CHAPTER 047
I finished speaking and looked at my escort knight.
He had been watching us closely, wondering when to intervene.
Now! I signaled with my eyes, and the knight immediately stepped in front of my mother.
"Please stop. We cannot allow any further approach."
"What is this? I'm her mother. Selina! Selina!"
As I turned and walked away, I could hear my mother calling after me.
I just came to buy some dessert, and now this? Pretending not to hear, I quickly got into the carriage.
* * *
"You're back early?"
When I arrived at the duke's residence, Bella greeted me.
Smiling as if nothing had happened, I held up the box of desserts.
"I wanted to share this with you."
"Oh? You went to Leaven?"
Bella looked delighted at the sight of the desserts.
Good thing I bought them.
Despite the delicious meals at the duke's residence, Bella never missed the joy of eating outside food.
"Here you are!"
Michael appeared just as we were almost done with the desserts.
Bella grinned at him.
"You're lucky, Michael. Come and have some."
"Luckily, there's still some left."
I pushed a plate of éclairs towards Michael.
"Want some of this?"
"Of course, thanks."
Michael happily sat next to Bella. With him joining us, our peaceful tea time continued.
"Selina, is something wrong?"
"Huh?"
I didn't expect that question.
After some time of chatting and eating together, Michael suddenly asked.
"Why, Selina?"
Bella scrutinized my face. I widened my eyes.
"Me? I was just daydreaming."
This is my no-thoughts face!
Michael tilted his head, puzzled.
"No… you seem different than usual."
"Different?"
"When you're talking with us, you seem fine, but when you're quiet, you look a bit down."
Michael looked at me closely, his face filled with concern.
"Did something happen outside?"
"What could happen... nothing happened."
I waved my hand and smiled.
Thanks to Michael's comment, Bella also looked at me with suspicion.
"Really?"
"Of course! I just wish I could've bought more of this, but they were sold out."
They're too popular!
Pretending nothing was wrong, I took a big bite of the cake on my plate.
Keeping the encounter in the streets a secret was, in my opinion, the only choice.
I'm already living in their house because of family issues, so what if another problem arises?
If my parents hadn't stolen my belongings from Lewis, the Croft family wouldn't have found out about my relationship with my family.
Even though it's all in the past, that incident was embarrassing.
How could it not be?
But now my family was trying to reappear in my life.
I didn't want to show such a disgraceful side of myself again.
'I hope they leave soon.'
Even sipping a cool drink, my chest felt hot and stuffy.
* * *
I didn't want to see my mother again. It was always awkward and uncomfortable.
Yet, my mother appeared before me once more.
This time, with my younger brother, Levi.
I was buying books in a bookstore in the bustling area when they blocked my path.
Levi smiled slyly at me.
"Sis, long time no see."
Ugh… exhausting.
I frowned involuntarily. I couldn't muster the energy to smile back.
Just my mother being here was tiring enough, and now there's another person!
My mother's face was also scowling.
"How could you go so long without going out? Do you know how much time we wasted waiting for you to come out?"
"Were you following me?"
Of course, they were. There's no other way we'd keep running into each other when I went out.
My mother looked at me with eyes full of reproach.
"It's not like we don't have a house in the capital. We have a decent house here. Is it so difficult to let us live in it?"
The Elsner mansion was left with just caretakers after the family moved to the territory.
I had overheard the Duke mentioning it once.
"So talk to the Duke yourselves. I don't have the authority."
"Why do you think it's because of me? You never treated me sincerely, so why are you so bold about this?"
It was fortunate the alley was off the main road.
Otherwise, we'd have attracted a crowd by now.
Just my escort knight witnessing this was already embarrassing enough.
"I told you we regret it! We're sorry we didn't love you enough."
My mother's voice softened as she glanced at the escort knight.
"Think about your surname, Selina Elsner."
Her voice dropped to a whisper, almost only audible to me.
"Who gave you that name? Think about it."
I looked at my mother without replying.
"It was us. We took you in and let you live as the daughter of a count. You could mingle with the nobility and become friends with the princess, all thanks to us."
I was wondering when she would bring this up.
How unreasonable must it feel to her?
The real Elsners were all banished to the territory, while the adopted daughter stayed in the capital as an Elsner.
Today, my surname felt particularly burdensome.
Suppressing the surge of emotions, I spoke.
"This situation is ultimately because of you."
Isn't it? Though my mother frowned, I hadn't said anything out of line.
I had said all I needed to.
Time to bolt.
I quickly walked out of the alley. They didn't follow me, perhaps because the escort knight was watching.
Could anything be more draining?
That afternoon, Lewis came to find me and asked the same question Michael had.
"What's with your face?"
"My face? This is just how I look!"
"As if."
Lewis crossed his arms and looked at me.
"You look like something's bothering you. What happened?"
Is it that obvious? Michael noticed it once, and now I really tried to hide it!
Widening my eyes, Lewis spoke.
"You were like this last time too."
"Last time?"
"Yes. When your adoptive parents were pestering you, you had the same expression. What's going on this time?"
That incident...
I was at a loss for words for a moment.
Was I like this last time too? How does Lewis always catch on during these moments?
Lost for words, I stayed silent as Lewis studied me intently.
It was as if he was trying to understand what I was thinking, with a serious expression.
His bright eyes reflected my image.
Despite his tough personality, his handsome appearance made me a bit flustered when he looked at me so seriously.
No, it wasn't just a bit—it made me very flustered.
Watching Lewis with a slightly nervous heart, he spoke.
"What did I ask you to promise me before?"
"Excuse me?"
"You remember, right? I asked you to promise me something."
"Oh, that?"
"You didn't forget, did you?"
"Of course not!"
Of course, I hadn't forgotten.
Lewis once asked me to promise to share my thoughts with him openly.
"Then tell me. What's on your mind? Why do you look so down?"
"It's nothing."
I tried to change the subject with a laugh, but Lewis was persistent as usual.
"You promised. Are you going to break your word?"
"No, it's not that."
"Then tell me."
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