Please Save My Child - Chapter 13

“Hiccup… Hic, cup!”

During the extravagant luncheon, where the table was filled with eye-poppingly luxurious dishes, an incongruous sound of hiccups echoed repeatedly.

Estelle, who had joined them a little later, Bonita, who had left the duke’s arms and taken her seat, and even the duke himself, seated at the head of the table, were all looking at a single person.

Reina—more precisely, Reina Boten, the pink-haired woman.

Whatever had shocked her about the invitation to eat, she had been hiccupping since the moment she heard it. Even after Bonita’s hiccups had stopped, Reina’s continued without pause.

“Mom… Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah! Boni, just eat—hic—your meal…”

Reina covered her mouth with a napkin, trying to suppress the sound of her hiccups, but her shoulders shook violently in a pitiful manner.

“……”

The duke pondered for a long time, unable to understand why Reina was so surprised.

‘Was there anything surprising in our conversation just now?’

He was called a villain noble, but that was only because of his reputation for squeezing the other aristocrats dry.

No matter how dirty his methods, whenever the Duke of Winternight invited someone to a meal, they were always pleased.

Because following him was akin to grabbing hold of a golden rope.

This meal had originally been arranged to explain his future plans to Reina in detail. But seeing her reaction, he decided now was not the right time.

The duke concluded that discussing business matters should wait until after the meal and picked up his utensils.

Bonita, unsure of what to eat first, simply stared at the lavishly plated dishes.

Even while hiccupping, Reina quickly noticed Bonita’s hesitation and began selecting a balanced variety of foods for her plate.

Fresh vegetables and fruit salads, which they rarely had, soft braised beef infused with various herbs, and white bread.

“Mom, thank you!”

Bonita beamed as she looked at the food Reina had prepared for her and eagerly picked up her fork.

“Hiccup, Boni…”

“Yeah?”

“Hold your—hic—fork properly.”

With every sentence, her hiccups interrupted her speech. Despite struggling to suppress them, Reina demonstrated the proper way to hold a fork for Bonita.

“Oh, sorry, Mom.”

Bonita finally adjusted her grip on the fork.

Since Reina had started working at the duke’s estate, she had been able to spend more time with Bonita and had been trying to teach her proper table manners.

But Bonita had already developed habits, and when she wasn’t paying attention, she still held her fork incorrectly.

“……”

“…Your Grace?”

The duke, who had been watching Reina and Bonita in silence, suddenly took an empty plate from in front of Estelle.

Estelle looked at him curiously.

“Hm.”

The duke scanned the excessively abundant spread on the table before placing a hamburger steak, bacon-wrapped asparagus, and a tomato cheese bake onto the plate.

“……”

Then, he stared at Estelle as he handed her the plate.

Estelle, feeling the weight of his intense gaze, hesitantly looked up at him and cautiously said, “…Thank you?”

“Yes.”

Only then did the duke withdraw his gaze, seemingly satisfied.

If one looked closely, his lips almost curled into a faint smile.

Even after that, the duke continued watching as Estelle held her fork.

When she grasped it correctly, he felt an odd sense of disappointment.

Throughout the long meal, Reina barely ate anything, instead drinking water repeatedly.

Every dish looked so delicious that just looking at them was enough to make her mouth water, yet she couldn’t bring herself to eat.

Ever since Bonita’s kidnapping, her entire world had changed so drastically and dramatically that her head spun.

She had been thrown into waves of emotions, dragged down and pulled up again in such a short time that she struggled to regain her composure.

‘How did things end up like this…?’

All Reina had wanted was for Bonita to return safely.

But now, she was receiving rewards beyond what she could bear.

Even that alone made her feel as though she might choke.

***

Only toward the end of the meal did her relentless hiccups finally subside.

Bonita and Estelle, having eaten to their hearts’ content, were sent off to the playroom.

After the children left, the duke summoned Reina to his office.

Reina was immensely relieved that her hiccups had stopped by then.

With a serious expression, the duke gestured for her to sit on the sofa in his office.

“Have some tea. Do you have a preference?”

If someone asked Reina what kind of tea she liked, only cheap varieties came to mind.

She had never had the luxury of drinking tea as a hobby.

Even if she mentioned the kinds she had tried before, she doubted the duke would even recognize them.

Thinking it meaningless to answer, Reina shook her head.

“I’ll drink whatever you provide.”

“Alright.”

The duke rang a small bell, summoning the butler, and ordered tea and a simple assortment of tea snacks to be served.

Reina, having just eaten, wondered, Am I really supposed to eat again?

Then she looked at the duke’s large frame and thought, Maybe this is just how much food he needs.

As if reading her thoughts, the duke frowned slightly.

“You’ll be eating.”

“…Me?”

“Yes.”

“……?”

“…You barely ate during the meal earlier. It wasn’t because you weren’t hungry, was it?”

