Epilogue
Translated by: ME
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*****
Three years later.
Rose was currently working as a civil official at the Royal Palace, but starting next week, she would be taking a leave of absence for a year and a half. Today, she had come to greet her department chief for her final day of work. When she knocked, the door was opened almost instantly.
「Mrs. Goldsmith... I've been expecting you.」
A small, middle-aged man ushered Rose inside without so much as a smile. The door had opened so quickly one might have thought he’d been standing right behind it waiting, but since he immediately turned his back to her with a grumpy air, Rose followed him in silence.
The department chief, a man in his mid-forties, was known as an eccentric even within the palace. His slender, small frame made him look younger than his years, but his high-strung aura was as intimidating as ever.
「Thank you very much for establishing the maternity leave system this time.」
Rose bowed her head, thinking to herself that it was impossible to bend properly at the waist with her belly protruding so much. The chief immediately poured tea—which he had seemingly prepared in advance—and set two cups on the table with a somewhat rough clatter. Without a word of "here you are" or any pleasantries, he took a sip from his own cup. His gaze practically screamed, You drink, too! Rose reached for her cup.
(He really is in a bad mood...)
Rose desperately fought the urge to sigh. For nearly three years, this man had kept her on her toes, but he was also someone who harbored no gender bias. The pressure of the work was immense, but in exchange, he had entrusted her with significant projects time and time again. That was why, six months ago, when she realized she wanted to take leave, she had been trembling with nerves when she finally confessed the truth to him.
After passing the civil service exam, Rose had gained experience in four different departments before being assigned to this chief. "Rose should be able to get along with him," the human resources staff had told her.
The chief was certainly eccentric, moody, and buried under a mountain of work. There were times when Rose had to leave Alfred in Logan’s care and stay late into the night. However, she enjoyed it. He was a natural genius who often acted on whims, but thanks to that, his department produced more proposals than any other, successfully passing numerous bills over the past two years.
「Mrs. Goldsmith. You are coming back, aren't you?」 the chief asked, without meeting her eyes.
「Yes, of course. At first, I’ll start with shorter hours, but my husband is very understanding and I love it here. If you’ll have me, please let me work here again after my return.」
「It would be a problem if someone who passed the narrow gate of the civil service exam simply quit because they had a child. There aren't many people who can replace you.」
「Those are kind words. To think I'm irreplaceable,」 Rose said, letting out a little chuckle. He was as difficult to read as ever, but knowing he wanted her back gave Rose a natural surge of energy. 「Chief, please don't be too hard on the new recruits; try to get along with them. They all respect your prowess and gather here specifically for you. Don't just show them how you work; give them a little advice. It helped me immensely.」
The middle-aged chief was the third son of a Duke and held high status, but he remained single. His words were sharp—sharp enough that even male officials reportedly requested transfers in tears—but Rose didn't mind at all.
「I heard your exam scores were good, but is this the best you can do?」
「Don't write like a worm crawling across the page just because you're in a hurry. It’s embarrassing.」
「Prepare the materials before you're told. Even a student can do that.」
Siegfried and the servants' barbs had been fueled by malice, but she felt none of that from him. Whether there is malice or not makes a huge difference, Rose often thought with deep emotion. Because of that, she never took his harsh phrasing to heart, accepting it simply as professional advice.
***
After passing the civil service exam, Rose had decided to accept Logan’s proposal.
On that night of celebration, Logan had gotten spectacularly drunk—far more than Rose—and effectively held her captive in a private room at the restaurant, declaring, 「I won't let you go until you say yes.」 He had showered her with so many words of love it was almost embarrassing.
Rose had already grown fond of Logan, but having painfully realized the danger of a life dependent on a husband during her time with Siegfried, she had declared she would absolutely take the exam—and she had seized victory. It was only much later that she heard she had placed among the top scorers, despite most candidates being fresh students.
Logan fully supported Rose’s desire to work. Alfred was reaching an age where he didn't require constant supervision, and since they worked in the same place, it was easy to make time for each other. On weekdays, they had lunch together in Logan’s office whenever possible and shared a carriage home. It was a series of small things, but Rose could feel with every fiber of her being that Logan loved her completely.
Affectionate and devoted, Logan cherished and spoiled both Rose and Alfred. He provided a life of comfort and never forced her into anything she disliked. He spared no effort to ensure that Rose and her son could find peace at home. He did this because he realized that Rose still found it difficult to trust a man easily and was unconsciously keeping her distance from the opposite sex.
