CH 92

He was someone who couldn’t be talked to, that’s why she had to use force.

Of course, it was difficult using her own strength. Leighton is a man and quite strong at that.

Nelia swatted Leighton’s hand off her shoulder and quickly leaned over to Zenuit to whisper something.

Both of them exchanged very brief conversations. And soon after, Zenuit gave a nod.

“……I got it. See this.”

“What are you two whispering about in front of me?”

The moment Leighton tried to intervene between Nelia and Zenuit, a white light flashed in the room.

Leighton’s eyes widened at the strange phenomenon.

“Wait, what’s that just now……”

“You don’t have to know, now hurry and give me the medicine you stole.”

“I didn’t steal it!”

Nelia reached out to Leighton, who backed away in time. Leighton’s pants pocket was within her reach.

Leighton, who was flustered, grabbed Nelia by the wrist.

“You, why don’t you stop?”

Nelia didn’t budge when Leighton told her off seriously. On the contrary, she seemed to be somewhat relaxed.

When Leighton frowned at Nelia’s strange attitude, Nelia grabbed Leighton by the arm. Then, her upper body is leaned forward.

Bang-!

Leighton’s body was spun in the air before thrown on the floor. As if he was being knocked over.

‘Sh*t…… It’s too loud.’

Leighton rubbed his back as he grimaced, pain was apparent all over his face.

“Oh……!”

Nelia reached out to the defenceless Leighton and dug through his pants pocket.

When there was nothing inside his pocket, she put his hand inside his jacket pocket. Upon feeling the foreign item inside, Nelia immediately took it out.

It was a small glass bottle filled with medicine. Seeing that the cork was carved with Griff’s name, it seemed to be Duke Hart’s medicine.

“You……!”

Leighton managed to reach out with her hand as he frowned, but he couldn’t get up because his back hurt after hitting the floor.

Nelia ignored him and put the bottle in her pocket.

“I’ll give it back to the owner.”

The door was knocked open as soon as she finished her words. It was the owner of the medicine itself.

Duke Hart’s expression was considerably stiff.

“Ugh…….”

His subdued gaze fell on Leighton, who had a frown while rubbing his aching back.

Nelia grew curious at the sudden appearance of Duke Hart, but she felt that it was necessary to explain the situation to him first.

“Leighton tripped on the carpet and fell.”

It was a bit different from the truth.

“If Your Grace happened to hear a loud noise while outside, it must be Leighton falling on the floor.”

Leighton wouldn’t want to let go of his much smaller sister after knowing he has been spun around in the air.

Duke Hart asked Leighton, who was lying on the floor.

“Are you all right, Young Master Leighton?”

Leighton couldn’t answer, he just frowned as if his back was still hurting.

Nelia spoked on behalf of such Leighton.

“It must be very painful for him. I guess he should stop eating here.”

Nelia spoke in a low voice after subtly covering Leighton from the duke’s sight.

“I apologize, Your Grace. Leighton wanted to look around the mansion, so he went to the bathroom and wandered around the mansion by himself. And when I was scolding Leighton in my room for a while, this chaotic incident happened.”

The duke nodded.

“I see. If he told me that he wanted to look around the mansion, I would have shown him as much as I could after dinner.”

“You have a point.”

Nelia shrugged and shot Leighton a look.

He was still unable to get up.

‘He must be hurting quite a lot.’

Why does he touch other people’s things and sell them without any thought? She felt relieved that she successfully took revenge on Leighton with this, as he was always a nuisance to her all this time.

However, she couldn’t just leave him like this, so she leaned down and asked Leighton.

“Can you get up?”

“Ugh…… Yes, you little brat!”

Is there a crack in his back? It should be better that way. He couldn’t go around if he were to be stuck in his room for a while.

“Your Grace, I apologize for this, but could you help Leighton and take him to the first floor? He said he was unable to get up, he might have been hurt while falling.”

“Yes, I can.”

Duke Hart assisted Leighton, who was unable to get up from the floor. Leighton could barely put strength on his feet with noise that indicated it was painful.

When Nelia didn’t come out immediately, Duke Hart tilted his head.

“What about you, Nelia?”

“I think Zenu was quite shocked to see Leighton fall, so I’m going to comfort him first, Your Grace can go with Leighton first.”

“Alright.”

After Duke Hart and Leighton disappeared, Nelia slammed the door closed and turned around.

Zenuit, who seemed surprised, raised the corners of his mouth and smiled in a proud manner.

“How is it, having the power lent by me?”

Nelia quietly raised her right thumb.

Nelia borrowed power from Zenuit to give Leighton a little lesson earlier.

‘It’s really like everything.’

Zenuit lent his strength, and thanks to that, she was able to throw Leighton despite him being physically stronger and bigger than her.

However…….

“Don’t forget about the price.”

Zenuit demanded a price in return for having been lending his power.

It must be dessert. The dessert is expensive and difficult to obtain which Zenuit had eaten once and he nearly lost his mind to get another one.

‘I told him not the expensive ones……’

But what could she do? She’d already borrowed his power anyway.

Besides, the moment she threw Leighton, it was quite thrilling so that much of a reward is fine.

Nelia answered lightly.

“All right, I’ll have it delivered for you tomorrow.”

***

Leighton, who came out of Nelia’s room first, was climbing down the stairs with the assistance of Duke Hart.

Leighton narrowed his eyebrows, recalling what happened a moment ago.

‘Is that girl secretly building strength or what?’

Nelia threw him out of the blue earlier. He still couldn’t forget the sensation when he floated in the air.

He still didn’t have any strength in his back, so he thought about lying down for some time.

