TREV 24

Chapter : 24

Scratch, scratch.

Inside the dark room, only the sound of a small clock and the sound of writing could be heard.

“Haa…”

And occasionally, a deep sigh.

Thwack.

How many hours had I been tearing at my hair like that?

Unable to endure the frustration any longer, I threw the pen I had been gripping.

“I’m seriously going crazy.”

I exhaled another heavy sigh.

In my hand was a sheet of paper densely filled with writing.

I once again examined carefully the paper listing all that would begin two years from now.

The novel begins when the female protagonist, Arser, comes up to the capital.

To revive her fallen family, Arser blindly seeks out nobles in the capital who might invest in her house.

In the process, she visits the Duke of Herarilla’s mansion—and the person she happens to meet is Patricia, who was strolling in the garden.

No one knows what about Arser rubbed Patricia the wrong way, but Patricia slapped the heroine across the face and hurled insults at her without hesitation.

Driven out after such an appalling humiliation, Arser finally visits the Gerhardt ducal estate.

The woman slapped by Patricia and the man suffering from Patricia’s stalking feel a sense of camaraderie.

Lawrence makes Arser a proposal.

If she helps get Patricia away from him, he will invest in her family.

Arser, in turn, suggests a contract marriage.

The condition: once Patricia is fully out of the picture and Arser’s house is stable, they will divorce.

From that day on, Arser accompanied Lawrence to every engagement.

The two pretended to be lovers in love and immediately promised marriage.

“Haa…”

And thus, Patricia’s misfortune began.

Blinded by jealousy, Patricia attended a ball wearing Lawrence’s necklace—

The very necklace that belonged to his late mother.

Anyone in their right mind would never do such a thing, but Patricia was quite literally blinded by envy.

Honestly, I even doubt whether Patricia had ever been capable of normal thought to begin with.

In any case, Patricia flaunted the necklace to Arser.

It seemed she wanted to show Arser just how close she and Lawrence supposedly were.

But in the end, Patricia was caught by Lawrence—boasting of a necklace she had stolen.

“Haa, I’m embarrassed for her.”

His mother’s heirloom.

Infuriated to the roots of his hair at the brazen act of the thief who stole it, Lawrence publicly announced then and there that Patricia had taken it.

Patricia was branded a thief in an instant, and her reputation plummeted to ruin.

Once known as the flower of high society for her beauty and noble birth, Patricia could not endure the disgrace.

She blamed Arser for all that had befallen her and eventually tries to kill her.

Failing to kill Arser and becoming a fugitive, Patricia is ultimately slain by Carlos.

“Haa…”

Well, of course, Lawrence and Arser get their happy ending.

The original contract ends, but Lawrence realizes he already loves Arser.

Because his power—unique to the Gerhardt family—is completely under control at her side.

The power in question was a kind of magical force inherited only by the Gerhardts.

It was said the first Gerhardt had been a black dragon, and that was why the ability passed down.

Over long generations, no one was born with that power anymore.

But after about seven generations, the power reappeared in Lawrence.

“Haa…”

I didn’t particularly care how strong Lawrence was.

What I truly cared about…

“That’s not how it happened in the novel.”

In the novel, Lawrence never told Patricia to find his mother’s photograph.

“What on earth…?”

Was the photo inside the necklace in the novel?

No—how?

I searched Patricia’s entire room but never found a trace of any photograph.

Did she hide it somewhere else?

Why would she? For what purpose?

“……”

Or maybe Lawrence simply gave up?

Maybe he despised even the idea of meeting Patricia to demand the photo back.

So…

…No. That can’t be it.

“Haa…”

I was frustrated to the point of madness wondering where to find that photograph.

First of all, whether the necklace Lawrence reclaimed had contained a photo at all was the very first question.

“Seriously, where am I supposed to find it?”

No matter how hard I racked my brain, finding that picture seemed impossible.

“Haa…”

In a few days, Lawrence will come again—asking about the photograph’s whereabouts.

