Chapter : 07
“Do you think this is a joke?”
I hurriedly shook my head.
I wanted to say no, but I was so scared that my voice wouldn’t even come out.
Who would joke around while letting killing intent spill out?
No matter how much of an idiot someone was, they’d be able to tell that this situation was serious.
But even so, I had no idea what it was that he wanted me to bring him.
“Bring it here. Now.”
A short command fell.
Lawrence was trying to suppress his anger.
If I irritated him any further here, it felt like I’d have to end my life before the novel even properly began.
Instinctively, I thought that obedience was the only way to survive, so I nodded diligently and stood up.
Even as I followed his orders without being able to say a word, even as I endured his unexplained anger, I didn’t feel miserable or devastated at all.
In the face of overwhelming fear, pride or resentment didn’t matter—life came first.
I wanted to leave the room just like this, but…
If I went out and came back empty-handed, the situation would probably become even more horrible.
“But… what exactly am I supposed to bring…?”
“What?”
Even though I asked again as carefully and politely as possible, Lawrence glared at me with a deeply furrowed brow.
His expression clearly said, What kind of idiot is this?
“Haa. I told you to bring the photo.”
Lawrence let out a deep sigh and spoke slowly, as if granting me a great favor.
No, why is he suddenly looking for a photo from me?
Yet despite his supposed generosity, I still had no idea what he was looking for.
Without any explanation of the situation, he was just demanding a photo.
But I couldn’t exactly get angry at Lawrence.
All I could do was desperately try to reason it out based on the tiny clue he’d given me.
“My… photo?”
I answered after wracking my brain as much as I could, but it didn’t seem to satisfy him.
As if irritated by my nonsense, he furrowed his brow.
Deep hatred filled Lawrence’s red eyes.
“The Duchess of Gerhardt—my mother’s photo.”
Once again, a thick killing intent flowed from Lawrence.
Not wanting to provoke him any further, I hurriedly nodded as if I understood.
I didn’t know when the Gerharilla Ducal Estate had turned into a photo development studio, but what choice did I have? If he said bring it, I had to bring it.
“But… where should I get it from?”
“Ha!”
Even as I asked, the situation felt painfully awkward.
No—right from the start, it felt like the point of the conversation had gone slightly off track.
And judging by Lawrence’s cold smile, it seemed I’d really gotten on his nerves.
Bang.
As Lawrence stood up, the sofa he’d been sitting on tipped backward, making a loud crash.
“Are you still trying to toy with me?”
“What? No, absolutely not!”
“Then what do you think you’re doing?”
Standing there, Lawrence stared at me with eyes full of hatred.
He had merely stood up, yet the force of his presence made my legs tremble.
That I was toying with him?
“…No.”
It’s unfair!
Overcome by both fear and injustice, tears welled up in my eyes.
I had no idea where things had gone wrong.
He barged in, demanded a photo, and flew into a rage—none of it made sense. But Patricia had done so many wrong things to him that I couldn’t even ask whether this was related to one of them.
His hatred toward me was too old and too deep to unravel.
“Really. I’m asking because I don’t know!”
Since coming here, there hadn’t been a single day I didn’t feel wronged.
The inexplicable hatred from others, the contempt of the man called my father, the disdain of my siblings—I endured it all despite how unfair and painful it was.
And yet, this wretched situation showed no sign of improving.
What kind of wealth or glory was I supposed to gain that I had to suffer this kind of humiliation here?
I didn’t want to get involved.
I didn’t want to get involved with the young duke.
Not even for a single minute or second.
I don’t want to get involved with you either.
The people who hated me were already more than enough just among the Gerharilla ducal family.
I didn’t want to be harassed by Lawrence too.
“…”
Lawrence looked at me, claiming my innocence, with an expression of disbelief.
Distrust twisted his face deeply.
“No, no. I’m sorry. I’ll look into it myself!”
Feeling pressured by Lawrence as he approached, I tried to step back, but my leg caught and I fell back onto the sofa.
There was nowhere to run, yet Lawrence slowly closed the distance.
Seeing the man who despised and hated me approaching with a scowl was terrifying.
“……”
Suddenly, as he came close, Lawrence slipped his hand into his coat.
What? What is he doing all of a sudden?
It was a scene straight out of a Western movie—the moment right before pulling out a gun.
Did guns even exist in this world?
“Ah!”