However, there was something that became more of a bother than the throbbing pain on his back.

It was Duke Hart, who didn’t say anything.

He always had a gentle smile on his face, so it felt strange to see him walking with such an expressionless face.

It was only after they left the room that the atmosphere around him seemed to change.

‘What’s this……. So uncomfortable.’

Leighton forced himself to speak to Duke Hart all the while ignoring his throbbing back.

“Your Grace must have had a hard time finding me, haven’t you, Your Grace? I was about to return……. But I got lost……”

“No, I didn’t.”

He didn’t look for him (Leighton)? Although his voice was cold, it was a relief (to Leighton). No, if he knew this would happen, he should have searched the duke’s room a little longer.

“After all, I knew where you were.”

Leighton looked at Duke Hart blankly upon hearing his words.

“Pardon……?”

“Didn’t you search my room? I knew it already, so there’s no use looking for you.”

“H-How do you……!”

Leighton knew he shouldn’t admit it, but he was really shocked that he even forgot the pain in his back for a moment.

Duke Hart laughed. The atmosphere became quite cold.

“I left it just like that, knowing that you wouldn’t be able to read all the important documents in my room, after all they are encrypted.”

Leighton was a bit mad at the same time.

He couldn’t believe that he didn’t come up with anything after searching the duke’s room as hard as possible. He felt like he was being played and fell into the trap in the duke’s hand.

Even so, he…… came here as a guest anyway.

Leighton wondered how the duke could stay still despite knowing his intention?

At that moment, Duke Hart spoke out first.

“I think you intended to find out something more about the medicine……. It is nothing more than a headache medicine, so you won’t find out more about it.”

Leighton’s energy to say a word was hidden deep inside.

‘How the h*ll did he know I was trying to find out about the medicine……!’

As if reading Leighton’s thoughts, Duke Hart answered his question.

“I think I dropped the medicine at the mansion when I was sick, but it was nowhere to be found. So I thought if Young Master Leighton, who stopped by that day, took it, and I know right away when you ask me about various things.”

“And, Young Master Leighton.”

At the low voice that called his name, Leighton unknowingly stuttered while answering with, ‘Yes, yes.’

“I’m quite upset today.”

Leighton felt his hair curled up at the subdued, cold voice. So this is how it feels when someone who has always been kind gets mad.

However, it wasn’t just because of Duke Hart’s change of attitude. He was imagining that the temperature really dropped significantly.

Of course, he admitted to some extent that the duke had the right to be mad. After all, he had stolen the duke’s stuff…….

Leighton only swallowed anxiously as had nothing to say.

“It doesn’t matter that I take medicine as much as I can, but don’t put Nelia in trouble.”

Huh…….? When the duke brought up something completely unexpected, Leighton thought he was mistaken for a moment.

“The only reason I give you mercy is because you’re Nelia’s family.”

Leighton thought there was something strange about the duke who spoke as if Nelia was someone great, but he wasn’t in the mood to ask at that moment.

“……Yes.”

He barely answered in a strained voice.

“I’ll call a carriage to take you home. I think you need to call a doctor right away for a checkup, but is there anyone who can take care of you at home?”

Leighton said while looking around.

“Yes, both my parents should be at home by now……”

The duke paused for a moment.

Leighton tilted his head when Duke Hart stopped all of a sudden, but soon he continued his pace again.

“Yes, then I’ll take you home.”

***

When the guest returned home, Duke Hart, who came to his room, stood in front of the desk and looked down at the unfolded letter.

The letter from the magic tower said that they would prepare a new wizard and restraint tools in preparation for the upcoming total lunar eclipse.

Papers related to the curse were encrypted and reciprocated, so that the general public could never read them.

So Leighton knew he would search his room, but he didn’t do anything about that.

It wasn’t until he asked a strange question that he couldn’t help but notice. And soon he realized. That Leighton was the one who took his medicine.

What became clear was when his movements stopped in his room.

Duke Hart was originally capable of detecting movement within a certain range by the heat.

Afterall, detecting human movements was one of the many abilities he had.

Leighton stayed in his room for quite a while. As if he was looking for something.

Therefore, he was certain that Leighton wanted to find data about his medicine.

It didn’t matter whether Leighton searched his room or not. What really bothered him was the fact that Nelia and Leighton stayed in the same room for some time.

In the end, he couldn’t wait with patience and left the dining room.

He didn’t have a good feeling about it, so he hurried out and it just so happened that he heard a noise. She thought something bad happened to Nelia, so he immediately went inside.

However, he saw Leighton who was rubbing his back as if it was painful.

It also looked like Nelia had knocked Leighton over.

Nelia and Leighton were quite different in size, so it would be difficult unless she suddenly got sufficient strength.

‘Is it really Nelia……’

Even when confronting Carlos at the detached palace, Nelia was able to use an unbelievable power.

He didn’t bother to ask because Nelia was in trouble back then, but he kept wondering what was going on.

He didn’t think Nelia has been acting impatient and becoming anxious as of lately for worrying about the curse or the way to find out information regarding Sigrit’s heart…… Is it, perhaps, related to that crazy power?

‘……’

Duke Hart, who was still thinking about the change that happened to Nelia, realized something that happened after Zenuit appeared.

Come to think of it, it was after the kid came around. It was the first time that such changes have ever occurred.

He was beginning to question the identity of the kid.

Then Nelia didn’t have to take care of her cousin. Leighton said Nelia’s parents were apparently staying in the mansion that is placed in the capital city, not the earldom.

Duke Hart looked at Zenuit somewhere over the wall.

He speculated that the answer to all this might be brought by Nelia’s cousin, who suddenly appeared out of the blue.