Translator: Nox

Chapter 38

# 38

38. The Count's Circumstances (8)

After a bout of playing, everyone was in bad shape when they returned to the mansion. Their whole bodies were covered in dirt, leaves, and flower petals. They hadn't noticed while they were having fun, but once they came to their senses, it was embarrassing enough to make their cheeks flush. How strange must it have looked, two men and one woman laughing and running around in a flower garden? It was fortunate that they were the only ones there.

After washing up, Paula was drying her wet hair when she noticed the thin coat left on the bed. It was Lucas's. He had wrapped it around her waist when he saw her running in a dress.

She remembered how he, a person of higher status, had bent down and shown her kindness. Paula shook the coat and folded it neatly before heading to Lucas's room. His room was located one floor below.

She knocked on the door, but there was no answer. Was he not in his room? Perhaps he was in Vincent's room. As she was about to turn around with that thought, the door burst open.

First, she heard strange thumping noises. Soon after, she widened her eyes at the figure that suddenly popped out from the side.

Lucas was standing there, half-naked with only his pants on, looking at her.

Water dripped from his limp brown hair, as if he had just come out of the shower. The water trickling down from his wet hair slid down his neck and onto his chest. Paula's gaze followed the stream of water.

It wasn't the first time she had seen a naked adult male. When it was hot while working, the male laborers often took off their clothes, and being naked was natural when washing. She had even seen men and women naked and entangled.

Even after coming here, she had seen Vincent's body while attending to him. But she only felt pity because he was too thin and emaciated. He had gained some weight recently, but now he changed his clothes himself, so she hadn't seen him in detail.

But the naked body in front of her was large-framed, and his muscles were well-proportioned...

"Paula."

"Yes?"

"It's a little embarrassing to be looked at like that..."

It was only after she heard him call her name that she realized she had been staring intently at his naked body.

"Oh my."

Only then did she cover her eyes with both hands. However, she made a gap between her fingers to secure her vision. He seemed embarrassed as well, as he chuckled and casually covered his chest with one arm.

"What brings you here?"

"I came to deliver this."

She lowered one hand and handed him the coat she was holding. He took it and told her to come inside. Then he slipped inside first, leaving her unable to refuse. After staring at the water stains on the floor for a moment, she entered the room to find him wearing a gown. She felt a strange sense of disappointment and continued to scan his back.

While tying the strings of his gown, Lucas gestured to the table next to him.

"Come and sit down."

"I only came to deliver the coat."

"Let's have some tea together."

"It's alright."

She had already drunk plenty of tea during the day, and if someone saw a young woman in a young man's room late at night, it could cause misunderstandings. Of course, her appearance wasn't likely to cause such misunderstandings, but she was still a woman. Besides, she had been misunderstood surprisingly often. So she had to be careful.

He chuckled at her firm refusal. Then he approached her, and his smooth chest was slightly revealed through the loosely tied gown. Her eyes quickly scanned it.

"I had so much fun today. So did my brother."

"It's all thanks to you, Lucas."

"It's thanks to Paula."

As they exchanged warm compliments, he smiled again. Paula raised the corners of her lips and smiled back. It was true that it was thanks to him, so she adopted a good attitude. And she was genuinely grateful.

"It must be inconvenient to have limited places to go."

"A little."

"How is life here? Is it difficult attending to my brother?"

"That's also a little..."

...she said before rolling her eyes. Then she added in a small voice, "A lot?" Lucas, who was pouring water into a cup, chuckled.

"I see why my brother's condition has improved. With such a cheerful person by his side, he can't help but get better."

"It's all thanks to the master's hard work."

"You don't have to be modest. I can't say that Paula's efforts in attending to him aren't there."

My brother probably knows it too. He only said things that were pleasant to hear. If he said it like that, she didn't want to argue.

"Your hair."

When Paula pointed to her wet hair, he touched his own hair. He looked puzzled, so she gestured for him to bend down. Lucas hesitated before bending over. She used the towel around his neck to dry his wet hair.

"You'll catch a cold if you stay like this."

"..."

"It's best to dry it right after washing."

The water dripping from his hair had been bothering her since earlier. Seriously, she was the one cleaning, so he should have dried himself properly. If mildew formed, it would be a pain to clean. To prevent that in advance, she personally dried his hair. He was still for a moment, then bent over further. He seemed to be considerate so she could dry him comfortably. Well, she only intended to dry it enough to stop the water from dripping.

After hesitating, she just dried it enough to stop the water from dripping and stepped back. Lucas straightened up.

"Dry the rest yourself. I'll be going now."

She bowed her head to say goodbye, as her business was finished. Paula turned around. Her back felt strangely prickly.

She was just about to grab the doorknob when...

"Paula. Did you know? There's a forest inside the castle."

Castle? Forest? Confused by his words, she turned around to see Lucas standing by the window. From his position facing her, he took a sip of water from his cup and continued.

