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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: A Rainy Day Performance
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Lost in thought, Lumina suddenly made a suggestion.
“Hey. I've grown curious about your family. Do you mind if I come along?”
“W-What?”
Brandon was a genius actor.
The conversation between Brandon and Lumina was following a pre-written script.
In other words, they both knew exactly how this conversation would unfold.
And yet, Brandon acted genuinely flustered.
“But you said it was paid leave...”
Just look at him now.
His eyes darted about, lost and uncertain.
He looked like a low-level employee whose vacation had been unjustly revoked by his boss.
“I'll double your pay.”
“Even if it's double...”
That’s a bit...
Hannah (Brandon) gave a lukewarm response.
It seemed that for a maid who worked around the clock, save for when she slept, nothing was more precious than a day off.
But that was only true if the Hannah before them was a real maid.
*‘We already agreed to go out together!’*
*‘Oh, right! I got so into character that I forgot.’*
The two mouthed words to each other behind Ash's back before coming to their senses.
“How about ten times the pay? I'll talk to the head maid. The weather is so nice today, so let's go pay our respects together!”
“Yes! I'd love to!”
Rumble, CRACK—!
As if in response to their shouts, a loud clap of thunder echoed through the sky.
And raindrops began to beat refreshingly against the window.
*‘The weather isn't nice at all.’*
Ash thought blankly, watching Lumina and Hannah.
***
“I'll speak to Lady Olivia about the outing.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Brandon would surely smooth things over.
Lumina trusted that he could persuade Olivia much more cleanly than she could, and sent him on his way.
Thump, thump—.
Brandon, wearing Hannah's face, strode confidently down the hall.
Normally, at this hour, Olivia would be assisting Lucius.
But on a rainy day like today, things were different.
Knowing the place where Olivia often rested alone on days like this, Brandon opened the door with practiced ease.
“Olivia. I came because I have something to discuss. Are you busy?”
“Darling? I'm not busy, so feel free to talk.”
A break room.
Olivia, who had been sitting alone on the sofa, set down the documents she was reviewing.
The thick stack of papers beside her suggested she was busy, but not so busy that she would turn away her beloved husband.
“What brings you here at this hour? Shouldn't you be attending to the young lady?”
“I'm actually here about the young lady.”
Brandon explained the situation.
The bottom line was that he could quickly arrange for a fake family, so he would be going out with Lumina.
As Olivia listened to Brandon, her expression darkened.
“Honey?”
“She never mentioned meeting my family...”
Olivia muttered gloomily.
“Why would she only make such an offer to you?!”
“Now, honey.”
“Don't tell me I've lost my spot as her favorite to you. Last time, she definitely said I was the only one. Ah! But that was before she met you.”
“...”
“The younger you are, the more likely it is for your favorite person to change. Has her affection for me cooled because we've been spending so much time apart? If I go back to being the young lady's personal maid, will her affection return?”
“N-No, honey. Just calm down.”
“How can I possibly be calm right now?!”
She was so agitated, she spoke in such a rapid-fire burst that he worried if she was even stopping to breathe.
“She's probably just bored because it suddenly started raining. Kids her age can't sit still, you know.”
The idea of the mature Lumina being unable to sit still.
Brandon felt a sense of dissonance even as he said it.
However, Olivia was completely convinced.
Unlike the innocent facade she showed Lucius, Olivia, and the other maids, Lumina tended to reveal her true personality in front of Brandon.
Therefore, there was a slight difference between the Lumina that Olivia knew and the Lumina that Brandon knew.
Though in Olivia's case, she was also wearing rose-colored glasses.
“You're right. It's probably better for her to be out on a day like this than cooped up in this gloomy mansion.”
Olivia gazed out the window, her face filled with concern.
Brandon's expression grew serious as well.
“How's the master?”
“Same as usual. With the sudden rain, he's drawn all the curtains and is sipping Calvados by himself. The rain looks like it'll stop soon, but...”
Olivia let out a small, worried sigh.
“On days like this, I worry about the young master, too.”
It must have started on the day Lucius committed the massacre.
On rainy days, the Heart father and son were always in worse shape than usual.
“But, darling.”
“Yes?”
“You've seemed strangely busy lately.”
“Huh? Well, I'm always busy.”
“That's true. But I've known you for years. You don't think I'd bring this up for no reason, do you?”
