CHAPTER 063
"Ugh, this is tough········."
Why did I try so hard for this?
Exhausted, I sat down on a chair Lewis had prepared for me on the sand.
Lewis, who looked drained from all the water he got hit with, glanced at me and chuckled.
"You're soaked."
No way.
He must not realize what he looks like right now.
Compared to him, I was barely wet. Lewis barely counterattacked during our water fight.
I snickered.
"You look worse, Marquis. You look like a drowned rat."
"Me?"
Lewis leaned over and grabbed the armrests of my chair, suddenly bringing us very close.
Oh my god.
My eyes widened. Why is he so close?
He stayed in that position and asked.
"Do I really look like a drowned rat?"
"It's more like a water-soaked rat·······."
"Same thing."
How is that the same? There's a huge difference.
I looked at Lewis with a gaze full of words. In truth, there was no way he looked like a wet rat.
A handsome guy still looks handsome even when wet.
This is dangerous.
Because of our close proximity, I realized the state he was in.
A wet, handsome guy!
Thanks to his clinging shirt, his upper body contours were clearly visible.
His lean, toned muscles showed even though he mainly did research in the magic tower. My impression from the hunting competition wasn’t an illusion.
"Ahem······."
I didn’t want to know this.
Heat rushed to my face, and I stammered.
"Looking again, no, you don’t look like a rat·······. I take it back."
Please, step away!
I slowly lowered my head, my face reddening.
Lewis seemed to dislike being called a rat, but he finally stepped back after I retracted my statement.
"My clothes are all wet and uncomfortable. I should dry them with magic."
"Yes, please do."
"But why is your face red?"
·········.
Ah, Lewis noticed again.
Forget it. I'll pretend I don’t know. I have my own temporary solution for this!
"Achoo!"
"What’s this? A cold?"
As planned, Lewis’s attention shifted.
"Are you very cold?"
"I don’t know······· I suddenly sneezed- Achoo!"
"I got all the water, though."
Lewis muttered, bewildered, and hurriedly took care of me.
I only sneezed until we reached my room.
Tomorrow, I’d be a person who miraculously recovered from a cold. I just need to get through this moment!
"Recovered from a cold in one day?"
The next day, Lewis’s suspicious gaze was all over me.
* * *
"Was it really a cold?"
Lewis asked in the carriage heading to the capital. He seemed to feel tricked.
"Yes. I wouldn’t fake an illness."
But it seemed like I did.
Yesterday, he didn’t suspect it was fake. My sudden sneezes made him think my red face was due to a cold.
But thinking back now, my sneezes were awkward.
I completely fooled him.
Lewis folded his arms and stared at Selina.
Selina must have sensed his doubt.
"Well, it’s good to recover quickly."
It was definitely a lie.
Her awkward manner confirmed it. Selina wasn’t good at deceiving people.
Well, I’ll pretend to be fooled.
It’s a relief it wasn’t a real cold.
"It’s really fortunate you’re all better."
Selina flinched at Lewis’s slow, deliberate words.
Upon arriving in the capital, Lewis headed to the duke’s mansion with Selina first.
At the mansion, Bella greeted Selina enthusiastically.
"Selina!"
"Bella!"
Selina started pulling out the souvenirs she had brought. She had bought them for the people at the duke’s household.
"Next time, let's go together. It was so nice there!"
"Sure, I wanted to go too."
Bella replied, glancing at Lewis.
What?
Lewis wore a brazenly shameless expression when Selina wasn’t looking.
It was a good decision to keep Bella away.
'Otherwise, I wouldn’t have had time alone with Selina.'
After a brief conversation with the duke, Lewis gestured to Michael.
They headed to Michael’s room.
"Why, Lewis?"
Lewis had a serious matter to discuss.
"Do you know what this is?"
Lewis pulled out the magic stone he received from Selina.
"What’s that?"
Michael didn’t recognize it.
It only affected Lewis, so it made sense Michael didn’t find it strange.
"It’s something that’s been bothering me."
