CH 76

Herwin made serious eye contact with Lucas.

‘……I’ve come to confess to Lucia.’

‘Ha! Confession? When was the last time you rejected Lucia, and now you’re calling it a confession? Are you kidding me?’

As soon as Lucas heard the word “confession,” he couldn’t control his anger.

‘…… I understand why you’re mad at me, and I would be too if I were you, but, bro. I’m serious. I want to meet Lucia and tell her how I feel.’

It would have been nice if he was lying, but Herwin sounded unwaveringly sincere.

That made Lucas even angrier.

‘Get out of my house now, because I’m not going to take a guy like you.’

‘Brother…….’

‘Can’t you hear me? There’s no way Lucia is going to see you, so get out! Hey, get this guy…… right now!’

As the servants tried to push him out of the room at Lucas’ urging, Herwin backed away.

‘I’ll leave on my terms. Lucia has gone out, hasn’t she?’

‘I have nothing to tell you.’

‘…… If Lucia is at the mansion, give her my word. I’ll wait for her in front of the mansion until I see her.’

‘Who said anything to you……!’

‘Please, brother.’

Lucas looked at Herwin’s bowed head, unable to contain his anger.

As he watched him slowly walk away, he had mixed feelings.

On the one hand, he resented the pain he had caused his brother, and on the other hand, I felt sorry for Herwin’s emaciated appearance.

Confused by the conflicting emotions, Lucas ran a hand through his hair.

‘He’ll go when he’s tired.’

Waiting for Lucia, who could come at any moment, would surely tire him out.

But he didn’t think he’d wait for her to come.

“What are you going to do…….”

He couldn’t figure out what was going through Herwin’s mind. Was he falling in love with Lucia?

It was too late now. Would he be able to change Lucia’s mind?

He didn’t know how things would turn out between them, but he was sure of this.

‘Lucia, I want you to be happy.’

He wanted his sister to live a happy life without any more pain.

* * *

“He just fell asleep.”

Jerome straightened his hunched back at the nudge he felt behind him.

Scarlett stood in the doorway. She approached slowly, her brow narrowing at the sight of Herwin in bed.

“I can’t believe the time has come to worry about my grown-up son…….”

Despite her whiny tone, the touch of her hand on Herwin’s face was full of concern for him.

Ten hours earlier, while talking to Arista, Herwin had suddenly and hastily disappeared.

Although she heard at first glance from Arista that something really important had happened to Herwin, no one could tell what he was going out for.

It was unlikely that her grown son would get into trouble out there, but she couldn’t help but worry, especially because he had been like a wreck all week.

Scarlett waited for him to come home, and when he didn’t return until nightfall, she nagged him.

‘Herwin, where the hell have you been? If you’re going somewhere, you should at least tell me……!’

Scarlett paused in her tirade. Her son had left without telling her, and he wasn’t in the best shape.

His face was flushed and his eyes were half-lidded, which was to be expected after a week of being a wreck.

Herwin reacted to Scarlett’s words half a beat too late. He wobbled as if he might collapse at any moment.

Scarlett hurried to his side, feeling the heat through her clothes.

She could tell he was in serious trouble.

‘Oh my God, you have a fever, have you been walking around outside in this body?’

‘I’m fine…….’

‘You’re not fine, you’re on fire, let’s get you back to your room.’

After repeating the words “I’m fine” like a parrot, Herwin couldn’t make it up the stairs and collapsed. With the help of the servants, Scarlett managed to carry him to his room.

She called in a doctor, who diagnosed him with a summer cold.

Herwin had been born so strong that the only illnesses he had ever suffered were minor colds.

But now, as an adult, Scarlett felt sick to her stomach to see her son with a summer cold that even dogs don’t get.

She brushed her fingers across Herwin’s colorful, sleeping face.

She had heard from the coachman that he had gone to visit Countess Agnes.

According to the coachman, Herwin had been thrown out of the castle and stood outside for hours, waiting to see Lucia.

After hours of waiting for Lucia, not knowing when she would return, the coachman finally let him into the carriage, but he was already in a bad way.

‘Well, it’s inevitable.’

It would be strange if a guy who didn’t eat properly and drank all week was outside and didn’t catch a cold.

“Hah, he’s never been sick before, so I’m more worried about him.”

“Don’t worry too much, my lady. I’m sure he’ll get well soon.”

“I see. I want you to take good care of our little Herwin.”

“Only leave him to me!”

With each of Jerome’s caught responses, Scarlett felt a little more at ease.

Scarlett replaced the towel on Herwin’s forehead and then headed out.

Her feet grew heavier with each step.

Scarlett stroked her cheeks as the corners of her mouth slowly hardened.

No matter how casual her relationship with Countess Agnes was, she was angry to see her son so broken.

[The way Lucia was talking, you were always the one at fault.

