CHAPTER 026
"You were talking about the Marquis's biggest concern. I was thinking about how I could help."
At that, Lewis let out a wry laugh.
"How thoughtful of you. I never asked for help."
"Because we're friends."
I emphasized the word "friend." Defining our relationship as "friends" has always been the same, both in the past and now.
But there was one small change.
Now, it wasn't just an empty phrase.
Having met several times already, I felt much closer to him than before.
It was sometimes scary, but compared to before, it was still progress.
"So if you have any worries, feel free to share them. I'll listen intently."
Trap. I might just listen and not be able to solve anything!
Lewis chuckled at my words.
"Do you really consider me your friend?"
"Of course! I never lie."
It started as a lie to survive.
Lewis gave a lazy smile at my words. He propped his chin and stared at me intently.
"If you're friends with me, it might be a hassle. Won't you regret it later?"
What kind of friends does he have that he talks about regret?
Anyway, it was a positive statement. It seemed there was room for him to acknowledge me as a friend.
"If you don't believe me, how about this?"
Since we were on the subject, I decided to solidify the opportunity.
First, I prepared paper and a quill! Writing on the paper, I read aloud.
"Lewis Bloomberg and Selina Elsner hereby certify that they are friends."
"What is this?"
"I'm making it official that I'm your friend. This is a sort of certificate!"
I didn't know why such a thing was necessary for friendship, but since the person was Lewis, I mimicked an official document and stamped my name next to it.
Then Lewis spoke.
"I have stamps in my office."
"Then, if you sign-"
Before I could finish, Lewis moved. He took off the sword-shaped boutonniere from his jacket-
"Whoa?!"
And pricked his finger with the pin.
A drop of blood formed on his thumb pricked by the sharp pin.
It all happened in an instant.
Without paying attention to my astonished expression, Lewis pressed his thumb onto the paper.
"My stamp is this. Satisfied?"
Wow...
"You didn't have to go as far as drawing blood..."
"We're friends now."
Lewis smiled broadly, not minding the blood still oozing from his thumb.
It was certainly a dazzling sight, seeing such a handsome man smile. If I'd seen it while walking down the street, I would have naturally turned my head.
But for some reason, I was a little worried.
No, very worried.
...Did I do something unnecessary?
"Why did you prick your finger unnecessarily..."
I said, looking bewildered.
Then I grabbed a tissue from the table and quickly wrapped it around Lewis's finger.
"Your body is precious, Marquis. Please take care of yourself."
I meant it sincerely, but he just laughed.
What was so funny!
* * *
It was a refreshing afternoon. The Duke of Croft called for me.
"Selina, do you have a moment?"
"Oh, yes. Of course!"
Tea time with the Duke!
He occasionally called me for conversations like this, so it was nothing new.
We sat face to face in the drawing room, chatting.
"I heard Bella thrashed the knights. I wonder if she's showing off her strength or practicing her swordsmanship..."
"Ha ha... Bella is always so spirited!"
As expected, the Duke's conversation was about the usual topics.
I chatted comfortably, enjoying the tea and cookies the Duke had prepared.
After a while, the topic changed.
"By the way, it seems like you've gotten quite close to Lewis?"
"Does it look that way to you too, Duke?"
I took the opportunity to talk about Lewis.
"I wrote a certificate promising friendship with the Marquis."
"Really? Did Lewis sign it?"
The Duke reacted more strongly than I expected, eyes wide open.
"Yes. He said he'd truly be friends with me. Before, he said we were only friends in words."
The Duke seemed intrigued as he spoke.
"Lewis mentioned it too. He said you took care of him while Bella was asleep."
Given that Lewis thought of the Duke as a mother figure, it made sense for him to share such things.
Or, with his personality, he might have cynically complained about Bella to the Duke?
But the Duke stopped talking after that.
Was there more to the story?
I was puzzled, but the Duke's expression was serious, so I also fell silent.
As I refilled my tea, I watched the Duke.
After a while, the Duke seemed to have gathered his thoughts and spoke again.
"That's unusual."
"Pardon?"
"Lewis isn't the type to befriend others."
What kind of person is he, then...?
Seeing my puzzled expression, the Duke elaborated.
"He doesn't make friends or get close to anyone."
"Isn't that a good thing?"
