I Became The Stepmother Of An Irrevocable Dark Family - Chapter 54

“Is it really okay?”

“They’d still nitpick on whoever I introduce as the Duchess even if it wasn’t you. No need to worry.”

“I thought the duke had the power to bring everyone to their knees, but it seems like I was wrong.”

“A duke, after all, is a man who owns a lot of things. The more you own, the more likely you are to lose and be vulnerable to attack.”

“…”

“But I won’t fall so easily. As long as I have a daughter to protect. And someone else to protect…”

His gaze reached me for a moment.

“As I see it, it seems like I’m the other person you want to protect.”

“That’s right. I want to protect you too.”

“…”

My god, this is so terribly awkward.

“I’m not weak. More importantly, I don’t need to be protected by the man I hate the most. I’m not as stupid as you think I am either.”

He wouldn’t kill me for saying this, right?

I thought he would be upset and refute me, but he just nodded with a smirk on his face.

“I see. That’s why you’ve been straightforward with me ever since. Aren’t you afraid of me?”

“Not at all.”

“…Even though I’m a Duke?”

“For asking such a question, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say you’re acting like a child. You should be afraid of me because I’m the Duke! That must be what you’re thinking, right?”

As if I was right, the duke cleared his throat.

No way….. Did he really have such childish thoughts?

-He returned to his childhood days when he wasn’t afraid of anything. That’s why he did such things that were difficult for others to understand. Sometimes, he’s even more childish than Rere.

At that moment, Luca’s words crossed my mind.

“More childish than Rere…”

“No way.”

In the meantime, we arrived in front of Rere’s room.

“That’s exactly what a child would say.”

I spat out the last thing I wanted him to hear. His hand stretched towards me as if he wanted to say something. Of course, I ignored him and went inside.

Once I entered the room, I saw Rere grumbling in her bathrobe..

“Rere! Are you done with your bath?”

Normally, Rere would have been so happy and called me ‘Big Bunnyyy!’ at my arrival, but instead, she pouted her lips as if she were a duck as soon as she saw me.

“Why are you so upset!”

“Damn it…Why are you so late? Do you know how long I’ve been waiting? I couldn’t wait to try on the dress!”

“Why aren’t you wearing it yet then?”

“Isn’t it obvious? You said we have matching outfits! So, we should wear it together!”

She took the concept of matching outfits too seriously, which is why she’s upset.

“Rere could’ve worn it first.”

“No! I want mom to be the first person to see Rere at her prettiest!”

“Is that so?”

I hurriedly held Rere in my arms.

“Ah, how nice.”

“Tch….. In any case, how did the meeting with the vassals go? Did those old men bully my Big Bunny?”

Rere, who was livid at the thought of it alone, gritted her teeth.

“No. I wasn’t bullied.”

“You must’ve been bullied! Which bastard was it?! Dammit….. They’re all dead! In the first place, I never liked them. Tell me. I’ll lecture them at the party! Look at my bunny! She’s feeling so down to the point I can even notice it from her ears!”

“No, I’m not. I came out as soon as I got there.”

“I don’t trust you. I must go and lecture them. I won’t leave them alone now that I’m aware they bullied my bunny! It must be Felipe. That old man is the most troublesome among them!”

At Rere’s words, I remembered the man’s face.

“Oh, I’ve met him.”

“He sure talks a lot….. Dammit…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Uhm…! I won’t tell you. Talking about him ruined my mood all of a sudden. More importantly, I want to dance with Big Bunny today.”

“Alright. Forget it, let’s just wear our dresses. Have you seen them already?”

“No! I held myself back until Big Bunny came.”

She stood proudly as if she wanted to be praised. Her cuteness made me speechless, but when she noticed that I didn’t say a word, her plump lips were pouting again.

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

“Huh? What am I supposed to say?”

“Huh! You have to say something about what Rere did…. Do I even have to say that?”

In the end, I burst into laughter at Rere’s cuteness.

“Rere is very cute.”

“Not that!”

“Okay, okay. Rere is such a good girl for doing a good job at waiting for mom so we could wear our matching outfits at the same time. How cute.”

Only then did Rere smile so brightly.

“Shall we put on the dress now?”

The nanny, who was waiting behind us the whole time, went next to us.

“I was planning to do that anyway. Nanny, you didn’t have to remind me. I’m going to do that now!”

“I see. Madam, you need to put her down first since you need to take off your dress.”

“Alright. Rere, mom will go first, okay?”

