BVS CH 20

Chapter 20  

Did Erica just acknowledge me?

She was looking out the window, but I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
Who knew those small lips could say something so nice—and with such a calm face too?

Our young lady has grown up.

My nose stung, and if I stayed like this, I might actually cry.

“In that case, this sister-in-law will make you some delicious cookies.”

I couldn’t believe I’d managed such a smooth reply myself.

Erica, unusually, gave me a small smile in return.

We were both feeling good, riding high on our own imaginations.

But the moment we got out of the carriage and saw the child she was sponsoring, that earlier conversation became pointless.

Judging by how Erica didn’t let go of my sleeve, she was just as shocked as I was.

“Sister-in-law… what’s going on here?”

“I don’t know. I really thought it was going to be a girl…”

Amel Solid.
That was the sponsored child’s name.

It wasn’t surprising that Amel wasn’t the same gender as Erica.
But he also didn’t look like a “child” at all.

Standing before us was a tall boy with tanned skin and silver hair—
A boy who looked about Erica’s age, maybe even more mature.

Erica stood a good distance behind me, arms crossed, observing him with disapproval.

I couldn’t just stand there doing nothing, so I gathered my courage for her sake.

“Um… boy? What’s your name?”

“…”

But he didn’t answer.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t seen us—he had.
He just acted like we didn’t exist.
That was baffling enough; I’d never been treated like this before.

As far as I knew, this boy wasn’t even a side character in the story—he wouldn’t have been mentioned in a single line.

He seemed busy looking for something.

Then, in moving around, he accidentally bumped right into Erica, who’d been standing there with her arms crossed.

“Ah!”

Her high-pitched voice pierced my ears.

Yet the boy didn’t react at all.

To Erica, being ignored by the duke’s wife was probably infuriating enough—
But this was also, in her eyes, an insult to the Cloud family itself.

That must have been why…

Her eyes suddenly shifted, taking on a sharpness that reminded me of the original “villainess” Erica from the novel.

“When you bump into someone, you should apologize!”

Before I could stop her, Erica marched up to the boy, spreading her arms to block his way.

I didn’t know what to do.
We’d just come to deliver goods, and now this?

As I hesitated—

“Hey!”

Erica snapped completely, all lady-like manners gone.

“Can’t you hear me?!”

I quickly grabbed her arm to pull her back.

She resisted, trying not to be dragged away.

Up close, I could see the boy’s face wasn’t looking good—
Like he was about to cry.

He seemed to be fighting some difficult battle inside.

“…Move.”

The tanned boy pushed past Erica and went inside the house.

Before Erica could shout again, I covered her mouth.
Something about this felt off, so I quietly followed the boy.

I couldn’t bring myself to go all the way inside, so I watched through an open window.

The place was deathly quiet, like no one actually lived there.

Erica fidgeted behind me, kicking at a random stone in the yard in frustration.

“Amel…”

Inside, the boy knelt beside a bed, holding the hand of a girl lying there, bowing his head and crying.

The girl didn’t move at all.

That’s Amel…?

I could guess the situation right away.

It didn’t feel right to keep spying, so I led Erica back toward the carriage—though she didn’t follow willingly.

“Let me go!”

“Lady Erica.”

Even with my serious tone, she kept fuming.

I’d never been treated like that by a boy before, and I was sure she hadn’t either.
Who would dare act like that toward Erica Cloud?

Still… his family just died.

Given the situation, it made sense.

How many people could stay composed with their younger sibling on the verge of death?

Even if we were the sponsors, what would that matter in a moment like this?

“I don’t think he’s in any condition to meet us today.”

“What happened? He didn’t even greet us! And he shoved me too!”

“You were the one who yelled at him first.”

“Don’t tell me he’s the one I’m supposed to sponsor?”

The carriage was packed with goods meant for Amel.

I thought of the girl lying in bed.
We might not be able to give these to her anymore.

Erica crossed her arms, lips jutting out.

“That boy just lost his only family.”

“…!”

“And that family member was the child you were supposed to sponsor.”

Her arms slowly loosened as she listened silently.

“Do you think he even saw us just now?”

“…”

“I think we should come back once things have settled down.”

He wasn’t the sponsored child, but we’d definitely have to apologize later for our behavior.

Erica got into the carriage without a word, still not looking pleased.

She stared out the window.
Only now did she seem to notice how empty and desolate the boy’s home was.

I wondered what she was thinking.

It didn’t take long for her to speak.

“…We shouldn’t stop.”

What?

Was she saying she wanted to end the sponsorship?

Her tone was so firm that I almost thought so.

“Do you mean you want to sponsor someone else?”

“No. I’ll sponsor that boy.”

She looked at the house with a determined expression—
Like she was thinking about her own childhood.

“That’s a good idea, Lady Erica.”

Not knowing her real intentions, I just felt moved, convinced she’d had a change of heart.

That belief didn’t last long before it shattered.

“What’s that boy’s name?”

The next day, she asked it so casually I was stunned.

“What do you mean?”

“That rude brat.”

And that’s when I realized—Erica wasn’t doing this out of kindness.

My temples began to throb again.

“What do you mean, rude brat? What happened?”

While we were talking in the hall, Martin walked by and caught enough of the conversation to stop.

Judging by his sister’s serious face, he must have sensed something was off.

He glanced at me for an explanation, but I didn’t feel like giving one.

“When we went to the sponsored kid’s house, that boy—whoever he was—acted like we didn’t even exist! Does he know who we are? We’re the Cloud family! And he’s just a commoner!”

She spoke heatedly, exaggerating her story.

Martin frowned, clearly displeased at how his sister had been treated.

“He had his reasons.”

“Sister-in-law, are you seriously taking that boy’s side after how he treated us?”

“Aaron Solid.”

Martin’s calm words cut through Erica’s rant.

Her eyes lit up.

“So that’s his name!”

“Now stop bothering your sister-in-law.”

“Fine. I only needed the name anyway.”

Martin turned to leave, a faint sympathy in his eyes. He knew exactly how persistent his sister could be.

Erica, apparently satisfied, started to leave too—
But I blocked her path, uneasy about whatever she was planning.

“Where are you going?”

“To write a letter.”

What on earth was she thinking?

With a smile worthy of a villainess, she walked lightly toward her room.

The atmosphere suddenly felt much colder…

Probably just my imagination…

Left in the hall, I tried to figure out her unpredictable intentions.
If she’d gotten his name, she must be planning to send a letter to Aaron.

Later, Erica left the house with Mary.
She didn’t tell me where she was going, which meant she was still sulking.

Now I’d have to rely on Mary to tell me her whereabouts.
The thought left a bitter taste in my mouth.

So this is what it feels like when raising them is useless.

When Mary got back, she told me Erica had spent ages just picking out the stationery for Aaron’s letter.

I still had no idea what she was up to.

“Anything else unusual?”

“Well… she told me to get her a quill with a nice texture this time.”

Mary scratched her head, looking puzzled.

Erica didn’t seem like she was trying to impress him at all… which somehow made me even more nervous.

With her personality, there’s no way this is just an innocent letter.

But I didn’t have time to dwell on Erica.

Today was the day I’d finally use Martin’s study to prepare for the royal audience.

Thankfully, he didn’t object.
It almost seemed like he’d reluctantly stepped aside.

Was it because he really had nothing to do, or because he didn’t want to be around me?

“If you notice anything else strange about her, tell me right away.”

Of course, Erica was already plenty suspicious as it was.

Mary seemed to agree, her face twisting into a troubled look.