Even though it was a strange relationship with evidence left behind, wasn't it still good?
When I asked innocently, the Duke looked at me with concern. She spoke in an unsettling tone.
"You might not know, but Croft family members have a strong sense of possession."
"Possession?"
"Look at how Bella treats you. She cherishes you immensely."
"That's true..."
"Especially Lewis. He's extraordinarily persistent."
I nodded at that.
In the original story, I found it surprising how persistent Lewis was, to the point where he gave up on Charlotte.
The Duke continued.
"He might seem indifferent to everything, but once he takes an interest, he's relentless. He never lets go once he bites."
I knew he had a crazy dog-like side, but... Is that why you're worried about me?
I waited silently for the Duke to continue.
"It seems Lewis is interested in you."
"Interested? Ah, ouch!"
The tea I was holding spilled.
Of all times, the tea overflowed toward my fingers, making me cry out in pain.
The Duke quickly took a tissue and wiped the spilled tea.
"Be careful. Are you okay?"
"Yes. Thank you."
I put down the teacup I was holding, and the Duke continued speaking.
"Fortunately, Lewis only sees you as a friend. It's just friendly interest."
Phew, right? I was surprised to hear "interest."
But my relief was short-lived.
"Unfortunately, Lewis has never had a friend before."
"Is that unfortunate...?"
"It means you're the first person inside Lewis's inner circle other than family."
"...!"
The Duke looked at me with pity, as if asking why I made such a choice.
It was like looking at a mouse caught in a trap.
"One cannot deny the Croft blood."
The Duke's serious expression suddenly softened, as if recalling another thought.
"I used to be like that too. I didn't want to lose someone I liked, so I set traps and caught them all at once."
"Pardon?"
"I was quite an enthusiastic girl back then. I caught the father of my children with that passion."
Duke, that's a scary story to gloss over with a laugh!
Awkwardly smiling, I watched as the Duke returned to the main topic.
The Duke firmly advised me.
"Lewis is extremely persistent when it comes to things he cares about. His concept of friendship might be different from yours."
And the Duke's final words were ominous.
"Be prepared, Selina."
"Duke..."
Aren't you supposed to reassure me at times like this!
* * *
Although the Duke's advice or rather warning was troubling, I decided not to pay it much mind.
"Just because we stamped a paper, nothing has really changed, right?"
The number of times Lewis sought me out didn't change much before and after the certificate.
Today was the day Lewis visited the Duke's mansion.
Though it was the same drawing room where I had tea with the Duke, being alone with Lewis made the atmosphere a bit different.
It felt both languid and tense.
Sitting across from me, Lewis asked in a nonchalant tone.
"What did you do yesterday?"
"Oh, I went out with Bella and Lady Yanils."
We even ran into Lady Hos and had fun together.
I babbled about yesterday, but Lewis remained indifferent.
"I'm not curious about the others."
"Oh! So you're curious about me?"
I playfully held onto his words.
I expected Lewis to get serious and say, "That's not what I meant."
I was so pleased with my progress that I even thought of teasing Lewis, but he chuckled and gave an unexpected answer.
"Because we're friends?"
"...Huh?"
"It's natural to be curious when you don't know something."
Since when was the Marquis curious about me... I quickly remembered the Duke's words.
"You've entered Lewis's inner circle, where only family was allowed."
"Lewis's concept of friendship is different from yours."
"Be prepared, Selina."
But I quickly dismissed those thoughts.
I recalled how Lewis behaved towards Charlotte when he took an interest in her in the original story.
A supportive secondary male lead who appeared whenever Charlotte was in danger.
Though he was cold to others, he showed blatant favoritism towards Charlotte!
In the original story, Lewis was like that.
The important thing was that he was 'kind' in his own way. However-
"Aren't you curious about me?"
Look at that smirk and tone.
The current Lewis was far from kind.
Was his interest in Charlotte love, and I was just a friend?
Either way, I wasn't particularly curious about Lewis. I had already read about his personality and preferences in the original story.
When I didn't answer immediately, Lewis furrowed his brow.
"Who was it that wanted to be friends?"
"Oh, Marquis! I was just choosing because I had so many questions!"
I answered a bit late, but I had answered, so he
would let it slide with an 'I thought so', right?
But Lewis once again defied my expectations.
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