“…Ah.”

That was true.

She had been too busy holding back her hiccups and trying to process everything that had happened to even feel hungry in front of all that delicious food.

But Reina had no idea why the duke was concerned about something like that.

As Reina struggled to figure out his intentions, she looked down at the envelope in her hand.

“……”

She had been carrying this envelope with her the entire time. She hadn’t even considered setting it down, and now she had even brought the crawler donut into the duke’s office.

Reina held out the donut bag to the duke and spoke, “…I have this donut, so I’m fine…”

“……”

The bag had turned translucent, soaked with oil from the donut.

The duke silently watched Reina for a moment before standing up and snatching the bag from her hand.

“It’s gone now.”

“Oh…”

“So eat.”

“…Yes.”

Honestly, even if the duke hadn’t taken it from her, Reina would have had to accept whatever food he provided. She had only refused because she felt overwhelmed by his continued generosity.

A few minutes later, an elegant tea tray was brought in. A cup was filled with fragrant golden tea.

“Then, I will eat gratefully…”

“Good.”

The servant, who had been pouring the tea, stole curious glances at the two of them—the duke and a common maid—before quietly exiting the room.

The duke observed Reina as she lifted the teacup.

‘She knows how to hold a teacup properly.’

People who rarely handled teacups often gripped them like they would a fist.

Just earlier, Reina had corrected Bonita’s grip on a fork, and now the way she held her teacup was undeniably elegant—something that could only come from proper training.

‘Was she a noble?’

That thought briefly crossed his mind.

But Damian knew better than anyone that Reina was not from noble blood.

On that bitterly cold winter day when he first met her, Peter had investigated her background to rule out the possibility of her being a spy.

According to Peter’s report, she was an ordinary—no, to be exact, an impoverished commoner.

Reina had said she lost her husband, but in truth, Bonita had been conceived before marriage. The man had run away upon hearing she was pregnant—he was nothing but a worthless scoundrel.

It wasn’t a particularly noble past. And revealing that he knew about it would only bring Reina unnecessary pain.

But still, the way she handled that teacup—it felt out of place.

This was the first time she had worked in a noble household, yet her grace was too refined.

Reina carefully placed the teacup down without making a sound.

It seemed she liked the tea.

“…Hmm.”

On the table were dainty cakes, madeleines, and bite-sized sandwiches.

Thinking she should start with the sandwich, Reina picked one up and took a small bite.

‘Blueberry?’

The sandwich contained ham, but the sauce used was a blueberry jam base.

Reina suddenly realized something—ever since she became Reina, she had never once eaten blueberries.

“It seems to your liking.”

“Ah…! Um… It’s delicious.”

Only then did Reina realize that the duke had been watching her.

“Your Grace, won’t you eat as well…? Or are you already full?”

“…I…”

The duke lifted the crawler donut bag he had taken from her earlier.

“I have this, so I’m fine.”

“……!”

Repeating Reina’s exact words from earlier, the duke leisurely opened the bag and pulled out the donut.

Compared to the elegant tea set, the donut looked crude and out of place.

A sweet, greasy aroma wafted up, and sugar powder crumbled down as he lifted it.

“……”

The duke glanced at the sugar-dusted donut in his hand. Reina nearly had a heart attack.

Had this man ever in his life eaten a snack that cost only 230 Theon?

Had anyone ever dared to give him something like this?

“…Not bad.”

In fact, this wasn’t his first time eating one. The duke had far more culinary experience than Reina imagined.

Besides, this donut wasn’t something he had purchased—it had been taken from someone else. He had no reason to complain.

As he wiped the sugar powder from his fingers with a handkerchief, the duke spoke, “The reason I made time to meet with you separately is that I have something to discuss—and a request to make.”

“…I see.”

Reina’s heart pounded heavily.

A suffocating pressure weighed on her chest.

She pressed her hand against it, trying to calm herself, but said nothing as the duke set down his handkerchief and lifted his head.

“So…”

“……”

“Reina Boten?”

For some reason, Reina’s face flushed red, and she looked like she was struggling to breathe.

“…Gasp!”

“Reina Boten!!”

Her whole body itched unbearably.

Her heart pounded wildly, and her chest felt tight.

Her blood felt as though it was flowing backward, and she wanted to scratch herself until her skin peeled away.

It was as if all the fluids in her body were surging, trying to burst out. The torment overwhelmed her.

The duke shouted something, his voice urgent, but her buzzing head blocked out his words.

“Gasp… Huff…!”

Breathing became so difficult that she opened her mouth wide and bent forward.

The unbearable sensation clawed at her entire body, making it harder and harder to endure. She gripped the leather of the sofa tightly, her fingers trembling.

“Reina Boten! Damn it!”

The duke spat out an uncharacteristic curse and shouted for someone outside the room.

And with that, Reina lost consciousness.