The Reborn Lady is Loved by her Foster Brother: The Scariest Villain - Chapter 26

CHAPTER 26 – GOOD NIGHT

　At that time, Ortansia was in her nightgown, her hair messed up, and on her knees on the bed, looking far from “ladylike”.

Annabelle looked at Ortansia and frowned as if she was trying to hold something back. She was probably going to complain about Ortansia’s current sloppiness.

    Ortansia thought so, but she was not in the mood to get her appearance in order, so she looked at Annabelle who was approaching her in a daze. She stopped just in front of Ortansia’s bed.

And the next moment she collapsed on the spot.

“My lady, I’m so glad you’re back, safe and sound!”

“A… Annabelle…!”

Seeing her behave like this for the first time, Ortansia was flustered.

She was also surprised to see a teardrop on her hand.

‘That… Annabelle is crying!… Because I’m dressed so shabbily?’

“Um, I’m sorry, Annabelle.”

“There is nothing you need to apologize for, Miss!”

Annabelle was so fierce with her words that once again Ortansia was taken aback.

“The fact that the young lady came back here alive is enough for me.”

Spilling tears, Annabelle said this over and over again.

At those words, Ortensia’s chest gradually warmed up.

‘Ah, maybe I’ve missed something important.’

Annabelle was always strict with Ortansia.

So Ortansia was afraid of her, assuming that she didn’t like her. Read only on https://royaltywrites.com.ng/

But surely there was more to it than that.

　Annabelle was strict with Ortansia because that was her job. She must have thought that Ortânsia should not be embarrassed when she went out socially, so she strictly taught her what it meant to be a lady. Thanks to this, in her second life, Ortansia was never embarrassed when she went to social occasions, tea parties

　If she really did not care about Ortansia, she could have treated her more appropriately so as not to offend the duchess.

　But she did not.

She trained Ortansia even at the risk of being hated by Ortansia and being forced out of her position. This is precisely because she is sincerely concerned about Ortansia’s future.

If Ortansia had faced Annabelle instead of running away, she might have realized her true intentions earlier. Ortansia squeezed Annabelle’s hand back, even though she felt as if she wanted to cry herself.

 “Thank you Annabelle. I can’t say I’m… okay, but I’d love to resume your lessons when things calm down a bit more.”

“Yes, yes! I’ll be waiting for you anytime　But for now, please take a good rest. You need rest for your body and soul.”

Annabelle tearfully replied, and Ortansia slowly nodded. Read only on https://royaltywrites.com.ng/

　So, with nothing in particular to do, Ortansia spent the day in a daze. However, having nothing to concentrate on, on the contrary, she would suddenly recall unpleasant memories.

　For a change of scenery, Ortansia decided to go out into the garden. She thought about asking Pamela to follow her, but it seemed that she was on an errand.

Even though she was on the grounds of the duke’s mansion, she felt uncomfortable going out in her nightgown. She had no choice but to change into a simple dress and wander out of the room.

Upon arriving at the garden, Ortansia headed for the Shangri-La flower beds planted on Gerard’s order.

She gazed idly at the fantastic azure flowers and wondered how much time had passed.

Hearing the sound of hurried footsteps approaching from behind, Ortansia suddenly came to her senses. She turned around to see what was going on and was taken aback.

Gerard, looking even sterner than usual, was approaching her at a brisk pace.

In the blink of an eye, Gérard was right in front of her, standing one step in front of her and looking down at her.

His extremely Cold gaze felt as if he was blaming her, and Ortansia couldn’t help but gasp.

“Oh, Onii-sama”

“You were gone, and your chambermaid was half in a frenzy.”

“Ah.”

Only then did Ortansia realize that she had left the room without leaving a note.

“Um… could you let Pamela know that I’m okay?”

When she stopped a gardener passing by and requested him, Gérard, unusually, intervened…

“When you’re done, I’ll take you back to your room. Tell the maid to stay in her room.”

“Yes, sir.”

The gardener, perhaps nervous about receiving the order directly from Gérard, moved awkwardly away. Once the gardener was out of sight, silence reigned over the place. Read only on https://royaltywrites.com.ng/

It was a peaceful space with only the occasional sound of the wind shaking the grass and flowers, and the sounds of birds and insects.

Gerard was silent.

　He just stayed close to Ortansia, who was staring intently at the Shangri-La flowers.

“I can’t… sleep.”

Ortansia found herself saying this to him.

“I always have nightmares. I’m afraid to go to sleep because I think I might still be in that place”

She knew Gerard would be troubled by such a statement. I know that, but I couldn’t stop.

In mid-sentence, Ortansia was struck by a sudden floating sensation, and she cried out, frightened.

“Ah, Onii-sama!”

Gerard suddenly picked up Ortansia’s body to her surprise.

In her first and second lives combined, this was the first time he had done this to her, and Ortansia was at once confused.

“Oh, that ..”

“Look.”

With a single word, Gérard pointed towards the vast gardens of the duke’s mansion. Read only on https://royaltywrites.com.ng/

She cautiously glanced in that direction and couldn’t help but exclaim: “It’s so beautiful!”

The beautiful garden of the duke’s mansion shines golden in the setting sun.

A sight never seen by Ortansia’s small stature.

“This is where you belong.”

Gerard told her quietly.

His words sank deep into her heart, and Ortansia was on the verge of tears.

“Can I… stay?

“Now that Father has decided to welcome you, no one is allowed to object to that decision. If there is such a person… tell me.”

These were the words of Gerard, who, though modest, acknowledged that Ortansia was “a member of the ducal family.”

Tears slowly began to fill her eyes, and Ortansia tightly buried her face in Gerard’s shoulders.

 In this second life, when she thought everything was going well, it went down the worst route, and Ortansia was swept away in a direction she didn’t expect.

Though she didn’t know why, at least Gerard seemed to accept Ortansia.

Just that alone seemed to make everything worthwhile.

“Thank you, brother.”

Muttering  in a low voice, Ortansia gently closed her eyes with her face buried in her brother-in-law’s shoulder. And then she fell into a peaceful sleep that she had not been able to get for several days.

Strangely, she didn’t have any nightmares.