Chapter 144

The memory alteration was successful.

However, there’s no way to know if it will be undone later.

We observed Alexander a bit longer to see if he showed any suspicious behavior.

But for months, Alexander conducted his search for the Holy Maiden quietly, showing no interest in me at all.

To Alexander, I became someone to be avoided for some reason, and a woman with no chance of being the Holy Maiden at all.

Alexander soon quit his temporary teaching position at St. Sophia.

From now on, it seems that Alexander and I will have no reason to cross paths in each other’s lives.

Probably.

“A wedding? Ha. What a thing.”

As time passed and Tia’s second semester began, a letter arrived at Ryuba Tavern.

It was news that Irina was getting married.

The partner was, of course, the lord who decided to adopt Irina’s children and take her as a concubine.

When I heard that Irina was getting married while heavily pregnant, my expression crumpled, but once I heard the reason, I understood.

From the lord’s perspective, sneaking in a concubine was something done without the knowledge of the family, but apparently, the elders found out about Irina’s existence.

So, in a hurry, they decided to have the wedding and make it irreversible while the elder was throwing a fit…

“That lord must have been more serious about Irina than I thought.”

What kind of youthful love escapade is this?

I was a bit taken aback, but it seemed that there was a determination not to treat Irina as anything less.

Watching a married man act like this made me frown a bit as a modern person, but still.

“Congratulations, Irina.”

“Congratulations on your wedding, Aunt!”

“Oh my, is this my adorable Tia?”

Since it was a surprise wedding, the scale was quite modest.

Of course, this was based on noble standards, so it looked sufficiently extravagant to me.

Despite being heavily pregnant, Irina was more beautiful than ever.

Is this the power of wedding makeup?

‘Will I look this pretty if I get married someday and wear makeup and a wedding dress…’

I couldn’t help but think that.

I was startled and slapped myself to quickly forget it.

Since it was a marriage that didn’t have the support of the family, there weren’t many guests from the groom’s side.

Excluding the lord’s main wife, it looked like only about twenty friends gathered.

In contrast, the bride’s side had over fifty guests, most of whom were former colleagues from the tavern, creating a somewhat odd picture.

After the wedding was successfully concluded, most of the guests left, but Irina, the innkeeper, Sasha, and I managed to take a moment to talk.

“But Tia doesn’t seem to have grown much? She was growing like a weed as a baby, but why is she like this lately?”

“Hm? Tia hasn’t grown much? Should I grow more?”

“No, I was saying it’s good that you’re not growing too much.”

“But I’m already about the same height as you…?”

“You’ll soon surpass my height.”

Considering how much Tia had grown in the past, everyone must have imagined Tia being as tall as I am.

Recently, for some unknown reason, her growth had slowed down significantly, and that was a huge relief.

If she had kept growing at the same speed as when she was little and had turned into an adult, I would have been crushed.

“Irina. You look happy.”

“I am happy. Spending time with the kids brought us closer again. The lord and his wife have been good to me too.”

“The lord’s wife has been looking distressed since earlier, though?”

“Haha. It’s understandable for all the main wives to have such expressions while watching the wedding of a concubine.”

I was really glad.

Extremely glad.

When I first heard that Irina was pregnant with the lord’s child, I thought she would be sold into a noble family and treated like a baby-making machine.

To my surprise, Irina looked happy now, which was a relief.

“Mother! Can we go play in the forest?”

“No. You can only play where the adults can see you. Oh, by the way, greet over here. This is Julia…”

The brother and sister playing with the ball rushed over to Irina.

They were Irina’s adopted children…

They called her “Mother.”

Though their relationship seemed a bit awkward still, seeing them recognize her as their mother showed that their bond was likely improving.

“Want to play together?”

“Hm? Ah, no…”

They were kids around Tia’s age.

I expected them to eagerly want to play, but Tia hesitated and shook her head.

Perhaps this place feels a bit unfamiliar to her.

Today, it seemed like Tia was a bit down.

Soon after, Irina’s children, who politely bowed to greet us, ran off while kicking the ball, and we watched their backs with warm smiles.

“I’m glad to see you getting along with the kids. I remember them crying and not recognizing you.”

“Please don’t bring that up, Master…”

“Hahahaha.”

“By the way, isn’t Julia getting married?”

“What? Me? Nah. I have to have someone to marry.”

“Why wouldn’t you have someone?”

“…”

Before I knew it, everyone’s attention was focused on me.

Someone to marry, huh.

It’s not that I don’t have anyone at all.

There is a man who has been following me around saying he wants to marry me.

But there’s an issue they don’t know.

I am, in fact, a woman.

Of course, that man has approached me knowing I’m a woman and said it was okay…

Sigh. I’m so troubled.

“I’m busy enough with just Tia.”

“I’m not saying you have to have kids. You’re not going to work in Dragania for a thousand years, right? What do you plan to do when you grow older?”

“I, I… plan to learn about magic and miracles to conduct research.”

“Hm. Even if you manage to make money with that, Tia will leave home someday. Are you just going to be on your own? Doing boring research?”

