Chapter 4

When she mentioned their final compromise, Raon’s head dropped. The promise he had made—that he would follow without protest if his biological father ever appeared—clutched at his ankles like a trap.

“M-Mommy… do I really have to go?”

“Yes. It will be better for you to go with your father. If you stay in a place like this, you’ll grow up to be nothing more than an ordinary man.”

“I—I don’t care! I’d happy being an ordinary person as long as I’m with you. I don’t want to leave you. I want to eat with you, sleep by your side, talk with you… that’s how I want to live, Mommy.”

Raon, his attachment to Ramona rooted deep in his soul, bit his lip hard. Despite seeing his desperation, Ramona shook her head. It was better for him to receive the vast love and resources of his father’s house than to live only with her affection. Moreover, as he seemed wealthy, the boy would surely inherit a significant fortune.

“Mommy…”

“Go on! Go to your father.”

The time had come to honor the very first promise he had made to live with her. Raon reluctantly pulled away and walked toward Adrian. Adrian pulled the boy into his broad chest and stroked his hair.

“You did well to come, Raon. Let us live together now.”

“…Th-then what about Mommy? And Toto?”

“Hmm. If Miss Ramona wishes, I will allow her to see you. I don’t know who Toto is, but if you want, I’ll let you meet your friends too.”

Having offered a sliver of hope, Adrian looked at Ramona.

“Do you truly mean that? That you’ll let me see the child if I miss him?”

“Of course. Regardless of what anyone says, you are the person who raised our child to be so healthy.”

“Then where must I go to see Raon?”

“I will write down the address for you. You may come whenever you wish. If you do not trust my word, I am happy to draw up a contract for us to keep.”

He sounded sincere about wanting her to remain in Raon’s life. However, human hearts are fickle. Knowing they can change at any moment, Ramona immediately held out paper and a pen.

“Take this down. I will state my requirements.”

Paper and pens weren’t common enough to be found in every shabby household, but it wasn’t strange for her to have them. One look at the books lining the side of the living room showed how she had prioritized the boy’s education.

“What shall I write?”

“First! Ramona may exercise visitation rights whenever she wishes. Second! If it appears to Ramona that the child is being neglected or is not receiving immediate treatment while ill, she may take him back immediately.”

After adding a few more clauses, they both signed next to their names. Ramona felt a wave of relief, thinking this paper would guarantee her access to Raon—until she looked at the name and nearly felt her eyes pop out of her head.

“U-uh, excuse me. Is this… is this really Ca-Cassius…?”

“Yes, that’s right. Just in case, keep this crest; show it to the guards when you visit my home.”

Receiving a brooch engraved with a roaring lion, Ramona could only blink in stunned silence. There were very few people in this region—or this entire country—who didn’t know the name Cassius. It was one of the five Great Ducal Families that supported the Empire. Did this mean the boy she had raised carried the blood of the Cassius line?

“Then, Adrian Cassius… are you perhaps the Young Duke of the House of Cassius?”

“Yes, I am the heir to House Cassius.”

A chill ran down Ramona’s spine as she swallowed hard. This meant the child she had raised would one day be Duke Cassius. A sudden sense of peace washed over her. As the current Duke’s only grandson, no one would dare mistreat Raon.

“I suppose I must call our Raon ‘Young Master’ from now on.”

“No! Sniffle… I’m Mommy’s son. Don’t call me that.”

Pulling away from Adrian for a moment, Raon buried himself in Ramona’s embrace and shook his head. Ramona wiped his face with the hem of her skirt and patted his bottom.

“Adrian—I mean, Your Grace—do you intend to take Raon this very day?”

“That was my intention. A carriage is waiting a short distance away. And… I would prefer it if you called me by my name rather than ‘Your Grace’.”

Noting that his time on the battlefield seemed to have made him somewhat lenient with titles, Ramona gave a small nod. She then moved to pack Raon’s belongings.

She spread out a cloth bundle but paused. Once he entered the Duke’s estate, he would receive much finer things. Would he really need these old books and worn clothes? Fearing the nobles might mock him for bringing such shabby items, she started to take them out.

However, as if reading her mind, Raon—who had been refusing to leave just moments ago—started stuffing things back in.

“This is the first storybook Mommy bought me. This is the handkerchief Mommy made, and this is…”

There was nothing that hadn’t been touched by Ramona’s care. Even socks that had been mended where holes once were found their way into the pile. Raon’s eyes were still wet with tears; he looked as if he would dive back into her arms the second she told him to stay.

The bundle, packed as slowly as possible, was quite large. She hadn’t expected a small child to have so many things. Handing the bundle to Adrian, Ramona pulled Raon into a tight hug.

“Eat all your meals, and don’t be a picky eater.”

“Okay…”

“If you’re hurting, tell people right away.”

“Sob…”

“Study hard, and listen to your father.”

“Waaaaah…”

As she gave advice to the boy who had to adapt to a new life without her, she patted his back gently.

“Don’t cry just because you’re scared. Stay brave and healthy, always…”

“M-Mommy, Mommy! Haaaahhh…”

The more tenderly Ramona spoke, the more the tears welled up from deep within Raon’s eyes. These were tears of a parting he knew was final; Ramona wiped them away and stroked his hair.

“You shouldn’t keep your father waiting too long…”

His hand gripped her sleeve until the very end, unwilling to let go. But knowing that releasing her was the only way for Ramona to live in peace, Raon slowly loosened his strength. Adrian took the small, lingering hand.

“Raon, this isn’t a final goodbye to Miss Ramona, so don’t cry so much.”

After a few hours in the house, Adrian was finally able to step back outside.

“If our Grumpy Prince is a good boy and listens to his father, I’ll come see you later.”

“Sniffle… R-really?”

“Yes, really.”

“Th-then, promise me.”

Raon held out his tiny pinky, and Ramona hooked hers around it. Then, they kissed each other on both cheeks—a seal of their private vow.

His expression lightening at the promise, Raon took Adrian’s hand and walked toward the carriage that had arrived. Even as he climbed into the carriage bearing the Cassius crest, Raon looked back several times as if he wanted to run back to her. But Ramona, having steeled her heart, only waved.

Adrian bowed his head in farewell, and Ramona bowed deeply in return, remaining that way until the carriage was completely out of sight. That was the distance and the difference in standing between her and the House of Cassius.

Once the carriage had vanished, Ramona reached up and rubbed her neck. Considering she had brandished a sickle at a member of that family, it was a miracle her head was still attached.

“I heard the Cassius bloodline has a ferocious temperament… I suppose he showed a lot of restraint because I raised his son. Whew.”

Feeling a wave of exhaustion, Ramona went back inside. Seeing the basket of groceries on the table, she collapsed into a chair.

“I should have at least packed him a lunch.”

Looking at the food she had bought for him, she felt no joy in the fact that she no longer had to cook for a child. Instead, she only worried whether the food at the Duke’s estate would suit his palate.