The Baby Villain Dreams of Conquering the World

Chapter 125

Episode 125

'No, why did he have to come now? Yesterday, I didn't even see a hint of him until nightfall!'

She was just about to hear the rest of the explanation, and he had to show up at this exact moment. She was lost in thought about what to do.

'Wait, maybe it's faster to just ask my oppa.'

The thought of potentially getting new information made her quickly get out of bed and open the door.

It seemed he was about to knock again, as his hand was hovering awkwardly in the air, and his amethyst eyes were blinking in surprise.

"Good morning, Flora."

Without responding to Benio, who was smiling brightly with delight, Flora grabbed his other hand and pulled him straight into the room.

"Don't let anyone in until I say it's okay!"

She didn't forget to give instructions to those outside either.

Clutching Benio's hand tightly, Flora guided him to the sofa and made him sit down. Then she sat opposite him and spoke.

"I have something to ask you, oppa."

"Ask me anything. If it's something you're curious about, Flora, I'll answer everything."

Though he sensed something unusual in the serious atmosphere, Benio answered with a smile.

"What have you been doing all this time that you're only coming to see me now? I was so bored, you know."

"Ah, my conversation with the Marquis ran long. Were you very disappointed?"

"If you're busy, there's nothing to be done. It's not like I'm so young that I can't understand that."

At her slightly pouting voice, tinged with a subtle playfulness, Benio also laughed lightly in response.

"But... is this place our mother's family home?"

Of course, his smile immediately faltered.

"Well, you see..."

As he floundered, rolling his eyes, Flora spoke firmly again.

"None of your lame excuses."

"...Yes. Marquis Eisollen is our maternal uncle, and though we haven't met him yet, the Grand Marquis is our maternal grandfather."

'So he hasn't met him either. Well, given how much he dislikes the Lucifers, he probably wouldn't agree to a meeting.'

Despite his ready admission, Flora suddenly felt her mood sour drastically.

"But why did you hide it? If I had known Eisollen was our mother's family, I wouldn't have asked to come."

Perhaps sensing the displeasure in her voice, Benio's shoulders slumped.

"I was afraid of this."

A gloomy voice was followed by silence.

The longer the quiet atmosphere dragged on, the more irritation seethed within Flora's heart.

'This is strange. I clearly intended to brush it off lightly, so why can't I control my emotions like this?'

While Flora was confused by her own volatile emotions, Benio parted his tightly sealed lips.

"You never knew Mother... I didn't want to hurt you unnecessarily."

'He calls Father 'Dad'... but why does he call Mother...?'

At the familiar word 'Mom,' Flora unconsciously tightened her hands resting on her knees.

"I was planning to tell you once you were a bit older. I wasn't deliberately hiding or concealing it. It was all for you... Yes, it was for you."

Hearing that they had kept it from her because she was young, Flora couldn't hold back the anger welling up inside her.

"I'm grateful you cared for me. But I'm not as much of a child as you think. I already know, at the very least, that Mom abandoned me."

"Mother did not abandon you."

The moment Flora's words ended, Benio immediately defended Nersha, causing Flora's eyes to narrow and tremble.

Flora's body felt like it might start shaking violently any second. No, perhaps it was already shaking.

"I don't know the exact reason you ended up at the orphanage, but I heard there were circumstances. So..."

Seeing his efforts to erase any negative feelings about their mother made Flora exasperated.

Beyond the rising anger and resentment, an indescribable feeling kept churning inside her, unsettling her.

"I remember clearly."

Afraid she might end up shouting and getting angry at Benio, who had done nothing wrong, she took a steadying breath and continued slowly.

"It was a winter day. A day so cold, with heavy snow piling up deep, that even an adult would struggle to endure. On a day like that, she left me in front of the orphanage and went away. And it was such a shabby place, one that wouldn't be surprising if it collapsed at any moment..."

Isn't it strange?

"...That's what it was like."

The more she spoke, the more her throat kept tightening.

Flora's head, which was always held high, drooped downward. Her small fists resting on her knees were visibly trembling.

