Thrown Into A New World: Let The Punishment Begin!

Chapter 864: Reliving The Past (2)

A year ago, it was almost after eight years of not knowing whether her child was alive or dead that the Baroness finally received some useful information.

It had been a sad day for the noblewoman as it was the commemoration day of her father who had died tragically in a mishap.

She had gone to revisit some of the old memories she possessed of the times when she was by her father’s side as a little child.

The fondest memories she had with him were when he would sit in the same room with her lest she got bored and cried while the painter was working on her annual portrait.

Her father would bring his work documents along and accompany her for the many hours that were required to complete her portrait.

He would work as well as converse with her to ensure that she did not fall asleep or get cranky from being still for too long.

This was one of the fondest memories that she could think of.

.....

Therefore, on the day of her father’s death anniversary, she had decided to take a look at the few portraits that he had sent to her in the past.

While she was reminiscing about the past they shared, the maid next to her had suddenly spoken out of turn.

If this had been any other time then the servant would have been punished but the words she had uttered had managed to stun the Baroness enough to let her ignore all other mistakes.

This maid was a new recruit who had been appointed a few years ago and hence had no clue about anything that went on in their household prior to her arrival here.

However, when she mentioned meeting the child in the portrait, the Baroness was taken aback.

Not wanting to give away her inner thoughts before this maid, she simply asked her to elaborate on what she meant.

This was when the maid revealed that just last year when she was on her way to the Leopold fief where her family lived, she had stopped midway at an inn for some rest.

The inn was located in the Lumex fief which happened to be between the Baron’s fief and the Leopold fief.

There she had met the child who bore a striking resemblance to the portrait she had just seen.

When the Baroness heard this, she soon realized that the hope which had been extinguished in the past was still dimly lit inside some dark corner of her heart.

Asking more details from the maid, she learned that the child seemed to be around six or seven years old back then and was very jovial.

She was helpful towards the guests and sociable to the extent that everyone who stayed at the inn liked her very much.

Even the maid was one of the guests who had gained the hospitable treatment from the child and was extremely satisfied with it.

Hearing about the little girl working in an inn, the Baroness felt her heart prick but she needed to confirm this news before she could move any further.

Therefore, she interrogated the maid, asking her to spill everything she could recall about the child’s appearance.

The maid did her best to describe the innkeeper’s daughter and also pointed at the portrait in the Baroness’s hands, declaring that the child looked just like this image.

The color of their eyes and their hair were the only things that varied.

This much was enough for the Baroness to understand that the child being mentioned was none other than the baby she had lost after birth.

Making the maid vow to never reveal this matter to anyone, she confided in her, disclosing the incident of the past.

She also mentioned that she doubted if this child could be her daughter who had been stolen from her.

Being a righteous and principled woman, the maid was enraged that some other maid had dared to commit such a crime against their own Madame.

Therefore, she swore to do her best and would bring back the child after explaining this matter to the innkeepers who now held the title of the child’s parents.

The Baroness also supported her and even went as far as asking her personal maid and the old nanny to help her prepare for her journey.

However, who would have thought that the plague would occur out of nowhere?

Their fief was one of those lands which was massively stricken by this deadly and contagious disease and her husband had immediately begun working towards lowering the death toll.

The King had later announced that all the borders of the fiefs throughout the Kingdom needed to be sealed.

Therefore, the maid who was even willing to sneak out of the Barony could no longer do so.

They could only wait for the plague to come to an end before moving ahead with their plan.

Throughout this time, the Baroness prayed day and night for her daughter to be safe and also to return to her side once the plague ended.

It took many months for the medical professionals in the Capital to come up with a cure but thanks to the Royal Hospital that had been built in their fief, many people received timely aid.

Once the cure reached their southern fief, it was administered to those in need and soon the plague had also been officially declared to have been eradicated.

When the borders were reopened, on the first carriage out of the Barony was her maid who knew where this child lived.

The Baroness could not let anyone know of the anxiety within her heart and had to pretend to be alright when she was at home.

She would decide how to deal with the rest when she reunited with her child but until then, she could not reveal anything to anyone.

The nanny and her personal maid also prayed for the child to come back safely as in this way, they too could let go of the guilt that had been buried in their hearts for so many years.

__

While waiting for the maid to return, the Baroness went about her usual schedule as she did before the plague had struck their fief.

She spent time in the garden behind the Baron’s ancestral home, went shopping, and also patronized the stores she liked.

After the plague had devastated their fief, it took a while for the economy to be rebuilt but her husband was doing his best to ensure that the lives of those who survived would get back on track at the earliest.

For this reason, she too often went out into the town to see how everything was going.

On one such trip to the town, she had wished to visit the store which sold the freshest and most beautiful flowers.

The Baroness was hoping to fetch some pretty flowers to arrange in her room but when she entered the store, the face that she came across was far more beautiful than any flower she had seen ever before.

With just a single look at this face, she knew that the one whom her maid should currently be looking for in the Lumex fief was standing right in front of her.