Chapter 33
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Dear, I believe you may be misunderstanding.
Episode 33
Even as I sat in silence with my lips pressed together, concentrating intently, I could not hear his voice.
Hmm, wasn't it this?
"No, then what exactly is the criterion? And where on earth is he?"
Just as Grace ran her fingers through her disheveled hair.
-...So early?
A man's voice, languid and heavy with the remnants of sleep, reached my ears.
"Your Excellency?"
Startled, Grace instinctively straightened her posture, sitting rigidly upright.
-Hmm....
The unfamiliar sound of him clearing his throat, as though fighting off drowsiness, was strange to hear.
If I closed my eyes, I could almost believe he was lying right beside me, just now rising.
Grace's ears flushed crimson of their own accord.
-Why... *ahem*, why did you wake so early? Did perhaps the bed prove uncomfortable?
His voice, still thick with sleep and slower than usual, carried a drowsy quality.
Even ordinarily, his voice felt like a weapon—so devastatingly attractive.
A man whose appearance was fearsome, yet whose voice alone was honeyed sweetness, now whispered in that half-awake timbre against my ears, and my composure began to crumble.
It was a sensual voice I had never experienced before—one that kindled warmth throughout my body.
'Good heavens, I must be losing my mind. Sensual, indeed.'
I pressed my flushed cheeks down with both palms, struggling to keep my voice steady and composed.
"...No, it's just that your voice comes through sometimes and not others, so I thought I'd try calling out."
-I see. I've been curious about that myself. Sometimes we can converse, sometimes we cannot. Have you discovered the reason?
"Yes, my hypothesis is that it works when I'm thinking of you, Your Excellency."
-Ah.
He fell silent for a moment, then asked in a voice tinged with amusement.
-Then might I assume you were thinking of me the moment you woke?
My heart gave a sharp, painful jolt.
I tried to compose myself as I replied.
"I-I was simply curious about something the moment I woke. I remembered the schedule you mentioned yesterday about visiting the Study, Your Excellency. So it's not that I was thinking of you right upon waking, but rather, as I was thinking things through, it just... happened that way."
...Stop it.
Stop it, Grace. Please.
Why am I rambling on with all these excuses?
I slapped my runaway mouth shut with the palm of my hand.
I should have simply answered that I was curious the moment I woke, brief and direct.
But my lips had already betrayed me, and the arrow had left the bowstring.
"...That's what happened."
I waited for Lucas's response, but none came.
Strangely, even though he wasn't before me, I found myself growing self-conscious.
'It's so hot.'
She fanned her flushed face with her hand, wandering aimlessly before the window.
His peculiar silence only deepened her embarrassment.
What on earth did this man think of her?
Every time she thought of him, a channel of conversation opened between them....
Now that she considered it, this was far more inconvenient than she'd realized.
Whenever her voice reached him, wouldn't he assume she was thinking of him?
Even when her thoughts were utterly trivial.
'...I'm ruined.'
From now on, I needed to restrain my thoughts about Lucas Black.
But how could I avoid thinking of him when I was within his domain?
And wasn't the resolution not to think of him itself a thought about him?
Was it even possible to refrain from recalling Lucas Black in this state?
'...What am I saying? Really. Get a grip.'
In that moment, Lucas, who had been silent, spoke.
-I'm truly grateful.
"Grateful? For what?"
-That I cannot go to meet you right now. I'm grateful for that.
What did he mean by that?
"Why is that?"
At her innocent question, Lucas laughed.
He hesitated for a moment, his voice faltering, before speaking candidly in a low tone.
-If you were before my eyes right now, I fear I might commit an accident I couldn't control. Quite a serious one, perhaps.
His words were like a riddle. It felt as though they were playing a guessing game like children.
Multiple hints were given, yet it seemed he kept asking her to guess words she didn't know.
Grace pondered for a long while before asking seriously.
"What kind of accident are you referring to?"
-I cannot say. If I told you, you might truly see me as a beast.
"What?"
-...Well, I am something of a beast. No, rather, right now I'm simply a beast. Sigh.
"Your Grace, wouldn't it be possible for you to speak words we both understand, rather than words only you comprehend?"
He laughed.
-Later. Soon enough, I'll tell you everything.
Strangely, the sound of his laughter was pleasant to hear.
It was ticklish and soft, like a spring breeze brushing gently past her ears.
Though she couldn't see his face, she felt her image of him was changing.
Becoming far softer and more tender than before.
-I simply don't wish for you to flee from me in fear.
"Flee?"
-Yes. If you were to run, I would chase after you without hesitation, and then you might become frightened. ...In any case, no. Forget what I just said, Grace.
What could it be.
