CHAPTER 29
“Th-that can’t be…”
Why on earth was the letter she had sent out earlier today now in Lloyd’s hands?
Deborah’s lips trembled.
The one she thought was harmless turned out to be a beast.
A beast who simply watched the little animals frolic with benevolent patience.
There was no escape left.
Deborah gritted her teeth.
‘Fine, what’s he going to do? Kill me?’
At worst, she’d be thrown out and that would be the end of it.
Deborah quickly dropped to her knees.
“I’m sorry, my lord! I only did it because I wanted the young lady to grow into a fine noble! Please, forgive me!”
“M-me too! I only ever wished for the young lady’s good upbringing!”
Sasha also threw herself to the floor and begged.
Those lips that had refused to apologize to Ayla even when spouting nonsense now apologized so easily to Lloyd.
Lloyd, disgusted by the sight, asked coldly,
“Are you truly remorseful?”
“Of course!”
Deborah and Sasha answered in unison, hoping for even a shred of mercy.
Their intentions were obvious, which only made Lloyd laugh.
“Then I should give you what you want.”
“Then…!”
Just as their faces brightened, Lloyd pronounced his sentence.
“You’re being imprisoned for child abuse.”
“…What?”
Deborah and Sasha’s eyes went blank, as if they’d forgotten how to blink.
Arta’s child abuse laws were strict.
So strict that child abuse was treated on the same level as murder.
In other words, they’d spend the rest of their lives in prison.
Deborah protested.
“W-wait a minute! Why…!”
“Anyone can say they regret something. If you’re truly sorry to Ayla, then rot in prison for it.”
Lloyd’s face was like a frozen blade, as if ice would spill out instead of blood if pierced.
Pleading for sympathy with this man would never work.
Deborah thought of the child who looked up to her like a mother.
“Please let me speak to the young lady! I’ll apologize to her in person! Just… not prison… please!”
Ayla wouldn’t ignore them if they begged.
Even pretending to apologize might be enough for Ayla to…
Perhaps their intentions were too transparent, because Lloyd looked utterly disgusted and said,
“How could I let a victim meet their abuser?”
“…!”
Abuser? Me?
Deborah couldn’t accept it.
Even as a fallen noble, she was still a noble. And for disciplining a mere baron’s child, she was being labeled an abuser?
Lloyd gave his command to the knights as if to answer that unspoken question.
“Take them away.”
“Yes, my lord.”
The knights who had been guarding the door each grabbed Deborah and Sasha by the arms and dragged them up.
From the moment they were dragged away, their hell began.
Knowing that, Deborah and Sasha screamed at the top of their lungs.
“My lord! Please! Just let me see the young lady once!”
“Master! I’ve worked here for so long! Please, just one more chance!”
Lloyd didn’t listen to a word of it.
Instead, he calmly said,
“Ayla might wake up, so gag them.”
“Yes, sir.”
The knights silenced the women.
Everything became much quieter.
Ayla’s matter had been dealt with.
Those two would now live the rest of their lives repenting what they’d done.
But that alone wasn’t enough.
Because Lloyd had now confirmed that there were still people loyal to his mother within this mansion.
These were people who had been thoroughly screened before hiring.
Yet Priscilla had slowly and steadily won them over.
‘How many more of Mother’s people remain…?’
He could no longer trust anyone in the household overnight.
All he had ever wanted was to quietly raise his daughter in peace.
Was that such a greedy wish?
Lloyd let out a long sigh and spoke to Lawrence.
“I need to go up for a bit.”
“Go up, sir… you mean…?”
Lloyd sighed again.
It hadn’t been long since he came down to the Mente territory. He’d rather not go back so soon.
“I need to visit my mother in the capital.”
It was clear now—he would have to confront Priscilla Eckhart directly.
But there was one problem.
‘I can’t leave Ayla alone in this house.’
He still couldn’t tell who was Priscilla’s pawn.
Was there even such a thing as a safe place anymore?
Then, at that moment, a good idea came to Lloyd.
Ayla woke up in the middle of the night.