At the Pendleton house, even the butler, Doril, had relentlessly bullied Rose. Having experienced the abnormality of a man harassing a woman with no means of escape, Rose had fallen into a state of distrust toward men without even realizing it. Being forced to walk home at night without an escort, having her living expenses taken away to cause her distress, being denied the service of a maid... the list was endless, but it was far from normal for a noblewoman to be forced into a life below that of a commoner. Furthermore, Siegfried had used words to wound her, orchestrating things so that everyone would look down on her. She had gritted her teeth and endured the harassment only because she felt she couldn't leave the house while she had a child—a testament to her incredible mental fortitude.
However, understanding that Alfred needed a father, Rose had consulted her one and only absolute ally.
「Uncle Logan proposed to me. What do you think?」 she had asked.
Alfred thought for a moment and said: 「I want to be loved. You love me, of course, Mother, but I want to know what a father’s love is like. If you work at the palace as an official, other men might approach you. Men with high titles, who are single and smart. But even if such a man loves you, I don't know if he would love me. Uncle Logan loves me. Besides, I already love Josh as my family. It’s not often you find someone so honest who will cry for my sake.」
That was more than enough to make her decision. Logan was the one who had rescued her from her plight. Even though it cost him time and money, he had not hesitated to get his hands dirty to help her.
When Rose held her exam results and told Logan, 「I want to be with you too,」 he had nearly jumped for joy. After the legally required waiting period, the two were officially wed. The children had rejoiced hand-in-hand, and the servants of the Goldsmith house were overjoyed.
Rose had expected child-rearing to be something she did alone, but the biggest surprise was how often Logan took the children out.
「We’re going riding.」
「Let’s go hunting in the forest.」
「Let’s try falconry.」
「We’re going on a secret adventure to the snowy mountains—don't tell Mother!」
「Sleep with me tonight.」
Events that were physically difficult for Rose resulted in her being left at home, but even that was a pleasant wait. It's true that boys need a father figure, Rose thought, moved by Logan’s vitality and initiative.
Rose also began her long-neglected social duties as a Countess. She spurred herself on, deciding that she must not neglect her social connections for the sake of her family and resolved to fulfill her role as the lady of the house. She was, after all, a woman who had been at the center of rumors. Truthfully, she wanted to remain hidden forever, but she couldn't let that stop her. She hosted tea parties for the ladies, which hadn't been held at the Goldsmith manor for a long time, and eventually held a proper, albeit small, evening gala at home.
The servants worked enthusiastically under Rose’s direction, and with support from the Kirkland family, Rose was grateful that she could fulfill her duties without a hitch. At the Pendleton manor, there hadn't been a single servant who would move at the words 「Yes, My Lady.」
The guests were primarily the families of palace officials, and Logan smiled, noting that he was able to form deeper connections with them. Because we are nobles... lateral connections are important. Evening parties weren't just for play. Her previous husband had gone out for nighttime revelry, but around her family, who desired sincere relationships, like-minded people gathered. Teas and galas served the vital role of thanking those who had contributed to their work and building bridges for the future.
It was something she had given up on at the Pendleton house, but Rose remembered it after a long time and returned to her sisters-in-law to re-study the manners and hospitality expected of a lady.
***
Last year, yet another letter arrived from the Pendleton house. It said that Siegfried was disposing of his capital city residence and moving to a secondary villa in the countryside, and he asked to see Alfred just once. Rose felt Alfred’s wishes were paramount and asked him during a meal with Logan and Josh.
「Will you meet your former father?」
Alfred answered clearly. 「Is there any point? I won't see him.」
Gifts had arrived from the Pendleton grandparents for his birthday—the first since the divorce—and stationery needed for the academy was occasionally sent, but Alfred sent it all back. 「It would be bad to accept them and cause a misunderstanding,」 Alfred told the butler with firm instructions. He refused to accept them because he could see their grubby ulterior motives. Logan couldn't hide his surprise at Alfred’s wisdom.
After the divorce was finalized and the Pendleton house lost its heir, they searched for a new bride, but they could no longer hope for a dowry like the Kirklands'. At Siegfried’s wish, they welcomed Catherine from a Baron’s family. They said a young bride would surely produce a child soon. Catherine spent six months at the Pendleton house before reportedly fleeing in the middle of the night.
The former Count and Countess had apparently moved back into the Pendleton manor after their retirement home was sold to pay Siegfried’s alimony. However, they and Catherine engaged in daily arguments so fierce that plates were shattered. "Clashing personalities" didn't even begin to cover it. Catherine had hidden it during her time as a mistress, but she possessed a violent temperament.
Immediately upon her arrival, she insisted that the Pendleton house should host tea parties and galas, sending out invitations left and right without understanding the situation. However, the guests who did show up were all people who offered no professional benefit. The ladies and debutantes who attended realized there was nothing to gain, and eventually, only letters of rejection were delivered.