"The former king loved nature, so he created it artificially, but if you go there, it's no different from a natural forest. It's deep, magnificent, and beautiful. There's only one door that allows access to that forest."

She was hearing this for the first time. She didn't even know there was a forest inside the castle. Well, she had never been there. She replied casually, but it was an interesting topic.

"Only the royal family can enter there. Sometimes, nobles who have been granted permission can also come and go, but that's a rare occurrence. After entering, you must close the door, and you must never open the door while someone is inside. That's the rule. Do you know what everyone does inside?"

Paula shook her head. He placed the cup on the windowsill.

"They tell secrets."

"Secrets?"

"Yes. Secrets that must never be revealed."

No, why would they go all the way there to tell secrets? Tilting her head, he answered her question.

"They say that walls have eyes and ears. That's how much you need to watch your mouth. Even more so inside the castle. But how can you live only keeping your mouth shut? You can't live if you keep your troubles to yourself for too long. So they created a space where you can uniquely tell secrets, and that's that forest. Even if you shout secrets there, the walls surrounding the forest and the thickness of the door are thick, so words don't leak out, and you can't even drill a small hole. And guards are guarding the front of the door, so no one can sneak in. People call that place the Forest of Secrets."

"..."

"Well, it's just a rumor."

He shrugged. He added that he hadn't seen it himself, which made her feel less excited after listening with interest. He chuckled at her disappointed face.

"You're probably that Forest of Secrets to my brother."

He spun the cup once. Her gaze landed on it. The spinning cup stopped precariously. Then he spun the cup again. It was a meaningless gesture, but he seemed quite focused.

"People like us all have secrets. But we can't tell those secrets to anyone, and we have to bury them in our hearts, so we suffer. Sometimes we want to tell everything and be comforted, but we can't just grab anyone and do that, right? So we have to secretly relieve that frustration. Like shouting in the Forest of Secrets. Paula, you're probably that kind of person to my brother."

"..."

"And my brother was like that to me."

He spun the cup again, but this time he didn't watch the cup stop and looked at her. After making eye contact for a moment, he straightened up from leaning against the window and approached her again.

"Do you still think what I said last time was a lie?"

"..."

"It's true. My brother became like that because of me."

Lucas stopped in front of her. But his words continued. Even though he knew she was confused, he didn't stop talking.

"I was too weak and couldn't do anything. I wasn't bold enough to use the family's power, and I didn't have the strength to protect myself. So I dragged Vincent in. I felt like I had to in order to survive. This is the result. My brother was harmed, and I was saved. So... it's my turn this time."

"I-I don't know what you mean."

"I'm thinking of giving my eyes to my brother."

Confusion was mixed with shock. She doubted her ears at the words he uttered so casually. Lucas was so calm that she wanted to believe she had misheard.

Paula took a deep breath and quickly continued.

"M-Master is blind."

"He hasn't lost the function of his eyes themselves. The surface is damaged. He'll be able to see if he has surgery. But it's a very difficult and complicated surgery, so there hasn't been a doctor who could do it properly until now. My brother probably knows that and gave up. But recently, I heard that there's a doctor in a distant country who has successfully performed a similar surgery. I'm thinking of bringing that person here. Of course, even if I bring him, I can't just have him transplant any eyes into a noble like him, but if it's me... it'll be okay."

"You can't give the eyes of a living person!"

"I'm going to die soon."

She couldn't understand his lightly spoken voice, his smiling face. He seemed so happy to be talking about his own death. Even though she thought it couldn't be true, he really seemed that way.

"Don't say things like that."

Paula shook her head wildly.

"That's all I can do."

"Lucas!"

"I'm going to give it to my brother. My world."

"..."

She realized what the source of the pressure she felt from the brightly smiling man was. He was unwavering. He had already made up his mind. The way he expressed his sincerity with his whole body was so frightening.

Paula moved her lips several times. She didn't know what to say. Her mind was confused, and her heart was pounding.

He must have seen the confused eyes revealed between her parted hair. Lucas bent down. His face came close enough to touch. He looked into her eyes for a moment. Then he smiled again.

"I'm just kidding."

"Excuse me?"

"I said I'm kidding."

His smile turned mischievous. What? Paula scanned him with a bewildered face. He still had a mischievous expression as he pulled the doorknob behind her. The door opened with a creak.

Paula quickly looked back at the opened door, then looked back at Lucas. He covered his mouth with one hand. His eyes were tightly folded, as if he was holding back laughter.

"Your surprised face is cute too."

"Pardon?"

"Good night."

The door behind her opened wider. He pushed her shoulder and pushed her out of the room. Then, as if he couldn't hold back any longer, he burst into laughter at her dazed face. The sound was heard through the closing door before stopping abruptly as the door closed.

After standing there blankly for a long time, his words, "I'm just kidding," entered her mind.

In an instant, her temperature soared. With a flushed face, she grabbed the doorknob and pulled. But the door was locked. She shook it several more times, but the door didn't open. Only the clicking sound echoed in the hallway.

It didn't take long for her scream to echo after that.