By the time that thought finished, I realized it was already too late to run, and I squeezed my eyes shut.
…After what felt like quite some time, I still felt no pain. When I slowly opened my eyes—
“Hey. What do you think you’re doing right now?”
“Huh?”
Lawrence let out an incredulous laugh.
It was a clear, mocking sneer.
I alternated my gaze between Lawrence and the silver necklace swaying in front of me.
“The photo that was inside this—wasn’t it you who messed with it?”
At his words, I looked at the open locket.
It was the necklace I’d returned to him yesterday.
The locket, which should have contained something, was completely empty.
“No! It wasn’t me!”
So the photo he was looking for must have been the picture of his mother that had been inside the locket.
Now that I finally understood why he’d been so angry, I didn’t feel relieved—I felt even more wronged.
He could’ve just said so from the beginning.
But instinct told me that saying that outright would be dangerous, so I hurriedly shook my head and looked at him with the gentlest expression I could manage.
“Hm.”
Even so, he scanned me as if he still couldn’t believe me.
“I mean it!”
Only then did Lawrence let out a small sigh, avert his gaze, and tuck the necklace back into his coat.
I nearly died of fright thinking he was pulling out a gun. And why does he even keep a necklace inside his coat?
Whether he took it out of his pants pocket or inner pocket was his business, but it was still irritating.
I hurriedly wiped the tears clinging to my eyes and stood up.
“It seems you’re done with me, so I’ll be going now.”
My voice came out colder than I intended, so I cautiously watched his reaction.
Lawrence didn’t seem angry, but he also didn’t look like he intended to step aside.
He looked down at me quietly, then slowly opened his mouth.
“How am I supposed to believe you?”
“Pardon?”
A mischievous smile crept onto his lips.
Somehow, it didn’t feel like this would end easily.
“How am I supposed to believe you?”
The way he lifted one corner of his mouth, as if the truth didn’t matter, left me speechless.
“Is there anyone other than you who touched this necklace?”
“…No.”
“Then the photo disappeared while it was in your hands. Is that just a coincidence?”
“…”
I couldn’t answer Lawrence’s question.
“Given the circumstances, isn’t it natural to suspect you?”
“…Yes. It is.”
If he was going to look for whoever took the photo from the locket, suspecting me first was only natural.
It was unfair, but it was only logical.
There was nothing wrong with his reasoning.
To be honest, I couldn’t even guarantee that Patricia hadn’t touched the photo.
I could only sincerely hope that she hadn’t.
When I meekly acknowledged his words in a subdued voice, Lawrence stared at me intently.
It seemed he’d expected me to vehemently deny it.
“…But you say it wasn’t you.”
He frowned slightly, clearly displeased.
I silently nodded.
Frustration and anger seemed to crease Lawrence’s face.
“The responsibility for this lies with you, so you find it.”
“…All right.”
As if he didn’t want to speak with me anymore, Lawrence let out a small sigh.
I answered quietly that I would.
I had no idea where I was supposed to find a tiny photo small enough to fit inside a thumb-sized locket, but I nodded obediently anyway.
Did Patricia really hide the photo?
I’d never even seen the photo he was talking about, but there was no telling what Patricia might have done.
She might have thrown it away, or hidden it—I had no way of knowing.
I couldn’t stop thinking about Patricia.
If it were her, it wouldn’t be strange for her to have stolen or discarded a photo of Lawrence’s mother. She’d been a deranged stalker, after all.
There was nothing to be done. I’d just have to think of it as my karma.
“Come to the Gerhardt Ducal Estate around one tomorrow.”
“What?”
The head I’d bowed in reflection nearly snapped up at his words.
Why? The question hovered on my lips but never made it out.
“You said you’d look for the photo.”
He spoke as if it were obvious.
“And then?”
“From now on, come once a week and report.”
“Yes… what?”
The young duke’s tone, as if explaining something self-evident, almost made me nod along automatically.
“You want me to report whether I’ve found the photo or not?”
“Yeah.”
It felt unfair, but faced with his matter-of-fact attitude, I had no choice but to nod.
As if he’d achieved his goal, he turned his back without a hint of hesitation.
Even his back looked irritating now.
“Um… Young Duke.”
All my energy had been drained, and I just wanted to be alone.
I didn’t want to call out to him. I wanted him to leave already.
Yet, with a voice full of lingering hesitation, I stopped him anyway.
