Mentally, I was in my worst state, but my child was born without any issues. She was a girl with dark hair and eyes. I couldn’t prove my innocence.
“Isn’t this a conundrum?” my husband said.
He didn’t seem confused at all, still keeping that smirk on his face.
“All right, here’s a suggestion,” he said. “I’ll raise this child. You won’t be allowed to raise her.”
“Why not?!” I demanded. I could hardly believe my ears. How could he tear a child away from her mother?
“Ah, well, I want to determine who her father is by judging how she grows up.”
“What are you on about?”
“I’ll spoil and pamper this child as I raise her. If the blood of my household really flows through her veins, she should still grow up to be a splendid lady. On the other hand, if only your household’s blood is in her, unfortunately, she’ll grow up to be a lazy and foolish person.”
“You can’t possibly be serious.”
I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. Has he gone completely mad?
“Of course I’m serious,” my husband replied. “Our households come from completely different classes, do they not? For example, even if the child of a noble and the child of a commoner are raised in the same circumstances, the differences will be clear as day. Dignity, abilities, and their humanity will naturally begin to diverge. You do, at least, come from a noble household, so you understand what I’m saying, don’t you?”
I didn’t understand one bit. I was completely baffled by his words, but I had no allies in the manor. Left with no other choice, I followed his orders.
✦ ✦ ✦
Just as my husband had said, I wasn’t allowed to meet or speak with my daughter, Serena. Every attempt I made to get close to her was promptly shut down by my husband’s personal subjects. There was nothing I could do. On paper, I was the duchess, but I had no power. No servant would heed my orders.
After much planning and spouting a myriad of excuses, I was barely permitted a glimpse of my daughter’s sleeping face. I was only able to see my child during public appearances, and even then, I wasn’t allowed to speak to her.
My husband spoiled Serena to bits. Every whim and desire of hers was granted, and any selfish request she made was accepted without fail. She received the bare minimum of education, just enough to not be neglectful, and Serena didn’t even enjoy her studies. There was no chance that she would grow into a proper lady, no matter what household she came from or what blood flowered through her veins. Her indolence and foolishness were practically inevitable.
Her one and only friend was a boy called Marius. Under his influence, she began to read books and study a bit more. However, that was just a drop in the bucket. As she grew older, nasty rumors about her began to circulate. My husband must have been undoubtedly humiliated at the castle, but he refused to do a single thing.
“Ah, as I thought…she’s not my child, is she?” my husband said.
The brightest of smiles was painted across his face.
✦ ✦ ✦
The day I had always feared had arrived. Serena tried to endanger the saintess, the precious treasure of our kingdom, and was arrested for her crimes.
But my daughter hails from the house of a duke, I thought. She won’t receive any serious punishment. I’m sure of it.
Tragically, my hopes were soon dashed.
“I made a request to His Majesty,” he told me. “I said, ‘The crime of trying to murder the saintess cannot be forgiven. In fact, I cannot find it in me to forgive even my beloved daughter for this heinous act. Please forgive me. No doubt I didn’t raise my child right. Her disgraceful acts tarnish the household of a duke as well, and there is no way for her to atone for her sins other than death.’ His Majesty said that I didn’t have to go that far, but with my insistence, he ultimately accepted my offer. The other nobles even said that I was dignified with my loyalty.”
“You asked to kill our child?!” I cried.
“She’s not my child. She’s the child between you and your cousin. If she truly had my blood in her veins, this would’ve never happened.”
I felt like I had swallowed a lump of lead. My body felt heavy. He had completely lost his mind.
✦ ✦ ✦
“She was crying,” my husband said.
He was smiling when he returned from his meeting with Serena.
“She said, ‘Help me, Father! Please get me out of here right now! I’m not to blame!’ and the like,” he added. “What a fool she is. She doesn’t even understand the situation she’s in. Since she has low blood in her veins, she’s become stupid too. But she isn’t to blame. No, it’s all your fault.”
As he accused me of all these sins, he kept his smile.
“I felt sorry for her, so I at least let her have some hope,” he said. “I told her, ‘I’ll do something about it. Even if no one else does, I believe you. I’ll save you soon!’ But of course, I have no such plans. I even cried for her. I might not have been related to her by blood, but I was her father. I can put on a show for her in her final moments.”
“Serena is your daughter, related to you by blood,” I said. “Are you truly not going to save her?”
I hoped that he had some love for her as her father.
“Oh, don’t give me that,” my husband replied. “She can’t be my child. A girl like her couldn’t possibly have my blood.”
He guffawed as though he had heard a hilarious joke.
“Oh, don’t worry,” he said. “I’ll still forgive you. I love you, after all. We can make another child together.”
I was horrified. I could never escape this revolting monster.