Chapter 65
The next day, Bartholomew came to see Lucy.
He smiled when he saw her, but he looked tired.
Lucy felt scared at once, wondering if his health had gotten worse.
As if he noticed her worry, Bartholomew spoke first.
“I’ve been busy officially taking over the position of heir.”
That only made Lucy worry more.
He was already weak, and now he had to deal with something so complicated.
“And…”
There was something else bothering her.
She led Bartholomew to a bench and sat down next to him.
Lucy carefully looked at his face, lost in thought.
Won’t people oppose Bartholomew becoming the heir?
She didn’t know much about his past, but from what she had seen, he had not been treated well in the ducal family.
Are there even people in the mansion who are on his side?
Since the Duke of Faraday had treated Bartholomew cruelly, it was likely the servants had also looked down on him.
Bartholomew must be lonely right now.
Was he fighting this battle alone?
Lucy didn’t know that Bartholomew had already killed someone earlier that day.
Just as Lucy suspected, the key servants of the mansion could not accept Bartholomew as the new heir.
Bartholomew found it laughable.
Just because they didn’t want him, did the owner have to change?
If they disliked the master, then they should leave.
To set an example, Bartholomew cut off the head of the butler.
It wasn’t only because the butler refused to follow him.
The butler had helped the Duke of Faraday with black magic.
Because he was deeply involved, Bartholomew executed him on the spot as punishment for breaking a taboo.
This was only possible because Bartholomew was now the head of the Faraday family.
Using a sword was unfamiliar to him.
But once he learned, it wasn’t hard to become skilled.
His body had been weak because of the black magic curse, but he had talent for combat.
Just like how he quickly learned to ride a horse.
It wasn’t a lack of talent—his stamina simply couldn’t keep up.
And he had never been given the chance to show his ability.
Now that those limits were gone, Bartholomew moved without hesitation.
Still, he chose not to tell Lucy any of this.
Lucy had been shocked when she saw him kill the Duke of Faraday.
She had trembled in fear.
Though she said she was worried about him killing someone, fear was clearly mixed into her feelings.
Bartholomew decided he would never show Lucy that side of himself again.
He liked her worrying about him—but he didn’t want her to fear him and run away.
So he didn’t explain anything.
“Bartholomew, isn’t this hard for you?” Lucy asked.
“What is?” he replied.
“Becoming the heir. Some people might oppose you.”
Lucy asked carefully.
Bartholomew smiled.
“I’m fine.”
He smiled to reassure her, but Lucy felt uneasy.
Is he just pretending to be okay in front of me while hiding his true feelings?
Which would be better for him?
Bartholomew didn’t correct her misunderstanding.
Lucy had something else she wanted to ask.
But she hesitated.
It was about Alexander.
Now that Bartholomew had become the heir, she thought it might be okay to bring him up.
But for some reason, the words wouldn’t come out.
It felt like Alexander might be a forbidden topic to him.
I’ll ask about Alexander later.
Today, Lucy had something else she needed to say.
“Bartholomew. I told you I would break your curse.”
She looked straight at him.
“Can you trust me and follow me?”
Bartholomew stared at Lucy silently for a moment.
When she met his blue eyes, Lucy felt unable to speak.
They were too deep to measure.
Then Bartholomew spoke.
“Lucy, if it’s what you want, I’ll do anything.”
He answered seriously.
Lucy felt her face grow warm.
Since becoming one of the male lead candidates, Bartholomew had changed.
He smiled more instead of looking cold, and his tone had become gentle.
The way he treated Lucy was softer than before.
That made Lucy uncomfortable.
It felt like she was being led by him.
Why is that?
Was it because he was saying things he never would have said before?
Lucy shook her head to clear her thoughts.
“Then let’s go. To my room.”
She stood up first and spoke with determination.
Bartholomew followed Lucy into the bedroom of the detached building.
He stayed quiet, calmly looking around her room.
Then he spoke.
“Did you know?”
“Know what?”
“This is the first time I’ve ever been in your room, even though I’ve visited this place so often.”
Now that he mentioned it, that was true.
There was nothing special about Lucy’s room.
She had just never had a reason to invite him inside.
Still, Bartholomew looked around as if this were a rare experience.
“So this is the kind of furniture you like,” he said.
“Not really,” Lucy corrected him.
The room was decorated according to the game’s version of Lucy, not her real taste.
“I prefer something simpler.”
“More than this?”
Lucy felt embarrassed.
Even for royalty, she lived quite modestly in the detached building.
“Yes. I like smaller, cozier places.”
Bartholomew nodded.
“I’ll remember that.”
Remember? For what?
Lucy almost asked, but stopped.
She needed to get to the point.
“Bartholomew. I’m immune to black magic.”
His eyes changed slightly.
“This isn’t widely known, but my mother died after being falsely accused of being a black mage.”
“…”
“But my mother wasn’t a black mage.”
“I believe you.”
Lucy’s eyes widened.
He believed her that easily?
“If it’s something you say, I believe it.”
Lucy felt speechless again.
Her chest felt strangely ticklish, and the sensation was unfamiliar.
She forced herself to ignore it and continued.
“You can tell my mother wasn’t a black mage just by looking at Cerberus. Cerberus is a guardian beast meant to protect its owner from black magic.”
Bartholomew looked down.
Cerberus was showing its teeth and growling at him.
Bartholomew let out a small laugh, used to being hated by Cerberus—then suddenly widened his eyes.
“Then… was Cerberus wary of me because I’m cursed by black magic?”
Lucy nodded.
“He was trying to protect me from the curse. I don’t think Cerberus dislikes you personally. You can tell by his tail. He was just wary of the cursed energy inside your body.”
Only then did Bartholomew understand Cerberus’s mixed behavior.
“As long as Cerberus is here, I’m not affected by curses. So…”
Lucy looked straight at him.
“I’m going to transfer your curse to me.”
