Translator: Nox

Chapter 74

< 74> A New Life (5)

A week had passed since Laura came to the mansion. Mrs. Fairfax, who had been subtly observing Laura, pretending not to, was slowly reaching the limit of her curiosity. Her desire to know more about the young lady Ian had taken a liking to had exploded.

Until now, she had left Laura alone out of consideration for her to adjust to the mansion, but she could no longer bear it. She invited Laura to have tea with her in the morning during breakfast, mentioning that she would introduce her to little Ian.

Laura gladly agreed, excited at the prospect of seeing little Ian. Mrs. Fairfax sat in the drawing room and asked a servant to bring little Ian from the nursery.

While waiting, Laura handed Mrs. Fairfax something wrapped in paper. Mrs. Fairfax unwrapped it. It was a small picture book.

"What is this?"

Laura said with a shy look.

"I promised Mr. Dalton that I would give little Ian a gift someday. I made it a few months ago, but I'm only giving it to him now."

Laura had made the gift in her spare time after learning that Mr. Dalton had a young nephew. It was a fairy tale book made by selecting the most interesting fables from 『La Fontaine's Fables』, which she had read when she first learned French in girls' school.

It was completed a few months ago, but she had not been able to deliver it due to various circumstances. And as she left Pendleton Estate, she had left it in the mansion, but she remembered it just before leaving for Dunville Park and had Ann bring it safely.

Mrs. Fairfax could not hide her surprise as she flipped through the fairy tale book that Laura had handed her. Inside the book, bound in red leather, were eight fairy tales that Laura had personally transcribed. On one side was the original French, and on the other side was the English translated by Laura, and under the large letters, watercolor paintings drawn by Laura herself filled the space in a charming way.

Olivia, who was sitting next to her, leaned towards her mother to look at the book. Olivia was greatly surprised by the beautiful French embroidered on the paper. But on the outside, she asked nonchalantly as if it were nothing.

"You also speak French?"

Laura nodded.

"How much?"

"I can read and speak it. I can also have conversations."

"Did you learn from a tutor?"

"I learned it in girls' school. I was close to the native speaker teacher."

Olivia was intrigued by her answer. French was a matter of great interest that dominated her daily life. Olivia wanted to ask Laura how much she had learned and what textbooks she had used.

But Olivia was too proud to show so much interest in Laura. She nonchalantly ate only the cookies on the table as if she were not interested. But Laura could see as clearly as looking into her palm how much Olivia was agitated.

Of course, Mrs. Fairfax, who had raised Olivia for 13 years, was the same. Only Olivia firmly believed that she was hiding her feelings. The two mature women exchanged glances and laughed secretly at Olivia.

Soon, the nanny came into the drawing room with the child. Mrs. Fairfax took the child and held him. And she leaned towards Laura to show her the child. Laura involuntarily exclaimed at the sight of the baby Fairfax in front of her.

It was true that there were quite a few babies who were not cute, even though everyone said they were cute. But little Ian was a perfect baby angel in every way. Light brown curly hair, brown eyes, rosy cheeks and eyes. Plump, wriggling fingers. There was not a single place that was not cute.

Laura brought her body close to the baby, who was looking at her with snot and drool. And she called the child's name softly. The child looked at Laura quietly as if he understood her words. And soon he smiled brightly. Laura also burst into laughter. She had seen many friends' babies, but this was the first time she had seen such a lovely child.

The child reached out to Laura. Laura realized that the child was trying to grab the ribbon decoration on her clothes. Laura leaned her body closer to the child, and the child fiddled with the decoration.

"Our Ian doesn't have any shyness. He only has the same name as my uncle, but his personality is completely different."

Laura's heart fluttered as she looked at the small hand clutching the frills on her clothes.

"This is the cutest baby I've ever seen, Mrs. Fairfax."

Mrs. Fairfax handed little Ian to Laura. Laura held little Ian and showed him the fairy tale book she had made, and she also held him and played with him. The child giggled even in the unfamiliar arms.

The nanny came downstairs. It was time for the child to breastfeed. The nanny took the child away. Laura watched with regret as the nanny carried the child out of the drawing room. Mrs. Fairfax promised Laura that she would show him to her again next time.

Laura and Mrs. Fairfax talked about little Ian for a while. What season he was born in, whether he had rolled over, whether he could say 'Mom'. It was the obvious conversation that went back and forth about the baby, but it was the most enjoyable topic that a woman who liked babies and a woman who was raising a baby could share.

