Side story 5 - Noble wives’ tea party, again
“Really, Claes-sama’s daughter is so wonderful. The other students call her saint-sama, and it seems that she has many admirers.”
Once a month, we would have a noble wives’ tea party. When I heard another parent telling me this, at first I thought I had misheard something.
But when I asked to make sure, I got the same reply again…… I concluded that she must have gotten confused with someone else.
The reason being, I only have one daughter. And, that daughter of mine is a problem child that always leaves me wondering how on earth I raised her to be like this.
Even though she’s from a noble family, a duke’s daughter on top of that, she climbs trees while still wearing a dress, wears work clothes and plows a field, and picks up food to eat from the garden, she’s really such a no-good helpless daughter.
If it was said that there was a problem such as a monkey at the school, without a doubt, my daughter would be the first thing that comes to mind…… There’s no way that a girl being called a saint could be my daughter. However……
“Uhh, could it be that you’ve mistaken someone else for my daughter?”
“No, not at all. There’s no mistake that it’s Katarina Claes-sama. In truth, my daughter is also a member of the Katarina-sama fan club.”
“……Er, there’s something like a fan club?”
“Yes, it’s not an official club or anything, but it’s still pretty popular, it seems that there’s quite a lot of people in it.”
I was too surprised that involuntarily, my mouth just hung open wide agape and I had a blank look as I stood there frozen still.
Unbelievable, there’s no way! Why is there a fan club for that no-good daughter of mine! What’s so lovely about that monkey daughter of mine!? Maybe, they’ve gotten her confused with Keith……
While it’s rather regrettable about my actual daughter, I really like my stepson Keith, he’s grown up to be such a wonderful and talented son of mine. So I thought they mixed her up with Keith, and got confirmation over and over again, but…… It seems that without a doubt, it’s about my daughter, Katarina.
Anyways, the stories I heard from the other ladies about my daughter Katarina, were all stories about a different Katarina than the one I knew.
She likes to admire plants? No, she’s certainly good at climbing trees, but it’s just to pick fruits off the branches and eat them…… She’s liked by animals? No, she’s always barked at by dogs, and it seems that she’s even chased by them sometimes…… I don’t think that she’s very liked by them at all……
I couldn’t believe that these stories were about my daughter at all……
……Maybe, the no-good helpless daughter that I know is only one facet to her personality, and she’s really a splendid saint like what I’m hearing from the stories?
Luckily, my daughter was about to return from school for a short vacation soon. When she returned, I made up my mind to discover the truth.
★★★★★★★★
“Alright~, one, two!”
When I returned from the noble wives’ tea party, my daughter had already returned, and was in her work clothes with her face covered in mud, and was chanting something mysterious while working in her field.
At seeing how she appeared…… Indeed, it seems that what I heard at the tea party must have been a mistake.
“She actually might have some splendid and wonderful parts to her if I come out and talk to her a little,” such thoughts immediately disappeared from my mind.
“Alright~, one, two!”
As if to add to my stress, my daughter’s mysterious chanting was ringing throughout the venerable Claes family garden.
At hearing her chanting, I felt like everything was in vain and was so tired, that I returned to the mansion as fast as I could.
I don’t need you to become someone as wonderful and splendid as the saint I heard about today, but…… At least, I wish you would become a little more respectable. I returned to my room and let out a deep, deep sigh.
After that, when my daughter returned to the house, I made sure to warn her to stop that weird chanting of hers…… The next day, the chanting sound of “let’s go~!” resounded throughout the venerable Claes family garden.
★★★★★★★★
“Today, that daughter of mine -”
It’s become a habit of mine to complain about our daughter to my husband in the bedroom.
“Well, as long as she’s healthy and energetic, isn’t it fine?”
Just like usual, he replied to me while smiling. My husband Luigi Claes is quite a looker, has a good personality, and is really capable, he’s really such an amazing person, with only one flaw. It’s that he spoils our daughter too much. Anyways, he loves her so much, that no matter what problem Katarina causes, he’ll just forgive her with a wry smile. However, he better take a good look at the way our daughter is now, and get a good grasp on the situation, or I’ll be troubled.
“Being so healthy and energetic, well isn’t she just your dear little girlie…… To begin with, that girl’s already set in her ways, it’s already gone beyond what I can handle…… You should really take a good look around you…… Really, with the way she is, I wonder who it could possibly be that she even takes after.”
As I said so, I let out a big sigh, and my husband looked at me like he was about to say something.
“What is it?”
“……No, it’s nothing.”
After that, I just kept complaining about my daughter to my husband for a while. Really, I wonder who she’s supposed to be like…… As I was thinking such things, next to me who was falling asleep, my husband was saying something under his breath that luckily didn’t reach my ears.
“I think it’s that Katarina doesn’t only take after you in looks, there’s also many other parts where you’re alike……”