My Stepmom is Too Pretty, and It’s Troubling Me – Chapter 76

“Oh, really? Is Camelia about to enter the Academy now?”

“Yes, she’s set to enroll next year.”

“Hmm… I guess even the Baron families are officially attending the Academy now? Back in my day, it was common for Baron families to send their daughters as maids for Count families.”

“Well, well, Leonhardt’s family isn’t your average Baron family, you know.”

Rosalyn was quietly observing, while only Alexandra and I were engaged in conversation.

Initially, we hadn’t talked about such things, but did my bragging about my earrings pique their interest somehow?

Alexandra, perhaps a bit annoyed, kept trying to make conversation with me.

“Is Camelia taking an entrance exam to get into the Academy? Usually only commoners or nobles who weren’t invited do that.”

“Of course not. Thanks to the Rose Family, our family’s reputation has improved quite a bit over the last four years. Naturally, we received a letter from the Academy.”

She said it with a smile. Whether they liked it or not, our family’s status had certainly risen because of the Rose Family.

It was true that compared to the past, our standing had definitely improved.

From being treated like rats before, now we were probably… evaluated as something like a snakelet?

I wasn’t particularly concerned about public opinion, and since the judgments were always similar, I didn’t pay much attention anyway.

“Heh.”

“…Tch.”

“Oh, by the way, Aunt Alexandra, how was your time at the Academy? Mom seemed to have had a good time.”

“The Academy…?”

“Oh… I guess it’s been about ten years, so you might not remember very well…?”

There was a bit of an age difference between Rosalyn and me, but Alexandra was older than both of us.

Had it really been about ten years since she graduated from the Academy?

“…I do remember.”

“Oh, really?”

“…It’s not like Rosalyn and I have a huge age difference. Tch…”

“Well, then, that’s a relief!”

Just observing Alexandra’s reaction was honestly amusing.

Although she was older than Rosalyn, she still felt somewhat less mature, considering she was probably only in her early twenties.

She felt less grown-up than Rosalyn, who had just turned twenty?

“I only graduated from the Academy seven years ago. Rosalyn, how exactly did you educate your daughter all this time?”

“Ah… I’m sorry, sister. Camelia…?”

“I’m sorry. I just wanted to get closer to you, Aunt… so I tried to make a little joke… I’m really sorry…”

“Oh, no…”

She was just twelve.

At a mere twelve years old, she was about to enter the Academy next year, still a child.

Whenever she met other adult nobles, she was often treated like a kid.

Baron Nieshista saw me as a business partner, but still, there were moments he would treat me like a kid since I was the same age as his daughter, Ella.

Well… many other business partners treated me that way often enough, too.

Anyway, treating a child seriously is… really ugly, isn’t it?

Of course, I already had shown a lack of respect to Alexandra, but thankfully it didn’t go too badly.

“…Sigh.”

“If I upset you, I truly apologize, Aunt.”

“…What was your initial question again?”

“I was wondering how you spent your time at the Academy…”

I spoke with an overly… pitiful expression.

I had slightly increased the sparkle in my eyes through a yawn.

“…Right, about the Academy.”

“Yes…”

Could that be the reason?

Moments ago, the angry look on Alexandra’s face seemed to disappear, and she started to respond to my question with a deep sigh.

Honestly… being young, pretty, and cute seemed to be beneficial in many ways.

Especially when it came to older people like me.

“I did enter the Academy two years earlier than Rosalyn, but I just had a pretty normal time.”

Anyway, thus began Alexandra’s story about her time at the Academy.

Overall, it was a pretty ordinary tale.

I had previously asked Rosalyn about her time at the Academy too, and especially recently, I couldn’t help but learn a lot about it due to Karen.

“Unlike Rosalyn, who quietly went through the Academy, I joined the student council.”

“Wow…”

“Yeah, that’s a given for a Count’s daughter, you know? Rosalyn was supposed to join too, but she missed her chance.”

“Haha… That did happen.”

“Tch… It’s not like being in the student council is that difficult. You should’ve joined.”

“It just wasn’t for me.”

“Well, then why did you end up getting so involved at the Academy without joining the council?”

