Tom threw his master’s clothes and scrunched up his nose, sniffing Lucius like a dog.
Lucius pushed his face away until his nose was almost crushed, but Tom didn’t care.  “Something doesn’t smell right. The rumors you created are becoming the truth, aren’t they?”
“You’re the one who doesn’t smell right.”
Incensed, the attendant responded. “If it wasn’t for the master’s blind love, I wouldn’t have to sweat and smell so much!”
“Whose love?”
Lucius’ expression turned solemn, but Tom didn’t notice.
“Your love towards the marquess! Why pretend to scorn this marriage when you actually want it? If you didn’t have one whit of feelings for her, there shouldn’t have been a need to call four doctors at once. You even spent a fortune on the garden!”
He continued, “You said you gave me the best room? We’ll see if that’s really the case—”
“Enough with this nonsense.” Lucius cut off his words and harshly criticized. “Leave.”
Tom felt his face getting hit as his master pushed him away. He cradled his cheek and still had the nerve to boldly glare at his master.
“Please get back to your senses, master. There is nothing more ridiculous than letting yourself be ruined by a woman.” Then he thought for a second and added, “Twice.”
Tom was only a young adult who hadn’t experienced that much with life to be able to give advice to anyone. However, he knew the master’s history, and he was very concerned that Lucius’ life would be destroyed by that woman yet again.
At first, Lucius might’ve shown a cold-hearted side and had only appeared concerned about the benefits he would gain from the marriage, but that doesn’t change the fact the two of them have been in a relationship for a notable amount of time.
After losing his parents to the war, Tom was left to die on the streets while clutching his starved belly, begging for scraps and shelter, and eventually resorting to eating garbage as his sustenance.
But a certain golden-haired knight had liberated him from this misery.
Therefore…
For Tom, the man in front of him today wasn’t only a master to him. He was also a friend, a brother, and a deity that he worshipped from the bottom of his heart. His salvation back then had led to a one-sided affection that allowed no room for others to blaspheme the man he had chosen to serve.
And in Tom’s eyes, Deatrice, who had tormented his master even in his dreams, was already no different from a wicked witch that deserved to suffer through the nine levels of hell.
Lucius closed his eyes tiredly and spoke in a clear and slow manner…
“I will never fall in love again with Deatrice anyway.”
But the young servant could not believe it and mumbled. “How are you so sure? You treated her so well…”
“I haven’t treated her well.” Lucius muttered indifferently.
No matter what others thought, Lucius did not treat Deatrice with genuine affection. Except for the times when the occasional shards of the past would poke and stab him unsuspectingly, Lucius had mostly tolerated her with sympathy in his emotions and nothing else.
“Lucy…”
Honestly speaking, when her lips parted open and called out that name, the emotion that he felt that caused his nerves to thrum was… something close to anger.
It felt like the insides of his throat was burning, just like how alcohol would.
How could you…
How could you?
When you threw me away and told me not to touch you again?!
Those were the naive thoughts he had at that time. He quickly left the place, bewildered by his feeling of anger.
In the end, he realized that old feelings were still ingrained deep within him.
“Lucy… what would my life be like without you?” He always remembered the banal words she once whispered in his arms. Those words had once been his reason to live, and that they would remain imprinted into his heart forever. But now, he only found them laughable.
Lucius sneered, “I would have lived a better life.” He stood up after saying that derisive remark.
Clueless about where the words came from and why his master suddenly looked provoked, Tom got up and chased him out, shouting, “Master, where are you going?!”
But Lucius suddenly turned around and gave him orders.
“Tell Deatrice to come and see me. Then, I’ll have you meet her and explain.”
“E-explain what?” he stuttered.
Lucius grinned at the servant who looked up with a stupid face. It was supposed to be a charming smile, but then it was tainted by a hint of creepiness.
“About how she won’t be able to do anything.”
Tom was dumbfounded for a moment because he didn’t quite understand, then a smile crawled into his lips, then it brightened even more. He shouted at the leaving figure of his master. “Things will go as planned then, right?”