CH 133

Thump! Along with that sound, an old man who was struggling to carry a few large boxes was summoned in front of me.

“......Eh?”

“It’s been a while.”

“Grandfather!” 

“I’m here.” 

As I hugged Josef, he patted me on the back. 

Surprised by his sudden appearance, I straightened my rapid breathing. 

“Why haven’t you contacted me all this time?!”

‘I thought you had died in the forest!’

“I see you must have been worried.”

“Of course! How can I not be worried when the letters you sent me here and there were suddenly cut off?” 

I scrutinized Josef’s face who was gently ruffling my hair. The last time I saw him, he had been an old man, maybe that was why there didn’t seem to be any changes that I saw.

“You’ve really grown up a lot. I see you’re a grown-up now. I’m surprised you still remember me.” 

Josef continued with a bittersweet smile. 

“I’m sorry I couldn’t help you. Derek Lagrange sent a demon to Romendov since he thought I would involve myself in the successor gate.” 

“A demon?”

“That’s right. Because of that, I was abandoned in the desert of another country and wandered for a long time.” 

My mouth dropped open in astonishment at Josef’s words. 

I had something to ask him that’s why I was looking for him, but still, the feelings of longing surged when I looked at the face I haven’t seen for a long time. 

I grinned and looked back at Damon. 

“I mean, if you have brought grandfather with you, you should have said something. I would have been less angry.”

“I was about to explain but you got angry first.”

“What are all these boxes?”

“I thought you might be wondering what a demon’s contract is. This is all the data that I have.” 

Damon seemed to be keeping his own loyalty, so I scratched the back of my head in embarrassment.

“Hm, ahem.” 

Josef, who had been watching us, let out a dry cough. He glanced down at me, slightly shoving Damon by his shoulder. 

“Anissa.”

“Yes?”

“How do you know the Marquis?”

“Uhm, well, through this and that. These days, we’re helping each other.” 

Josef frowned his wrinkled eyes at my vague answer and looked at Damon reluctantly.

“Come to think of it, is Anissa your ideal type?”

“Please don’t make your own misunderstanding.” 

Damon narrowed his handsome forehead as if displeased. I shook my head at Josef, who seemed to have become dull. 

“It’s not like that, grandfather.”

“It’s because you don’t know this punk. Do you know many women this punk had up until a few decades ago?”

There wasn’t one or two shocking elements in his statement, but I frowned at the most unbelievable words. 

“A few decades?”

‘How old is he exactly?’

“Do you not know the Marquis’ age?”

“Please be quiet and move your luggage, Josef.” 

Damon pushed me away with one hand as my eyes twinkled in curiosity at Josef’s words. He lifted a few heavy boxes full of books by himself and turned his back.

“If it’s his age–”

“I asked you to move your luggage.” 

Damon ground his teeth uncharacteristically as he said those words and Josef bent his waist. I grumbled and pouted at his cold back.  

“Grandfather, you should think about your age. It’ll take the box, Marquis.”

I said confidently and bent my waist, but the box was heavier than I thought that even when I tried it wouldn’t budge.

“Keough.” 

‘Are these rocks inside instead of books?’ 

Damon, who stared at my pathetic act, shook his head and sighed. 

“Just leave it there. I’ll move it in a little while.”

“I can hold it!” 

I glanced at Damon’s firm arms and bit my lips. Josef whispered in my ears at my pointless whimpering. 

“Are you curious about that punk’s age?”

“Yes.”

“He’s the same age as me.” 

Gasp.

“What did you say?” 

Surprised at Josef’s shocking confession, I looked at the knight who was holding the boxes as if they were light even though I couldn’t move them no matter how much I tried. 

‘I thought he had just an extreme baby face!’ 

I ran to Damon in shock and grabbed his arm to take away the box he was holding. 

“Give me the box, Marquis!”

“What are you doing?” 

He pushed me away, finding me ridiculous. 

No matter how much I’ve already adjusted to the social status system, I was someone who knew how to respect their elders. 

I snatched the box from Damon and hugged it to myself while groaning. 

“Elder, if you overdo it, your back will hurt!” 

“..........” 

────── 〔✿〕──────

I searched through the books from Damon’s tower and Josef’s laboratory, but I couldn’t find the person who terminated the contract with the demon, let alone how to cancel the contract. 

‘Is there really no one aside from the person that Hermann knows? Really?’ 

How could he know when the alchemist, who shut himself in his laboratory to do research, and the owner of the magic tower didn’t know? 

