To Those Who Regretted After I Died - Chapter 65
“Lord Lemoire, I will now speak about Miss Emily’s time spent with my nephew Alec for over half a year… This is what I have heard from the servants working in the mansion.”
“Yes…”
Even before hearing the story, sweat was already beading on Emily’s father’s hands.
“I heard that after visiting the Parlis estate many times, she began living there. Alec allowed Emily to live in the mansion without listening to Sophia.”
“……”
“Alec apparently bought Emily anything she wanted, as she arrived without any belongings, and he seems to have given her only expensive items.”
The relatives murmured in surprise, some glaring at Alec.
“……”
“Excuse me for interrupting… Where did those funds come from?”
“Of course, Alec paid for it… He must have used money from the store’s sales.”
“What!?”
The relatives began to stir and make noise.
“There’s no need to make such a fuss. It’s Alec’s store, so he’s free to use the money as he pleases… However, I don’t recall ever allowing him to use money on someone other than his wife, Sophia.”
“……”
His aunt continued to speak to Alec, who remained looking down and did not raise his head.
“Alec’s behavior towards Emily… acting as if he was completely under her control, seems to have been quite severe… At Emily’s word, he dismissed maids and servants, and Emily seems to have asked Alec to renovate the mansion’s garden and interior… Furthermore, I heard that there were plans to build a greenhouse for Emily.”
“How could this be…”
“That’s why I was against it from the beginning… making Alec the successor.”
“To be controlled by a woman like that is shameful!”
Alec was bewildered by the piercing words from his relatives.
“I… I didn’t know about the greenhouse… My wife informed me… and told me to stop it…”
“……So… Sophia did… But you did not listen to your wife, Sophia, and continued to accept Emily.”
“……”
“There’s more to Emily’s story. I heard that she would invite Alec out even during work hours, leaving the work to Sophia. Outings, daily walks in the garden, tea parties in the garden… I heard that she also disliked eating at the mansion, preferring to eat out most of the time… I heard from the maids, who spoke through tears, that Sophia spent many days alone while you two were gone.”
“……”
“At the banquet for the exchange with other countries, you apparently took Emily instead of Sophia… Why didn’t you take your wife, Sophia? Emily wouldn’t have understood anything, would she?”
“My wife was planning to go… However, she said she wasn’t feeling well before we left the mansion… so I took her younger sister, Emily, instead.”
“You could have gone alone without taking Emily.”
“……”
“You knew that the banquets with other countries are held every year, didn’t you? Even if you couldn’t go this time, you should have stayed by Sophia’s side. When I heard that you went to the banquet and spent time with Emily without caring about Sophia, I couldn’t stop my tears…”
“……”
The relatives buzzed and whispered, many showing looks of dismay. Alec silently listened to his aunt’s trembling voice. Emily’s father, sitting next to Alec, listened to the stories of his daughter’s self-indulgent life and felt his blood run cold. He finally understood why he had been summoned by Alec’s aunt.
The relatives who had been listening to the details of Emily’s life at the Parlis estate wore expressions of astonishment, and Alec and Emily’s father were met with cold stares.
“The way she’s been living is beyond selfish.”
“I also have a daughter of similar age, and she has her selfish moments… but nothing like this… My daughter’s selfishness seems normal in comparison.”
The father couldn’t say anything to the relatives who were laughing and comparing Emily to their own daughters.
“The stories of your daily life with Emily never seem to end… The servants and maids continued to talk… You and Emily apparently showed yourselves being close even with the maids nearby… Especially Emily, I heard that she acted like the next Marchioness.”
“……”
“Oh… How could this be…”
Emily’s father held his head in his hands, his shoulders slumped. He didn’t want to hear any more about Emily. Emily, despite the presence of her older sister Sophia, had been acting as she pleased, and had unknowingly driven Sophia into a corner… The father regretted letting Emily go to Sophia alone.
“Sophia… I’m sorry… Emily was also engaged… Once she was married, she wouldn’t be able to go out freely… That’s why I allowed it… so she could have fun at her sister’s… I never imagined it would turn out like this…”
The father spoke in a low voice, his head bowed, tears welling up in his eyes.
“……”
The doctor heard the father’s quiet words.
“Alec, what happened to the portrait?”
“Eh!?”
“I’m talking about the portrait you had painted with Sophia… I knew the painter had been at the mansion. I was waiting for you to contact me.”
“……”
(Didn’t Aunt hear about the portrait from the maids?)
“I was unable to have a portrait with my wife made…”
“Why? You ordered the frame, didn’t you? The portrait should have been painted.”
“That is…”
Alec hesitated… He was unsure whether he should tell his aunt that there was a portrait painted with Emily.
“What is it? Is there something you can’t say?”
“He wouldn’t have had a portrait painted with a woman other than his wife, would he? Haha.”
“That’s impossible, it’s an important portrait of the family.”
Alec, his face pale, avoided looking at the relatives. One of the relatives who had been joking and laughing looked at Alec’s face and exclaimed, “Eh!?” Seeing this, his aunt let out a small sigh.
“You said you were unable to have a portrait with Sophia made, Alec.”
“……”
“You… you had a portrait painted with Emily, didn’t you?!!”
“Wh…Is that true, Alec!?”
“What are you thinking? A portrait isn’t like a child’s drawing!”
“I…I apologize…”
The sound of the relatives’ commotion echoed throughout the room, and Alec clenched his hands on his knees.