“…”

I was at a loss for words.

As far as I know, there’s currently no way to return to the original world.

Discounting the random gacha of dying from drinking poison, I’ll ultimately have to live forever in this world.

As Irina said, Tia will someday either marry or leave home.

I don’t know what I will be doing then, but will I really be happy alone?

Won’t I feel lonely?

Can I live without relying on anyone?

As those thoughts began to overwhelm me, suddenly the face of the duke flashed through my mind repeatedly.

“You don’t seem to need it that urgently. Sigh. You’re still young.”

“Hahaha…”

“Still, if you do get married, having a child is a good idea. Of course, Tia is a precious daughter, but once you experience pregnancy, the feelings are different.”

“…”

She is my daughter, born from the pain of my own womb.

I wanted to retort back, but I bit my lip and held it in.

I pulled Tia, whose shoulders tilted slightly, closer for a hug.

At that moment, we heard the sound of a carriage screeching to a halt.

“Hey, you! You said so, yet you still went ahead with the wedding!”

“Oh dear.”

The old men who got off the carriage shouted as they rushed in.

Are those the elders of the lord’s family?

It seems they heard about the surprise wedding too late and rushed over.

Seeing that, Irina was startled and clutched her wedding dress, standing up abruptly.

“Sorry. I have to run to the honeymoon quickly.”

“Have a good trip.”

“Thanks for coming, everyone!”

With that, Irina escaped with the lord while avoiding the elders, leaving behind only a chaotic wedding venue.

What a strange wedding this was, I thought.

*

“Mmmmmmm…”

“What’s wrong, Tia? Are you sick?”

“Of course, she wouldn’t be sick…”

The next morning, Tia came to school and lay on her desk, making strange sounds repeatedly.

She couldn’t shake off yesterday’s events and felt fidgety.

“Of course, Tia is a precious daughter, but once you experience pregnancy, the feelings are different.”

Those were Irina’s words.

I didn’t not understand what she meant.

I knew very well that my mother raised me as her own child, having picked me up.

It wasn’t something to be problematic.

But that was only from Tia’s point of view; the moment she started considering her mother’s perspective, her feelings became strange.

“Mother raised me diligently all on her own, without a husband.”

In truth, it was partly a misunderstanding, partly reality.

My mother raised me without any difference from her biological child, but I couldn’t help but wonder if she had sacrificed living her own life because of it.

My mother hadn’t met any men, and she had never gotten married.

I had only heard her dream of wanting to learn magic and miracles and conduct research yesterday for the first time.

She had been raising me while giving up that dream.

“What if my mother bears a child and gives birth? What will Tia feel…?”

Suddenly, that worry crossed my mind.

Didn’t Irina say so?

That once you experience pregnancy, the feelings are different.

When my mother gives birth to a child of her own later, will she love that child way more than me?

Even though I knew that my mother wouldn’t do that, a sense of inexplicable anxiety continued to wash over Tia.

“Okay. Be careful heading home, everyone.”

“Eh?”

When I finally snapped back to reality, school was already over.

I spent the entire day lost in those thoughts.

With a heavier heart, Tia climbed onto the carriage.

The carriage ride home was quiet.

Soon, the carriage stopped, and my mother came out to greet me with a happy face.

“M…”

But as soon as Tia saw her, she felt an overwhelming sense of displeasure.

My mother used to frequently take half days off to go out, but these days, she was always at home.

Now that I thought about it, there was one time before when Tia whined about how she hated coming home to an empty house.

“My mother is always at home because of me…”

That time I threw a tantrum probably made her start going out less.

In reality, it was because her relationship with Alexander had come to an end, but Tia had no way of knowing that.

“Again, because of me…”

Again, my mother is making sacrifices because of me.

Because of me, my mother is giving up.

Because of me…

Filled with those thoughts, Tia turned around instead of entering the villa.

Her heart was too heavy with guilt, and she didn’t feel like facing her mother right now.

“Tia, are you going out?”

“Huh? Unexpectedly? Where are you going?”

“To meet a friend.”

“Who is your friend? Is he nearby? Can you walk there?”

“You don’t need to know…”

She just planned to go out for a bit to get some fresh air.

But when my mother wouldn’t let her go, Tia started to feel frustrated.

Why does she care so much for someone who’s not even her real daughter?

How can she make such sacrifices for someone who doesn’t even share her bl**d?

Overflowing with those distressed feelings, Tia blurted out.

“Shouldn’t my mother know what kind of friend I’m going to meet? Just the name…”

“Anyway, I’m not even your real mother! Why are you getting so nosy?”

“…”

I hadn’t intended to say something that harsh.

In fact, I felt way more guilty towards my mother.

But without realizing it, the words I shot out turned out to be sharp and painful.

Still feeling the need to apologize, I turned around…

“Ah…”

Julia was standing there, frozen and clutching her chest, crying.

With a hollow look as if she had been wounded more than ever, tears like chicken droppings streamed down her face.

---