Fortunately, Jimmy seemed to understand my words to some extent, and his expression relaxed slightly.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“What does that mean?”

Just when I thought I could breathe a sigh of relief after handling the situation well, Kaern suddenly interjected into our conversation.

“Harena.”

Kaern stared at me with slightly heavier eyes than usual and spoke with seriousness.

I sighed deeply internally and attempted to avoid the situation for now.

“Kaern, we’ll talk about it later.”

Saying that, I sent him a meaningful glance, implying that many eyes were watching us.

“…I hope your words contain even a hint of sincerity.”

Phew.

To prevent further discussion, I quickly moved on to the next situation.

“Adelia has prepared gifts for you.”

“Gifts? That’s awesome!”

I continued to signal Adelia for assistance with my eyes.

When Adelia smiled softly, Calix began to take out gifts from the carriage and distribute them to the children.

“Come, come and take one each.”

“Yes!”

“Wow!”

“Kids, after receiving a gift, you should express your gratitude!”

“Thank you!”

“Unnie, thank you!”

With the sound of happy laughter from the children who received gifts, the recent events were quickly buried.

Watching the joyful faces of the children I cared for, I finally felt a sense of relief in my chest.
“Thank you always. We appreciate your annual sponsorship, and the fact that you take special care of the children will surely bring you great blessings.”

“Oh no, Director. Instead, we gain positive energy by coming here.”

“That’s right. I feel even happier when I see the children. Isn’t that right, Calix?”

In response to Adelia’s words, Calix nodded with a smile on his face.

“Unnies, oppas, let’s play together now!”

“Sure, let’s go.”

“Adelia, don’t run.”

“Adelia, be careful!”

Calix and I shouted simultaneously as Adelia tried to run toward the children.

“Okay, okay. Both of you are such naggers.”

We played happily with the children as if we had become children ourselves after a long time.

Calix stayed by Adelia’s side throughout, protecting her and being with the children.

Kaern also didn’t leave my side for a moment. Anyway, we had a great time playing together without realizing how time passed.

Especially, it was a very satisfying day as we discovered Kaern’s new side, handling the children quite well with a gentle smile.

As we laughed and enjoyed ourselves, time flew, and the sky darkened.

“Adelia unnie, can’t you play more with us?”

“Harena unnie, play more with us. Please?”

As always, when it was time to leave, the children begged us not to go.
Especially today, it seemed like Adelia clung to me more and shed more tears than when I came alone.

“I’ll come back soon.”

“When? When are you coming?”

“After a few nights? Huh? Three nights? Four nights?”

Adelia and I exchanged awkward glances.

While trying not to show it on Adelia’s face, the deep exhaustion was evident.

Feeling that we probably needed to leave soon, I opened my mouth again to persuade the children.

“Actually, Adelia unnie is going to have a baby. Because of that, she might not be able to come back so soon.”

“Unnie is having a baby? There’s a baby here?”

One of the children pointed to Adelia’s belly with a finger and asked.

“Yeah, a beautiful baby will be born soon. Then, we’ll come back with the baby.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Adelia unnie, will you really come back with a beautiful baby?”

“Will the hyungs come back too?”

“Of course. We’ll definitely come back.”

Saying that, Adelia gently stroked the heads of the children one by one.

Thanks to that, the children stopped insisting, perhaps because they understood.

We looked at those children admirably and exchanged our final greetings.

“Until we meet again, eat well, sleep well, and play well, okay?”

“Yes! Goodbye, unnies!”

“Goodbye! Noona!”

And soon, it was time for us to go back to the mansion, promising to return to see the children again soon.

“Unnie!”
Suddenly, Catherine came running towards us.

“Catherine?”

However, Catherine’s face was covered in tears, and I realized she had been crying for a while.

“What’s wrong? Why are you crying?”

As I asked with a voice full of concern, Catherine’s sobbing burst out completely.

“Waaah!”

While holding Catherine and trying to comfort her, I looked at the director with a puzzled expression.

The director approached and gently rubbed Catherine’s back, then explained.

“Catherine is soon going to be adopted.”

“Adopted?”

“Yes. So, she seems sad at the thought of not being able to see Lady Adelia and Lady Herena anymore.”

“Ah…”

Now that I understood Catherine’s actions, I gently lifted her from my arms and kneeled down.

Then, I took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the tear-streaked face of the tearful child.

“Catherine.”

“Sob, what if I can’t see you anymore, unnies? Catherine really likes unnies…”

“You can see us if you want.”

“…Huh? Sob.”

“Just because you’re going to be adopted doesn’t mean you can’t see us. Of course, you might have to grow a bit more than now to see us, but it doesn’t mean you won’t see us forever.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. Have you ever seen Lady Herena lie?”

Catherine quickly shook her head from side to side.

“…What about Lady Adelia?”

While looking at Adelia with eyes hoping for the same answer.
“Of course, I can see you too. But as Lady Herena said, it will take some time. Until then, can you eat well, sleep well, behave well, and live courageously?”

“I… I can do everything if I can see you again, unnies!”

“Yeah. Our Catherine is so kind and brave.”

“Promise! Catherine will meet you again for sure.”

Catherine reached out both hands, making a promise to us.

Adelia and I, finding her adorable, laughed and hooked our pinkies with hers.

When we hugged Catherine tightly, she finally seemed at ease and smiled brightly at us.

Watching the child’s smile, my heart felt so full of emotion.

Whenever I visited the orphanage, it was always like this.

While I provided support under the guise of helping the children, in reality, I received emotional support from these lively kids.

It was the same today, and we returned to the duke’s residence feeling happy.

As soon as we entered the mansion, Kaern requested a brief teatime with me.

Thinking that the time had come, I followed him into the study.

Even after we took our seats on opposite sides of the table, Kaern continued to stare at me intensely.

I pondered on how to start the conversation while receiving his piercing gaze.

“Kaern.”

“Yeah, Herena.”

The warm smile he showed the children earlier was nowhere to be seen. A stern-faced man was now standing before me.
In fact, what I said might be seen as just something said to a child. However, because it subtly revealed my true feelings, I felt a bit down, perhaps due to the thought that he might have sensed it.

Knowing my own vulnerabilities, I couldn’t just let it slide.

“And somehow, rather than being angry now, you seem more sad.”

“I said that to Jimmy because I didn’t want to hurt the child’s feelings.”

“So you told him to come back when he’s grown up? And added that you might not have married by then?”

“It was just something said. Think about it. Considering the difference in status and the fact that it will take at least 10 years for Jimmy to become an adult, do you really think I won’t get married until then?”

As I watched his expression gradually waver, I inwardly sighed with a slight sense of relief.

His slowly changing expression confirmed, one by one, that there was truly no hidden agenda behind my words.