When I Quit Being A Wicked Mother-in-law, Everyone Became Obsessed With Me

‘How rude the young lady has been to the lady of the house, I remember it all too well.’

‘Butler, that’s enough.’

‘I believe the fact that the young lady hasn’t visited the Duchy for eight years is, in itself, a grave disrespect towards the lady of the house.’

That strategy was effectively on target.

Amidst the butler’s murmurs, Delphina began to dislike Anriche even more.

“Mother.”

At that moment, Alexei narrowed his brows and looked at Delphina.

“Honestly, you know, don’t you?”

“What do you mean?”

“That there was nothing to criticize in the attitude you displayed today.”

At those words, Delphina visibly flinched.

She had been hit with the truth.

“There was nothing today that could have upset you, was there?”

“No, that’s not….”

“The only thing the lady did was greet you politely and care for the children attentively.”

Alexei asked again with a voice mixed with a sigh.

“What’s wrong with that behavior?”

“…….”

There was nothing wrong.

Not a single thing.

Delphina bit her lips tightly.

Alexei continued speaking gently, as if soothing his mother.

“The mother I know is someone who possesses a very objective perspective, fitting for the great elder of Balua.”

“……Alexei.”

“I can somewhat understand why you feel uncomfortable. However.”

Alexei calmly asked.

“Could you perhaps focus a bit more on the lady’s current behavior rather than her past actions?”

At those words, Delphina’s face flushed bright red.

‘Have I really been that nitpicky?’

As Delphina pressed her lips together, Alexei continued speaking gently.

“Most importantly, this is a rare occasion for the family to gather and eat together.”

“…….”

“I don’t want to ruin this precious time by having you and her at odds.”

Listening to her son, Delphina felt an inexplicable sense of shame.

To hide her embarrassment, she responded more haughtily than intended.

“You, are you taking your wife’s side over mine?”

“Mother, really.”

Alexei looked at her as if he were dealing with a sulking child.

“Both you and my wife are my family, aren’t you?”

“Well, yes, but…”

“What do you mean by ‘but’?”

He pressed, looking directly at the blushing Delphina.

“I just want to have a harmonious relationship with you.”

Thanks to Alexei’s appropriate mediation, the somewhat tense atmosphere softened a bit.

‘Phew.’

Meanwhile, Anriche, who had been sitting on pins and needles, finally let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

‘Honestly, I can’t even tell if the food is going in through my nose or my mouth.’

Anriche glanced at Alexei out of the corner of her eye.

‘At least the Duke managed to handle the situation appropriately.’

And at that moment…

‘Ah.’

She locked eyes with Alexei.

He immediately flashed her a warm smile.

‘Don’t worry too much.’

Understanding the meaning behind that smile made Anriche feel her heart lighten a little.

***

After the dinner concluded, the children clamored to Anriche for a story.

“So the little pig went next door to show off the most delicious pumpkin pie in the world. But…”

As Anriche read the story, she subtly lifted her gaze.

Before she knew it, soft breathing filled the air.

‘They’ve all fallen asleep.’

It seemed the journey had tired them out.

Seeing the children curled up together, leaning against each other, made Anriche smile unconsciously.

Once she set the book down, she quietly got up.

‘Now that the kids are asleep, should I take a walk?’

Perhaps due to the uncomfortable dining situation,

Anriche felt a bit bloated.

‘A short walk might help with digestion…’

With that thought, Anriche impulsively stepped outside.

***

A round, silver moon hung in the sky, and the garden trees rustled in the night breeze.

The darkened garden exuded an oddly tranquil atmosphere.

“Haah.”

Anriche took a deep breath.

The cold, crisp air felt like it was cleansing her lungs, lifting her spirits for no particular reason.

As she strolled through the garden, Anriche suddenly thought of Delphina.

‘Earlier, my mother-in-law…’

In truth, Anriche didn’t harbor deep animosity towards Delphina.

‘It’s true that the original Anriche was quite rude to her.’

Moreover, Anriche didn’t think Delphina was a bad person.

She was merely a bit naive and childlike for her age.

