Chapter twenty-two
.Chapter twenty-two.
Rayman stood up as if he had been waiting. He asked: “Have Bernard and Miss Carmela returned?”
Charlotte looked with hopeful eyes at her servant's face, but the servant's face seemed somehow embarrassed.
“Yes, but Mr. Bernard…” But Rayman did not listen to the end of the servant’s words and quickly left the room.
“Okay, let's gather everyone and welcome them. Why are you standing there motionless? Agil, come quickly.”
Rayman walked quickly downstairs. His steps were very fast but it was worth it.
Recently, Rayman has been experiencing very severe pain, which has caused his hair to fall out.
When she heard the rumors about Armingba's daughter's upcoming visit, he understood what a disaster it would be if the visit was not properly organised.
“Bernard has the skill of turning around like a bear. I didn’t expect him to solve the problem himself, but he was very brave.”
Rayman did not expect this at all. But he couldn't help but feel happy that his unreliable son had managed to solve the problem properly.
As he descended the stairs that led to the foyer, Rayman saw the arriving guests and smiled ostentatiously.
Then he stopped when he noticed something strange for a moment, his steps stopped and a strange person caught his attention.
"What?"
There was something, maybe he saw something wrong. However, his steps slowed down, and he unintentionally bent his neck to see the person who had entered, feeling angry.
This was a very difficult situation for him to appear like this. The governess's daughter who was the cause of all these problems, Rena, stood one step behind Bernard.
“Rena?”
There is no doubt that he killed her?.
Next to her stood Carmilla, the woman of Armingia.
It's a very strange scene.
The shock was not limited to Rayman only.
"You…!"
A loud shocked voice came from behind him. It was Charlotte, Demeter's host. Her eyes were constantly shifting between Reyna and Arminga.
She saw the little girl and quickly closed her mouth, her cheeks were trembling as if there had been an earthquake.
Her face turned white in moments and she closed her lips tightly.
She looked like she had seen a ghost.
The soldiers who stood to the side to welcome Miss Arminga were equally shocked.
Amid the incomprehension, after the shock faded, whispers began to spread like a ringing sound.
"Reina? Is it Reina? What happened? Why is she with Miss Arminga?"
Then Bernard stepped forward and said: “Let’s go in, Dad.”
Suddenly, Rayman's face came to life as if he had woken up from a dream.
The crowd heard a teeth grinding sound similar to a deep percussion sound, and the atmosphere was tense.
He stared at Rena like he was going to kill her, and turned his head to the side as if he didn't want to see Bernard.
I barely looked at Carmela and looked at my face.
“Everyone is quiet. A dear guest has arrived, what kind of impudence!”
However, it was a meaningless rebuke because the surroundings were quiet the moment the words actually left his mouth.
He greeted Carmella with a forced smile.
“Carmilla, come quickly. Thank you for your precious timing, even after what I went through, you came. Come in, I don’t know if you like it, but I made some good tea.”
He obviously ignored Bernard and Rena, and turned his back on them.
The back of Rayman's neck, which could be seen behind Rayman's back, was so red that he wondered if it was okay to see it so clearly.
Rena's face was already pale. Her body kept trembling behind Bernard as if hesitating and hiding.
Three visitors moved into the house.
At that time, the maid's voice whispering behind them caught the ear of Rena who was standing at her far back.
“Shameless, he came to this place? With the nanny’s daughter and his fiancée.”
“His face was thick like that from the beginning.”
Rena looked back with a pale face.
Then she lowered her eyes and met the eyes of the maids who were whispering disdainfully.
The maids turned their heads and closed their mouths as if they saw something invisible, but the disdain written on their faces never faded.
It was ignoring that there was no need to manage facial expressions.
My heart was afraid, so I turned my head and followed Bernard, but my steps wavered slightly.
My head was dizzy.
There was no cup of tea in front of Rena, who bowed her head like a criminal next to Bernard. As if she were not there, only Bernard and Carmela's share was placed on the table.
Bernard's face hardened as he realized that it was not because the tea was late, but that it had not been prepared for Rena at all.
He pursed his lips and turned to the butler.
“Why isn’t Rena offered tea?”
The servant then quickly looked at the head of the house before speaking.
The head of the family's mouth was twisted from the moment Bernard spoke about Rena's tea.
Seeing that face, the butler spoke dryly with a businesslike expression.
"The tea I brought this time was scarce, so I prepared just the right amount. Because I didn't expect someone else to add. I'm sorry. Young Master."
Then Rena suddenly raised her head. He spoke impatiently with a look of hesitation.