"So how could Mom possibly be a good person to me?"

She didn't know what kind of person Nersha was, but seeing Benio act like this, she must have been a good person.

Wasn't it true that not just Benio, but everyone in the Marquis's household, thought of Nersha and smiled when they saw her?

She might have been good to everyone, not just her family.

But what did it matter if she was a good person to others?

She wasn't that to Flora.

The more she spoke, the more her sad emotions showed on her face, the paler Benio's complexion became.

In his goal to avoid giving her a negative impression of 'Mom,' he had been too hasty, blinded by the objective.

'...I didn't think she would remember.'

Flora had never once said that her mother had abandoned her.

No, she had never shown curiosity about her mother, nor tried to find out about her, including the memory of being abandoned.

'That's why I never mentioned it in the first place. If I had known it would be like this, I should have told her before we came.'

If he had known her aversion would be this strong, he would have endured the discomfort and stayed at the Bellasia Ducal house.

'No, it was my greed to begin with.'

Regardless of Flora's pestering, Benio had always wanted to visit the Eisollen Marquisate.

He wanted to see the place where his mother, Nersha, had lived and grown up, her beloved, precious hometown.

'What kind of beautiful place was it, that she closed her eyes here... I also wanted to bid my final farewell to Mother.'

Despite being repeatedly refused visits due to the Grand Marquis Eisollen's temper, he didn't want to miss this miraculously offered opportunity from the Marquis.

Separate from his intention to refuse for Flora's sake, relying on her unknowing permission to fulfill his own desire had been a terribly foolish decision.

Seeing Benio's darkened, sunken face, Flora sighed.

'What am I doing, taking it out on him?'

This wasn't about venting anger; she had said unnecessary things.

"Anyway, that's that."

Flora roughly bundled up her emotions. Since her feelings wouldn't be understood anyway, she had no intention of forcing the issue.

"So, when are we going back? I want to go back quickly."

"...I'm sorry, Flora. It was my greed that brought you here, knowing nothing. I was just so curious about Mother's, no, our mother's hometown. It's a place I've never been to, not even once since I was born."

Seeing the Grand Marquis Eisollen, it was understandable why they couldn't come.

Flora refrained from saying anything unnecessary and simply nodded.

Her unexpectedly subdued reaction made Benio realize that Flora was suppressing her own emotions.

Feelings of guilt and shame inflicted a pain on him, as if they were gnawing at his insides.

Uncharacteristically, Benio took a steadying breath, then raised his head with a resolved expression. Looking Flora straight in the eye, he spoke.

"Mother left for the Marquisate after receiving a letter from Grandfather while she was pregnant with you. And she never returned."

Even speaking the words made his guilt swell, but he knew Flora wouldn't accept staying at the Marquisate unless he told her everything.

"Mother's grave is here. I wanted to see her one more time. I never got to properly say my final goodbye."

"Is that all?"

"...I heard Mother left a last will before she passed away. But Grandfather has it, and I want to receive it before we go."

Having laid everything out, while he felt a sense of relief, he couldn't bring himself to face Flora.

"I'm sorry, Flora. For not being honest with you."

"No, you don't have to be sorry. I think that's understandable. Mom must have been a good person to you, brother."

At her indifferent voice, Benio flinched and hurriedly tried to clear up her misunderstanding.

"You might not believe it, but Mother loved you. She would whisper to me every day with a happy face about her soon-to-be-born sibling, and she waited to meet you."

'And then she abandoned me.'

Flora didn't voice the last thought. She didn't want to argue and hurt Benio's feelings further.

'He looks so earnest. With a face like that, on the verge of tears, I can't very well insist or throw a tantrum.'

Facing his eyes, moist as if he might cry at any moment, her resolve softened.

While his secrecy was vexing, Benio was softer on the inside than he appeared, and above all, he was still young.

'If even adults miss departed parents, then children would feel it even more.'

I understand.

Of course, that didn't mean her own discomfort vanished.

"Alright. Let's do as you say, receive the will, and then leave. We should deliver it to Dad too, shouldn't we?"

"...Thank you, Flora."