Chapter 14

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Deepening Friendship (3)
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As soon as Miss Pendleton came down, they promptly left for their walk.

For a change, London's usually somber weather offered a generous dose of brilliant sunshine. Perhaps because of it, the streets were filled with gentlemen in black silk hats and elegantly dressed ladies.

Mothers pushing perambulators, pairs of young girls walking hand in hand, and lovers strolling affectionately arm in arm.

Among them, Mr. Dalton and Miss Pendleton walked side by side, maintaining a handspan's distance between them, as befitting friends. Few words were exchanged between them, but a familiar air lingered in the space they shared.

“Mr. Dalton, are you enjoying your life in London?”

“I am enjoying it far more than I expected.”

“I’m glad to hear it. As your London friend, I would have been concerned if you found life here dull.”

“Miss Pendleton, you already show me more than enough consideration; you needn't worry about my enjoyment as well. Thanks to you, I have already experienced nearly all the pleasures London has to offer. Such as the dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Morton, for instance.”

A few days prior, Miss Pendleton had brought Mr. Dalton with her to a dinner she was invited to by the Mortons, visiting the couple at their new residence.

“They are a lovely couple, the Mortons.”

“And so well-suited to one another. I had the impression that they fill the empty spaces in each other's lives.”

“Oh, do you think so as well, Mr. Dalton?”

“I do. Mr. Morton gave the impression of a man of few words. To the point of seeming cold. But Mrs. Morton drew her husband into the conversation, encouraging him to speak naturally. Thanks to her, I had the rare experience of hearing about a naval battle, which I have never fought in, from the mouth of someone who had experienced it firsthand. And on the other hand, Mr. Morton would subtly stop his wife whenever she was about to drink too much.”

Miss Pendleton laughed.

“By swapping the position of her wine glass with her water goblet, you mean?”

Laughter tinged Mr. Dalton's voice as well.

“Mrs. Morton seemed puzzled at least four times as to why her water goblet was there.”

“She must have been deeply engrossed in conversation. She was always a child with a great deal of focus.”

Miss Pendleton defended her old friend Elizabeth, lest she appear foolish, but she could not suppress her laughter. The two of them laughed aloud, without malice.

“They are a charming couple. Truly.”

“They are.”

“Having brought such a well-matched couple together, you must be very proud, Miss Pendleton.”

Miss Pendleton looked at him in surprise.

“What do you mean?”

“Mr. Morton mentioned it in the smoking room. He said that if it weren't for you, he would not have been able to marry Mrs. Morton.”

Miss Pendleton's face flushed.

“No. Mr. Morton exaggerates. The two of them simply met often at my family's tea parties.”

“I wonder. Mr. Morton does not seem the type to obscure objective facts with exaggeration. More than anything, when he looks at you, his eyes are filled with trust and friendship. It was a look one could not give to anyone but the benefactress who helped him win his wife.”

Miss Pendleton was at a loss for words, her face only growing redder.

Mr. Dalton watched her quietly.

Miss Pendleton was always like this. She became flustered at the slightest compliment. Was it due to her shy nature?

An ordinary gentleman would change the subject when a lady was so discomfited, saving her from her predicament. But Mr. Dalton did not consider himself a particularly fine gentleman, nor did he have any desire to become one.

He spoke his mind, regardless of whether it pained Miss Pendleton.

“Through Mr. Morton, I heard that you, my dear Miss Pendleton, strive to help your friends build harmonious homes. It is a wonderful thing. In terms of benefiting the world, you are doing something far better than any politician or soldier.”

“I don't understand why you offer such excessive praise. All I did was step aside when their conversations were deepening. To compare such passive matchmaking to the work of soldiers and politicians…”

“Soldiers and politicians are sent into the world with a mandate to improve it, yet they sometimes become so obsessed with their purpose that they destroy it. But you, Miss Pendleton, view the world with a prudence that such men often forget. And with a healthy view of marriage, you create perfectly suited matches for your friends.”

His dark eyes gazed at Miss Pendleton with an ungentlemanly directness.

“I remain convinced that wise matchmaking truly is a deed that benefits the world. Every day, dozens of dreadfully mismatched men and women are joined as husband and wife before God. And they live out their lives unhappily, bound to one another.”

“…”

“Such ludicrous events are so rampant that people no longer even see them as a problem. They sell themselves into unhappy marriages merely for property and dowries. When one considers the state of the world, your goodwill, Miss Pendleton, holds all the more value.”