“Ah, that butler. I’m fine. I’m not thirsty either.”
The butler asked Bernard again.
“So, shall we get another tea now, young master?”
I was embarrassed and refused again.
I...I'm really fine. I don't need another tea... “.
But the butler did not turn his head, as if he could not hear Rena's voice. He said quietly while still looking at Bernard.
“If this is the tea you normally drink, you can serve it now.”
It was as if he was selectively deaf and could only hear Rena's words.
Only then did Rena realize.
“The housekeeper didn't ask him after seeing him because I interfered in the conversation with Bernard.”
The butler was ignoring her as if she wasn't there.
He was speaking silently.
You don't deserve to be there. Not to be a guest or anything.
Just because she came with Bernard, he respected his will and asked her if the tea was good.
The moment she realized that Rena's cheeks turned pale as she tried to express that the tea was fine.
The painful time passed and the tea was placed in front of Rena.
However, Rena was not in the mood to drink tea at all.
She didn't even want to drink in the first place, and she felt how much everyone in the room hated him after being publicly humiliated, so she just wanted to run away.
Feeling like crying, she bit her lip.
Her sinking feeling came back to reality. The feeling that she was an aristocrat officially invited into the aristocrat's drawing room quickly evaporated.
The magic cast by Carmilla shattered.
After the illusion faded, she felt like a servant in a place she was not supposed to be, a noble tea time. It felt like a stain on a pure white cloth.
I want to get down to earth.
Even Bernard, who asked why he didn't just offer her tea, was somewhat upset.
Why does he talk about it, take so much time and cause trouble? I really didn't need tea.
But in the end, she made her decision.
She didn't think she would go through something like this. Wasn't she determined that if she could stand by Bernard's side, she could overcome anything?.
She tried to clear her face and let go of her hatred. All she could do was ignore and laugh.
If you can't do that, it's really nothing. So, I shouldn't hate them.
Rena made her decision and raised her head. She was given courage because Bernard was by her side.
No matter what happens, he will always be by her side.
After a bit of turmoil, Carmela calmly raised her cup into the icy, freezing atmosphere where no one could feel comfortable.
“The tea is very delicious. Thank you for welcoming me with this precious tea.”
The people sitting at the table were Bernard, Rena, Rayman, and me. Of these, I was the only one who drank tea.
But I didn't care, I quietly enjoyed the tea and the fragrant scent in the air and put down my cup.
There was a sound of setting down a cup, time was passing very slowly in the room and the sound of crickets was echoing in the background.
Finally, Reman, the head of the Demeter family, cleared his throat and said, "Hmm. I'm glad it suits your taste, but excuse me for asking...what did you visit us for today......"
After he said this, a long sigh came out of him, expressing worry and pent-up anger, and he continued: “I wonder why....”
Charlotte was not next to Rayman, whose face had turned purple like an octopus and was now extremely dark.
When I looked at Rena, I couldn't tell if she was angry or shocked, blood ran out of her.
She apologized and entered a room with the help of the maid.
She told them that she needed to rest because she was not feeling well, but it was clear that she was angry at the insult she directed at her.
I glanced sideways.
I was curious about Rena's expression after what happened earlier.
She had her head held high with a somewhat resolute expression.
One of her hands was holding the hem of Bernard's clothes.
My mouth twisted into a semi-smile and I covered my lips with the teacup for a moment.
'Yes. It should have been like this at this time. If she intends to back down, either back down completely now, or come forward and face it rudely.'.
Even if it was disastrous and would ruin Rena's life, it had to go the way it was now.
‘…At least I or any other woman will not be a shield for her to protect her happy life with Bernard.’.
In fact, I am not doing this for the sake of the unknown woman who was supposed to be in my place now to cover Bernard’s love and become his virtual wife, but for my sake.
What Rena destroyed was my life. And she was my soul.
But I feel pity for that replacement woman for me. If I were in her place now, I would cry because of my broken engagement, but I was not sad that I was doing this to them because I was achieving justice for that unknown woman.
If I had to choose which life should become a disaster, I wouldn't hesitate. I would choose a life of Bernard and Rena to ruin.
They played with the wrong person.
Bernard, whom I thought was my husband, gave his sweet life to his mistress and sold my blood.
What woman would endure this without going crazy?.
His world with his lover, which he covered by marrying me, must have been very sweet and enjoyable.
Originally, Om would not have dreamed of having such a beautiful dream. Her life was based on sucking my blood and tears.
She looked at Rena, who was tense and introverted with cold eyes.
And I said to Rayman: “Nothing else, I have come to tell you that I will become the guardian of Rena, Marquis Demeter.”