CHAPTER 034
"Selina, you know that Lewis didn't live with us from the beginning, right?"
"Yes."
Lewis spent his childhood at the Duke of Croft's mansion. He's independent now.
"When Lewis first came to our estate, it was nine years ago, when he was 12. Originally, we were relatives without much interaction. Then one day, Mother brought Lewis."
"So, you didn't have much interaction before…"
He remembered Bella's 11th birthday party too. That was only a year after Lewis joined the estate.
"It was awkward at first. Lewis was wary of us, being alone in a strange mansion without his parents."
This was part of Lewis's story that was omitted from the original work.
I perked up my ears and focused on his words.
"You know, Lewis tends to keep his distance from everyone at first. It was unusual that he didn't do that with you, Selina."
True. If I hadn't helped him with the noise, he probably wouldn't have looked my way.
Anyway, it was surprising.
To think that even the twins, who are like his real family, had such a period!
Michael continued his story about the past.
"Then, Lewis opened up. But do you know what he said to us after accepting us as a family?"
"I wonder…"
Did he say, "Let's be a family forever?" No, that's too obvious.
My guess was way off.
"He said if we ever changed our minds, he wouldn't let it go."
"At 12 years old?"
What kind of 12-year-old says that? Lewis was extraordinary from the start.
"Did Bella just listen to that?"
"No, they fought a lot. They were like that since they were kids."
"They must have fought intensely…"
"But look now. Is Lewis that obsessive with us?"
"Hmm…"
I don't think so.
Lewis became independent as soon as he reached adulthood, even before he received the title of Bloomberg from the imperial family.
"From what I see, he's just close to us like a relative. It's not obsessive."
"Right? Lewis was like that because it was the first time."
Because it was the first time?
"That obsession will fade over time. There's nothing to worry about."
"Just because it was the first time?"
Hearing this, it did seem plausible.
No matter what made him so attached to the Croft family during his childhood, Lewis now is different from back then.
His attitude towards his family has become much more flexible. So, his attitude towards me as a friend will change someday too.
This was exactly what Michael wanted to tell me.
After giving me some time to process, Michael asked,
"Do you feel more at ease now?"
"Yes. Thank you, Michael."
"I'm glad I could help."
Michael smiled warmly.
Seeing his gentle smile made me feel much more at ease.
As expected of Michael. If only he didn't create weird dishes sometimes, he'd be perfect!
But just how messy is Michael's room?
The next day, I asked casually during a meal, and Bella answered.
"It's not because it's messy. He lets a monster loose in his room."
"A monster?"
"Michael's summoned creature. The fire Cerberus."
"He lets that big thing loose?"
One head alone is scary enough, and it has three?!
"When the servants go in, they panic and beg for their lives, so he cleans the room himself. Ordinary people can't handle it."
She said this very nonchalantly for someone talking about a monster roaming around.
Michael chuckled awkwardly at her words.
"I thought Selina would be really surprised. Haha…"
Surprised? I'd faint!
I realized anew.
Oh, Michael is still a Croft after all.
* * *
A few days later, Lewis came to see me.
As soon as he arrived, he took out the ring and got to the point.
"I sealed the magic in here."
"Sealed it? You did it yourself, Marquis?"
"The noise didn't get louder when you weren't there, but it still bothered me."
So, he sealed it. I didn't know that was possible!
Well, if this world has the power to seal even the genius Lewis's magic with the heroine's holy power, it makes sense.
If the Tower Master couldn't seal the magic in this little ring, that would be strange.
"If your magic is at a level of 10, was this ring at about 3?"
"No. It was just insignificant magic. Around 1."
"Such a trivial ring."
So, he sealed it because it was annoying.
"But if you seal it, what about the investigation?"
Shouldn't we find out who cast such a spell to bother Lewis?
Contrary to my worries, Lewis didn't seem to think it was a big issue.
"I told you. I have many enemies. Even if we get rid of this, another one will try to curse me."
"And you're just going to leave it like that?"
You're not that lenient, are you? I looked at him with such a gaze, and Lewis smirked.
"There's no one in this empire with more magic power than me. Flies buzzing around are just that—flies."
Not a threat, just an annoyance.
Lewis compared the reason he wouldn't be fazed to flies.
If he says so, there's nothing I can do.
