Chapter 83
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
Dear, I believe you may be misunderstanding.
Episode 83
"No, you see, right after the young lady left, that pink-haired woman woke up. And then she whispered a few words to Norman's coachman."
Julie rambled on, explaining what had just happened.
Both her knees were scraped raw from being pushed down and falling.
Oblivious to the blood seeping from her wounds, Julie earnestly recounted the situation to Grace.
"Then she asked for the baby—wanted the baby. So I thought, well, she's the mother, she must want to see if her child is safe, so I handed the baby over. But then I heard the young lady's voice from outside, so I stepped out to check, and she went... that way..."
The room where the woman had been lying had a balcony connected to the outside.
In the city district, buildings were often packed tightly together.
To prepare for fires and accidents, each floor had external balconies with connecting stairs. This room appeared to be one of those.
"I was startled and tried to stop her, but she pushed me and just ran off. Ow."
"Insane people. Jumping down from the third floor while holding a baby?"
"There are stairs, at least."
"Those are emergency stairs—dangerous even when taken slowly. And she rushed down them like that?"
"...She should be fine, right? She looked pretty badly hurt though."
"Julie, who are you worried about right now? Look at your knees—they're completely scraped up."
Haem, who was carefully applying medicine to both of Julie's knees and affixing bandages, spoke as if exasperated.
Her beautiful knees were completely scraped, yet the woman who had fallen seemed utterly indifferent to such injuries.
Haem didn't understand why he felt more upset than she did, muttering irritably as he applied the bandages.
"Ow! Be gentle, Haem."
"Now you feel pain? Your knees are completely scraped, and you're worried about the person who ran away."
"No, but the baby is with her too... That woman looked absolutely terrified."
Julie looked at Grace with a conflicted expression.
Grace's expression was equally troubled.
Why had she run? And that man, Torres—why had he looked so deathly pale?
An uncomfortable suspicion kept coiling back on itself.
"Since this incident occurred at my estate, I take responsibility and will find her again for you."
Hiess Cerviente interjected.
"Enough. This isn't your concern. Grace, if you wish, I will find her for you.
"Isn't this a matter between myself and Grace? And this is my estate. How much longer do you intend to occupy it without permission?"
"I don't want to be here either, Serviente. I'd rather my beloved fiancée not spend too long in this den of wickedness."
"That beloved fiancée came here of her own volition, did she not?"
"And you had nothing to do with that?"
"Constantly slandering innocent people is a terrible habit."
Ugh, so noisy...
I couldn't even think with those loud men bickering away.
"Please, both of you. Stop."
Already nursing a headache, the constant bickering between the white-haired and black-haired men—always ready to fight the moment their eyes met—only made it worse.
I couldn't fathom why they were so eager to tear each other apart, but they needed to be separated immediately.
"I appreciate both of your offers, but I won't search for her. There must be a reason she fled so desperately. Chasing after someone like that seems like the wrong thing to do."
Unwanted favors were not favors at all. They were merely coercion.
"...In any case, once one of them returns home, we can meet again."
Norman's coachman, Torres Brown.
The suspicious details could be clarified by pressing him on the matter.
"I should be heading back now."
Grace Oellin rose from her seat as she gazed at the darkening sky.
The two men, who had been devouring each other with their eyes, quickly stood to follow her.
* * *
Outside, darkness had already settled.
Lucas Black said he wanted to escort Grace Oellin home.
Grace Oellin had no reason to refuse and gratefully accepted.
Lucas Black and Grace Oellin boarded the same carriage, while Haem and Julie departed in Grace Oellin's carriage.
'...Has he lost some weight?'
Only then did his transformed appearance catch my eye.
He was already a man with a fierce and angular image, but his features had grown even sharper than before.
Yet what was strange was that no matter how stern his expression became, I could no longer find him frightening.
'It seems he's become even more handsome in the meantime....'
It seemed nearly impossible to be both fierce and elegantly handsome, yet Lucas Black managed it every time.
Grace Oellin admired him quietly without letting it show on her face.
If I had let it show, this man might have said something strange again.
'His Excellency seems to believe that I fell for him at first sight.'
It was the same last time, and it was the same with this interview article.
His misunderstanding was serious, and it was obvious how much he enjoyed it.
After much deliberation, Grace Oellin decided to hold her tongue.
