Please Save My Child - Chapter 11

Reina, keeping her gaze fixed on Bonita as she explored the room, asked the butler, “…Why was this room given to us?”

“His Grace prepared it as a modest reward for saving the young lady.”

‘Modest…?’

How could this possibly be considered modest?

The house Reina and Bonita had lived in before had windows so cracked that cold air seeped in. Yet, the large windows in this room were pristine, without a single flaw.

Even the rug covering the floor alone seemed far more expensive than the entire cost of their previous home.

The glossy side tables, the ivory canopy bed with its ornate carvings, the wallpaper untainted by mold—this wasn’t a mere room, but a space that could be called a house in itself, furnished with everything one could need.

The most shocking part was that despite all the furniture, the room still felt spacious.

‘Even the servants’ quarters were already more than good enough.’

That space had been free from mold, insulated against the winter cold, and quiet, with barely any noise to disturb them.

Now, faced with a room more luxurious than anything she had ever imagined, Reina felt not delight, but confusion about how to react.

“…This is modest?”

In the end, Reina couldn’t hold back and whispered to the butler.

“Yes. Compared to the value of the young lady’s life, even offering the entire wealth of the duchy wouldn’t be enough.”

“…I… see…”

The truth was, even if Reina had gone through with the kidnapping, Estelle would still have survived.

Yet, hearing those words, she couldn’t help but feel as if she had deceived everyone.

The butler kindly answered each of Reina’s cautious questions.

“The rest will be explained at eleven o’clock tomorrow morning.”

“…The rest?”

Reina’s lips parted slightly.

This room isn’t all?

“This was just something prepared in haste.”

With that, the butler left, and Reina and Bonita were alone in the vast room.

After exploring for a while, Bonita panted, exhausted, and flopped into Reina’s skirt.

“……”

Without saying a word, Reina stroked the child in her arms and finally spoke.

“…Do you like this room that much?”

Bonita lifted her head abruptly and shouted, “Yes!”

“Really?”

“I love it! Mom, let’s take a bath together today! The bathtub is huge—it’s big enough for both of us!”

“Shall we?”

Considering how frightened Bonita had been after the kidnapping, Reina had expected her to cling to her even at night.

But today, Bonita seemed perfectly fine, and that worried Reina even more.

Unaware of her mother’s concerns, Bonita eagerly grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the bathroom.

“Mom, look at this! It’s enormous!”

“It really is.”

The ivory bathtub’s base was made of solid gold.

A room prepared in haste…

When Bonita turned the faucet, warm water gushed out in an instant.

Just maintaining a mansion of this scale with magic must cost a fortune—Reina couldn’t even begin to estimate how much.

While she was busy calculating the worth of everything, Bonita was simply thrilled, happily splashing her hands in the warm water.

‘Ah, we’ll need fresh clothes.’

After bathing, they would need something to change into.

It seemed their belongings had already been moved from the servants’ quarters, but she had no idea where they had been placed.

‘The wardrobe?’

Thinking that their clothes might be in the wardrobe, Reina opened the finely carved white armoire.

“…Huh?”

Inside, their old clothes had been neatly arranged—alongside new garments she had never seen before.

Resting atop them was a luxurious paper card.

[I’m not sure if these will fit you properly. – Peter]

The elegant handwriting was strikingly different from her own.

As Reina silently stared at the note, Bonita suddenly wrapped her arms around her from behind.

“…Boni?”

“…The bath is full.”

“Already? That was fast. Shall we go in?”

“Mm.”

The warm water enveloped them, soothingly pleasant.

A few years ago, she could never have imagined experiencing such comfort and leisure.

And yet, all of this had come to her overnight—just because she had made a single choice different from the novel’s original story.

Bonita, playfully splashing in the water, suddenly glanced at Reina and asked cautiously, “…After a few nights, will we go back to our old home?”

“……”

She had realized.

She knew that this wasn’t truly theirs.

Her round eyes rolled, searching Reina’s face.

“Boni, do you not like this room?”

“…No, I do like it.”

“Then why?”

“…But…”

Bonita hesitated, unsure whether she should say what was on her mind, then whispered, “This kind of house… only really important people live in them.”

“…Oh, Boni…”

In truth, Bonita liked this room more than any of the homes they had lived in before.

It was sturdy, unshaken by strong winds, and free from the musty smell of dust and mold.

The bed was wide and soft, and the rug covering the floor was so plush that she felt she could run across it barefoot.

The windows weren’t cracked, not even slightly, and the bathroom was massive—with an actual faucet.

