Chapter 24: Chapter 24

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Chapter 24

The carriage drove for a while and arrived at Count Todd’s mansion. Since Baharf had sent them a letter in advance, everyone was welcoming him today, unlike the previous visit that prevented him from entering the mansion.

Zagnac got off the carriage and entered the front door with light steps.

Upon entering, the first thing he saw was Count Todd, Daniel.

“You have arrived, Duke Ferial?”

“I remember not having a meeting about the business back then. This business is very important, so I think it would be better to do it properly.”

He uttered in an excited voice and looked away.

Azela, who would normally be next to Daniel, was nowhere to be seen. No matter how much he looked back, there was no trace of her anywhere. Sensing Zagnac’s gaze scanning the inside of the mansion, he asked in a low voice.

“Are you looking for Azela?”

In fact, maybe humans had abilities that he didn’t know about? How do they get to know and guess the words that he didn’t even say out of his mouth?

Zagnac nodded his head, controlling his surprised expression.

“Because I need to talk to Countess Todd about business.”

“Then, you must have come in vain today.”

“…In vain?”

Tilting his head to one side at Daniel’s words, he didn’t know what it meant.

“The wind last night was cold, so Azela has a very high fever now. The doctor said that she should not see anyone and that she should eat well and rest well for a few days without stress.”

“Countess Todd?”

Zagnac frowned and glanced up the stairs where her bedroom would be.

His eyes then met Sylvia, who was hiding behind the pillars of the stairs on the third floor and staring at this place with a cold gaze. She thought he couldn’t see her, but there was no way Zagnac, who had better vision than a human, couldn’t see her.

Sylvia’s sneering expression, the bandages on her palms, and the shape of her mouth as she spoke her words to the servant behind her back were very visible.

‘He doesn’t know that Azela is dying, and the Duke is smiling like that. Men are so stupid.’

Sylvia was clearly saying that to her servant.

…She is dying? What does that mean?

“Duke Ferial?”

As Daniel called him, Zagnac took his eyes off Sylvia and lowered his head. Then, he spoke as he struggled to smile with a hard expression.

“So, I would appreciate it if you could go back for today. I’ll tell Azela to visit the Duke as soon as she gets better.”

“…To eat well and rest well without stress.”

The first thing he wondered was whether it would be possible in this mansion. Daniel didn’t respond to Zagnac’s muttering to himself. His visibly defensive attitude was already suspicious at first glance.

‘He’s so bad at acting.’

Zagnac nodded his head with a ‘fun’ smile on his lips. As Duke Ferial, that was all he could care about.

“Let’s call it a day today. Tell the Countess to get well. I’ll make sure to come back when she’s all better.”

“Thank you.”

When he was driven out by Daniel’s cold gaze, he left Count Todd’s House.

Zagnac, who got into the carriage without any result, tapped his finger in a steady rhythm. During the day, there were too many things to do as Duke Ferial. As a result, he couldn’t get around on his own. It was unavoidable to live as a human being.

However, the night was different.

Humans mostly sleep at night. Most of them sleep at different times, though in the end, it was just the difference between going to bed early or going to bed late. Everyone slept. So, at that time, Duke Ferial also fell asleep, and it was the time when he was able to move freely.

Zagnac lifted his head and glanced out the window of the carriage to the sky. The sun was setting. He smiled and seemed excited.

Whether she was really sick or not, he would know when he went to meet her.

For Azela, darkness was like light.

She carefully stood up from where she was lying while Zagnac pressed her shoulder as she was about to stand up and asked her to lie down more.

However, Azela shook her head. Her arms were trembling, and traces of him were still dripping from underneath. She couldn’t just lie there.

Seeing her hardship, Zagnac hurriedly picked up a wet towel and wiped it gently under her. The twitching opening seemed red and swollen. Feeling it roughly cleaned, Azela hurriedly pulled her skirt down and cleaned her messy dress and hair.

“How did you get here?”

“Through the window again today.”

Azela’s question brought his low echo near her ear.

Even though she didn’t ask that, he gave an absurd answer. Nonetheless, strangely, she liked the answer, and a smile appeared on her lips.

Zagnac smelled of the night. It was the smell of the wind that could be smelled at night or the dawn air. It was so good it was hard to put into words. He came to Azela’s side and helped organize her messy hair.

A smile was drawn on the corner of her lips in his careful hand. She buried her head on his shoulder, and he said in a low voice.

“Why are you locked up?”

Azela couldn’t answer that question because she didn’t even know why she was locked up here. No matter how much she thought about why she had to suffer such humiliation by being locked up in this place, she couldn’t come up with an answer.

Azela shook her head in response.

“How about a meal?”

As if he had read her heart, Zagnac moved on to the next question.

Azela shook her head again.

“Water?”

This time, when she nodded her head, Zagnac’s low sigh was heard. Suddenly, she thought that she was lucky that he was a devil and not a human. If he hadn’t been a devil, he wouldn’t have come to find her like this.

Azela, who had been burying her head in Zagnac’s shoulder for a long time, calmed her emotions, and only after her body, which had been trembling, calmed down as well. She was able to walk away from him.

As she lifted her head off his shoulder, Zagnac lifted his body up slowly and effortlessly.

“I’ve been working hard to inspire life, though a tough guy gets in the way.”

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay.”

Seeing her smile saying it was okay, Zagnac tilted his head and corrected it. His face was wrinkled in a strange way.

“It can’t be okay, can it? In these times, don’t say, ‘it’s okay.’ I think humans sometimes say stupid things that are wrong.”

“…That’s right, Zagnac. You’re right. ‘It’s not okay,’ is not the right word. I am not very okay.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

When Azela corrected it, he handed her the bottle of water that he had brought. Drinking the cool water, her dazed spirit seemed to return.

“Are you going to be here for a few days?”

“Two days left.”

Azela, counting the date, spread her two fingers out. Zagnac clenched his chin and frowned again.

“Why?”

“…What?”

“Why do you say you have two days left when you say you don’t know why you’re locked up here?”

“….!”

“You shouldn’t be locked up here for a single day unless you have a reason to be locked up.”

Zagnac curled his eyes nicely.

It was as if he was testing Azela. However, in the end, everything he said was right. Subconsciously, she was thinking of staying here for five days. If she survived for five days, Daniel would eventually release her.

…If there was no reason to be locked up here, she didn’t have to spend a single day.

Zagnac, seeing Azela’s confused expression, tapped his finger in a steady rhythm. And then, as though he had a funny idea, he smirked and uttered.

“I have a good idea.”

“What?”

“There are several options. The choice is yours.”

“What…?”

Seeing her bewildered expression, Zagnac extended his index finger and continued his words.

“The first is to say that I want to meet you as Duke Ferial. If I say that I come to visit the sick you, even the Count will help me meet you. I’ll unlock the lock and open the bedroom door. At that point, the confinement is over!”

“What?”

“Second is…”

With her long legs, he then took his steps towards the door. He lightly tapped on the doorknob with his fingernail. It was the act like the day he first met Azela and took away the pain of the poison.

At that moment, the sound of an iron lock falling to the ground with a clatter outside the bedroom resounded loudly.

“….!”

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