Miss Pendleton turned crimson, not just her face but her ears as well. Mr. Dalton stared at her flushed face with an almost shameless intensity. And he even smiled.

Impurely, he found her appearance in that moment to be lovely. Her flustered shyness was endearing. And the reason for her bashfulness only amplified that loveliness.

Had it been a mere formulaic compliment, she would not have been so abashed. As a seasoned veteran of society, she would typically respond smoothly to remarks about her beauty or the fineness of her voice.

But when faced with a sincere compliment born of objective observation, she would falter as if struck to the core.

At times like this, he sensed the shy heart hidden within the otherwise flawless lady that was Miss Pendleton. And the more he sensed it, the more he wanted to fluster her, to experience more of that loveliness.

Miss Pendleton, too, knew that he took pleasure in her flustered state. To escape a situation where Mr. Dalton might again strike a nerve and leave her at a loss, she began to speak.

“Mr. Dalton, please do not misunderstand me. I am as thorough a realist as any banker. I would never advise a friend to enter a marriage that ignores reality. It is also true that an unequal marriage breeds unhappiness. Even in a home overflowing with happiness, if poverty comes to call, love will flee through the back door. Like a debtor escaping a creditor. So please, please, stop praising me!”

As she chattered on desperately, a thought crossed her mind, and she quickly put it into words.

“The truth is, I was secretly plotting behind your back to marry you off to one of my friends. It was due to the misunderstanding that you had come to London in search of a wife. My acting as your waltz instructor on the first night of the ball was also for the purpose of having you dance with one of my friends. What do you think? Do you still see me as a wise matchmaker?”

But far from being surprised by her words, Mr. Dalton only smiled more deeply. Miss Pendleton soon realized his meaning and cried out involuntarily.

“You already knew!”

Instead of answering, he laughed out loud. Miss Pendleton's face grew even redder.

After laughing for some time, he finally stopped.

“Forgive me. I just found Miss Pendleton to be quite charm—”

He stopped himself. Then he gave a small shake of his head.

“I was simply admiring your innocence, Miss Pendleton. You will forgive me, won't you?”

Miss Pendleton turned her head away without a word. She did not want him to see her reddened face any longer. Taking a deep breath, Miss Pendleton continued to walk.

In the course of their conversation, they had passed Grosvenor Square and entered Hyde Park. The vast, lush greenery of Hyde Park was filled with even more ladies and gentlemen enjoying a stroll than the street they had just left, and along Rotten Row, elegant carriages drawn by two horses frequently passed by.

Miss Pendleton calmed her heart in the clean air. She soon returned to being the gentle Miss Pendleton.

“Were you not displeased by my matchmaking?”

“Far from displeased, I was grateful. You stepped forward to resolve a matter that I, through my own lack of ability, could not manage myself.”

“But you have no thoughts of marriage yet, Mr. Dalton.”

“No. While at the Whitefield estate, I too tried countless times to fall in love. But I only came to realize that it is not something one can achieve through effort alone.”

“It seems your heart was not open to it.”

“That is the perfect expression. My heart was not open. To be precise, I could not find a lady who made me want to open my heart.”

“But if one tries to find the good in any person, surely there is no one without merit. Furthermore, I have never heard any rumors that the ladies of Yorkshire are below average.”

“Of course, they were young ladies from good families in their own right. However, my heart did not open. That is all. It is not that my standards are exacting, nor that I was searching for unparalleled beauty, but it simply turned out that way.”

Miss Pendleton recalled how Mr. Fairfax had once described him as a man waiting for fate.

“Are you perhaps searching for a woman of destiny?”

“How amusing. You sound just like William. Surely William would not have been so foolish as to say such a thing. Hmm, I do not believe in grand words like 'destiny.' I simply believe that my other half is out there somewhere. Someone who will be a match for me, like a pair of gloves. And I believe I will meet such a person without any artificial effort. Ah, but is that not the same as believing in destiny?”

Miss Pendleton simply smiled.

“Well then, how about you search for her more diligently here in London? With my matchmaking skills that you praised so highly a moment ago, I will be sure to find that lady of destiny for you.”

Mr. Dalton gazed at Miss Pendleton for a moment. Then, without a word, he shook his head.

“Why not? Do you dislike the idea of an artificial meeting that might spoil destiny?”

“No. It is because an artificial meeting is no longer necessary.”

'No longer necessary.' The words lingered in her mind. They were open to interpretation. It could mean that he was giving up the effort of searching for a woman. Or, that he had already found his woman of destiny.