“Ah! No need to tell me that. Take off your clothes! Hurry!”

It was difficult for me to take off the dress by myself, so I went to the dressing room with the nanny and the maids. As usual, their hands moved in a swift manner.

“Nanny.”

“Yes.”

“Are you familiar with Felipe?”

I asked her in a low voice so as to make sure that Rere didn’t hear it from outside.

“Ah, that person.”

The nanny leaned towards me as if she knew something.

“He is the son of Lord Celiot Petri. The brother of our master’s grandfather, Duke Absault Petri.”

“…So he’s a relative.”

“He is the Duke’s closest relative. What’s more, he has a son…” As the nanny continued on, her voice became lower than before.

“For that reason, he was always outspoken about our miss’ birth. Especially since there’s a lot of secrets regarding her birth that even I’m not aware of… However, I do know that they were discussing whether or not the miss will be included in the family…”

The nanny sighed deeply.

“The Duke introduced a baby as his daughter out of nowhere. Who would’ve accepted such a thing?”

“Hmm.”

“Lord Felipe opposed the idea even more than the others who did because if our miss wasn’t here, the next successor would’ve been his son. Seeing as my master wasn’t even planning on getting married.”

It was the perfect chance for him. So, that old man, Felipe, had no choice but to disagree.

“You have a distant relative who is fit to be the successor of our family, so why did you have to introduce a child of unknown blood as your daughter—is what they said.”

“Hmm.”

“Because of that, the vassals had a big argument. They said the Duke was still too young to decide his successor at that time. In the end, the Duke declared that he would only accept our miss as his successor.”

“What did that bastard do to my Rere….”

“He would stealthily harass her every time they met. Ever since she was only three.”

That explains why Rere was so wary of him. I became furious at the thought of it alone. I couldn’t fathom how much Rere got hurt because of him. Due to that, I clenched my fists tightly.

“I’m glad I asked you.”

“It’s my pleasure.”

“The next time I see him again, I won’t leave him alone.”

“Still, among the Duke’s relatives, he’s the strongest in terms of power. He’s the only one with a Marquis title as well. For that reason, both him and his son are people you need to be cautious of.”

As I listened to the nanny, I became even more determined. I won’t let him go. How dare he do that to my daughter….. No wonder Rere was so frightened.

At that moment…

“Oh my gosh. Bunny! Are you a turtle?”

Pop-!

Rere popped her head in the dressing room.

“Oh, you’ve taken off your clothes.”

Rere, who hopped inside as if she was a rabbit, jumped in my arms.

“Big Bunny is so soft. It feels so good. Mom smells good as well.”

“Really? Rere’s scent is pleasant, too. It’s like that of a bunny’s.”

“I know!”

“You know?”

“I smell like a bunny because Big Bunny is my mom. I’m a baby bunny!”

“Of course!”

“You’re my mother, and I’m your daughter, right?”

Rere’s eyes glistened as if she wanted to confirm that we were family.

“Of course~ We’re a bunny family.”

“Yey! Come on, where are the dresses! I still haven’t seen them yet!”

The dresses were wrapped in a veil. Madame Cecilia brought the dresses last night, saying that she did her best so that it would satisfy us. So, Rere and I promised to look at them together.

“Woah…!”

“Wow…”

As soon as we saw the dresses, we couldn’t stop admiring them. The color of the dresses was a mix of a shade of blue close to that of the dark space and a shade of blue that is similar to the blue sky. However, that didn’t mean the color stood out to the point it blinded my eyes. Additionally, it was luxurious in a way that couldn’t be explained with words.

“Wow…”

The skirt was adorned with diamonds as if it were stars, and its color became darker when it was viewed from the top to the bottom. But, it did not have ribbons or a flamboyant pattern.

That day, Madame Cecilia clenched her fist in determination and promised to come up with a design that would please us. I’m amazed at the fact that she was able to make these in a week.

Seeing as Rere kept her mouth shut for a long time, it seems like I wasn’t the only one who admired the dresses.

“It’s not tacky, not childish, and not common.”

“It’s luxurious, but it’s prettier than the usual luxurious dresses because of its unique design!”

I agree. The two dresses aren’t identical. But because the dresses match so well with each other, it truly feels like they are matching outfits.

“Come on, Big Bunny! Let’s put these on, and set out. We should let the world know that Rere’s mom is here.”

“Okay!”

Because of Rere’s urging, the nanny and the maids’ hands became even busier. Of course, the smile on her face never left even for a second.