If you don’t, there is no way she would have suddenly become engaged to another man.]

Henry’s letter certainly said that.

At the end of the letter announcing Lucia’s engagement, there was a note that said that while Herwin had his feelings, he hadn’t done anything to stop her.

‘If he doesn’t make a move now, Herwin will regret it, so please let him do as he pleases for a while.’

This is what Arista said to the people who were running around trying to find Herwin just before she left.

They don’t know what she was talking about, but Lucia was definitely at the center of it.

Something very important must have happened between Lucia and Herwin.

‘It must have been something big enough to drive my son away.’

If not, she would see Julian when she get to the capital.

She was going to ask her why Lucia was getting engaged, but perhaps they should have a more serious discussion.

Scarlett moved slowly again, lifting her shimmering hazel eyes.

* * *

Growl, growl.

The ferocious howl of a dog came from somewhere. Crouched in the darkness, Herwin and Lucia turned their heads in the direction of the sound.

The only place where the light shone was Lucia and Herwin from childhood.

“That’s…….”

“When we encountered the wild dogs…….”

As young Lucia was being threatened by the dogs, Herwin miraculously appeared and saved her.

‘Lucia, are you okay?’

‘Ugh, huh… Herwin.’

Tears rolled down her chubby cheeks. Soon little Lucia was hugging Herwin.

‘I, I was scared……!’

‘That’s why I told you not to go too deep, there are beasts here that are more dangerous than wild dogs.’

‘Hmph, hmph…I was wrong, I was wrong….…’

Watching the vivid reenactment of the day’s events like a play, Herwin and Lucia had different thoughts.

“That was the moment I first fell in love with Herwin.”

“I was so scared that something was wrong with Lucia.”

Pods–

The scene of the small children cuddling quickly fades to black.

Pod.

This time the light came from a different source, and a different scene unfolded.

It was in a ducal castle, after a confrontation with a wild dog.

‘My God! Herwin, what happened!’

‘What’s wrong with your clothes, both of you?’

With the benefit of hindsight, it can be seen that the adults were quite perplexed by the sight of the two mangled children.

Young Herwin was proudly telling everyone that he had done a great job chasing the dog away.

The news of the two children’s mess spread quickly, and more and more people gathered in the hall.

Herwin realized that there were people in the crowd that he had hated so much as a child.

“Right, that’s when Lucia…….”

“……I confessed to him.”

Lucia’s trembling hands clasped together as she watched the same scene with Herwin.

Young Lucia gazed longingly at Herwin with love in her eyes.

She knew that soon she would confess in front of everyone, just as she had.

This was the beginning of unrequited, unfulfilled love.

Did the little girl realize that she would confess 99 times over 13 years?

Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at the wall of pure words that contained only Herwin.

She couldn’t bear to think of him traveling the same path and suffering the same pain.

Before the girl’s mouth could open, Lucia reached for her hand.

Lucia’s figure grew smaller and smaller until it merged with the younger Lucia in the crowd.

The younger Lucia opened her mouth, then froze. She clamped her mouth shut as if she would never open it again.

‘I’m glad to see you’re not too badly injured, but why don’t we go upstairs and get you cleaned up?’

Julian soothed Lucia and led her toward the stairs. Lucia obediently took her hand and turned her gaze away from Herwin.

Meanwhile, Herwin, who had been watching the events of his childhood, was puzzled by the way the scene had unfolded.

Surely Lucia should have confessed by now. But Lucia had left without saying a word.

When he was younger, he used to wish she hadn’t confessed to him but now that she had, it felt strange.

No, he started to feel uneasy. He felt like if he stayed like this, she would never like him again.

He didn’t want to see Lucia moving away from him anymore.

Herwin stretched out his hand, and this time his image merged with the younger Herwin’s.

‘First, let’s get him checked out by a doctor, just in case he’s hurt.’

He could see Scarlett’s concern for his younger self, and he could see Lucia slipping away behind him.

‘Lucia!’

Herwin’s gruff voice reached Lucia as she climbed the stairs.

Lucia’s round eyes got bigger.

Something stirred within him, and his jaw quivered. Fighting back the rising emotions, Herwin raised his voice.

‘I like you!’

It was the opposite of what had happened in the past.

Was that why? The scenery around him stopped moving as if he and Lucia were the only ones left in the world.

‘Herwin……?’

The voice echoed like a squeak, filled with confusion.

It sounded panicked as if something had happened that shouldn’t have.

‘I can’t be without you, I’ll try to change your mind, just wait for me!’

With those desperate words, Herwin’s surroundings slowly darkened.

Little by little, the figures of the two young kids grew and changed into their adult selves, now 21 years old.

As they watched each other wordlessly, their consciousness gradually rose to the surface.

Lucia and Herwin opened their eyes in their respective houses and rooms.