Love Doesn't Matter

Chapter 7 – In Front of Insignificant Things

When the successor, who had been absent, returned to the mansion, people gathered in the salon to listen to music.

The song of the skillful soprano reached its climax, and applause poured out. The hall was filled with a loud noise that seemed to rip the eardrums.

But all that Hadius can hear is that child’s voice. As cold and detached as a river flowing without stop.

A beautiful voice came from Emilia Bern, even when she opened her eyes wide in confusion, when her cheeks blushed with embarrassment, or when she clenched her fists in anger.

Not too high nor too low, a sweet voice.

He knew it from the time they first met. The small, fair-skinned girl had a voice as beautiful as a nightingale.

Hadius leaned against the door with a calm face, suppressing much of his turmoil. Someone handed him a glass of champagne.

“Why did the host suddenly leave?”

Hadius stared quietly at the drunk, red face. He is probably the eldest son of the Völinaire family. No, maybe Hessen.

Whoever it is exactly, he is a very insignificant human being. Regarding him as a casual friend because he was invited here.

“We have been waiting for you for so long, so we just made a bet. Who Isabelle Quincy will choose, between the Duke of Haleston and the Marquis of Rimsey. That slutty girl dumped another man in three days, didn’t she?”

The man pointed at the soprano singer who had just come down from the podium as if he were aiming with a stick.

“Who are you going to bet on?”

Hadius looked down at the champagne glass, as if he were extremely worried, and said, “Haleston.”.

“Wow, as expected! We’re together!”

The man raised his fists as if he were incredibly happy. Hadius swallowed a crooked smile with a sip of champagne.

In social gatherings, gossip and bets are as natural as alcohol and food. It is also the host’s job to help the drunk scoundrels feel better and not ruin the atmosphere.

However, the man’s words that followed once again twisted the heart of the generous and tolerant successor.

“By the way, what’s wrong with you? Are you sad that she’s not here?”

“Who?”

“Your fiancée.”

Hadius’ hands stiffened. Grasping the glass of champagne as if he were going to break it, he gently looked at the man across from him, suppressing something boiling deep down.

“I mean, Mrs. Meyer is so cheap. How many come here for the fun of seeing her.”

The giggling was that of an animal that has a female in heat in front of him.

That’s right, it is precisely because of this. The reason why the long-delayed plans were brought out prematurely and hastily.

It was simply because he hated this and felt nasty. All kinds of insignificant things that you don’t even know the name of that stick to you like a fly. And her.

A woman as detached as a white swan, naturally he thought she would be wary and unpleasant. Hasn’t he been like that all the time in front of his fiancée, for the past 5 years?

However, she laughed. In front of such insignificant things, daringly.

***

When the carriage arrived at the quiet cabin, Kallia was starching the clothes.

She couldn’t keep quiet when she found her stepdaughter coming in with a big man. Then suddenly, she coughed.

Emilia quickly brought water to her stepmother.

When her cough subsided and she was barely able to breathe properly, Kallia wiped the tears from her eyes and opened her mouth.

“What happened, Emilia…?”

Emilia began to explain the whole story.

Hadius wanted her to attend the graduation ceremony and, in return, he gave her the carriage as a gift. Then, she officially introduced Beppy.

He greeted her perfectly, like a well-educated worker. However, when he opened his mouth,

“Do whatever Master tells you to. Beppy is good. He is a good servant.”

As expected, Kallia had no choice but to open her eyes wide. She opened her mouth in surprise and quickly smiled, pretending nothing had happened.

“Nice to meet you, Beppy. I am Emilia’s mother, Kallia Bern.”

“Kallia, pretty. Thank you for letting me work.”

Saying “pretty” was a greeting to everyone. Emilia giggled to herself.

“You must have had a hard time coming all the way here, so have a cup of tea.”

After giving the tea to Beppy, Kallia dragged Emilia to a quiet place.

“How did all this happen? Please tell me in detail.”

“I had a conversation with Young Master Meyer.”

Emilia feigned a spirited tone.

“He must have been a little sorry to me for the past 5 years. He was too inattentive.”

A look of surprise appeared on her stepmother’s face. Fearing she might have weird expectations, Emilia quickly added.

“I think we will break off the engagement sooner or later. After the graduation ceremony of the Young Master.”

“Oh my God, our poor Emilia!”

She placed her hand in her chest for a moment, in surprise.

“But what can we do? There is nothing we can do. In a way, it is a good thing. You are already nineteen, you can’t just wait forever. I’d rather feel at ease.”

The stepmother let go of the ‘break-up’ talk so easily. In front of her carefree and conforming eyes, Emilia received a strange comfort.

“Right, that’s better. Your deceased father was out of his mind. People must live according to their place… However, Young Master Meyer is very admirable. For people like us, from carriages to coachmen, how can there be such a luxury? Did you thank him properly?”

Emilia nodded with a forced smile.

