The Stepmother Has Left - Chapter 34

Her gallery had quickly returned to its original peace.

 

As a result of the search for the Third Prince, the knights and strict guards who had been visiting this place suddenly disappeared.

 

People chattered for days, talking about the Third Prince and returning to normal life.

 

This place unintentionally became famous as the place where the Third Prince visited.

 

People began to come to sit in the seat where the Third Prince sat or taste the coffee he enjoyed drinking here.

 

Thanks to this, the gallery had achieved an unusually successful presence. Desserts and coffee made on a day-to-day basis were quickly sold to the public soon after they were placed for purchase.

 

It was peaceful, but busy days.

 

It was challenging to operate by herself, but ironically, she felt fortunate to have Nick.

 

The child, who did not follow the Duke, worked hard by her side, helping her with busy work.

 

Thanks to this, coffee making could run smoothly without additional manpower, even if there were more people.

 

For a while, after the day’s work, they both fell asleep like they were dead.

 

Then one day.

 

Late at night, with a ticking sound, a man arrived from the Duke’s mansion into the gallery.

 

Among the documents he brought were the divorce papers signed by Duke Whidrian. At the same time, a fairly large sum of money.

 

It was compensation for not being able to work at the gallery while the Knights were stationed, and the money agreed to apply after going through divorce proceedings.

 

Cassia thought about it for a while, but finally decided to take it. It was because she didn’t want to waste her time scuffling about whether she wanted to get paid or not.

 

…Instead, she might think about where she would spend the money she had received.

 

With that in mind, it was time to put the money back into her pocket.

 

Nick came out of the counter, took off his apron, and walked over to her.

 

“Mother, I’m done paying the bills.”

 

“Already?”

 

“Yes. Today seems to be the highest amount of sales so far.”

 

When she heard the total sales, she was surprised again. As Nick said, it was the highest amount of sales so far.

 

Somehow, it was crazy busy.

 

It was a pleasure to earn a lot of money, but a sigh came out for some reason. This wasn’t what she wanted.

 

What she wanted to run was a gallery, and this was just like a busy cafe with paintings.

 

Although the work of finding the Third Prince came to an end, the perfect country life Cassia had dreamed of did not come back.

 

She was suffering from the aftermath.

 

“Soon, the news that the Third Prince has returned to the Imperial Palace will be published in an article, and then there may be more guests here.”

 

As the aftermath gets stronger in the future, she had a feeling that it has gotten stronger and that it will not get better easily.

 

It was a time when she was swallowing a sigh that somehow flowed out again.

 

“M- mother.”

 

Nick, with his apron in one hand, cautiously spoke to Cassia. He seemed to have something to say. As she tilted his head towards the child, Nick said.

 

“I’m sorry to tell you at such a time, but… I’m going back home.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“You’ve had a hard time, haven’t you?”

 

Cassia looked at the boy and asked. For a nobleman like Nick, this kind of work would have been too difficult. Then Nick opened his eyes and answered.

 

“What? …Oh no! Absolutely not!”

 

Nick sighed, shaking his hand with a red face. Cassia looked at Nick and tapped the empty chair next to her.

 

“Sit down, Nick. I was still thinking that I should talk to you.”

 

“…Sigh.”

 

Nick took a deep breath as he looked at her and sat down next to her.

 

Sitting with his knees bent and his head buried. Cassia asked, looking at Nick with warm eyes.

 

“Before, you were blocking my way. In front of Your Excellency the Duke. Did you know where I was that day, Nick?”

 

She wanted to keep asking, but she didn’t get a chance, so she brought up the question she had been holding in her mind.

 

The day she secretly met Adolf late at night, Nick blocked her way and defended the Duke was still in her mind.

 

Nick answered.

 

“Yes. I stopped by my mother’s house for a while that night and first found out that mother was gone.”

 

“…”

 

“I wanted to protect my mother. I instinctively thought that mother had gone to see His Highness the Third Prince.”

 

Cassia thought for a moment that Nick, who was subtle and quick-witted, resembled the Duke a lot.

 

His soft brown hair resembled Diana, but Nick’s features and personality were in many ways that of the Duke.

