“Alright, it’s done!”

While Bonita was lost in thought with her small head, Mary tied the child’s hair with a red ribbon that matched well with her cotton candy-like pink hair.

Just as Mary was giving the ribbon a final adjustment.

Knock knock.

A cheerful knocking sound was heard.

“Mother!”

In an instant, Bonita jumped down from the chair that was slightly taller than her and scurried over.

“Young miss! Don’t run, you’ll fall!”

The skirt was already quite long.

Mary shouted urgently, but Bonita had already caught her foot on the hem of her skirt and was getting closer to the floor with each passing moment.

“Young miss!”

Poof.

Despite Mary’s cry, Bonita was gently caught by a large hand.

The Duke, who had caught Bonita, raised an eyebrow and glared at the maid Mary.

“I-I’m sorry!”

“…It’s fine. Be more careful next time.”

However, instead of getting angry in front of Bonita, he simply gave her a light warning. Aria, who had been standing behind Luke, quickly rushed over.

“Bonita! Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

Bonita’s gaze was still directed at the Duke who was holding her.

Luke flinched when he saw her head tilted all the way back.

“The Duke caught me well. Um, thank you.”

“Ahem. It’s only natural, isn’t it? No need to thank me for every little thing.”

“Oh, but…”

Bonita stammered at Luke’s overly kind attitude.

She had seen several arrogant boys and girls of her age before. Most of them wore high-quality clothes and rode expensive private carriages.

Some of them all said the same stupid and unpleasant things as if they were cut from the same cloth. Bonita swallowed her words and fell into serious thought.

Seeing the child’s face, Aria tilted her head. She asked in a tone like an innocent boy.

“Bonita, what are you thinking about?”

“Well.”

Bonita hesitated for a moment. But seeing that Luke was also giving her an intense gaze, she opened her mouth.

“I was thinking that if I had grown up here from the beginning, I might have become a very spoiled child.”

“What?”

“What?”

Luke and Aria uttered the same word simultaneously. The two turned their heads to look at each other, then back at Bonita, who had a very serious expression.

Unaware of their reaction, Bonita continued speaking.

“Maybe I should try not to get too used to this place. So that I don’t become a pathetic adult who can’t even put on a sock by myself later…”

“Pfft.”

Unable to hold it in any longer, Aria let out a laugh first. The corners of Luke’s mouth twitched.

‘Cute.’

‘Cute!’

Once again, the thoughts of the two were in sync. Even the maid Mary, who was watching, had to make her utmost effort not to laugh at this little lady’s silly yet serious imagination.

“Don’t you think so, Mother?”

“Huh? Me?”

As Aria pointed to herself, suddenly singled out, Bonita nodded seriously.

For a moment, Aria found her daughter in front of her so lovable that she couldn’t resist. She hugged Bonita tightly and kissed her.

“Our Bonita will grow up to be a wonderful adult in any environment!”

“I don’t think so…”

“No, trust Mommy just this once.”

Aria hugged Bonita once more before setting her down on the floor.

“By the way, Bonita, the Duke says he’d like to go on a picnic with us. What do you think?”

“A picnic?”

At the word ‘picnic’, Bonita’s expression changed from that of a little adult to a seven-year-old child again. Her pink eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“Can we really go on a picnic?”

“Of course. Actually, we were going to go yesterday, but it got too late making the cake, so we couldn’t go.”

“I’d love to!”

Whoosh!

Bonita’s head turned towards Luke. He, who had frozen at Aria’s ‘Mommy’ comment, hurriedly put on a gentle smile.

“Ahem. I’m looking forward to it very much as well.”

“Your Excellency, you’ve stopped using that ‘Daddy’ tone.”

“…Shut up, Miss Aria. If you don’t want to die.”

Luke growled in a voice only Aria could hear, then quickly nodded to the maid who had been tying Bonita’s hair.

“It would be good to instruct the servants to prepare. Hey, you there.”

“Yes!”

Mary, suddenly addressed, stiffened her body as she answered.

He commanded with an indifferent face.

“We’re going to the lake closest to the mansion. Tell them to dispatch personnel from the knight order to escort us.”

‘Knight order?’

Meanwhile, Bonita, who had been listening quietly, was shocked once again.

‘You mean knights are coming to escort us on a picnic?’

Of course, she knew that noble lords always went around with shining knights.

But to think that it would become my story! Bonita’s mouth fell open.

“Oop!”

Aria’s index finger slipped in between.

“Hiccup.”

