‘Mom abandoned Shu Shu…?’

That can’t be.

Mom loves Shu Shu so much.

She always said she would protect me, that she would be by my side every day.

Why are they saying she abandoned me? If I keep waiting, won’t mom come?

What if it’s not a lie but the truth?

Could it be because Shu Shu was too much of a bother?

Is that really why Shu Shu is here now?

Mom. Shu Shu is sorry.

I won’t be a bother anymore.

Shu Shu, I was afraid I might disappear completely if mom wasn’t there when I opened my eyes.

I threw tantrums about staying together because I felt like I would really forget you if I wasn’t with you, mom.

You got hurt because of me.

If I could go back to that day, I would never run or eavesdrop on mom and the marquis’s conversation.

From now on, I’ll eat all my carrots without leaving any.

I’ll keep all my promises…

Don’t abandon Shu Shu.

Please come back for me.

It’s so scary without you, mom.

“Do you understand what I’m saying? Why aren’t you answering? Your mother abandoned you, I said! She’s not coming!”

The woman shouted, stomping her shoe hard on the floor. My ears hurt. Not because her voice was loud, but because her words were sharp.

‘No. No. No.’

The dust that had settled in the box rose up, making it even more stuffy and suffocating than before.

“You’ll find out later if what I’m saying is true or not. No matter how long you wait, your mother won’t come looking for you.”

‘Shu Shu really has been abandoned, mom’s not coming…’

Blanche was more scared of the words saying mom wouldn’t come than the angry woman’s face.

“If you want to get out of here, you need to listen to me well. So stop crying and eat this quietly.”

The woman pointed to the hard bread and cold milk she had placed on the floor.

‘If I listen well, she’ll let me out?’

Then couldn’t I go out and look for mom?

‘Mom abandoned Shu Shu because she was angry. Maybe she’ll hug me if I go to her when she’s calmed down.’

Trying hard to ignore the fear filling her heart, she picked up the hard bread.

She knew it would be hard just by looking at it, but it was even more dried out than she expected.

So much that it was difficult to chew in her mouth.

“What? That expression? You don’t want to eat?”

“……”

“If you go hungry all day, you’ll know how delicious this bread is. Hm?”

The woman suddenly got angry and snatched away the hard bread, throwing it into the corner.

“Hey. Why have you been quiet and still since earlier? Are you ignoring me too? What did your mother say about me?”

The woman’s chatter buzzed loudly in her ears.

“You’re young but just as arrogant as your mother. I’m asking you, why do you keep not answering?”

I’m not ignoring you.

I want to speak, but I can’t.

Blanche hunched her shoulders and moved her lips, trying not to provoke the woman.

“You can’t speak?”

The woman who had been bending over painfully straightened up and bit her lip in pain.

“You, stay here quietly. Don’t make any noise and stay still like you’re dead. Understand?”

The woman, sweating coldly, wagged her finger at Blanche before leaving the room.

The woman’s steps were trembling.

‘She seems to be in pain somewhere…’

As her stomach kept making gurgling clock-like sounds, Blanche crawled to the corner.

She picked up the dusty hard bread that the woman had thrown.

‘I should have just eaten it nicely. Now it’s all dusty.’

She was hungry because she hadn’t eaten anything, falling asleep right away after playing excitedly at the beach.

‘Will my teeth hurt again if I eat it…?’

If only she wasn’t hungry, she wouldn’t have to eat such hard bread…

But now she was hungry.

‘I’ll drink the milk instead.’

Holding back the tears that were welling up, she picked up the cup with milk. But the cup was so cold that she dropped it.

The milk that seeped into the floor gave off a strong smell.

‘Mom never gives Shu Shu things like this.’

She always gave soft bread, and warmed things up saying cold food would hurt my stomach.

If there was something delicious, she gave it to me first, saying just watching me eat made her smile.

She missed mom, Mary, Aaron, and grandfather.

And she wanted to see the marquis too. She hadn’t seen him in a while because he said he was busy recently, so her longing had grown.

‘I was planning to thank the marquis for the rabbit doll and tell him I named it Jeje when I saw him…’

…But where did Jeje go?

Even after searching the entire attic, Jeje was nowhere to be seen.

She was sure she had been holding it while falling asleep, when did it fall?

‘I must have lost it. What should I do…’

The rabbit doll, Jeje, had a different meaning than other gifts.

