C121
The garden behind the orphanage where the two grew up was filled with raspberries in the summer.
That's why raspberries were one of the most common snacks for the children in the orphanage.
Raspberry juice was also a common drink, but among the young Ethel and Liena, raspberry juice had a different meaning.
"Would you like to have raspberry juice together in the dining hall?"
One day, after Ethel said that to Liena, who was upset about something, raspberry juice became a symbol of reconciliation for the two.
After that, when the two fought or their relationship drifted apart, they would seek reconciliation by asking for a bit of raspberry juice.
If they were willing to accept the reconciliation request, they could drink raspberry juice together, and if not, they could reject it.
Raspberry juice was their secret password that not even the other children in the orphanage knew.
The two girls made a promise with crossed fingers. "I will never reveal this secret to anyone."
"It's hot. On days like these, raspberry juice is perfect."
That's why Liena suddenly mentioned raspberries while talking to me in the mining town.
If she were truly Ethel, who remembered my past life, she would have to react to those words in some way.
Either be angry for asking for reconciliation first when she came to take over the mine by force, or be bitter about the memories of the past that won't return.
However, as I didn't know the meaning of raspberries, I had no choice but to hesitate, and based on this, Liena concluded that I had no memories of my past life.
I said as I looked at the frozen Liena.
"I guess I drank too much in my past life and got tired. I don't even want to see raspberry juice anymore."
I have no intention of making peace with you and becoming friends again, I said that.
"Uh, how could that...?"
"My memory of raspberry juice came back a while ago. My memories are coming back little by little."
Liena seemed surprised, as if she had never thought of such a possibility.
Of course, she had all the memories from when she first returned, so it was natural.
"... How much do you remember?"
"Is there any reason for me to kindly tell you that?"
"We were friends!"
"I don't call someone a friend who steals the adoption opportunity from someone else and even wants to steal their mine."
"I just wanted to keep the mine under Terence's control for a while because I don't want it to fall into that guy's hands! I was planning to return it to you once you escaped from his clutches!"
"Do you want me to believe that?"
"It's true. Believe me, Ethel."
"And what about the adoption opportunities? Is this another excuse you're trying to use?"
"That..."
Liena, biting her lip, answered in a low voice.
"Anyway, you rejected my dad's offer in the past, saying you were waiting for your mom."
"So you kicked me out?"
"And what if? If I had let him talk to you, he might not even want to adopt a child like he did in his past life."
"Couldn't you have told me honestly before the Duke came to the orphanage?"
"What?"
"I wanted to be adopted by Cassius. If that were the case, I could have introduced you to the Duke without saying anything."
I wasn't the real Ethel, but considering what I had seen and heard about her personality, I thought it would be very possible.
Ethel had no intention of being adopted by Cassius and seemed to feel a lot of pity for Liena.
"Isn't that so?"
But Liena thought differently.
"As a result, I was adopted, not you, so it's not much different from now."
"Is it? Since you sent me to another orphanage, I went with the Wallace family and didn't get the support I received in my past life."
"I thought you were doing well at Wallace!"
Liena shouted with a grievance on her face.
"I was worried about you too. So after going to Cassius, I investigated and found out that you were adopted by a noble family."
"So you thought I was living well?"
"It's much better to become a real noble than to be sponsored by a noble. Isn't it?"
"... alright."
Liena was satisfied with my words.
"Do you understand?"
"No, because I have no reason to argue with you about this."
To be honest, there was something else I really wanted to ask Liena about.
"Don't speak so coldly. Later, when I found out that you grew up in such a harsh environment, I also felt guilty."
The voice of Liena, who had endured the pain of many people for a long time, filled with tears.
"I wanted to compensate you in some way. It was with that mindset that I arranged your marriage with Leandro."
"That being said. I have many questions for you about that matter."
Liena swallowed saliva.
"Compensate me? Isn't it because you wanted the mine of the Wallace family?"
"No! Of course, at first, I sent my brother Leandro to Wallace for the mine. But the moment I found out you were in that house, the mine became a secondary goal."
"If that's true, why didn't you like it when I said I would go back to Cassius without the mine?"
This was a conversation I had a few months ago when Liena came to visit me at the cheap hotel where I was staying.
