Translator: Nox

Chapter 58

“I suppose so. My willpower shouldn’t be this weak. But I guess it’s become a habit; I find I prefer the candy.”

I recalled him mentioning once that he popped a candy into his mouth whenever he felt the urge to smoke…

Which meant that my question had made him crave a cigarette.

“Why didn’t you attend the reception?”

It wasn’t even that big of a deal…

Wait.

Suddenly, a plot point straight out of a tawdry soap opera flashed through my mind. Did Knox actually love his sister?

As my eyes sparkled with curiosity while looking at him, Knox let out a hollow laugh, the candy still in his mouth.

“Miss Cherry, what you’re thinking is written all over your face. Try to keep a straight face.”

“I’m not sure what you mean…?”

I feigned ignorance. I was playing dumb out of respect for his social standing and dignity.

However, Knox covered his face with his palm and laughed for a long while, as if the thought was absurd no matter how much he considered it.

“It’s nothing like that. Isabella and I are family, related by blood. To be precise, we aren’t biological siblings, though. So please, put away those horrifying thoughts.”

Huh? What was he talking about?

“You aren’t biological siblings?”

“I am not the true son of the Marquis and Marchioness Rudfercher. My brothers and sister, however, are all their biological children.”

“Isn’t Mr. Rudfercher famous for being the youngest son who received a wealth of love from the Marquis’s family?”

“Only so that people wouldn’t get suspicious.”

“Pardon? Suspicious of what?”

“The current Marquis and his wife are the ones who murdered my biological parents and usurped the title of Marquis Rudfercher.”

His next words were shocking. The current Marquis and Marchioness were actually Knox’s aunt and uncle. The family relations here were tangled in a remarkably complex web. Was it really alright for me to be hearing such sensitive information?

Knox smiled brightly, the candy still in his mouth, as if he were telling someone else’s story.

“My biological father was poisoned by the man I now call father.”

In a calm voice, he recounted his family history.

Marquis Rudfercher had poisoned his own brother to take over the family, then took in his brother’s young son, Knox, and raised him as his own.

The Marquis was both despicable and weak-willed. Even after killing his own brother with his own hands, he believed himself to be a virtuous man—largely because the previous Marquis had possessed a cruel nature, devoid of blood or tears.

“Do you know what’s truly ironic? I only found out about this when I was around fifteen.”

Knox replied, swallowing a laugh.

According to him, Knox was only three years old when his biological father was poisoned. The Marquis believed he could keep it hidden forever.

However, the emotion of ‘love’ isn’t something that can be produced by force. While they provided Knox with every possible material support, they could never give him love.

The affection of the Marquis and his wife was always reserved for the two older brothers and the sister. Knox had never once possessed that love.

Growing up with constant questions, Knox learned the truth when he hit his rebellious phase at fifteen.

In a gambling den where minors were prohibited—it seemed Knox had been quite the delinquent back then—he encountered a distant relative of the family whom the Marquis had never allowed him to meet.

Did Knox burn with rage upon learning the truth? Or did he resent the Marquis?

No. Surprisingly, Knox said he felt nothing at all.

To feel a desire for revenge, Knox had no memories of his real parents; to resent the Marquis, he had grown up as the youngest son of a noble house with nothing lacking.

The fact that he didn’t receive as much love as his brothers or sister? He didn’t mind that much either.

He said that since he never had it to begin with, he didn’t know what it felt like to possess it. Therefore, he couldn’t feel anger over its absence.

As I listened to his story, I became a bit solemn. It felt like only a few days ago that I was listening to Eden’s ‘what if’ confession in this very spot. Was there some kind of magic on this place that made people become honest?

“So that’s why you left like that on the wedding day, Mr. Rudfercher.”

“I didn’t even know you were there, Miss Cherry. Had I known, I would have stayed longer.”

