Chapter 29
<31화>
BANG-!
The door slammed so hard I could feel the very ground shake beneath my feet.
“…….”
An absurd silence filled the air for a moment.
The bewilderment, anger, and worry Lucas had left behind suddenly became our burden to bear.
In the center of it all stood Calips, sighing with a complicated expression.
“…Is… something wrong? What’s the problem?”
“I don’t know.”
Knox asked, but even the Duke couldn’t give an answer.
With my eyes wide as a rabbit’s and my mouth agape, I had been frozen in that state from the moment Lucas stood up.
Gulp—
Only after Lucas disappeared did I manage to swallow my meat.
‘What’s wrong with him? At first, he seemed like he wanted to get the successor trial over with as quickly as possible.’
As I carefully retraced the flow of the conversation, it hit me.
There was a specific moment when Lucas’s expression had soured.
Right when the Marquisate of Lillis was mentioned.
‘Does he hate the Lillis family? Why?’
Knox and I already hated them because of what happened last time. That was understandable.
But for Lucas, who hadn’t even been there, to hate them that much…
‘There must be something more to it.’
I poked the remaining pieces of meat with my fork, stacking them like a skewer, and stuffed them into my mouth all at once.
“Thanks for the meal! I’ll go check on him!”
I hurried out of the dining room, stopped by the chef to get some sandwiches, and ran straight to Lucas’s bedroom door.
Knock, knock—
I knocked cautiously.
“Go away! There’s no one here!”
An annoyed voice echoed from inside.
I pressed my ear against the door and whispered quietly.
“Brother, it’s me.”
“…….”
Still, there was no answer.
After waiting a moment, I turned around and leaned my back against the door.
“I came alone.”
“…Really?”
“I’m lying.”
“…….”
Wow, look at the atmosphere turn icy just because I said I was lying. I can’t even joke with him.
“You think I’d come empty-handed? I brought delicious sandwiches too.”
Since I didn’t want to be kicked out for a third time, I whispered urgently while holding up the sandwiches—
“…Whatever. Come in if you want.”
After a long silence, the bedroom door finally opened.
‘Hah, finally.’
Stepping into the room, I was met with nothing but darkness.
It was still early; was he trying to sleep already? Or had he just grown used to the dark?
During the day, this would look like a grand noble’s bedroom. But now, with only a single candle flickering, the room felt positively desolate.
The moment I entered, Lucas wrapped himself tightly in his duvet.
“You left before you could even eat dinner. Let’s eat this.”
As I plopped down on the floor next to the bed, he asked cautiously.
“What about you?”
“I stopped eating too. I brought some for myself so we could eat together.”
At those words, a pale face peeked out from between the blankets.
“Why didn’t you eat? At your age, you’re supposed to eat a lot.”
“Same goes for you.”
“…I’m used to starving. I’ve been doing it for five years.”
For someone who’s so used to it, the Young Lord’s nostrils are sure flaring at the scent.
Flutter, flutter.
With a grin, I used my chubby palms to fan the delicious aroma of the sandwiches toward him—
“…Ha, seriously. You really think… I’d come out for something like this?”
Muttering as if he had no choice, he crawled out and sat down beside me.
Seeing the two of us huddled on the floor instead of using the perfectly fine tea table, it seemed both Lucas and I still had a long way to go before we adjusted to the noble life.
Munch, munch—
I took a big bite of my sandwich. After a moment’s hesitation, Lucas began to eat his as well.
“…….”
His wary eyes slowly widened.
It must have tasted better than he expected, because after a brief daze, Lucas began to devour the sandwich ravenously.
I’m glad it’s to his liking.
Now then, since our Lucas has a full stomach, shall we get to the point?
“Young Lord.”
“What.”
“Do you hate the Marquisate of Lillis?”
“Cough, wheeze!”
Nope.
I guess the timing wasn’t right yet. I scratched my cheek awkwardly as Lucas, his face turning bright red, snapped at me.
“Do you always just blurt things out without an introduction?!”
“But I was so curious. Can’t you tell just me?”
Lucas turned his body away sharply.