What on earth does he think I would do that would make me want to flee?
Grace felt a fresh chill run down her spine.
For that moment, he had felt distinctly like a predator about to devour her.
'Truly, this is maddening.'
One moment he terrified her, the next he didn't, and then he terrified her all over again.
Grace was bewildered—it was her own heart, yet she couldn't fathom it at all.
* * *
"This is the place, Grace. The master's private residence."
Gabriel opened the door to the Annex and ushered Grace inside.
Within the grounds of the Black Town House stood the main residence, the Annex, and the Red Roof House where the servants lodged.
Originally it had operated with just the main residence and the Red Roof House, but a few years ago Lucas had insisted he needed his own private house, so a separate Annex was constructed, making three buildings in total.
'A place used only by Lucas Black.'
Gabriel explained to Grace that it was a two-story building, not particularly large, but a space only Lucas could access.
Grace found herself hesitating once she stepped into his personal space—was it even proper for her to enter here?
"Gabriel, perhaps we should go to the central Study in the main residence instead? It feels rather presumptuous to wander freely through here when the master isn't present."
-But I said you would become that master.
Lucas grumbled in a voice only she could hear, his tone perfectly measured.
Grace replied in an inner voice he couldn't hear.
'That's precisely why it doesn't count if no one else heard it.'
But that wasn't all.
Grace had no desire to rummage freely through his space in his absence.
Just as my own space matters to me, I wish to respect the spaces of others.
-You can wander about as you please. Truly. You can poke through anything you like.
...Though admittedly, that 'other person' kept whispering annoyingly in her ear, insisting she roam freely.
-You can touch anything carelessly. Feel free to handle whatever, lie down wherever—it's all fine, Grace.
"Lie down? Lie down where?"
Grace blurted out in surprise before she could stop herself.
Gabriel, who had been walking ahead, turned back to look at her.
-...Or if you don't want to lie down, you could always sit instead.
A playful voice continued to tickle at her ear.
Grace quickly closed her mouth and looked at Gabriel, offering an awkward smile.
"Ah, no—I just meant it's so clean there's hardly anywhere to lie down."
"Haha. The bedroom is separate. The master is quite particular about organization, so everything is kept immaculate. Would you like to see it?"
-My bedroom is at the end of the left corridor on the second floor. The white door.
This is driving me mad. What is he even saying right now?
Why on earth would I go in there?
Grace couldn't bring herself to respond to Lucas and could only roll her eyes before grabbing Gabriel's arm.
"Gabriel, I think we should just leave."
"Oh, is it too uncomfortable? Just over there is the master's Private Study."
Gabriel pointed to the door directly across from us and spoke.
"You'll find many fascinating things in there. You mentioned you enjoy botany, didn't you, Grace? There are numerous out-of-print books in his collection. I'm certain he possesses quite a few related volumes."
It was a tempting proposition.
Grace felt a flutter of desire to go, but she quickly suppressed it.
"No, thank you. Perhaps next time, when His Excellency is here. I think it would be better to visit together then."
"What a shame. I was hoping to show you a little secret of His Excellency's. It's a secret I wouldn't dare reveal if the master were present."
Now that piqued my curiosity considerably.
Gabriel spoke with such mystery that Grace found herself lowering her voice instinctively as she replied.
"His Excellency's secret? It's inside that Study?"
"Indeed. It exists only in there. Aren't you curious what it is?"
A secret made me all the more curious.
Yet knowing it was a secret made me feel I shouldn't look at all.
-My secret... what could it be?
Even the secret's owner seemed uncertain what it was.
Grace, hesitating, shook her head firmly.
"No. I'm curious, but still, I think it's better when His Excellency is here..."
-I'm curious too. What is this secret of mine that Gabriel speaks of? Just go in, Grace.
Lucas pushed against Grace's back once more.
Grace was torn.
Should I or shouldn't I?
"Photographs of our master from his childhood."
Photographs of him as a child?
Grace's lips froze mid-refusal.
Lucas Black had a childhood.
It was obvious, yet somehow it felt foreign.
What did he look like when he was young?
I couldn't help but wonder.
Sharp, cool eyes; thick brows; a high bridge of nose; a masculine jaw.
Everything about him screamed adult male—what on earth could he have looked like as a child?
I was curious.
Desperately curious.
But to suddenly change my stance like that...
"He was so endearing compared to now. If I told you he always carried a rabbit doll with him, you wouldn't believe it, would you?"
-Gabriel!
"He would nestle snugly in his mother's arms, crying for her to find Toto. It's unimaginable now, but back then the young master was truly more adorable than words could describe..."
"The Study is over there, you said?"
It was far too easy.
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org