I can’t keep saying I haven’t found it. It’s time to give him a different answer.

“……”

Except, it’s not like I can magically provide a different answer…

“Argh! This is so annoying!!”

Unfortunately, screaming changed nothing.

Knock knock.

“Milady.”

At the sound of knocking, I rose from my seat.

Just as I was near the door, a voice came again.

“It’s me, Carlos. Please—just for a moment—could you open the door?”

Something desperate tinged Carlos’s voice.

“Carlos?”

It had been a while since I last saw him, and he looked worn out.

Perhaps because his face was pale, the shadows under his eyes seemed darker, and his lips were chapped.

“What’s wrong with your face? Are you sick?”

I hadn’t met him for several days, afraid Morgan or Barber might harm him.

The moment I saw Carlos again—after three days apart—my brows knitted.

“No. I’m fine.”

“Did Morgan come after you?”

I asked, my heart sinking at the thought.

Since storming out of my room that day, Morgan hadn’t picked a fight with me again.

Even if we crossed paths in the corridor, he just ignored me and walked on.

Could it be he’d taken it out on Carlos instead?

“No.”

Just as worry pulled my face tight, Carlos shook his head.

If not—then why did he look like this?

“I just… haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

At last, Carlos answered.

“Why? Why can’t you sleep?”

Feeling sorry for him, I brushed a hand over his hair.

Carlos flinched slightly.

“Something bothering you?”

“It’s not that.”

After hesitating, Carlos spoke.

“It’s just, since a little while ago… my leg hurts.”

“Your leg? Why?”

“I’m not sure. But you don’t need to worry.”

He shook his head as if it were nothing.

Then, quickly, he added:

“More importantly—are you alright, milady? Because of me… You almost got hit. And you were summoned by the duke.”

“It’s fine. It ended alright.”

I shook my head at his concerned question.

He must’ve come to ask about that.

Even though I had to listen to over two hours of scolding disguised as a lecture…

It ended well enough.

Yes, I needed to fix my temper.

Nothing is solved by getting angry.

I’d nearly made things worse simply because I hadn’t been able to hold it in.

Regrettably, I wasn’t yet in any position to leave this place and support myself.

“I was really worried since I couldn’t see you for days.”

“Sorry for worrying you.”

“…I wanted to help you too.”

Carlos let out a heavy sigh.

“There’s nothing I can do. I’m just a child servant.”

He bit his lip hard, looking truly miserable.

A mixture of sadness and frustration lingered on his face.

“I want to help you like you help me…”

“Carlos, you’re already—”

“I want to become someone amazing!”

Suddenly, Carlos lifted his head.

The eyes that met mine were earnest—overflowing with resolve, yet trembling as though afraid his hope would be dismissed, mocked, crushed.

“I… I want to be a knight!”

At last, he voiced his dream.

Still afraid of ridicule—but he said it boldly anyway.

Did he trust me that much?

Or did he truly yearn for that future?

“Yes! You can absolutely become one.”

I nodded quickly, before embarrassment could catch him.

“Really? I can really become a knight?”

“Of course! You’ll be the greatest knight in the Empire.”

At last, a bright smile bloomed on his face.

“I’ll work really hard.”

I nodded.

Surely, this child would accomplish far more than becoming a knight—he would become the Empire’s greatest.

“Yes.”

When I patted his head, he leaned into my hand like a pleased cat.

“More importantly, if your leg hurts, I’ll send for a physician. Get it examined.”

After stroking his hair for a while, I spoke again.

“And I’ll find someone who can teach you swordsmanship.”

I didn’t know how Carlos first learned the sword—but everything was unfolding as it should.

Just like in the novel, Carlos would become the Empire’s greatest knight.

Carlos too was moving toward the beginning of the story.

Silky hair ran through my fingers.

Even as I thought since things have changed, he won’t die, a strange urgency welled inside me at watching Carlos march toward his destined future.