Meanwhile, Olivia, who neither liked nor raised babies, felt bored by the conversation between the two. She took advantage of a lull in the conversation between the two and spoke to Laura.

"Do you happen to know Christine Salmon?"

Laura flipped through the pages of her memory. Soon, she remembered a lady who often visited tea parties.

"Yes. Miss Salmon was a frequent visitor to the tea party."

"Are you close?"

"No. I only know her by sight. Is she a friend of Miss Fairfax?"

"She's my friend Lydia's cousin. She said that she often goes to tea parties at Pendleton Estate."

"Then Miss Fairfax must have known me before I came."

"Only by name."

Laura nodded. Olivia began to unravel her curiosity in earnest.

"Have you been in London society for a long time? How many years have you been there?"

Laura told her the specific number of years. Olivia blinked. It was a surprisingly long time. At that rate, she had spent almost as many years in society as she had spent in the world.

Olivia forgot her antipathy towards Laura for a moment. She always devoured the society pages of magazines and newspapers, rattling off the names of celebrities she had collected and asking if she knew them. Most of the time, Laura had greeted them or had conversations with them, and Laura had even attended their weddings, funerals, and baptisms. Laura readily told her the facts.

Olivia's heart was pounding. She felt like a huge figure was sitting in front of her.

Olivia was very interested in London society, but the only London Lady she really knew was her aunt, Janet Fairfax. Naturally, Olivia envied Janet. Miss Janet Fairfax, who was 17 years old, was still a newcomer in society, but she seemed completely grown up to Olivia, who was a 13-year-old girl.

She could not forget Janet, who had come to the mansion last Christmas and spent time there. Janet, who was adorned with London fashion from head to toe, looked confident and sophisticated.

She followed her aunt around, asking about society, and Miss Janet Fairfax told her everything in detail to her cute niece, who looked at her with admiration. More than half of Olivia's questions were things that Janet had not experienced, but Janet hid her lack of experience with imagination and speculation instead of saying she did not know.

Mrs. Fairfax said.

"Our Olivia will make her debut in London society in three years. She will be living with our young master and Miss's family."

"William Fairfax and Miss Janet?"

"Yes. Miss Janet said she would help Olivia."

"That's good. It's like living in the same house with a guardian and a mentor. You must be relieved, Mrs. Fairfax."

"Of course. They are both trustworthy gentlemen and ladies. I have no worries about Olivia's debut. She's fidgeting and impatient, though. She says she doesn't have anything properly prepared, whether it's dancing or painting."

"Mom."

Olivia tried to stop her mother, but Mrs. Fairfax pretended not to hear and continued.

"She's especially weak in French, so she's been asking me to hire a teacher every day. There was a teacher who had been in charge of Olivia for about a year, but she suddenly left to get married. Her fiancé settled down earlier than expected, she said. Thanks to that, Olivia is anxious because she can't take French classes."

Laura looked at Olivia. Her face was red, perhaps because she felt embarrassed by her mother, who was freely revealing her shortcomings.

"Miss Fairfax has a strong desire to learn. That's a good thing. But, you don't have to be too scared of London society. It won't be any different from Yorkshire society."

"Not different? But, according to my aunt Janet, most of the young ladies there speak French as fluently as their mother tongue, and they basically play more than five instruments. They are well versed in all fields from literature to philosophy."

Laura shook her head.

"Unless the society that Miss Janet Fairfax lives in is different from the society that I lived in, that's an exaggeration. It's a place where people live, and therefore people's culture and talents vary widely. Miss Fairfax, would you like to tell me about what you have learned so far?"

Olivia readily told her about her talents. Basic subjects such as literature, mathematics, and history, as well as painting, piano, and dance.

"At that level, you can debut right now."

"Really?"

"Of course. There are plenty of people who are worse than Miss Fairfax who make many friends and receive love letters from gentlemen."

Olivia was confused. It was completely different from what her aunt Janet had said. Her aunt had clearly scared her, saying that if she went to London like this, she would be embarrassed, seeing her painting and piano skills.

But Laura was much older than her aunt Janet and had been in society for a long time. Logically, it was right to trust Laura's words more than Janet's.

Olivia forgot her antipathy towards Laura and poured out all the questions she had in her heart. Whether the London society guide books that she and her friends had been circulating and the stories circulating among the young ladies before their debut were the same as the actual society, or different.