Lewis explained the situation to Michael, who was unaware.
He told him how he first encountered it on the streets and recently went on a trip because of it.
"Something like that exists?"
Michael was shocked.
"You kept this secret all this time?"
"Be grateful I’m telling you now."
Acting sulky wouldn’t work on Lewis.
Not that Michael was serious about it.
"So you’re going to find who’s behind this?"
"Yes. Ignoring it led to more attacks."
Lewis wasn’t one to let provocations slide.
He intended to find the one responsible and make them pay.
Who could it be? Ignoring his chaotic thoughts, Lewis stared at the magic stone.
* * *
Not long after arriving in the capital, a rumor spread.
Lewis and I had caught a wanted criminal.
We ended up taking credit for a deed that Philip achieved in the original story.
The only difference was that Alain had a magic stone that could harm Lewis.
It was common knowledge among the empire’s nobility that Lewis occasionally faced threats.
So, no one made a big deal out of it.
The reaction was, 'The Marquis was attacked again, by some audacious fool?' That was about it.
As a result, the attention shifted from Lewis to me.
'Lady Elsner, please tell us the story.'
'I heard the Marquis credited you with the catch?'
'Did you get the reward money?'
Of course, I did.
Thanks to Lewis saying I helped, I received the entire reward from the empire.
'You should split it in half!'
'Money is overflowing. Take it all.'
Ah, such unexpected income·······. What a gain.
But it became tedious recounting the story wherever I went.
Saying the same thing over and over·······
So today, I planned a visit to the Imperial Library with Charlotte.
Instead of dealing with the attention, I’d read books there.
"It’s something ordinary ladies wouldn’t experience, right? I understand."
Charlotte’s eyes sparkled every time she talked about it.
"I’d like to experience it too. It must be thrilling!"
It should have been Charlotte’s adventure in the original story.
I was thinking that when we entered the library.
"Lady Yaniels."
Philip’s voice called from behind.
Turning around, I saw Philip smiling.
"Lady Elsner is with you today?"
He must have come to see Charlotte.
Charlotte still visited the library occasionally when I didn’t.
She would inevitably meet Philip there.
After all, Philip gave her access to see her often.
"I heard you caught a wanted criminal?"
Philip said to me. So the news reached the palace too········.
Philip followed us into the library.
Again, we were the only ones there. So we sat at a table and chatted comfortably.
"How did you help catch him?"
"Hmm, I noticed something odd about his face."
I gave a plausible explanation to Philip’s curious question.
I couldn’t say I caught him based on what I read in the original story, so I tweaked it a bit.
"I once read a book about a legendary con artist. It mentioned peculiar disguise techniques."
"He wore glasses too, Your Highness. Lady Elsner’s keen observation skills shone."
Charlotte chimed in.
Philip looked at me, impressed by our story.
"That’s remarkable, Lady Elsner."
It felt strange being admired by these two. I just used what I knew from the original story.
After a while, Charlotte went to look for a book.
"Lady Elsner, may I ask you something?"
Philip spoke to me then.
"To me?"
Must be about Charlotte.
Philip’s voice grew softer, so I lowered mine too.
My guess was right. Philip hesitated, looking troubled, before speaking.
"Recently, I’ve felt a twinge in my heart."
"Your heart?"
A sickness? I was alarmed, but Philip reassured me.
"It’s not constant. There’s a pattern."
"What pattern?"
"I feel it when I think of Lady Yaniels."
"Lady Yaniels?"
"Yes. It hasn’t been long."
Philip explained it started after a few meetings with Charlotte.
"I’ve lost my appetite and sometimes get headaches. Do you know why?"
"Hmm······· I think I do."
Classic lovesickness symptoms!
The feelings for the other person have grown so intense that it’s affecting him physically.
"I think your feelings for her are too strong. And······ it’s one-sided."
Sorry, but it’s because it’s one-sided!
Philip smiled slightly at my words.
It seemed like a knowing smile as if he had just realized something.
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