Chapter 51
“Volunteer”
“Here it is, my home.”
The place the boy led me to was a small, lonely cabin far away in the territory.
The boy, who had been crying hard, wiped his tears away as he saw his home.
“Put me down now.”
“Can you walk?”
I nodded, and as soon as I set him down, the boy ran quickly inside the cabin.
“Ahem.”
Unsure what to do, I followed Calier closely, who was walking after the boy.
Looking back slightly, I saw May with a serious face following behind me.
“…”
The cabin had a gloomy atmosphere.
A small kitchen in one corner was covered thick with dust, looking like it hadn’t been used for a long time.
Spider webs hung everywhere.
The floor creaked with every step, probably rotten.
The windows were dirty and fogged up.
The floor was covered in dirt and sand.
It wouldn’t be surprising if bugs or rats came out at any moment.
Seeing how badly the house was cared for, maybe May was right—the only one living here was the little boy.
Then suddenly—
“Grandma!”
Grandma?
All eyes inside the cabin turned to the boy’s voice.
We hurried to a small back room.
“Grandma, are you okay?”
“Tommy, my dear grandchild.”
An old woman with many wrinkles sat on a bed.
She held Tommy closely, patting his back with her wrinkled hand.
She seemed unaware anyone else was in the house.
“You went out early this morning. Where did you go? Are you hurt, my dear?”
“No, I’m fine. Today, His Grace the Grand Duke said he would give out bread and soup. So I went there.”
“Bread and soup?”
“Yes, the wheat harvest is coming soon.”
“Now that you mention it, it’s already that time.”
Grandma’s eyes were full of love as she looked at Tommy.
“Did you eat well, dear?”
Tommy nodded firmly but tears welled in his eyes.
“It was delicious. And I wanted grandma to eat too, so I tried to get some for her, but people said no.”
“My poor dear.”
“They all said I was lying. They said I live alone, but I really live with grandma!”
“Tommy, that’s…”
“Excuse me.”
The old woman was startled by a strange voice and turned pale.
“…Who are you?”
“I’m Calie—”
“I’m a volunteer!”
“…Yes?”
I smiled brightly at Calier’s frown and the old woman’s shocked look.
“We are volunteers sent to help with the food distribution at Esperos Grand Duke’s castle.”
“Is something bothering you, Your Grace?”
Delphian looked up at Dylan, his advisor’s voice.
The worried old man smiled and shook his head.
“No, it’s nothing.”
“You look very tired recently.”
“Do I?”
Delphian wiped his face awkwardly.
To me, he looked the same, but Dylan saw differently.
Dylan spoke again seriously.
“Please tell me. Maybe I can help.”
Delphian laughed softly.
After a moment, he lowered his voice.
“It’s not serious, but…”
“Lately, Heidi’s behavior has been strange.”
“Are you talking about Lady Heidi?”
Delphian nodded.
He slowly added,
“There are strange rumors about me and Heidi in the capital.”
“Rumors?”
“That I’m seeing another woman, not Heidi.”
“What do you mean?”
“But that’s not wrong.”
“The woman I’m seeing is not Heidi, but someone pretending to be Heidi Elliana.”
Dylan’s face turned pale and he couldn’t speak.
Delphian seemed to expect this and said,
“Since the last ball, Heidi changed her hair color and started meeting me.”
“Changed her hair color?”
“At first I thought it was coincidence. I asked, and she said she just wanted a change.”
“But after she changed her hair, strange rumors always spread.”
“That I abandoned Heidi for another woman.”
Dylan gasped.
“But it might be coincidence. Some nobles don’t like your marriage with Lady Heidi.”
“Maybe those nobles spread rumors.”
“But usually, when people change hair for a change, they try many colors, right?”
“The strange thing is Heidi always changes her hair to purple when she meets me.”
That made Delphian think of Revelia Piace.
He swallowed the words he wanted to say.
His eyes shone sharply.
“I think I should meet her myself.”
“Your Grace.”
“Then I will know where the rumors come from.”
Dylan swallowed hard.
“What are you trying to do now?”
“You both look scared. Is it important to tell everyone you are the Grand Duke here?”
I whispered at Calier who looked confused.
The two whispered to each other with worried faces.
I ignored Calier and walked to the two.
“Hello, grandma. My name is Hei—.”
“Hei?”
“Yes, or you can just say hi.”
The air grew chilly but I ignored it.
Thankfully, grandma smiled faintly and greeted me.
“Nice to meet you, pretty girl. My name is Jane.”
“Nice to meet you too. But from what Tommy said, it seems you haven’t eaten. Have you eaten?”
“No…”
“Not yet, sister!”
I turned to see Tommy holding my robe tightly, eyes shining.
“So, after you confirmed I live with grandma, can I have some bread now?”
“Bread?”
“Yes! Earlier, you said I live alone, so I couldn’t get bread.”
“Uh, miss, that’s…!”
The old woman tried to explain quickly, but I looked at Tommy who waited eagerly.
“I don’t think you can have the bread.”
“What? Why? You said one bread per person!”
“Not that we won’t give bread, but that bread might be hard for grandma to eat. It’s not bad, but the texture is rough and might be uncomfortable.”
Seeing Tommy’s disappointment, I smiled and added,
“So Tommy and I will eat that bread, and grandma can have warm soup and softer bread.”
“Huh?”
“I think that’s better.”
Tommy nodded quickly.
I smiled at the boy but felt a sharp look from behind.
I awkwardly stood up.
“Tommy, I don’t know this place well. Can you show me where to get ingredients for soup and where to buy good bread?”
Tommy nodded eagerly as I tousled his hair.
“Wait here. I need permission from the leader above me first.”
“The leader? You mean the boss?”
“Yes.”
I turned away from Tommy and saw Calier with a strange expression.
“Is it finally my turn?”
“…Maybe.”
“…”
“Leader?”
Hmm, maybe I shouldn’t have said that last part.