As Bonita closed her mouth with a bewildered expression, Aria, who had slipped her finger out of the child’s mouth, chuckled.

Luke looked at Aria with an incredulous face.

“You call that a joke?”

“Our child is just too cute.”

“You really…”

Luke, who was about to say something, felt that if he exchanged words any further, he would be properly entangled by the woman in front of him.

‘The previous Aria Hilton was definitely not this kind of atmosphere.’

Or was she?

Honestly, he couldn’t be sure.

Luke had treated almost all women except Elodie as invisible.

The same was true for the past Aria Hilton. He had no interest, so there was no way he could remember properly.

But this kind of personality really doesn’t seem right.

This is not so much Aria Hilton, but rather-

He suppressed his thoughts that kept trying to go in an absurd direction. It’s a ridiculous delusion.

Moreover, the two of them had been stuck together for a very long time, hadn’t they?

It was common for people to resemble each other’s personalities and habits after spending so much time together.

Luke stared into the blue eyes that were looking at him quizzically.

This woman, really.

“Really, what?”

“…Never mind. Just get ready.”

Damn annoying.

Luke frowned.

* * *

The spring breeze rustled gently.

It was a clear day without a single cloud in the sky.

Since today was Monday, it didn’t turn out to be the ‘leisurely Sunday afternoon picnic’ that Bonita had dreamed of so much, but really, what difference does the day of the week make?

A blanket was spread out for the three people who arrived at the lakeside. Unlike Luke, who settled under a tree, the other two explored around the lake like puppies.

And now.

Bonita was trotting behind Aria with her short legs.

“Mother, le-let’s go together!”

“Hahaha! Daughter, run, run more!”

Aria was now subtly teasing Bonita. She would run slowly and then speed up just when Bonita was about to catch her, repeating this pattern.

Her heart swelled with the wind that brushed her face as she ran.

‘I couldn’t run like this before.’

In the days when Aria was Elodie.

She was born with a weak body.

Due to congenital heart disease and asthma, even a little quick movement would make her short of breath and her chest hurt.

While mental factors played a large part in her death, physical causes were by no means insignificant. But all those problems disappeared when she got a new body.

Aria had been walking and running excitedly for a while when she suddenly realized that Bonita was no longer following her.

“Bonita?”

She had a bad feeling.

When Aria turned around, she saw Bonita standing still some distance away. She hurriedly moved towards her daughter.

“Bonita, what’s wrong? Did Mommy run too fast…”

However, with each step closer, Aria’s smiling face hardened.

“…Bonita?”

It would have been better if she had fallen or burst into tears because she was frustrated about losing. But the expression Bonita was wearing now was closer to despair mixed with resignation.

Aria inwardly took a breath. And regretted her own foolishness.

Hadn’t she well guessed what kind of environment Bonita had grown up in?

It was certain that ‘Aria’ had not given enough love to the child. She must have often left her alone or abandoned her. It wouldn’t be strange for her to have a fear of being abandoned.

Aria swallowed hard.

She slowly knelt down in front of Bonita.

“You know, Bonita. Mommy will never…”

“I, I know.”

But it was Bonita who spoke first.

“I know that the current mother won’t abandon me.”

The current mother?

Aria took a sharp breath at the child’s words.

Even though it was absolutely impossible, she had the illusion that Bonita was somehow separating the real Aria from herself.

Bonita flinched as she saw Aria’s expression suddenly harden.

“But I just…”

I wish Mother would stay strange like this. Bonita hid the words she could never say.

She was afraid that the moment she uttered them, ‘the previous mother’ would return.

But she couldn’t think of how to salvage the words she had already spoken. Bonita tightly gripped the hem of her dress. Her sweaty hands were damp.

“I…”

However, fortunately or unfortunately, Bonita didn’t continue her words.

“Madam! You shouldn’t push the guards like that!”

“Ah, let go! Did I tell you to let this go?! If I get hurt, you’ll be beaten until your buttocks burst!”

“Madam, just a moment…!”

“Luke! Where is that Luke? Just how absent-minded has he become while I was gone!”

“I’ll take you to His Excellency! So please calm down. You’ll collapse again at this rate.”

“Do you think I’m that easy?!”

The sound of a young man and an elderly lady arguing could be heard.

Especially the elderly lady’s voice was so loud that the two people who were quite far away were startled and turned towards the direction of the sound.

A thunderous shout echoed across the peaceful lakeside.

“I need to see that fake daughter and the con artist right now!”

Hiccup.

Startled Bonita hiccupped.