A wife's intuition was sharp.
A cold sweat trickled down Brandon's back.
“The Duke hasn't given you any special orders, yet you keep going out, even at night. We're finally seeing each other again after you finished that important mission, but this is all very strange.”
Olivia narrowed her eyes, studying Brandon carefully.
Even for a man called the master of disguise, in front of his beloved wife, he was just a man.
“Don't tell me your love has faded? You're busy meeting another woman...”
“How could I ever do that to you!”
“Then where do you keep going?”
Brandon could lie smoothly and without hesitation in front of others.
But whenever he was in front of Olivia, it was as if he were muzzled, making it difficult to lie.
Brandon tried his best to hide his discomfort and stall for time.
“Could it be... that the Duke gave you a mission behind my back?”
“Yes! That's it!”
Olivia had created the perfect excuse for him.
Telling a detailed lie was difficult, but he could manage a simple affirmation by sacrificing his conscience.
“I'm taking Ash with me, so don't worry! Ah, our little lady must be waiting. I have to go, honey! See you later!”
After planting a quick peck on Olivia's cheek, Brandon scurried out of there.
***
Since it was raining, Lumina had to make thorough preparations before leaving.
Worried that the small, fragile young lady might catch a cold, everyone bustled about, bringing her clothes.
After putting their heads together, they chose a bright yellow raincoat.
It was an adorable bumblebee-themed raincoat with black vertical stripes.
Once she had put on the matching bright yellow rain boots, the maids attending to her let out small squeals. “Kyaa!”
In her raincoat, Lumina looked like a fuzzy bumblebee with a plump bottom.
“My lady, is there any color that doesn't suit you?”
“To think that even yellow looks this good on you! It's as if you were born holding the color yellow!”
Everyone fussed over how cute she was, their faces wreathed in soft smiles.
Leaving this enthusiastic reaction behind, Lumina firmly gripped her yellow umbrella and headed to the meeting spot with Hannah (Brandon) and Ash in tow.
The carriage stopped at the train station.
The moment they stepped onto the ground, Hannah (Brandon) pulled Ash aside, out of Lumina's sight.
“Ash.”
“...Father?”
“Yes, I am your father.”
Hannah, who looked like a typical career maid, spoke with a serious tone and gaze.
“I see.”
Ash accepted it calmly.
His father's face changed so often that he had been exposed to all sorts of situations since he was a child.
He had reached a point where he would believe even a passing child who claimed, “I am your father.”
Of course, his father was thorough and always gave him a clue when revealing his identity.
Things like a distinctive way of speaking or a particular habit.
“The family story was made up on the spot, so I just hired some people to act the part. Even if their acting is awkward, just pretend you don't notice.”
“Understood, Father.”
From that moment on, Ash started to become conscious of Brandon's presence.
He had to pretend not to know. Pretend.
Once he became conscious of it, his actions became unnatural.
Just then, the family Brandon had hired approached them.
“Young Lady. This is my mother, Allison. And this is my younger sister, Erica.”
“I. see. Han. nah. And. who. is. this. a. dor. a. ble. lit. tle. la. dy? I thought you'd brought a bumblebee with you.”
The last part seemed genuine, as Erica's mother, Allison, said it in a slightly softer tone.
“She is the young lady of the Heart ducal family, whom I serve! The recent news of the Young Duke's marriage has been the talk of the capital, but it seems the news hasn't reached your hometown yet.”
Compared to them, Brandon's performance was naturalistic. It was so convincing you could believe it wasn't acting, but just his daily life.
“I'm very close with Hannah, so I tagged along... If this is inconvenient, should I leave?”
Even though she had orchestrated this whole thing just to meet Erica and her mother, Lumina acted nonchalantly, as if she had come without any particular plan.
“N-No.”
“I-It's not inconvenient at all!”
They looked extremely inconvenienced.
The mother and daughter acted as if they were sitting on pins and needles.
It was a plausible reaction for a meeting between a noble lady and a commoner maid's family, so in that respect, it didn't seem like acting.
“Really? Then we should move somewhere we can catch up properly!”
Lumina exclaimed innocently.
Erica and Allison had known this was coming, yet their faces were ashen.
It was because the acting was just too difficult.
With a group of bad actors, everyone was floundering.
However, Lumina, satisfied that her plan was proceeding smoothly, wore a relaxed smile that no one else could see.