"Still, be careful. You never know when something like this might happen again."
I urged, out of concern, and Lewis nodded lightly, acknowledging it.
But today, he seemed the same as usual. Last time, I felt something dangerous about him.
Michael's advice seemed unnecessary since Lewis was his usual self.
When I glanced at him, Lewis asked,
"Why?"
"Oh, nothing. Just looking."
"That didn't seem like just looking. What were you thinking?"
He's always quick to notice things like this.
I put on a neutral expression before Lewis got more persistent.
* * *
"It seemed like you were thinking something else."
"No, I wasn't thinking about you at all, Marquis!"
Selina straightened her back. It was as if the word "confident" was written above her head.
Which made it even more unbelievable.
Lewis chuckled at her.
Should I let it slide if she doesn't want to talk about it?
"Alright."
When he agreed, meaning he'd drop the subject, Selina seemed to relax a bit.
Her emotional shifts were so easy to read.
For some time now, Lewis had been seeing her alone more often.
Due to his picky nature, he didn't socialize much with others.
Especially at the magic tower, everyone was careful not to get on his bad side, speaking and acting cautiously.
At first, Selina seemed like one of those people, given how she initially looked at him like she'd made a wrong move.
Selina, with her easy-to-read emotions, was still a mystery to Lewis in one aspect.
He couldn't quite figure out exactly what she was thinking.
"You once said you were curious about what goes on in my head, right?"
"Uh… yes, I did. To be honest, I'm still curious."
"I'm curious too."
"About my head?"
"No, your head. I want to see what's in there."
When he said he was genuinely curious, Selina's expression changed.
"Haha… how about setting that curiosity aside? You might never recover if you try."
She joked with a pale face.
Though she was cautious of others, her mouth was incredibly free. She had a surprising amount of courage.
That was the difference between how nobles treated Lewis and how Selina did.
Lewis had never met anyone like her in his life.
Just looking at the incident at the last ball when she argued with some guy proved it.
'Lady Yanils started it. I couldn't just stand by.'
Selina praised Charlotte as truly righteous, but what Lewis saw was Selina standing up to a man.
'Why is she arguing with that guy?'
That was his first thought. But the emotion of jealousy soon faded.
Selina's hand was shaking slightly.
She's trembling?
Only then did he notice that she was not just conversing, but confronting him confidently.
Given her usual personality, it was understandable that her hand would tremble while doing something uncharacteristic.
'You were standing there?'
That's why Lewis intervened. To change the atmosphere and ease her tension.
'Why are you dealing with some random guy?'
And subtly showing his true feelings in the process.
But Lewis hadn't told Selina this. In truth, he had no intention of letting the ring incident go quietly.
Someone who deliberately tried to irritate him wouldn't get away with it.
The next day, in his office at the magic tower, Lewis took out the ring.
He had dispelled the magic but hadn't disposed of it yet.
'If I can't find out who it is, I'll have to set an example.'
Lewis planned to show the power difference so that no one would dare try such tricks again.
"Who the hell did this?"
He muttered, rolling the now ordinary-looking ring in his hand.
He was lost in thought for a moment when there was a knock on his office door.
"Tower Master, it's time for your meeting at the palace."
It was his not-so-close aide.
The time for the scheduled meeting with the imperial court mages had arrived.
"Got it."
Lewis put the ring back in the drawer and stood up.
Arriving at the palace, he unexpectedly ran into someone.
Walking towards him was Prince Philip, chatting and laughing with a man slightly behind him.
"Who's that next to him?"
"The Crown Prince's new aide from a while ago."
Lewis's aide quickly answered his whispered question.
Their demeanor was in stark contrast.
His aide was tense, while Philip seemed very friendly with his. It was irritating.
"Ah, Marquis Bloomberg?"
Philip, who had been looking to the side, finally noticed Lewis.
"Greetings to the Crown Prince of the Empire."
"I'm pleased to meet you."
Philip greeted him warmly, like an old friend.
Lewis found his smile annoying.
Was it because Selina had once praised Philip? No. That was a while ago. He just didn't like Philip.
Unaware of Lewis's irritation, Philip continued.
"The Emperor wants to see you. He'd love to have a meal with you, but you're always so busy…"
He laughed as if feeling a bit hurt, making it seem like they were close.
Lewis gave a crooked smile.
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