Both the lady’s dark green dress and matching bonnet appeared old-fashioned even to Cherry’s eyes. Even accounting for the wartime situation, it was clear that the family’s finances were strained. They had likely dismissed many of their servants as well.
Cherry didn’t feel any particular joy over the unexpected opportunity to serve a noble family, and instead, quietly accepted the reality of the situation.
"I don't have much luggage, so I can leave immediately."
When she answered like that, the lady visibly relaxed and nodded a few times before saying:
"If anyone asks, tell them that child is yours and Bernard’s. Understood?"
Huh? Cherry tilted her head.
She felt like an inexplicable reality had just been imposed on her.
"...Are you saying that Bernard and I had a relationship before he went to the battlefield, that I secretly gave birth to and raised his child, and that you, Lady, decided to take both of us in, thus formalizing our relationship from common-law partners to official spouses?"
After struggling to piece it together, Cherry asked, and for the first time, the lady allowed a slight smile to appear on her face as she replied, "Yes, that’s correct. Well done."
Cherry tried to wrap her head around the idea that her sister’s child had now suddenly become her own, with an unknown man as the father. But it became too complicated, so she just stopped thinking about it.
She had no romantic interests, and Noel's upbringing was a matter of life and death for her. As for her husband, it seemed he was going to die without them ever meeting, so in reality, he might as well not exist.
There was nothing to worry about.
Cherry agreed and became a wife of the Aston family.
* * *
Upon moving, Cherry quickly discovered that the Aston family was in complete financial ruin.
She learned that Bernard had a ten-years-younger sister, Carolina, who was five years younger than Cherry and very frail.
The household only had one maid who managed the kitchen, and both the lady of the house and Carolina were utterly incapable of doing household chores. The mansion had several rooms that had turned into wastelands due to neglect, with cobwebs in the dining room and a pervasive gloominess throughout.
It turned out that they were now relying entirely on Bernard’s remittances.
(What on earth were they planning to do if Bernard died?!)
Cherry was genuinely shocked at their complete lack of foresight.
From the day she arrived, she began cleaning furiously. Whenever she found something valuable, like candlesticks or small porcelain items, she would approach the lady of the house and suggest they pawn them rather than let them go to waste. With the small amount of money she received, she bought seed potatoes and started growing them in the garden.
She also foraged for edible herbs and berries to add an extra dish to their meals, and she washed Carolina’s bedding and undergarments regularly.
"If it weren't for you, Cherry, I don't know what would have happened to us. Thank you for marrying my brother."
Carolina, who had been raised as a sheltered young lady, would often take Cherry’s rough, cracked hands and cry tears of gratitude.
Even the usually stern lady of the house and the maid, who was not particularly skilled at cleaning, expressed their thanks to Cherry.
Noel happily ran around the large house, and when he became a nuisance to Cherry, he would spend time in Carolina’s room, listening to her read books.
After three months, the atmosphere in the house had completely transformed, and it was then that a letter arrived from her husband at the front.
"I think it's a bit much to go from a married man to a widower without even meeting, don’t you?"
When it came to financial matters, Cherry was aware that the survivor’s pension was said to be higher than the remittances Bernard was sending.
However, if they were to lose the war, there was no telling how long the pension system would remain intact.
If that were to happen, it might actually be more financially beneficial for Bernard to stay alive.
Cherry agonized over how to convey this to the husband she had never met, and after much deliberation, she finally wrote a reply.
"Isn’t it simple? You just have to not die."
* * *
Bernard, who had survived more than two years on the battlefield, was now on the front lines where life and death were at their closest.
"Yeah, I might die tomorrow. I might even die in my sleep tonight," he joked with Conrad when a blunt, utterly unfeeling letter arrived, saying, "You just have to not die."
He quickly scribbled a reply, though he wasn’t sure if it would ever reach her.
He had already deduced that the reason for his marriage to this Cherry woman, whom he had never met, was that his mother and sister were counting on the survivor’s pension. He was convinced they were actually hoping for his death.
(If I don’t die as planned, they won’t get the money they’re counting on.)
Just after finishing writing that single line, there was a nearby explosion, and everyone scattered to take cover.
It wasn’t until a few days later that he was able to calmly send the letter to the rear lines.
When it would reach his "wife," he had no way of knowing.
(By the time it arrives, I might already be dead.)
* * *
Receiving a letter from the battlefield is a kind of miracle in itself; first, the person writing the letter must still be alive.
On top of that, the support unit carrying the letter must successfully deliver it to the rear.
Since there’s no urgency, it might take a long time before it finally reaches the intended recipient, and by the time it does, quite a bit of time could have passed.
In other words, the sender might not be alive by then.
"Is it okay if I come back alive?"
(Bernard must have realized that this marriage was for the sake of the survivor’s pension…)
Seeing the hasty handwriting that seemed to have been written in an unstable environment, Cherry understood his feelings.
He was the dutiful heir of a viscount family, never missing a remittance.
He must have calmly concluded that he was worth more dead than alive.
Cherry understood that as well, but there were rumors circulating that the war might end in victory.
Not a complete victory, but with the possibility of negotiating a slightly favorable treaty—a future that seemed somewhat bright.
Even so, in these tough economic times, there was no guarantee that the survivor’s pension would be as substantial as they were hoping.
In that case, Cherry thought it might be better for Bernard to survive, come home, and work as the head of the family for decades to come, ensuring a stable life for Carolina and Noel.
Of course, Bernard would have his own thoughts and preferences, so Cherry was prepared to agree to a divorce when he returned.
She was concerned about Noel’s future, but both the lady of the house and Carolina were so fond of him that even if Cherry left, they wouldn’t suddenly kick him out.
If Bernard remarried and had children, and Noel became an obstacle, Cherry would be willing to take him in.
In that case, she would want to live nearby.
Ideally, she would continue working as a servant, tending to the house and garden. Even if Bernard remarried, since she and he were only married on paper, there shouldn’t be any awkward love triangles.
Cherry pondered her reply while digging up potatoes in the garden, sorting them into seeds for replanting and ones for eating.
She needed to keep the letter concise so that Bernard, who was likely very busy, could read it quickly on the battlefield.
 — Part 2){kind=link}
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