I Ran Away And The Reverse Harem Started Chapter 106

Yvette spoke in a low voice.

She recalled an event from just a few months ago.

It was when an invitation to a royal party had arrived. At the time, the Viscountess of Bullosen had sighed and spoken those words.

Since losing her daughter, the Viscountess rarely left the estate unless it was for an event she absolutely had to attend.

She handled almost everything from within the manor, and over the past twenty years, her social circle had shrunk considerably.

If the Viscount of Bullosen had fallen ill from exhausting himself searching for their daughter, then the Viscountess had been suffering from a different kind of illness—one caused by the weight of others’ judgment, in addition to the pain of her loss.

But today, she seemed different. Unlike usual, she looked lively.

What had come over her to suddenly visit a crowded dessert shop filled with nobles?

Just then, the Vicountess pulled a chair over and sat across from Yvette. She reached out and gently clasped her daughter’s hands, looking into her eyes as she spoke.

“Yes, Yvette. As you know, I’ve always cared too much about how others see me.”

“…….”

“Even when people said nothing, I could feel their eyes on me. As if they were wondering—what kind of clothes does a woman who has lost her daughter wear? What kind of food does she eat?”

“…….”

“They acted as though they were sympathizing with me, but I always felt like they were watching my every move. Wondering if I was smiling too much, if I was indulging too much, as if I had no right to happiness. For twenty years. And now…”

She trailed off for a moment. Though she was smiling, emotions flickered across her face.

“Truthfully, I still care. I still wonder how people see me. Whether they think I look like a woman who has lost her daughter but dares to be happy.”

Yvette held her breath for a moment. She lowered her gaze, as if unable to meet her mother’s eyes after such a raw confession.

The Viscountess also took a deep breath before continuing, her voice gentle.

“Even when I went to that dessert shop just now, I hesitated. It was such a popular place, filled with people, and I wondered—will someone look at me and think, ‘How can she eat dessert when she’s lost her daughter?’”

Yvette instinctively furrowed her brows. The mere thought that someone might judge her mother like that made her stomach churn.

But the Viscountess shrugged, as if she no longer cared.

“Then, I realized something. Or rather… it hit me when he told me he didn’t have much time left. I had been wasting my life worrying about meaningless things. That realization gave me a strange sense of courage. I suddenly wondered—why have I been living like this?”

Her gaze briefly shifted to the count, who was fast asleep. She reached out and lightly smoothed his blanket with a bittersweet expression.

“Mother…”

“At first, I was consumed by the pain of losing Irene. Then, I became shackled by the weight of other people’s gazes. I lived foolishly, Yvette.”

“…….”

“It took me far too long to realize that I had abandoned my own life for decades.”

“…….”

“And that, in doing so, I failed to pay enough attention to you.”

At those words, Yvette lifted her head and met her mother’s eyes.

“Please don’t say that, Mother.”

Her voice was firm.

“I never once felt like I lacked love from either of you. I never thought I was neglected because you were searching for Irene.”

As Yvette frowned, the Viscountess instinctively reached out and patted her eldest daughter’s shoulder. But even so, Yvette couldn’t easily calm down.

“I know.”

“And as for the opinions of others… they don’t know the truth. They have no idea why Irene was taken. They don’t know how hard we tried.”

Yvette’s voice was still tight with frustration.

“Irene was born on the same day as Deborah. There may be no solid proof, but we knew. Someone wanted to make Deborah the one and only Saintess, so they deliberately kidnapped Irene. But people would never even consider that possibility. Because we were silenced.”

The Viscount of Bullosen’s family was no fool.

Two girls had been born on the same day, both destined for the same fate.

Yet one of them had suddenly vanished without a trace. Someone had deliberately intervened.

And while there were suspects, no concrete evidence had ever surfaced. So all they could do was keep silent and desperately search for Irene, clinging to the hope that she was still alive.

“And the temple… it was the same. When you think about it, that so-called oracle was the reason Irene became a target in the first place. And yet, they pretended ignorance. They made it look like they were helping, but in the end, all they did was silence us.”

“That’s right.”

“We did everything we could, Mother. We did our best.”

Her voice cracked at the end, even though she hadn’t wanted it to.

Just thinking about the High Priest, the man who had coldly turned his back on their family, made anger boil inside her.

She still remembered what had been said when the Viscount first went to the temple, desperate for help.

Back then, the temple had offered some aid—just enough to make it seem like they cared. But it hadn’t lasted.

“The temple has already done everything it can for the Viscount’s family. While it is unfortunate what has happened to your daughter… if you place the blame on the temple—”

“…….”

“Then even the goddess may turn her back on you. To slander her faithful servants and defile her will…”

The High Priest had expressed regret that Irene had been taken.