Explaining it all would have been awkward, but more than anything, the sight of Lucas Black looking so delighted was pleasant to behold.
'Well... fine. I just need to keep quiet about it.'
Grace Oellin gazed quietly at Lucas Black, whom she had not seen in days.
It felt like ages since we had last met, though it had only been a few days.
It felt somewhat awkward, and I found myself growing tense anew.
"You must be careful of Hiess Cerviente. That family is sinister, and no one knows what schemes they are plotting. He is a man who seeks to grasp and manipulate everyone's weaknesses."
"The Hiss Information Bureau belongs to that man, doesn't it?"
"Indeed. He grasps and manipulates information beyond imagination. If he sets his mind to it, he could even discover what color undergarments the King wore yesterday."
I had no desire to know such things.
I didn't even want to know that it was possible to know.
Grace Oellin feigned indifference, as if to shut out what she had just heard.
The image of His Majesty's face and the mention of undergarment colors kept appearing together in my mind, which felt irreverent.
"Of course, he cannot enter my estate."
Unaware of her thoughts, Lucas Black laughed with satisfaction.
I was curious what methods he employed to maintain security even more thoroughly than the Royal Palace itself.
She pondered for a moment, then voiced a question that had been gnawing at her mind for some time.
"Are you perhaps one of the 'other families' that Serviente mentioned?"
Lucas nodded with an expression of pleasant surprise and approval.
"Impressive. How did you know?"
'...No, sir.'
How could I not know when you've called Hiess Cerviente a snake, a snake, countless times right in front of me? It defies common sense.
Even Hiess had called Lucas a stallion.
That meant they were people who knew each other's secrets.
"It's impossible not to notice from the way you two converse."
"Converse? Have I ever had a conversation with that cunning wretch?"
He rubbed his chin with genuine bewilderment.
"You really seem to dislike him."
"It's not dislike, Grace."
Lucas smiled gently as he spoke.
And he softly corrected her words.
"It's abhorrence."
He said it with such gravity that Grace burst into laughter.
"Why?"
"Because he's my natural enemy."
"Are horses and snakes natural enemies?"
"Let's just say our temperaments don't align. I dislike Serviente's methods as well. In any case, I find everything about him disagreeable. You mustn't let your guard down thinking he appears shallow, Grace. He is someone whose true nature cannot be discerned."
At Lucas's words, Grace recalled Hiess once more.
He hadn't struck her as particularly threatening.
He only smiled well and showed goodwill, so there was nothing strange about it.
Still, Lucas's expression was so grave that Grace simply nodded with a light laugh.
"I understand. I'll be careful."
"It's best not to interact with him if possible. He's a man of truly poor character."
"Yes, I'll be careful."
Though it seemed unlikely she'd have occasion to meet him that often anyway.
Lucas gazed at Grace with endless concern in his eyes.
No matter what he said, his mind wouldn't be put at ease.
Even if she promised him a thousand times, 'I really will be careful. I promise,' his anxiety wouldn't easily dissipate.
What on earth was making him so uneasy?
Was he afraid this man Hiess might do something to her?
Did he have any reason to harm her?
Or had he done something terrible to him in the past?
Her mind grew complicated, but these weren't questions with easy answers.
Grace decided to set aside the troubling questions for now.
Before her stood her fiancé, whom she hadn't seen in several days.
He appeared to have been very busy, looking more gaunt than before, and his eyes remained clouded with concern for her.
After so long apart, I didn't want to return home seeing nothing but worry etched across his face.
Clatter.
The carriage jolted at that very moment, and Grace summoned her courage to move her hand.
Her fingertips brushed delicately against his.
Lucas turned his head to look at her.
Their eyes met.
Grace felt heat rise to her cheeks, but she didn't look away.
She moved her hand further, weaving her fingers between his.
In that instant, he parted his lips slightly, releasing a subtle breath suspended between a sigh and a gasp.
"We'll arrive at the Estate soon. Until then... shall we hold hands?"
At her proposal, Lucas's expression shifted to one of shock.
It was the look of someone wondering why he hadn't thought of this sooner.
He immediately threw open the carriage window and shouted.
"Rozen!"
"Yes, yes! Your Excellency!"
Lucas called out in a grave tone.
"Who told you to go this fast? The speed is making me nauseous! Slow down—go very slowly!"
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org