She was a second wife who had snatched a married man. Men looked at Catherine with those eyes, and Catherine continued to act in a way that wasn't entirely displeasing to them. Soon, she was seen openly taking men's hands even in the presence of their wives
Catherine screamed that the failure of the tea parties and galas was the butler Doril’s fault. When she became too loud, Siegfried let her have her way, only to find himself shouting at her on the spot when an astronomical bill arrived. Naturally, since the tea parties were failures, the number of invitations she received decreased. No one wanted a married woman who cast flirtatious glances at an event. Invitations to evening galas decreased proportionally, gradually impacting the Pendleton family’s business interests.
Starting with the Marquis whose business Rose had helped secure, large accounts vanished like a receding tide. If Siegfried had simply continued his work with sincerity, things might have been alright, but his bad habits surfaced there as well. Just as he had done with the Kirklands, he brazenly asked for payment delays. He did this shamelessly, especially toward those with titles lower than Earl.
They were no fools. They retaliated by spreading the firm rumor that 「Count Pendleton has lost the ability to pay.」
About a year after Rose and Logan’s marriage, a lawyer friend of Logan’s visited and said, 「I was approached with a debt restructuring case. Personally, I want to decline, but do they still owe you any payments?」
The Pendleton family’s debts had ballooned to nearly what they were before the marriage. Logan checked his friend’s documents and stated coldly: 「No, there’s almost nothing left, so I’ll leave it to your discretion if you want to decline. Thank you for telling me. We had most of our payments made in a lump sum. The alimony is in installments, but I find it unpleasant for him to contact Rose about that anyway.」
Around the same time, Alfred was stopped at the academy. 「I heard Count Pendleton is going to the countryside,」 the girl from the jewelry shop said to Alfred with pity. She likely felt genuine sympathy for the fact that his father was in financial distress.
But Alfred replied: 「It seems so? But I was never taken to that villa even once since I was a child, so I don't really know. More importantly, I'm going falconry this coming holiday! Would you like to come along?」
The girl was relieved by his bright smile. Alfred had already settled into his new life and was living positively.
***
Late at night, Siegfried was writing a letter of recommendation for Doril to carry. It was decided that the manor would pass to other hands in five days; now, only a few lonely beds remained in the house. He was down to his last two servants: the butler and a maid. Perhaps they had lost all motivation, for they didn't clean at all, and tonight’s meal had been nothing but thin slices of bread and soup made from vegetable scraps. His parents, who had left for the countryside earlier, might be eating something slightly better.
His mother’s lung disease was worsening, and medical costs had been high lately. But Siegfried had no way left to pay. It would be fortunate if her condition improved even slightly in the fresh air of the countryside...
Rose had apparently known about his mother's illness and had regularly sent lemon and eucalyptus essential oils. The pleasant scent that used to drift through his parents' home had been Rose’s kindness, her effort to ease the lung ailment.
The reputation of the Pendleton servants was now at rock bottom. The cruel treatment of the lady of the house during the trial had been published in the newspapers, and everyone frowned upon their actions. The clever junior maids had resigned quickly when the trial began and moved to different workplaces, but the long-term staff were late to respond and ended up unemployed without new prospects. Doril had insisted on not quitting out of sheer stubbornness, but the Pendleton house could no longer pay wages. Since they had to keep the money from the sale of the house for themselves just to survive for the time being, there was, of course, no severance pay.
It suddenly crossed his mind: Was Rose eating meals like this too?
When Siegfried sat at the table, meat and fish were served, and there were many dishes. But when he wasn't there, no proper meals were prepared for her. Testimonies were even taken suggesting that, at worst, the servants were eating more luxuriously than she was.
One day, a butcher was asked for a whole lamb and asked, 「Is it a celebration?」 to which the chef replied vaguely, 「Yes, well.」 On that day, Alfred and the others had eaten bread and a little cheese. The servants, celebrating Doril’s birthday, had shared the lamb and drunk plenty of wine from the cellar. Doril and the others still held a grudge because Rose had checked the details of the bill, rushed to the butcher, and had the billing address changed.
In court, Siegfried couldn't hide his shock at the servants’ unauthorized behavior, but he was more shocked by the fact that Rose had worked so hard to ensure the Pendleton money was used correctly even in such a situation. It also pained him to hear that when Alfred begged, 「Father, please come home,」 it was because he wanted a proper meal.
Catherine had come from a poor home, but for some reason, she desired only the most extravagant items. Both Doril and his parents had warned her, but she would purchase items on the Pendleton company’s credit without permission. This left everyone at a loss.