"Instead of saying that I didn't like it... I hesitated for a moment because I didn't want to miss out on the magic stone mine..."
"At the end, your feelings for me ended there."
"I said it wasn't like that."
"Then the most important question. Why did you let Cassius neglect me?"
When I asked that, Liena, who had been giving excuses until now, kept her mouth shut.
"What are you talking about...?"
She replied, avoiding my gaze.
"I tried. How many times did I invite you to spend time with me? I always approached first."
"Sometimes it was like that. But besides that, you hardly had any interest in me. You could have made me mingle more with Cassius."
Indeed, Liena used to help the talent she recruited adapt to the duchy.
Although the cases were different since I was a family member, it was clear that she took no active action when she saw me wandering around Cassius.
"I tried to accept that when I didn't have my memories, but now I can't understand you at all."
"..."
"You said you wanted to compensate me? Then why did you just watch?"
"..."
"Tell me, Liena."
When I kept urging her to answer, Liena responded abruptly.
"Please don't blame me just like that. Why do you keep blaming others for not fitting into our family?"
"What?"
Perhaps because my voice was cold, Liena lowered her brows and apologized.
"I'm sorry, I made a mistake. But it's also your fault for pressuring me."
Soon followed an apology that didn't really sound like an apology.
"I thought time would tell. Because you got along with our family in your past life. I thought you could fix it on your own even if I stayed still."
".... Liena. I feel like you've been lying from the beginning."
"I'm not lying!"
"Then tell me the truth. If you consider me a friend, please tell me the truth right now."
This was the last chance I could give to the girl I saw in my dreams.
To the girl who thanked me just for tying her hair into two ponytails and saying she looked like a rabbit.
The red eyes in front of me wavered aimlessly.
"The truth, the truth..."
* * *
Liena has always wanted a family that loves her.
One day, a few days after Ethel left the orphanage with Duke Cassius, a good opportunity presented itself to Liena.
A wealthy scholar couple, who had been married for a while but had no children, took a liking to Liena because she was quieter than the other children. They said she wouldn't cause any unnecessary trouble.
Ethel, who visited the orphanage after a long time, heard this news and congratulated her.
"Congratulations! But it's a bit disappointing that it's so far away. I'll send you letters frequently, so please respond!"
In fact, Ethel secretly hoped that Cassius would support Liena as he did with her, but what Liena needed were parents, not sponsors.
After being adopted, Liena never received Ethel's letters.
This was because Liena's adoptive parents intercepted the letters.
"You're not an orphan anymore."
They absolutely hated that Liena hung out with orphanage children.
Liena wanted to be a beloved daughter, so she obeyed her adoptive parents.
But, unfortunately, fate was not on Liena's side.
Shortly after Liena was adopted, her adoptive parents had a biological child.
Now Liena was just an obstacle at home. And they changed drastically.
However, Liena tried to be loved. She didn't want her parents to abandon her again.
Despite all these efforts, on the day Liena became an adult, her adoptive parents told her to move out.
"We've also fulfilled our minimum duty."
There was no way she suddenly had somewhere to go.
The person who came to Liena's mind as she packed her bags and walked out onto the street was her childhood friend.
"Oh my god, Liena! It's been so long since the last time I saw you!"
Ethel, who came out of the house she visited, welcomed Liena without asking anything.
Liena was truly grateful for the warm welcome.
Although she felt a strange sensation when she found out that Ethel was still close to Duke Cassius.
Ethel told Liena it was okay not to do anything for a while and rest well, but that wasn't possible.
It was embarrassing and hurt her pride to be indebted to her friend.
"What? Do you want to work as a maid for Cassius?"
Liena asked Ethel to build a bridge for her.
This was because she had heard the rumor that Duke Cassius paid generous salaries to his employees.
Ethel tried to dissuade her, saying it wasn't necessary, but when Liena begged her to do it, she introduced her to Cassius.
So, on the first day she went to Cassius, Liena witnessed it.
The beautiful lady in the painting.
Duchess Cassius, whose face looked exactly like Liena's.
Liena realized that she was the girl who should have been raised in Cassius in the first place.
If Duke Cassius had seen a girl who resembled his wife at that time, he would have chosen Liena over Ethel.
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