# 40
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“Mom, I will explain everything. Let’s talk in private.”
“No need.”
The Grand Duchess interrupted him in a cold tone.
“I don't want to hear your excuses now. Anyway, wasn't your mother hiding something this big from me?”
"My mom."
“It's better if I ask the person in question directly. Elinor, right?”
“Yes, Madam Grand Duchess.”
Elinor tensed.
Even in her advanced age, the Grand Duchess, who had been the commander of the Imperial Knights in her youth, still enjoyed high prestige.
A tiger remains a tiger even when it grows up.
I asked the one who controlled the atmosphere of the room.
“Tell me yourf. The servants were told that you were Tidian’s tutor. Did you really come to Hilliard’s fiefdom as a tutor?”
Elinor swallowed.
Should you reveal the truth here, or continue to lie?
'Lying is not a good option.'
In the original story, the Grand Duchess had a character as tough as a sword.
If Elinor hid any part of the truth or seemed to be making fun of her, she would certainly be angry.
'The Duke does not know that I am familiar with black magical energy and the pollution of the fiefdom.'
The contamination of Hilliard's fiefdom from the border was a top secret.
If he found out that she, as an outsider, knew about this, he would immediately treat her as a spy and suppress her.
So, she'd better speak frankly, like she did when she first met the Duke.
Including her belief that the Duke is looking for Charlotte because he likes her.
“No, Madam Grand Duchess.”
Elinor opened her mouth after making her decision.
“Although I am currently helping the young master with his studies, I did not come to Hilliard Fiefdom as a private tutor.”
“So, are you really the one who gave birth to my son’s child?”
“No, that's not true either.”
The Grand Duchess frowned.
“Are you playing riddles with me now? I already know that Tidian calls you his brother’s wife, and that the people in the palace consider your child to be Matthias’ illegitimate son.”
“I apologize for not correcting the young master’s name earlier. But the truth is, this child is not the Duke’s son. And of course, I am not the Duke’s woman.”
"What?"
“My name is Elinor Winston, Madam Grand Duchess.”
Elinor rose, bowed, and greeted the Grand Duchess politely.
The Grand Duchess was a little surprised.
“Winston? Isn’t that the family, one of whom served as Under-Secretary of the Treasury under His Majesty Julius?”
“That was my great-grandfather.”
“You are the daughter of the Winston family?”
“Yes. I have a younger sister who is not married. This child is my sister’s son.”
Until now, Elinor had insisted that the child was hers.
But her sudden revelation of the truth in front of the Grand Duchess made Matthias look at her in astonishment.
“I will tell you everything from the beginning without hiding.”
She began to tell the Grand Duchess the story of her past days.
How she found an abandoned baby when she returned to her family home after graduating from the academy.
How her parents tried to kill the child because it would bring shame to her sister.
How she fled to a rural village that no one knew to save the child, where she met the Duke.
How did she end up in the Duke's fiefdom after a fire broke out in the place where she was staying?
“Oh my God...”
After hearing Elinor's whole story, the Grand Duchess seemed disturbed.
Her eyes turned to the child in Elinor's arms.
said Eleanor softly.
“A rumor has spread that the child is illegitimate because the young master misunderstood me and considered me the duke’s mistress. I was staying in a place other than the main palace… and from the young master’s words, it seems that that place was previously used for secret meetings.”
“I know where you're talking about.”
“I did not expect things to get this bad... I sincerely apologize for causing concern.”
Elinor bowed.
There was a short silence.
As she watched warily, the Grand Duchess called out to her.
“Come here.”
Elinor rose and approached the Grand Duchess.
The Duchess gestured with her eyes as if asking for the child.
Elinor hesitated for a moment, then handed her the baby.
Her sharp eyes, which once held the sword, scanned the child from top to bottom.
Elinor watched the scene anxiously.
At that moment, the child, who was sucking his fist, laughed merrily.
“Kya, kya.”
He seemed to enjoy meeting someone new, clapping his little hands.
He showed no sign of fear of the new person.
A soft smile appeared on the Grand Duchess's lips for a moment.
She caressed the child's fat hand and said:
“You have suffered a lot.”
Strangely, Elinor felt a lump in her throat at those words.
Moments of worry that the child will get hurt.
The days when she blamed herf for being a fish aunt who pushed her desires.
She felt as if warm water was filling the wound that was eating away at her heart.
Elinor resisted the vague sensation of biting her lips, and the Grand Duchess said, handing the child back to her:
"Now I have to talk to my son. Go back to your room with the baby for now."
Elinor bowed and stumbled from the room.
Matthias looked at Elinor worriedly as she left.
When they were alone, the Grand Duchess clicked her tongue.
“What is this all about suddenly?”
She was worried that her eldest son, the pride of her life, had fallen under the influence of a strange woman, but there were circumstances she could not have imagined.
The Grand Duchess leaned her tired body on the back of the chair.
"Is this correct?"
“I didn't know that Count Winston and his wife tried to kill the child, but the rest is all true.”
“Huh.”
The Grand Duchess's eyes sank.
Trying to kill an innocent child? How could someone wear an iron mask and do that?
She felt sorry for the child who was in danger of death immediately after birth, and admired Elinor who tried to save her nephew.
Of course, aside from that, she was upset that she didn't correct the illegitimate child rumor.
"But what's with your crush on the baby's mother? Did you really fall in love with a woman who had another man's child?"
Matthias waved his hands at the Grand Duchess's sharp rebuke.
"Not at all. Elinor would suppose so, but I'm not at all interested in Miss Charlotte."
“So, why are you looking for Charlotte Winston?”
“Because it is able to purify the black magical energy that pollutes the feudalism.”
The Grand Duchess's hand gripping the arm of the chair trembled slightly.
"Is this correct?"
“The holy water she made herf and gifted successfully purified a previously polluted soil. I intended to invite her to the fiefdom, but she suddenly disappeared, ruining the plans.”
“She must have disappeared when she realized she was pregnant.”
The Grand Duchess sighed.
"If the child was here, it would be easy to lure Winston into finding her. That's why they were staying at the palace. Because you're both looking for the same person."
"exactly."
“However, how did you allow the rumor to spread that you had a hidden woman and an illegitimate child? Shouldn’t you have been the first to correct it! Didn’t you know that this was ruining your reputation as a duke? You are usually as sharp as a sword, so why did you act like this this time...”
The Grand Duchess stopped suddenly. Then she looked at Matthias suspiciously.
“Are you…”
“Yes?”
"…nothing."
The Grand Duchess shook her head.
It can't be that.
But the doubt that had begun did not leave her mind easily.