Ian Wade was 14 year old, the same age as I was.
He had a carefree face with nothing to say with high-quality training clothes that contrasted with mine.
Everything was different, from the restrained movements and indifferent expressions to the well-made luxurious sword, and an aristocratic appearance that was irritatingly neat.
A little while ago, because of Richard, I even had a resentment against 'noble things', so I hated everything about Ian for nothing.
And that day, I lost the final.
Even Caitlyn and Reid looked at me with cold eyes and didn't say a word of comfort.
As a young child, I couldn't sleep and laid on my bed, crouching like a shrimp while crying a little.
No matter how much I remembered my past life and became a new person, I couldn't forget about that event, with a clear identity as Annabelle Nadit.Of course, I understood since I was an illegitimate child, there was no way I would look pretty.
They were openly looking for wealth, but there was plenty of room to be annoyed.
But, humans at least shouldn't be subjected to the cruelest 'hope torture'.
I couldn't just ignore it. Why did they have to ridicule and trample on a 14-year-old child like that?
If I had just treated him as someone who didn't exist, the defeat on that day would not have been so disastrous.
I used to sharpen my sword, thinking for a long time that the misery of that day was due to Ian Wade.
However, when I looked back at the past objectively after thinking of my past life, the person who was the least at fault was Ian.
He was just living his life.
But other than that, everything was bad.
"It's been a long time since we've talked to each other."
Richard said as he guided me.
The way he spoke and his eyes were kind.
"I don't know if you remember your childhood, but…at that time, I was young and very immature."
I was also very hurt when I was young.
And one more thing, I knew that Richard wasn't really the kind of person who would say that.
Obviously, he was calculating, and what I was expecting was very clear.
'They want to use me because of the prince.'
Richard even asked in a softer tone.
"If I say I'm sorry, will you listen?"
"Of course."
I smiled softly.
I said I would listen, but I didn't say I would accept it.
Of course, as Richard said, I had to take into account that it was a childhood thing eight years ago.
And I was thinking of paying interest as well.
"Escort her, Elburn."
At Richard's words, Elburn reached out to me as if he couldn't do it if Richard hadn't told him to.
I thought as I walked while holding his hand.
It must have been Richard's idea of using all the insidious tricks, and the simple Elburn next to me must have jumped and had no choice but to agree with him.
'Richard, you bastard…'
It was sad because I understood the position of not liking me.
Whatever Richard suggested, Elbrun pretended to follow it and know it.
He even prepared the dialogue.
So in the end he would laugh and say, 'of course, I did everything as Richard told me to…'.
He would probably then check my anticipating face, then harden his expression coldly…
He was going to cut off the relationship completely, saying, 'seeing that your eyes are full of expectations, that shallowness resembles the 14-year-old you.'
As I imagined that moment, my stomach tickled.
~*~
Elburn was getting irritated inside as he escorted Annabelle.
He always thought very simplicity, but he was right to follow Richard's words because he always thought a few steps ahead.
'It's a nuisance anyway.'
His mother laid ill when Annabelle's presence was known to the Marquis.
He thought his father was a man of light words and actions, but he didn't know that he would produce an illegitimate child.
It was just another matter of social gossip.
A long time ago, his mother had said, 'it was a marriage without love, so I don't care about his private life, but there should never be an illegitimate child in this family'.
In fact, his father replied lightly, 'I'm being careful, so there's no chance of an illegitimate child appearing'.
It wasn't very reliable, but Elburn thought he'd behave well enough since he was a Marquis…
"How much are you going to give me?"
What Caitlyn Nadit, who brought a baby with light purple hair, proudly demanded was money.
"You're not going to let Marquis Abedes' children stay in a house that's falling apart, are you?"
His father gave up a high-end mansion in the capital in an annoyed manner.
"Don't come back and take care of yourself."
Caitlyn has been there exactly two more times since then. In fact, it was because she had no money to live on.
"She's the child of Marquis Abedes. Are you going to let me raise her like a beggar?"
He gave her a lot of money.
Since then, Caitlyn had shown the expected nerve of no longer coming to bother the marquis.
However, it was reported that the illegitimate child, Annabelle, was taught swordsmanship.
Caitlyn said she would win the swordsmanship competition and make Annabelle a member of Abedes.
She continued to sell Abedes' name, saying that she was trying to join the aristocracy.
"If my child gets a title, wouldn't I naturally become a noble?"
Caitlin led all sorts of issues with the luxury of a high-ranking aristocrat.
"It's a time where even commoners can become the Duchess of Wade."
Being intertwined with such a person in any way was a disgrace to the family anyways.
If he (Elburn) were an illegitimate child, he would have lived as quietly as death, but his mother, who was aching here and there, began to experience troubles in society.
As Elburn remembers, his mother always suffered from Caitlyn.
She died of chronic disease a month before Annabelle participated in her first swordsmanship competition.
When she heard rumors that Annabelle had filed an application for a swordsmanship contest, she couldn't sleep until the day she died.
"If Annabelle Nadit really wins the sword competition, Caitlyn Nadit will be holding her head up high… I'll still see it even if I die!"
As Elburn watched, he could not help but earnestly wish inwardly: may Annabelle Nadit never be recognized as a member of the Abedes.
'Don't let Caitlyn Nadit be brazenly proud.'
Therefore, when Annabelle made it to the final in her first swordsmanship competition, both brothers eagerly wanted Ian to win.
How fortunate Ian was there despite the Abedes not having a very good relationship with the Duke of Wade.
When he heard of Annabelle chasing after and tormenting Ian everyday, they all laughed inwardly.
But now, his older brother and father asked him to wear a mask and be nice to Annabelle.
Elburn agreed for once, but was unable to conceal his feelings, causing his face to convulse as he smiled again and again.
But just as his older brother and his father had told him, Annabelle followed with a smile as if it was okay to hold out her hand for a while.
Even when she was 14, she suffered like that, and even though she had been living in such indifference all the time, it seemed that she had no intention of taking care of her pride.
She was the daughter of Caitlyn Nadit after all.
He also wondered if she knew what it meant to be with Prince Robert…
He wanted her to be quiet after Caitlyn's death, but now she was shaking up the social circle in another way.
'How did you lure Prince Robert…?'
She was, after all, a child who never lived a quiet life.
'What.'
Elburn gave Annabelle a side glance and gave her an evaluation.
She looked good with that decoration.
She was always out wearing training clothes, but today, she had a very elegant charm.
She probably doesn't know anything about etiquette, but maybe because it was built with swordsmanship, she had a straight posture and applied it, and her expression was relaxed even in these places.
"I know you don't like my existence."
Annabelle spoke kindly.
"I understand everything."
Elburn made a slight frown.
Come to think of it, it was the first time they had a proper conversation.He tried speaking at the first swordsmanship competition, but he couldn't even say a lot.
"I'm sorry my mother was so rude to ask for this and that."
"Well, right."
Of course, he thought she would be shameless and abominable, just like her mother.
She probably thought that if she got recognized as a member of the family, she would be able to earn money by asking for inheritance right away.Besides, what she said in front of her father was shocking.
"Marquis."
Of course he thought she'd hang onto him and call him her father…
"What you have done for my mother so far is enough. I don't want to be a part of the marquise anymore."
She spoke calmly and laughed.