It was a gift the marquis gave saying he was sorry.

‘It was a gift proving that what he said to Shu Shu wasn’t sincere.’

Would the marquis be angry if she said she lost Jeje?

What if he hates her for not cherishing it?

‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.’

She knew the marquis wasn’t here and wouldn’t come.

But still, Blanche repeated words of apology over and over.

There was no one to hear her.

When Jade heard Larien say that Blanche had disappeared, he felt his heart sink.

Larien seemed too anxious, so he pretended to be calm, thinking he shouldn’t get agitated together.

Sharlin was staying at her maternal family’s estate, Earl Hamel’s mansion, not at Earl Winst’s mansion.

‘She probably won’t return to Earl Winst’s mansion.’

Jade first infiltrated Earl Hamel’s mansion, where there was a high probability Blanche might be.

Moving silently to suppress his presence, he avoided the eyes of servants passing through the corridors occasionally.

Hiding his body was good, but it was important to check if Blanche was actually here.

“Are you alright, Sharlin? It seems you’ll give birth soon. I should call for a midwife.”

“Mother, my stomach hurts so much…”

“What’s happening in the middle of the night? You, didn’t I tell you not to go to the attic on the 3rd floor? Why did you bring that child and cause this?”

As he was moving forward, he saw Countess Winst supporting Sharlin in the distance.

“I’m already dying of headache just because of your child. Now I have to take care of another child.”

“Mother… What if someone hears you?”

“Who’s going to hear? There’s no one here.”

He quickly hid to the side and listened carefully.

‘Attic? That child?’

Somehow suspicious words were exchanged between them. He wondered if the subject of Countess Winst’s words might be Blanche.

‘Did they really take Blanche?’

Jade listened to their conversation without even breathing.

“You say the father of the child in your belly isn’t even Marquis Rowe. And what relationship does that child have with Marquis Rowe that you secretly brought her? Isn’t she Earl Boston’s daughter?”

“…Mother, you don’t know anything. Why I brought her.”

“That’s right. I don’t know, but I’m afraid your actions might cause big trouble later.”

Sharlin, clutching her belly, stopped for a moment and leaned against the wall.

“Please be quiet, it’s already chaotic enough…”

“What a temper. I told everyone not to go to the 3rd floor. I’ll go check again in the morning.”

Countess Winst and Sharlin went into another place and disappeared from his sight.

Earl Boston’s daughter. 3rd floor. Attic.

It was confirmed that they had taken Blanche and locked her in the attic.

‘How dare they. Not only kidnapping, but locking her in such a place?’

He barely suppressed the anger boiling up inside.

Right now, getting Blanche out of that attic was the priority.

‘Larien must be anxious about not being able to find Blanche too.’

He just hoped nothing had happened to Blanche.

He hoped she was asleep, unaware of what had happened to her.

He went up to the 3rd floor and stood in front of the attic where Blanche would be.

“…Blanche.”

Had his heart ever beaten this fast before?

His heart, which always maintained a steady rhythm, was beating at a speed he couldn’t keep up with.

‘They said she’s here, so it must be right.’

Jade calmed his trembling hand and grabbed the doorknob.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the door to see a small figure curled up tightly.

Blanche had her head bowed and eyes tightly shut.

She was covering her ears with all her might.

As if she didn’t want to see or hear anything.

‘What on earth did she hear?’

The extreme tension Blanche was feeling was fully transmitted to Jade.

The anxiety in his heart washed away as soon as he saw Blanche. He had finally found his child, their child.

“…Blanche. What are you doing there.”

“…!”

Blanche slowly raised her head. Then, as if surprised, she opened her sea-colored eyes wide.

“Blanche. Come here.”

Jade slowly extended his hand to reassure Blanche.

“I came to get you. Let’s go back.”

“……”

“Mom is very worried.”

Even if he made his voice as kind as possible, he wasn’t sure if she would come.

Because Blanche was afraid of him.

‘Should I have brought Larien instead of coming myself?’

At worst, she was even afraid of being in the same space.

He wasn’t confident Blanche would come to him. It might be better to take off his jacket and wrap her in it.

Jade was about to take off his jacket and approach Blanche.

But at that moment, Blanche suddenly stood up and quickly ran over, clinging to his leg.

“…Daddy!”

While making a sound.

Calling Jade “daddy” out loud.