eagerly, as if possessed by a fly.
"Since it's mealtime, perhaps we could have dinner together with the children and grow closer?"
"D, dinner?"
"Why? Is that difficult?"
"Oh, no, it's just that we don't have food prepared that would be suitable for a young lady of your standing...."
"I'm not particular about what I eat, so please don't worry about it."
"Ah, understood. Then please wait here for a moment."
"Of course. I'll play with the children while I wait."
The director and staff exchanged glances before quickly disappearing from the room. I sat down on the floor, feeling slightly awkward. 'This is my first time dealing with so many children at once.' Moreover, all the children were frozen, watching my every move. 'In situations like this, an adult must take the first step.' Children are naturally shy around strangers, after all. And these children weren't even commoners—they were common folk facing not just an adult, but a noblewoman. It must have been terribly difficult for them. I recalled how I played with Lucian and opened my mouth.
"Who wants to play with me with toys?"
I made sure to raise my voice by a tone or so. My voice was naturally low for a woman, and the children might be frightened by it.
"Wow, what a cute doll this is?"
I had just picked up a doll that was rolling around on the floor.
"Me!"
"Me! I want to!"
Several children approached me with bright eyes. 'Thank goodness some of them aren't shy.' They're almost like little angels. I let out a relieved sigh and shook the doll.
"Yes, let's play with the doll together with me."
I was smiling warmly and shaking the doll when it happened. With a soft pop, the doll's head fell to the floor.
"...."
The cheerful atmosphere instantly froze. A doll with its head separated from its neck looked grotesque to young children.
"I, I'll fix it for you."
I tried my best to reattach the doll's head. But once something was broken, restoring it to its original state wasn't easy.
"It's okay."
"Let's just play with blocks instead."
Fortunately, the children brought other toys as if this were a familiar occurrence.
"Shall we?"
For me, it was a relief. But my relief was short-lived. Not a single toy the children had brought was in decent condition.
"Why does this doll's dress have stains on it?"
"Oh, that's because a rat peed on it."
"Why are all the edges of these blocks worn down?"
"It rained a lot last summer, remember? They all rotted away back then."
"...Should we do something else instead of playing with toys?"
I made a mental note to replace both the broken door and the children's toys, then offered an alternative.
"How about hide-and-seek?"
It was somewhat unbecoming for a noblewoman to suggest, but children this age loved physical play more than anything else.
"Yes!"
Fortunately, the children nodded eagerly.
"We love it because the pretty Sister is playing with us."
With such words lifting my spirits, I felt truly fortunate. 'Though it does feel like I'm only playing with the active children.' I gazed at the children sitting alone in the corner. Among the group squatting silently without uttering a word was Edwin.
"Come on, you all—don't just sit there. Play with us."
"...."
"If you have fun playing, the food will taste even better afterward, won't it?"
I tried persuading them in various ways, but the children didn't budge. 'This is troublesome.' The greatest reason I came here was to grow close to Edwin. If the child who would shape Lucian's future showed no interest in me, that wouldn't do....
"Sister, forget about them and let's just play together."
"Hmm?"
"They like sitting down anyway. Do we really need to play with kids who don't want to?"
"That's true, but wouldn't it be more fun if we all played together?"
"If that's the case, then I suppose...."
After pouting briefly, the Brown-haired Child who had spoken to me approached the group sitting in the corner.
"Hey, everyone get up right now."
"...."
"Didn't you hear? The Sister wants us all to play together!"
At the command-like words, Edwin and the other children began slowly rising to their feet. Watching that scene unfold, I felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
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