 

Perhaps the Duke knew where she had gone that day. But she guessed he just pretended he didn’t know and said what he was initially trying to say.

 

“Actually, I’ve been thinking about it a lot. As for how to treat mother now.”

 

“…So, have you come to a conclusion?”

 

Handling the Duke and knights was relatively simple, but handling Nick wasn’t as easy as she thought.

 

It was a point she did not expect, but during the past 7 years, Nick seems to have formed a lot of attachment to her alone.

 

When the child first came to her and clung to her, she was embarrassed, but now she can understand his feelings.

 

The reason she didn’t kick Nick out as she did the Duke was because she still felt sorry for the kid. It was because she couldn’t ignore him.

 

Still, she has no intention of going back to the Duke’s house. But she could give a side to the child who came all the way here.

 

Even if that child’s heart can be filled even a little. It wasn’t that difficult.

 

“It’s not fully organized yet, but I realized one thing. I need to think about my mother’s position a little more.”

 

“…”

 

“I heard mother drew that picture”.

 

When she looked at Nick at the returned question, the child’s gaze turned to the front.

 

To be precise, to the pictures she drew on the wall.

 

“How did you know that?”

 

“The Third Prince, His Highness, told me. And he scolded me hard.”

 

Nick’s words continued.

 

“Now that I have come of age, I thought I was an adult. So I made up my mind and came to find my mother. But as I listened to what he said, I realized. I am not an adult yet.”

 

Nick smiled bitterly.

 

“I didn’t even think about my mother’s position, and I just came here and was just messing around. My mother has great talent, and I didn’t even know I was blocking her path.”

 

“…”

 

“So now I will try to keep my distance from my mother. Because I don’t want to be a hindrance to mother.”

 

It’s weird.

 

She felt happy to see the child recounting what he felt.

 

Unknowingly, she stroked the boy’s head, and Nick looked back at her with round eyes.

 

She smiled.

 

“It’s just that I’m happy. I think you grew up safely.”

 

“…”

 

“I’m glad you grew up so well.”

 

“… I’m sorry. I haven’t been able to understand mother’s point of view.”

 

Nick said to Cassia with his eyes wide open. Cassia shook her head.

 

“I’m okay. That’s not what it means. That’s because it’s amazing how hard you thought about it. It was just quite mature.”

 

“…”

 

“I want you to act the way you think and decide, Nick. It’s good to get advice from others, but you don’t have to follow them either. You can stay here if you want to stay longer. I understand your heart. I don’t mind because I’m fine.”

 

Of course, Nick’s presence here did not serve her original purpose of severing ties with the Duke.

 

But oddly enough, Nick was fine. At this level, she thought it would be okay for him to stay with her.

 

As she was thinking about it, at some point, she realized. That this kind of relationship was what she originally wanted.

 

That this was the relationship, she expected from them as she entered Diana’s family.

 

Yes, that’s precisely the relationship she was looking for.

 

No more, no less, just this kind of relationship.

 

In place of Diana, she takes care of the children she left behind, and the children receive emotional support from her as they grow into adults.

 

They were too clumsy to have this kind of relationship. And they were so close.

 

“I… Now I think I know something. How should I deal with my mother?”

 

Nick seemed to be thinking the same thing as Cassia. The boy looked at her.

“Right now, it’s really nice. I should’ve stayed like this with my mom earlier.”

 

It was a matter of understanding each other a little bit. Nick’s words scattered bitterly in the air.

 

* * *

 

Nick eventually chose to leave.

 

On the evening of their conversation, Nick seemed to have been thinking all night seriously.

 

About which of the two options Cassia gave Nick to choose.

 

The child watched the dawn rise and started packing.

 

Early in the morning, the boy was standing in front of her, dressed to leave.

 

“I will go now. I’m sorry that I had to leave at a time when you are very busy.”

 

“It’s okay. If I am swamped, I can find a new person to work here. Rather, is this really your decision?”

 

Worried that he might regret it, Cassia asked one last time.

 

But Nick nodded his head with a somewhat relieved expression.

 

“Yes, this is my decision.”

***