“Haha…”

I didn’t know the story, but somehow Rosalyn and Alexandra started chatting about their own time at the Academy.

Rosalyn didn’t seem uncomfortable with the topic, more like she couldn’t argue back.

I was worried about what would happen if either of them felt uncomfortable during the conversation, but luckily, that didn’t seem to occur.

Perhaps it was the topic that made it so?

Anyway, as we continued talking, we reached a point.

“Um… Is it okay if I take a quick trip to the restroom?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll be right back. Camelia? Make sure to chat nicely with your sister.”

“…Okay.”

Suddenly, Rosalyn had to go to the restroom.

Wait, this wasn’t part of the plan.

“……..”


“……..”

So, it was just Alexandra and me left.

Things felt a bit awkward now.

Honestly, my original plan was to keep Rosalyn’s spirits low if things turned sour.

“Hmm…”

“…What’s wrong?”

Alexandra was now looking at me silently.

What was she thinking?

“Have you talked to sister Christina?”

“…Christina?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh… No. That was the first time I met her yesterday.”

“Right, that makes sense.”

I wasn’t sure why she was asking about Christina, but I hadn’t talked to her at all.

Seeing as we literally just met yesterday, that was understandable.

Of course, I realized immediately she wasn’t a particularly nice person.

“…You.”

Unlike before when she called me politely, Alexandra’s tone shifted.

Everything felt different now.

“Remember this clearly.”

“…What is it?”

“Never be alone with sister Christina.”

“Excuse me?”

“I don’t know what she’s thinking, but don’t treat Christina the way you treat me.”

“……”

Alexandra was giving me a serious warning, her expression grave, like she really meant it.

I didn’t know why she was warning me like this, but at least it didn’t seem like she was just talking nonsense.

I knew a little about what kind of person Christina was…

But I never expected a warning coming from Alexandra.

“…Why are you warning me about this?”

“…How much do you really know about Rosalyn?”

“I think I know pretty much everything there is to know.”

I had ended up finding out some things along the way.

For now at least… I realized a few important things.

“…Aunt, or rather, no. I already know about Christina’s background.”

“…What?”

“Why the surprise? Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

Rosalyn had said not to mention it to anyone.

But she already knew that Rosalyn was a love child.

And since the topic had already started, I didn’t see a reason to hide it.

“…Well, I guess it’s easier to talk if you know.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Alexandra leaned on the table, chin resting in her hand, looking at me again.

“This is a conversation we can only have because there are no other maids around.”

“Okay.”

“And Rosalyn’s not here either.”

“Please hurry. Mom should be back soon.”

“Right… good point.”

From the moment I arrived at the Rose Family until just now, her demeanor was drastically different.

Earlier, she had come off as some foolish villainess type, but now, she was a completely different person.

“…Right now, the Rose Family belongs to sister Christina.”

“…?”

“Even though father is the head of the family and my older brother is the first son, the real power in the Rose Family is with sister Christina.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

I genuinely had no clue why she brought this topic up.

Why reveal that Christina was the hidden power?

From the very first day…

It was all rather strange how she was suddenly treating me differently.

“Did you not like mom and me all this time?”

“I don’t dislike you. I’ve just been treating you that way on purpose.”

“………”

“Well, father and mother are different from me.”

“…So what’s your point?”

It seemed like Rosalyn would come back any moment now.

It felt like continuing this conversation would lead to a mess of complications.

Considering she had brought this up when Rosalyn left, it was indeed peculiar.

“Whatever you are thinking, just don’t get too involved with sister Christina.”

“Like how you treat Alexandra?”

“Right.”

“…Do you have plans for dinner tonight?”

“I guess I should have some.”

“I’m glad we’re getting to talk so quickly.”

Initially, I had thought she was just some airheaded noble lady from a fallen family with a bad temper, but I decided I needed to revise that judgment.

It was a very sudden change of circumstance, but for now, I wrapped up the conversation.

“Camellia, were you talking nicely?”

“Oh, mother.”

As soon as we finished talking, Rosalyn returned.

I was really relieved we managed to wrap it up right before she showed up.

I felt a bit worried that there was still so much I didn’t know about the Rose Family.