Episode 19
Karen pulled out a stack of papers from inside his sleeve and began to explain.
It seemed he had kept records of what had happened a year ago, ready to report at any time.
“So, Lady Evelyn seems to have broken into the kitchen and then climbed down the wall.”
“She climbed the wall?”
“Yes, the kitchen window was open, and there were clear traces on the ground. After that, it appears she escaped through the main gate.”
Devan barely held back a scoff.
“And you? I told you to keep watch, didn’t I?”
“…I was by Your Grace’s side…”
Karen lowered his head.
“What about the soldiers guarding the gate? Isn’t there a barrier too?”
“We’re not sure why, but the soldiers had temporarily left their posts because of an accident on the other side of the castle. As for the barrier, there were traces that it had been broken.”
“Hah.”
This time, Devan couldn’t suppress a laugh.
She broke a barrier?
From what he knew, the only power she possessed was divine.
And yet she had managed to break through a powerful, high-tier magical barrier? That didn’t make sense.
Karen glanced nervously at Devan and continued.
“We investigated from multiple angles, but… it just seems like a series of coincidences…”
“The kitchen door just happened to be open? The soldiers just happened to be gone? The barrier just happened to be broken? Are you telling me this was all coincidence?”
His icy tone made Karen quickly bow his head.
“…I’m sorry, Your Grace.”
Devan let out a heavy sigh, his stiff expression slowly relaxing.
“The first thing I’ll need to do after getting out of bed is to overhaul the security system.”
Karen’s face turned pale, as if he had just realized his impending doom.
“Your Grace… and this…”
The old butler, who had been quietly observing, stepped forward and handed something to Devan.
“What’s this?”
“We found it in the garden on the day the lady disappeared.”
“A necklace?”
Devan gently examined the pendant. It was a yellow pendant shaped like a copper coin.
“Have you checked what’s inside?”
“It seems to be a type of magical artifact, but it’s not dangerous. For a more thorough investigation, we’d need to break it, but we didn’t do so without Your Grace’s permission…”
Devan gripped the pendant tightly, as if he might crush it.
Then, losing interest, he set it down on the side table.
“Whatever. It doesn’t matter.”
Karen asked carefully.
“Are you just going to leave it there?”
“She lifted the curse and fulfilled her promise. Why wouldn’t I leave it be? Besides, it’s been a year. If any news was coming, it would’ve come by now. More importantly—”
Devan turned to the physician and touched the area around his eyes.
“When will I be able to see?”
“If you start training right away, it could be possible within a few days. However, Your Grace has been unconscious for a year and will need proper nutrition. Until now, we’ve had mages maintaining your physical state through magic, but…”
“Understood. From today, recovering my body will be my top priority.”
Devan Lantivos trained without rest for the next several days.
He had always been a quick learner, but this time, he was driven by an even stronger sense of purpose.
He hired two more skilled mages at great expense.
They poured healing magic into his body every day.
The head chef prepared perfectly balanced, nutrient-rich meals for every meal.
Thanks to all that, within just a week, Devan appeared even healthier than he had before falling unconscious.
Naturally, his training to adjust to light also progressed rapidly.
Finally, the day arrived to remove the cursed black blindfold.
The old butler, the physician, and the hired mages all gathered silently in Devan’s room.
Devan chose to remove the blindfold himself, without anyone’s help.
Though it should’ve been a tense moment, his face remained stoic and unreadable.
He slowly raised his hands.
From the corners of his eyes, past his ears, to the knot behind his head—
He finally loosened the tie.
The blindfold slipped off slowly.
The old butler, particularly nervous, kept wiping his sweaty palms on his trousers.
Devan dropped the blindfold on the floor and slowly opened his eyes.
Blink, blink.
The room was bathed in a moderate level of sunlight, which his trained eyes accepted without trouble.
His eyelashes trembled slightly.
He slowly walked toward the large window in the room.
He could see the scenery outside. Truly, outside.
Everyone remained silent, simply watching him.
