Obviously, It’s My Child - Chapter 126

This couldn’t be happening. Claire was going to take action without even listening to the full story?

Surely not. It couldn’t be. There would be no evidence. It must be just for attention because she’s pretty.

It seemed best to escape quickly, but Iris couldn’t easily walk away.

The orchestra conductor lightly lowered the baton.

The overture was a familiar tune. The singer, with a voice as smooth as flowing water, sang a song about lovers holding hands under the moonlight.

Iris listened to the song, feeling breathless.

The voice was unique and stunningly beautiful, easily catching one’s attention. It soared comfortably to high notes, suggesting that with a little practice, it could reach the very top.

Above all, it was beautiful.

“Bravo!”

Applause burst out as soon as the song ended.

The woman smiled gracefully, lifting the hem of her dress slightly and greeting those around her.

Several noblewomen covered their mouths with their fans.

“Who is that lady?”

“Seeing her with Sir Maximilian, she must be a relative of the Klausener or Delford.”

“How could such a beauty have been hidden until now?”

Most of those talking were young.

Iris, intending to flee, bowed her head again and tried to move.

At that moment, a haggard middle-aged man staggered into the banquet hall from the other side.

‘Dad?!’

Count Schneider looked as if he was half out of his mind.

She was greatly alarmed. She didn’t understand why the Count was here.

The Count himself said they would just hear unpleasant things and make the bride uncomfortable, so no one should attend.

But the reason wasn’t important now. Iris thought if she left him alone, it would be disastrous, so she quickly went and hooked her arm through his.

“Dad!”

“……”

“Why are you here? Ah, you came because of me. I’m not here to cause trouble, really.”

Iris spoke with forced cheerfulness, trying to hide her urgency.

“Erich and the Duchess aren’t attending the banquet. So let’s go back, Dad.”

“……Iris.”

The Count had an expression she had never seen before. His face was heavy with fatigue, pain, and doubt.

“Dad.”

“……”

Without saying anything like ‘go back first’, the Count took her hand and brought it down.

And he headed towards the stage.

Her whole body trembled like a leaf. Her vision and body were shaking.

“Count Schneider.”

Someone who already had a suspicion tried to grab the Count’s arm, intending to advise him against any rash actions, but the Count wasn’t listening.

It wasn’t just the voice. The face was the same too. And the poise.

He knew the woman singing the song, like a spirit dancing under the moonlight. He had first lost his soul to her, then his heart.

There was nothing he wouldn’t do to have her, knowing well that he was old and unattractive compared to her, he didn’t hesitate to kneel at her feet and beg.

When he first learned that she was pregnant with his child, his initial thought wasn’t joy.

[I’ve obstructed your future.]

He wanted to embrace her but didn’t think of making her his wife.

Because she wasn’t meant to be the wife of an old man. She was meant to wear her wings and sing in a place where all kinds of lights shattered.

However, she left after hearing those words.

It wasn’t that he disliked the child. He was happy. In fact, there was nothing more ecstatic.

It was just regret. But before he could fully express his feelings, she left with the baby.

How joyful he was when he found his lost child again.

He wanted to give everything back, even to her embodiment.

No matter what others said, no matter the reputation, no matter what the world considered as the best.

He wanted to let her do what she wanted. To do what she was most talented at, what she loved the most.

How happy he was when he found out his daughter had a talent for singing. It was as if the angel he had ruined was resurrected.

But.

All the sentences he had denied until now poured over his head.

Katya had another man. There was a ghost of a lover in the opera house.

He heard whispers. People spoke in very soft voices, ensuring the Count couldn’t hear. Suspicions that whispered from the bottom of his own stomach.

He clenched his teeth.

He thought it was a coincidence. He thought he had misunderstood something. It was just a voice he heard.

The voice of the new soprano who replaced Iris just happened to sound similar.

Recalling the past in his mind, when he couldn’t stand up from his seat, and even after everyone else had left the chapel, he stayed for a long while.

He seemed to have fallen asleep sitting there.

It was only when a priest cleaning the chapel woke him that he came to his senses and stepped outside. His body was drenched in cold sweat.

[Evangeline died of illness two years ago. She asked me to bring the child to you.]

[Why did it take two years?]

[I am a poor woman. It took time to gather the fare to come here. I had a daughter too. Although I took Iris in out of pity for Evangeline, I couldn’t leave my job and come all this way.]

Katya said she had lost her daughter. That’s why she was finally able to bring Iris.

He decided to marry her for that reason. The lost daughter had returned.

She had lost a daughter, and he had lost the mother of his daughter. They thought they could fill each other’s void, and they lived that way for 17 years.

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