‘Is this the main character buff?’

I sat in the corner of the study, tearing my hair out with both hands in irritation. 

Baal, whom Dietrich had called after a long time and whined that he didn’t want to return to the demon realm, stealthily crawled out from the shadow. 

“What are you doing?”

“Go away. I’m not in the mood to play with you.” 

At my sharp tone, the demon who put on a disappointed expression moved his body closer with a gentle gesture like flowing water. 

“Are you still looking for a way to break His Majesty and my contract?” 

He squatted next to me and thumbed through the books I was reading. But then, he muttered strange words quietly. 

“Come to think of it, His Majesty is quite unique.”

“What do you mean unique?” 

“He signed a contract with me when he was very young. So normally, he should have gone crazy at this point.”

“What do you mean by that?” 

My eyes widened at Baal’s words and grabbed the part where his collar should have been. He continued with a begrudging expression on his face. 

“It’s been over a decade since he signed the contract, and the people of Lagrange, who have Asmodeus’ blood flowing in them, are easily affected.” 

“What happens when you get affected?” 

There may have been several symptoms that Baal hasn’t noticed. I was terrified and wiped my pale cheeks. 

“There are many. You can’t control your emotions, or when you see a person wearing a skirt, your eyes would roll back, something like that.” 

“What do you mean to see something? Why would the eyes roll back?” 

I had never met a child as indifferent as Dietrich. So aside from the first symptom, the second one was strange. 

As I looked at him with a large frown on my face, Baal backpedaled and waved his hands as if making excuses. 

“Did you forget what kind of demon Asmodeus was? He’s the demon of lust.” 

"............"

“So even if such a symptom appears, it’s not His Majesty’s fault.” 

Baal whispered in a soft voice. 

“Why are you that surprised? Do you know something?”

“No, that’s not it.” 

Dietrich wasn’t the kind of person who approached women blindly. 

‘But you never know.’ 

Although we spent more than ten years under the same roof, there were times when I thought that there were too many things we didn’t know about each other. 

‘So I can’t completely let my guard down.’ 

He hadn’t shown a fit of anger as ferocious as Derek did, but Dietrich was definitely more prone to anger these days than before. 

I shrugged my shoulders, completely forgetting that the incidents I had committed were enough to provoke his anger. 

────── 〔✿〕──────

“My lady, you need to prepare to dress up.” 

Before I knew it, it was time to greet the winter by opening a banquet. 

“All right, I’ll come out now.” 

I tossed the reminder that Hermann sent – although the content was sweet – into the fireplace and went out of the room to get ready to dress up. 

‘If he finds out that I’ve been exchanging letters with Hermann, he’d be so terribly angry again.’ 

Josef went with Damon to the tower and promised to look into it but both of them were skeptical. 

I couldn’t even blindly look forward to the idea that a contract once made could be broken. 

Thus, I had no choice but to send a reply to Hermann to give me a little more time. 

“Where’s Madame Celine?”

“She’s helping His Grace get dressed. She left your dress here, my lady.”

“Ah, I see. Dietrich has to show his face at today’s banquet.” 

It was common sense for the head of the family to show up even at a regular banquet, but Dietrich wasn’t a common aristocrat who kept such common sense. 

However, the banquet that was meant to prepare for the long and dark winter of Lagrange was a large banquet that also served as a festival for the common people. 

“I had asked for a dress with a similar feeling as last time. How is it?”

“It suits you better than before, my lady.” 

As Tally said, I smiled in satisfaction at the sight of an ‘adult woman’ in the mirror fluttering her luscious eyelashes. 

“I guess I’m a late bloomer.” 

I was a little upset that Rose had already caught up with my height, but this mature dress certainly suited me better than the last banquet. 

Although my body was slender, my bulging chest wasn’t flat at least. 

Light blue silk flowed down the curve of my body, and pearl adorned the elegant mermaid line without being rustic. 

“As expected of Madame Celine.” 

Vanessa, who was applying finely ground peal powder on my exposed collarbone, raised her voice when she heard my murmur. 

“That’s not true, it’s as expected of you, my lady! It’s because it’s you that you’re able to wear this dress elegantly.”

“That’s right. Do you know how difficult it is to create an innocent yet bewitching atmosphere?” 

I scratched my cheek at Tally’s infallible response. 

‘There they go again.’ 

I listened to their compliments in one ear and looked back at the door just in time for it to open.