Between Your Letter and My Reply

Chapter 56

[Translation By Divinity]

Damian lowered his eyes, and the shadows of his eyelashes fell upon his blue-gray irises.

“To begin with… my real last name isn’t even Stern…”

“What? Then it’s a pseudonym?”

“Well… it’s not a pseudonym, but it’s not related to any Stern family either. This surname is… well…”

Damian trailed off and scratched his head. Realizing it wasn’t appropriate behavior at the dinner table, he stopped, but his awkwardness was evident to Lilliana.

“Damian, you don’t have to tell me if it’s difficult.”

Lilliana waved her hand dismissively, but Damian frowned and replied,

“No, it’s not that difficult to talk about. I just… don’t know how to explain it.”

“But you seem uncomfortable.”

“I’m fine talking about it. The problem is the listener. Even if I’m okay, the listener usually ends up with an awkward expression.”

“Really? I won’t be awkward. I promise I won’t make an awkward face. You can trust me! So please satisfy my curiosity!”

Lilliana shrugged playfully, pretending to be nonchalant, and Damian’s facial muscles relaxed into a small smile. He leaned back in his chair and said,

“Well, to start from the beginning… My mother gave me the name ‘Damian Stern’ when she abandoned me at the orphanage. The problem is… my father’s last name wasn’t Stern.”

“What about your mother’s side?”

“I don’t believe it’s from my mother’s side either.”

“Ah, I see. Then where did the surname Stern come from?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but it’s based on my guess. The surname Stern was just randomly given. My mother probably wanted to give me a last name unrelated to her or my father. So maybe that’s why she chose Stern, a family name that no longer exists. Or maybe she thought of me as a burden, a lump she didn’t want to be associated with.”

“Ah, I see…”

At his answer, Lilliana rolled her eyes and then, remembering her confident proclamation that she wouldn’t be awkward, straightened her back and said,

“I see!”

She tried her best to maintain a cheerful expression and tilted her head, observing Damian’s reaction. But Damian was also looking at her. They stared at each other for a moment, then burst into laughter.

As they were laughing, the food they had ordered arrived. They stopped laughing and picked up their utensils. Damian was about to stab a large piece of braised chicken with his fork and bring it to his mouth when Lilliana snatched it away.

Lilliana used a knife to remove the meat from the bones, gathered it neatly on a small plate, and handed it to Damian. He accepted it with a slightly embarrassed expression and began to eat gratefully.

As he chewed on the chicken, Damian said,

“You’re the first person who’s reacted like this after hearing that story.”

“Didn’t I promise not to be awkward?”

“I didn’t expect this kind of reaction, though.”

It was a story that usually only made people uncomfortable. But after sharing it with Lilliana, he felt strangely cheerful. A lingering smile played on Damian’s lips.

Lilliana nodded while chewing her food, then recalled Damian’s vague description of his background from earlier. He had said he wasn’t a noble. And the information subtly implied in his current explanation…

“So, you’re not a noble, Damian?”

“Of course not. I grew up in an orphanage.”

“But your father is a noble?”

Damian’s fork slowed down, and then he narrowed his eyes and asked Lilliana,

“How did you know?”

“I pieced it together from the information you’ve given me so far… To be honest, I was half guessing, but I was right.”

Damian smacked his lips once and continued eating. Seeing his displeased expression, Lilliana mumbled while chewing,

“Did I say something I shouldn’t have…”

“No. It doesn’t matter if people know. It’s not me who would be embarrassed if word got out that my father is a noble, it’s him.”

Damian continued in a defiant tone.

“And… when people found out about it before, some of them mocked me for being a bastard, so I kept quiet about it. But Lilliana, you wouldn’t mock me for that, would you?”

“Of course not!”

At her immediate response, Damian shrugged.

“Then it’s okay if you know.”

Lilliana felt a bit awkward at his words and took a sip of water.

“I don’t know my mother’s face, but I know his. Well, it’s not that I resent him or anything. He didn’t treat me like his son, but he didn’t mistreat me either. We had a sort of unspoken agreement. He would support me, and I would give up all the rights I could have as his son. That’s the rule, so I’ve never called him ‘father.'”

Lilliana, who had been nodding along to Damian’s story, asked,

“But if he’s been supporting you all this time, couldn’t he help you with your job and prosthetic arm problems?”

“As an adult, I refused his support. I only received it until I graduated from the academy as a minor, and since then, I’ve been living on my own. Oh, and it’s not that I suddenly want to call him ‘father’ or anything. I just don’t want him interfering in my life.”

Lilliana recalled Damian, who had been struggling alone with all his problems. It seemed like he was also the type to make things difficult for himself by being too stubborn.

“Anyway, that’s the story behind my last name. It has no connection to Knight Stern, so you won’t find any clues about my ancestors in that fairy tale.”

As Damian concluded his explanation, Lilliana got up from her seat during the meal and went to his side.

He looked at her with a puzzled expression, and Lilliana reached out and patted his head a few times.

Then she returned to her seat, and Damian looked confused, not understanding the meaning of her actions. Lilliana rested her chin on her hand and said to him,

“You’ve been through a lot.”

“Pardon?”

“Your food’s getting cold. Eat up. Eat this, and that too.”

Lilliana pushed the plates of food towards Damian. He put the food she offered into his mouth, still confused. Lilliana watched him eat heartily with a satisfied expression and asked,

“So, what kind of books were you reading, Damian?”

At her question, Damian’s movements slowed, and his eyes wavered. He fidgeted with his food.

“Just… some reference materials I wanted to look up…”

“What kind of materials? You seemed to be looking through children’s books.”

“I thought it would be good to start with fairy tales for my level of understanding…”

“Really? Well, good luck with whatever it is.”

“Yes.”

Seeing that Lilliana didn’t pry further, Damian continued eating with a relieved expression. Lilliana tilted her head, observing him.

She was curious why Damian, who rarely showed his emotions, was acting shy, but she decided not to ask, in case it would make him uncomfortable.

During the meal, Lilliana’s sulky mood from earlier completely dissipated, and afterward, she walked Damian to the tram stop before he went for his rehabilitation therapy.

They decided to go to the library again the next day, and Lilliana planned to check out what books Damian was reading then.