Living a Scheming Marriage with a Mad Villain - Chapter 67

“It’s quite hot during the day now”

Because of the reaction that this time there was absolutely no intention to back down, I finally gave up on leaving.

“Okay. For now… let’s try talking.”

I decided to gently bring up the attic and see how he would react before deciding whether to continue the conversation.

“Actually… I have something important to tell Reus.”

But the moment Reus heard my words, he suddenly stopped moving very awkwardly. I wondered if he already guessed what I was going to say just from my tone.

“No matter how much I think about it, this isn’t something to talk about in the bedroom, so I said I want to go outside. It’s not that I’m ignoring your worries, Reus…”

But it wasn’t that it seemed there was another reason. Even though I explained enough, Reus stayed frozen in the same position as before.

“Reus, did you hear what I said?”

“Reus?”

Even when I called his name, he didn’t move at all. I was about to get up, a little worried.

Reus suddenly asked in a somewhat blank voice:

“Are you planning to leave?”

His unexpected question left me confused.

“Huh? Leave…? What do you mean?”

Could he really be asking if I’m leaving now?

Though it’s not written in the contract, the agreement was implicitly for one year. I hadn’t even been here six months yet, so it should be time to leave only after I’ve spent more time here.

Reus surely knew this, so the fact that he mentioned Veliata as if he was waiting for it…

“Could it be that he secretly hoped I’d leave soon?”

I felt a bit discouraged. Still, maybe I misunderstood Reus’s intent, so I asked again carefully.

“Do you mean leaving for Veliata?”

Honestly, I asked hoping he would say no. But Reus was silent. I immediately knew the long silence meant yes.

“I didn’t mean to talk about that…”

My voice trembled a little, probably because I was flustered. But I didn’t want to show I wanted to stay here. Reus was the kind of person who would endure discomfort out of consideration for me.

“If you want… we can seriously talk about that too. The one year we talked about was just an estimate. And if you want, I think it’s right for me to leave the Duke’s castle even earlier…”

Then suddenly, Reus urgently interrupted me.

“Loelle, I made a mistake.”

“A mistake…?”

“I thought you wanted to talk about that.”

“What I wanted to say… had nothing to do with Veliata.”

An awkward silence followed.

I was embarrassed, but Reus also looked quite confused. Still, that didn’t guarantee his quick answer was sincere.

So, feeling uneasy, I asked:

“So, Reus… is it okay if we don’t talk about this?”

“As I’ve said before, I don’t intend to demand anything from you. Including leaving the Duke’s castle.”

Then why bring up leaving all of a sudden? It felt a bit suspicious, but since he clearly said no, I decided to let it go for today.

“Then what did you want to say that made you prepare a separate meeting?”

“Well…”

Was it really okay to say? I hesitated, and Reus looked at me as if to ask why I was hesitating so much.

“Um… I was worried this might make you uncomfortable.”

“Why? Did you get hurt again while I wasn’t looking?”

“No?”

I didn’t understand why injury came up again. Even if I was hurt, I planned never to let Reus find out, and would tell Derwin instead.

That man nagged way too much…

“Then are you planning to fast?”

“Huh? No… of course not.”

“Then it’s fine, you can say anything.”

The flow of the conversation was a little awkward, but since it got this far, I couldn’t hesitate any longer. I took a small breath and carefully started.

“It’s about the library…”

“Yes, the library.”

“Can I keep talking?”

I thought he might show discomfort or pause when I brought up the library, but Reus only looked very curious.

“Why wouldn’t you be allowed?”

“I thought you would be uncomfortable talking about the library.”

Feeling embarrassed, I answered, and Reus stared quietly at me without reaction. When I looked at him confused, suddenly he laughed a little louder than usual.

Lately, he laughed quietly often, so I was used to it. But that open, hearty laugh was new and surprising.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Because it’s so like you.”

“What is…?”

“You want to talk about your parents, don’t you?”

“Well, um… kind of.”

I caused trouble by touching the family photo frame, so it wasn’t entirely wrong.

But he spoke more openly than I expected, which made me more embarrassed.

“Honestly, I can’t say talking about my parents is easy. But I don’t avoid mentioning them either. You might not know, but sometimes I talk about my parents with my aunt.”

Since I never even went near the library, I thought it was a forbidden topic, so this was unexpected.

Reus gave me a look as if to say, “Go ahead and say what you want.”

‘Where should I start?’

First, I should see if he even knew this ring wasn’t an ordinary one.

I took the ring off my fourth finger and placed it on the table. I felt Reus stiffen slightly, but I went ahead.

“Do you know anything about this ring?”

“Isn’t that the ring I gave you at the wedding?”

“Besides that?”

“Well, I think I saw my mother wearing it a few times when I was young… but it’s not something I remember well.”

He clearly didn’t know any secret about the ring. So it’s very likely he doesn’t know about the hidden space behind the photo frame either.

“Actually, I sometimes used the attic without permission…”

Reus’s face, calm until now, suddenly stiffened when I mentioned the attic. When I looked at him worriedly, he slowly nodded, as if to say “don’t worry, go on.”

“So I accidentally found a place where I could use this ring in the attic.”

“What do you mean ‘use the ring’?”

“Just what I said. I found a strange gap in the frame on the wall, and when I touched it, I realized there was a groove perfectly fitting this ring under the wooden frame. When I put the ring in, the frame opened like a door…”

“Wait, your forehead… no, hold on. What do you mean the frame opened like a door?”

Reus spoke strangely and confused.

Before I could ask why the frame suddenly popped open, it seemed he wanted to say something about my injury, so I quickly changed the subject.

“I told you to be careful… what if you touched something you don’t understand…”

“I-I was scared! I didn’t look closely, but it seemed like there was a passage behind the frame…!”

Reus, still pale, was very troubled because Loelle kept trying to go outside.

He wanted to do anything the woman wanted, but this time, he really couldn’t give in.

When he refused firmly, Loelle showed a rare sulky expression, her cheeks puffing up like a baby bunny angry at losing a carrot.

At that sight, Reus almost blurted out to just do whatever she wanted.

Just as he pulled himself together, Loelle started unexpectedly:

“Actually… I have something important to tell you, Reus. No matter how much I think about it, this isn’t something to talk about in the bedroom, so I said I want to go outside. It’s not that I’m ignoring your worries…”

Judging by how carefully she looked around and struggled to continue, it was clear…

This woman wanted to leave. It was understandable.

Her ex-fiancé and those who couldn’t even be called family kept trying to control her. Even the Duke’s family protecting her no longer felt safe since Countess Ibel came to the castle.

Besides, she was nothing more than a woman bound by contract, so she had no influence to stop them.

“Are you planning to leave?”

He hadn’t meant to ask so directly, but the question slipped out like an uncontrollable cough.

Before hearing the answer, his heart sank in fear.

“Huh? Leave…? What do you mean?”

Loelle looked very confused and tilted her head. Then he realized he completely misunderstood.

“I-I didn’t mean to say that… If you want… we can seriously talk about it too. The one year we mentioned was just an estimate. And if you want, I think it’s right for me to leave the Duke’s castle even earlier…”

Cunningly, he felt great relief seeing her embarrassed.

He almost called himself a fool inside but what could he do? That’s just how he was.

But since she wasn’t leaving immediately, why hesitate like that?

Reus, who usually could predict anything, couldn’t figure out the reason this time.

But when she said this:

“I thought you would be uncomfortable talking about the library.”

Knowing she puts others before her own safety, he couldn’t help but laugh at how stubborn she was for his sake.

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