His deep black hair gleamed brightly under the sunlight.
With the blindfold gone, his high cheekbones and sharp features stood out more than ever.
His eyebrows were neat, and the shadows under his eyes were emphasized by his high nose bridge.
His long, even lashes added to his elegant aura.
Even the physician and the mages—who had only been with him a few days—were overcome with emotion, just like the butler who had served him for years.
Devan, who had slowly reached toward the window, suddenly froze.
He raised his hand to his face again.
Everyone in the room stiffened.
Devan’s voice did not carry hope, joy, or relief—but unmistakable rage.
He looked at the people standing there like statues, his face both beautiful and icy cold.
That sharp gaze made the room’s air feel even heavier.
“…Is something wrong?” the physician finally managed to ask.
He took a cautious step forward.
Devan once again raised his hand in front of his face, then clenched his fist.
“Why… is my right eye blurry?”
“…Pardon?”
The physician looked stunned.
The old butler rushed over to Devan’s side.
“Your Grace, do you mean only the right eye is unclear?”
“Yes.”
Devan covered his left eye with his hand.
The butler, bowing his head, appeared blurry.
It wasn’t as bad as when the curse had fully blinded him, but it was far from clear.
The physician quickly tried to cover the situation.
“O-oh! Your Grace, it could be due to having not used your eyes for a long time. Vision can naturally recover with time…”
“Low vision, you say?”
Devan scoffed quietly.
“Hey, mages.”
At his sudden call, the mages flinched and bowed quickly.
“Y-yes, Your Grace?”
“My blindness wasn’t physical—it was caused by a curse. Now that the curse is gone, how can my eyesight be impaired?”
The mages exchanged glances.
The physician looked at them as if begging for help. One mage stepped forward and shook his head.
“We are mages. Curses are in the domain of the divine. Only a priest would be able to answer that with certainty.”
The irritated look on Devan’s face eased slightly at the mage’s respectful tone.
“In my limited opinion… if there were no physical injuries during that time, it should be impossible for Your Grace’s vision to be reduced.”
After bowing deeply, the mage returned to his group.
Devan stared coldly at the physician, who was now trembling like a leaf.
Suddenly, the butler cried out. Everyone’s attention turned toward him—including Devan’s.
“Your Grace! Your right eye—!”
The butler forgot himself and looked his master straight in the eye. His hands were shaking with anxiety.
“What about my eye?” Devan asked.
He strode over to the mirror hanging on the wall.
And there, he saw—
Two different-colored eyes.
His left eye was the same crimson red as before the curse.
But his right eye was different.
A dark haze flickered uneasily across the pupil.
As if it would soon swallow the glittering ruby-like red.
This…
Was proof the curse wasn’t over yet.
Word of Devan’s now black-tinged right eye spread through the Grand Duke’s castle almost immediately.
The mages and physician scrambled to find the cause and a solution—but of course, none was found.
What infuriated Devan the most was this:
Not knowing the cause.
If it were a curse, at least there would be a way to break it—even if it was incredibly difficult.
They could have looked for the priest of prophecy again.
But this? With no known source, there was no clear way to fix it.
And worst of all—
He was getting used to it.
Soon, he resumed intense sword training.
And he was improving fast.
It wasn’t surprising, considering he had already outperformed most knights even when fully blind.
Still, he couldn’t help but feel pleased.
No more annoying blindfold.
No more straining to focus on faint shapes.
No more memorizing the sound of every servant’s footsteps, or keeping every nerve on edge.
Even the laughter echoing through the halls had disappeared.
That, to him, felt like the truest proof that he was the Grand Duke once more.
Devan had to admit—
He felt more comfortable now than before the curse had been lifted.
But that comfort also brought a vague fear—
That he might live like this forever.
He didn’t want to accept that.
Meanwhile, news that the Grand Duke had awakened spread all the way to the capital.
Along with it, the news that the curse had been lifted.
And soon after—
A second marriage proposal arrived.
From Killian Diego.
