Chapter 38

“Are you alright now?”

“Uh? Uh-huh, thanks to you.”

No, if I jump out of here and get caught, the situation will be no longer manageable.

If there’s a rumor that I was dumped by Nocton and attempted suicide, my life is over.

I smiled awkwardly and glanced face to face with Alice, then turned my head quietly.

Alice’s unbearable smile leaked out.

“Don’t laugh….”

“Yes, I’m trying. Would you like a handkerchief?”

“No, I have one, hold on for a second.”

I sighed, took out my handkerchief and paused. I forgot, but when I opened my hand, something shattered in my hand.

As I turned my head unknowingly, I made eye contact with Alice.

The clear blue eyes rolled toward my palm.

“Alice … I have a confession to make.”

Alice smiled silently at the belated confession.

That day, I knew for the first time that smiling with a beautiful face could be so scary.

I cupped my used hand back and took it back.

“It’s nothing, maybe.”

“If you’re going to sneak, you should have done it right.”

She sighed.

“It’s okay. Rather than that … I’m disappointed it didn’t seem to be as helpful as I thought. I had a hard time finding it, but I didn’t know it would break apart once you met him. What happened?”

“I was just talking to him … I didn’t mean to provoke him. I was holding it in as much as I could, but the railing made a strange noise. It must have been fixed a little urgently. Anyway, because of that, Nocton grabbed me to pull me in, but the white crystal lit up and it attacked him. It’s over. It would be impossible even for a saint to have a calm conversation in that situation.”

“I don’t want to blame you, so you don’t have to make excuses. And it attacked him just because of a touch?”

“Yes, it wasn’t then that it was fragmented, and after a little argument, I forgot that the railing broke down and I must have crawled away. So when I was about to fall, Nocton caught me … and I gave it.”

“What? Hold on, Roa. Are you hurt?”

“I told you, Nocton caught me. That’s why his arm seems to be a bit of a mess, but that’s when the crystal was fragmented.”

Even though I said so, Alice looked up at my arm, lifted my hair, and searched for where I was hurt.

I was worried for no reason, but I felt a little better.

“I’m really not hurt, I am.”

“I think so. There are times when His Grace can be helpful.”

“You know how to be so sarcastic….”

“The white crystal is a bit strange. I’ve never heard of attacking with only the touch. I’ve only heard that it can defend the wearer against mental magic, like curses and brainwashing. “

“What? No wonder, it was weird when you gave me something like that when you told me not to provoke him.”

Then why did the white crystal attack Nocton?

Having experienced the collapse of the newly repaired railing, I was the first to wonder if the repair was faulty. I heard from Alice that it’s usually not expensive, but if it’s bad, isn’t it a fraud?

As I was continuing my thoughts, a human shadow was reflected in the curtain. Whether someone was coming to the balcony, the shadows gradually grew.

I pulled the curtains, why are you coming over here?

I looked at the broken railing in an uncertain, perplexed look. Actually, I realized that the sound of broken railing was quite loud.

Even though there was the sound of music and loud talking at the ballroom, it was a loud enough roar to hear if someone was near the balcony.

Are you coming to check the sound?

“Roa, handkerchief!”

Alice, who was as flustered as I was, hurriedly handed out her handkerchief. Only then did I realize that my face was still wet.

I was trying to get my handkerchief out, but I moved on to the crystal story.

I snatched the handkerchief in a hurry and pressed my face firmly.

What about my make-up? I’m sure it fell apart.

No, being with Alice is also a problem.

The plain Roa Valrose in front of a friend whose engagement was broken, it would have been a pretty good picture if the fiance wasn’t Nocton Edgar, but I was with Alice.

Nowadays, I can imagine all sorts of things just by being in the same place as Alice or Nocton.

The fact that Nocton took my side and criticized Bornaine, it’s going to blow up.

In the meantime, I’m already afraid of how creative the rumors will be, as Bornaine even fell.

All right, let’s just give it all up.

The situation is already beyond repair.

Yes, let’s try to be comfortable without worrying about the gossips.

I gave up half way and sighed.

Then, finally, the one who came near the balcony called me.

“This is Aaron Claymore, Roa. May I come in?”

***

Nocton Edgar, 15 years old.

By the age of fifteen, Nocton Edgar was still alive and still remained the successor to the Edgar dukedom.

Now there were more people who admired his abilities than those who mocked the boy.

As long as there were no major surprises, the next Duke of Edgar would have been confirmed.

Nevertheless, Nocton felt a sense of isolation.

It was because the hands, which were increasingly overtly strangling him, suddenly stopped.

Patricia Edgar was too quiet.

Although the light handiwork continued like today, it was not even within the touch of the Duchess. It was the work of her people, loyal to Patricia Edgar, wagging their tails to be loved somehow.

Even though he fell of horse and wound his foot, the actual injury is just a little bit flesh.

Therefore, he never expected the Duchess to call him for this.

Entering the Duchess’ office, the boy gave a brief greeting and looked at this mother. The black-haired woman who was organizing her papers, somehow, put down her fountain pen within a minute after Nocton entered her office.