“…You’re just going to tell Dad everything.”
“Hmm. If you tell me not to, I won’t.”
I held out my chubby pinky finger.
“…….”
Lucas, who had been avoiding my gaze, slowly scooted back toward the bed and stared at my finger with wary eyes.
Why is he so scared?
The Lucas I knew wasn’t the type of boy to be frightened by something like this.
“But brother.”
“What.”
“If it’s because you hate the Lillis family, couldn’t you have just said so in the dining room?”
“…….”
“I hate them too, so I could have joined in on the trashing.”
When I asked him once more,
“…….”
Lucas let out a long sigh and finally turned his body to look at me.
“…Thinking about it now, I think it’s more about fear than not wanting people to know.”
“Why?”
“Because Dad abandoned me.”
“Huh?!”
Wait a minute. What kind of bolt from the blue was this?
My mouth fell open, sandwich and all, at his sudden words.
“It’s the truth. Marquis Lillis, the man who kidnapped me when I was three, told me himself.”
Wait, the Marquis of Lillis is involved in this too?
“The Marquis said he’d send me back if Dad paid five thousand gold, but Dad said I wasn’t worth that much and told him to dispose of me however he wanted.”
“…Brother. You believe that utter nonsense?”
“Whether I believe it or not, Dad eventually brought me back. That’s enough for me.”
Seeing as he didn’t deny it, he seemed to believe it wholeheartedly.
Then again, Lucas was only three at the time.
Being kidnapped would have been traumatic enough; he wouldn’t have been able to think rationally.
However, rather than thinking about how terrible his past must have been, a different question popped into my head.
“…So, what did the Marquis do then?”
“He sold me abroad.”
The candle flickered. The shadow cast over Lucas began to tremble unsteadily.
“I was sold over and over again until I ended up at the circus.”
After telling the story with feigned indifference, he finally buried his face in his knees.
“…Now, just looking at things like Marquises or nobles makes me want to throw up.”
My appetite vanished instantly, so much so that I put down my sandwich.
“Lucas.”
I didn’t realize his wounds ran this deep.
It was even harder to tell because he had seemed perfectly fine when facing the Duke.
‘But he’s been through so much pain for five years.’
I didn’t dare say anything in front of him.
Whether I intended my words to be comfort or encouragement, I was afraid everything would feel like an arrow to this fragile boy.
“Brother Lucas.”
“Yeah?”
“Should I sleep here with you tonight?”
“Wh-what are you talking about! Are you crazy?!”
Sometimes, comfort doesn’t need words.
But why is this guy’s face turning so red?
I shrugged my shoulders.
“I just thought you might feel alone here, so I mentioned it. If you don’t want to, that’s fine—”
“No, it just so happens there are two pillows!”
“Huh?”
Lucas cut me off, jumping to his feet.
“The bed is a king-size, so it’s pretty wide! But seriously, don’t you dare go around saying things like that to anyone else!”
Despite his words, he was already on the bed, patting the empty space beside him.
“Dandelion. I’m warning you again, I’ve never slept with anyone else before, so it might be uncomfort—Zzzzz.”
“?”
He fell asleep in literally five seconds.
“…Lucas?”
Just in case, I poked the bridge of his nose, but his handsome face didn’t even twitch.
Well, falling asleep instantly is better than insomnia.
“Goodnight, Lucas.”
I murmured quietly and lay down beside him so he wouldn’t be lonely, closing my eyes.
A long time ago. In a past life that was now starting to fade.
Lying in a ten-square-meter studio apartment, I had suddenly felt a wave of loneliness.
No mom, no dad.
Relatives who didn’t want to see me.
No friends I could call up on a whim to hang out with.
Being like that made me feel even more alone. That’s why I asked Lucas to sleep together.
“He’s sleeping well. Not even a nightmare. Usually, a handsome novel character is supposed to have nightmares at times like this, right?”
Nope, he was snoring away.
Phew— Pop!
A sleep bubble even popped out of his nostril, signifying a deep slumber.
“…Gross.”
Wriggling my hips, I moved as far away as possible and closed my eyes.