Knox replied with a sly air and gave me a bright smile when our eyes met. He rolled the candy around in his mouth, twirling the stick in his hand, before eventually pulling the candy out with a soft pop.

Flipping the stick between his fingers, he stared quietly at the shrunken candy before suddenly adding a comment.

“Don’t pity me.”

“I wasn’t.”

Of course, Knox continued without even properly listening to my answer.

“I have no ill will toward Bella. The same goes for my two brothers.”

I see. I stared blankly at the lollipop stick spinning in Knox’s hand. Knox held the stick up in the air.

“Candy is a strange thing. Its sweetness is so seductive, but if you crave it too much, it just wears away until it’s gone.”

What? I couldn’t even guess what he meant. I just blinked and stared at him. So what was his point? Why the sudden talk about candy?

Seeing my face, Knox laughed, saying my expression was funny. Was he trying to pick a fight?

“That’s how my life has been.”

Knox summarized it that way and then pointed at me.

“Come to think of it, your nickname is Candy Lady, isn’t it?”

“Don’t call me Candy Lady.”

I meant it. It made my skin crawl.

“Since you hate it that much, it makes me want to call you that even more, Candy Lady.”

I started to feel sick. Actually, I felt genuinely unwell. My head felt continuously dizzy too…

When I looked at him with a face like I’d just chewed on a rotten apple, Knox finally stopped teasing me. He put the lollipop he’d been playing with back into his mouth.

“Ah, come to think of it, there was something I wanted to ask you as well, Miss Cherry…”

The light in Knox’s eyes dimmed instantly. The gaze he directed at me was somewhat sharp. It turned fierce, as if he were pinning me down.

It felt as though my innermost thoughts were being laid bare under his scrutiny.

It felt like the right timing to be on guard. Yes. Wondering what he would say, I braced my nerves.

“The Elpinus herb. Where did you get it?”

“…”

As expected, it was a loaded question. Was he testing me?

Knox had a look in his eyes that suggested he knew something about the Elpinus herb I had obtained.

When I hesitated and couldn’t answer readily, Knox added more, as if he had no choice.

“The Elpinus herb you brought. You got it from Notium Street No. 61, didn’t you?”

“Pardon?”

I was so shocked by those words that my eyes widened as I stared at him.

My mouth hung open, and I stammered like a broken robot before I finally managed to squeeze out a question.

“How did you know?”

“I’ve been investigating the Elpinus herb since before the downfall. I was also looking into things regarding the monsters.”

Knox continued with a relaxed attitude, rolling the lollipop in his mouth.

“How did you know there was Elpinus herb at the mansion on Notium Street No. 61?”

“I didn’t know.”

“I saw the Elpinus herb in your pocket that day. How did you recognize that herb and think to bring it with you?”

Damn it, how did he see that?

“I just took it because it looked strange. It was an item dropped by the man I rescued at the mansion that day.”

“And why did you try to plant it in the mansion’s garden?”

This was as suffocating as an interrogation by Eden.

However, since it was a question he was perfectly justified in asking, I tried my best not to show my panic and answered calmly.

“Because I heard it was a herb good for recovering one’s strength. And it’s not like I was only trying to plant the Elpinus herb.”

Knox stared at me intently with an unreadable expression.

Eventually, he gave a gentle smile. It was a face that looked as if he were coaxing a young child.

“I’m not trying to interrogate you, Miss Cherry. So please, relax.”

Knox’s soft way of speaking had a way of making people let down their guard without realizing it.

But even so, I felt like I would be swallowed whole if I truly relaxed, so I couldn’t ease the tension in my chest.

Since when was Knox this kind of dark, manipulative character? In <Love in a Ruined World>, he was definitely a character who was nothing but kind. Was it only because he was in front of the female lead that he showed that side of himself?

“As I said, I was investigating the monsters, and if you know something about them, I thought it would be best to share information. Don’t misunderstand.”

When I didn’t respond, Knox added more as if trying to win me over.