Even though she wasn’t smiling, her face was bright.

She wouldn’t be so happy to have fallen from her horse. Nocton’s eyes glazed over, she opened her mouth.

“I heard you fell off a horse while riding today. You sprained your ankle.”

“It’s not a day or two that something like this happens.”

“It’s because your equestrian skills are lacking. Neither Floyd nor Dansha ever fell off the horse.”

“You don’t know. Floyd was kicked in the back by a horse, and Dansha fell off the horse when he first learned to ride, so he didn’t even get near the stable.”

Patricia Edgar flicked her eyebrows.

The innermost thoughts that have not been brought out of the mouth are vividly conveyed to Nocton.

A bit of annoyance and a bit of pity.

She certainly hated Nocton, but that didn’t mean she loved another child.

There is no single affection, the only thing that exists is to blame why she couldn’t beat Nocton Edgar. In the first place, he doesn’t even know if this woman has feelings for love.

“So why did you call me?”

“Pour it on your wound.”

The Duchess pushed the glass bottle on the desk to the front Nocton.

A blue liquid sparkles brightly in a finger-length bottle. The beautiful color raised the ominous feeling in the boy.

It was not poison, nor was it a potion containing a curse.

The familiar energy in the liquid resembled the sacredness and divine power of the priests who occasionaly visited the mansion, but this one was much more pure than their power.

Patricia Edgar smiled gracefully, as if to put an end to Nocton’s anxious prediction.

“It’s holy water, the swelling will heal right away.”

“Holy water cannot be used for this. If I don’t get better today, I’d rather call a priest.”

“You don’t have to bother a busy person. Besides, it’s obvious that this one here have better performance than a great priest. There’s nothing to feel burdened about. Aren’t you the Edgar’s heir? Nothing in the world is more precious than your body.”

To that extent, there is no cause for him to refuse.

Nocton eventually picked up the glass bottle.

Even though it was blocked by a layer of glass, his fingertips tickled unpleasantly as if he had dipped his hands in the liquid.

Divine power, it’s obvious that touching holy water will be painful.

After having established a certain position, Nocton went to the Imperial library and read some magic books, but he was already aware of them even before reading them.

Like a beast fearing fire, like a demon running away from the priest.

What will happen if he pours this on his swollen ankle, the amount of pain cannot be possible.

Since he had never been through it, the prediction was like a blank paper.

A vague ignorance arouses fear. Nocton’s hand grasped the bottle, the burning eyes looking down at the bottle and causing the colored pupils shake.

Still, for a fifteen-year-old boy, he was controlling his emotions admirably, but nobody praised him.

Patricia Edgar suddenly started laughing like a madman.

Unrefined, the loud, harsh laughter was so grotesque and perceptive.

The boy’s face hardened.

‘I got caught in black magic.’

Nocton’s mind was all over the place.

He was cautious and careful, but how did he get caught?

Hundreds of speculations rose in his head and sank. He thought he’d be caught one day, but it wasn’t this moment.

At least after he has gotten better at his magic, more powerful, more….

Tuk, as suddenly as it began, the laughter suddenly stopped.

Patricia Edgar had a very pleasant smile on her face.

“I thought it was really, really weird. I didn’t intend to teach you swords, but you weren’t that interested, were you? Not only the sword, you also loathed the knight. Anyway, even if you’re naturally talented, you’re not very good at protecting yourself, but you’re so tough … like a bug that doesn’t go away even if it’s burned.”

The Duchess rose from the chair and approached.

Her hand stroked Nocton’s head affectionately.

Out of habit, he brushed off his mother’s hand without a little hesitation.

Nevertheless, Patricia Edgar was still smiling happily.

With a joyful face, she took the bottle from Nocton’s hand and opened the stopper.

“I like it, dear. I really like the fact that your talent is so lowly and dirty, that your talent is black magic that no one can love.”

Her hand tilted without a moment’s hesitation.

The holy blue liquid fell on Nocton’s feet. Most of it flowed over the shoes into the carpet, but some soaked the boy’s socks and touched the flesh inside.

The skin in contact with the liquid was boiling hot.

Even if he tried to be patient and calm, he can’t do that.

With one’s hands clenched so that the fingernails would stick to the flesh, Nocton endured the pain with a gritted jaw.

Looking at him, Patricia Edgar burst into laughter once again.

The terrible pain and laughter seemed to be in the balance and his eyes shook with dizziness.

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“You sure are a devil bastard.”

“….”

“Did you lure the daughter of Marquis Valrose with that talent?”

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T/N: I … have no words.

Oh, regarding the edit yesterday, it’s not actually a mistake. The author really use the word “테라스” (terrace) instead of “발코니” balcony. But after some google search, I decided to use the world balcony for the translation. Since [copied from google] “A

terrace

is an open space that can be attached or detached to a building. In contrast,

balconies

are small elevated platforms that are affixed to a given room in the house. Whereas a

terrace

can have multiple points of access, a

balcony

is typically only accessible through the room.”. I hope you don’t mind.