And for a time, the temple had pretended to support the family in their search. But their hypocrisy hadn’t lasted long.

“We merely proclaimed the oracle in accordance with the goddess’s will. It was for the kingdom.”

“But High Priest, my child was kidnapped because of the oracle. She didn’t just disappear. You know that, don’t you?”

At the mention of the oracle, the High Priest’s eyes narrowed. He asked in a stern voice.

“Can you prove it? That your daughter was kidnapped because of us?”

“…What? Proof?”

“Do not speak recklessly of things you cannot prove, believer. The goddess will be angered if she hears.”

“……”

“You should leave now.”

It was a time when kidnappings of noble daughters were frequent. The temple had no desire to be entangled with the Viscount Bullosen family and be caught in public criticism.

After supporting the viscount’s family for a year or two, the temple withdrew. Having shown the minimum sincerity, they seemed to consider their duty fulfilled.

Naturally, even Irene’s birthday was kept secret due to pressure from the temple. Everyone knew that the Bullosen family’s daughter had disappeared, but no one knew her birthday.

If they publicly declared that their daughter had been sacrificed because of the temple, they would be making an enemy of the High Priest.

And as the temple claimed, they had no way to prove that their daughter was kidnapped because of the oracle. It was nothing more than suspicion.

Even so, the viscount continued to donate to the temple every year, praying for his lost daughter’s safety.

Not for the temple’s sake, but for the daughter who might be somewhere alone in the kingdom.

“Irene will be safe. As long as we don’t give up.”

In the end, their family had to search for their second daughter alone, without anyone’s help.

As a result, the father fell into an illness of the heart, and the mother grew fearful of everyone’s gaze.

We are the victims.

Inside Yvette’s chest, a hot and suffocating wave swirled violently.

Sensing her daughter’s turmoil, Viscountess Bullosen quietly placed a hand on Yvette’s hand.

“My daughter, Yvette, do not be angry. This is not what I wanted to talk about today.”

The viscountess soothed her daughter in a gentle voice.

“Do you remember when I told you that I realized something after hearing your father didn’t have much time left? That I had wasted too much time on trivial things.”

She looked into Yvette’s eyes. Their clear blue gazes met in midair.

The viscountess brushed back her eldest daughter’s hair behind her ear and smiled faintly.

“If I have lost anything over the years, it is our family’s happiness and your happiness.”

“…Mother, what are you saying?”

“I’m telling you not to bury yourself in the business alone. Live doing what you want. You are still young, Yvette.”

“……”

Doing what she wanted? That was something Yvette had never considered. She didn’t understand why her mother was suddenly bringing this up.

“You have spent your time bound by both Irene and the business.”

“I did it because I wanted to. It was my responsibility, too. I wanted to find Irene.”

Without realizing it, Yvette answered stiffly. Then, she suddenly stopped and stared at her mother.

For a moment, her pupils trembled with unease.

“Are you saying… you will stop looking for Irene?”

“……”

“Are you saying you’re giving up on her?”

Yvette muttered in disbelief. The viscountess was silent for a moment.

There was a reason why she had spoken at such length.

Yvette, too, had been on the verge of giving up on searching for her younger sister, worn down by the words of those around her.

But she had never openly declared it before.

And her parents had never once hinted at such a thing either.

She had simply assumed that they would never give up on their second daughter.

If there were no obstacles, they would have continued searching for Irene for the rest of their lives.

Then why now?

Suddenly, as if realizing something, Yvette’s eyes quivered. She stiffened and stared into her mother’s gentle blue eyes.

…Is this all because of me?

Viscountess Bullosen had clearly decided that searching for their lost daughter for decades was draining her eldest daughter’s happiness.

And so, she was declaring that they would stop.

If they remained trapped in this search any longer, their remaining daughter might also wither away, exhausted by life.

“Now, live your own life, my daughter.”

The viscountess spoke.

“…Live your own life now, my dear.”

Her words overlapped with something the Viscount had said a few weeks ago.

“……”

Something welled up from deep inside Yvette’s chest. She felt as if the ground beneath her was crumbling. This was not the outcome she had wanted.

Yvette pressed her lips tightly together. The viscountess gently patted her frozen daughter’s shoulder and deliberately changed the subject.

“Come now, have some snacks. I bought them for you. I wasn’t sure what you’d like, so I asked a young lady in front of the shop….”

She trailed off in thought for a moment, then smiled mysteriously.

“And while I was there, I ran into Lucas. I asked the young lady with him for advice on what to buy.”

“…The young lady with him?”

Yvette frowned slightly at her words. That young and fussy man—who was the woman he was with?

“Was she a red-haired woman, by any chance?”