She's Not Our Daughter! Ch 8

Is This Person a Wicked Mother-in-Law?

[Lexel] "Lady Sierra, it is Lexel, the Head Maid."

Lexel, the Head Maid of the Duke of Ideos, visited their quarters. Sierra hurriedly adjusted her indoor dress and stood.

[Sierra] "Come in! What brings you here?"

The door opened, and Lexel stepped inside cautiously.

[Lexel] "I am Lexel, the Head Maid of this mansion. Please call for me as you wish."

The Head Maid. Even if her rank remained low, she held the status of a fallen noble. For a Ducal household, her position carried significant weight.

Sierra spoke carefully.

[Sierra] "Please, speak casually to me."

[Lexel] "I can't. His Grace recognized you as a precious guest."

Seeing the Head Maid's firm refusal, Cassius evidently provided thorough instructions. Sierra wondered if this situation could ever resolve itself.

Dizziness clouded Sierra's mind. She watched the Head Maid with a questioning gaze.

[Sierra] "Then, for what reason......"

[Lexel] "That is......"

She remained a seasoned professional. What could make such a woman hesitate?

[Lexel] "Lady Sierra, you must meet the Grand Madam immediately."

The Grand Madam? Who is that?

Noticing Sierra's confusion, the maid whispered.

[Lexel] "The Marchioness Dowager Mails. She manages the household."

Sierra tucked the blanket around Hanael and stepped out the door.

---

Watching Sierra, the Head Maid predicted a storm would soon engulf the Ideos Mansion.

Two figures held power in this house.

First, of course, the current Duke, Cassius Ideos.

The other was the Marchioness Dowager Mails, known as the Grand Madam. She was the older sister of the late Duchess and managed the vacant position of the household's mistress.

Until now, the maids serving the Grand Madam walked on thin ice. Her personality remained frostily cold.

Fortunately, she performed her duties perfectly. The Grand Madam possessed sharp skills and cherished her nephew, Cassius Ideos, despite lacking a direct blood relation to his father's line. Thus, she managed the Ideos family diligently without major conflict with Cassius.

The usually indifferent Duke left the household management entirely to her. This gesture showed respect for the Grand Madam, who dedicated over a decade to the Ideos name.

Thanks to their harmony, the family's reputation and internal state remained flawless.

But would that continue now that Sierra had arrived?

In addition to her sharp temper, the Grand Madam earned fame in high society as a wicked wife and a cruel mother-in-law.

Everyone felt certain that someone as arrogant as the Grand Madam would never accept a commoner like Sierra.

When Lexel first learned of Sierra's arrival, she nervously reported it.

The Head Maid knew she poked a sensitive nerve.

As expected, the Grand Madam's face turned deathly pale.

[G. Madam] "The Duke brought a...... commoner woman? His first love?"

The Head Maid bowed, expecting a shout of rage.

[Lexel] "Yes. Her name is Sierra. I brought her profile, Grand Madam."

[G. Madam] "I remember. Sierra......"

[Lexel] "Yes, yes. Rumors say she graduated from the Academy's Pharmacy department......"

The Grand Madam's hands trembled as she took the profile with a blunt expression.

[G. Madam] "She is the child I chased away with these two hands."

The maids, unaware of such secrets, widened their eyes.

The Grand Madam looked ghostly. Since the person she expelled returned, her sharp temper would surely ignite.

The maids trembled, foreseeing a bloodbath.

The Head Maid bowed and glanced up cautiously.

[G. Madam] "Leave."

The air in the Irene Room, where the Grand Madam stayed, grew exceptionally cold.

---

Unaware of the Head Maid's worry, Sierra walked down the hallway without much concern.

A formal guest in a noble mansion must pass a specific hurdle: tea time with the mistress of the house.

After unpacking and putting Hanael to sleep, Sierra decided to greet the household's mistress.

Cassius told her she didn't need to and should do whatever she wanted, but she disagreed. If she, a mere commoner, offended the Grand Madam, disaster might strike!

Cassius treated her well now, but who knew what would happen in three months once he realized his mistake?

I must bow low to the Grand Madam. Absolutely!

The Grand Madam acted like a good person when we met once.

Sierra smiled warmly, recalling a kind memory from five years ago.

Back then, she felt dazed after her night with Cassius. Then, the Grand Madam appeared like a comet. She offered Sierra seed money to break up with him.

She never slapped Sierra. She handed over the money elegantly and politely! The amount was staggering.

However, one regret remained. Though they broke up then, Sierra now stood before her again after five years......

I should apologize. I will ensure she stays away from Hanael. If I prostrate myself immediately, she wouldn't slap me, right?

She squeezed her eyes shut and arrived at the door of the Irene Room.

A maid murmured a tiny monologue while avoiding eye contact.

[Maid] "G-good luck......"