When did I fall asleep? Just as she sat up in a panic—
“Did you sleep well?”
“Father…!”
A familiar voice beside her made her turn—Lloyd was sitting right there.
Flustered, Ayla scrambled to sit up properly.
“I-I’m sorry. I slept too much, didn’t I…!”
He must be disappointed.
As she hurried off the bed, her foot caught on her long nightgown and she nearly fell.
“Ah…!”
“Easy there.”
Lloyd caught her effortlessly. With a slightly bitter expression, he patted her head and said,
“You looked peaceful in your sleep.”
“B-but still…”
Ayla felt embarrassed.
Sleeping so long without realizing it, almost falling off the bed—it was all too childish.
Even so, Lloyd spoke to her gently.
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“N-no…”
“Madam Mine told me you barely ate lunch and skipped dinner too. Let’s eat together.”
With no room for refusal, Lloyd ordered a meal to be brought into her room.
A dinner tray was swiftly set on her bed.
Eating dinner in her nightgown, on her bed—Deborah would never have allowed this.
Is this really okay? Ayla sneaked a glance at Lloyd.
It was then he said,
“Deborah and Sasha have been removed.”
“Ah…”
Ayla sighed softly.
I figured it would come to this…
Oddly enough, she felt both relieved and heavy-hearted.
Was it okay to feel this way?
Wasn’t it cruel to feel glad about someone else’s downfall?
Unable to think of a proper response, Ayla merely said,
“I see.”
“……”
Lloyd, too, felt conflicted.
He regretted using his busyness as an excuse to neglect his daughter.
And once again, he found himself having to ask for her understanding.
He hesitated for a long while before finally speaking.
“I’ll have to return to the capital briefly.”
“The capital?”
Ayla’s reaction was completely different now—she looked shocked.
The journey to and from the capital took at least two weeks.
And he’d just come back not long ago, only to be leaving again.
Seeing her eyes begin to water, Lloyd quickly added,
“I’ll be back soon. No more than a month, at the longest.”
“…Okay.”
She nodded, but her expression didn’t brighten.
Expecting that, Lloyd spoke of what he’d thought earlier.
“Would you like to stay at Madam Mine’s place instead?”
Ayla nearly dropped her fork and stared at him with wide eyes.
“At her house?”
Lloyd nodded.
“You must be uneasy staying in this mansion without me. I thought Madam Mine’s would be a good alternative.”
He, too, was terrified of leaving Ayla alone here.
But when it came to safe alternatives, only one place came to mind—Minerva’s estate.
Given her circumstances, Minerva no longer engaged with the outside world.
Nowhere could be safer than that.
Of course, if Ayla didn’t want to go, he wouldn’t force her.
When Ayla sat in stunned silence, Lloyd quickly added,
“If you don’t want to, you don’t have to.”
“I’d like that.”
After a long pause, Ayla finally spoke.
“She got angry on my behalf and even worried for me… but I never thanked her properly. I’d like to go, even just to do that.”
As soon as she said Minerva’s name, Ayla’s expression softened.
It wasn’t easy to get Ayla to smile like that. Minerva must have treated her very kindly.
Lloyd smiled gently.
“Alright, I’ll ask Madam Mine for her permission tomorrow.”
Whether Minerva would agree was another question.
But he couldn’t let the child be disappointed.
‘Come to think of it, the princess always did love jewels…’
Spoiled by the emperor’s favor, she had grown up surrounded by luxury and still loved it as an adult.
Especially jewels.
Minerva wore different jewels each time, and there were rumors she never wore the same one twice.
‘But she’s become much simpler since coming here…’
Unlike in the palace, she now wore the same accessories often.
Things so modest and simple she wouldn’t have glanced at before.
‘Maybe it’s because she can’t afford luxury anymore.’
Though the emperor hadn’t seized her assets, she couldn’t earn more either. So she likely couldn’t afford to keep buying expensive jewelry.
And in this rural area, there probably weren’t any new gems to even buy.
He wasn’t going to the capital for a pleasant reason, but still—he would be there.
A jewel might be the perfect bargaining chip.