‘I’ve heard that she had a very good relationship with my father…’

For Delphina, the death of the former duke, her husband, must have been quite a shock.

Deeply grieving, she abandoned all the responsibilities she was supposed to fulfill as the matriarch of the duke’s family.

And around that time…

‘I heard that the current butler had been a great support to her.’

Thanks to the butler’s assistance, Delphina was able to return to her duties.

‘From her perspective, I must look very unfavorably since I contributed to sending away Meg, the butler’s daughter.’

Anriche felt a bit downcast.

Still, seeing Delphina care for the children and treat Liliana without prejudice made her think…

‘…I hope we can somehow restore our relationship, no matter what.’

Just as Anriche sighed lightly, she heard a voice calling her.

“Madam?”

Turning around, she saw Alexei.

“Oh, Duke?”

Anriche’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected encounter.

“What are you doing out here, Duke?”

“I just met with some knights. What about you…?”

“Oh, I just came out for a walk.”

At her reply, Alexei looked at her with concern.

“A walk at this hour? It’s quite dark, and the air is cold, isn’t it?”

“It’s not too bad. It’s a little chilly, but it feels refreshing, so I’m fine.”

Anriche shrugged lightly.

At that moment, Alexei looked at her, almost like a puppy that had done something wrong, as if he was gauging her reaction.

“Um, Madam.”

“Yes?”

“Earlier, my mother… was rude to you.”

Huh?

As Anriche tilted her head in confusion, Alexei spoke firmly.

“I will apologize on her behalf.”

Even as he said those words, Alexei thought that if his wife were to explode with anger, he wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.

Wasn’t that the case?

From Anriche’s perspective, she hadn’t done anything wrong, yet she was being picked on for every little thing…

“Well, from my mother’s point of view, it’s only natural for her to be suspicious of me.”

But Anriche merely shrugged it off, as if it didn’t bother her.

“I’ve done quite a bit of villainous stuff until now, haven’t I?”

“Ha, really, Madam.”

As Alexei sighed, Anriche burst into a lighthearted laugh.

Her cheerful laughter was uplifting for anyone who heard it.

“It’s okay. I just need to work hard to earn my mother’s trust from now on.”

As Alexei gazed at that smile, he found himself thinking.

Anriche had changed so much.

And…

‘I truly like you just the way you are.’

Swallowing the words he couldn’t bring himself to say, Alexei followed his wife with a gentle smile.

***

At that moment.

Delphina leaned against the window, deeply reflecting on the events of the dinner.

“I think I might have been a bit too harsh earlier.”

Anriche hadn’t done anything wrong today.

Rather, Delphina had overinterpreted her actions and reacted nervously.

“…”

As Delphina fell into a deep contemplation, the butler spoke up.

“What do you mean by that, Lady of the House?”

“Butler.”

“To be honest, there have been many things the young lady has done up until now, haven’t there?”

The butler subtly began to manipulate Delphina’s feelings.

“It’s only natural for the Lady of the House to act as she did.”

“…But…”

“Don’t worry too much about it.”

As he reassured Delphina, the butler’s gaze inadvertently drifted toward the window.

His eyes widened slightly.

‘Isn’t that the Duke and the young lady?’

The two were returning to the ducal residence side by side.

They appeared quite affectionate.

‘Surely the Duke said he had to meet with the knights and left earlier.’

Had they just happened to run into each other in the garden?

…Even if that were the case…

‘Seeing them getting along like that…’

If it were the previous duke and duchess, they would have hated the very idea of running into each other by chance.

They wouldn’t even have imagined returning to the residence together.

But now, the two were smiling brightly at each other as they faced one another.

In an instant, the butler’s gaze turned cold.

‘It seems Meg was right after all.’

When Meg was expelled from the townhouse, she had come to him, crying about being fired because of the duchess.

‘How could the Duke side with that girl Anriche instead of me?!’

At that time, it had been so clear that Meg was at fault, he couldn’t possibly take her back into the Balua ducal family…

‘This is something I need to pay attention to.’

The butler subtly pressed his lips together in thought.