If they could continue living in a house like this, then Mom wouldn’t have to go outside to fetch water even in the winter. She wouldn’t have to wake up in a panic whenever the wind howled in the early morning hours.

On cold days, she wouldn’t have to bundle Bonita in layer upon layer of thick and thin clothes while pretending she was fine herself.

An eight-year-old child understood the world well. She knew the reason they had no choice but to live in such a house was because they were poor.

She might not have been able to estimate the price of every item like Reina, but at the very least, she could tell that everything in this room was unimaginably expensive.

Bonita didn’t want to go back to their old home.

When Bonita voiced those feelings and asked Reina, Reina couldn’t give her a definite answer about how many days they would be staying here.

After all, none of these things truly belonged to Reina, so she couldn’t determine how long they would be allowed to stay.

“Our Boni is an amazing person.”

“…Me?”

“Of course.”

Reina smiled reassuringly and tapped Bonita’s nose with her finger.

“This is a reward the duke prepared for a brave child.”

“I’m brave?”

Boni touched the tip of her nose where Reina’s finger had been.

“Yesterday, even though you were scared, you endured it all by yourself.”

“…No! I wasn’t scared!”

Bonita flinched in surprise and leaned toward Reina, raising her voice as if desperate to be believed.

“I was fine on my own! And besides, besides! I wasn’t scared because I knew Mom would come!”

“Really?”

“Yeah! I ate my meals properly, slept well by myself, and… and…”

Bonita started listing everything she had done well on her own, folding her fingers one by one as she counted.

Reina gently combed through Bonita’s damp hair, smoothing out the strands.

“That’s right. Our Boni is the bravest child in the empire.”

At last, Bonita’s expression relaxed, reassured.

“And this is a gift the duke prepared for such a brave child.”

***

Having soaked in warm water for a long time, Bonita became drowsy. As soon as she lay down in bed, she quickly drifted off to sleep.

In the dimly lit room, Reina gazed out the window at the bright full moon.

Her hands were full of things she had bought for Bonita today.

Leaning into the moonlight, Reina carefully sorted through each item.

“…Oh, we didn’t finish these.”

The crawler donuts had gone cold.

Seeing the crumpled paper bag, she worried they might have been squished. But when she opened it, the donuts inside were thankfully intact, just as they had been when she bought them.

“……”

The total cost of everything Reina had bought for Bonita today barely compared to the price of a single vase in this room.

And Reina had no doubt that the vase was worth far more.

This was the best gift she could afford for Bonita.

Even if she gave everything she had, it wouldn’t come close to the gifts the Duke of Winternight had hurriedly arranged.

Reina considered throwing the crawler donuts away, but just in case, she placed the bag on the nightstand and lay down beside Bonita.

Bonita, shifting restlessly in her sleep, furrowed her brow slightly.

Reina gently rubbed the crease between her brows, and soon, Bonita’s expression softened.

“Have sweet dreams.”

***

Reina didn’t wake up until nearly ten in the morning.

For someone who normally rose at six to prepare for work, this was a serious oversleeping.

Flustered that no one had come to wake her and unfamiliar with waking up this late, Reina scrambled to find her uniform, only to realize—

This wasn’t the room she was used to.

“Boni, wake up. We need to get ready.”

“…Mmm…”

They had been told that something would be explained to them at eleven o’clock.

Thinking that Bonita might need to be there as well, Reina gently woke her up, helped her wash up, and dressed her.

Bonita had slept so deeply that even after all that, she still seemed half-asleep, rubbing her eyes groggily.

At exactly eleven o’clock, the second hand of the clock pointing to twelve, the door suddenly burst open.

Normally, knocking before entering someone’s room was basic etiquette.

Reina turned to see who had entered without warning—and her eyes widened in shock.

“If you’re ready, let’s go.”

It was the Duke of Winternight—the master of this estate.

“W-wait a moment, please.”

Reina found herself caught between two conflicting thoughts: that she needed to show proper respect to the duke and that she needed to wake Bonita up properly.

Though Bonita was usually mature for her age, she was still a child. Groggy from sleep, she clung to Reina, whining that she was hungry.

“Boni, oh dear… Would you like a crawler donut? Or is it too sweet for breakfast?”

“…Wanna eat it…”

Worried about making the duke wait and possibly offending him, Reina quickly grabbed the paper bag from the nightstand and placed a crawler donut in Bonita’s hands.

“Good girl.”

Bonita held the donut with both hands and nibbled on it.

Reina, lifting Bonita into her arms, hurriedly declared, “W-we’re ready now!”

“……”

However, despite her words, Reina’s hair was still somewhat disheveled.

The duke briefly considered whether to point it out but ultimately decided to let it slide.