At that time, the crackling and opening sound of the attic door was heard. It seems Charlotte, who heard all the commotion downstairs, came out. Emilia went up the stairs and grabbed her hand. But Charlotte didn’t even budge. She seemed to know that a stranger was drinking tea at the table.

“Listen carefully. He is a very nice guy named Beppy Dilson. He brought a nice horse and a carriage. To give you a ride.”

Charlotte’s mouth opened at the sound of getting a ride on the horse. And it closed right away.

“But Sis. You don’t know yet, do you? Whether he can see an angel or not.”

“Don’t worry, Charlotte. He is from a mysterious country in the Ludwick Plateau. I told you before, the people there have an eye for beauty. So, he will definitely see a beautiful angel in Charlotte Bern. Just like Sister.”

“… Really?”

“Of course. Otherwise, would Sister have invited him? I swear.”

Charlotte, who was hesitating, came to the living room, led by her sister’s hand. However, she couldn’t come out all the way and hid behind the wall, sticking out only one eye.

Beppy casually took off his hat and stood up.

“Come on Charlotte, say hello.”

Emilia almost had to pull the hesitating Charlotte out. The child came to meet him properly, with all her face exposed.

As promised, Beppy approached Charlotte with a calm face. No, maybe he really was calm.

“Beppy is good. He is a good servant. Charlotte is an angel.”

The flinching corners of Charlotte’s mouth slowly began to curl up.

Emilia felt a lump in her throat.

“You have to say ‘Hello.’”

She tapped her on the back again, and the one-eyed angel’s mouth opened for the first time.

“He…llo.”

“Charlotte is pretty. Thank you for letting me work.”

And like that, Beppy Dilson became the first coachman and worker at the cabin.

Over the next few days, Beppy proved that Hadius was right in at least one thing.

He was a perfect worker. At the same time, life with a carriage was so comfortable that she didn’t want to imagine life without it.

He cut his stepmother’s everyday commute to the factory at the harbor by half and filled up a week’s worth of firewood in one day. He also fixed the creaking door, and firmly secured the loosened fence. He also fixed the chicken coop and did a great job catching mice.

“Simon says, clap twice.”

Clap, clap.

“And stamp your feet once.”

Thump.

“Wrong. I didn’t say ‘Simon says.’”

Beppy said “Oops!” and slapped his hand on his head. Charlotte raised her arms triumphantly, and the two burst out laughing.

What she liked the most is that he had become Charlotte’s friend. Just seeing her little sister smiling and chatting with someone, Emilia wanted to hug Beppy.

It really was ‘consolation money’.

She laughed and hesitated for a moment.

Oh my God! To laugh and sympathize with the dirty words of consolation money…

Perhaps the problem is this shallow emotion that recovers too easily. It explodes with a bang, and once it does, it quickly fades and stops, just like a firecracker…

Emilia was mostly like that. Even though she was gentle as a lamb, she abruptly changed and got hot-tempered. She could have been depressed all day long, but after just one day, she would be smiling, pretending nothing happened.

That may be why she fell so easily for a man who treated her coldly for 5 years. Like a fool.

“No, it’s completely over now.”

Emilia tightly tied the string in her hand, as if making a resolution. The tomato stems, which had been swaying around, were firmly fixed to the support.

***

Returning to her room that evening, Emilia covered Charlotte with a blanket and sat down by the window.

When she opened the window, a cool breeze came in, carrying the scent of the platycarya trees. Emilia rested her chin on her hands and silently looked up at the lonesome night sky in June.

“… Sis?”

Charlotte’s voice was heard.

“Did I wake you up?”

Emilia quickly closed the window and covered Charlotte with the blanket.

“No, I didn’t wake up, but actually I can’t sleep.”

“Why?”

“You will be going there tomorrow. To Sir Cavendish’s mansion.”

“Ahah.”

Emilia laughed softly on purpose as if it were nothing.

“Don’t worry. I just have to put up with it for a few hours.”

“Still, it would be better if you didn’t go. What’s so important about bridal lessons and all that…”

“There is no harm in learning anything. It’s not just learning useless things. I learn a lot of interesting things, too. Latin, piano, art, dance, and so on. Most of all, that mansion has a treasure house.”

Charlotte’s distorted eyes lit up at the word treasure.

“I mean the study. There is no book that isn’t there.”

“Book? A storybook that you read to me?”

“That’s right.”

“Ah! I like that. That one with a wizard and a dragon…”

A wizard and a dragon…

“You mean [The Adventures of Kildred]?”

“Yeah. Read that to me again.”

“All right. I will definitely borrow it. Look, how good is that? Tomorrow I can go to Sir Cavendish’s house and borrow it.”

The child simply forgets her worries and smiles.

“Come on, sleep. Do not worry. Think only good things. Tomorrow, you will finally read [The Adventures of Kildred].”

Emilia whispered so, gently patting her small body.