What happened?

Before she could ask, the door opened. Sierra watched the maid with a confused expression and then tilted her head.

Finally, the time arrived to meet the Grand Madam.

---

[Sierra] "Hello. It has been a long time."

[G. Madam] "Yes, Sierra. Sit."

The stiff Grand Madam and Sierra sat across from each other at the tea table. Finger foods like madeleines, financiers, eclairs, and fromage were piled high on the table.

What is this?

Strawberry senbei, which looked out of place in a noble mansion, caught her eye.

Sierra folded her hands over her knees and smiled inwardly, lost in memory.

That is the snack I ate so much of at the Academy that I felt sick every day.

This mansion felt strange. It seemed customized to Sierra's preferences.

Seeing it again brings back old memories.

Meanwhile, the Grand Madam looked up. She waited five years for this exact moment.

Who was the Grand Madam?

She maintained the mansion as its mistress after Cassius left for the monster war. She watched Cassius wither away after his return, unable to forget Sierra.

Arrogance filled her noble bones.

Yet, watching Cassius break, she felt the tragedy her actions inflicted upon him.

Cassius never cried, even when people mocked him as a bastard. When he finally shed tears, her heart nearly stopped.

The way he searched for Sierra like a madman, his obsession with finding every commoner pharmacist......

The Grand Madam felt responsible for failing to understand her nephew's heart.

Clatter!

A coffee cup fell to the floor. Her hands shook violently.

Oh? Why is she acting like that?

The Grand Madam whispered to the servant in a trembling voice.

[G. Madam] "Clean it."

[Servant] "Yes, Madam."

The servant squeezed their eyes shut, expecting this. They felt the broken glass mirrored the relationship between Sierra and the Grand Madam.

The Grand Madam surely intended to discipline Sierra!

However, contrary to the servant's guess, the Grand Madam's expression looked terrible.

[G. Madam] "Sierra...... let us speak."

The servant cleared the shattered cup. Silence hovered over the table.

The Grand Madam sighed softly, reflecting on five years ago. The day she discovered the romance between Sierra and Cassius remained vivid in her mind.

*****

Five years ago, inside a small cafe.

The Grand Madam dismissed her following maid and sat opposite Sierra.

The cafe owner served unsweetened coffee, tea, and desserts with trembling hands. Serving a noble lady was a daunting task for someone used to commoners.

Aware of this, the Grand Madam crossed her arms arrogantly and studied Sierra from head to toe.

[Sierra] "What brings you to see me?"

Sierra looked painfully thin. Though she possessed great beauty, she appeared so kind that she might burst into tears at any moment.

Pressuring such a lovely, young girl to leave her nephew would make her the villain. But she was a proud noble, and the opponent was a commoner, an obstacle to the family.

The Grand Madam whispered to Sierra with an arrogant expression.

[G. Madam] "I will speak directly."

[Sierra] "......Yes?"

Ignoring Sierra's fragile frame and pale cheeks, the Grand Madam looked away and spoke.

[G. Madam] "Break up with Cassius."

Sierra's gaze shook instantly.

[Sierra] "Pardon......?"

The Grand Madam clicked her tongue inwardly at the stunned response. Sierra looked so delicate that even the heart of high society's cruelest empress felt a prick of conscience. Sierra looked ready to collapse.

The Grand Madam sighed internally but maintained her cold facade. She handed over a white envelope and repeated her demand.

[G. Madam] "I included enough. Take it and never involve yourself with our family again."

Seeing Sierra's lips move, the Grand Madam wondered if she should say more.

Sierra spoke first. The Madam watched her lips intently, her palms sweating.

[Sierra] "Yes, I understand."

Sierra even wore a faint smile.

As if telling her not to worry. As if she was fine...…

That was impossible, yet that ended it.

The Grand Madam studied Sierra's expression. Then, it happened.

Sierra, who bowed with a graceful face as the Grand Madam left, suddenly gagged.

[Sierra] "Ugh."

[G. Madam] "What......?"

Sierra gagged, her face pale.

[Sierra] "Ah, it is nothing. Nothing for you to worry about, Madam."

Her tone remained gentle, matching her kind face. At that time, the Grand Madam judged Sierra as a good child for a commoner.

[G. Madam] "......Very well."

The Grand Madam stood and glanced at Sierra. She left coldly, thinking it was nothing.

Back then, a nagging feeling that she missed something persisted, but she ignored it.

That decision made her heart ache with regret ever since. She should never have separated them. If she knew Sierra was pregnant, she never would have left so coldly after seeing her gag......

The Grand Madam spent five long years regretting her cruelty toward the pregnant woman.

Vowing never to repeat her mistakes, the Grand Madam's eyes flashed.

Unlike the rumors in the mansion that she would mistreat Sierra, to her, Sierra was now a second Cassius Ideos.

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