One morning, the head maid had her arm broken when she was struck by the temperamental Catherine with a poker. 「Die, you insolent maid!!!」 The cause was the water in the basin for the morning preparations being too hot. The head maid had underestimated Catherine because Rose had been intellectual and never used violence. Normally, taking an insolent attitude toward the lady of the house is shameful, and noblewomen are strict with servants. The head maid never dreamed she would be struck. She screamed and wailed in pain from her broken arm, only for Catherine to slap her across the face, shouting, 「Shut up!!」
One day was enough to break the head maid’s spirit. She fled the Pendleton house the next day.
Initially, the servants had welcomed the seemingly dim-witted Catherine, thinking she would be easy to manipulate, but a woman who made her living as a mistress wasn't so soft. Catherine reported everything to Siegfried in a way that favored her, and any matter that might lead to a scolding was blamed on the servants. Siegfried, who trusted Catherine completely, punished the servants severely and desperately tried to soothe Catherine every day as she shook with tears.
Eventually, even Siegfried was left speechless by her spending and blocked her from using money at her discretion, but he did the same for the servants. Doril and the others were no longer allowed their former luxuries, and their wages were reduced. Half the servants quit in the first year out of fear of Catherine’s violence. But there were no jobs to be found. Once it was leaked that they came from the Pendleton house, they were turned away with the words, 「We have no use for servants who cannot follow their lady's orders.」 They could only look down, realizing that what they had done to Rose was coming back to them.
***
There was so much Siegfried only learned after Rose was gone. He learned that while Doril controlled the household maintenance funds, Rose had been checking the ledgers, so the money hadn't been wasted on nonsense. The maintenance budget had been abnormally small for an Earl's house, but Rose had never once failed to pay a contractor and was highly trusted. She had kept high-quality linens for guests so as not to embarrass Siegfried, and when his parents visited, she never let the quality of the meals slip, providing food that considered their health. The reception room fabrics, which would normally feature elaborate embroidery from a boutique, used high-level embroidery that Rose had done herself. To save even a little money, she had prepared only the cloth and handled all the expensive manual labor herself. His mother had praised the daughter-in-law who was no longer there.
He also recently learned that Rose herself had continued cleaning the rooms, tidying up, and organizing the documents in his office so he could spend his time comfortably at home. Because his office had been orderly before, his work had progressed smoothly. Doril understood nothing of the order or importance of documents, saying plainly, 「The former Madame did that on her own initiative.」
Catherine had vanished with the entire jewelry box before the marriage registration papers were finalized. Since she had done nothing but complain that the amount she could use was too small, she must have found her next target to latch onto and abandoned Siegfried.
Going to evening parties also cost money. Catherine’s extravagance and the lump-sum payment of child support had dealt a major blow to his assets, forcing Siegfried to endure more hardship than before. Preparing a new jacket, shirt, or tie is part of a man's attire; appearing before everyone in old clothes caused him more psychological pain than he had anticipated.
Once, after giving birth, Rose had begged him just once to have a dress remade because her size had changed. But Siegfried had dismissed her with a single word— 「Uneconomical」 —and laughed at his wife as she looked embarrassed in a dress that didn't fit. Now he understood. For a woman to be unable to dress up must have been truly painful. And the eyes of those around her must have been truly harsh.
His former wife's family had been so devoted to them. Catherine’s family did nothing but beg the Pendleton house for money and offered no help at all. It’s only natural that I’m hated...
After it was decided he would give up his family home, he sent a letter saying he wanted to see Alfred, and a reply arrived.
「When I see you, only the painful feelings from my childhood return. The memory of always being hungry. The clothes that were always hand-me-downs. The memory of being mocked by classmates. The sight of Mother struggling while giving up her jewelry. They are all things I don't want to remember.
Now, I wear clean clothes that fit every day, I am watched over by loving parents, and I am working hard at my studies. Last week, I was taken to the villa, and my father gave me a foal as a gift.
You wrote in your letter that you are going to the countryside villa, but I have never been there once. I feel nothing when told about a place I have no memory of being taken to.
Please, do not trouble Mother any further.
—Alfred」
Alfred, who everyone said looked just like him. Even though Alfred said he wanted to go on a trip together for his birthday, Siegfried had never taken him anywhere. To the very end, he couldn't win the affection of a son who had no happy memories of him as a family. He realized that even though Alfred had often smiled at him, it was likely because Rose had mediated for him. She had been covering for his failures as a father...
Once the money ran out, it seemed he would have to surrender his title as well.
Siegfried had no tears left to shed.
*****
The one thing that I want the author do was to go into more details about the divorce court but maybe due to lack of research, there was no such scene in this story. There's two more extra story after this.
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